The final of Edge’s interviews with the various “heads of state” of the three console competitors has now been published, as they talk to Microsoft’s Peter Moore on the Xbox 360. This is probably the least “technical” of the interviews, given that Microsoft has already launched their hardware into the market, and instead focuses on the gaming experience that people will see on the Xbox 360. Moore comments that he liked what he saw of the Wii controller, but didn’t really see the benefit of the Playstation 3 controller. Of course, given that there weren’t that many titles on the PS3 that featured motion sensitivity, there really wasn’t a good chance to see what developers could really do with the new technology, and how well it would stack up to the Wii.

Edge kind of slams Microsoft for the prevalence of first person shooters on the Xbox 360, but realistically, this is a reflection on the current focus of the industry, and not something that is tied to the Xbox 360. Of course, the Wii should offer more varied experiences, but this is more of a reflection of Nintendo’s development practices than anything else. But to slam the Xbox 360 for the games that third party developers choose to focus on seems a bit harsh, since the gaming industry basically is just following the money trail.

Of course, Moore also talks Xbox Live Arcade, which currently seems to be the path that Microsoft sees to the casual gamer. With the numbers Uno has seen, this seems to be working. Other titles like Lumines may also help drive this, though it’s hard to see where a gamer would decide to spend $400 on a console to get Lumines and Uno exclusively. But gaming experiences like this may expand the mindset of customers that the Xbox 360 doesn’t just offer hardcore gaming experiences.

Read More | Next Generation

Gallery: Edge Talks To Peter Moore

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This year at E3 many games were announced and demoed, and it is inevitable that some will slip through the cracks.  Small Arms, a Smash Bros.-esque brawling game which will come to the marketplace near the end of the summer, is one of those titles.  The game is being developed by Gastronaut Studios, an independent developer comprised of 4 people who focus on downloadable games.  Recently one of the developers gave some new info and background on Small Arms in an interview with ThrillsKilla. Here’s a snippet:

‘Marky Kat’ is our cyborg cat character who sports a ‘chain gun’ as his default weapon. The primary attack is a rapid fire stream of bullets, while the secondary is a shotgun type burst shot.

This will be another awesome game on XBLA, and while Gastronaut Studios doesn’t view the game as a Smash Bros. clone, it should fill a nice void in the marketplace and in my gaming rotation.

Read More | K1llas Xbox Domain

Gallery: Small Arms Trailer

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Xbox Live Anywhere screenshots have surfaced in the TeamXbox forums where Captain Panic was able to post images of Live Anywhere running on BREW.  The images show the ability to queue up downloads for both your Xbox 360 and PC, messaging people on your friends list, and downloading an arcade game.  Screenshots also show the ability to view your achievement points!  It is not yet known if completing an XBLA game on your phone will result in gaining those achievement points on your Gamertag.
One interesting screenshot shows the ability to buy a pass to all games from a certain publisher on a monthly basis for $3.95.  Could this signal a subscription plan for XBLA too?  I for one would welcome a $3.95 monthly charge for Xbox 360, PC and mobile versions of the same game, especially if this included a subscription to the publisher’s entire library.  We’ll keep you up to date as new info emerges.

Read More | TeamXbox via 360updates.com Additional Pictures

Gallery: Xbox Live Anywhere Screenshots Emerge

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Game Informer has put up an interview with Tetsuya Mizuguchi, founder of Q Entertainment and of Lumines and Rez fame.  Mizuguchi speaks at length on the four(!) upcoming versions of Lumines in the works.  First up, is Lumines Live, an Xbox Live Arcade version of the title in which a plethora of skins, music tracks and various other features such as online ranking and versus mode will be constantly added and made available via the Xbox Live marketplace.  No exact details were given yet, but Mizugiuchi mentions seasonal skins/music and confirms Madonna as being on the soundtrack.  Next is Lumines Mobile, which has been licensed to Buena Vista Games and is being developed by Gameloft.  Also mentioned is Lumines Plus a more or less direct port of Lumines to the Playstation 2.  While Lumines Plus will feature a few unspecified new additions, online play has yet to be determined. Finally, Mizuguchi divulges some new info on Lumines 2, the sequel to the original PSP Lumines.  Lumines 2 is set to feature over 100 songs by artists of various genres, full motion video, and a brand new mission mode.  He also mentions the development of a Disney themed version of Meteos, possibly with online play and muses about the possibility of Lumines on the Playstation 3.  Overall, it looks as though we’ll have no shortage of Lumines titles in the coming summer/fall seasons.

 

Read More | Game Informer

Gallery: Mizuguchi Speaks on Lumines

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QUALCOMM announced June 1st that it will be supporting the Live Anywhere movement through use of it’s BREW software.  If you are using a Verizon Wireless cell phone and playing games, you are using BREW.  The announcement was made at the annual BREW developer’s conference in San Diego, and is good news for Microsoft.  Previous to this announcement Live Anywhere was a great theory but lacked visible backers in the wireless industry.  These showings of support by QUALCOMM and by proxy Verizon Wireless has lent credibility to the idea that I can purchase a game on the Xbox Live Arcade and gain the ability to play the game on your phone or interact on the go with your friends on Live.  Yet to be laid out is what consumers will have to pay Verizon for this access since Verizon is unlikely to just hand out access to their distribution service and lose revenue from games purchased on Live.  On the upside, combined with the free XBL gold weekends that Verizon has given out, the company may be showing a commitment to the gaming community and thus attracting more gamers to it’s multitude of services.

Read More | IGN

Gallery: Microsoft’s Live Anywhere Gains Support

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According to Xbox Addict and computerandvideogames.com, the Xbox Live Vision Camera will come bundled as a set with a wired headset, a month of Xbox Live Gold access, and the Live Arcade game UNO. Sounds like about the right price point, especially when compared with Sony’s Eye Toy. No word yet on whether you’ll be able to buy the camera without a bundle or if the camera may be bundled with other games.

Read More | computerandvideogames.com

Gallery: Rumor: Xbox Live Vision Camera for $39.99

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If you were wondering how the Vision Camera would work in UNO, her eis your answer. Maestro1, a camera beta tester, showed up in a game where another player quickly grabbed 40 seconds of video. Not much to see in the video itself, other than a dog standing still for quite a while, then simply walking away - but still cool nonetheless. The Xbox Live Vision Camera is set to launch in North America and Europe on September 19, 2006.

Read More | CheapAssGamer

Gallery: Xbox Live Vision Camera In Action, Drops September 19

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In case you missed the Peter Moore interview that was posted over at Gear Live, check it out by clicking above. Peter goes into detail on subjects like Lumines Live, the HD DVD drive, Xbox Live Vision camera, and more. Especially interesting are his thoughts on the PlayStation 3, and how Sony is using it as a juggernaut to push the Blu-Ray format.

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Gallery: E3 2006: Peter Moore Interview

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The Xbox Media Briefing started with an amazing 3D array of the Gamertags of everyone that is here in the audience. It was absolutely stunning the way that they did this.

At the beginning of the briefing, we got a Gear of War trailer, followed by a demonstration of one of the levels. We must say - this game is drop-dead gorgeous.

Peter Moore hits the stage.

Xbox 360 has sold 5 million units faster than any console in history, as well as the iPod. Xbox Live will hit 6 million members within 12 months. As of last week, there is a 57% attach rate to Xbox Live.

We are given a look at upcoming Xbox Live Arcade games, including:

Contra
Frogger
Dig Dug
Ms. Pac Man
Track and Field
PacMan
Galaga
Sonic
Ultimate MK 3
Street Fighter II
Paper Boy

This is gonna be good stuff. All games will be updated in high definition, online multiplayer, and obviously achievements. Arcade is also creating a space for indie developers to get their new ideas across to today’s gamers.

Just announced: Lumines is hitting the Xbox 360 as an Arcade title, “Lumines Live.” The game will have licensed music from the likes of Madonna and others. Totally awesome.

We are watching a trailer of upcoming Xbox 360 titles. I am telling you, there is no difference as of now between these graphics and those of the PS3. Believe that. Smackdown vs. RAW 2007, Ninety-Nine Nights, and Gears of War look fabulous.

By holiday 2006, there will be more than 160 games available for the Xbox 360. When football season starts, Xbox 360 will be the only place to hit up Madden 2007 in next-gen format.

There is still development dedicated to the original Xbox.

Newly Announced: We are watching a trailer for what looks to be a sequel to Fable. In fact, it is! Fable 2 has just been announced, and this game looks incredible. Of course, this is a CG trailer…but the storyline looks tight.

Forza Motorsport 2: Another racing game, but these cars are fully customizable…from the engine, to the wheels, to the paint. Over 300 cars, racing up to 11 people on Xbox Live, and it will have a wireless steering wheel controller.

Other accessories include a wireless headset, and the Xbox Live Vision Camera that we leaked a few weeks ago. All three accessories will be available in Fall 2006.

Focusing on Japan, games like Blue Dragon, Lost Odyssey, and DOA Xtreme Volleyball 2 are hopefully going to make the Japanese appreciate the Xbox 360. Um, no they won’t.

Now viewing a trailer for Splinter Cell: Double Agent. I like the new gameplay elements, and the graphics are (again) top-notch. Even the gameplay footage. Launching in September.

Moving on to Viva Pinata. This is like a mix between Cubivore, The Sims, and a few other “do it yourself” games. In order to mate, there is a mating dance. Pretty creative. Launching in Holiday 2006.

Now we are moving on to entertainment, starting with Xbox Live Marketplace. There are over 18 million downloads since the launch, and as of tonight, there are over 1000 pieces of content. Every Xbox 360 developer has a piece of content on the Marketplace.

Xbox Live Marketplace changes the way people buy games. When Fight Night was demoed, pre-orders increased by 5x. Marketplace also provies true episodic content and opens a world of true digital entertainment. Tonight, you can download high definition show content, Gears of War Race to E3. It starts on Xbox Live, and ends next week with an MTV special.

Xbox 360 HD DVD player will be available this holiday. No price yet? What’s the deal?

I think it’s time for Halo 3…Moore is teasing us, and I think he has another tatoo. “Some guys do rubber ducks. Some guys do tatoos.” I was wrong, it’s time for Grand Theft Auto IV, which hits Xbox 360 on October 16th, 2006. He said nothing about exclusivity, but it is available on the platform on day one. Rockstar will also be providing exclusive episodic content on Xbox Live.

Moving on to Vista. The most game-friendly OS in history. Games for Windows is the new unified brand. Now showing trailer for PC game Crysis. Gameplay looked great, and it was running on Windows XP. We now change it up and take a look at DirectX 10 gaming on Windows Vista…and everyone is absolutely floored. Flight Simulator X and Crysis look photorealistic. One word here, folks: Wow. Vista is built to run games, and will be the single biggest launch in Microsoft’s history.

On to Oblivion, it sold 1.7 million copies in 3 weeks. Joint release for Xbox 360 and PC. Today they are announcing two more joint release games that will be released on both platforms, offering gamers a choice. The first is Shadowrun, which looks to provide a high-level depth of gaming. Launches with Vista in January. The other game is called Alan Wake, and it looks like a high-level survival-horror/thriller. A psychological action thriller.

Bill Gates hits the stage, and talks about Xbox 360’s global presence. By the end of June, between 5-5.5 million consoles will have been shipped.

Before others enter the marketplace, Xbox 360 will have a 10 million unit head start.

Just announced: Live Anywhere. Built-in to Vista, but will also be on cell phones, Xbox 360, etc. Have your Live account on all your devices, giving you one Gamertag that you can use across multiple platforms. Sounds like you can play games on Windows Mobile, and use your Gamertag and possibly even earn achievements. “Start a game on Xbox, continue it on the phone. Maybe schedule your Xbox to download something from your phone while you are away.” Moving from Live, to Live Anywhere.

We are given a demo of how this all might work. This stuff is going to be a big deal - we will have a video up later this evening. For now, know that Xbox Live’s experience will be fully realized on mobile phones, Windows Vista, and the Xbox 360.

I think it’s now Halo time. The crowd is going nuts. Halo 3 looks insane. The storyline will rock…but everyone wants to see multiplayer. It’s coming in 2007.

Gallery: Live from Microsoft Xbox E3 Media Briefing

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While perusing through our Xbox 360 debug unit, we came across something interesting - it looks like UNO will be the first game to support the Xbox 360 camera accessory that we know will be coming at some point. We figured we would record a short video showing the camera settings in UNO, for your viewing pleasure. Of course, if you prefer straight images, we have those too - after the jump.

Click to continue reading UNO Will Support Xbox 360 Camera

Gallery: UNO Will Support Xbox 360 Camera

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