An unusual scenario
We have observed a growing number of individuals inquiring about the status of Xbox Design Lab in recent weeks, which is entirely understandable given that the service has been largely unreachable for the last six months.
For those who are unacquainted, Xbox Design Lab enables you to craft your very own bespoke Xbox controller, but this segment of the service has been “temporarily halted” since January while Xbox transitions to a new payment system.
Here’s a glimpse at the notification you encounter when you access the Xbox Design Lab website:
At the bottom of the site, there exists an FAQ clarifying that “purchases will be available once we finish the transition to a new payment system”.
For those who are keen to discover when Xbox Design Lab will resume, there’s a sign-up button on the yellow banner that permits you to input your email – making it a great way to receive notifications as soon as the service is reactivated.
However, a primary source of the dissatisfaction stems from the absence of clarity regarding why it is taking so long, and we are hopeful that Xbox will release some form of statement soon (unless it gets rectified in the forthcoming weeks!).
We will naturally inform you as soon as more information arises on Xbox Design Lab, and here’s wishing we can design some custom controllers before the year ends. I have Microsoft Rewards points set aside for one!
In the meantime, remember that you can still access the Xbox Design Lab website to create custom designs (just without being able to order them) as well as download 3D printable files for adaptive thumbstick toppers. Fingers crossed it’ll return to full functionality soon.
Are you anticipating the return of Xbox Design Lab? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
Fraser serves as the News Editor at Pure Xbox, dedicating his time to covering the most significant news stories in the realm of Xbox and beyond.