Major Nelson
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Xbox 360 update will make it just as social as the Xbox One
With Windows 10, Microsoft is all about the Xbox integration. Xbox 360 preview users can now see gaming activity from Windows 10, Xbox One and of course, their Xbox 360. The feeds show achievements, broadcasts, screenshots, text posts and GameDVR clips from you or people you follow. You can then share or comment on directly from the console, or create a new post. The Xbox One has had that feature since February, but as one Major Nelson commenter put it, at least Microsoft isn't forgetting its old warhorse completely. The feature has only rolled out to Xbox 360 preview program participants, but everyone else will likely see it with the next regular update.
You can still browse New Years deals on the Xbox Marketplace
New year, same simple pleasures - Shockingly, it turns out that saving money in 2015 is just as fun as it was in 2014! In recognition of this truth, Xbox Marketplace's existing, week-long New Years deals have been extended until January 6, providing a range of savings across the Xbox One and Xbox 360 libraries. We've noticed discrepancies when checking for sale prices between console and browser-based store views however, so keep that in mind as you explore. The sale's highlights include $44.99 price tags for Destiny and Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare on both platforms, Alien Isolation for $29.99 on Xbox One ($33.49 on Xbox 360), Diablo 3: Ultimate Evil Edition for $39.99 and Forza Horizon 2's Day One Deluxe Edition for $67.99. The Telltale Games Collection for Xbox One is also 50 percent off ($55), though despite Major Nelson's related post listing it as a general offer, that price is only available to Xbox Live Gold members. If none of the above strike your interest, perhaps you'll find something by browsing the sale in its entirety. You do own The Orange Box and Red Dead Redemption by now though, don't you? [Image: Activision, Telltale Games, Sega]
First Sunset Overdrive story DLC tours an oil rig turf war
Xbox figurehead Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb takes over hosting duties on the latest episode of Sunset TV to introduce the first story DLC for Insomniac's open-world mayhem hit Sunset Overdrive. Dubbed "The Mystery of Mooil Rig," the DLC sees your character following a distress signal to an oil rig off the coast of Sunset City. There you find a violent conflict between factions of well armed workers and, because developer Insomniac loves its squamous explosion effects, you'll also find a healthy complement of mutants. Since the addition takes place on a floating man-made island, the DLC grants players two new movement options: the "Water Dive" allows players to submerge for a short time, while the "Water Slam Bounce" sees players melee smash into the water, only to be catapulted to great heights. According to Hryb, the DLC also includes new weapons, traps, amps and Chaos Squad objectives, though he doesn't get into useful details, beyond saying that more will be revealed in the next episode of Sunset TV. The Mystery of Mooil Rig will be available on December 23 for $10 or as part of the $20 Sunset Overdrive season pass. [Image: Microsoft]
Microsoft celebrates Xbox One's first year with gifts to lucky fans
Early Xbox One purchasers: Today might be your lucky day. A post on Major Nelson's blog explains that in celebration of the Xbox One's first year on the market, console owners will be "selected at random to receive a special gift from us." The blog post offers a full list of potential prizes, but highlights include the Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare and Sunset Overdrive console bundles and a one-year subscription to Xbox Live Gold. Free copies of Limbo, as seen in the above image tweeted by Xbox's Jeff Rubenstein, are also planned as a thank-you to Day One console adopters. Luck won't be the driving factor for everything related to the anniversary, however. Fans 17 or older that have used their console for more than 10 hours, reside in one of the original 13 markets for Xbox One and made their purchase between November 22, 2013 - November 11, 2014 will receive The Year One Celebration box. The bundle contains a Year One-themed gamer picture, dashboard background, desktop image and free rentals of Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn and Dragon Ball Z: Battle of the Gods. Those living in the US and Canada will also get a sampler pack of Dragon Ball Z episodes. Aside from free stuff, Xbox crunched a few community-wide statistics to see what Xbox One owners accomplished in their first year. The communal Gamerscore total earned on Xbox One has surpassed 11 billion, which was earned throughout two billion hours of play. The year's four most-earned achievements include Forza Motorsport 5's "Welcome to Forza Motorsport," Titanfall's "Build Yourself," Destiny's "Ship Rite" and Call of Duty: Ghosts' "Spatial Awareness." Happy birthday, Xbox One. [Image: Microsoft]
Microsoft Stores celebrate Master Chief Collection launch with streams and swag
If there's one thing Halo's Master Chief is known for, it's partying ... okay, maybe not. Regardless, Microsoft will be celebrating the launch of Halo: The Master Chief Collection with special events taking place at Microsoft Store locations across the US. According to Microsoft spokesman Larry Hryb (aka: Major Nelson), those who visit their local Microsoft Store will be able to score a free t-shirt and canteen, among other prizes. The HaloFest Premiere Event will also be streamed to each of the 106 Microsoft Stores around the country, meaning you'll be able to catch the debut of the live-action series Halo: Nightfall while waiting to pick up a copy of The Master Chief Collection. If you live within visiting distance of the Bellevue, Washington Microsoft Store, you're in for arguably the biggest treat: Master Chief himself (or someone dressed like him, seeing as this is the real world and not the dream world we write about in our Livejournals) will be available for photo opportunities, and the store itself will act as a museum, full of props and replicas from the Halo universe. Wherever you're looking to go, the party starts on November 10 at 10 p.m. local time. [Image: Microsoft]
Custom backgrounds headline Xbox One's November update
Xbox spokesman Major Nelson has a look at the new features coming to the Xbox One in the November system update, including custom backgrounds, enhanced Twitter integration and an improved Xbox Live Marketplace. "For the first time, each account on your Xbox One can have a customized background," reads the update description. "You can choose a custom color or achievement art as your background on Xbox One, with more customization options coming down the road." Following the update, Twitter users will be able to share game footage captured on the Xbox One directly with their followers. Additionally, the Xbox Live TV app will allow users to search for shows based on their Twitter popularity and to watch a live stream of tweets about a show from within the app, among other social-networking enhancements. Most promising are the improvements coming to the Xbox Live Marketplace. "The Store pages on Xbox One have been improved to enable you to more quickly browse and find content. The navigation buttons were moved to the far left so you can find them easier. You can also more quickly find game add-ons, perform store specific searches and recommendations are more prominently displayed. Finally, store categories have been standardized so you can easily see the top items in each query at a glance." Full details can be found at Major Nelson's blog, though he fails to mention when the update might be released to the general public. [Image: Microsoft]
Halo 2: Anniversary getting a making-of documentary
In an upcoming documentary that's bound to make the wait for Halo: The Master Chief Collection's November 11 launch more painful, fans will get a peek at what went into tackling the compilation's most-anticipated piece. 343 Industries has released the above teaser for Remaking the Legend - Halo 2 Anniversary, which appears to be a reflection on Halo 2's initial significance as well as the work involved in bringing it to Xbox One. Head of Xbox Phil Spencer, Xbox spokesperson Larry "Major Nelson" Hyrb and 343 Studio Head Bonnie Ross are among the figures featured in the trailer, which signs off by promising the full work is coming soon. [Image: 343 Industries]
Watch the Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare multiplayer premiere
Sledgehammer Games sits down with Xbox Live's Major Nelson for the very first live stream of Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare's multiplayer. What does it look like when Call of Duty players slip back into the series' trademark shootouts sporting lasers and jetpacks like a bunch of GI Joe characters? It's going to look a whole lot like this. The stream starts at 1PM EST, so watch here! [Images: Activision]
Watch Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare's multiplayer reveal on Xbox Live
Developer Sledgehammer Games will introduce Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare's multiplayer during Gamescom 2014. What's that, you say? Checking out of reality for a week to go play games in Germany is a bit infeasible? Well as long as you can get on Xbox Live, there's a consolation prize: Sledgehammer's trailer reveal will be broadcasted live on Xbox Live at 1 p.m. Eastern on August 11, with interviews also planned during the presentation. That Xbox locked in a multiplayer reveal on its own channels shouldn't be much of a surprise, considering that Advanced Warfare's DLC will arrive on Xbox One before any other platform. Hopefully Sledgehammer has some neat game modes in store for us – we can only entertain ourselves by fighting Kevin Spacey's army for so long. [Image: Activision]
Microsoft kicks off gradual release of Xbox One May update
Those patiently waiting for the next software update for the Xbox One won't have to wait much longer. "The latest Xbox One system update has started to roll out," tweeted Xbox figurehead Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb. The highlight of this update is new, more granular audio controls, which allow users to determine individual volume levels for apps they've snapped onto the Xbox One's main display. To put it more simply, if you're playing a game while also chatting with people on Skype, you can turn the game down, and turn the chat up, preventing your crucial conversation from being drowned out by explosions. Additionally, the update adds a new feedback tool designed to send information directly to Microsoft from the Xbox One automatically. This program is entirely voluntary, but according to Microsoft the goal is not to snoop on players, but instead to collect audio samples which may be used to improve the console's voice recognition capabilities. Like all Xbox One updates, Microsoft plans to gradually issue this new software version to users. While some will find the update available at this very moment, others may have to wait a few hours or even a day. According to Hryb, the update should be available to everyone by early next week. Full details on the update can be found on Hryb's official blog. [Image: Microsoft]
Microsoft digs up E.T. carcass-- er, cartridge at landfill
Xbox Entertainment Studios and Lightbox Entertainment's documentary on the excavation of a New Mexico landfill where supposedly thousands of copies of E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial for the Atari 2600 won't be completed for some time yet, but if you want to know how the search went, well, the above image should tell you all you need to know. Yup, they found E.T. - or at least one copy of the game. Xbox spokesperson Larry Hryb, AKA Major Nelson, tweeted pictures showing the cartridge, as well as other Atari 2600 games still in shrink wrap, from the landfill. Dude. Spoiler warning next time! [Image: Larry Hryb]
Watch Major Nelson explain Twitch broadcasting on Xbox One
The imminent addition of Twitch broadcasting to the Xbox One has prompted preternaturally winsome Xbox spokesman Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb to narrate the above walkthrough of the service. Those familiar with Twitch broadcasting on the PlayStation 4 will notice that both services share a core simplicity, though the Xbox One incarnation of Twitch offers one major advantage over its Sony counterpart: broadcast archival. Whereas footage broadcast from the PlayStation 4 vanishes into the ether immediately after it airs, Xbox One users will find that Twitch stores their past broadcasts. To drive the point home, Hryb invites players to visit his own account, where they'll find footage from a number of recent gaming sessions broadcast via Twitch. While no single date has been pinned down for the debut of Twitch on Xbox One, Microsoft plans to launch the service at some point next week, just in time for the debut of Titanfall. [Image: Microsoft]
Civilization Revolution, Dungeon Defenders free on Xbox Live Gold in March
Xbox spokesperson Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb has revealed the next two games to join the slate of free titles offered to Xbox Live Gold members: console strategy hit Civilization Revolution and co-op action-RPG Dungeon Defenders. Civilization Revolution will shed its standard $30 price point on March 1, and will remain free to all Xbox Live Gold subscribers until March 15. Then, on March 16, Dungeon Defenders will take its place as the service's gratis offering. Like previous free games, both Civilization Revolution and Dungeon Defenders will be yours to keep once downloaded, even if you let your Xbox Live Gold subscription lapse. However, you only have two weeks to initiate the free download, after which time these games will revert to their original prices. [Image: Trendy Entertainment]
Ryse: Son of Rome 'Mars' Chosen Pack' DLC coming February 28
Ryse: Son of Rome players will be getting new DLC, "Mars' Chosen Pack," on February 28, according to a Microsoft press release. Don't get your hopes up for Roman gladiators in spaaaaaace, a delicious treat or a funky soundtrack, though; the Mars referred to here is (probably) the Roman god. The pack contains a new, two-player co-op Survival mode, four new maps, one re-worked map and a skin. It will be preceded by 10 days of sales. The first sale, which runs from February 18 to February 24, knocks the Games on Demand version of Ryse down to $39.99 for North America and £34.99 for Europe. Major Nelson will announce new sales every day thereafter, up until the DLC's release date. Upon its surely-bloody debut in the arena, "Mars' Chosen Pack" will cost $8.99 in NA, £7.19 in EU territories. Two of the pack's maps, Firestorm and Dockyard, have been created specifically for Survival mode, while two more, Pyramid and Obelisk, will add to the game's Arena mode. An already-existing map, Courtyard, has been "optimized" for Survival mode. [Image: Microsoft Studios]
Final Xbox daily deal of the year discounts Call of Duty: Ghosts
With 2013 drawing to a close, it's time for one last Xbox 360 daily deal: A promotion that cuts between 25 and 40 percent from the price of Call of Duty: Ghosts, depending on your location. Here's how it works: Pay a visit the Xbox Live Marketplace's Games On Demand section on your Xbox 360, then search for Call of Duty: Ghosts. Until the end of today, you'll find its price has been reduced. How much it's been reduced depends on where you live. Those of you in the United States will see the weakest discount, with only 25 percent being taken off. Those in European countries will find a 29 percent discount, and citizens of the UK are being granted a 30 percent discount. Australian gamers make out the best in this deal, as their version of Call of Duty: Ghosts has been reduced in price by 40 percent. If Call of Duty: Ghosts isn't your cup of tea, but you still desperately want to pick up something before the year ends, you'll want to have a look at the ongoing weekly sale also taking place on the Xbox Live Marketplace. Like the daily deal, these offers expire once 2014 rolls around.
Xbox kicks off Countdown to 2014 deals tomorrow
Microsoft is counting the days to 2014 with sales on a random assortment of digital Xbox 360 goodies, Major Nelson announced. Each day brings new, limited-time deals beginning tomorrow with discounts on the Games on Demand version of Borderlands 2 (75 percent off) and the game's collection of DLC. In addition to the limited daily sales, Xbox Live has a slew of discounts on a mishmash of digital content beginning tomorrow and running until December 23. Highlights include Spider-Man: Web of Shadows for 67 percent off its regular price, Guardians of Middle-earth for 67 percent off, and 65 percent off BioShock Infinite. For a complete list of discounts, check Major Nelson's blog, where daily deals will also be posted.
Xbox One does not require demos, devs to make that decision
The Xbox 360 featured a demo for every Xbox Live Arcade release. It had to, because Microsoft made that a mandate. For the Xbox One however, things have changed, and now developers decide whether or not they want to release a demo. "It is (and always has been) up to game developers to do demos for their own games," wrote Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb on his blog. "They'll [sic] be more demos for Xbox One as the platform goes forward." Hryb was later asked why Microsoft changed its demo policy, but offered no response to that question. Hryb's statement came in response to discussion of Peggle 2, a recent release that offers players a free demo. That's good, but problematically the Xbox One interface does nothing to separate what were previously considered Arcade games from their retail brethren. As a result, finding the demo is more difficult than it reasonably should be.
Xbox One controller and voice command tips from Major Nelson
Microsoft spokesman Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb walks players through the Xbox One control scheme, covering a few shortcuts and tips involving voice commands and the console's fancy new controller. One major update to the Xbox One is the controller's menu button – the one with the three horizontal lines in the right-center of the faceplate. It's case sensitive, acting as a "right click" to pull up different options depending on which app you're hovering over. Major Nelson also covers a few handy voice commands, such as saying "Xbox, Select" to highlight all of the speakable options on any page. We covered that phrase and a few other gems in our review of the Xbox One, under the subhead "On Kinect."
Report: Xbox One dashboard, download details leak after consoles ship early [update]
Twitter user @Moonlightswami has posted impressions on the Xbox One after claiming to receive his console early from Target, Engadget reports. Moonlight Swami claimed that in its current state, the Xbox One takes 17 seconds to reach its dashboard during boot up. A 500 MB update was allegedly present after the console was booted for the first time, which could be the day one download that's required to use the system. Moonlight Swami stated he was also able to begin playing games once they were 50 percent installed onto the console's hard drive. The Xbox One Marketplace seems to be partially stocked, as well - Moonlight Swami tweeted supposed screenshots of the marketplace detailing the download size for various games. The photos suggest the largest game available is NBA2K14 at 43 GB, with Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag trailing at 20 GB, Dead Rising 3 at 19 GB and LocoCycle at 13 GB. Moonlight Swami also installed Call of Duty: Ghosts from a retail disc, which he claims requires 39 GB of hard drive space. Moonlight Swami's tweets offer a glimpse at a supposed dashboard section for "featured challenges," which seem to be time-specific tasks for individual games. The involved picture shows things like playing a game of football within two weeks of Madden NFL 25's launch, or earning 5 million SP during a certain period in Need for Speed Rivals. The early impressions party stopped once Microsoft banned the console, but Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb has reached out to Moonlight Swami for information and to get the scenario "sorted out." Update: In a NeoGAF thread related to the incident, Major Nelson has stated that Moonlight Swami's console "will not be permabanned, that is for sure." Kotaku is also reporting that a Target representative confirmed the shipment of a small number of consoles before their street date due to a "systems error."
No Turtle Beach headsets or Xbox One Headset Adapter until 2014
According to a press release from audio accessory (and not reptile umbrella) manufacturer Turtle Beach, the company's XO FOUR and XO SEVEN headsets for Xbox One will not be available until the first quarter of 2014, due to the delay of Microsoft's Xbox One Headset Adapter. "Microsoft has informed its partners in the Xbox One console launch that the Xbox One Headset Adapter, being built by Microsoft and provided to Turtle Beach for inclusion with new gaming headsets, will not be available until early 2014. Both companies will leverage the additional time to build supply to meet anticipated high-demand when the headsets launch," the press release states. Xbox Live won't be silent on launch, mind you; an unboxing video from Microsoft's Larry Hryb (aka: Major Nelson) showed that the Microsoft wired headset will be included with both regular and Day One Edition consoles. Prepare accordingly. The Xbox One isn't the only system with headset compatibility issues. According to a report from Game Informer, USB headsets will not work with the PlayStation 4 at launch, and the Turtle Beach support page notes that although PS4 users can receive game audio using a digital optical connection, you'll need a headset with a mobile adapter connection to chat.
