Update for Xbox App on PC brings improvements and game length integration with HowLongtoBeat

pcinvasion.com:

Microsoft is rolling out a new update to its Xbox App for Windows machines that brings improvements to the app’s launch speed and overall performance. Perhaps the most interesting addition, however, is that players can now narrow down what their next game is going to be thanks to game length integration with HowLongtoBeat on the Xbox App. HowLongToBeat is a website that lets you check different statistics before jumping into a game. As the name suggests, it includes data on how long it requires to complete the main story, as well as other variables such as nabbing a full 100%, completing the main story with sidequests, and more.

Now, the Xbox app has this info integrated right into a game’s product page, giving you the rundown before you choose to install the game. Microsoft is also getting the community more involved to give overviews of their experience with each title. Thus, players can submit their own gameplay times for each title they’ve played, along with leaving community reviews and adding playthrough notes. Users can see this and more in the ‘View Details’ tab.

Searching for a new title will also now be easier thanks to screenshots, trailers, and a quick game description all being prominently featured at the top of the Game Details section of each title.

As mentioned earlier, users should also notice better overall performance and stability from the Xbox app. Microsoft claims that the app “now launches up to 15% faster,” with improvements made to its responsiveness crash rate. Games should now also download and install with less hitches.

Users have long complained that the Xbox app (and by extension, the Microsoft Store) is a far more cumbersome place to get games. So the improvements made show that Microsoft