Xbox boss Asha Sharma wants you to buy a PC to celebrate the console's 25th anniversary

· PCGamesN

This weekend marks 25 years of Xbox, and to celebrate Microsoft is encouraging you to buy a PC. That might sound a little strange, given that we're talking about the company's console brand, but Xbox has done a lot of work to make the PC a core part of its business model. As rumors of four-digit next-generation console prices float across the airwaves, Xbox CEO Asha Sharma confirms a special promotion offering 25 free games from the history of the platform - but to get your hands on it you'll need to pick up a computer.

"25 years of Xbox. 25 free games. This holiday, we're celebrating by bringing fan favorites like Halo, Skyrim, and Gears of War to new Windows 11 PCs." That's the message from the recently installed head of Xbox, who has already overseen thousands of layoffs during her tenure as she attempts to steer the Microsoft gaming division in a fresh direction for the post-Phil Spencer era. The offer requires you to buy a new Windows PC by the end of this year, and it's specifically for customers in the United States.

Buying a PC right now is a daunting prospect, with component prices through the roof, but if you've had a new rig on the mind, getting 25 games thrown in is quite an enticing prospect - doubly so if you're currently a console player who is contemplating making the switch, and doesn't already own anything on the list. You can see the full game list below, and it's a pretty strong blend of Microsoft offerings, although you'll note that its newest releases (such as Gears of War: E-Day and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4) are conspicuously absent.

The 25 Years of Xbox bundle gets you all the following games via the Microsoft Store, when you buy a qualifying new PC:

  • Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition
  • Age of Mythology: Retold
  • As Dusk Falls
  • Battletoads
  • Blinx: The Time Sweeper
  • Call of Duty: WWII
  • Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge
  • Doom
  • Doom 2
  • The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Game of the Year Edition
  • The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim Special Edition
  • The Elder Scrolls Online
  • Fallout 76
  • Fusion Frenzy
  • Gears of War: Reloaded
  • Gears Tactics
  • Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary
  • Minecraft Dungeons
  • The Outer Worlds
  • Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire
  • Quake
  • Quake 2
  • Rise of Nations: Extended Edition
  • Wolfenstein: The New Order
  • Zoo Tycoon: Ultimate Animal Collection

The bundle will be available to claim for all newly purchased and activated Windows PCs, which includes some handhelds, that are bought between Monday November 2 and Friday December 31, 2026. You do not need a Game Pass subscription to participate. If you're eligible, you'll have until Friday February 12, 2027 to claim the full bundle via the Microsoft Store app. Xbox notes that "refurbished devices, open-box devices, returned merchandise, and demonstration units are not eligible."

Whether this is Microsoft's push to remind its Xbox console audience that the PC is a similarly viable option for them, or an attempt to compete with the rising popularity of rival operating systems including Linux and SteamOS, it's certainly a nice cherry on top of the cake of a new computer. As you can imagine, however, some players have a few choice words for Sharma wondering why this deal isn't being provided to people buying an Xbox. It is the console's 25th anniversary, after all.

Sharma does offer some other news for the anniversary. There's the long-awaited confirmation that MachineGames is now working on Wolfenstein 3. Similarly, id Software has begun its next game, and is adding the horde-style Slaughter Mode to Doom: The Dark Ages on Monday November 16. 25 more original Xbox games have been brought to PC, complete with achievements, including a wealth of Star Wars classics. There's even some fresh Fable gameplay, which you can see above.

Perhaps I'm biased, but I do think a PC is still the right way to go, even with everything looking increasingly unaffordable on all sides of the market. There's much more flexibility to buy what you can afford and upgrade later as prices fluctuate. You aren't locked down to a single store, meaning continued competition in an ever-more digital age, and there's such a wide variety of indie games, older classics, and unique offerings you won't find anywhere else. Still, I'm never one for fanboy rivalries, so however you choose to play, happy birthday, Xbox.