Microsoft is keeping to its promise to announce a new Xbox One bundle every day this week, and today it’s combining some of its hits from earlier this year into one dense gaming package.
On October 28, Microsoft will release the Xbox One 1TB Holiday Bundle for $400. This version of the system will come with the 1TB system, the latest revision of the controller, Gears of War: Ultimate Edition, Rare Replay, Ori and the Blind Forest, and the Xbox 360 Gears of War collection. That is a ton of value considering you get four Gears of War games and over 30 Rare-developed games along with one of the best download-only releases of the year. This bundle joins an army of others to help Microsoft do battle with Sony’s PlayStation 4 as we enter the gift-giving season.
[aditude-amp id="flyingcarpet" targeting='{"env":"staging","page_type":"article","post_id":1812081,"post_type":"story","post_chan":"none","tags":null,"ai":false,"category":"none","all_categories":"games,","session":"A"}']Yesterday, Microsoft announced a Rise of the Tomb Raider bundle that will join the Halo 5: Guardians, Forza Motorsport 6, and Gears of War: Ultimate Edition (for $350) bundles that are already up for sale or preorder. Microsoft plans to announce three more system-and-game packages this week, and we expect to potentially see partnerships with games like Fallout 4 or maybe Need for Speed.
If Microsoft seems a bit crazy for bundles, that’s because gamers obviously prefer getting software when they go out to buy a new system. It increases the perception of value and helps set the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 apart considering they are nearly identical otherwise. And this strategy is working. Bundles have made up more than 64 percent of all new hardware sales throughout this year, according to industry-tracking firm The NPD Group. In June, that number was 86 percent, and it could go even higher as Microsoft and Sony rely more heavily on these kinds of deals.