Xbox One February Update Released to Preview Program Members

Written by Brandon Hofer on January 13, 2015

News: Microsoft has released the next update to preview program members that brings tile transparency, game hub and more.

Microsoft has just released the February update for Xbox One for preview program members. The first feature that is in the February update is one of the most requested features from gamers and that is to make the tiles more transparent so that you can see more of your background image on Xbox One. I’m a preview program member myself and have already updated my console and I have to say that I really enjoy seeing more of my background. That said you don’t get to choose the transparency level. Once you have installed the update the console will automatically do it for you. Microsoft was quick to note that some item’s can’t be made transparent due to usage rights/restrictions for certain images but overall it looks pretty damn cool regardless.

The next few feature is the addition of “game hubs.” Game hubs are kind of like the profile for a game. Every game on Xbox One will have a game hub, such as Forza Horizon 2. Utilizing the game hub for Forza Horizon 2 you can see which of your friends are playing the game, see the coolest game clips from Forza Horizon 2, check out the in-game leaderboards and follow the game’s VIP and top players. The VIP section is also new this month and will help you easily tind the most popular broadcasters on Twitch so that you can quickly find the top streams. Getting to the game hub is really easy and only requires a couple of button presses. Simply highlight the game on your dashboard, press the Menu button and then view game hub. The game hub will also give you different “play” options (as seen in the picture above) giving you quick and easy access to the different things you might want to do. There are four different options such as “play game,” “play with achievements (achievements snapped to the side of your screen),” play with a party” or “play and broadcast.”

Additionally there are quite a few updates to the TV and entertainment features. You will have improved control of TVs, set-top boxes and audio/video receivers as well as Live TV streaming on Windows Phone and Android for Xbox One Digital TV Tuner owners in the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. No mention on whether this functionality will ever come to iOS devices. This new update will also bring the OneGuide to the Netherlands as well as TV trending in OneGuide. TV trending is based on the number of Xbox One owners currently watching a particular show (such as Game of Thrones) in each country.

There are a couple more additions in the February update but those are the main ones. Who do you think about the February update? What do you want to see in the March update? Tell us what you think below.