Xbox news recap: Mass Effect Andromeda gameplay, Mario on Xbox, Black Friday deals and more

Welcome to our weekly Xbox news recap series, where we go over the top stories of the past week in the world of Xbox. Let’s get started.

Mass Effect Andromeda gameplay coming at The Game Awards, coming after month of info drops

Mass Effect Andromeda is quite possibly the most anticipated game in years. The original trilogy revolutionized the way that we look at storytelling in video games and created one of the most beloved universes in all of science fiction. To prime gamers for Mass Effect’s (hopefully) triumphant return A tweet from the official Mass Effect Twitter told us this week that all of that news will culminate in a look at gameplay during the annual Game Awards on December 1st.

You can get a real wooden skin for your Xbox One

Have you ever wanted to encase your Xbox One in wood? No? Well, this Oregon based company might change your mind. The company is called Toast, and they’re offering Xbox One users the option to get a slick wooden skin for their console for just under $60. The skin comes in 4 different colors (walnut, ash, bamboo, and ebony) and covers up only the non-critical parts of your Xbox One, leaving the fans plenty of room to breathe and continue operating the way they ought to. The skin is easy to apply – you just need to lay it onto each side of the Xbox One and it’ll stick naturally.

Xbox boss Phil Spencer open to the possibility of more partnerships with Nintendo

People have been thinking about potential partnerships between Xbox and Nintendo since Minecraft came out on the Wii U. Nintendo hasn’t been doing very well recently with the Wii U struggling to keep up in sales, but the upcoming release of the Nintendo Switch has some people thinking that a revival is on its way. Phil Spencer, head of Xbox, was quoted as saying that having characters like Mario on Xbox “would be great,” and he would lend Microsoft-owned characters like Banjo to Nintendo “in a second.” It’s hard to say whether or not any of this could see the light of day, but it’s nice to know that Phil Spencer would never be the one to get in the way of that partnership.

New Xbox One controller themed around Rogue One

Looking to get your Xbox One and happen to be excited for the newest Star Wars movie? There’s a themed controller for Rogue One that looks pretty great, and would be an amazing gift this holiday season for a gamer who wants to have their Star Wars scratch itched. The controller is up for pre-order at $40 and is going to be available on December 7th, just over a week before the movie comes out.

Black Friday deals galore

Deals usually don’t make the weekly recap, but Black Friday has been a little bit ridiculous this year. The Division was available for $10 and Recore was available for $20. Quantum Break got a $24 price reduction. One jewelry retailer is offering a free Xbox One S Minecraft bundle with a purchase of over $1000. It seems like Microsoft is making a push to use this Holiday season to drive home the recent dominance of Xbox over the console market.

Thanks for joining us. To keep up to date with all the latest Xbox news, keep a close eye on our Xbox One news hub.