As E3 Closes Microsoft Reveals July Xbox One Update

Microsoft may have (wisely) only focused on games in their E3 2014 conference, rather than talking about hardware and firmware – but now that E3 is coming to a close, they are more than happy to discuss the new features that we can expect from the July Xbox One update, as their development team continues to “listen to what the fans want”.

In the July update, users will see:

• Snap Mode for Achievements. As we showed at our E3 Green Carpet event before the show, we’re offering an easier way to track and view your achievements in the moment. With Achievement Snap, you can track your achievement progress in real time without ever leaving the game. You can also ‘Get Help’ on any Achievements you’re struggling with. Xbox will scan the web for you and deliver relevant tips and strategy content right to your TV.
• Double-tap to Snap. Double-tap the button on your controller to bring up Snap Center, where you can launch Achievements or any other snap-able app, without leaving your game. Already have an app snapped? Double-tap quickly switches between your game and the snapped app.
• Choice of Spoken Language. Folks in New Zealand, Ireland and Austria, with this update in July, will be able to select voice control using the English or German voice models from other countries. And if you’re an expat in an English-speaking country, you, too, can choose any of the other English language models that fit you.
• Future Digital Bundles and Compilation Discs. We’re doing some work now so that publishers will have options for great digital bundle and disc compilation offerings in the future. As we test this feature, we’ll be seeing more flexible combinations of game titles and game content.
• ‘Like’ Game DVR clips. We’re adding the ability to ‘Like’ all your favorite Game DVR clips as well as activity feed items in SmartGlass.

It is great to see that the system for Achievements is being re-vamped, as the Xbox One system was a big step backwards from what we were used to with checking Achievements on-the-fly using the guide button on Xbox 360. It IS good to see that Microsoft really are listening to what the gamers want, and shaping the evolution of their console that way.