Kareem Choudhry, Corporate Vice President – Gaming Cloud, Microsoft provides an update regarding Project xCloud.

Last fall, we pulled back the curtain on Project xCloud – our game-streaming technology. Our vision for Xbox is that you can play the games you want, with the people you want, on the devices you want. Project xCloud brings us closer to fully realizing that vision. Our teams around the globe have been hard at work, building out and testing the system. We recently rolled out an alpha version to Microsoft employees through our take home program and are using the feedback to make improvements, ensuring Project xCloud offers customers a great experience.

The driving purpose behind Project xCloud has been to enable playing great games anywhere, anytime. From the beginning, our aim has been seamless compatibility. We want to make it as easy as possible for developers to make their games available to all gamers with support for existing games, those currently in development, and future games.

The power of Project xCloud – the seamless compatibility for developers and the new places to play for gamers – comes from Azure datacenters spanning the globe, with hardware that shares a common set of components with our Xbox consoles. We've already deployed our custom Project xCloud blades to datacenters across 13 Azure regions with an initial emphasis on proximity to key game development centers in North America, Asia and Europe. Leading global development teams such as Capcom and Paradox Interactive now have the ability to easily test their games directly from Project xCloud without having to port to a new platform. This is just the beginning of our buildout, with our ultimate goal of supporting gamers in Azure regions around the world.

Today you can play three generations of amazing games on Xbox One. That means that Project xCloud has the technical capability to stream more than 3,500 games, without any changes or modifications required by a developer. In other words, developers will be able to dramatically scale their existing games across devices, with no additional development, no additional code base maintenance and no separate updates. When a developer updates the Xbox One version of their title, those updates will also apply to all versions available on Project xCloud without any additional work."

Xbox Live Gold members can play Gears Of War 4 and The Crew Standard Edition for free as part of this weeks Free Play Days event.

The Free Play Days event begins Thursday, April 25 at 12:01 a.m. PT and runs through to Sunday, April 28 at 11:59 p.m. PT. You can find and install the games here. To download on console, click on the Gold member area on the home dashboard on your Xbox One.

Grab a friend and play Gears of War 4 and The Crew 2 Standard Edition for free during the Xbox Live Gold's Free Play Days event. Experience adrenaline-filled action as you take on the Swarm or the American motorsports scene. Learn more about The Crew 2 free weekend here.

Both games are also available for purchase so you can continue playing while keeping your Gamerscore and achievements earned in-game during the event.

• Gears of War 4 ($39.99 SRP)
• The Crew 2 Standard Edition ($59.99 SRP) at 70% off: $18.00
  • Other editions and content on sale:
    • Deluxe Edition ($69.99 SRP) at 70% off: $21.00
    • Gold Edition ($99.99 SRP) at 70% off: $30.00
    • Season Pass ($39.99 SRP) at 50% off: $20.00

Gears of War 4 is back for an Xbox Live Gold Free Play Weekend. Return to Sera and play as the next generation of Gears of War heroes. If you're new to Gears, go experience the Campaign, compete in Versus or survive the Horde with friends this weekend only. If you're a returning fan, check out the Gilded RAAM Challenge and earn a character skin you can take over to Gears 5!

For more Xbox news & rumors and an always updated list of amazing games coming to Xbox One this year and beyond, follow @XONEHQon Twitter, Google+, Facebook and YouTube, download the free XBOXONE-HQ.COM app for Android and until next time, game on!"

April's 2019 Games with Gold lineup for Xbox One includes: The Technomancer and Outcast: Second Contact. For Xbox 360 owners (and through Xbox One backward compatibility), April kicks off with Star Wars Battlefront II, followed by Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter 2.

Play together with Xbox Live Gold. April's 2019 Games with Gold lineup for Xbox One includes: The Technomancer and Outcast: Second Contact. For Xbox 360 owners (and through Xbox One backward compatibility), April kicks off with Star Wars Battlefront II, followed by Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter 2. April's lineup provides over $109 dollars in value and up to 3000 in gamerscore.

On Xbox One, Xbox Live Gold members can download The Technomancer ($39.99 ERP) for free during the month of April. Outcast - Second Contact ($39.99 ERP) will be available as a free download from April 16th to May 15th.

On Xbox 360, starting April 1st, Star Wars Battlefront II ($9.99 ERP) will be free for Xbox Live Gold members through April 15th. Then on April 16th, Xbox Live Gold Members can download Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 ($19.99 ERP) for free through April 30th.

See last month's Games With Gold here.

For more Xbox Games With Gold Announcements and additional information on all of the games mentioned, check out all of our Xbox coverage, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, download the free Xbox app for Android and until next time, game on!"

Microsoft has announced that Minecraft is making its way to Xbox Game Pass (@XboxGamePass) next month.

Xbox Game Pass members will soon be able to create and explore their very own world where the only limit is what you can imagine. Play on your own, or with up to 4 players split screen, or 8 players online.

Beginning April 4, Xbox Game Pass members can join the Minecraft community of millions of players from around the world. Discover limitless ways to play and create anything you can imagine. Try to survive the night alone or share your adventure with friends in both split-screen or online multiplayer*. Build anything you can think of, explore your own unique overworld, discover mobs (both creepy and cute!) and play your Minecraft adventure your way!

Minecraft will be coming to Xbox Game Pass on April 4 .

With over 100 great games available for one low monthly price, including highly-anticipated new Xbox One exclusives the day they're released, plus more games added all the time, Xbox Game Pass gives you the ultimate freedom to play.

Just Cause 4 and LEGO Batman 2 are available now on Xbox Game Pass with more coming soon.

For the latest Xbox Game Pass news, upcoming Xbox Games, release dates and more, follow @XONEHQ on Twitter, YouTube and Facebook, download the free XBOXONE-HQ.COM app for Android, and until next time, game on!"

If you use your Xbox on a regular basis, chances are you connect it to the internet. In fact, we are willing to bet you use it for much more than just playing video games. Why wouldn't you? Who wouldn't want to get the most out of a multi-hundred-dollar piece of equipment?

Well, if you are connecting your Xbox to the internet there is something you need to know. Digital attacks and privacy infringement can affect you and your gaming system just like if you were using a computer.

This is why it is so important to use a virtual private network, VPN, while connecting your Xbox to the internet. Many users get nervous about trying to figure out how to use a VPN with Xbox, but we are here to show you how.

Before we start, you need to decide which VPN service you would like to use. Check out this NordVPN review others to decide which VPN best suits your needs. Once you have settled on a service, continue on to see how to set up a VPN on Xbox.

Setting up a VPN to Xbox 360/ Xbox One With a PC

Setting up a virtual private network on an Xbox system is simple. All you need is a Windows-running PC and a crossover cable. A crossover cable is similar to an ethernet cable, but it is used to connect to a similar system to one another. These cables are common and can be found in many non-speciality stores like Target or Amazon."