Xbox’s latest console update is rolling out now to Xbox Insiders, giving players more control over the home screen and saves, as well as improvements to profile customization.
As part of the update, which will first roll out to Alpha and Alpha Skip-Ahead Xbox Insider members starting today, tiles can now be more easily removed from the Recent Games and Apps list at the top of the Home page, including the entire Play History tile. For those who want to hide the home screen and bask in the glory of their background art, a new immersive background mode will let users hide the home page and UI with a click of the right thumbstick, bringing the background front and center.
The update also introduces more control over local saves. With the update, players can easily view, sort, and delete local saves based on size under the new Manage Local Game Saves section in the settings menu, allowing players the ability to free up storage space by getting rid of old or unneeded saves. Previously, players could only delete all local saves, without the ability to pick and choose specific ones. Recent save-game data will still be backed up automatically and sync across devices as usual.
Profile badges aren’t new, but it wasn’t always clear what each one represented. With this new update, detailed information about each badge, including when and how it was unlocked, can be viewed. Those lucky enough to have earned the Day One achievement for playing on an Xbox One on its November 22, 2013 launch day will also score a new Day One profile badge. Other improvements coming as part of the update include nice quality-of-life changes to wishlists that will see purchased games automatically removed from the list,
Xbox CEO Asha Sharma, who took over for Phil Spencer in February, has put an emphasis on console updates since taking the helm earlier this year. Earlier this month, a console update added the ability to include chat audio in game captures, gave users control over cloud saves, and added bigger wishlists. Other improvements added in the last few months include new gamerscore badges, longer character limits for Gamertags, game hubs for Xbox 360 titles, and the ability to play games from the cloud while they are updating.
The updates come as Sharma works to “reset” the Xbox business, laying off 3,200 employees over the course of the next year and divesting from studios like Double Fine and Compulsion Games. Meanwhile, Xbox console prices have continued to rise, with the latest price hike going into effect on August 1, raising the price of the 512GB Xbox consoles by $100 and by $150 for 1TB models.
