Xbox One may get upgraded avatars

Remember your Xbox Live avatar? Even though Xbox One stuck it in a back corner, it's still there. Beneath that goofy grin, vapid stare, and Gears of War 2 T-shirt, it quietly waits for its return to the spotlight - to the front-page dominance it enjoyed on Xbox 360. According to Microsoft job listings dug up by DualShockers, it may not have to wait too much longer.

The software engineer positions will help "take Xbox avatars on their biggest adventure yet with higher fidelity and a bigger stage in new Xbox experiences". They won't just get a graphical boost on Xbox One, either - according to the listing, avatars will be a key part of the company's 'unified operating system' across Xbox, PC, and mobile devices.

Microsoft hopes to make the avatars 'gorgeous' and perform well across a variety of devices. With that in mind, you should expect more of an updated take on the customizable cartooniness than a photorealistic representation of yourself. Seriously though, do you actually want one of those?

Connor Sheridan

I got a BA in journalism from Central Michigan University - though the best education I received there was from CM Life, its student-run newspaper. Long before that, I started pursuing my degree in video games by bugging my older brother to let me play Zelda on the Super Nintendo. I've previously been a news intern for GameSpot, a news writer for CVG, and now I'm a staff writer here at GamesRadar.