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First impression: Moto GP '06
At the THQ area, they were proudly showing off their incredibly gorgeous Moto GP '06. This title shines bright and controls very well for the Xbox 360. Despite not even being played on a retail console, the demo was enough to satisfy my need for speed.
Xbox 360 camera plus poker equals immersion
After the Microsoft keynote we managed to spend some time with one of the games supporting the 360's camera peripheral, World Series of Poker: Tournament of Champions. In this game, the camera is used to take a frontal and sideways shot of the player's head, which is then turned into a 3D representation of the player.The process takes about three minutes, and is a little rough around the edges, but the immersiveness from seeing your opponents' faces both in 3D and in a superimposed webcam display is undeniable. The PMS Clan ladies demonstrating the game were impressed, describing it as a way to increase the addictiveness and realism of online poker, and wondering when they'd see their own faces in their favourite FPS. However, we find the concept of seeing our own dead bodies disturbing enough without adding our faces to it.
Halo 3 trailer: See it again for the first time
Here's the Halo 3 trailer again, embedded for your puny viewing pleasure. If you want more pixels and have no luck with XBLM, try Xboxyde's 720p torrent or Bungie's large Quicktime version. Oh yeah, Bungie reminds the world this baby is real time with an appropriately sarcastic announcement: Nobody saw it coming. Halo 3! Who knew? For the last year or two, people have speculated about what our next project was and surprisingly, in all that time, not a single person guessed that it would be Halo 3. Not one. We declare it the best kept secret ever. ...We won't ruin the content of our short presentation by describing it frame by frame, but we will note that everything you're seeing here is being rendered in real-time on the Xbox 360, using the current version of our Halo 3 game engine. The HDR lighting, self-shadowing, GPU-run particle system and many other effects should make it intact (and more) to our final game. Worth repeat viewing.
Xbox 360 HD DVD player
Well, we finally have some details about the Xbox 360 HD DVD player. Joystiq/Engadget has great coverage of the Microsoft press conference and snapped a pic of the PowerPoint slide. First, it looks like it is just an external optical drive that connects via USB. Second, it will be out this year just in time for the holidays. The big thing though that everyone wants to know is still missing; the price. We are hoping that it is around the $150 - $200 range but no one knows for sure yet. We will let you know as soon as the price becomes available.
High-def E3 content via Bit Torrent
Check this out: high definition content right from E3! A few gaming sites have this type of content out but it is part of their premium services. It would have been sweet to see these live but that's what we have HD for, right? These are all torrents so you will need a torrent manager like uTorrent in order to download them. Judging by the size of 'em they don't seem like they would be to long but any high-def is better then no high-def. Let us know what you think. Are these PS3 game clips dramatically better then the 360s?[via Digg]
Cheaper PS3 loses HDMI, slots, Wi-Fi, 40GB
As you can see above, there are a few things different between the two PS3 SKUs planned. (Hint: the obvious alterations concern high-def output and wireless connectivity -- though Bluetooth controllers should work just fine with both, with or without any chrome case highlighting.)So what's HDMI, built-in multimedia card-reader slots, wireless internet connectivity, and an extra 40 gigabytes' hard disk space worth to you? $100? Now that Sony's gone with the 2-SKU approach with its next-gen hardware (a la the Xbox 360's premium and "Core" systems), we can expect some tough consumer choices after six months -- with console shortages possibly for another six months after that -- as $100 separates the base $499 and premium $599 versions of Sony's "Clear Black" hope.HDMI is important to those who want to take full advantage of Blu-ray high def and have the new screens to use it; MemoryStick, SD, and CompactFlash slots would be nice for the PS3 memory-card users and those will run multimedia on the system; Wi-Fi's the only way to avoid stringing ethernet cables for online access; and 360 owners might appreciate the full 60GB available to potential buyers of the premium PS3 model. Neither model comes with a second HDMI port; thankfully, one should hopefully be all most users need. The details are laid out in a feature-comparison table at the end of Sony's official PS3 hardware press release, available in both Adobe Reader and Microsoft Word formats. Determine what's most important to your PS3 ambitions there.[Image pieced together from the PlayStation.com forums; thanks, Guru]
PS3 pad loses DualShock name and vibration but picks up Wii-esque motion detection and wireless connectivity
In a shocking turn of events, the PS3 controller has gone from banamerang to wireless DualShock 3, except without the DualShock name and vibration.If you take a good look at the back of the new control pad (see the close-up above), you'll notice that the DualShock 2 brand name imprinted on the old controller has now been supplanted by a row of LED lights to show which input has been set, either wirelessly or via the wired USB recharge port. Sony's now the only name in-line for PS3 controllers either on the pad or in the press releases (see "the new PS3 controller").
Virtua Fighter 5 only for PS3 next spring
There was a time when Virtua Fighter 5 was considered a strong candidate for an arcade port to the Xbox 360, but that multiplatform hope's been dashed with the official announcement that VF5 will appear only on PS3 in the spring of 2007. Sega's technical fighter is a Sony exclusive once more.While home-console online play remains doubtful at this point, next-gen PlayStation owners can now securely look forward to facing off as El Blaze and Eileen (the new luchador and monkey kung-fu artist, respectively) along with the other 15 fighters, decked out in all sorts of items purchased in the in-game store with prize money earned through in-game matches.VF5 will support up to 720p HD resolution and will be featured in game footage in the SEGA booth at E3 (South Hall, Booth #946) later this week.[Thanks, Matt; also via Joystiq]
Microsoft confirms USB HD DVD for Xbox 360
If you've been following this story even a little bit over the last few months, you probably won't exactly be shocked to hear that Microsoft is going to roll out a USB HD DVD drive for the Xbox 360. But if you're tracking the ongoing format war between HD DVD and Blu-ray, you should check out Microsoft's announcement anyhow. What's unusual about this release is that you won't find any rhetoric about HD DVD being superior to Blu-ray -- or even a ghost of Bill Gates' earlier comments that the latter format was "anti-consumer." Instead, Microsoft calls the quality of the two formats "a wash in terms of video quality," and declares that the main difference between the two is pricing. We assume that means the 360's HD DVD drive will be a bargain. Unfortunately, that's one detail Microsoft has skipped, preferring to "save that good news for another day." Like maybe the day after the PS3 -- which will have a Blu-ray drive built in -- gets its official price?[Via Joystiq]
-eNCHANT arM- coming to America
From Software's RPG title [eM] -eNCHANT arM-, currently released in Japan, will be making its American and European debut this summer under the title Enchanted Arms. It's the first Japanese RPG to appear on the Xbox 360, and by the time it's released, Oblivion fans may well be looking for a new RPG to play.IGN has previewed the game, describing it as an "eccentric, epic title rich with character, story, and an evolving combat system". While its review scores in Japan have been reasonably low, the quirky nature of Enchanted Arms may increase its worldwide appeal, paving the way for more Japanese titles to travel abroad.
Datel XSATA connects Xbox 360 to PC via USB
That 12GB partition on your Xbox 360 not doing it for you? Datel -- the company that's carving out something of a niche with console storage peripherals -- has what looks like a unique solution. The XSATA connects to your 360 and your PC, letting you back up your console data to the PC, freeing up space on the 360. Once your 360's content is on your PC, you can also email unlocked files. Oh, and it has a blue glowing LED base, just 'cause. Expect to pay about $40, which is a lot less than you'd pay for an external drive for your 360 (though if you must have one, Datel would be happy to oblige). [Via Gadget Review]
Playstation 3 price: 500 euros ($600 U.S.)
That's what a few French websites are reporting, apparently stated by Sony Europe boss George Fornay in a radio interview. That would convert to roughly $613 American dollars and make the PS3 the most expensive videogame console out by quite a bit. He apparently confirmed that the Playstation was delayed to work out Blu-ray copy protection issues (that we still haven't seen a final design for the controller, system or a finished game does not appear to have been a contributing factor), and that it should launch in the range of 499 to 599 euros. He justified the high price by saying it was cheap for a platform capable of reading Blu-ray discs.With no confirmation or official announcement from Sony U.S. or Japan this is still in rumor territory, but its a little late for an April Fools. Their main competitor, the Xbox 360 Premium system, launched at 399 euros. Well, I guess we'll ask you again, is around $600 your price for PS3 Blu-ray? Personally, I'm not buying one until they announce a Bob Ross videogame.Previous Playstation 3 price news: Playstation 3: Coming to North America (and the world) in 2006 Playstation 3 price rumors: $599 for Blu-ray movies?
Xbox retail confidence sags; PS2 powers on
An executive VP with Vivendi Europe feels that retail confidence in the original Xbox is flagging with MS needing to work with publishers "to help generate some impetus."With Microsoft's primary and first-party focus squarely set on the next generation, the 360's predecessor may be feeling some neglect since saves aren't transferable and exclusive titles are elusive.The Vivendi VP also noted that the PS2 still has a lot of life left in it, which we're inclined to believe with all the triple-A games still to come to the West, including Kingdom Hearts II, Okami, Final Fantasy XII, and God of War 2. You gotta love the PS3's 100% backward compatibility (or 99.9% BC, give or take a couple of titles). Emulation profiles can only do so much.[Via Evil Avatar]
How-To: Run Flash games on your Xbox 360
Note: Microsoft broke this fun how-to when they released the dashboard upgrade yesterday. The upgrade fixes some bugs, breaks things like this how-to and doesn't offer any new features. So, if you aren't experiencing problems, there is no reason to upgrade. Opt-out and have fun with this how-to instead:At the end of 2005 a hacking group known as PI released a copy of the demo disk found inside of the Xbox 360 kiosks. PI has been cranking out a lot of these game ISO files even though there isn't a way to play them yet. The thing that makes the kiosk disc special is that Microsoft didn't enable many of the security features found on regular game discs. Granted, the actual executable files are still cryptographically signed, but you can manipulate many of the other unsigned files on the disc. The disc doesn't have a strict media flag either, so you can burn it to a CD/DVD and it will play in any Xbox 360. The Xbox-Scene community has been investigating booting your own Flash files using the disc which is what we'll be showing you today. The final result will be a disc that is playable on any Xbox 360.
Dashboard silently updated, but bugs still abound
Noticed anything funny with the 360 Dashboard? While it has a couple of problems, it looks like Microsoft have already taken some steps to update the Dashboard, with most people running version 2241 instead of version 1888 which the 360 shipped with. This "silent" updating is a little unnerving, especially as we don't know what was fixed, but it's nice to know something is being done about the various bugs and problems.[Thanks, Scott]
Beware Microsoft's domain squatting faux pas
If you're an Xbox Live subscriber interested in getting your hands on a Diamond Card, beware. It seems that a typo on the website, www.xboxlivediamond.com, encourages users to email a non-Microsoft address if they believe their gamertag has been signed up to the site by someone else. From Joystiq, which has the scoop: Step 3: Notice the error message that says: "We're Sorry!!! That GamerTag has already been registered" Notice the following instructions: "If you believe that someone else has registered with your GamerTag, please send an email to support@xboxdiamond.com." Step 4: Notice that xboxdiamond.com is registered with domain squatters. Oops! Hope nobody sent their Xbox Live account information (password, credit card information) to that email address! We further hope that whoever's receiving the deluge of emails isn't impersonating Microsoft and soliciting this information from Xbox Live customers. Since the domain was recently listed on eBay, who knows what the squatters are going to do with the deluge of mis-registered gamertag emails. We hope Microsoft fix this blunder quickly--it doesn't exactly instil faith in the Diamond Card service.
Inside the Xbox 360 Lounge
A Flickr user recently visited the Xbox 360 Lounge in Tokyo and has posted photos of the experience, helping us Westerners answer the question "So what really goes on in there?" for once and for all. It's a glorification of all things 360, from the tables to the integral gift shop (of course) and huge stacks of consoles for sale, and looks like a great stop to take if you're planning on visiting Japan in the near future. As the lounge is scheduled to close in just over two weeks, on January 15th, it's not going to be an easily repeatable visit.
Dock your iPod in your Xbox 360
If you have a brand new iPod and a brand new Xbox 360 and you have a penchant for hacking, then you've probably already spent several hours staring at both devices and trying to figure out how to make them embrace each other in the embrace that only two cool gadgets can share. Luckily for you, you gadget freak, Eliot Phillips shows you the way to build a Dock for your iPod into your Xbox 360.
Microsoft calls Power Macs an Interim Development Tool
TUAW reader, Brock, wrote in with a tip pointing this out: Microsoft begrudgingly admitted to demoing recent videos associated with their new Xbox 360 on Macs. According to News.com, an official Microsoft spokesman blushed* before admitting, "We purchased a number of Apple G5's because very specific hardware components of the G5 allow developers to emulate some of the technology behind future Xbox products and services." Then a few minutes later when the spokesman got a hold of himself, feeling emboldened by the attention he was receiving*, he added with a sneer*, "This is an interim development tool that will be replaced with a more powerful and comprehensive solution later." [emphasis mine]
