By Kenneth Beaty

The Xbox One aims to improve upon the UI and features of the Xbox 360 while offering features that are more than just games. Microsoft launched the One in 2013 and it’s been trailing behind the PS4 on the global market ever since. Although, the Xbox might be able to make a comeback on the American market.

The Xbox One supports 1080p and a beautiful 60 fps. The games are the smoothest running and smoothest looking then they have ever been. That being said, Microsoft naturally released some remakes of games that run at the new framerate. Some of them include Halo: Master Chief Collection, Rare Replay, Gears of War Ultimate Edition, and more. The Kinect sensor has been greatly improved with better detection and voice control. Kinect is optional in case a player wishes not to use it. Players are able to use their voice to do everything. Snap is a neat little feature that allows players to split screen an app while they are playing a game. Players can snap plenty of things such as their messages, tv, and various apps. Game DVR is completely new. If a player does something in a game that they want their friends to see, the player can instantly save the last 30 seconds of gameplay. Alternatively a player can record up to 5 minutes of gameplay from the start. Xbox Live has always been an excellent service and has been improved. The new friends list allows players to share game clips that they have recorded or screenshots they’ve taken. The new app also shows recent achievements and friend leaderboards. The new friends list helps grow the tight Xbox community even more. Xbox Live can fully connect to a PC, allowing a player to get the same friends list as on the Xbox. A newly added feature allows players to stream their Xbox games to their PC with little to no lag. In addition to all of the existing features, a highly anticipated backwards compatibility is said to be added this fall. A select number of Xbox 360 games will be playable on the One. This feature alone might be a big enough to get Xbox ahead in the American market.

The exclusives define the console. Titanfall, exclusive to Xbox and PC, is an explosive and fast paced shooter where players employ parkour and giant robot suits to get the job done. Deadrising 3 is the newest installment to the Deadrising series. The game shows an uncountable number of onscreen zombies which highlights the technical specs of the Xbox. Of course it wouldn’t be an Xbox system without the staple franchise, Halo. The Master Chief Collection came out in November 2014 and immediately boosted the sales of the Xbox One. The game collects Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, Halo 2 Anniversary, Halo 3, Halo 4. Halo 3: ODST is offered as a $5 DLC. Players can play all the classic campaigns with their friends. The collection also includes head-to-head multiplayer on 4 of the games with all of the classic maps that players love. Halo 5: Guardians will release October 27 of this year. The game will release with a new 24 player multiplayer mode called Warzone as well as a brand new thrilling campaign. Some upcoming exclusives include Crackdown 3 and Forza 6.

The Xbox One can do more than just games. It has an HDMI input port that allows you to put your tv or cable box through it. Having a tv or cable box hooked up allows players to watch tv full screen, or a player can split screen the tv while playing a game. Players can watch football or their favorite show while playing their favorite game. Additionally there is an NFL app, Netflix, Hulu, Skype, and much more including a music app.

The Xbox One is another solid console from Microsoft. The smooth visuals and gameplay is absolutely stunning, it offers highly polished exclusive games, the new menu and features work great, and it has more to offer than just games. The system is not only excels at being a game console, but is built for pure entertainment.

Header image from techradar.com