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Xbox One launch in China delayed, due before 2015
Following the lift of China's ban on gaming consoles in January, Microsoft poised itself to introduce the nation to the Xbox One on September 23. China should have said "No take backs!" however, as that specific launch date has now given way to a general "by the end of this year" launch window, according to a press release from Microsoft. "Despite strong and steady progress, we are going to need a bit more time to deliver the best experiences possible for our fans in China," the statement reads, noting that Microsoft is working with IPTV partner BesTV to meet its end-of-the-year launch goal. Even with the delay, Corporate Vice President Yusuf Mehdi added that Microsoft is "thrilled with the response we've seen in China, including pre-orders beyond our expectations and growing anticipation of our launch." Microsoft will still invite fans to an event on September 22 at the Oriental Pearl Tower, where games will be playable and 100 Xbox One consoles will be given away. Enwei Xie, General Manager of Xbox and Studios at Microsoft China, stressed that those who placed pre-orders for the September 22 launch in mind will still receive their consoles first, "along with an added bonus." [Image: Microsoft]
'Stiq Tips: Dead Rising 3 Guide
Dead Rising 3 ups the zombie count considerably. Like, two to three times the amount of its predecessors. I'm talking tons of shambling, terrifying corpses walking the streets. If you are wise, you should be afraid – and you should be prepared. They don't call the city Los Perdidos ("the lost ones") for nothing. Here are a few pointers that should keep you from being lost to the undead.
Teardown suggests Xbox One manufacturing cost of $471
The Xbox One costs Microsoft $471 to build, according to a hardware teardown and analysis by research firm IHS. IHS also cracked open the PlayStation 4 to find that Sony spends $381 building its latest home console. The bill of materials for the Xbox One amounts to $457, with the assembly and manufacturing of the system estimated at $14. IHS says that the Xbox One's Kinect camera adds $75 to the total cost of the Xbox One, including assembly, $11 more expensive than the original Kinect's bill of materials and manufacturing costs. Among the other components that factor in to the system's cost for Microsoft is a Blu-Ray drive manufactured by Lite-On that accounts for $32 of the Xbox One's bill of materials, and the system's $25 external power supply unit.
There are 8,000 Xbox One listings on eBay, 12,000 sold since Nov. 1
Users on eBay have sold 12,000 Xbox One consoles since November 1, with 7,000 of those sales during launch weekend, November 22 - 24. There are currently 8,000 Xbox One listings on eBay, the site says. Generally these consoles sell for more than the retail price of $500 because that's how this resale thing works. Microsoft sold 1 million Xbox Ones in the console's first 24 hours – and now we know at least 12,000 of those have already been recycled in the second-hand market.
Crimson Dragon review: A Dragoon denied
Read all of our Xbox One news and reviews right here! Crimson Dragon is not a Panzer Dragoon game, so maybe it's not fair to judge it as one. Then again, it was directed by Yukio Futatsugi, director of the Panzer Dragoon series, and its development team included many Panzer Dragoon veterans, and the game is about laser-breathing dragons flying over beautiful landscapes and killing hideous, imaginatively-designed monsters. Really, the only thing that separates Crimson Dragon from the Panzer Dragoon series is the name. That, and the fact that it isn't as good.
Joystiq remembers its favorite Xbox 360 experiences
With the release of the Xbox One, Microsoft joins the new generation of gaming consoles alongside Sony and Nintendo. Though the Xbox 360 still has at least three years of life left in it, the Xbox One moves into the spotlight as Microsoft's chief gaming console. Partly to pay homage to this past generation of gaming and partly to bid farewell, some of the Joystiq staff have gathered to offer their favorite memories with the Xbox 360. Of course, these are just a few of our favorites and not indicative of exactly just how many wonderful games we've been able to enjoy on the Xbox 360 (Xav said his pick would be playing Shadow Complex, for example!). Share your favorites in the comments below – that is, if you're not too busy Snapping Netflix on your Xbox One right now. Make sure to watch our PS3 Memories video feature, and stay tuned for a look back at the Wii next week! [Music: The Protagonist - "Pink Fuzz"]
Xbox One sales exceed one million in first 24 hours
The Xbox One, which launched in 13 different markets last night at midnight, has already been snatched up by over one million people in its first 24 hours of availability. That's $500 million. The Microsoft Sales Trumpet announced the news in a press release past the break, which confirms these are consoles sold directly to customers – not to retailers. This figure also surpasses day one Xbox 360 sales, marking a milestone for the Xbox division at Microsoft. We've been quite busy with the Xbox One this week, as you can see on our Xbox One launch hub. We have an extensive review of the system, some streams we've posted dedicated to the games and plenty of news to pore over.
Xbox also getting exclusive Metal Gear Solid 5: Ground Zeroes content
Metal Gear Solid 5: Ground Zeroes will have exclusive content on both Xbox and PlayStation platforms, after Microsoft revealed Snake to be no more than a wanton two-timer. Just last week, Sony spilled that the licentious operative will feature in PlayStation-exclusive content, namely a Solid Snake skin and retro-enhanced Deja Vu mission,. Then during Spike TV's Xbox One launch show, we learned Snake is cavorting with Microsoft on "Xbox exclusive content," whatever filthy, filthy secret that may be. Alright, let's stop the two-timing analogy there - it's not surprising to see both companies grab an exclusive piece of the Ground Zeroes pie, which Konami is serving up on PS4, Xbox One, Xbox 360, and PS3 in spring 2014 as a standalone prequel to MGS 5: The Phantom Pain. As for what the Xbox-only content is, filthy as it may be, we'll have to wait and see.
Harrison: Microsoft 'working unbelievably hard' to meet Xbox One demand
Microsoft is "working unbelievably hard" to keep up with Xbox One hardware demand in the face of pre-order sell-outs in the UK, corporate vice president Phil Harrison told GamesIndustry International during an interview at last night's launch event at Leicester Square in London. "Because of the pre-order volumes we are going to be sold out," Harrison said, referring specifically to the console's pre-release demand in the UK. Harrison added: "We're working unbelievably hard [...] to match demand. I can only apologize in advance to anybody who is let down before Christmas, we don't want to lose a sale, clearly, and we'll work hard in our operations and our manufacturing supply chain and obviously with our retail partners to make sure we catch up as quickly as we can." Harrison notes that a second wave of Xbox One hardware will hit store shelves in the UK before Christmas, allowing retailers to allocate stock in response to customer demand. Harrison did not clarify whether the console's pre-holiday resupply is planned for the UK only, or if restocks are also scheduled for North America and other regions.
EA: Patch to squash FIFA 14's Xbox One controller bug arrives today
Following reports of crashes in the Xbox One incarnation of FIFA 14, EA has revealed plans to issue a day-one patch for the game which should solve two of its biggest issues. Currently, if you plug two controllers into the Xbox One, then attempt to browse the console's bootflow from controller two while FIFA 14 is loading, the game will often crash. Until you've patched your game, EA's support site suggests plugging a single controller into your machine until after you've cleared the game's initial loading screen. Likewise, if you're browsing the bootflow while at the FIFA 14 title screen and allow the console to lay idle long enough to activate its low-power suspend mode your game may crash. EA's solution to this issue is simple: don't do that. If you can't help yourself though, and find your game has crashed, reboot the Xbox One. While today's patch should fix the above problems, EA notes that there are still numerous issues it is looking into. For instance, players are currently unable to join a "Friends Only" match from another player's Xbox One profile, and crashes are common when playing in co-op Season mode if a team's captain is using custom formations while his or her partner is not. There's currently no word on when these problems and the others listed on EA's support site will be fixed.
Xbox One disc drive broken for some users, YouTube videos show [Update: Microsoft responds, twice]
A handful of YouTube demonstrations show Xbox One disc drives broken in the same way: The console accepts a game disc and then makes an awful skipping sound and doesn't register any game data. One YouTuber, Gabriel Ortiz, compiled a few videos of busted Xbox One disc drives, which he found under the search term "Broken Xbox One." We've reached out to Microsoft for more information. Update: A Microsoft spokesperson provided the following statement: "We know that with a hardware launch of this magnitude customers will have questions and we have many avenues for customers to get the answers they need and get back in the game as soon as possible. Rest assured we plan to take care of our customers. "Any customer who believes they are experiencing an issue with their Xbox One should reach out to us. There are many avenues available for customers to get in touch with us including: Talking to a live customer support person that can call you back if you don't want to wait Xbox.com for support pages and forums On Twitter with @XboxSupport There are also Help and diagnostics on the console by saying 'Xbox Help.'" Update 2: Microsoft followed up with another statement more clearly addressing the disc drive problem: "The issue is affecting a very small number of Xbox One customers. We're working directly with those affected to get a replacement console to them as soon as possible through our advance exchange program. Rest assured, we are taking care of our customers."
Review: Xbox One
We'll be rolling out Xbox One review coverage all the way through launch on November 22. Read all of our news and reviews right here! Some of the close-to-final functionality of the Xbox One was only made available this week, so this review is a living document for our thoughts on the platform. Stay tuned for more updates from now until launch! Update 1: Added additional content on game installation, Kinect features and gameplay clip editing. Update 2: More writing about Smartglass, Skype and system favorites. Added a terrible joke. Update 3: Conclusion ... concluded! Xbox, On(e) With the Xbox One, Microsoft trusts that today's living room configuration is still set around a dominant television, a large window into games, movies and long-form storytelling. This is a games machine in the vein of the successful Xbox 360, complete with online games and Achievements as always, but Microsoft is looking to provide a platform for all your entertainment this time, whether it's from Hollywood or HBO. This glut of content and features is hard to corral, especially when players and consumers want to be unhindered in their demands. The interface can't just be aimed at those who identify themselves as gamers. With more processing power, an enhanced Kinect camera and an interface designed around surfacing and serving content of all sorts, the Xbox One serves as a strong backbone for the living room, though it requires some patience and effort from the people seated in front of it.
Fulgore joins Killer Instinct's playable roster in March
A launch trailer for the Xbox One free-to-download fighting game Killer Instinct revealed that classic fighter Fulgore will join the fray in March, emerging as the game's eighth playable character and rounding out its first season of planned content updates. Fulgore first appeared in 1994's Killer Instinct, then later made appearances in the arcade follow-up Killer Instinct 2 and Nintendo 64 conversion Killer Instinct Gold. Fellow Killer Instinct veterans T.J. Combo, Cinder and Riptor are still missing in action, but are likely candidates for the Xbox One reboot's upcoming second season of content.
GameStop sells through PS4 allocation, 2.3 million people on 'first to know' list [Update]
GameStop has sold through all of its PS4 reservations and some additional allocated consoles it received from Sony, the retailer announced during its third quarter earnings call. GameStop President Tony Bartel added that the company has "over 2.3 million customers on the 'first to know' list, which indicates continued demand for months to come" for Sony's console. "Although we won't reveal the total amount of units for competitive reasons, our share was higher than on any previous console launch, and our sell-through since launch was 80 percent higher than the total amount of PS3s that we sold in our 2006 fiscal year," Bartel said. Bartel corroborated Sony Computer Entertainment of America CEO Jack Tretton's recent projection that the PS4 would sell 3 million units in North America by the end of the year, noting that GameStop expects "to sell a large portion of that." In regards to projections for Xbox One sales, which launched today, Bartel said "the value of our reservations and the additional allocation is 15 percent higher than the amount of Xbox 360s that we sold during our entire 2005 fiscal year. So we are poised for a powerful launch." Update: As a clarification, GameStop has informed Joystiq that the 2.3 million people on its 'first to know' list is for PS4 and Xbox One customers combined, not just the former.
These are the 22 games in the Xbox One launch-day lineup
The Xbox One is out in the wild across 13 markets, and maybe you're one of the Day One-rs, itching for the clock to hit 5 so you can rush home and lose your entire weekend to the next generation. So, what games are out there to consume the next few days for you? Just as we did last week for the PS4, we've taken Microsoft's confirmed final list of Xbox One launch day games, and linked it to our library of news and features on each game, with links to relevant reviews too. Check it out after the break, and remember to take breaks this weekend, for the sake of your loved ones, wash occasionally.
Pre-release update will make Crimson Dragon less difficult
Reacting to reviewer feedback, the developers behind Crimson Dragon have decided to issue an early update to rebalance the game and make the experience less taxing on players. In a message posted to Xbox Wire, Crimson Dragon director Yukio Futatsugi explains the decision. "Crimson Dragon is designed to be challenging. This has always been my vision for the game," Futatsugi stated. "I want you to feel like you've accomplished something each time you master a mission. To be proud of each dragon you've worked so hard to evolve to its ultimate form. "My challenge as the game director is to find the sweet spot of adhering to my vision for the game while keeping the game from becoming too frustrating," he said. "Using the power of Xbox One's cloud system, we can adjust this balance even after release. Based on the feedback so far, we've decided to make some changes even before the game is released." Futatsugi then outlines three of the biggest changes. Experience points earned during battle will be increased (even if you fail the current mission), the jewels used as in-game currency have been increased in number and frequency of appearance, and the "Casual" and "Classic" difficulty levels have been altered to "better match their intended level of difficulty." All three of these changes should make the game easier, though exactly how much easier is up in the air until the patch arrives.
Xbox One online games store is live
Microsoft's web store for Xbox One is now open for business. The store offers players a means of buying Xbox One games through their PC, which will then download to their console, much like Microsoft's online store in the past. The store features screens and videos for games, a "related games" recommendation system and star-based ratings guide, with a simple listing that spotlights those ratings with each game's cover art. Microsoft's Xbox One web store doesn't outwardly discern between retail and download-only games, though the former retains the same price as their boxed counterparts, $59.99. The Xbox One launches tomorrow, and our review and ongoing coverage should keep you busy while you stand in line for your console tonight.
Xbox One teardown uncovers off-the-shelf components, standard-sized hard drive
A thorough undressing of Microsoft's Xbox One by iFixit revealed that the console uses a variety of common off-the-shelf hardware components, including a standard-sized hard drive for storage. iFixit notes that the Xbox One is equipped with a standard SATA II, 2.5-inch, 500GB Samsung Spinpoint ST500LM012 hard drive with an 8MB cache. Contrasting the proprietary hard drive casings used by the Xbox 360 and the recent Xbox 360 "slim" model, off-the-shelf replacements for the Xbox One's drive are readily available. Replacing the unit could prove difficult, however, as accessing the Xbox One's hard drive involves prying open the console and removing its Wi-Fi component and system speaker assembly. iFixit was unable to determine whether the Xbox One will recognize an unformatted replacement drive, however, so it's worth waiting for Microsoft's promised USB storage support before busting out the crowbar on your new hardware. iFixit's ongoing teardown additionally revealed that the Xbox One uses standard Torx screws, SATA connectors, and other easily-replaced components, possibly aiding future repairs and maintenance.
NBA 2K14 Xbox One review: Swear fealty to the prince
If NBA 2K14 on current-gen systems is the king, then the next-gen version is the prince. While it features the same unparalleled gameplay and control of its current-gen cousin, NBA 2K14 on Xbox One ends up feeling like less of a fully-realized product – a younger, prettier facsimile of what has been the best, and only, basketball sim on the market for the last few years. The next-gen version of NBA 2K14 One lacks some of the substance seen on Xbox 360 and PS3, though it benefits from being one of the most realistic-looking video games I've ever played.
Xbox One Dolby Digital 5.1 support for headsets coming post-launch
Xbox One-owning audiophiles will need to loop the Super Audio CD version of Dark Side of the Moon a few more times before the console is able to take full advantage of a high-end headset, as the console will not ship with Dolby Digital 5.1 support for devices connected to the Xbox One's optical port. A system update adding Dolby support for headsets will be released at some point after the system's launch. Microsoft's Director of Product Planning Albert Penello detailed the temporary limitation in a post at NeoGAF. "For the Dolby only headsets, my understanding is that these will work but you will only get stereo audio since we only pass Stereo and DTS through the optical port," Penello wrote. "I have not tested this myself, but I'm told it works. Regardless, I understand this is an inconvenience, but again we're going to have Dolby coming." Penello also addressed speculation regarding the console's rumored inability to produce HDMI-IN surround sound output at launch, explaining that players will need to opt in to beta surround sound support via the Xbox One's TV Settings menu. Otherwise, HDMI-IN audio is converted to stereo output by default. Penello notes: "We found some inconsistencies in [set top boxes] during testing and decided to disable it by default to insure a good initial setup experience for people."
