Microsoft officially reveals the long-awaited console, named Xbox One X, which is slated to release worldwide November 7th, 2017. Packing impressive technical specifications, the console includes a CPU/GPU combo capable of delivering 6 teraflops of computing power, 12GB of GDDR5 RAM, and 1TB of storage, sticking true to the long-speculated 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray disk driver and true delivery of 4K gaming cont

It’s in no way surprising that the mantra of "…but what do I do?" or variations thereupon, has lingered over Sea of Thieves like a pungent-but-irremovable odor. While there was always a strong case that there’d already been a fair amount of intrigue built up for what Rare — proper Rare that is, not Kinect Sports-shackled "Rare" — was cooking-up, prior to and since its reveal back at E3 2015 (which admittedly garnered somewhat of a deflated "eeeeeehhhhhh" reaction from yours truly), details pertaining to its content, its progression, its finer details outside of an odd sample of footage and some rather unfunny plodding through voluntary player commentary, have been somewhat conserved. For what purpose though; after all, you and I both know Microsoft need all the good marketing they can get their hands on if they’re to give Xbox a reasonable chance in 2018.

If you've ever wanted to glaze over a truly beautifully crafted MMO, you can definitely do so with Perl Abyss and Kakao Games' Black Desert Online , which is headed to consoles sometime early next y

According to Rare, the studio wants to offer a balanced experience that's equal in almost every facet. In practice, that means a game with full feature parity, but more than that it means an equal playing field from day one. So Rare also says they're planning on launching Sea of Thieves day and date on both console and PC, with launch still on track for early 2

How far will the trading concept go, will the cosmetic and customization sides be pushed, Seaofthievesfans.Com will the jolly and co-operative nature of fulfilling objectives flourish when it comes to buddying up with fellow players? That is, when the match-making is (and hopefully will be) better fortified. Without question, there’s a pull in Sea of Thieves that will win even the most jaded of lone wolves over, but is life at sea (and just the sea) enough of a justification? I commend Sea of Thieves for its attractive proposal, but with such a lacking world and over-reliance on random encounters, let’s just say Rare haven’t quite convinced me wholeheartedly on this concept just yet.

Is this a game of substance or a game of potential -- clambering to the hope that players will "just make their own fun?" Yes, there’s a little silliness and due reactionary disbelief as you watch your ship sink beneath the ocean as a swell of string arrangement signal open water once more being the most terrifying concept in existence (especially at night), but these are unintended accidents outside the supposed "bulk" of the game’s content. When you seemingly have more engagement in the surprisingly-detailed ocean physics — rather than the focal content on show — well then that’s a problem. And in Microsoft’s/Xbox’s case, a big problem.

Imagine taking the spirit of adventure from The Goonies, combining it with the immersive shared world experience found in the game Journey, and transplant it to a pirate ship. The result is what Rare is attempting to create with their next major game Sea of Thieves, which is a massive multiplayer pirate game . MMPG is not a recognized term in the gaming world, but it is basically what it sounds like. A group of friends get together on a pirate ship and do pirate things together. This can include exploring the seven seas, going on hunts for buried treasure, going to battle with other pirate ships, or just enjoying a rowdy booze cruise on the ship drinking and making music.

It may arguably be Microsoft's best E3 conference of this generation as they not only introduced a sleeker and tenacious console, but games and release dates that fans were anticipating. Check out the recap of today's announcements be

This isn't the first time that Rare has talked about cross-play for Sea of Thieves , however. Earlier this year, when Rare first activated the closed alpha on PC, the team decided to try out cross-play just to see how it felt. Executive Producer Joe Neate called the experience "magical," explaining that it led him to question why any game would split player bases. But questions about balance and fairness prevented Rare from making it official straight away, however the more the studio considered cross-play, the more it realized there was no good reason not to include

From the trailers and listening to the developers, this does not seem like a typical MMO. There will be some lore in the world as well as predesigned quests to embark on, but this appears to be a more player character driven experience. There are no legendary heroes such as Captain Blackbeard, nor is there one single campaign that will play the same for everyone. The players will become the legendary heroes based on their individual exploits, and the continued involvement will help the game world's lore evolve. Everyone is meant to have a unique and different experience that is more shaped by the scallywags on their crew than by scripted in game events or AI bots. If another pirate ship is seen on the horizon, that is another crew controlled by other players coming into your world. This can be an opportunity to bond with your crew members by unloading your cannons on them, or if you are a friendly group of pirates perhaps meet up with the new crew to consume barrels of rum together.