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Moore: Too Human, Crackdown, Forza 2, Shadowrun by end of June
Speaking with MTV's Stephen Totilo, Peter Moore promised that Crackdown, Forza Motorsport 2, Shadowrun, and Too Human would all see release by the end of June 2007. While Shadowrun's debut has always hinged on the availability of Windows Vista (FASA's game is cross-platform), the other three titles were once expected to round out Xbox 360's exclusive holiday lineup this year. As it goes, Gears of War and Viva Piñata will have to convince shoppers to pass on PlayStation 3 and Wii -- or shortages will. Still, with PS3 likely in short supply early next year, Microsoft has an opportunity to attract potential consumers with well-timed releases throughout the tail end of winter, leading into summer. But don't be surprised if a few of these exclusives continue to slip, landing alongside Master Chief in next year's holiday release batch.
X06: Shadowrun impressions
It seems that nowadays every other game falls into some sort of "shooter with X" category. It's a shooter with a shaky, cinematic camera. It's a shooter with a cold, barren setting. The best way to pigeonhole Shadowrun into a similar category would probably be "shooter with magic abilities."Based on the popular pen-and-paper RPG series, Shadowrun is a straight-up multiplayer melee with single-player training against computer-controlled bots. The developers hope to set it apart from the hundreds of other similar games with a variety of special abilities, ranging from the technological (a glider) to the supernatural (a health-regenerating tree, teleportation). Using the abilities is as easy as hitting a button, but using them effectively takes a little bit of skill. After some practice, though, the results can be incredible -- one developer showed off by teleporting through a wall on his glider and picking off the disoriented players below with a few well-placed shots. Players can further customize their characters with four selectable races, which vary in speed, strength, magic ability, etc.Shadowrun will be the first game to support cross-platform matches between players on the Xbox 360 and Windows Vista. The X06 demo showed off this support with PCs and Xbox 360s networked together seamlessly for an eight-player team capture-the-flag match. While the developers said they were taking pains to make sure neither platform had inherent advantage, the game seemed much smoother and more polished on the high-end PC than on the 360.While it's not likely to completely revolutionize the genre, Shadowrun is shaping up to be another fine online "shooter with X." Look for it to launch alongside Microsoft Vista, whenever it ends up coming out.Previously: Shadowrun impressions from E3
Magic, science, and fun, Shadowrun preview
Evil Avatar scored a sneak preview of FASA's upcoming Shadowrun, the debut game of Microsoft's new Live Anywhere platform which will allow both 360 and PC players to hash it out online. Some of you may remember that FASA was involved with the debut title for Xbox Live -- MechAssault -- way back in 2002. The preview pretty much covers everything you need to know about Microsoft's would be multiplayer king. The game plays out like Counter-Strike. Each match is divided into six rounds. At the beginning of each round, players purchase magic, technology, and, of course, weapons. The interesting factor here is that magic and technology remain with players even if they are killed during a round -- weapons must be purchased again, however. Essentially this causes the match to intensify with each new round. Adding another layer of strategy to the game is the ability to resurrect dead players. As the author notes, there's nothing quite like resurrecting your entire team and fighting your way back to victory. The preview is full of other details about the game. For instance, PC and 360 players may not be able to answer the age old mouse vs. controller question after all. See, you won't be able to tell if your playing against 360 or PC players. As far as the game is concerned, they're one and the same. The game also has another way of leveling the playing field. The faster you move the targeting reticle, the less accurate your shots. The idea is to moderate the massive speed advantage that mouse players have over console players. According to the author the experience on both the PC and 360 versions is nearly identical. We're always excited by fresh multiplayer so, here's hoping Shadowrun really shapes up. Anyone looking forward to this cross-platform frag fest?
Stupendous Shadowrun Shots
TeamXbox has some spiffy new shots of Shadowrun. We chose to display this one because Mr. Elf Vampire Dude has a sword, and swords are cool. Microsoft really, really wants all of you to think Shadowrun will be the next big thing, what with its Live Anywhere, PC-to-360 multiplayer goodness. Anybody hyped up to play against PC players, or does the lack of a keyboard and mouse leave you cold and untrusting?
MS talks Live Anywhere achievments
Are you and your Xbox 360 itching frag your obnoxious PC-loving cousin and his competition weighted mouse? Microsoft UK Third-Party Account Manager Steven Blackburn told a Leipzig crowd that MS will lure you to the blood feud with special online-only achievements designed to hype the Live Anywhere service. Start talking smack now because the the first truly cross-platform title, Shadowrun, hits early next year with plenty more to follow.[Via Xboxic]
Xbox Live numbers just keep rising
At the Develop Conference in Brighton, England, Microsoft's Jeff Sullivan dropped the news that 60% of 360 users are connected to Xbox Live. The long and short of it: things look good for Live."'Every time I do this presentation I have to check what the new figures are,' Sullivan said, before rattling off up-to-date stats such as Xbox Live has hosted over two billion hours of gaming, including over 500 million games of Halo 2. It also handles over 900,000 voice and text messages per day. But there's plenty more where that came from, with Microsoft on-track to hit its target of six million Xbox Live accounts in 2007.On Xbox Live Arcade:". . .on Arcade (which is used by 65 percent of connected users), over five million games have been downloaded. Conversion rates between free content and paid for downloads currently averages around 21 percent, with top games such as Geometry Wars and Uno up at 50 percent, while the lowest conversion rate is around 10 percent."It should be noted that even %10 percent is a substantial improvement over casual PC games, which average 2%. Sullivan also covered many other topics including Live Anywhere, in-game ads, and XLSP -- a tool that allows third party developers to integrate their own servers with Xbox Live. I think this Xbox Live thing might be going somewhere.[Via Xbox-Scene]
