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When Xbox Live copywriters get careless
Eagle-eyed Quarter To Three denizen "XPav" spotted some Xbox Live Marketplace demo descriptions that are either terse, strange, or just plain nonsensical. It's obvious what happened: in each case, somebody banged out a rough draft as a placeholder and didn't remember to go back and rewrite the text for public consumption. Embarrassing for them, but fun for us. Could the "real" Dead or Alive 4 description have been any more enjoyable -- or accurate -- than "mighty magnificent stimulating graceful fighting?"[Via QT3]
Area 51: BlackSite demo Live, government still denying existence
You don't know, man! I've been living in a trailer in southern Nevada for nigh on 27 years, and I've seen some things. Things that Uncle Sam ain't exactly thrilled to be talking about sort of things. Just last night, I was laying in the back of my El Camino peering through my Advanced Ritchey-Chretien Telescope with UHTC Coatings when I saw it: A brilliant blue light, hovering right above Groom Lake. It was what Area 51 junkies like myself had been waiting for for since Art Bell was in short pants: Real proof.So, I tell my harpy of a wife this morning, what does she do? She says I never even made it outside last night. She says I blacked out on the Davenport after my 13th (possibly 17th) PBR. She says the kids were up all night playing the "new demo for BlackSite: Area 51," whatever the hell that means. Now, I'm not as concerned about another sighting going tits up as I am about the kids playing their AxeBox 360 without their foil hats. How can I protect them if they're not willing to save themselves?%Gallery-1680%
Shadowrun lands on Xbox and Windows May 29th
Right on the heels of Halo 2's Games for Windows Live debut on May 22nd comes the announcement that Shadowrun, whose signature feature will be Live Anywhere support, will be pitting the keyboard / mouse combo against the gamepad this month when it hits North American retailers on May 29th. Shadowrun will be the first game to support cross-platform play between Windows Vista and the Xbox 360.The Xbox 360 version will retail for $60 while the Vista version will retail for $50. Additionally, cross-platform Live Anywhere play requires an Xbox Live Gold account for both Xbox Live and G4W Live -- Shadowrun Vista users can still enjoy online multiplayer with a Silver account, but will not be able to participate in matchmaking or Live Anywhere play. Are you WASD or gamepad? %Gallery-1774%
Major Nelson co-host burns Epic in 'free' debate
Those of you who regularly listen to the podcast for Xbox Live's Major Nelson may have noticed your clicking finger heating up as you moused over the "Download" link this week, probably because the Major's co-host "e" used the show to totally burn (In l33t parlance: own) Epic. It's either that, or you were having a stroke. Let's hope it was the totally sick burn.The burn-a-thon started last month with Epic's Tim Sweeney's complaint on 1UP Yours that they wanted to give their new Gears of War maps away, but Microsoft was forcing them to charge. On this week's cast, the Major's fellow Xbox Live staffer e retorted: "I do find this amusing though; a lot of people may not remember this but a year ago Epic was bragging about how they cost us one billion dollars." OMG! Burn!
Xbox Live Video offerings expanded to fill those 120GB hard drives
Despite last week's high-profile launch of the AppleTV, Microsoft is still the "only online distributor of major feature films and television programming in high definition resolution." To ensure they keep their lead, and to offer potential 120GB HDD upgraders and Elite console buyers additional incentive to take the plunge, Microsoft is announcing several new content deals. Paramount Pictures joins the high definition online fray, adding Braveheart, Team America: World Police, World Trade Center and South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut to Microsoft's service. Warner Bros. Home Entertainment also commits, promising to release their direct-to-video films (in HD) on Xbox Live in tandem with the DVD editions. These include Sublime and Babylon 5: The Lost Tales.Others adding to the growing store of digital content are: A&E network -- providing Dog the Bounty Hunter, King of Cars, Driving Force, the disturbing Criss Angel Mindfreak and the even more disturbing Gene Simmons Family Jewels. ADV Films -- catering to the anime fans. National Geographic -- bringing much needed realism onto your console of digital silliness. New Line Cinema -- giving us Snakes on a Plane, Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny, "plus top titles including Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me and Magnolia." Apparently, the first few movies are non-top in nature. TotalVid -- packed with sports which are decidedly extreme. Check after the break for the tricky, but unchanged, Xbox Live pricing scheme for digital content.
Xbox Live maintenance next Tuesday, purely housekeeping
Xbox Live will be down next Tuesday for 14 hours from 3AM until 5PM EST, so you shouldn't plan any marathon sessions of online gaming with your Xbox ... because you'll be a very unhappy camper. Major Nelson said this is only for internal maintenance, and there won't be any new updates to the Dashboard or anything nifty like that happening.So prepare for an all-night session on Monday right up until the plug is pulled if you really want to get your gaming on. Fourteen hours seems like a long time for internal maintenance ... could there be something else going on behind the scenes?
SXSW: Digital Distribution: The Way of the Future for Gaming
Almost everyone who has gone online with the computer or a game console has probably downloaded something at one time or another, whether it's been a song, a photo, a game, or a set of horse armor for their equine friend. But are digital downloads the wave of the future for full-on distribution? Developers are hoping so, because it will cut down tremendously on competing for shelf space at the local Mega-Lo-Mart, not to mention all those costs for printing games, manuals, boxes, shipping, and the like. The panel consisted of Craig Allen, CEO of Spark Unlimted one of the big "shelf" retailers, especially with their newly announced mega-game Turning Point: Fall of Liberty due this coming November. From the other end of things was Dan Conners, CEO of Telltale productions who is in the middle of releasing Sam & Max as an episodic game, before packaging everything up into a retail edition. In the middle (and sadly, without much to offer) was David Burks, the marketing manager for Seagate Technology. You gotta store the downloads somewhere, right? In all fairness, Seagate was one of the SXSW sponsors, and he probably felt a bit shoehorned into this panel.
Live hits 6 million users 4 months early
GamerscoreBlog put up a fact sheet about Xbox Live to date, announcing they've hit 6,000,000 Xbox Live users four months ahead of schedule. Along with that, they have some spiffy trivia bullet points that might suit your fancy. First, Xbox Live members have unlocked around 300 million Achievements, netting a staggering total of 7.5 billion Gamerscore. Also, 5 billion MS points have been purchased for use over Xbox Live Marketplace. The top three played games worldwide on the 360 are Halo 2, Gears of War, and Hexic HD, and the top downloaded XBLA games Street Fighter II, Bankshot Billiards 2 and Marble Blast Ultra. So there's some cool news you can use. Or at least keep in mind next time you get an Achievement or use Marketplace.
What it takes to get a game on XBLA
Gamasutra sat down with David Edery, Portfolio Planner for Xbox Live Arcade. The interview focuses on Live Arcade and what makes a good title for XBLA. Edery says that the major factors to consider for a Live Arcade title are ease of playability, Live integration, and innovative gameplay. Considering the recent spate of retro titles, we'll allow you to make what you will of that last sentence. When asked about underrepresented genres on Xbox Live Arcade, Edery notes that he'd like to see more board games, more cooperative games not centered on combat (like this one?), and more experimental titles. Most importantly, Edery notes that Microsoft does pay attention to user feedback, and knows that the Live Arcade audience wants more original titles. Regarding this, Edery says only, "we've heard the message loud and clear that XBLA customers want more original games, and let me tell you -- those games are coming." Let's hope so.The interview is a good read for anyone interested in the inner workings of Xbox Live Arcade, and it even contains a few tips for would be developers. Hit the "read" link to check it out.[Via 1UP]
Texas Hold 'Em tournament on Xbox Live
We just got word that new fansite Xbox Live Connection is holding a Texas Hold 'Em tournament via Xbox Live. Anyone who has the XBLA game Texas Hold 'Em and is at least 18 years old can join in on the fun. Qualifying rounds started last night, but will run until February 18th. All the nightly winners will be invited back to square off on the championship table on February 19th with first place receiving a $40 Best Buy gift card and second place a $10 Best Buy gift card. For complete rules, tournament dates, and to sign up please click the 'read' link below. Good luck card players, the $40 gift card would be a nice down payment on a Xbox 360 game.
Gates: If you want to play online, get an Xbox
var digg_url = 'http://www.digg.com/gaming_news/Gates_If_you_want_to_play_online_get_an_Xbox'; In the first part of an informative interview conducted by Mercury News' Dean Takahashi, Bill Gates responds to the suggestion that Nintendo's Wii may come out on top thanks to its unique controller and cheaper price tag. "Look at the graphics," he says. "Look at Nintendo's execution in terms of online capability. We have this thing that nobody has ever seen before. When you say to your friend, hey let's play online, you say then you have to buy an Xbox. That's what 10 million people say."When peer pressure isn't selling Xbox Live, Gates points out that endeavours like cross-platform Vista gaming and IPTV are pushing the online service forward. However, he also believes that "Nintendo did some things right," going on to mention Microsoft's acquisition of Rare and the "huge success" that was Viva Piñata. Though many critics believe the game is a return to prominence for Rare, its lacklustre sales may lead others to agree with Gates for the wrong reason -- "Nintendo did some things right" by selling the developer when they did.Be sure to check out the rest of the interview for some interesting tidbits on the Xbox 360's IPTV, the continued absence of a larger hard drive and how Sony "didn't know what they were doing" with the Cell processor.
DS Daily: friend codes
We figured we'd jump right in to the big subjects here with DS Daily, so we're gonna point out the elephant in the room: friend codes. We love Nintendo like ice cream and all, but even we rabid fans can admit that the whole friend code system may not exactly be the best execution of online play ever. Complaints we've heard include the chaos inherent in trying to get a big group of friends together at once, host and server issues, and just the general pain of keeping up with the codes in the first place. We had to compare our pristine selves to Microsoft, but as these things go, gamer tags are certainly easier to manage. Nintendo's overly complicated online system has definitely affected our Game Nights at times.What's your take? Do you see benefits in friend codes, or obstacles? What changes would you like to see made?
New Gears of War update, content on the way
Joystiq has confirmed a scoop from XboxZone.com.au with Mark Rein at Epic that there will be some new things rolled out for Gears of War this week. Namely, two free new maps and a video which can be downloaded via the Xbox Live Marketplace this Wednesday -- which is also being sponsored by the Discovery Channel. Rein also told us that there will be a GoW update rolled out ahead of the new content. Hopefully it'll address some of the glitches that players have been complaining about. Details about the new maps: Raven Down: "A Raven Helicopter has gone down in the middle of a large scale battle with the omnipresent Locust Horde. Gears have taken out the Seeder and gamers join Delta Forces moving into the crash site from all angles to search for survivors." Old Bones: "In an attempt to eradicate any traces of human history and culture, the Locust Horde has emerged under Sera's Capitaline Museums and has begun to destroy them brick by brick. Each gamer's mission is to help the Delta Force recapture the museums before all remnants of humankind's existence are obliterated." Not bad for some free content, especially considering the fact that we've just about run our GoW maps into the ground. It'll be nice to see some fresh locations, and hopefully one day they can drop in some new game types as well.
Emptiness fills the Xbox Live Arcade void
Wednesday will soon pass without a new Xbox Live Arcade offering. Perhaps last week's unwelcome reception of New Rally-X soured Microsoft's spirits, prompting a 'then we'll give you nothing' response on this first Wednesday of the New Year.1UP poked fun at the no-show, cleverly announcing the arrival of Jacksquat, an entirely featureless platformer. The site also posted this official explanation from Microsoft:"It has always been our intention to release new Xbox Live Arcade content on Wednesdays as it is ready, which doesn't necessarily mean we will have new content every single week. The frequency of content will vary as games move from production to certification and are made ready for release. 'Xbox Live Arcade Wednesdays' refers to the fact that there is a fixed day and time for all Xbox Live Arcade releases worldwide -- Wednesdays at 8:01 a.m. GMT."Geez, at least toss us another UNO deck. Anyone else feel like today's snub is would-be punishment for our ungrateful attitudes?
Novadrome crashing into XBLA this Wednesday
Oh, praise be to the man who first welded a cannon to the bonnet of his otherwise unimpressive vehicle. This week's Xbox Live Arcade release is none other than Novadrome, a game that straps combat onto a four-wheeled monstrosity and rams it into a concrete barrier. As twisted chunks of black metal rain down, recall that the developer, Stainless Software, once gave us controversy poster child of yore, Carmageddon. Though distinctly lacking in unfortunate pedestrian targets, the game boasts eight-player matches, 15 arenas (they're in "3D," apparently), over 20 different vehicles, plenty of weapons and, perhaps most importantly, "gladiatorial robot opponents." Novadrome costs 800 MS points ($10) and releases this Wednesday, December 20th at 9AM GMT (1AM PST). [Full press release after the break.]
Pre-huzzah: Psychonauts spotted on back-compat list
For a brief moment in time, an updated version of the Xbox 360's backwards compatibility list was exposed for all the internet to see. Though it was yanked in a matter of minutes, one new entry stood out like an atomic mushroom cloud in a serene, children's playground. Not to imply that Psychonauts is capable of melting children or flooding large masses of land with deadly radiation, but its presence was rather devastating to the psyche. In case you weren't aware (and clearly you aren't much of the time), Tim Schafer and his team at Double Fine did extraordinary things with Psychonauts, managing to take the seemingly incompatible platformer and adventure genres and mash them together like two pieces of clay. That's before they twisted the whole mess into a variety of amusing shapes.Oh, there's a whole bunch of other new games too. However, when asked about the exact release date of this December update, Microsoft warned us that the list is not final. "We'll have more news soon -- as I'm sure you're aware with any software development, things can change at any time so we want to make an announcement when we're sure we've got the final, solid list."View the non-final, slightly wobbly list of additions after the break.[Thanks Nick! Thanks to Richard from Xbox 360 Fanboy for remembering to take a screenshot.]
Patch up your 1080p problems
Major Nelson brings word that a new 360 patch has been loosed on the world. The patch fixes some 1080p display problems experienced with certain TVs, most notably Sony LCDs and some Samsung models. The patch also promises to improve the performance of wired headsets when used with wireless controllers. Finally, the patch makes changes to the recently played list to improve accuracy. We're not really sure what that means. Has anyone downloaded the patch yet? Does it fix all your problems, answer your prayers, and grant you all of your wildest dreams?[Thanks, Chris Hipple]
MS drops the banhammer on fake Live accounts
German Xbox site, Xbox Archiv, is reporting that Microsoft will soon begin banning fake Xbox Live accounts. By fake, we mean false accounts created to download content outside of your home region. For example, if you live in America, you might create an European account to download UK Marketplace content -- something many people did for the Vegas single player demo. Rising concerns of copyright violation, especially in light of the recently launched Video Marketplace, are no doubt forcing MS to crack down on fake accounts. Supposedly, Microsoft will begin banning all accounts whose IP address doesn't match the region for which the account was created. However, the article, in part due to the wonky translation, doesn't make the extent of the banning clear. Will Microsoft only ban European and Japanese accounts trying to access US material, or will it ban US accounts accessing European and Japanese material as well?If Microsoft does start banning fake accounts, will it affect you? [Via Xboxic]
Small Arms debuts in XBL top five
Gears of War may be king of the hill for the second week in a row, but it isn't the only game making statistical waves on Live. Small Arms, you know, the game we've talked about incessantly for months, debuted at number four on the overall 360 Live charts -- and number one in Xbox Live Arcade specifically. It's really no surprise that the latest XBLA title would debut at number one in the Arcade list, but making number 4 overall is very impressive. For our part, we probably played Small Arms for 4 hours straight the night it came out (and that was just me). As long as you're not stuck in a room full of Unit 51 electricity gun spammers*, there's a lot of fun to be had. How many of you spent time with Small Arms this weekend? *Seriously, that gun could use some tweaking.
Mad Tracks interview and screens [update 1]
In an interview with the Mad Tracks team, Xbox Elite Team Belgie's very own YLA G gets some answers on why the game has been delayed since September, how far development has come along, and most importantly when we'll get our grubby hands on this cartoon looking game. And for the multi-lingual Xbox 360 fans there is good news, Mad Tracks is the first Xbox Live Arcade game to offer multiple language options. So, now you can brush up on your Spanish, German, Japanese and Russian all while racing around Mad Tracks style! Who said video games weren't educational?[Thanks, YLA G]Update 1: Fixed my reference to who "got the answers" ... sorry man.
