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Movies, Television Episodes Now Available Via Xbox Live Marketplace
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Xbox 360, Xbox Live Marketplace,
Today, on the one year anniversary of the Xbox 360, Microsoft has announced the first batch of television and movie titles along with pricing for their video download service. Gamers with either an Xbox Live Silver or Gold account will be able to download video content in either HD or SD formats; those that choose the HD formats will also be able to download the SD format at no charge. Microsoft’s pricing has also been set at the following levels:
| Content Type | High Def | Standard |
|---|---|---|
| Television Shows | 240 Points ($3) | 160 Points ($2) |
| New Release Movies | 480 Points ($6) | 320 Points ($4) |
| Classic Movies | 360 Points ($4.50) | 240 Points ($3) |
Right now, the selection seems kind of sparse, and a single high definition movie download will take up well over 1/3 of the available space on a stock 20 GB hard drive. Television episode download prices seem in line with iPod download pricing, with a premium for high definition content, but it doesn’t appear that subscription options will be available. Movie download “rental” pricing seems high, particularly compared to mail-delivery based services like Netflix. Having DRM restrictions on the “rental” doesn’t help a lot either.
The full press release continues below.
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Bungie Drops Halo 3 Details On Halo Anniversary
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Bungie, First Person Shooters, Trailers, Xbox 360, Xbox Live Marketplace,
On the 5th anniversary of the release of the original Halo, Bungie has dropped a few more details about the goings-on in the Halo universe. First, a new Halo 3 commercial will air exclusively on Monday Night Football on December 4th, with availability on the Xbox Live Marketplace to follow. The commercial will be entirely in CG, which may be disappointing to hard-core fans looking for new in-game footage, but Bungie promises that the commercial will be something special nonetheless.
In addition, Bungie is promising exclusive Halo 2 multiplayer map content available on the Xbox 360. The content won’t be free, and also leaves current Xbox Halo 2 players in the cold. Bungie holds out a faint hope that the content may eventually make its way to the original Xbox, but realistically, this stands little chance of happening. A side benefit of the exclusive content, however, is the news that the backwards compatibility team will be looking at fixing some existing issues in Halo 2 on the Xbox 360.
Finally, probably the biggest news will be the availability of a public beta of Halo 3 this Spring. It sounds like right now the beta will be a limited multiplayer test, but should be exciting for those anxiously waiting for the next iteration of the franchise.
Read More 
| Bungie
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Microsoft’s HD Space Solution: Buy Another Hard Drive
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Hardware, Xbox 360, Xbox Live Marketplace,
With Microsoft’s announcement of downloadable high definition movies and television, some concerns were raised over the relatively small size of the 20 GB hard drive available. After formatting the drive and including Microsoft’s default installation, the drive winds up with around 13 GB free. Many have suggested that this announcement indicates a larger hard drive in the Xbox 360’s future. Indeed, this is one of the rumors that won’t seem to die. However, when GamersReports talked to Aaron Greenberg, the Xbox Group Product Marketing manager, he offered a different solution: transfer your Xbox Live Account to a memory unit, and buy another hard drive. Most gamers with the Premium Xbox 360 probably haven’t bought a memory card, so getting the ability to store more downloadable content ends up costing the gamer upwards of $100.
Read More | GamersReports
Gallery: Microsoft’s HD Space Solution: Buy Another Hard Drive
Microsoft Announces TV, Movie Downloads For Xbox Live
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Corporate News, Xbox 360, Xbox Live, Xbox Live Marketplace,
Rumors recently surfaced that Microsoft was going to make movie downloads available over Xbox Live. Today, Microsoft confirmed those rumors, announcing that they would make television episode downloads and movie rentals available through the Xbox Live Marketplace. The first hints that a rental service was in the offering was the presence of a new expiration flag on multimedia downloads from the Live service. Providers lining up to offer content on Xbox Live include CBS, MTV, Comedy Central, and Nickelodeon. Movie content providers include Warner Bros. Home Entertainment and Paramount Pictures. Television content will be download to own, and movie content will be download to rent over the service. The offering will officially launch on November 22nd, the anniversary of the Xbox 360 in the United States. No mention of availability in multiple regions was made, and costs were not released, but one would expect that Microsoft would offer prices that are competitive with Apples iTunes store. Now, however, the once “spacious” 20 GB hard drive is starting to seem rather small to support downloadable HD content.
The full press release continues below.
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Contra Hits Xbox Live, Atari Titles Announced
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Xbox 360, Xbox Live, Xbox Live Arcade, Xbox Live Marketplace,
Microsoft dropped a couple of media alerts today, first announcing that Contra will hit Xbox Live Arcade this Wednesday. For 400 Microsoft Points, gamers will be able to download the game, which will feature an original game mode plus an enhanced mode with updated graphics and sounds. The game will also feature online multiplayer, allowing two player co-operative gameplay either over the Internet or locally.
Microsoft also announced six new classic titles from Atari, including: Centipede/Millipede, Battle Zone,Asteroids/Asteroids Deluxe, Missile Command, Tempest, and Warlords. Battlezone will include new graphics, multiplayer modes like Deathmatch and Capture the Flag, and support for the Xbox Live Vision camera. Other titles like Missile Command and Tempest will also see visual updates. Hopefully the graphical updates to the classic titles will go way beyond the “enhancements” gamers have seen on Namco’s classic titles.
Read More 
| Contra Media Release
Read More | Atari Media Release
Gallery: Contra Hits Xbox Live, Atari Titles Announced
MS Skips the HD Format War, Goes Straight to Digital Distribution?
Posted by Michael Cardiff Categories: Internet, Rumors, Xbox 360, Xbox Live, Xbox Live Marketplace,
Rumors are circulating that, in addition to playing HD-DVD movies, the Xbox 360 will soon be a digital entertainment hub for downloadable video content. This sounds like something that would take a lot of time and infrastructure, but who knows - those are two things MS definitely has in spades. Plus, by avoiding the HD-DVD/Blu-Ray format war, Microsoft could puts Sony in a tough position. Either Sony has to start offering downloadable movies as well (thus cutting into their hopes for Blu-Ray), or the Xbox 360 just starts looking a little stronger in the features list.
SHSIBAE has learned that Microsoft will begin offering downloadable HD movies later this month. At launch time– rumored to be around Nov. 22–over 1100 hours of video will be available to rent or purchase through an XBOX 360 connected to XBOX Live. Feature length movies will require a ten minute caching period before viewing, which should be just long enough to make some popcorn, grab a beer, and find your favorite blanket.
We’ll definitely be looking for some sort of non-denial denial from Microsoft, but it never hurts to dream, eh? The idea of downloading movies to your Xbox 360 and watching them minutes later sounds amazingly sweet.
Read More | MaxConsole.net
Gallery: MS Skips the HD Format War, Goes Straight to Digital Distribution?
Could Microsoft Charge for a Halo 3 Demo?
Posted by Rob Stevens Categories: Action, Bungie, Editorial, Features, First Person Shooters, Rumors, Xbox 360, Xbox Live Marketplace,
My old friend Billy at Game Informer just posted a rumor that we could see a Halo 3 demo by mid 2007. I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if that were the case, but I’d guess Q3 if it were me. But the more interesting part is that this could be the first demo to come with a price tag.
Pop Quiz: What’s the best way to raise the price for a game beyond the acceptable mass-market threshold without actually raising the price?
Answer…Hide the upcharge in something else that the customers will buy without a second thought. In this case, a chance to play a stripped down, early version of the game (probably multiplayer only) a few months early. My gut instinct is that Microsoft could charge 800 points ($10) for the demo and fans would pay it. That would effectively make the price for the full game $70.
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Microsoft Talks Lumines, Blames Q Entertainment
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Xbox 360, Xbox Live, Xbox Live Arcade, Xbox Live Marketplace,
The release of Lumines Live on the Xbox Live Marketplace last week stirred up a storm of negative reaction regarding the content available in the game, the pricing, and the need for additional content packs for full enjoyment of the software. This disappointment was echoed by Playfeed’s own experiences with the game. 1up follows up on the controversy, and talks with Microsoft’s Greg Canessa, the group manager for Xbox Live Arcade, to try and sort through the issues with the title, Xbox Live Arcade, and microtransactions in general. The short version of the interview: Microsoft’s Xbox Live Marketplace is a great service, and all the problems are the fault of game developers.
Canessa states that Microsoft issues guidance on the three pricing points for Xbox Live Arcade titles, whether that is 400, 800, or 1200 points. While Canessa didn’t want to specifically discuss EA’s penchant to charge from everything from tutorials to cheat codes, he did claim that providing microtransactions were all about providing choice; Canessa believes that charging for additional content means that gamers that don’t want the content will essentially be paying less for their software. While it is true that gamer’s no longer have to pay for content they don’t want, gamers are already paying a premium for Xbox 360 titles over their previous generation counterparts, and are now being forced to pay extra for content that was formerly free.
Regarding Lumines Live, Canessa basically throws Q Entertainment under the bus. At first he claims that there is nothing wrong with the presentation of Lumines Live on the Xbox Live Marketplace. Then, when confronted with the messaging in the game, he claims this is solely the responsibility of Q Entertainment. Microsoft at this point claims to only be the platform provider, and holds no other responsibility.
As gatekeepers for the platform, the company needs to own up to the user experience that they and their partners provide. Microsoft’s approval process for boxed games at retail already seems to be broken, given the number of basic issues that have required patches to the consumer. Microsoft’s Xbox Live Arcade should be even more controlled, but apparently is not. From poor user experiences with Xbox Live gameplay in titles to the latest Lumines debacle, Microsoft needs to step up and act as an advocate for the gamer.
Read More | 1up
Gallery: Microsoft Talks Lumines, Blames Q Entertainment
Lumines Live Is A Huge Disappointment
Posted by Rob Stevens Categories: Editorial, Puzzle, Xbox 360, Xbox Live Arcade, Xbox Live Marketplace,
Lumines Live hit Xbox Live Arcade yesterday, and is easily one of the most anticipated games to hit Microsoft’s game service. Up until now, DOOM was at the top of the charts as the biggest rip off ($15 for a years-old game), but that title is now squarely on the shoulders of this puzzler from Q! Entertainment. At least with DOOM, the game was there in its entirety.
Despite ringing in at half again the cost of most other Xbox Live Arcade titles (1200 points, or $15), Lumines is not a complete game. Within an hour, I was bumping into messages telling me that I needed to purchase additional content (which is not yet available, incidentally). Outpost Kaloki X offers far more gameplay at half the price. Coupled with frustratingly imprecise controls, and an experience that isn’t as portable as it is on the PSP, I’m instantly regretting having hoarded points for this game.
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Lumines Live Hits Xbox Live
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Puzzle, Xbox 360, Xbox Live, Xbox Live Arcade, Xbox Live Marketplace,
Microsoft today announced that Lumines Live will hit the Xbox Live Marketplace on Wednesday, October 18th when the service becomes available after the scheduled maintenance. The game will be made available in two parts; the main Lumines Live game will sell for 1200 Microsoft Points ($15) and an “Advanced Pack” with 22 additional skins for 600 Microsoft Points ($7.50). If gamers pony up for the full Lumines package, this would be one of the most expensive Xbox Live Arcade games available to date. Microsoft does not sell a Marketplace Points card that has enough points to buy the complete game; the largest denomination that Microsoft makes available in stores is 1600 points. $22.50 is also more money than the PSP version of the game, which sells for $19.99. Of course, the Xbox 360 version offers features like online multiplayer over Xbox Live and a Skin Edit mode in the basic version; this package may be enough for the casual user as long as the title isn’t nagware.
Update: The “Advanced Pack” is not available right now, and will show up at a later date. Presumably so that gamers don’t look like dorks when they have to buy two 1600 points cards to pay for the game.
The full press release continues below.
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