Grounded gets updated everywhere with less crashes, unlinkable Microsoft Accounts, and better New Game+

Grounded on PC, Xbox, PlayStation, and Switch is getting a little better.

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What you need to know

What you need to know

Groundedmade a big splash when itlanded on new platforms alongside its final (massive) content update, but Obsidian Entertainment clearly isn’t entirely done with the hit open-world survival game quite yet. On Tuesday, the studio released a new patch update for Grounded across all platforms with a plethora of varied fixes and improvements, making the game a little bit better for everyone.

Grounded 1.4.4 is the latest version, and it includes balance changes, bug fixes, performance and stability improvements, and even some new features for PlayStation and Nintendo Switch players. There’s no new game content, of course (and much to our disappointment), but it’s still a pleasant surprise for Grounded players busy exploring the Backyard, either in New Game+ or for the first time.

You can skip the reading and go install the update right away, or you can scroll a little further for a more in-depth overview of what this update includes.

Better New Game+, better performance, better controls

Better New Game+, better performance, better controls

Obsidian Entertainmentmay be busy working onAvowed,The Outer Worlds 2, and evenState of Decay 3alongside Undead Labs, but the studio can still find time to give Grounded a little more love. Grounded’s 1.4.4 patch update is rolling out to players across Windows PC, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 4|5, and Nintendo Switch (as well asXbox Game Passsubscribers, of course).

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The highlight of the update is a number of balance changes for the New Game+ mode players can access after completing the main campaign. For one, the damage multiplier of all enemies has been reduced by 33%, and MIX.Rs will now only spawn 10% more creatures with each New Game+ level instead of100%more creatures. There are other tweaks to reduce the chance of being one shot and to make boss fights more reasonable, as well.

Plenty of potential crashing causes are fixed, as well, alongside a number of miscellaneous bug fixes and optimizations. Both PlayStation and Nintendo Switch platforms get their own set of improvements, though. PlayStation 5 players can now enjoy Adaptive Trigger support with the DualSense controller, while Nintendo Switch players can now (optionally) use Gyro aiming controls with the JoyCons. On both platforms, it’s now possible to unlink your Microsoft Account and sign in with a new one, if you choose.

It’s a decent update for one of thebest Xbox games, although I’m still a little sad we’ll likely never see new content get added to Grounded. Sure, this survival game is already bursting at the seams with things to do andis enjoying plenty of success across platforms, but you can’t blame me for being a tad greedy. If you want to scour the full changelog for Grounded 1.4.4, you can do so on theGrounded website.

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Zachary Boddy (They / Them) is a Staff Writer for Windows Central, primarily focused on covering the latest news in tech and gaming, the best Xbox and PC games, and the most interesting Windows and Xbox hardware. They have been gaming and writing for most of their life starting with the original Xbox, and started out as a freelancer for Windows Central and its sister sites in 2019. Now a full-fledged Staff Writer, Zachary has expanded from only writing about all things Minecraft to covering practically everything on which Windows Central is an expert, especially when it comes to Microsoft. You can find Zachary on Twitter@BoddyZachary.