In one of its strangest updates yet, Xbox Series X looks set to remove the direct sharing of clips from your console to social media. As evidenced by the latest Xbox Insider preview build, participating users have noted that the Twitter clip sharing option no longer exists.
As reported by Windows Central, those enrolled in the Xbox Insider program can see that the Twitter clip sharing option has been removed from Xbox Game DVR entirely. Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S owners will instead need to share their clips to their phone first if they want to upload them to social media, effectively adding an extra step to the process.
While it’s easy to think the change could be chalked up to a mistake – after all, it seems bizarre that Microsoft remove such a useful sharing feature from its console – this unfortunately doesn’t appear to be the case. The mobile sharing option now displays social media icons from Twitter, Instagram and more, signalling that the change was indeed deliberate.
As per the latest Xbox Insider build, you’re still able to share your gameplay clips to your activity feed, via messages to your friends, or to your Microsoft account’s OneDrive storage if you’re so inclined. But arguably none of these options were quite as useful as Twitter sharing, especially if you’re particularly active on the social media giant.
Analysis: why would Microsoft remove direct sharing?
We really can’t think of a good reason why Microsoft would remove direct sharing from Xbox Series X/S to your Twitter feed. It’s a feature that quickly and easily lets you upload interesting highlights for your followers to see, and it’s one that both PS5 and Nintendo Switch players can still make use of.
The feature isn’t going away from Xbox consoles entirely, of course. You’re still able to transfer clips to your phone for sharing to Twitter and other social platforms, but it’s an extra step that’s going to seem cumbersome and unnecessary to many players.
As Windows Central speculates, Microsoft could cite low usage for the feature as a reason to axe it from Xbox consoles. However, we’re not exactly convinced that a greater volume of players will be more receptive to first having to share their clips to mobile before uploading them to social media.
If we’re being charitable, it’s possible that Microsoft is temporarily removing direct Twitter sharing to prep for an improved implementation feature somewhere down the line. Or, better yet, an overhaul of Xbox Game DVR entirely. The feature is nice, but still suffers from clunky editing functions and an occasionally unresponsive interface.
Ultimately, we do hope the feature makes a swift return to the list of Xbox’s available sharing options. Avid clip sharers certainly don’t want an extra step or two involved in the overall process–- something we can see actually turning players away from the feature entirely.
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