Xbox News

Ea And Crytek Working On New Project

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 15:10:16 +0000

You guessed it: one of those tell-tale job listings has revealed brand new info on another secret project currently in the works at EA.

This time, it looks as if the publisher is back working with Crytek on another new project currently in development at the studio's Frankfurt office - the same team that developed last year's awesome Crysis 2.
According to the job listing, EA is searching for a Video Director to "provide inspiration and creative focus" for "partner studio Crytek", and "work alongside EAGL marketing and Crytek to define the process and work flow and take ownership of this process within the development schedule" - whatever that might mean.

As usual, the job listing doesn't drop many hints as to what the project might be, but it does say that "CryEngine knowledge (is) an asset", suggesting whatever game it turns out to be will run on Crytek's stunning-looking engine.

Ea Fly Away...

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 00:22:19 +0000

EA have launched weather balloons with copy`s of Mass Effect 3 attached to them, there are 6 copy`s being launched in New York, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Berlin, London and Paris. There are GPS tracking systems being attached to each balloon so you can keep an eye on were they are located.

If your luck you could get early access to this game if a week early or before.

Far Cry 3 Officially Dated, New Trailer

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 23:04:17 +0000

Originally planned for release tomorrow, UbiSoft has decided that the latest Far Cry 3 trailer should be released a day early, watch it below.

As revealed in the trailer, the game will be released in the UK on 7 September. You may have read earlier today on other sites that it will be releasing on 6 September... that was wrong, the date applying only to mainland Europe.

Rockstar Games: L.a. Noire Sequel A Possiblity

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 19:07:11 +0000

While the studio behind L.A. Noire is no longer around, Rockstar Games isn’t necessarily going to kill the franchise. In a Q&A on Rockstar’s page, a question was asked on whether we will see anymore content for the game. Rockstar responds:

While there won’t be any more DLC or additional content for the current release of L.A. Noire (we’re all too busy working on Max Payne 3, GTAV and other games to come), don’t count out the possibility of a new game in the L.A. Noire franchise in the future. We simply have not decided anything. We’re all very pleased with how that game turned out and are considering what the future may hold for L.A. Noire as a series. We don’t always rush to make sequels, but that does not mean we won’t get to them eventually – see Max and Red Dead for evidence of that – we have so many games we want to make and the issue is always one of bandwidth and timing.

While it’s not guaranteed, it is promising. I would love to head back to the police desk and solve various cases just as I did in the current game. Maybe a whole new city such as Chicago or New York? Whatever the case, It’s good to see Rockstar considering to keep the franchise alive for the time being.

Rumor: New Xbox To Featurer Tablet-Like Controller With Hd Screen And Touch-Enabled

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 13:28:04 +0000

Xbox World has published new rumors about Microsoft’s new home console in its March 2012 issue.

Tucked away on a random page is a report that the system will feature a tablet-inspired controller with an HD screen. It will supposedly be touch-enabled, which makes it sound quite similar to what Nintendo has created with Wii U. However, unlike Nintendo’s new console controller, Xbox World sources say that Microsoft’s tablet has “a shape closer to Sony’s sleek Vita handheld / Apple’s iPad than Wii U’s bulky unit”.

The magazine also claims that the controller will include “extra buttons and information when playing a game or a portable display when you want to take your game with you.”

Xbox World’s full report can be read below.

“The next Xbox will be a matt-black media hub with a mission to bring games to life in your living room with augmented reality, directional sound, and a four-player finger-tracking Kinect. We told you all that last month. This month, our sources tell us it will have a touchscreen, too.

“Microsoft are experimenting with a tablet-like controller with a shape closer to Sony’s sleek Vita handheld / Apple’s iPad than Wii U’s bulky unit – it’s an HD screen surrounded by the traditional 360 buttons and sticks.

“On 360 that touchscreen will be second only to Kinect in how you operate your console. It could be a remote control when you’re watching TV, a browser when you’re on the internet, extra buttons and information when playing a game or a portable display when you want to take your game with you.

“If the next Xbox is starting to sound awfully expensive, you’d be right. 360 launched at £279 while PS3 launched at £425, so – we’re speculating here – £399 wouldn’t be an unprecedented figure to put on a machine with Kinect and a touch controller in the box. Microsoft are playing safe with the CPU and GPU but running wild with the functions that will change how you play, but it won’t be cheap. Expect to see the next Xbox at E3 this June.”

British Video Game Awards 2011 Voting Open!

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 16:49:42 +0000

Today you can now vote for the game you think should win the 2011 `Game Of The Year` Award at the BAFTA Game awards 2011 here are the nominees:

Modern warfare 3
The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim
Battlefield 3
Minecraft
Batman: Arkham City
Portal 2
L.A. NOIRE
Fifa 12
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward sword

To cast you`r vote and have the chance of winning a Limited edition Star Wars Xbox 360 visit
follow @Gamedigital on twitter to stay updated with what`s going on.

I Voted for Skyrim because of its epicness, The story is great and easy to follow, at times it has a real good challenge to it that makes me enjoy it and favour it over all the other nominated games.

Activision And Hasbro Announce Upcoming Battleship Videogame

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 22:19:31 +0000

Lock, load and prepare for grand oceanic action this spring because Hasbro and Activision have today announced the Battleship videogame. Inspired by the classic naval strategy game, this seek-and-find adventure is taken to new heights. As a stand-alone story from Universal Pictures' upcoming action-adventure of the same name, the Battleship videogame offers a blend of strategic naval command and first-person action gameplay.

"We're geared up for an outrageous sea and land conflict with the all new Battleship videogame," said David Oxford, Activision Publishing. "Inspired by the film's exciting action and stunning backdrop, the game is next-gen naval warfare that thrusts players into the middle of humanity's last stand against an unfamiliar menace."

Battleship follows elite demolitions specialist Cole Mathis as he clashes against an aquatic-based extraterrestrial peril in the sand and sea of the beautiful Hawaiian archipelago. Trapped in a veritable communications dead zone, Mathis must command the U.S. Navy fleet in a "siege on the sea," while simultaneously rallying the troops on land for a terrifying "war on the shore."

Combining naval strategy simulation with first-person shooter gameplay, players fend off the enemy beachside while ordering attacks against their marine counterparts. Seamlessly switching between battlefield and overview "Battle Command" map, the Hasbro game is brought to life as carriers, frigates, cruisers, destroyers, submarines and the legendary USS Missouri Battleship pummel the enemy in a race to strategic points that turn the tide of battle. The Battleship videogame is a next-gen marvel perfectly suited to turn nostalgic game junkies into battle-hardened admirals.

The Battleship videogame, developed by Double Helix for the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3, arrives in Europe this April and North America this May. In addition, there will be uniquely designed versions for the Wii, Nintendo 3DS, and Nintendo DS developed by Magic Pockets, with more details to come at a later date

Xbl Getting Crackle, Cinemanow Apps

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 18:22:08 +0000

If Netflix, YouTube, Hulu Plus and the Zune marketplace haven't been enough to satiate your unquenchable thirst for all things cinematic, perhaps two more apps will help quell the raging torrent in your soul. Crackle, a free service, has a somewhat limited and eccentric selection of movies and television shows to choose from, although they do have a rather impressive selection of classic anime like Ah! My Goddess and Galaxy Express 999.

Best Buy's CinemaNow ecosystem has more new releases to choose from, but its services require cash money. It's unclear whether all of the content on these two services will be available through the respective apps, or if some content will be restricted, like the YouTube and Hulu Plus apps. If our calculations are correct, Xbox Live only needs 2 more movie apps and 4 more internet radio apps before it becomes self aware.

Microsoft's Stephen Toulouse To Resign In Mid-February, Destination Unknown

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 15:29:29 +0000

One day after his 17th Valentine's Day with Microsoft, director of Xbox Live policy and enforcement Stephen "StepTo" Toulouse will step down from his current position and head out into the unknown. "On the 16th, I'm going to head down to Dallas to visit my family. Then I'm off to JocoCruiseCrazy! I have no other plans beyond that. I'm a free agent!" he said on his personal website today.

Toulouse says the split is amicable, and that he's moving on for "complex and personal" reasons. He's been a Microsoft employee for just under 18 years, starting full-time on April 11, 1994 at the age of 21 (which is a lot more impressive than what most of us were doing at age 21).

It's unclear who will fill his shoes, but we've reached out to Microsoft for comment.

Microsoft has issued the following comment regarding the departure of Stephen Toulouse, and declined to name his replacement:

"As you know, after more than 17 years at Microsoft, Stephen Toulouse has decided to leave the company. We thank Stephen for his years of contributions and wish him all the best. We do not have any details to share around a potential successor for Stepto at this time, but can assure you that the Xbox LIVE Enforcement Squad will continue their work to help ensure a safer and more secure experience on Xbox LIVE for our nearly 40 million members."

Take-Two Release Schedule For 2012

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 22:59:03 +0000

Max Payne 3, Spec Ops, BioShock Infinite, GTA V, and more appear on Take-Two's release schedule

The Darkness II (PS3/360/PC) – February 7, 2012
Major League Baseball 2K12 (PS3/360/PC/Wii/DS/PSP/PS2) – March 6, 2012
Nicktoons MLB (3DS) – March 6, 2012
Max Payne 3 (PS3/360) – May 15, 2012
Max Payne 3 (PC) – May 29, 2012
Spec Ops: The Line (PS3/360/PC) – First Half Fiscal ’13
XCOM: Enemy Unknown (PS3/360/PC) – Fall 2012
BioShock Infinite (P3/360/PC) – Calender Year 2012
Borderlands 2 (PS3/360/PC) – Fiscal Year 2013
XCOM (PS3/360/PC) – Fiscal Year 2013
Grand Theft Auto V (TBA) – TBA

Sky Bringing Pay As You Go Streaming To Consoles

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 20:25:17 +0000

Sky TV has been the subject of some frustration for me recently. I really want the live Barclays Premier League football but I can’t take out a monthly subscription or get a dish fitted to my house. It’s also a high subscription fee every month (£40, currently) and about 200 channels that I not only have no interest in but actively do not want piped into my home. It’s just impossible for me to justify the negatives.

I’ve often mentioned that I’d like a streaming-only service, available via my iPad, Xbox or smart TV. Sky Go currently handles that side of Sky’s service but that is only accessible to existing Sky TV subscribers (who pay that £40 fee…) so it’s no use to me or any of the other people who would no doubt love to be able to access Sky’s premium content via a compartmentalized pricing scheme. It seems that Sky has realised this potential and today they made a very interesting announcement.

From later on this year, Sky will offer a rolling monthly or Pay as You Go package which allows viewers to pay for what they want to stream and avoid the need for a dish or bloated package. There’s no word on pricing as yet but their Sky Go app will launch on Android devices in February and the new streaming service is due in the first half of this year. Initially it will feature Sky Movies but Sky Sports and entertainment packages will follow soon afterwards.

The statement also made a point of mentioning that the service would allow users to stream to consoles, in the plural. This gives us hope that a Sky streaming application will arrive for the PS3 and the existing Xbox 360 option.

Electronic Arts Website Hacked

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 13:42:35 +0000

Electronic Arts, have had their website breached today and the community forums hacked by a user known as “LOV3R”.

It is currently known through user reports that it took EA more than two hours to respond to the breach and they have now closed off affected sites to investigate the issue. If you have an account on any EA operated website or forums including MultiPlay, you might want to think about changing your password and personal information as soon as possible.

The only other website associated with being hacker by ‘LOV3R’ is deepbooks.com, how and why the two websites were hacked is not known yet.

Is Microsoft Getting Too Greedy With The 720?

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 16:56:32 +0000

There`s a rumour going round saying that the xbox 720 will be a No Used Game games console, meaning if you don't like a game, well too bad, your now stuck with it for life. It`s criminal, no pre-owned games or borrowing from a friend. If you want a 720 then you will have to be prepared to pay full price for the games and only have a 'Buy New' or not at all option.

How many of you on the site own a pre owned game.... I know I own a few and I have also sold a few, but with the 720 it will some how know when a used game is being used and will block it from use. I believe this rumour could be true because through the transaction of used games the developers get nothing, thus they get less income to make new games or do what they want with it. I hope this is not true but if it is Then I`ll probably be turning to a different platform to game on.

I guess you can call used games Piracy......... The rightful owners get no profit from their goods when you buy it and you can share them with anyone without having to pay again for it. I think its pretty similar but getting rid of used games is just damn right out of order and will also have a big impact on the gaming community.

Gamestop Shuttering Northern Ireland And Portuguese Stores

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 21:15:30 +0000

GameStop continues its closure of brick-and-mortar stores and conversion to a digital business in certain European markets, with recent moves in Portugal and Northern Ireland.

"GameStop plans to close our 13 stores in Portugal due to macro economic conditions," a company spokesperson told Joystiq. "Customers in Portugal can visit www.gamestop.es -- our E-commerce site in Spain -- for their gaming needs.

"And as announced last summer, GameStop is closing our four remaining UK stores -- thus finalizing our plans to exit the UK market. Our focus is to run an e-commerce only operation in the UK. Customers can redeem outstanding trade credits and gift cards on line at www.gamestop.com/uk."

Don't take this to mean the company is closing up storefronts on the continent. GameStop added 25 stores to "better performing" markets, such as Italy and France, during the last quarter.

The Next Xbox Will Play Blu-Ray, May Not Play Used Games (And Will Introduce Kinect 2)

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 20:48:42 +0000

Microsoft will upgrade its disc technology for its next Xbox from DVDs to Blu-Ray discs, catching up to rival Sony, games industry sources tell Kotaku.

Sony's PlayStation 3 currently supports Blu-Ray, which can contain 25 or 50GB of data compared to DVD's 9GB.

But that disc detail could be far less impactful to the next generation of game consoles than the assertion I've heard from one reliable industry source that Microsoft intends to incorporate some sort of anti-used game system as part of their so-called Xbox 720.

It's not clear if that means that the system wouldn't play used games or how such a set-up would work. Obvious approaches—I'm theorizing here—like linking a copy of a game to a specific Xbox Live account could seemingly be foiled by used-game owners who would keep their system offline. My source wasn't sure how Microsoft intended to implement any anti-used game system in the new machine.

A push in any way by Microsoft against used games would likely be cheered from publishers sick of seeing retailers like GameStop crow about their revenues from the sale of used games. But it could potentially anger consumers who rely on buying cheaply-sold used games or even pass games to relatives or friends.

One source familiar with Microsoft's plans for the new Xbox said Microsoft plans to ship their new Xbox with a new version of its red-hot Kinect hands-free sensor system. The new Kinect would contain an on-board processor, a feature originally intended for the first Kinect. That processor would enable a new Kinect to more effectively detect users' motions.

I'm also hearing that Microsoft is interested in making a smaller controller for its new console.

And what of gaming site IGN's report that the machine could be six times more powerful than the Xbox 360? From some industry sources I'm hearing that that's the right ballpark and that Microsoft is estimating they might even get to 8x the Xbox 360. But another insider clarified that no one in the industry has development kits yet and that any talk about specs right now is still hypothetical.

[UPDATE: A Microsoft rep e-mailed me the following statement: "As an innovator we're always thinking about what is next and how we can push the boundaries of technology like we did with Kinect. We believe the key to extending the lifespan of a console is not just about the console hardware, but about the games and entertainment experiences being delivered to consumers. Beyond that we don't comment on rumors or speculation."]

"Xbox 720" is being used as shorthand by reporters like me to refer to the next Xbox. It's not necessarily the name of the next device. Tech sites Semi Accurate and Fudzilla have reported that the first chips for 720 development kits are going into production, leading to a possible late 2013 release despite my earlier reporting which had pointed to 2014 as the year of the next Xbox and PlayStation.

Source

Rumor: Microsoft Phasing Out Microsoft Points

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 22:26:32 +0000

A rumor making the rounds today is Microsoft will phase out its Microsoft Points currency by year's end, in favor of real currency. According to InsideMobileApps, the change will affect Windows Phone, the Zune Marketplace and Xbox Live.

The site claims "a source" provided the information and notes that mobile developers with Microsoft publishing agreements are being told to plan their upcoming downloadable content and in-app purchases in accordance with the change. Finally, customers with Microsoft Point balances at the time of conversion will have it switched to the their local currency.

Two developers we spoke to who are working on Windows Phone 7 and Xbox Live content told us they hadn't heard anything about such a conversion. However, both noted that sometimes Microsoft doesn't tell them about major changes until it becomes need to know. They also hadn't heard whispers about the conversion until we contacted them.

Checking in with Microsoft, a company spokesperson told us: "We do not comment on rumor or speculation."

Fifa Street Kicks Off March 13

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 18:29:02 +0000

FIFA Street's "March" launch now has a specific goal of a March 13 release. The series reboot will take it to the streets with 35 locations, street challenges, tournaments and new dribble controls (napkin sold separately).

Gracing the cover will be Lionel Messi, who is looking a little too calm and focused for a game with "street" in the in title. Needs more screaming.

Xbox 720 Chipset "in Production"

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 18:10:15 +0000

The chipset for a next generation Xbox console has been in production since last month, and will go into full production by the end of the year, according to technology news reports.

Tech site Fudzilla states, "Recent speculation that the new main System on a Chip (SoC) for the Next Xbox began production is apparently accurate; the SoC did indeed start production in late December of 2011. Sources tell us that the code name for the chip is Oban, and it is being produced by both IBM and Global Foundries for Microsoft."

The report goes on to claim that, "the power behind the next Xbox will be a PowerPC CPU that is married to an ATI Southern Islands GPU, or modified 7000 series." It adds that the console is unlikely to ship at the end of 2012, with full production gearing in December of this year.

"This first run of these 32nm Oban chips will be destined for developer consoles, so any hope for a holiday console release in 2012 seems unrealistic, according to our sources, but an announcement perhaps before the end of the year might be possible. It would seem Microsoft's strategy of getting it in 2013 is all but assured. We do think that the chips will be in production by the end of the year for consoles destined to be sold in 2013, which seems to agree with what others are saying."

Additionally, tech site SemiAccurate offers similar speculation on a production timeline, as well as analysis of the various rumors flying around.

We've already wrangled up everything we've heard so far in a recent Xbox 720 round-up, and this new information appears to support Michael Pachter's statement that "2012 launch rumors are silly" for Xbox 720.

SOURCE

Dumbest Customer Ever? Xbox Controller Return Receipt

Sun, 22 Jan 2012 15:14:16 +0000

Ok guys this has to be one of the most idiotic things I have ever seen.

If you can't read the writing it says "Wont Connect To PS3"

Anonymous Threaten To Take Down Xbox Live Servers

Sat, 21 Jan 2012 01:00:03 +0000

Anonymous, the global-collective hacking group has threatened to hit servers, including Xbox LIVE over the FBI take-down of MegaUpload.

Having already taken down websites that include those of the US Department of Justice and Universal Music Group, demands are now being made that if MegaUpload is not restored within 72 hours – The UN, Xbox Live, US Bank, Capital One, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube will be struck down."