- Xbox is testing a new feature known as Game Hubs
- It displays a one-stop dashboard for your game when you attempt to launch it
- Game Hubs are currently available to just a small number of Xbox Insiders
If you’re part of the Xbox Insider program on Xbox Series X|S consoles, you might have been rolled into the testing of a new feature known as Game Hubs.
As reported by VGC, Game Hubs are appearing for Insiders when choosing a game to launch. Game Hubs are unique to the game you’re choosing to play, and appear as a sort of dashboard before launching the game.
The hub displays information including total play time and achievements earned for each individual game. There are also tabs for quick access to DLC purchases and any screenshots you’ve captured.
According to VGC, some Hubs – like one for Disney Dreamlight Valley – may also show an ‘Events’ section which will detail upcoming or current in-game events. Presumably, such sections will show up in popular live service titles like Monster Hunter Wilds or Fortnite.
At present, the feature is only available to a select number of Xbox Insiders, and it’s not yet known if or when it’ll roll out to the wider Xbox user base.
Personally, it’s a feature I’ve got mixed feelings on. It’s certainly handy to have a one-stop dashboard for each game – PS5 games have a similar layout on the home dashboard.
However, I feel the PS5 implementation is less intrusive, as all this information is presented without opening up a separate menu. I’m also not a huge fan of having a good portion of the Game Hub dashboard dedicated to the display of downloadable content.
This will seemingly be on a game-by-game basis of course, and Game Hubs appear to default to the ‘Play’ button without exception. So at least you can still jump right into a game when they’re implemented.
And with the way the Xbox dashboard is designed, this was probably the best way to add such a feature without doing a total user interface overhaul. For now, I’ll reserve judgment until I get to try out Game Hubs for myself.
But I can’t shake the feeling that it’ll be a feature that I’ll want to disable fairly swiftly.
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