Xbox Friend Requests Finally Reintroduced After a Decade

Xbox has answered a decade-long plea from gamers: friend requests are back! Read on to discover more about this welcome return.

Xbox Answers Longstanding Community Demand for Friend Requests

A Joyful Return for Xbox Users

Xbox is reviving a beloved feature from the Xbox 360 era: friend requests. Announced today via blog post and Twitter (X), this marks a significant shift from the past decade's passive social system.

"We're thrilled to announce the return of friend requests," declared Xbox Senior Product Manager Klarke Clayton. "Friendships are now a two-way, invite-based relationship, offering greater control and flexibility." This means sending, accepting, or declining friend requests is once again possible via the console's People tab.

The Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S previously used a "follow" system, allowing users to see each other's activity without explicit approval. While fostering an open environment, many missed the control and intentionality of friend requests. The lack of a clear distinction between friends and followers, and the inability to filter mutual connections, blurred the lines between casual acquaintances and true friends.

The "follow" feature remains for one-way connections, allowing users to follow content creators or communities without reciprocal action.

Existing friends and followers will be automatically categorized under the new system. "You'll remain friends with those who also added you, and continue following those who didn't," Clayton clarified.

Microsoft prioritizes privacy. New privacy and notification settings will accompany the friend request feature, allowing users to control who can send requests, who can follow them, and which notifications they receive. These settings are accessible via the Xbox settings menu.

Social media erupted with positive reactions. Users celebrated with comments like "we're so back!" highlighting the previous system's shortcomings, which often resulted in unwanted followers and a lack of notification control.

Some reactions humorously acknowledged not even realizing the feature was missing. While this system caters to social players, it doesn't diminish the enjoyment of solo gaming; sometimes, the greatest victories are personal achievements.

A broad rollout date hasn't been announced. However, given the overwhelming demand, Microsoft is unlikely to reverse course, especially with current testing among Xbox Insiders on consoles and PC beginning this week. Xbox's tweet promises more details on the full rollout later this year.

Join the Xbox Insiders program for early access. Download the Xbox Insider Hub on your Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, or Windows PC—it's as easy as (soon to be) sending a friend request.