April’s Games For Gold Confirmed. Include Ryse, Walking Dead

I usually don’t post the Games With Gold until the beginning of the month but seeing as April’s games are already confirmed, I thought I’d treat everyone to a nice surprise.

The April lineup is one of the best in recent memory in my opinion. Ryse: Son of Rome will be free all month long on Xbox One. The other game on the console is The Walking Dead: Season Two, which includes all five episodes, which will go free from April 16 through May 15.

On the Xbox 360 side of things, Xbox Live Gold subscribers will be able to get a free copy of Darksiders from April 1-15 while Assassin’s Creed: Revelations will be free during the second half of the month, from April 16-30.

You can still pick up some of the March games. Heavy Weapon is free on Xbox 360, while Xbox One owners can download the multiplayer shooter Evolve and the horror game Layers of Fear.

Xbox One Gets Huge And New Features

Microsoft revealed some of the huge new features coming to Xbox One.

Xbox One Insider members will soon have access to the new features launching as part of the next update. This includes a new Arena tournament mode, which was created by ESL and is powered by Xbox Live. The new update also gives users the freedom to use custom profile pictures, as well as the ability to pin posts, hide posts and filter them. Your profile will also display your tournament history, as well as any future tournaments you’re planning to participate in.

Other useful Xbox One firmware update features include…

• In ‘My Games and Apps,’ we’re adding the ability to filter your game library by platform – Xbox One and Xbox 360.
• Captive Portal support for wireless internet is coming to Xbox One, which allows for Wi-Fi authentication through a browser. Great for colleges, hotels, or public Wi-Fi locations.
• In the Settings, we’re adding the ability to select Kinect auto-zoom for Beam and Twitch broadcasts, as well as for the Skype app.
• On the Xbox app for Windows 10, we’re adding the option to select the audio input and output sources for Party chat.

The news comes ahead of the Games with Gold April 2017 reveal, which could take place later this week. March was a bumper month for the Games with Gold scheme, featuring the likes of Layers of Fear and Evolve Ultimate Edition. And while Layers of Fear will be removed from the roster of free titles by the end of the month, Evolve will remain downloadable until April 15.

Free Is Always Better. March’s Games With Gold For Xbox One And Windows 10

Here’s the full list of Games With Gold that will be available for March.

Project Cars Digital Edition

Discover an unrivaled immersion fueled by world-class graphics and handling that allows you to truly feel the road. Create a driver, pick from a huge variety of motorsports and write your own tale in a sandbox career mode. Featuring an unprecedented track roster, a ground-breaking dynamic time of day & weather system as well as deep tuning & pit stop functionality, Project CARS leaves the competition behind in the dust.

Layers Of Fear

Delve deep into the mind of an insane painter and discover the secret of his madness, as you walk through a vast and constantly changing Victorian-era mansion. Uncover the visions, fears and horrors that entwine the painter and finish the masterpiece he has strived so long to create.

Borderlands 2

A new era of shoot and loot is about to begin. Play as one of four new vault hunters facing off against a massive new world of creatures, psychos and the evil mastermind, Handsome Jack. Make new friends, arm them with a bazillion weapons and fight alongside them in 4 player co-op or split-screen on a relentless quest for revenge and redemption across the undiscovered and unpredictable living planet.

Evolve Ultimate Edition

Winner Of The Prestigious “Game Of Show” Award At Both E3 2014 & Gamescom 2014, Join The Hunt With The Deepest And Most Diverse Selection Of Hunters And Monsters To Choose From In The Most Complete 4V1 Hunting Experience Yet.With 20 Hunters, 5 Monsters, 16+ Maps, And 5 Game Modes To Play, No Two Hunts Will Ever Be The Same. It’S Survival Of The Fittest And Any Side Can Win. Choose Your Side.Includes: Evolve Main Game, The Monster Expansion Pack, Hunting Season 1, And Hunting Season 2. 4V1: Team up with 3 friends to hunt a powerful evolving beast or go it alone as the Monster.

Heavy Weapon

Sure, you can defend our way of life for free. For a while. But if you’re serious about liberty and committed to dealing out gigajoules of destructive power, there’s only one way to go.

 

No Black Ops 2 Yet; Hitman And Rage Make BC Lineup

Call of Duty fans were given some news on the possibility of seeing Black Ops II added to the Xbox One‘s backwards compatibility list this week, but it wasn’t good news.

Microsoft‘s Phil Spencer put to bed any rumours that the game would be revealed this week, indicating reports were “not true.” In addition to this, a fan tweeted at Spencer and asked if Black Ops II might be added later this month, but Spencer said he can’t share that kind of information.

Black Ops II is the most-requested game for backwards compatibility on the Xbox Feedback site right now with more than 211,000 votes. There are already four Xbox 360 Call of Duty games playable on Xbox One: Call of Duty 2, Call of Duty 3, Call of Duty: Black Ops, and Call of Duty: World at War.

In addition to that news,  Hitman: Absolution, while id Software shooter Rage, which was already Backward Compatible, is finally available to purchase digitally on the Xbox One store. Both games join the likes of LEGO Indiana Jones, Grand Theft Auto IV and Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City which were added earlier this month.

Free Is Always Better. February’s Games With Gold For Xbox One And Windows 10

Here’s the full list of Games With Gold that will be available from February 1st to the 28th via Thurrott.com

Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime: February 1 to February 28 

Use teamwork to triumph over the evil forces of Anti-Love. Deep space is a dangerous place, but you don’t have to face it alone as you take control of turrets, lasers, shields and thrusters to smash your enemies into space dust.

Project Cars Digital Edition: February 16 to March 15

Project CARS is the ultimate driver journey! The digital edition of Project CARS includes the Limited Edition upgrade DLC pack, unlocking 5 legendary cars drivable in any game mode and showcased with special one-make series within your career!

Monkey Island 2: Special Edition: February 1 to February 15

More Pirates! More Adventure! More Monkeys! Relive the second hilarious swashbuckling misadventure of the wannabe pirate Guybrush Threepwood as he searches for the lost treasure of Big Whoop, attempts to win back the beautiful Elaine Marley and takes on the now evil zombie pirate, LeChuck! Monkey Island 2 Special Edition: LeChuck’s Revenge faithfully re-imagines the original classic in signature special edition detail. Plus, interact with the world of Monkey Island like never before with new direct-character controls, an interactive object highlight system, behind the scenes art viewer and creator commentary featuring the original developers of Monkey Island 2: LeChuck’s Revenge!

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed: February 16 to February 28

The Star Wars saga continues in Star Wars: The Force Unleashed! Take on the role of Darth Vader’s “Secret Apprentice” in a new chapter of the saga set during the largely unexplored era between Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith and Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope. Unleash over-the-top Force powers and devastating attack combos on enemies with unique behaviors and reactions every single time you play.