You have recently purchased an Xbox Series X/S or an Xbox One and you are approaching for the first time the possibility of playing online multiplayer against other players from all over the world. You are a little thrilled by the idea, also considering how much the Game Pass issue is igniting in you the desire to try more different titles.
In all of this, however, you would need a hand to start from the basics. More precisely, the information you are looking for relates to how to connect to Xbox Live , i.e. the service that allows you to take advantage of the features associated with an Internet connection at the same time as your console. Yes, it also refers to the possibility of downloading games in digital format and so on.
Believe me: the procedure to follow to achieve your goal is very simple, even if you skipped the initial configuration a bit (which I imagine you did if you initially thought you were only playing offline). I am therefore going to provide you with all the necessary information: the Xbox model you have chosen does not matter, since in reality the question is not complicated in any case. That said, there’s nothing left for me to do but wish you a good read and above all have fun!
Index
- How to connect Xbox to the internet
- Xbox Series X/S
- Xbox One
- How to sign in to Xbox Live
- Xbox Game Pass e Live Gold
How to connect Xbox to the internet
How to connect to Xbox Live ? If this is the doubt that resides in your mind in these hours, I would like first of all to explain to you that the first thing to do is connect the Xbox console to the Internet . In this regard, there are two ways: in fact, you can think of connecting a console via a Wi-Fi network (ie wireless) or via an Ethernet cable (therefore with a physical connection to the modem/router ). The procedure may be a little different depending on the Xbox model you choose, but in any case, you can find all the details you are looking for below.
Xbox Series X/S
In a context like this, I can’t help but start from the most recent generation of consoles, namely the one related to Xbox Series X / S. In fact, here there is even a console without a disc reader, or Xbox Series S, so you understand well that the Internet connection is of fundamental importance, even if only for downloading games.
Well, to proceed in this context, starting from the main menu of an Xbox console that is not connected, what you can do is first of all access the Settings (which you can do using the appropriate gear icon), from which you can then quickly reach the path General > Network Settings . At this point, you can therefore select the Configure wireless network option (if you want to proceed wirelessly, while you can of course physically connect an Ethernet cable and skip this step).
Subsequently, you just need to follow the guided instructions that appear on the screen, from selecting the name of the Wi-Fi network involved to typing in the access key , to complete everything. After that, whatever your choice regarding the connection (wireless or wired), you just have to continue with a Network connection test , so as to understand if everything is in order and possibly proceed with the download and download of the software updates that are presented to you on the screen.
In short, everything is extremely simple, as indeed is expected from the consoles belonging to the most recent generations. Among other things, always from the aforementioned menu it is also possible to launch Multiplayer connection test and so on, therefore you can carry out checks on a little about everything that concerns this context.
Xbox One
If you don’t care that much about Xbox Series X/S information , as you actually have an Xbox One , this is the chapter of the guide for you.
In this regard, as you can well imagine, the situation does not change that much, but it is worth dwelling on the question. In this case, again starting from the Home screen of the console , what you can do is go to the Settings menu , then moving to the path All settings > Network > Network settings . After that, from here you can choose whether to configure a wireless network or not (in the case of a physical connection with an Ethernet cable , of course, everything will happen somewhat automatically).
In any case, once you have chosen to configure a Wi-Fi network (and therefore pressed on the appropriate name ), just type, as requested on the screen, the relative access key , then select the Run option test network connection , so that a check is carried out which will explain to you if everything is actually OK (of course, you could carry out a test of this type even if you have chosen to connect everything via an Ethernet cable).
For the rest, once the test has been successful, you will see that everything is ready. Of course, you may possibly be asked to carry out some software updates , always in a guided way , so as to make the console reach the most recent version, but otherwise you will see that you will be able to continue correctly as regards the online features.
Apart from the indications provided here, if you have any doubts about the procedure (even if in reality the latter shouldn’t give you too many headaches, as it is guided), you might also be interested in referring to my guide on how to connect an Xbox console to internet . In closing this chapter, I would also like to point out that over time the Xbox consoles could be subject to the arrival of a large number of software updates , which could slightly vary the procedures indicated here (but in in any case you shouldn’t have too many problems understanding how to proceed).
How to sign in to Xbox Live
Once you’ve actually connected your Xbox console to the Internet , you’re one step away from using the online features. Indeed, once you reach the home screen of the console, you will in fact be inside Xbox Live . Be careful, however, in order to at least be able to play free-to-play titles online for free (such as Fortnite ) and clearly download the latter from the Microsoft Store (i.e. the digital store pre-installed on Xbox consoles), it is necessary to have a free profile available .
In order to take advantage of the online features of an Xbox console belonging to one of the latest generations, it is therefore of fundamental importance to have a Microsoft account available . In fact, the latter does not only allow access to services related, for example, to Windows 11 or Windows 10 in the computer sector, but also to everything related to the gaming world of the Xbox console world. What I advise you to do if you don’t have everything available yet, is therefore to follow what is indicated in my guide on how to create a Microsoft account , so that you have it available when you are actually asked (if you have problems with the classic login procedure, by the way, you might find it interesting to consult my tutorial on how to recover a Microsoft profile ).
In general, on the latest generation of Xbox consoles, you can proceed in this way to connect a local profile to Xbox Live : go to the console Settings and reach the Account tab . From here you can add the Microsoft profile by following what is indicated on the screen or select the Account, Login, security and PIN option to manage everything. For the rest, you might be interested in going deeper into the official Microsoft guidelines (since the latter are constantly updatedand can therefore also go beyond any software updates that may arrive over time for the various Xbox consoles).
In any case, if you need a practical example regarding the possibility of playing free-to-play for free , you might also like to consult my guide on how to play Fortnite without Xbox Live Gold . You might also be interested in checking out my tutorials on how to download games on Xbox and how to play online games on Xbox One , as well as (for example, if you’re having issues with features like those described in my tutorial on how to talk in Fortnite on Xbox ) want to consult my guide on how to open NAT on Xbox .
Xbox Game Pass e Live Gold
How do you say? You are now connected to Xbox Live but you cannot use all the platform’s services as you have not activated Xbox Live Gold , the Xbox Live paid plan which gives you access to the online multiplayer mode of all games (thus going beyond the aforementioned free-to-play, which can also be played without a subscription), does it include 2 free games per month and allows you to get special discounts on the purchase of various titles in digital version? No problem: I’ll explain right away what you can do.
In this context, in fact, I would like to let you know that in reality the solution that you may consider more convenient nowadays is the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription (which at a price of usually 12.99 euros per month also includes Xbox Live Gold , which alone would cost 6.99 euros per month). The reason why I advise you to take a look mainly at the latter lies in the fact that there are many other benefits involved , from a large number of games included (including even those linked to the EA Play subscription and those Xbox Games Studios day of launch ) to benefits such as the ability to play in the cloud .
In case you were wondering, of course: there is no shortage of further offers and benefits , for a complete package from all points of view. In any case, there is also a certain possibility of choice, given that possibly, if you are not interested, for example, in playing online games other than free-to-play titles but would like to have a large number of games available (such as Xbox Game Studios at launch), it is possible to opt for the Xbox Game Pass subscription for consoles from 9.99 euros per month. You understand well, however, that for a few euros more per month it is possible to have a much wider package with the Ultimate solution.
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Membership – 3 Months | Xbox/Win 10 PC – Download…
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Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Membership – 1 Month | Xbox/Win 10 PC – Download…
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Xbox Live Gold Membership – 3 Months | Xbox Live – Download Code
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In any case, if you are interested in learning more about Microsoft’s proposal, the advice I can give you is to refer to my tutorial on how Xbox Game Pass works , given that in the latter I went into further detail about what I put arrangement by the Redmond company. Among other things, there I also explained how to actually activate the various subscriptions , as well as how to take advantage of all the advantages of the case.
