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Xbox.com’s “My Xbox” to be replaced with “Social” section

In a world driven by social media, it’s not a huge surprise that Xbox.com will soon follow suit. In the next few days, say goodbye to the website’s “My Xbox” section, and hello to the new “Social” side of things.

From Microsoft’s Xbox.com blog:

My Xbox is being superceded by the new “Social” section, which not only lets you see at a glance what your friends are up to, but also gives you early access to one of the coolest features coming in the next Xbox 360 dashboard update. That’s right: Xbox.com users will be the very first to try the new Beacons feature, which lets you mark games you want to play with others, making it easier to find friends who want to play the same games.

At the top of the social page, you’ll a group of tiles in the new Microsoft style we lovingly call Metro. Watch this spot for links to Xbox LIVE events, previews of the hottest new items on Marketplace, new video and game releases, Gamer Spotlight, and more. To the left of these are quick links that show you how many friends are online, and how many messages you currently have.

Even with all the new features, the current functionality of “My Xbox” will be retained; you’ll be able to view your Profile, redeem Xbox LIVE Marketplace codes and check your Download Queue. On the main “Social” page, the column called “Friends Activity” will display the most popular games your friends have been playing, as well as who’s playing which title at that time.  On the right, the “My Recent Activity” shows what you’ve been up to in the past little while and how many of your friends are currently playing the games or apps you’ve obviously got access to.

Clicking “Activity” at the top of the “Social” section takes you to the new “Activity” page. The “My Recent Activity” section mirrors what’s displayed on the main “Social” page, but more importantly, shows any titles you’ve set a Beacon for.

Beacons are designed to get you in touch with your friends and fellow gamers to tackle specific portions of co-op and multiplayer gameplay. If you’ve turned on a Beacon, you intentionally want to connect with like-minded gamers with similar goals for a title. This new system has been put in place so gamers don’t have to rely on Xbox messages that may or may not be ignored.

“To set a Beacon for a title that you want to play with others, you’ll just find it in your activity list and click the “Set Beacon” button. You can have up to three Beacons active at a time, and you can optionally add a custom description (such as “From 7-10 pm Pacific” or “Horde Mode!”),” says Microsoft.

Navigating to a game’s specific page will show off any achievements you’ve unlocked in the title, but also any Beacons that have been set for the game.

This all looks to be in preparation for the new, Metro-insprired Xbox Dashboard, (hopefully) soon to be released. What do you think about this new, social side of Xbox.com? Will it be easier to organise gaming sessions with friends, or is this going to be a bit too complicated or tedious for most? You tell us.

 


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About the author

Steve Wright

Steve's the owner of this very site and an active games journalist nearing twenty (TWENTY!?!) years. He's a Canadian-Australian gay gaming geek, ice hockey player and fan. Husband to Matt and cat dad to Wally and Quinn.