From today on Xbox One you will play with the mouse and the keyboard. This is not the end of new products

Mouse and keyboard support for Xbox One games has been announced for some time. It is not a shocking fact that it is possible today. In the list of system update updates for the Microsoft console, something else drew my attention. It connects with Microsoft's big rival.

Phil Spencer, head of the Xbox division, has repeatedly for many months wanted to offer console gamers the opportunity to play games not only using gamepads but also using the mouse and keyboard. After a long time, the words turned into action: after a surprisingly short beta test of this solution, today you can play the first games with the help of electronic controllers.

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• Mouse and keyboard support must be implemented by the game creator. This means that each game will not work with these controllers. Currently, only two games support this: Fortnite and Warframe. By the end of the month, Bomber Crew, Deep Rock Galactic, Strange Brigade, Vermintide 2, War Thunder and X-Morph Defense will participate in this shortlist. At a later date, updates will be given to the Children of Morta, DayZ, Minion Master, Moonlighter, Vigor, Warface and Wargroove
• Game developers are still forced to provide a comfortable game with their titles using the gamepad
• Game developers have the option – but not the obligation – to introduce a system filter for multiplayer games that will allow players to decide who they want to play with: pillow users only, mice or mixed
• Xbox One supports all plug-ins in the USB port (direct or via wireless transmitter) of the mouse and keyboard supported by Windows 10 without the need to install additional drivers. Bluetooth equipment is not supported.

The Windows 10 Update for Xbox One in November is now available for download. It will be automatically applied by the console. We can accelerate this process manually in Console Settings under System.

Well, but you already know it. Using the mouse and keyboard on Xbox One is not the only innovation. Interesting is the ever-deeper integration of the console with … Amazon.

These news do not interest the players enough. However, it is interesting from the point of view of the entire IT market. Amazon and Microsoft are big competitors – Microsoft's most important service, which is Azure, is still behind the market share behind Amazon Web Services. It is true that the advantage of Amazon is getting smaller, but we will leave this analysis once again. AWS and Microsoft Azure are the two largest cloud services in the world, are key to both companies. Meanwhile, both companies … reinforce cooperation.

The fact that Microsoft gradually incorporates Cortana with Alexa is not surprising. The Microsoft assistant is a market failure, its future looks rather pale in a different role than a slightly more advanced Windows help system. Microsoft does not want to allow its users to escape to Google and Apple is not interested in cooperation. Alexa is so the smallest evil from the point of view of Windows developers.

Okay, but what has changed? Nothing interesting for Poland yet, but …

Thanks to the Windows 10 update for Xbox One in November, the Amazon assistant is able to directly control the console in another country (so far only in the United States, today and the United Kingdom). It has also increased its incorporation into Xbox One: to the extent that Alexa is able to fill press for us buttons on the pillow. Without Cortana.

In addition to today – now only in the United States – Amazon Music is now available in Microsoft consoles. The relevant application is now available for download from the Microsoft Store. It is not clear why only in this country, but it is irrelevant. Collaboration in the consumer market between Amazon and Microsoft is clearly expanding. And clear competition in the business market does not affect that. I just wonder what Spotify does, which, after the service was closed, Microsoft Music Groove became a partner of the Xbox manufacturer to provide music services.

Mouse and Keyboard on Xbox One, Embedded with Amazon and Enhanced Search Engine. The Windows 10 Update for November is now available for download.

In addition, the search engine index has expanded to games it bought – but did not conquer -. And we have to wait for the availability of Amazon consumer services on Xbox One in Poland.

I have been using Alexa for some time and we like it more and more. The only thing that can prevent me from this is the soon-to-be assertion of the Google Assistant in Poland. We would not like Siri and we can talk about Cortana late in the past …