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About Nick DePetris

Fresh off stints as the Managing Editor at Xbox Kinect Fans and Steam Game Fans, Nick DePetris is back to rejoin the XBLA Fans team. He's been playing games for the past 22 years, and while getting older has left him with less time to play games, he still loves reading and writing about them. Feel free to reach out to him on Twitter - @ndepetris.
Latest Posts | By Nick DePetris
January Games with Gold include D4 and The Witcher 2
10 years ago

January Games with Gold include D4 and The Witcher 2

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Xbox has announced January’s Xbox Games with Gold, bringing a nice mix of genres to Microsoft’s consoles for free if you’re an Xbox Live Gold subscriber. Starting on January …
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Phil Spencer promises custom themes, background pics and screenshots for Xbox One
10 years ago

Phil Spencer promises custom themes, background pics and screenshots for Xbox One

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On a recent edition of The Inner Circle podcast, Xbox boss Phil Spencer dished on some of the features he’s seen floating around the office. As Phil says, “I …
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Project Spark exits beta
10 years ago

Project Spark exits beta

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After almost a year in Beta on PC and an Xbox One Beta stretching from March through October, Project Spark has finally hit the big time. The game-maker provides …
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Doctor Who skins now available for Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition
10 years ago

Doctor Who skins now available for Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition

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Doctor Who Minecraft Xbox 360 skins

Get ready, Whovians! As of Friday you can now take the form of over 50 of your favorite Doctor Who characters while playing Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition. The skin pack has been in the works for a while, and is available for $2.99 from the Xbox Marketplace. Minecraft is certainly fond of releasing new skin packs, and we can hardly wait to see what fanbase they’ll appease next.

Check out the trailer after the break.

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Revamped guide button menu and mkv support coming to Xbox One with October update
10 years ago

Revamped guide button menu and mkv support coming to Xbox One with October update

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Xbox One October 2014 system update

Xbox’s October update has been announced, bringing with it a slew of highly desirable features. First and foremost is some new functionality wherein double-tapping the guide button snaps a 360 guide menu-esque screen next to whatever you’re playing. This screen gives you easy access to a bunch of options: Friends, Messages, Game DVR, a clock, and a battery indicator. There are also improved options for opening and closing snapped apps.

They’ve also introduced enhancements to the Achievements app, the Friends section, and SmartGlass. The media player has been updated to include DNLA and MKV support for you AV-inclined folks out there, and there is also now the ability to assign devices to individual users and hide games from the library if desired. It’s a pretty massive list, which you can check out here or take a look at the video below the break.

One of the biggest criticisms with the Xbox One is that it undid a lot of the things that the Xbox 360 did right. The biggest issue many people had was that it was harder than ever to access social features like friends lists and messaging. While it has been getting better over the past year, the October update should finally put the nail in the antisocial coffin.

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Halo Channel coming to Xbox One
10 years ago

Halo Channel coming to Xbox One

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The Halo Channel is on its way to Xbox One. Releasing on November 11, 2014 alongside Halo: The Master Chief Collection, the updated Halo Channel will feature Halo-themed programming, …
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Pinball FX2 out now on Xbox One
10 years ago

Pinball FX2 out now on Xbox One

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pinball fx2

The Xbox One version of fan favorite Pinball FX2 is now available to download, and it includes the Sorcerer’s Lair table for free (read our “Buy It” review of the table here). Although it was up for debate for a while, any tables that you’ve purchased for the Xbox 360 version will also be available as a free download for the Xbox One version, provided they have been released. Zen Studios has the details of how to download your existing tables over at their blog. Not sure if you’re interested in a virtual pinball game? Check out the launch trailer after the break!

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Maya revealed for Killer Instinct Season 2
10 years ago

Maya revealed for Killer Instinct Season 2

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killer instinct maya

During an Evo panel on Friday, Iron Galaxy revealed the latest addition to the Season 2 Killer Instinct cast: Maya. IGN has rounded up the details shared during the panel, including some information about Maya’s twin dagger playstyle. Apparently, the daggers will be used in punch-based attacks and can be thrown, but if the throw is missed, the dagger (and its associated moves) will be lost until Maya is able to retrieve it. However, if you’re skillful enough to successfully make a number of throws in a row, the daggers will gain new properties and skills.

Season 2 will be hitting Xbox One this fall, and there’s likely to be plenty more announcements between now and then. In the meantime, take a peek after the break for a full look at Maya’s stage.

Source: IGN, Facebook

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Latest Xbox One system update brings auto-sign in, external storage and more
10 years ago

Latest Xbox One system update brings auto-sign in, external storage and more

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The latest system update for Xbox One rolled out last week, bringing with it a slew of new features. First and foremost are the Gold benefits, including Deals with …
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Below preview: Playing in the dark
10 years ago

Below preview: Playing in the dark

Approximately 30 seconds after picking up a controller to try Capybara’s Below, I was ready to call it quits. Don’t get me wrong – Below was the absolute best thing I saw at PAX, and I doubt that anyone on the XBLA Fans PAX East team would disagree. But a game built on the twin foundations of exploration and discovery is a game that should be played, as Capy president and co-founder Nathan Vella eloquently put it, “on my couch at home with the lights off.”

Into the unknown

It’s not just that the deafening, stroboscopic show floor at PAX East isn’t the best venue at which to play Capy’s latest effort. Below is a journey that players should approach with as little prior knowledge as possible, and figuring out how to play is meant to be almost as much of an adventure as the game itself.

“We have no text. There are no tutorials. There are no waypoints or directors or very little UI of any type,” says Vella. “You explore the island, eventually find your way into the depths, but you’re also exploring: what are the controls? How nimble am I? Why am I so small? Why am I weak? That exploration really feeds every element of the game.”

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