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Xbox News is a site that brings you the very latest Original Xbox, Xbox 360 and Xbox One news, the latest games and releases, Part of the
DCEmu Homebrew & Gaming Network.
THE LATEST NEWS BELOW
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June 12th, 2009, 17:18 Posted By: wraggster
Microsoft has issued a response to the NPD Group's US sales data for May of 2009, boasting that its Xbox 360 hardware has shown a 22 per cent year-on-year growth in the first five months of 2009 - the only home console to show overall growth in the year.
Though Xbox 360 sales dropped 6 per cent in the month of May at 175,000 units, Microsoft claims that overall sales for the combined months of January through May show a 22 per cent growth in individual unit sales.
Microsoft also revealed that overall sales of third-party games totaled USD 113 million in the month, which it claims is higher than any other system.
Though the console may be the only one to show growth year-on-year, the Xbox 360 continues to be outsold by both the Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS continuously.
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...ardware-growth
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June 12th, 2009, 17:11 Posted By: wraggster
In this time of economic hardship, it warms the heart just to hear that someone's found any job. But when our main man Johnny Chung Lee lands a position on Microsoft's Project Natal team, it's high fives and handshakes all around. And really, it's a perfect fit -- among the many hacks of his illustrious career, he's put together a VR head tracker (and utilized it in a first-person shooter) for the Wii game console. Apparently, Lee's part of the group that is taking the tech we saw at E3 and getting it ready for prime time. As you'd expect, the man is pretty stoked to have landed his dream job. "The 3D sensor itself is a pretty incredible piece of equipment, he says, "similar to very expensive laser range finding systems but at a tiny fraction of the cost." Congratulations, Johnny! If you should feel the need to leak any product pics, you have our email address.
http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/12/j...-hacking-expe/
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June 12th, 2009, 17:06 Posted By: wraggster
EA confirms Swedish dev DICE is working on the sequel, implies a possible departure from the original
Electronic Arts has confirmed that a ‘small team’ at Swedish outfit DICE is working on a sequel to Mirror’s Edge.
EA’s euro VP Patrick Soderlund told news site VideoGamer at E3 that “we have a small team on it and I’m excited about what we do.”
He didn’t offer any impression that the game is beyond the early stages of development, saying that “you will see another Mirror’s Edge for sure. It’s just a matter of when that time is and what we do with it.”
The news follows the announcement reported on Thursday that DICE is also working on Battlefield 3. However, unlike the proven Battlefield series, EA had overestimated sales expectations for Mirror’s Edge and saw mixed reviews for the game, casting doubt on the future of the franchise.
However, late in 2008 when EA was busy looking into its cost reduction strategy, company CEO John Riccitiello said in a conference call that the series was safe. “Mirror's Edge is one that was very strongly reviewed, that one's going to go forward," he said at the time.
"We're probably going to look into some issues around the design to make sure strong IP is married with strong business.”
Despite Mirror’s Edge not meeting its sales expectations, Soderlund added that the game had “sold better than most people think.”
The Mirror’s Edge demo was one of the most downloaded games on the Xbox 360 in 2008, meaning that the incentive to purchase was lost on many.
“Mirror’s Edge was a risky move. It was a bold move, a very innovative and inspiring move,” said Soderlund, adding that the game had its flaws.
http://www.developmag.com/news/32173...Mirrors-Edge-2
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June 12th, 2009, 17:02 Posted By: wraggster
Xbox Live Indie Games unveiled as XNA 3.1 adds avatar support, video playback and more
Microsoft has renamed its Xbox Live Community Games service to more capably represent the “independent spirit of XNA Game Studio creations”.
With the word ‘indie’ being trendier and more appealing than ‘community’ ever could be, the service will now be called Xbox Live Indie Games.
The name change comes as Microsoft completes a thorough update to its XNA Game Studio, the development tools set used by indie and bedroom devs to create games for the Xbox 360, PC and Zune.
As revealed by Microsoft back in March, XNA Game Studio 3.1 adds NXE avatar support to the framework, letting Xbox Live Indie Games developers take advantage of user avatars, as well as being able to dynamically generate new characters in a simple manner.
XNA developers will also get access to a Maya rig that enables them to use a range of stock avatar animations as well as create their own, without detailed knowledge of 3D packages.
Xbox Live Indie Games will now support video playback, allowing developers to create cut-scenes, video displays and more sophisticated logo screens.
http://www.developmag.com/news/32169...es-updates-XNA
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June 12th, 2009, 16:02 Posted By: wraggster
The now-27,000 strong Left 4 Dead 2 boycott group has responded to Valve's response to its negative response to Left 4 Dead 2. Pay attention, this is going to get complicated.
In case you've managed to dodge the whole soap opera so far, angry Left 4 Dead fans formed a boycott group complaining that the sequel will "split the communities and decrease the quality of multiplayer gaming" in Valve's shooter.
The boycott became quite popular with similarly angry fans and Valve responded assuring them that it will be providing more DLC for the original Left 4 Dead.
Here we are, nine days later and 25,000 members stronger in our movement," a new message on the boycott group reads. "Since the last time we posted, we had sent an email to Valve with the hopes of getting a response. A few days ago, we received such a response, and we would like to address its content.
"While we are excited about the idea of new content, we are still in the dark about it. What sort of content is it?" The mysterious group leader asks. "For all we know, it could be a new main menu screen. Is it a new map, is it new monsters, is it new weapons, etc...? We'd like to know what is going to be in this new content.
"Furthermore, when will this content be released?" He or she continues. "Is there any sort of timetable within which the content will be made available? These are all questions we would like Valve to elaborate on.
"We will be responding to Valve to follow up on their latest statement to us."
And so it continues...
http://www.computerandvideogames.com....php?id=217405
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June 12th, 2009, 15:59 Posted By: wraggster
Microsoft plans impressive launch for recently unveiled motion-sensitive peripheral
Microsoft is promising the launch of Project Natal will be on a similar scale to that of the Xbox 360.
In an interview with Kotaku, the company’s head of long-term Xbox 360 strategy Shane Kim hinted that the debut of the motion-sensitive peripheral will be comparable to the launch of a new console.
“Conceptually, the launch of Natal will be like the launch of Xbox 360,” he said. “It’s going to be that big. We’re not just going to ship it when the hardware and software are ready.
“We have to make sure that there are enough content experiences that are really good. That’s similar to how you would think of the launch of a new console. It’s got to have a great launch line-up. That’s the same thing here.”
Kim also reiterated who the target audience is for Natal, denying that the camera was aimed solely at casual gamers and PS2 owners who have yet to pick up a current generation console.
“This is about the 60 per cent of households where a video game console doesn’t exist,” he said. “The problem is that the controller is a barrier for some people and now with Project Natal we completely eliminate that.”
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/34694/Nata...ival-Xbox-360s
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June 12th, 2009, 15:54 Posted By: wraggster
Kikizo has an editorial piece evaluating the Xbox 360's upcoming motion-control scheme, Project Natal, and discussing why it's a bigger step forward for interactive gaming than many people think. Quoting: "[Natal] accurately perceives players in 3D space, simultaneously tracking over 48 joints on your body, enabling it to accurately redraw your skeleton in real time as you move about. On a separate 'debug screen' in the closed-doors session, we could witness for ourselves the 'mind's eye' of Natal, visually showing how it completely understands where we are, how we're moving, where we are in 3D space, how far in front of my face my hand is, whatever. It can supposedly even track individual hand and finger movement when it switches into this more finely-tuned mode. ... There is a surprising feeling of tactility and iPhone-like fluidity and precision to the way Natal works." Another interesting bit of news about Natal is that Wii-hacker Johnny Chung Lee is part of the development team. We've discussed some of his creations in the past.
http://games.slashdot.org/story/09/0...-Is-a-Big-Deal
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June 11th, 2009, 17:32 Posted By: wraggster
After Bitmob reported that Microsoft's Project Natal had difficulty picking up game consultant N'Gai Croal's movements, an IGN forum user claimed that the issue was related to Croal's skin color, citing a journal article about "near-infrared spectroscopy," which he claims Natal uses. Of course, the article is about detecting the delivery of oxygen to tissue via blood, and we rather hope Project Natal doesn't need to be that granular. In any case, the IGN poster actually admitted to being sensationalist a few posts down, but not before the whole Internet was up in arms.
Microsoft was compelled to respond to this mess, confirming to Eurogamer that "the goal of Project Natal is to break down the barriers for everyone to play, and it will obviously work with people of all shapes and ethnicities at launch." The representative referenced footage of Sugar Ray Leonard trying the device as proof. Unfortunately, that may not be the best evidence, as NeoGAFfers spotted edits in the video -- the in-game footage of Burnout Paradise shown while Willie Gault is playing is identical to that shown during Zachary Levi's play session. Conspiracy? Probably more likely that there was glare on the screen or something during Leonard's actual session.
http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/11/mi...ple-of-all-et/
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June 11th, 2009, 17:12 Posted By: wraggster
Looks like our old friend Jimmy Fallon will be demoing Microsoft's Project Natal on Late Night tonight, and this backstage pic from rehearsal is the first shot we've seen of the prototype hardware anywhere. Of course, Redmond's made it clear that the final product will look a lot different -- probably something more like the press pic -- so don't get crazy over this, but at least everyone's burning curiosity has been satiated. Now, Jimmy, if you could just hammer out a ship date, that'd be great.
http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/10/p...-jimmy-fallon/
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June 10th, 2009, 22:20 Posted By: wraggster
DCEmu Member and Coder Samurai X has posted this on Lavalit:
I will tidy up what ever projects are left such as Dreamcast, xbox, gp2x and not introduce any new features. This way people should be able to play on all consoles as my parting gift to all of you.
As for the website and sourceforge, I'm handing it over to Damon. We will move it to his hosting company and it should for the most part be transparent for all of you.
It has been a pleasure working with all of you but life has me real busy, though you will probably still see me lurking around here and there.
From all at DCEmu we thank SX for his work on the Openbor Project, good luck with real life.
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June 10th, 2009, 21:34 Posted By: wraggster
Newly released today:
Discover What Lies Beyond the Edge of Evolution.
You are Alex Mercer. You are the Prototype™... a shapeshifter with amazing powers of combat, destruction, and deception.
Consume targets for their form and memories to assume a perfect disguise, or instantly transform your body into an array of deadly biological weapons, cutting your way to the heart of the conspiracy forty years in the making.
Stalk the streets of New York City, searching for the life you lead before. Take the form of anyone in your path, using an arsenal of identities to confound, exploit or annihilate your enemies. Mankind is your mask.
Wage a secret war against factions with complex agendas of their own, out to capture or kill you. They are your greatest threat and the key to the secrets of your past. Confront them, find those responsible and make them pay.
Still making up your mind about this game? Have a look at the realistic graphics and the blood pounding excitement the game promises:
Prototype is available on various platforms:
Xbox360™
Prototype US US$ 64.90
Prototype ASIA US$ 59.90
PlayStation3™
Prototype ASIA US$ 59.90
Prototype US US$ 64.90
PC Game
Prototype US US$ 54.90
Prototype ASIA US$ 39.90
Guide Book
Prototype Official Game Guide US US$ 24.90
http://www.play-asia.com/SOap-23-83-...-22b-84-n.html
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June 10th, 2009, 21:27 Posted By: wraggster
New special offer from Play Asia:
Beginning shortly before the ending of F.E.A.R., a Special Forces squad is on a routine mission when the city of Auburn is rocked by a supernatural explosion.
Alma, a girl with immense power and a thirst for revenge, has unleashed her wrath upon the city and thrown it into chaos.
The squad must combat enemy forces and the supernatural as they struggle to find a way to stop Alma and uncover the mysterious forces arrayed against them before it’s too late.
Taste a hint of real fear, Alma is back and after your blood, the ticket to the ghost house is our weekly special. F.E.A.R 2 available at an unbeatable bargain price of US$ 24.90 only.
The region free Korean version is fully voiced in English and has its in-game text in a great number of languages: English, French, Spanish, Italian and German.
http://www.play-asia.com/SOap-23-83-...-228-84-n.html
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June 10th, 2009, 20:38 Posted By: wraggster
European and sundry other PAL region Ghostbusters fans sent into a Walter Peck-style rage over the game's PlayStation exclusivity will be pleased to learn that the North American version of the Xbox 360 game is not region locked.
That's right. According to Destructoid, Atari has set free Ghostbusters: The Video Game from its region-specific encoding, which would allow our friends across the Atlantic a chance to play the game on the console of their choice. Well, as long as your console of choice is either an Xbox 360 or starts with the word PlayStation.
Good move.
http://kotaku.com/5285233/ghostbuste...is-region-free
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June 10th, 2009, 20:11 Posted By: wraggster
Start stocking up on canned foods and survival gear, folks. One week from today, the Xbox Live service will be going down for server maintenance. According to Major Nelson's most recent blog post, Microsoft is flipping the "off" switch at 12:01 a.m. on June 16, and is expected to keep things offline for "up to 24 hours." Yes, for an entire day, the vile hatred and foul-mouthedness that consumes the online gaming universe will be freed from its fiberglass prison and released into the physical world. We humbly suggest staying indoors.
http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/09/xb...nance-june-16/
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June 10th, 2009, 20:08 Posted By: wraggster
Activision is offering a demo of Guitar Hero: Greatest Hits (Smash Hits in the US) to everybody on Xbox Live - including Silver subscribers.
The sampler weighs 498MB and has three songs - "Rock and Roll All Night" by KISS, "Take Me Out" by Franz Ferdinand and "Woman" by Wolfmother - and one venue to play.
Guitar Hero: Greatest Hits complies all of the best songs from Guitar Hero I, II, Rocks the 80s and III. The idea is to spread them across the multiple Guitar Hero: World Tour instruments.
Guitar Hero: Greatest Hits arrives here for PS2, PS3, Wii and Xbox 360 on 26th June.
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/gh...s-demo-on-live
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June 10th, 2009, 20:04 Posted By: wraggster
THQ plans to release hectic multiplayer shooter Rocket Riot on Xbox Live Arcade next Wednesday 17th June.
Characters have rocket boosters instead of legs and fly around blowing each other and just about anything to pieces. A maximum of eight friends can duke it out online, and be anything from pirates to ninjas to soldiers to bananas to American footballers and more.
Although pixellated and 2D, Rocket Riot clearly uses modern tech with an eye for retro styling. Characters and environments have a 3D depth to them, and the action is as coherent as it is fast and furious.
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/th...-xbla-next-wed
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June 10th, 2009, 19:57 Posted By: wraggster
After its stellar E3 demonstration, it's had for us to find room in our heart that's not being occupied by Modern Warfare 2. But those of your with bigger hearts than ours (yeah, that's most of you) will be able to welcome a second chunk of DLC for Call of Duty: World at War into your home tomorrow.
For $9.99, you'll get Banzai, Corrosion, Sub Pens and a new zombie battling map, Shi No Numa. If you still haven't made your purchasing decision, you can see a trailer for the pack after the break..
http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/10/ca...ming-tomorrow/
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June 10th, 2009, 19:55 Posted By: wraggster
Microsoft's newly revealed gesture technology Project Natal is a "new canvas" for developers and is set to reinvent the games industry, according to the company's corporate vice president Shane Kim.
Speaking in an exclusive interview published today, Kim dismissed rival motion control technology, suggesting Natal is a true step up from Nintendo's Wii as well as doubting Sony can release its equivalent in the proposed spring 2010 time frame.
"If we'd just come out with something that looks and feels like the Nintendo Wiimote, I think you could have fairly criticised us and said it was derivative. That's not the path we wanted to go down," insisted Kim.
"We could have done that, but we wanted to reinvent the industry and revolutionise home entertainment. That's what we will achieve with Project Natal," he said.
Of Sony's proposed launch of motion control using the PlayStation Eye early next year, Kim said: "They've said many things in the past and missed dates, so we'll see. We're going to launch when we feel like we have the entire program ready to go, including the experiences and support from third parties. It's not a lot of time between now and the spring, considering it was just unveiled.
"The most important thing is this has nothing to do with Nintendo and Sony. This has everything to do with unlocking the potential of the industry and addressing the many millions of people – the 60 per cent of house holds who don't have a videogame console at all. That's the real opportunity for us."
Kudo Tsunoda is acting as creative director for Project Natal, a control scheme that brings motion control, voice, colour and emotional recognition to the Xbox 360. As well as projects under way by Peter Molyneux and the behind-the-scenes work of Johnny Chung Lee, all internal Microsoft studios are currently working with the technology.
"I'm confident that we haven't even begun to see all the experiences that other people can imagine," said Kim, pointing out that a lot of the technology has been created outside of Microsoft Game Studios. "All of those things we get to take advantage of and integrate into the Xbox 360 experience but we don't have to invent it ourselves."
Publishing and development partners are keen to get on board, said Kim, with the advantage of being able to launch the technology into an installed base already topping 30 million users.
"They are also excited from a business standpoint because it's going to be compatible with every Xbox 360 we've ever sold. We already have a 30 million installed base today, by the time it launches it will be much bigger than that and it's a great thing because it's an addressable installed base immediately.
"It's not like launching a brand new console where partners make business decisions of when do they decide the installed base is big enough. This is something where we're going to have a lot of customers pretty quickly and we're focused on magical launch experiences to get this ball rolling right from the get go."
Despite the high installed base, Microsoft's priority will be to use the technology to bring new customers to videogaming intimidated by standard controllers and peripherals.
"The focus has to be in creating new experiences that have never been imagined or possible before," offered Kim. "Our focus this E3 has been on breaking down barriers, those that prevent people from enjoying the vast wealth of everything that we have to offer on Xbox 360 and Xbox Live."
Project Natal is reinvigorating internal development at Microsoft, according to Kim, as experiments like the human and AI interaction of Milo and Kate inspire the talent at the company.
"I've never seen Peter (Molyneux) more excited and energised by anything like this since the initial Fable," said Kim. "And now with Natal and Milo, you get a sense of what he thinks he's capable of. And believe me, Peter wants to lead the way.
"He's going to apply all of his experience, and it's a great analogy for Microsoft Game Studios. All of those game skills can be applied now with a new canvas with Natal."
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...stry-microsoft
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June 10th, 2009, 19:42 Posted By: wraggster
Project Gotham dev Bizarre explains what its next title Blur can take, and leave, from Nintendo’s iconic kart series
After nearly a decade of developing the Project Gotham Racing series for Microsoft, Liverpool based developer Bizarre Creations is turning to something it has always dreamed of; an adult Mario Kart.
“The PR people don't really let me say this but Blur is like an adult Mario Kart,” said Blur executive producer Ben Ward, speaking to Develop in an interview published today.
“It's want you want from the next-generation of karting games.”
Blur is quite a departure from what Bizarre creations is known for. Authentic tracks are replaced by busier, alternate reality race courses based on cities across the world.
As part of wider plans to level the playing field, Bizarre will scatter a variety of weapons around the game’s race tracks, striking a resemblance to Nintendo’s longstanding kart racer.
“There’s a lot of stuff that people growing up with Mario Kart wish those game had done,” said Ward, who added that Blur has been given a Fall 2009 release window by publishers Activision.
“We wanted to take things that are good about Mario Kart but mix that with what we’re good at: more realistic handling, have power-ups based on skills that you use,” he added.
While the team want to capture the spirit of Mario Kart’s scrappy racing, they stated that nuisances found Nintendo’s lucrative racer – such as excessive rubber-banding and unbalanced weapons – would not be replicated.
“That is something that Martyn [Chudley – Bizarre Creative Director] is very keen on; there's not like a big Blue Shell, or a Golden Mushroom or a Bullet Bill,” said Ward.
http://www.developmag.com/news/32151...ult-Mario-Kart
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June 10th, 2009, 19:32 Posted By: wraggster
Details on Forza 3's Limited Edition pack have emerged, via a listing on US retailer Gamestop.
The $79.99 pack (£48.90), which is exclusive to Gamestop in the US, includes an exclusive car pack, premium dashboard theme, VIP membership to community features, a 2GB memory stick and a Forza keychain.
As always there's no word on whether or not this will come to Europe yet, but we reckon it's more than likely. Full LE pack details follow...
"The Forza 3 GameStop Exclusive Limited Edition comes with:
Forza Motorsport 2GB USB Storage and keychain: Show off your Forza pride with these specially branded items.
Forza Motorsport VIP Membership* and Exclusive Car Pack*: Want to be a top painter, tuner, driver or just more active in the community? VIP membership is the way to get yourself noticed. Includes special treatment within the online Auction House, Community Storefront and on the Forzamotorsport.net forums. Also includes 5 of the hottest cars from the roster of Forza Motorsport 3, available only through your VIP membership.
Exclusive Collector's Edition Car Pack*: This one is for the fans. This pack includes 5 cars that have been hand tuned and hand painted by the developers at Turn 10 to fly the Forza Motorsport colors.
Exclusive Forza Motorsport 3 Theme:* Customize your Dashboard experience with this limited availability Xbox 360 theme."
http://www.computerandvideogames.com....php?id=217258
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