Microsoft appears to be about to unveil a special edition Xbox One S. While the software giant has previous bundled Minecraft with a white Xbox One S, a video posted to Facebook reveals that the company is introducing a limited edition console with Minecraft blocks etched into the device. It’s a mixture of the brown and green you’d expect to see on a Minecraft console, and even the controller is a blocky mix of green and black.
Minecraft fans will love it, and it’s an impressive limited edition if you like custom consoles. An Italian blog first spotted a video promo for the new console on an official Minecraft Facebook page, and Microsoft is expected to unveil it later today at the company’s Gamescom event in Germany. There’s no information on pricing or storage for the custom Minecraft console, but we’ll likely hear about both later today. Microsoft is also expected to unveil a Project Scorpio limited edition version of the new Xbox One X.
The console itself is obviously distinct. The 8-bit style is intentionally reminiscent of the block-by-block nature of “Minecraft.”
Microsoft
In “Minecraft,” you literally build a world block-by-block. It’s a game about securing resources — from dirt to wood to stone to diamond, and much more — and then using those resources to survive. That means building houses, and weapons, and tools, and creating irrigation systems and the other staples of human life.
Thus, the “Minecraft” edition of the Xbox One S is a nod to the very nature of the game.
The reference goes far deeper when you flip the console over. This is what’s known as a “Redstone circuit.” It’s the electricity system within “Minecraft,” essentially.
Microsoft
The idea with this reference is that this the Redstone circuitry that’s powering the Xbox One S. It’s a relatively deep cut, and it’s one that you’ll only ever see when you look at the bottom of the console — a nice, very fan-servicey reference for folks who know. It’s also strong incentive to put the included vertical stand to use (it’s normally sold separately, unbelievably).
Beyond the console, the new “Minecraft” Xbox One S bundle comes with a fantastically creepy gamepad.
Microsoft
Do you see it? How could you not see it?
Yes, the gamepad is a face — and not just any face, but the face of the notorious Creeper. For those unfamiliar, the Creeper is a diabolical enemy in “Minecraft.” You’ll find him lurking in underground caverns, or sneaking up on you when you least expect it. Before you’ve been exploded by him, you’ll hear the quiet hiss of dynamite. And then: Whammo! Creepers explode, of course, thus killing you in one shot. They’re real jerks.
Which is why it’s hilariously satisfying to use their faces as gamepads! There’s even a little TNT box on the back of the gamepad — an allusion to the inner nature of Creepers.
These gamepads are also being sold separately, of course — they cost $74.99 and arrive on September 5.
But maybe that isn’t enough “Minecraft” stuff for you? There’s a pretty fantastic, extremely porky gamepad that’s also available — it’s sold separately for $74.99.
Microsoft
Yes, that is a curly tail on the rear of the gamepad. And yes, that is an amazingly pixelated pig face on the front. It’s sold separately, but also it’s perfect in every way. Whether you care about “Minecraft” or not, this gamepad is probably worth your money.
The Xbox One S in the bundle comes with a 1 TB storage drive, a vertical stand, and digital codes for “Minecraft” and the Redstone expansion.
Microsoft’s Gamescom 2017 press conference was a more casual affair than its usual industry events, which makes sense — Gamescom is Europe’s largest gaming convention for fans, after all. But the company still brought seven exclusive trailers to its 90-minute livestream, all of which you can watch below.
Assassin’s Creed Origins
First up was a CGI look at the next Assassin’s Creed game. Origins takes the franchise way back to Ancient Egypt, something which the copious amounts of computer-generated sand wouldn’t let us forget.
Jurassic World was a big deal back in 2015 … but that was 2015, and it’s 2017 now. Still, better late than never to spin the game off for consoles. Jurassic World Evolution is a theme park-sim style game where players can create their own Jurassic World.
Developed by Frontier (Elite: Dangerous), Jurassic World Evolution’s heading to Xbox One — and PlayStation 4 and Windows PC — in summer 2018. That should be just in time for the sequel to Jurassic World. Fitting.
ReCore Definitive Edition
ReCore didn’t light the world on fire when it launched last summer, but Microsoft and developer Comcept are trying again. The Definitive Edition release brings the game back to Xbox One with some additional content.
Although it’s a separate retail release, owners of the standard version of ReCore can download all of the new goods at no extra cost. When Definitive Edition launches on Aug. 29, all ReCore owners can check out a new quest and robot companion frame, plus the remastered graphics.
World of Tanks
An enhanced version of this multiplayer tank warfare game is in the works for Xbox One X. If you’ve ever played a World of Tanks game — including this one, available on Windows PC and Xbox One right now — you know what to expect. But if you’re a huge fan of tank warfare and 4K graphics, this update’s for you.
ID @ Xbox showcase
Microsoft is going all-in on indie games, something that it spoke extensively about during its E3 2017 conference. Here’s yet another showcase reel of some of those games, ranging from the already available (Tacoma) to the upcoming (Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds).
Xbox One S Minecraft limited edition console
The Minecraft aesthetic isn’t for everyone. Count me as a fan, though — I’m really into this special Xbox One S 1 TB bundle, which includes a special green controller and even Minecraft system sounds, too. Pre-orders are up now, if you want the pixelated console color scheme for your collection. (It even has a translucent case.)
Middle-earth: Shadow of War
This game is all about the monsters of Mordor. There are a lot of them — two minutes’ worth of them. Feel free to watch this trailer through your fingers if all of those creatures are a little too scary for you. At least there’s a friendly dragon to ride in Middle-earth: Shadow of War among all the unfriendly monsters. The game is out on Oct. 10.
Xbox One X Project Scorpio Edition
Microsoft wants you to know that “this thing is a beast.” But it also wants you to know that it liked the Xbox One X’s original Project Scorpio codename as much as you did. The company is bringing that name back with a special edition of the upcoming high-powered console, which includes special detailing and a vertical stand. The words “Project Scorpio” are inscribed in green on the console and controller, which is a nice throwback touch to the Xbox’s early days.
The console is available for pre-order now and goes on sale Nov. 7.
Death Note suffers from an unsolvable identity crisis.
Director Adam Wingard is caught in a game of tug-of-war, pulled by his obligation to the source material and his desire to not make another simple adaptation. That uncontrollable tugging can be seen in the film’s most bizarre moments where the style of one scene juxtaposes the one before it. Death Note switches back and forth between two different movies without pause, creating a jarring effect that rips you from the film’s world.
Death Note is almost a solid B-movie, but considering that wasn’t Wingard or Netflix’s intention, it makes the entire presentation unfortunate. The cat-and-mouse mystery thriller riddled with enticing dialogue that Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata’s manga was celebrated for doesn’t exist in Wingard’s work. Almost every decision or clue is dumbed down for the audience, but that’s not its worst offense. The characters are nowhere near as intriguing, likable or compelling as Ohba and Obata’s conceptions. Death Note ignores its characters, choosing to put its emphasis on the physical horrors associated with the notebook-that-kills instead of the psychological drama that develops around it.
Death Note is turned into a run-of-the-mill American horror flick, and not a good one. It would be one thing if Death Note managed to accomplish its goal of taking another idea and morphed that into an interesting, aesthetic-driven horror, but that’s not what Death Note does.
Death Note is a lazy, unambitious, forgettable movie that lacks any imagination, heart or entertaining values.
James Dittiger/Netflix
The story follows teenager Light Turner (Nat Wolff) and his girlfriend Mia Sutton (Margaret Qualley) as they use a magical notebook gifted to Light by a death god named Ryuk (Willem Dafoe) to kill criminals around the world. Their vigilante escapade catches the attention of renowned detective L (Lakeith Stanfield), who travels to Seattle to help the local police department, led by Light’s father, crack the case.
It’s when Light and L are in the same city that Death Note loses its shape. Wingard tries to incorporate part of the cat-and-mouse game, but seems bored by the necessity to do so. Any time the mysterious aspects of their relationship are introduced, the focus is switched over to a more arresting visual.
Still, it’s the dialogue, the strength that made the original manga remarkable, that is Death Note’s weakest link. The actors cant’t sell their lines in any kind of convincing manner and everything seems rushed. The characters don’t get to develop because the conversations that need to exist simply don’t.
Another of Death Note’s most boggling facets is the absurd number of tropes that appear in the movie’s 90-minute runtime. From Light being the weird misfit who falls in love with the unhappy, misunderstood cheerleader and has to deal with an absentee, uncommunicative father, to the brilliant detective who’s just a little bit off, Death Note is a film full of clichés.
Netflix
It crams them into every nook, huffing and puffing to try and ensure none escape. It’s almost impressive just how many clichés Wingard is able to check off the list, all of which culminates with a winter formal dance held in a high school gym, but it’s just another example of the apathy Death Note is soaked in. Stringing together a series of lazy cliches gives the movie some kind of direction to continue moving in, allowing it to approach an untriumhpant and unfulfilling end.
Death Note isn’t just a mediocre movie, but it breaks the cardinal rule of being unentertaining. There are a few, sporadic moments where I found myself laughing, but it was out of second-hand embarrassment more than anything else. Light’s high-pitched scream the first time he encounters Ryuk is a good example. This isn’t a funny scene, but the awkwardness that surrounds Light is difficult to watch without letting a little giggle out.
I wish there was something to love about the movie, but even its best asset, Willem Dafoe’s Ryuk, isn’t used as well as he should be. Ryuk makes a strong appearance, but then is mostly ignored as the movie goes on. Without Ryuk, Light isn’t interesting enough in Wingard’s version of the story to keep everything on track. His relationship with Mia gets tedious and annoying quick, meaning Wingard can’t even rely on their chemistry to turn to if need be.
When Death Note was first announced, I was worried that not being able to watch it in a theater would hinder the experience. Death Note is a big story and, combined with what Wingard was trying to accomplish, seemed like it could have benefited from a big screen and powerful audio system. Instead, what hindered the movie was the film itself and unfortunately nothing can save Death Note from that.
Months after the Xbox One X was officially announced, Microsoft’s new console is finally available to pre-order. Online retailers are now taking reservations for the $499.99 console, which launches this November.
Xbox One X comes with a 1 TB hard drive, a matching Xbox Wireless Controller, HDMI cable, power supply, a one-month free Xbox Game Pass subscription and a 14-day free Xbox Live Gold membership.
Microsoft has long boasted that the Xbox One X will be “the world’s most powerful console.” The console’s GPU boasts 40 Radeon compute units running at 1172 MHz (compared to the PS4 Pro’s 911 MHz and the Xbox One’s 853 MHz). On the CPU side, there are eight custom x86 cores at 2.3 GHz, 31 percent faster than the original Xbox One. The Xbox One X includes 12 GB of GDDR5 RAM — 8 GB of which is available to developers, and 4 GB of which is reserved for the system — with a total memory bandwidth of 326 GB/s.
Here’s a breakdown of the Xbox One X hardware compared to its closest rival, PlayStation 4 Pro, and its predecessors, Xbox One and Xbox One S.
Xbox One X hardware comparision
Hardware
Xbox One X
PlayStation 4 Pro
Xbox One
CPU
Eight custom x86 cores clocked at 2.3 GHz
Eight Jaguar cores clocked at 2.1 GHz
Eight custom Jaguar cores clocked at 1.75 GHz
GPU
40 customized compute units at 1172 MHz
36 improved GCN compute units at 911 MHz
12 GCN compute units at 853 MHz (Xbox One S: 914 MHz)
Memory
12 GB GDDR5
8 GB GDDR5
8 GB DDR3/32 MB ESRAM
Memory Bandwidth
326 GB/s
218 GB/s
DDR3: 68 GB/s, ESRAM at max 204 GB/s (Xbox One S: 219 GB/s)
Hard Drive
1 TB 2.5-inch
1 TB 2.5-inch
500 GB/1 TB/2 TB 2.5-inch
Optical Drive
4K UHD Blu-ray
Blu-ray
Blu-ray (Xbox One S: 4K UHD)
Xbox One X — the console previously known as Project Scorpio — will be released Nov. 7, 2017.
The Xbox One S is getting a Minecraft-themed bundle, that we already knew, but for those who dig the look but aren’t looking for a new console, two Minecraft controllers will also be sold separately. The controllers are available Sept. 5, and the console bundle on Oct. 3.
The controllers come in a green Creeper theme (matching the console) and a pink Pig design. They are $74.99 each, compatible with the Xbox One as well as Windows 10 PCs.
The console, shown off at the Xbox Gamescom keynote, packs a Creeper controller with a 1 TB Xbox One S, a vertical stand, download codes for Minecraft and the Minecraft Redstone pack, and trial passes for Xbox Live and the Xbox Games Pass. That’s $399.
The designs are slick but that is a premium over what themed bundles are going for now. The newest Xbox One S 1 TB editions run $349.99, some for less, and a standard Xbox One controller is $59.99.
Microsoft’s biggest news out of Gamescom today was opening up preorders for the $499.99 Xbox One X “Project Scorpio Edition,” so it may seem strange why the console’s junior configuration would get a premium-priced bundle, too. However, the $499.99 Xbox One X is best paired with a 4K TV, which some may not have. And a new bundle design sends the message that the more affordable S is still worthwhile.
Microsoft just wrapped up its Gamescom 2017 keynote, announcing that more than 100 games will be enhanced for Xbox One X, alongside nine trailers for games on the console this fall.
