Microsoft Launches Major Xbox One Update With Custom Gamerpics And Co-Streaming
Microsoft has begun rolling out a new update to Xbox One and Xbox One S game consoles that includes a handful of goodies based on customer feedback. One of those is the ability to upload custom Gamerpics. Rather than being forced to choose from a preset selection, Xbox One gamers will be able to use actual photos of themselves, or whatever they want, on their Xbox profile.
"Choose how you want to express yourself," Microsoft says, though the company also warns to "keep it clean." Any uploaded Gamerpics must abide by Microsoft's Code of Conduct, which prohibits "controversial" content, including pornography, violent content, anything involving sensitive events (current or historical), and so forth. As long as gamers play by the rules—and let's face it, this is something Microsoft will inevitably end up policing—users can upload custom images from their game console, Windows 10 PC, or mobile phone.
The other big feature addition is co-streaming functionality. With co-stream, up to four people can broadcast together to create a shared, multi-view experience on Mixer. Users can invite friends to co-stream and/or join others in co-streaming sessions, all from within the Xbox One system.
"To invite another user to a co-stream, simply select ‘Invite to co-stream’ from their profile, or choose to invite your entire party to a co-stream. To accept, simply hold the Xbox button when you see the invite notification. At this point, if you’re not already broadcasting, simply pull up the broadcasting tab in the Guide while playing a game and select ‘Co-stream your game’ to start," Microsoft explains.
Microsoft also says it is now easier to discover live broadcasts from Club members. There is a new Mixer tab in the Club home page that users can navigate to and get a list of active broadcasts. Easy cheesy.
Beyond custom Gamerpics and co-streaming functionality, the latest update makes it easier to sign into the Xbox One with a single press of the Xbox button, and also adds user generated tournaments for Killer Instinct. Good stuff, Microsoft.
