GameDVR and other Xbox One features confirmed for Windows 10’s Xbox app

By Adam Rosenberg January 21, 2015

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Microsoft’s big Windows 10 reveal is over, and there’s a big, new feature that fans of video games might be interested in: A full-fledged Xbox app.

Accessible from Windows 10’s newly refreshed Start menu, the Xbox app ropes in an assortment of features including with Microsoft’s latest console. The biggest of those is GameDVR, the XB1 feature that automatically records gameplay as it’s happening, allowing users to pause, go back, and save the last chunk of recently played footage with a few button presses.

It’s much the same situation on Windows 10 via the Xbox app. According to Xbox head Phil Spencer, Windows 10 allows players to save the previous 30 seconds of action using the Windows + G command to bring up a menu that captures and stores the clip, similar to the way XB1’s “Xbox, record that” command works.

Unlike the just-announced Xbox One game streaming support on Windows 10 devices, the PC operating system’s GameDVR works with all titles, new or old, regardless of their originating platform. Spencer showed off an example from Civilization: Beyond Earth running in Steam.

There’s likely more to GameDVR than Spencer shared. The menu summoned to the screen with the Windows + G command included more options than were highlighted. Expect more details on this and Win 10’s other new gaming features to be revealed at the annual Game Developer’s Conference in March 2015.

Overall, the Xbox app seems similar in a lot of ways to SmartGlass, the second-screen mobile app that pairs an Xbox One with your device of choice. Through the Win 10 app, users can access to basic features like Friends list, Achievements, and more.

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Previously, Adam worked in the games press as a freelance writer and critic for a range of outlets, including Digital Trends…

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