Reinforcing our commitment to accessibility New Accessibility Conformance Report site supports customers
Microsoft thrives on diversity because we believe in the power of engaging many perspectives. With diversity and inclusion among our corporate values, we strive to design products and services that work for everyone, including the over one billion people with disabilities. That’s why we are excited to launch an Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR) site to better support customers working toward their standards conformance, diversity and inclusion goals.
Microsoft provides ACRs describing how our products and services support recognized accessibility standards, including Section 508 of the U.S. Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and European ETSI EN 301 549. Microsoft recognizes these standards are a good starting point for accessibility professionals to evaluate technology and enable employees in their organizations to achieve more for people with disabilities. Additional information about accessibility standards and ACRs is available at the new site.
Making it easier to find and analyze ACRs
Last year we made it possible to find ACRs for popular suites such as Office 365 or Microsoft 365, and we wanted to extend this capability to related products. The following improvements will make it easier to find and analyze ACRs:
Alias and name change ACR searching: Our updated Accessibility Conformance Report site now enables “alias” searching for products that are covered but have a new name or technology features. Users also can find “product suites” if they want to fully move to Azure and need to evaluate the entire platform consisting of over 300 ACRs.
Custom reports: To support customers who want to organize our ACRs in a format and order they prefer or need, users can now download, customize and use the XML and JSON formats.
More new features
We’re also introducing a number of new ACR features to streamline common tasks, including:
Quick reviews: To facilitate review of Microsoft ACRs—especially helpful for anyone newer to the field—we have created a summary report to create a simple overview. These summaries can make it easier to digest and gain a broad vision of the product before diving into particular sections or criteria.
Language translations: Section 508 summary reports are in English while EN 301 549 summary reports continue to be available in English, French, German, Italian and Spanish.
Smart mapping: Given Microsoft’s goal of building better platforms and integrated solutions, some user interfaces and accessibility features are enabled by another underlying product. We have created an alias that users can select for “applies to” products without knowing anything about the technology. For example, if a customer wants to evaluate Microsoft Defender for the Internet of Things as a new way to increase security, they can simply search for that term and find the Azure Security Center includes all Azure Defender product user interfaces.
Bulk downloads: With so many ACRs for the variety of Microsoft platforms, another issue has been downloading all relevant documents. To address this scenario, users can select products via suite or custom-select products and download them all as a package.
Our commitment
In addition to reinforcing our commitment to accessibility, we hope the ACR improvements benefit those responsible for evaluating accessibility on behalf of their organizations. We will continue to enhance access and capabilities of our ACR site and look forward to working together to create a more accessible world.
As always, we welcome organizations to provide feedback on the ACR site or direct inquiries about the accessibility of our enterprise products or services via email to Microsoft Enterprise Disability Answer Desk.
In this episode of “Digital Now,” Jenny Lay-Flurrie, Microsoft chief accessibility officer, explains that organizations and executives are beginning to infuse accessibility into their products and services, but often at a slower pace than at Microsoft, where disability inclusion is built into everything. “We’re on the journey, but we’ve got to speed up,” she says.
Lay-Flurrie also discusses why the core principles of privacy, security and accessibility should be equally prioritized within every company, and shares a valuable lesson from her experience: “If you don’t know if it’s accessible, it’s not.”
“Digital Now” is a video series hosted by Andrew Wilson, chief digital officer at Microsoft, who invites friends and industry leaders inside and outside of Microsoft to share how they are tackling digital and business transformation, and explores themes like the future of work, security, artificial intelligence and the democratization of code and data.
For more than six years, Microsoft Research has been honored to develop the Soundscape research project, which was designed to deliver information about a person’s location and points of interest and has guided individuals to desired places and in unfamiliar spaces using augmented-reality and three-dimensional audio. While not a traditional turn-by-turn navigation mobile app, the Soundscape research project allowed us to explore ways that audio can enhance mobility and expand navigation experiences without the need to follow directions on a small display.
Beginning January 3, 2023, the Soundscape code will be available as open-source software, so that anyone can continue to build on, and find new ways to leverage, this novel feature set for the growing navigation opportunities in today’s world. As Microsoft Research continues to expand into new accessibility innovation areas, we hope the open-source software release of the Soundscape code supports the community in further developing confidence and utility of spatial audio navigation experiences.
Also on January 3, 2023, the Microsoft Soundscape iOS app will no longer be available for download from the App Store, although existing installations can continue to be used until the end of June 2023. We are grateful to all of those who have tried and found value in the Microsoft Soundscape app and appreciate all the feedback and stories you have shared with us over the years.
Through the Microsoft Soundscape journey, we were delighted to discover the many valuable experiences Soundscape enabled, from empowering mobility instructors, to understanding the role of audio in adaptive sports, to supporting blind or low-vision individuals to go places and do essential activities for their lives. By making the Soundscape code available as open-source software, we hope the interest and potential continues to grow. Documentation on how to build and use the system from the new GitHub Soundscape page will be shared on January 3, 2023.
Frequently asked questions on Soundscape
Q: What is changing for Microsoft Soundscape? A: It is now time to transition the Soundscape research project to the next phase, where we will share it to allow for broader development. Soundscape code will be available on GitHub as open-source software on January 3, 2023.
Q: What will happen to the Microsoft Soundscape app on iOS? A: As of January 3, 2023, the app will not be available for download. Existing installations can continue to be used until the end of June 2023.
Q: Will the Azure services that enable the Microsoft Soundscape app continue to be supported? A: Yes, until the end of June 2023. Beyond that, entities can build new cloud-based services from our open-source release.
Q: Will user feedback on the Microsoft Soundscape app continue to work? A: Yes, until the end of June 2023. We will focus on bug fixes and repairing service disruptions, but we will not address requests for new features or capabilities.
Q: Will the Soundscape open-source release run only on iOS, or will it also support Android? A: The original Microsoft Soundscape app only supports iOS, and that is also true for the open-source release.
Q: Why has Microsoft Research decided to release Soundscape as open-source? A: As we evolve our research portfolio, it is natural to end or transition some projects. We feel the community can benefit from the novel experiences we developed for the Soundscape research project, and that is why we are releasing the code as open-source software.
Q: What will happen to the Microsoft Soundscape Authoring app? A: Use of the Microsoft Soundscape Authoring app will end on January 17, 2023.
Q: Are other Microsoft offerings implicated in this change for Soundscape or following a similar path at this time? A: No, this change is specific to Soundscape. There is no impact or implication on other Microsoft offerings.
This holiday season, you can play with the planet in mind. In the spirit of this season of giving, we want to share our tips for how you can be kinder to the planet while doing what you love most, playing.
Buying a new device? Reduce your impact with refurbished consoles and ground shipping
Xbox now offers Xbox Series X|S (Refurbished) as a lower waste alternative to buying a brand-new console. These refurbished consoles undergo a rigorous certification process, are tested to confirm they’re working properly, and inspected for hardware and cosmetic quality to deliver the high-quality gaming experience our fans love, while improving the circularity of our consoles.
Buy your console or Xbox accessories through the Microsoft Store and choose ground shipping. Microsoft Store offers the option of free ground shipping (3-7 business days) on eligible orders in the contiguous US, which is a lower-carbon emission solution compared to standard airfreight expedited and express shipping.
Trade-in your used device for cash
If you’re upgrading your own console, you can trade in eligible devices through the Microsoft Store to give them a new life and get cash back. The Microsoft Store Trade-in Program is powered by Teladvance, a company that specializes in electronics reuse and recycling. You get cash back and your used device gets a new home — or it’s recycled in a responsible way. Click here to learn more about this program and where it’s available.
Use the power-saving setting, shutdown (energy saving), on Xbox Series X|S to reduce energy consumption
One of the quickest ways to reduce emissions from gameplay (and your energy bill!) is to make sure you have the latest energy saving features enabled. You’ll use up to 20x less power when your console is turned off using shutdown (energy saving) mode and your system and games will stay updated.
Turn on Shutdown (energy saving) in three easy steps:
1. Press the Xbox button on your controller.
2. Navigate to Profile & system > Settings > General > Power options. 3. Choose Shutdown (energy saving).
Learn more about the environment with Minecraft’s new Frozen Planet II maps.
A recent Xbox survey showed that more than 50% of games played during the holiday season were family-friendly, such as Minecraft. This holiday, explore five amazing Minecraft maps inspired by the new Frozen Planet II television series from BBC Earth. Play as eight different animals, learning what it takes to survive and thrive in some of the world’s harshest conditions. Protect your polar bear cubs, hunt as a killer whale, and gather nectar as a bumblebee in beautiful frozen worlds. The Frozen Planet II maps are available for Minecraft: Education Edition and Bedrock in the Minecraft Marketplace.
Donate Microsoft Rewards points to an environmental nonprofit.
Through Microsoft Rewards with Xbox, you can earn points while you play, complete your Quests and offers, and make select purchases on the Microsoft Store! Players in the United States can donate points in a few easy steps: turn on your console, go to the Microsoft Rewards app on Xbox, scroll over to Redeem, and navigate down to Donate your points. On the web, you can simply visit Microsoft Rewards (bing.com) to Donate. You can then select between one of the many nonprofits, including the three environmental causes we partner with to donate your points. Read about them below:
World Wildlife Fund – As the world’s leading conservation organization, WWF works in nearly 100 countriesto build a future in which people live in harmony with nature. To deliver on this mission, they work to conserve and restore biodiversity, reduce humanity’s environmental footprint, and ensure the sustainable use of natural resources to support current and future generations
Water.org – 1 in 10 people lack access to safe water and 1 in 4 people lack access to a toilet. Water.org is a global nonprofit organization working to change this. They help people living in poverty get access to safe water and sanitation at home – giving women hope, children health and families a bright future.
The Nature Conservancy – The Nature Conservancy is a global environmental nonprofit working to create a world where people and nature can thrive. Their mission is to conserve the lands and waters on which all life depends.
In October, our Microsoft Ignite event drove incredible dialogue around how organizations can navigate a challenging market. Digital perseverance as encapsulated so well by Judson Althoff, our executive vice president, and chief commercial officer, resonates deeply with us across the Azure business and is sharpening how we think of strategic innovation in the face of headwinds.
There’s that word: Innovation. It continues to mean so many things to so many and, honestly, innovation becomes harder to distill amid constrained resources and near-term pressure. As we close 2022, reflecting on our own transformation, we remain inspired by a holistic cloud strategy; one which balances what’s coming around the corner with what lies ahead. Now more than ever, continuing to innovate in the right places is essential to maintaining a productivity edge internally, and strengthening differentiation externally. Your app estate is on the front lines of it all.
Last week, we shared insights from a range of cloud customers who plan to concentrate on migration and modernization plans for business resilience. Now I want to hone in on what kinds of modern experiences are in high demand to help organizations prioritize. Today, we’re releasing our first App Innovation Report, which identifies where digital investments can root innovation in human pain points. It all comes back to what problems need solving and looking at return on investment from another critical angle: the people who technology serves. As different as we are and as complex as our digital world has become, we psychologically seek a lot of the same things. We each value flow, integration, simplicity, efficiency, protection, freedom and fulfillment. By tapping into these common threads, businesses can deliver experiences people enjoy and keep coming back to.
Foundational security and integration concerns rise to the top
This fall we studied over 1,500 people working on the front lines of business challenges in healthcare, manufacturing and retail, and while we spoke to them as employees, we considered their perspectives as patients and shoppers too; the business-to-business-to-consumer (B2B2C) duality to our application expectations is pretty fascinating. Through interviews and surveys in five innovation hubs — the United States, Norway, Brazil, Japan and India — we applied social science to the state of the digital experience. It felt good to take a step back and ask our customers’ customers one simple question: What do you want and need from apps today? The answers surprised us — not because they were grandiose or futuristic but because they were foundational.
Top 16 forces of app innovation: “Promise scores” above reflect a combination of people’s rational preference and emotional passion. Scores are indexed against an average of 100, so scores above 100 represent the most promising innovation areas.
People feel stuck, frustrated and lost because of disjointed apps
People around the world in a vast range of roles expressed the most passion about disruption to their workflow. On the receiving side of apps of all kinds, there’s palpable frustration from having to manually patch together disparate tasks and tools. We learned people are struggling to secure data automatically, to streamline repetitive input, and to have well-informed interactions with others. While we heard desire for immersive technologies bubbling to the forefront, it wasn’t as prominent as pragmatic everyday realities and, from an Azure lens these areas signal opportunities to help advance AI automation, API management and app intelligence. Whether you’re migrating workloads, modernizing or building something new for flexibility and scale, the cloud can architecturally address so many of the trends we found.
Fear of compromising company data weighs on workers too
In the industries we researched, people share their companies’ concerns about data breaches on a personal, day-to-day level. In healthcare, they spoke about pressures surrounding HIPAA requirements when handling patient data. A sense of nervousness about security was also expressed in manufacturing, a highly targeted industry for ransomware, and retail workers worry about their accountability in handling customers’ financial information. Security is so incredibly important to us in Azure, so hearing from the usage and functionality side of this space emboldens us to partner on app development that can continue to advance confidence up and down organizations.
The cloud investments we make and the customization we code affect so many layers of a company and, in the applications space, innovation boils down to experiences people can count on and even enjoy using — it’s one of the most fulfilling aspects of the business we’re in. Well-architected workloads don’t only enable cost optimization, they provide a foundation of innovation where business leaders, technology and developer teams can adapt quickly to deliver secure, intelligent and intuitive apps people keep coming back to.
The need for more meaningful conversations stands out in retail
In light of the season, one industry-specific breakdown is especially timely. We see experience needs rank differently in retail compared to other cross-industry averages, with repetitive input surpassing automatic security, and desire for meaningful conversations breaking through in a way we don’t see elsewhere. Because shoppers today do so much research before visiting stores, retail workers want digital solutions that can help them provide information about product features, pricing, discounts and availability without breaking their connection to the customer. A sales engagement that feels jarring or closed off today could become warmer and interactive tomorrow.
Retail-specific needs: “Promise scores” from retail workers above are also indexed against an average of 100. Scores as high as 141 and 133 indicate exceptionally strong rational preference and emotional passion.
Business leaders agree with worker concerns but need help prioritizing
Rounding out the research, we put our report in front of business leaders — those who choose Azure services and customers of other cloud providers. We also wanted to understand how chief technology, digital and operations officers are thinking about app design, and the themes voiced by workers were equally important to them. So, if workers have unmet needs like this and leadership is aligned, what’s next? Prioritization.
How we each define innovation is as unique as the cloud journeys we’re on but giving app experiences more shape helps us see strategic pockets in new ways and grounds cloud investments in the people who run your business, in the people you’re selling to. What kinds of inefficiencies are draining resources most immediately? Which growth territories will you target to compete? Organizations can’t tackle every app innovation project at once, but together, we can carve out data-driven spots that present the most promise.
Spot the opportunities: People’s rational preference and emotional passion for different app innovation areas are mapped above in the context of satisfaction with existing solutions in the market and relevance in their lives. Clockwise from the top-right quadrant, the urgency of each innovation area is broken out for planning.
One of the many things that drew me to Azure’s business is how many people it touches. When we look at Azure customers like the NBA, H&M or Starbucks, we see how very tangible outcomes are in the palm of our own hands as consumers and suddenly, what the cloud makes possible begins to click no matter who you’re talking to. When I watch real-time data on my Boston Celtics, when I’m able to shop for loved ones in a single click, and I can enjoy an iconic red cup without waiting in line, I am experiencing cloud-first app investments that pay off in spades. From the back end to the front end of app design, we’re reminded that business impact of everything digital is highly human.
On behalf of the Azure team, we hope the App Innovation Report inspires your work going into the new year. And no matter how or what you celebrate, I wish you and your loved ones a safe and happy season.
Source: Future of App Innovation study conducted by Ipsos between July and September 2022 among 1,500 workers in healthcare, manufacturing and retail in the U.S., Brazil, India, Japan and Norway.
Microsoft looks to generate $5 billion in revenue from LSEG and the financial services sector through 10-year strategic partnership.
Today, we announced a 10-year strategic partnership with the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), a world-leading financial markets infrastructure and data provider. Following LSEG’s acquisition of Refinitiv, a market leader in data services, LSEG has differentiated itself in the market with an end-to-end proposition across trading, execution, data and analytics solutions. Together we look forward to empowering the future of financial markets by delivering next generation data, analytics and workspace solutions that transform how firms connect, research, analyze, collaborate and transact across the entire financial markets value chain.
YouTube Video
Organizations across the capital markets value chain are facing an increasingly complex operating environment with macroeconomic headwinds, stricter regulatory controls and traditional revenue sources becoming more challenging. These conditions are putting greater pressure on firms to reinvent business models and do more with less. However, their legacy platforms, siloed information, limits on scale and data overload hinder their ability to deliver the best client experience, insights and tools. This requires a digital transformation approach underpinned by modern cloud and AI technology. LSEG has already started to address these issues for their customers, and through this strategic partnership, we will accelerate that transformation.
Additionally, capital markets run on data and by investing in the co-creation of new solutions, we will capitalize on the incremental opportunity we have together and support clients in their transformation.
“This strategic partnership is a significant milestone on LSEG’s journey towards becoming the leading global financial markets infrastructure and data business and will transform the experience for our customers,” said David Schwimmer, CEO of London Stock Exchange Group.
Democratizing financial markets data Foundational to the partnership will be the digital transformation of LSEG’s technology infrastructure and data and analytics platforms onto the Microsoft Cloud. This will include Refinitiv platforms that power over 40,000 financial institutions in 190 countries with data, analytics and insights across millions of active time series databases, daily evaluations, exchange trades and derivatives, equity quotes and significant research on public and private companies.
With this foundation, we will co-create an open, centralized, financial data platform enabling seamless data democratization, collaboration and new monetization opportunities across the financial services ecosystem. This will unlock new offerings for customers to generate more sophisticated and timely insights.
Delivering next-generation workspace experiences The financial markets community spends a large part of their day working across multiple terminals and platforms, disparate data sets and siloed analytical tools with limited collaboration capabilities. To enhance productivity and time to value, we will work together to co-create an open all-in-one data, analytics, workflow and collaboration solution that will reimagine client experiences for the first time.
This will be realized through the next generation of LSEG Workspace on Microsoft Teams platform that will support in-application rich experiences for understanding trends and analyzing risk and building scenarios while meeting strict security, privacy and compliance requirements.
Additionally, with enhanced Excel integration, customers will be able to create financial models, run data analytics and visualizations using LSEG content delivered in Excel and work seamlessly between LSEG Workspace and Microsoft 365.
The initial focus will be on delivering interoperability between LSEG Workspace and Microsoft Teams, Excel and PowerPoint with other Microsoft applications and a new version of LSEG’s Workspace, accessed entirely within the Microsoft 365 suite, to be added in the future.
Creating intelligent analytic solutions Today, firms can experience duplicated costs and complexity in harnessing the full power of analytics to unlock models that garner intelligent insights for business decision making. To address this need, we will work together to co-create next generation analytics and modeling solutions which are cloud-based and will enable powerful model construction, validation, diagnostics and deployment using Microsoft Azure AI, Synapse, Power BI, Excel and Teams with LSEG’s advanced analytics and modeling capabilities.
It will empower investment bankers, traders, wealth and asset managers, as well as risk, compliance, strategy and advisory managers to run hyperscale analytics models against data efficiently and seamlessly. Built on top of Azure Synapse, Azure Machine Learning and Azure Purview, the new cloud-based analytics and modeling solutions will enable users to expose, share and collaborate across proprietary and third-party data securely and confidently, meeting stringent data privacy, security and compliance requirements, eliminating the need to move or copy the data to another location (which can be expensive, time-consuming and introduce security and compliance concerns).
Additionally, quantitative analysts, data scientists and engineers will be able to build custom models to drive their analysis and decision making seamlessly. Both can help organizations spend less time, money and effort building and maintaining their own infrastructure.
“Bringing together our leading data sets, analytics and global customer base with Microsoft’s comprehensive and trusted cloud services and global reach creates attractive revenue growth opportunities for both companies” said David Schwimmer, CEO of London Stock Exchange Group.
Additionally, we will explore the development of digital market infrastructure based on cloud technology, with a goal to transform how market participants interact with capital markets across a broad range of asset classes.
This partnership represents a significant milestone for the future of financial markets and builds on Microsoft’s investments across capital markets and more broadly across the financial services industry.Microsoft estimates this partnership, and broader market opportunity, could generate an additional $5 billion in revenue for the company over the next 10 years, including the $2.8 billion minimum spend commitments from LSEG for cloud services and support.
Microsoft will also purchase an approximately 4% equity stake in LSEG through the acquisition of shares from the Blackstone/Thomson Reuters Consortium.
“We are delighted to welcome Microsoft as a shareholder. We believe our partnership with Microsoft will transform the way our customers discover, analyze and trade securities around the world, and create substantial value over time. We look forward to delivering on that potential,” said David Schwimmer, CEO of London Stock Exchange Group.
To learn more about our partnership, please see the press release. For broadcast-quality footage, please contact [email protected]. To learn more about our work in this space, please visit our capital markets site.
Today, Microsoft announced it has acquired Lumenisity® Limited, a leader in next-generation hollow core fiber (HCF) solutions. Lumenisity’s innovative and industry-leading HCF product can enable fast, reliable and secure networking for global, enterprise and large-scale organizations. The acquisition will expand Microsoft’s ability to further optimize its global cloud infrastructure and serve Microsoft’s Cloud Platform and Services customers with strict latency and security requirements. The technology can provide benefits across a broad range of industries including healthcare, financial services, manufacturing, retail and government.
Organizations within these sectors could see significant benefit from HCF solutions as they rely on networks and datacenters that require high-speed transactions, enhanced security, increased bandwidth and high-capacity communications. For the public sector, HCF could provide enhanced security and intrusion detection for federal and local governments across the globe. In healthcare, because HCF can accommodate the size and volume of large data sets, it could help accelerate medical image retrieval, facilitating providers’ ability to ingest, persist and share medical imaging data in the cloud. And with the rise of the digital economy, HCF could help international financial institutions seeking fast, secure transactions across a broad geographic region.
Lumenisity HCF benefits
Lumenisity’s next generation of HCF uses a proprietary design where light propagates in an air core, which has significant advantages over traditional cable built with a solid core of glass, including:
Increased overall speed and lower latency as light travels through HCF 47% faster than standard silica glass.[1]
Enhanced security and intrusion detection due to Lumenisity’s innovative inner structure.
Lower costs, increased bandwidth and enhanced network quality due to elimination of fiber nonlinearities and broader spectrum.
Potential for ultra-low signal loss enabling deployment over longer distances without repeaters.
Lumenisity was formed in 2017 as a spinoff from the world-renowned Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC) at the University of Southampton to commercialize breakthroughs in the development of hollow core optical fiber. In 2021 and 2022, the company won the Best Fibre Component Product for their NANF® CoreSmart® HCF cable in the European Conference on Optical Communication (ECOC) Exhibition Industry Awards. As part of the Lumenisity acquisition, Microsoft plans to utilize the organization’s technology and team of industry-leading experts to accelerate innovations in networking and infrastructure.
[1] Speed of Light in Transparent Materials, Matthew J. Parry-Hill and Michael W. Davidson – National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, 1800 East Paul Dirac Dr., The Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida, 32310, Sept. 10, 2018
The Groundedteam and Obsidian Entertainment are very happy to announce that over 15 million players have entered the backyard. When Grounded hit its full release just a couple of months ago, the backyard was swarmed by players looking to see what life was like on a micro level. Whether you’ve been with us from the very beginning, or have only recently taken on your first mite, we want to thank you for being a part of this impressive community.
Since its early access launch, Grounded has been a game that has been built by the community and the full release has not changed that. Thanks to the feedback from newcomers and old friends alike, the team has a special update ready just in time for the holidays. A Holiday Treat will bring in a host of quality-of-life features as well as some exciting new gameplay features and content to help those explore the backyard.
Of the new gameplay features that will make a lot of people happy is the ability for the ZIP.R lines to go up. No longer will players only be able to descend on their ziplines placed throughout the yard as they will now have the ability to ascend as well, helping get to places they want to explore even quicker. There is also a new trap that will help protect your base against invading creatures. When it comes to the base, there are also a host of new base decoration and vanity items coming in this update like new chairs, dressers, half stairs, and even a holiday “tree” that can be displayed during the month of December.
The real big changes come in the quality-of-life updates that the community has asked for. The big one is an additional row of space in the player inventory. This will help for those who like to carry multiple weapon types and armor sets depending on the situation, but also want to harvest and collect everything they can find. And speaking of carrying weapons for different situations, there are now multiple hotpouches that can be cycled through so players will have even more access to items in their inventory without having to open the menu.
For those who don’t want to deal with waking up in the middle of the night, we have changed the way sleeping works so that you will be able to wake up after the sun rises. Fans of spicy weapons can pre-cook their meals as creatures will now drop cooked meat instead of raw. Toasty! And players can now toggle off their own nameplates for everyone else, so games of hide and seek can now commence. But that’s not all! Everyone can now name trailer markers, build from nearby chests and pallets, and labs have received a new “Water Cooler” building so thirst can be quenched on those long lab excursions.
Grounded is available now on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Windows 10/11, and Steam for $39.99. It’s also available with Xbox Game Pass, PC Game Pass and Xbox Cloud Gaming (Beta). To learn more about Grounded and for full details on the Holiday Treat update, check out the latest Developer Vlogs on the Obsidian YouTube Channel or visit the official website.
Grounded
Xbox Game Studios
☆☆☆☆☆636
★★★★★
$39.99$31.99
Xbox One X Enhanced
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The world is a vast, beautiful, and dangerous place – especially when you have been shrunken to the size of an ant. Explore, build, and survive together in this cooperative survival-adventure. Can you thrive alongside the hordes of giant insects, fighting to survive the perils of the backyard? Uncover the mysteries while playing through the story!
How did you wind up so small? Who did this to you? How do you go home? These are all answers you will uncover as you play through the story. Solo or with friends – anytime!
You can face the backyard alone or together, online, with up to three friends. Not only that, but with the Shared Worlds feature, you can continue to play in your shared world even if the original host is not on, with all your progression saving! (Online console multiplayer requires Xbox Game Pass Ultimate or Xbox Live Gold, sold separately.) Nowhere is safe – not even your base.
Creatures can be found roaming the yard in a multitude of environments, such as the depths of the pond, the caverns of the termite den, and even the sweltering heat found in the sandbox. You can even attract them to different places in the yard by activating the MIX.R devices. However, the more you interfere with the creatures in the yard, the higher the chance that they come knocking at your own door, so you better prepare. Play true to your playstyle!
Use the in-game customization systems such as Mutations and Milk Molars to activate the bonuses and perks you want for your character. Not only that, but craft and upgrade your armor and weapons to give your character the stats and advantages you need in order to take on the perils of the backyard. It’s time to go big, or never go home!
Earlier tonight, the creative and technical excellence of the video game industry was on full display during The Game Awards. Hosted by Geoff Keighley and featuring guest presenters like Al Pacino, Rahul Kohli, Halsey, Keegan-Michael Key, and many others, it proved to be an exciting event where we were all able to take a moment and celebrate all thing gaming.
This evening’s show honored a unique group of game developers, celebrated players, and recognized excellence with many awards being handed out in categories like Game of the Year, Best Sim/Strategy Game, Best Action/Adventure Game, Best Sports/Racing Game, and others. Xbox is grateful to have had As Dusk Falls winning for Games for Impact and nominated for Innovation in Accessibility, and Starfield for Most Anticipated Game. You can see the full list of winners and nominees here on the official site for The Game Awards.
Tunic Nominated: Best Indie, Best Action/Adventure, Best Debut Indie
It was also an exciting night of news and reveals of upcoming games that are coming in 2023 and beyond. Below is a recap of some of the most notable news to come out of tonight’s show:
The Force is strong in Star Wars: Jedi Survivor with explosive new trailer We were treated to an explosive new trailer for the upcoming Star Wars: Jedi Survivor tonight at The Game Awards, along with the confirmation that Cal Kestis will return March 17, 2023, on Xbox Series X|S! Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and EA Play members can catch up on Cal’s previous adventures in Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and get all the Deluxe Edition content as a Perk from December 9 through January 20.
You can pre-order Star Wars Jedi: Survivor now on the Xbox Store to receive exclusive cosmetic items to outfit Cal with, like the Obi-Wan Kenobi inspired Jedi Survival Cosmetic Pack. Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and EA Play members can enjoy a 10% discount on pre-orders. Check out our latest preview here on Xbox Wire and stay tuned for even more information in the lead up the launch of Star Wars: Jedi Survivor on Xbox Series X|S.
Fall Guys and Fortnite kick off celebration featuring Gears of War characters Fall Guys is set to welcome another set of legends from the video game pantheon into the Blunderdome. Developed in conjunction with The Coalition, Marcus Fenix and Gears of War franchise favorites Kait Diaz and General RAAM are set to proudly take their place among the Bean Horde. In addition, Marcus Fenix and Kait Diaz will be returning to the Fortnite Battle Royale Island this week alongside more items from the Delta One Set. Check out our Xbox Wire article from earlier today here for full details.
Company of Heroes III is bringing the battle home to console Relic Entertainment and Sega announced they’re bringing the acclaimed tactical gameplay of Company Heroes III to Xbox Series X|S next year. Built from the ground up for console, it will feature a unique tactical pause feature (think XCOM: Enemy Unknown) along with a dynamic campaign map featuring theaters of war in Italy and North Africa. As big fans of the original games on PC, we’re extremely excited to see more of this in action. We’ll have more to share soon about Company Heroes III here on Xbox Wire.
Remnant II emerges from the ashes with first-look trailer Gearbox SF (formally Perfect World) and Gunfire Games revealed that a sequel is in the works to the best-selling game, Remnant: From the Ashes, that pits the last remnants of humanity against the harrowing forces of evil. Remnant II aims to evolve the co-op survival shooter formula with new unseen worlds filled with deadly surprises and encounters when it comes to Xbox Series X|S in 2023. We’ll have more to share soon on Xbox Wire about Remnant II so stay tuned.
First gameplay reveal of Dune: Awakening We got to witness the epic scale of the upcoming Dune: Awakening in a world-first reveal. The new gameplay trailer showcased the open world survival MMO taking place within the rich universe of Frank Herbert’s Dune, where players can look forward to searching for water, building shelters to withstand deadly storms, and battle for control of spice on the planet Arrakis. If this sounds fun to you, sign up for the beta here at duneawakening.com.
Retro-futuristic sci-fi platformer Replaced coming to Xbox Game Pass in 2023 Earlier this year, Coatsink and Thunderful made the difficult decision to postpone Replaced. Since the announcement, Sad Cat Studios have been able to regroup and resume work on the game. Tonight, the team shared a glimpse of what they’ve been up to with a brand-new trailer that took a closer look at the game’s world, combat, and music. We’re also excited to reveal that Replaced will be coming to Xbox Game Pass in 2023. Learn more about this exciting new title here on Xbox Wire.
Crash Team Rumble Announced Heroes and villains of the Crash Bandicoot universe will converge in Crash Team Rumble, facing off in an epic 4v4, team-vs-team Wumpa-collecting, island-hopping championship. Check out the reveal here, which aired during The Game Awards.
Prepare to explore the dangerous world of Regnas in Blue Protocol Become the hero of your very own fantasy adventure in Bandai Namco and Amazon Games’ Blue Protocol, an upcoming free-to-play online action RPG arriving in 2023. Explore the beautiful and dangerous world of Regnas in an immersive experience with deep character customization and action-packed combat. Learn more about Blue Protocol here on Xbox Wire.
New gameplay reveal of Space Marine 2 Hard to believe it has already been a year since the big reveal of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2. Tonight, we were served the first extended look at all that gloriously violent Space Marine goodness that made the original game such a thrill to play.
Focus Entertainment shows off Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden Following the success of narrative RPG Vampyr, Focus Entertainment and Don’t Nod revealed a new collaboration tonight to bring one of their most ambitious projects to date with the announcement of Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden. The world premiere reveal trailer showcased the hallmarks of a striking art direction, strong characters and plot, as well as a unique fantasy world. Check out the trailer here.
Get ready to get down with Party Animals in early 2023 with Xbox Game Pass Get ready to join the party in early 2023 on Xbox and Windows! Party Animals is a physics-based multiplayer game where you’ll face off against your friends as one of several fuzzy fighters, brawling across multiple modes and maps using a variety of hilarious, over-the-top weapons. Check out the latest trailer here from The Game Awards and stay tuned to Xbox Wire for more details in the lead-up to its day one launch with Xbox Game Pass in 2023.
Wild Hearts kicks off pre-orders alongside the reveal of the Deathstalker Ready to try your skills and your luck against giant beasts like Wild Hearts’ Deathstalker? Join the hunt on February 17, 2023, by pre-ordering the Karakuri Edition now on the Xbox Store and you’ll be sure to leave a lasting impression on your fellow hunters. It includes the base game and six exclusive items. We’ll have more to share soon here on Xbox Wire about Wild Hearts and the Deathstalker.
Enter a ‘90s action movie with Crime Boss: Rockay City 505 Games showed off Crime Boss: Rockay City, an organized crime game, which centers around one Travis Baker (Michael Madsen) who attempts to claim the underworld throne of Rockay City through a series of turf wars, robberies, side stories, playable solo or with friends. The game also looks to be channeling ‘90s action movies by landing a stellar cast that includes Michael Rooker, Kim Basinger, Danny Glover, Damion Poitier, Danny Trejo, and Vanilla Ice (what?!) and the legendary Chuck Norris. We’ll have more to share soon about Crime Boss: Rockay City here on Xbox Wire.
New Hellboy game revealed Revealed tonight at The Game Awards, Hellboy Web of Wyrd is a rogue-lite action-adventure game with an original story created in partnership with Dark Horse Comics and creator Mike Mignola. Featuring monstrous toe-to-toe brawling, you can look forward to chaining together hard-hitting melee and ranged attacks to fight a diverse array of increasingly nightmarish enemies. Check out the reveal trailer above.
Meet Your Maker starts construction in spring 2023 Meet Your Maker is nearly ready to hand over the keys to its post-apocalyptic wasteland with its just-revealed launch of Spring 2023.This building-and-raiding game will be completely driven by user-generated content. Rather than designing a standard FPS experience, Behaviour Interactive is offering up a devious toolbox of blocks, traps, guards, and more, inviting players to create their own experiences and challenge each other. We’ll have more to share soon about Meet Your Maker here on Xbox Wire.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II shows off Raid Episode 01, Coming December 14 We got our first look at Raid tonight, set to make its debut in Modern Warfare II starting mid-season on December 14. A squad of three players will need to work as one to successfully infiltrate a hidden submarine dock within the borders of Urzikstan and Al Mazrah. Complete the first episode to unlock the new operator, Gaz. You can check out the Raid Episode 1 Trailer reveal trailer above.
The secret to holiday shopping is finding the right gift – and the secret to finding the right gift online is using the right tool, like Microsoft Bing. Bing gives back time and value, making it faster and easier for you to go from searching to finalizing your holiday shopping.
Looking for some inspiration? Search for “Gift ideas” with Bing and – like many search engines – you will be rewarded with millions of results. But from there, Bing helps you cut through the clutter by providing categories of trending products that can help guide your search for that perfect gift. Looking for something for Ages 2-5 years, or for Preteens? Something for Techies or Travelers? Animal Lovers, or Cooks & bakers? Explore any of these topics to find subgroups to help you refine your search even further (phone tripods, for example, under the Travelers category.) These, and other, Bing categories can save you time and provide some much-needed inspiration when millions of gift ideas are just too much to handle.
Need more? Click the “See more” button to see gift guides from top publishers or go directly to the popular stores’ holiday departments.
If you are in the US, click on “Holiday Deals” (2nd card on top) to check the extracted deals from your favorite brands’ Holiday Catalogs.
And Bing can save you time by enabling users to explore the catalog before jumping over to the merchant’s website. We’ve also added hot spots within the flyers themselves which will take you directly to the merchant to make a purchase!
Last but not least, Bing can help save you money by making it easy to find and use online coupons. Bing provides coupon information neatly nested within your search results, without the need to install a browser extension or plugin (third-party cookies must be enabled.) Being visible within the search results is a great reminder for those of us that sometimes forget. And for those who never forget, no more scrambling to find a coupon when you are ready to check out!
The holiday season is a busy time for everyone. Rather than taking the time to visit individual online retailers, shoppers can find inspiration, in one place, with Microsoft Bing. Bing’s built-in search features not only help you save time and money, they will also help you find the gift that you didn’t know you were looking for!
* Illustrations depict previously captured search results which may contain expired pricing and expired promotional offers. Sellers participating in our shopping program provide product information including pricing and features, but Microsoft is not compensated for the search results. To learn more about product listings across Microsoft go to https://account.microsoft.com/privacy.
