Xbox Series X surprise free download slammed by fans

To celebrate the upcoming release of one of the year’s most anticipated titles, Xbox is giving away a free download to its users. However, fans are less than impressed.

Next week sees the release of the highly-anticipated Senua's Saga: Hellblade II, the sequel to 2017’s Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice by Ninja Theory.

Check out Senua's Saga: Hellblade II below!

Following the story of titular character Senua, players must embark on a haunting quest to Viking Hell to fight for the soul of her dead lover. Now in the sequel, the Celtic warrior returns for a brutal journey across Viking Iceland. Maybe one day she will go on a relaxing journey.

To celebrate this upcoming release, Xbox Series X and S users have been gifted a free download - a special dynamic background for Senua's Saga: Hellblade II.

Although this sounds pretty cool, it has once again reminded gamers of how much dynamic backgrounds have changed. Even now, this Hellblade background features minimal dynamics with just a small bit of movement in the background mist.

In comparison, the PlayStation 4 offered incredibly detailed dynamic backgrounds that not only included plenty of movement but also a dedicated soundtrack for some.

Although the Xbox Series X/S still features dynamic backgrounds as opposed to the PlayStation 5, which scrapped them entirely for some reason, they leave a lot to be desired and so fans are not impressed with Xbox’s free download this month.

Replying to an announcement Tweet by The Verge’s Tom Warren, one user said: “They need to step it up with these “Dynamic Backgrounds". I've seen more impressive dynamic backgrounds, via apps, on my iPhone 5 from over a decade ago”.

Another agreed, saying: “Yes, they definitely need to do better on these dynamic wallpapers. They barely move. They should just be still wallpapers. I really hope they get better in the future! Or Microsoft should just let others create for them”.