"Please do not blow vape smoke into your Xbox Series X," Microsoft says in response to viral videos

Update: Microsoft has issued a formal response to videos spreading through social media purporting to show Xbox Series X consoles billowing smoke from their vents. As we report below, we were pretty sure people were using vapes to create the illusion that their consoles were overheating and producing smoke, but now Microsoft itself is semi-lightheartedly chiming in.

"We can't believe we have to say this, but please do not blow vape smoke into your Xbox Series X," reads a tweet from the official Xbox Twitter account, seemingly referencing the videos. Another tweet directs players experiencing any actual, "non-vape related" issues to a support site.

It's probably frustrating to some of the folks at Xbox to see videos like these go viral just as the Xbox Series X is launching, but it seems like the company is taking a jovial approach in its response, at least on social media. Comments to the surreal tweet imploring people not to smoke out their new consoles poured in, and Xbox continued to reply with quick-witted retorts late into Wednesday night. In one instance, the Xbox Twitter account replied to a comment clearly enjoying the humor in the situation with, "We're sure we'll look back on this and laugh."

Fear not folks, it seems the case of the smoking Xbox Series X consoles is just a bit of vape trickery.

Original story follows...

Videos circulating on social media appear to show smoke pouring from the vents on brand-new Xbox Series X consoles, but don't worry, it looks like some launch shenanigans. 

In a post on Reddit last night, user Hirsutophilia jokingly told members of the Xbox Series X subreddit that his friend's Xbox Series X "came with a campfire feature." In a short video, the console can be seen in an upright position on the floor, with smoke coming from the vents at the top.

In a response to a repost of that video on Twitter, user Arek_Adamowicz said they were suffering from a similar issue, posting their own video which showed even more smoke coming from their console. 

However, an unofficial Xbox account showed how people managed to pull this trick off. By using a vape stick, the twitter account posted a video re-creating the effect by blowing smoke on the side of the console, as you can watch below. 

So, there we have it. Why you would want to blow smoke around and through your brand new console is beyond us, but hey, each to their own. 

Hopefully your new hardware stays smoke-free long enough to enjoy these Xbox Series X launch games.