Microsoft has claimed that technical issues which saw many users face problems accessing the Xbox Live network over the weekend have now been resolved.

Reports cropped up on Friday that users from across the world were booted from online multiplayer sessions, and that many were having trouble logging into Xbox Live completely. And owing to the online nature of Microsoft’s machine, this can in some instances stop players from accessing even offline titles.

A statement on Larry Hyrb’s Major Nelson blog reads: “In the past few hours, the Xbox Operations Centre noticed that a large number of members were disconnected from Xbox Live, some more than once.

“Our engineering teams are actively working to determine the root cause of this issue and to prevent it from happening again. If you are disconnected, you should be able to reconnect after a few minutes. Thanks for your patience as we work quickly to solve the issue.”

However, the Major this morning reports that everything is now back to normal, though the service has been taken down for maintenance for a couple of hours.

Many speculated that the combined pressure put on Xbox Live from recent releases such as Gears of War 2 and Call of Duty: World at War were to blame. And with the release of dashboard upgrade The New Xbox Experience due this Wednesday, Microsoft will want to ensure its network is fully up to speed as soon as possible.