Microsoft has promised to rework the upcoming new Xbox UI after complaints from selected insiders.
Back in September of last year, Microsoft asked Xbox insiders to help shape the new user home interface for the Xbox consoles. This new home interface was supposed to be released later this year for all Xbox players. Fast forward seven months, however, and Microsoft has now announced that it’s pausing the experiments with the home UI in order to prepare for “bigger updates”.
“Starting this week, a random subset of Xbox Insiders in the Alpha Skip-Ahead ring will see some layout, design, and ease of access changes as we experiment with different approaches”, Microsoft wrote late last year. “In addition, we are also exploring options for new game channels and collections when you scroll down that include content that’s curated for you based on things like the games you’ve played or how to make the most out of your Game Pass subscription.”
With Microsoft now stopping experimenting with the Xbox Home Experience, selected Insiders using the WIP versions of the Xbox Home will be returned to an earlier version of the interface. According to Microsoft’s official blog post, the custom setting and backgrounds of these Insiders will be reverted. Luckily, their “new” Xbox home settings will be saved. Whether these saved interfaces will be made available later on isn’t entirely clear.
The reason for Microsoft to stop experimenting with the new Home interface is that it received numerous complaints about it being too “crowded” – we can only attest to this, and really hope that Microsoft eventually finds a good balance between functionality, smoothness, and ease of use.
“We heard from you that the changes to the top of Home did not leave enough space for you to enjoy your backgrounds and that it felt crowded”. Microsoft’s senior product manager, Ivy Krislov, writes on the official Xbox Wire. “We’re working to balance the experience, accessibility, function, and the needs of our community and bring you a great and refreshed Home experience.”
We’ll update you as soon as more information about the new Xbox Home interface for Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S comes in. For now, stay tuned.
