Xbox Series X just got a neat free update

The Xbox Series X is easily among the best consoles right now and with good reason: after a fallow period, Microsoft has come out swinging, seeking to compete with the Sony PlayStation 5.

As with everything that runs on software, the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S have had some annoying issues that crop up, usually at the margins.

One of them was a long-running issue that caused Xbox games to not launch properly when requiring an update, a fairly common occurrence. Users were left looking at a dead screen, wondering what was going on.

Now, Xbox's engineering lead Eden Marie has posted some excellent news: Xbox Alpha (and soon Alpha Skip Ahead Insiders) are getting a neat free update that introduces a new dialog box in such circumstance, rather than just a blank screen and pause, as well as speeds up the presentation of that.

As noted above, Xbox Alpha and Xbox Alpha Skip Ahead users are getting this update now, and these are Xbox Insider tiers. There is nothing to stop gamers becoming an Insider, either – simply download the Xbox Insider Hub app on the Microsoft Store.

Anyone who owns an Xbox Series X or Xbox Series S but isn't an Xbox Alpha or Xbox Alpha Skip Ahead Insider can expect to get the update in the not-too-distance future, although the exact timing remains to be seen.

On a brand new console, even a small wait time can feel like forever and Microsoft listening to users and fixing the issue is very welcome. It also just makes the whole Xbox experience slicker.

The fact that the size of the game update is clearly listed, too, really will help gamers with poor internet connections, as a 10GB download could mean they won't be able to play their game for hours, potentially missing out on their free time for gaming.

Microsoft adding the excellent Quick Resume feature to Xbox also adds to the instantaneous feel of the console – and makes waiting around feel worse. Combined, these two features mean annoying waits to get stuck back into a game are now few and far between. Good work Microsoft!

• We've ranked the best Xbox games in 2022 – so far