Microsoft has restored the Xbox Design Lab, its direct-to-consumer service that lets players design custom Xbox Wireless Controllers, after keeping the site offline for more than six months. The platform, which went dark in December 2024 while Microsoft migrated payment processing systems, reopened on 6 August and is again accepting orders for personalised colour schemes, textured triggers and other hardware options. The company said limited-edition Doom and The Witcher controllers will be re-introduced later this year, suggesting Microsoft is readying fresh hardware tie-ins ahead of the next holiday season. While the Design Lab is live, Microsoft’s separate Xbox Gear Shop merchandise site now carries a “coming back soon” banner, signalling that broader changes to the firm’s consumer products storefronts may still be under way following July’s layoffs and budget cuts in the Xbox division.