The XboxCast

#NuNews: Maximum Crunch

We have experienced Maximum Crunch! 
All thanks to some microwave fries... 
 
In good news, the European Union has agreed to let Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard go ahead without throwing a temper tantrum. Take that CMA! And on that note, the CMS had a bit of a Twitter whinge. And everyone passed them the digital tissues and played the world's smallest violin for them. At least it's more exciting than our charts! 
 
Cyberpunk 2077 is getting DLC! And in case you missed it, we have a quick rundown of all the newness. From the unknown release date, to Idris Elba being an NPC, and even car to car gun fights. Looks like we'll be back in Night City pretty soon... Are you as excited as Kyle to jump back in? 
 
Xbox is showing off a Diablo IV Xbox bundle. And while it could have been really cool, its just an Xbox Series X with a code for the game. Nothing else. Like come on! They could have at least painted it red... Which leads Kyle to declare that he's ready for a mid-gen refresh. 
 
Please remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel and watch all our VODs there. We are trying to get our hours up and we need something like 10,000 before YouTube takes us seriously. As very serious podcasters, we're galled that YouTube doesn't agree with us. So, it's up to you guys to help out. 
 
And please remember to leave a review on your podcast platform of choice. It takes 3 seconds and really goes a long way. 
 
--
For everything about the podcast, check out our official website! 
Follow us on Twitter, find all our links on LinkTree and support us on Patreon. 
 
--
Your hosts are:
 
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox and Twitter
Lee: Leehoward on Xbox and Twitter 
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Xbox and Twitter 

#GameFace! Batman Is a Fully Grown Man

Is it content or nonsense? 
Whatever it is, here's 2 hours of it! 
 
Lee got absorbed into the Diablo IV Server Slam. How absorbed you ask? 30 hours and one Ultimate Edition order later... Want to hear how Diablo IV fares on the Xbox? Lee has all the answers. Not so much a Server Slam as a Silky-Smooth Server Experience (TM). 
 
Simone has started Red Dead Redemption 2! Since she is the only one who's managed to finish the first one, who better to give you their thoughts. In her own words it's "like playing a movie", and that is some high praise indeed. But of course, it’s a Rockstar game, so the controls are going to be… interesting.
 
Kyle has entered the galaxy far, far away in Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order. He has opinions. Lots of opinions! A giant frog hiding in a hole is giving him a hard time, and he doesn’t realize that it’s supposed to be a legendary boss… Maybe he needs more Jedi training.
 
All this and more on this episode of #GameFace! 
 
Please remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel and watch all our VODs there. We are trying to get our hours up and we need something like 10,000 before YouTube takes us seriously. As very serious podcasters, we're galled that YouTube doesn't agree with us. So, it's up to you guys to help out. 
 
And please remember to leave a review on your podcast platform of choice. It takes 3 seconds and really goes a long way. 
 
--
For everything about the podcast, check out our official website! 
Follow us on Twitter, find all our links on LinkTree and support us on Patreon. 
 
--
Your hosts are:
 
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox and Twitter
Lee: Leehoward on Xbox and Twitter 
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Xbox and Twitter 

#NuNews: The Thinking Man’s Star Wars

Kyle's in a competition to use all the "only's" in the world. 
And he has just won!
 
Xbox is starting to prep for the Xbox & Bethesda Showcase and then Starfield Direct, which has replaced Xbox's E3 thing that they did. Xbox is going to tell us all about the exciting games we can expect, and updates on games we haven't seen in a while. If you're in Melbourne, you can watch it with friends at Fortress Melbourne. But you have to be specially chosen to wake up at 1AM to be there by 3AM, to sit in a crowded room and watch the live stream. Trust us, it's more fun than you think! 
 
Lee's a bit of a Trekkie, so start to expect more Star Trek news invading our #NuNews episodes... Lee tells us about a famous guy who was in Star Trek is now going to be in a Star Trek game. He's going to be a captain, and you get to chat to him in the game. Lee has all the details if this is your thing. It's enough to get Lee emotional. That deserves an award all on its own... 
 
Hogwarts Legacy has put out a new patch with over 500 fixes as it announces that its earned over a billion dollars! Thats quite a bit of money for a niche game. These fixes seem to fix everything, including that leaky tap in your bathroom. If it hasn't fixed that leak, then maybe wait for the next patch? At least thats our advice. 
 
Everyone on Twitter (read: not everyone) is calling for Phil Spencer to resign. However, we go over what Phil has done and what has pushed Xbox and the gaming industry forward. It's not all doom and gloom and we still have trust in Phil. We couldn't imagine anyone better for the top dog spot. But we are realists here - Xbox needs to be more aggressive in everything its doing to really take the console fight to the others. 
 
Kyle's Game Thing is now called Kyle's Game of Keeping Lee Awake, or KGoKLA for short. Doesn't it just roll off the tongue? We love how super smooth it sounds, and how concise it is. It just tells everyone what they're in for. In KGoKLA, we're introduced to Weird West which has won the game of the week award. An RPG set in the wild west, but with a supernatural twist. Lee nominated this game and if you disagree, then you have to take it up with him! 
 
Please remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel and watch all our VODs there. We are trying to get our hours up and we need something like 10,000 before YouTube takes us seriously. As very serious podcasters, we're galled that YouTube doesn't agree with us. So, it's up to you guys to help out. 
 
And please remember to leave a review on your podcast platform of choice. It takes 3 seconds and really goes a long way. 
 
--
For everything about the podcast, check out our official website! 
Follow us on Twitter, find all our links on LinkTree and support us on Patreon. 
 
--
Your hosts are:
 
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox and Twitter
Lee: Leehoward on Xbox and Twitter 
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Xbox and Twitter 

#GameFace! You Just Have To Look Everywhere

The April Achievement Challenge is now finally wrapping up! 
You can all breathe a sigh of relief.
 
After all the fun we had with Patrons and Discord Boosters getting their bonuses, we can now reveal the winners, the losers and how everyone did. Where did you end up on the leaderboard? Luckily, we have a website for that! Check it out and maybe next year we'll have even more contestants... But it means you guys should share us around and evangelize AAC for us. 
 
Join us as we celebrate the wins everyone had this past month. From losing 6KG thanks to the step challenge, to putting up 60,000 GamerScore in a month, everyone gave it their all, in one way or another. We just want to thank you guys for making it one of our best events ever! 
Now who's ready for #back2YourBacklog? 
 
If you're interested in trying out Ravenlock, Lee has you covered. He spent 2 hours in this game and has nothing but good things to say. Seems like we have an indie hit on our hands here, and surely has helped convince Kyle and Simone to try it out at some point. Lee has also tried Redfall and is left feeling unimpressed, then got distracted with Dead Island 2. And completely forgot about Dying Light. What an adventure! 
 
Simone is trying to get achievements in RED games, thanks to the TrueAchievement Targets this month. And thanks to a game crashing, the whole Cast has their own horror stories of losing progress thanks to game crashes. Sometimes, we're not quite in the future we want just yet. Join us in sharing the pain... 
 
Kyle is obsessed with Dyson Sphere Program, and urges everyone to play it. It's on PC Game Pass, so you have no excuse! If you like building factories, taking over planets, controlling the galaxy and automation, then this game is for you. Build the factory that will build the Dyson Sphere. Then move to the next solar system and do it all over again! Whats not to love? 
 
Please remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel and watch all our VODs there. We are trying to get our hours up and we need something like 10,000 before YouTube takes us seriously. As very serious podcasters, we're galled that YouTube doesn't agree with us. So, it's up to you guys to help out. 
 
And please remember to leave a review on your podcast platform of choice. It takes 3 seconds and really goes a long way. 
 
--
For everything about the podcast, check out our official website! 
Follow us on Twitter, find all our links on LinkTree and support us on Patreon. 
 
--
Your hosts are:
 
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox and Twitter
Lee: Leehoward on Xbox and Twitter 
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Xbox and Twitter 

#NuNews: Just Die At Work!

Instructions unclear. Insulted Lee immediately. 
Maybe it's not quite what he meant... 
 
The CMS has blocked the Microsoft Activision Blizzard merger! We did not see this coming. And on the basis that Microsoft may get too much market share of the "cloud gaming" market. Like what the heck? Everyone thinks this is the complete wrong move, and even Microsoft has published a very unveiled threat about pulling their entire business out of the UK. Could this see the Uk government reigning in the CMA? We wait and see. But whatever happens, we have at least another year of talking about it. 
 
Lee has a conspiracy theory. He seems to think that devs are training us to accept 4K30 as the default for this generation. How right is he? Do you think there's any weight to this theory? Or do you just think the devs aren't very good? All this in relation to Redfall releasing without a 60FPS option. And then Jedi Survivor came out, and it performs better in 30FPS mode... Kyle just thinks that games are all broken. 
 
Hogwarts comes to the Xbox One generation! Now everyone on old-gen can enjoy the wizarding world of Potter. And it comes with more content. Whats the extra content you ask? It's a song. A song is now in the game for everyone. And everyone is HYPED! We wish we could understand why, but no questions here. 
 
Xbox is geting a new home screen and it doesnt suck. It's even amazing that we have to make this point in 2023, but hey, progress! Have you gotten it yet? Have you seen it? What do you think? Do you like your pins as much as Kyle, or like Lee, are you unphased? 
 
Please remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel and watch all our VODs there. We are trying to get our hours up and we need something like 10,000 before YouTube takes us seriously. As very serious podcasters, we're galled that YouTube doesn't agree with us. So, it's up to you guys to help out. 
 
And please remember to leave a review on your podcast platform of choice. It takes 3 seconds and really goes a long way. 
 
--
For everything about the podcast, check out our official website! 
Follow us on Twitter, find all our links on LinkTree and support us on Patreon. 
 
--
Your hosts are:
 
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox and Twitter
Lee: Leehoward on Xbox and Twitter 
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Xbox and Twitter 

#GameFace! AAC’23 Phase One

We're now onto Phase One of the April Achievement Challenge!
Join us in going over the current winners, the current losers and Kyle. 
 
Unlike normal years, we have bonuses to give to the Patrons and Discord Server Boosters. Which means that we get to drag out this challenge for another week. Aren't you lucky! If you're confused at what this means, never fear - Simone is here to explain everything. And we have graphs! Check out our graphs! 
 
At least we're able to figure out who got the most GamerScore, the most steps and the highest ratio right now. Right before the entire leaderboard gets turned on its head. So, who did what, and where do you rank?
 
If you're listening to this and think you can win the competition, then put your money where you mouth is - join our Discord server and jump into our monthly challenges. We run one every second month, and now that April Achievement Challenge is over, we're looking towards June's #Back2YourBacklog. 
 
Please remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel and watch all our VODs there. We are trying to get our hours up and we need something like 10,000 before YouTube takes us seriously. As very serious podcasters, we're galled that YouTube doesn't agree with us. So, it's up to you guys to help out. 
 
And please remember to leave a review on your podcast platform of choice. It takes 3 seconds and really goes a long way. 
 
--
For everything about the podcast, check out our official website! 
Follow us on Twitter, find all our links on LinkTree and support us on Patreon. 
 
--
Your hosts are:
 
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox and Twitter
Lee: Leehoward on Xbox and Twitter 
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Xbox and Twitter 

#NuNews: Take Your Ears, And Put Them In

Lee is the news master.
If you disagree with anything in this episode, make sure to tweet at him. 
 
Xbox Keystone has been shown off again! Spotted on Phil Spencer's shelf, the rumored, then canceled, then spoken about, then may be releasing, device is supposed to be the Xbox's version of the Chrome Cast. Made for XCloud (Xbox Cloud Gaming), this device is targeting a $99 price point. Allegedly. We are sure it's supposed to come out at some point. But it's not released yet. Maybe around E3 time? 
 
Ubisoft+ launched on Xbox. And it's more expensive than Game Pass Ultimate. Like what the heck Ubisoft? What are you even playing at? If you have had Xbox Live Gold in the last 10 years, you'll have all the Assassins Creed anyways... The only thing worth playing, in Kyle's opinion, is Anno 1800 Xbox Edition. But not for $20 a month! 
 
More people are leaving 343i. Could this be good news? Is Microsoft cleaning house? Or is Halo Infinite dead? We wait and see.
All this and more on this episode of #NuNews. 
 
Please remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel and watch all our VODs there. We are trying to get our hours up and we need something like 10,000 before YouTube takes us seriously. As very serious podcasters, we're galled that YouTube doesn't agree with us. So, it's up to you guys to help out. 
 
And please remember to leave a review on your podcast platform of choice. It takes 3 seconds and really goes a long way. 
 
--
For everything about the podcast, check out our official website! 
Follow us on Twitter, find all our links on LinkTree and support us on Patreon. 
 
--
Your hosts are:
 
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox and Twitter
Lee: Leehoward on Xbox and Twitter 
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Xbox and Twitter 

#GameFace! I Talked Like This And Giggled Less

Welcome to The Zoo. 
It's where we keep all our Patrons. 
 
We have an update on where the extra points go for the April Achievement Challenge. It will allow you to put your points into ratio, steps or ratio, and could put the entire competition on its head! Want to get more points? You'll have to be a Discord Server Booster or a Patron. Or both. If you do, you get double bonuses! 
 
In a change of gears, Kyle and Simone start Dying Light! What? Thats not a baby April Achievement Challenge game, we hear you say. No. No, it is not. But it's a great game, was on super special, and you should totally play it. If you disagree, just listen to Simone's review. It will sell you on this game. Can we convince Lee to avoid some baby games and join us? 
 
Lee's managed to get super confused with some controls. Right Button, plus Y, and you get healed? Like what even is this game? Have they never seen a human hand? Or is Lee just getting old?  
 
Please remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel and watch all our VODs there. We are trying to get our hours up and we need something like 10,000 before YouTube takes us seriously. As very serious podcasters, we're galled that YouTube doesn't agree with us. So, it's up to you guys to help out. 
 
And please remember to leave a review on your podcast platform of choice. It takes 3 seconds and really goes a long way. 
 
--
For everything about the podcast, check out our official website! 
Follow us on Twitter, find all our links on LinkTree and support us on Patreon. 
 
--
Your hosts are:
 
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox and Twitter
Lee: Leehoward on Xbox and Twitter 
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Xbox and Twitter 

#GameFace! White Men Can’t Drift

This year's April Achievement Challenge has us all going over different strategies. 
Lee's strategy is to fix one thing and break another.  
 
Kyle is going for pure Gamer Score, ratio be dammed. Lee is going for ratio. And Simone is going for "not being last". All great goals! How will they fare in the end? And where will the other challengers come? 
 
Lee is mastering the art of drift in Forza Horizon 5 and proving to himself that he can do it. Kyle's got some baby games that make no sense. Creatures come out of the darkness and speak to you. Then you feed a fish to a cat. And harvest its blood. Seriously, you need a guide for this game... Simone is probably the only sensible one and playing Her Story. So, we have more good games than bad this April. At least for now.
 
Please remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel and watch all our VODs there. We are trying to get our hours up and we need something like 10,000 before YouTube takes us seriously. As very serious podcasters, we're galled that YouTube doesn't agree with us. So, it's up to you guys to help out. 
 
And please remember to leave a review on your podcast platform of choice. It takes 3 seconds and really goes a long way. 
 
--
For everything about the podcast, check out our official website! 
Follow us on Twitter, find all our links on LinkTree and support us on Patreon. 
 
--
Your hosts are:
 
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox and Twitter
Lee: Leehoward on Xbox and Twitter 
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Xbox and Twitter 

#NuNews: Lee’s Going inna Truck!

Lee's about to spend the day inna a truck. 
And we couldn't be prouder. They grow up so fast. 
 
In this episode of #NuNews, we cover all the latest Xbox News. Some of the highlights are...
 
EA Football Club, or EAFC, is the new FIFA. And FIFA themselves are not too pleased. They sound very jealous that EA is getting all this great PR and everyone is ignoring them. Meanwhile, EA is showing off their shiny new FC logo, and saying things like "the best football game ever" and "you won't even need to eat!". Well, not really, but you know they would be saying it if they could get away with it. 
 
No Man's Sky has gotten another massive update! Featuring new infected sentinels that look very scary, new ships, a new backpack, and a bunch of more new stuff, we try go over the entire change log, but it's just way too big. What a great job Hello Games! You guys have really outdone yourself. Is this enough to pull you back into No Man's Sky? 
 
Square Enix is skipping Xbox. Again. How much money has Sony thrown at SQE to pretend that Xbox doesn't exist this time? But we're simple creatures - if your game is on our platform, we play it. If it's not, then we have so many other games to play. 
And we're back on the Achievement chat. Would you like Xbox to bring out Achievement 2.0 if it meant that Achievements 1.0 were discontinued? Is Microsoft brave enough to leave the legacy behind? It's an interesting discussion, and we're eager to hear your feedback. 
 
Please remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel and watch all our VODs there. We are trying to get our hours up and we need something like 10,000 before YouTube takes us seriously. As very serious podcasters, we're galled that YouTube doesn't agree with us. So, it's up to you guys to help out. 
 
And please remember to leave a review on your podcast platform of choice. It takes 3 seconds and really goes a long way. 
 
--
For everything about the podcast, check out our official website! 
Follow us on Twitter, find all our links on LinkTree and support us on Patreon. 
 
--
Your hosts are:
 
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox and Twitter
Lee: Leehoward on Xbox and Twitter 
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Xbox and Twitter 

#NuNews: Not Lazy. Efficient! (Again)

We value your time, and so, in an effort to be mindful of that, we strip out all the fluff from the news. 
It's not lazy. It's efficient! 
 
We recorded this podcast on First Contact Day. Apparently, that is a thing that happens. And if you never heard of it, then you are in luck - Lee is here to explain it to us.
There's a new Forza inspired controller! It comes with a little wheel that you can pretend to drive your pretend car around. And actually, it looks really good. This could be a game changer for those that aren't into the full steering wheel simulator scene. And you can even swap the button placements! Not a fan of the offset thumb sticks? Swap them out! Want four thumb sticks and no face buttons? Swap it out! The possibilities are endless. 
 
Vampire Survivors won the BAFTA Game of The Year award! Beating God of War and Elden Ring to take the award home. Well done to those guys on a job done well. And finally, some recognition for the amazing game it is. 
The Diablo IV Beta broke a lot of records. Bajillions of player deaths, hours played, demons slayed all add up to a very successful beta by the sounds of it. And the buzz around this game is tangible. Looks like Xbox has a future first party hit on their hands! 
And we finally have an option when we're looking at Storage Expansion Cards for the Xbox! Western Digital have released their own version and it's slightly cheaper than Seagate's one. Now we wait for the rest of the manufactures to release their version, and hopefully we'll be picking up two terabytes for $20! 
 
Please remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel and watch all our VODs there. We are trying to get our hours up and we need something like 10,000 before YouTube takes us seriously. As very serious podcasters, we're galled that YouTube doesn't agree with us. So, it's up to you guys to help out. 
And please remember to leave a review on your podcast platform of choice. It takes 3 seconds and really goes a long way. 
 
--
For everything about the podcast, check out our official website! 
Follow us on Twitter, find all our links on LinkTree and support us on Patreon. 
 
--
Your hosts are:
 
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox and Twitter
Lee: Leehoward on Xbox and Twitter 
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Xbox and Twitter 

#GameFace! We Are a Cultural Experience

It's only been one week, and Lee is already cheating! 
The April Achievement Challenge really does bring out the worst in us (Lee).
 
Today we thank our fantastic patrons! And we gift them their free 1000GS to aid them in AAC'23, in addition to our undying love and adoration. If you're taking part, there is still time to sign up - it's only a dollar a month and it may mean the difference between embarrassment and winning... 
 
As it's April, we have many, many bad games. Kyle is back with Bullet Beat, but it's very unstable. Crashing here, crashing there, crashing everywhere... Have you noticed Bullet Beat being crazy or are you one of the lucky few? 
 
Lee has changed his strategy and has decided to cheat in The Sims. Or has he? That's up to you! Is downloading someone's saved game to fast-track achievement earning cheating, or is it taking advantage of the tools? You need to let us know before April is over so we can either dock his points, or all jump into The Sims and destroy his ratio... But to make up for it, he's gone into Forza Horizon 5 and dived straight into the rally expansion. There's some great ratio there! 
 
Please remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel and watch all our VODs there. We are trying to get our hours up and we need something like 10,000 before YouTube takes us seriously. As very serious podcasters, we're galled that YouTube doesn't agree with us. So it's up to you guys to help out. 
And please remember to leave a review on your podcast platform of choice. It takes 3 seconds and really goes a long way. 
 
--
For everything about the podcast, check out our official website! 
Follow us on Twitter, find all our links on LinkTree and support us on Patreon. 
 
--
Your hosts are:
 
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox and Twitter
Lee: Leehoward on Xbox and Twitter 
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Xbox and Twitter