Microsoft - Page 171 of 239

Old Games Never Die (They Just Sit In Storage)

Old books are kept in a library. Old movies are kept in archives. But where are old video games kept? Don’t sweat it: they’re kept safe and sound. Or, at least, the ones developed and/or published by some of the industry’s biggest names are are, a great feature on Gamasutra finding out the archiving and…

By Luke Plunkett Published March 11, 2011

Xbox Japan Isn’t Giving Up On Kinect. There Is A Trailer.

That’s good. It also hasn’t given up on the Xbox 360. Xbox Japan is plucky! While the peripheral’s launch wasn’t exactly spectacular, the Japan arm is once again rolling out its Kinect trailer at locations across Japan. The trailer offers folks a chance to check out Kinect — a chance they had at Japanese retail.…

By Brian Ashcraft Published March 11, 2011

CultureTotal Recall

Microsoft Has Now Spent Over Ten Years In The Console Business

Time flies, doesn’t it? One day, you’re thinking only Sega and Nintendo are capable of building quality, successful gaming hardware. The next, you wake up to find that Microsoft is building a video games console. Yet it’s been eleven years to the day that the world awoke to such a scenario, as it was at…

By Luke Plunkett Published March 11, 2011

Xbox Live Labs Exchanges Your Time And Bandwidth For Avatar Goodies

Microsoft wants to enlist your help in testing the Xbox Live network, rewarding volunteers willing to donate up to six hours of Xbox 360 time with crazy mad scientist goodies once the testing’s done. Here’s how to participate. Xbox Live Labs is really a brilliant idea. Microsoft needs to test its network, so why not…

By Mike Fahey Published March 10, 2011

Exploit Results In “Theft” Of $1.2 Million In Xbox Live Codes

Yesterday, a forum user on website The Tech Game posted a way for people to scam free points for use on Xbox Live. By the time Microsoft found out and shut it down, over $1 million in codes had been “stolen”. User “Dark” is the author of the post explaining the exploit, which was able…

By Luke Plunkett Published March 10, 2011

Man Loses Gamertag, Man Gets Gamertag Back

This is a happy one. Years later, internet person TigerC10 has finally been reunited with his old gamertag, after reading on Kotaku that Microsoft was freeing up old and unused ones. Warm, fuzzy feelings all around! [via IGN]

By Brian Ashcraft Published March 9, 2011

Is Microsoft Getting Serious About Next-Gen? [Update]

Console makers are always working on new stuff – you know, tinkering. But Microsoft is putting its money where its mouth is and hiring up for what could very well be a new console. There are three job listings: one for a “hardware verification engineer“, another for a “VLSI graphics architect” and one for a…

By Brian Ashcraft Published March 8, 2011

Halo Wars Still a Worthy Franchise, Says New Halo Studio

Halo Wars survived Microsoft’s assault to take down its leaderboards late last year, showing that the game still has some fight in it. 343 Industries, Microsoft’s new internal studio handling the Halo franchise, tipped its cap to the console RTS, calling it sequel- and even Kinect-worthy. That said, there are no plans to take this…

By Owen Good Published March 5, 2011

The Gears of War 3 Beta Kicks Off April 18, Bringing Flaming Guns With It

If you want to dress the “Cole Train” in a Thrashball uniform or demand that your guns come in one flavor—flaming—play the Gears of War 3 beta when it kicks off on April 18. That’s when owners of Bulletstorm’s “Epic Edition” get access to Gears 3. Those without a copy of Bulletstorm get it one…

By Michael McWhertor Published March 4, 2011

Microsoft’s SideWinder Gaming Hardware Isn’t Dead Yet

Has the long-lived SideWinder line of gaming-centric computer peripherals finally bitten the dust? Microsoft says it isn’t so. Microsoft’s been releasing computer gaming peripherals under the SideWinder brand for the better part of two decades, pushing out everything from flight sticks to elaborate force feedback steering wheels. The line was put on hiatus in 2003…

By Mike Fahey Published March 3, 2011

Pin-Up Model Turned Xbox Japan Spokes-girl Paralyzed After Accident

Hikari Yamaguchi first captured Japanese gamers’ eyes with her bikini pin-up photos. She captured their hearts as one of the hosts of Xbox Japan’s Inside Xbox program. Right now, she needs all the love she can get. According to paper Sports Hochi, Yamaguchi slipped on the balcony of her home on February 19, resulting in…

By Brian Ashcraft Published March 3, 2011

The Near Future Of Video Games, Straight Outta San Francisco

The Kotaku crew is hip-deep in the 2011 Game Developers Conference, bringing you the latest news, newest games, and anything else we can drag kicking and screaming out of one of gaming’s biggest annual events. It’s not over until our boys in the field come home, and even then the coverage will keep on coming.…

By Mike Fahey Published March 2, 2011

Microsoft Reanimates Dead Xbox Live Gamertags

Was your original choice for an Xbox Live gamertag unavailable? Well check again! Microsoft has started reviving previously used and unavailable gamertags, so now’s the time to recapture your former glory. Some bastard is still hogging the Fahey gamertag, but you might have better luck. According to Xbox Live’s Major Nelson, Microsoft is slowly reactivating…

By Mike Fahey Published March 1, 2011

Fable III Journeys To Traitor’s Keep Next Week

Only the best-dressed adventurer will survive the three new levels for Fable III in Traitor’s Keep, the new downloadable content pack coming to the Xbox 360 on March 1. Ravenscar Keep, Clockwork Island, and the Godwin Estate will open to Fable III players for the price of 560 Microsoft points ($8.00) on the first of…

By Mike Fahey Published February 24, 2011

Halo: Reach Players Get Defiant On March 15

Microsoft has nailed down a March 15 release date for the Halo: Reach Defiant Map pack, punctuating the announcement with a set of fresh screens showing off the three maps you’ll be paying $10 for. Let’s take a visual tour of Condemned, Highlands and Unearthed, the three new maps that make up the Defiant Map…

By Mike Fahey Published February 24, 2011

Little Japanese Girl Wins Over Our Hearts (And Kinect)

If you are looking for success in the Xbox 360’s uphill battle in Japan, look no further than this. It’s easy to be jaded about the Xbox 360 in Japan. The console isn’t exactly a blockbuster there — ditto for Kinect. But none of that matters, because this four-year-old girl is adorable. On Kinect title…

By Brian Ashcraft Published February 23, 2011

This Is How Minority Report Surfs The Web On Its Lunch Break

Continuing the trend of Kinect doing awesome things in everything but video games, take a look at this web browser that’s been built specifically for Microsoft’s motion-sensing camera. It’s called SwimBrowser. Sounds like a stupid name until you see it in action, because “swimming” is exactly what you’re doing as you gently wave and roll…

By Luke Plunkett Published February 23, 2011

Watch A 360 Avatar Try Lip-Syncing

Microsoft’s upcoming “Avatar Kinect” was pitched as a glorified chatroom. It didn’t sound that exciting. This real-time demonstration, though, at least makes it look remotely interesting. Sure, it’s still a glorified chatroom, but there’s some neat technology on display, not the least of which is the impressive almost-real-time lip-syncing your avatar is capable of when…

By Luke Plunkett Published February 22, 2011

Space Invaders, Played with Kinect

From France comes the latest Kinect mod – fully playable Space Invaders, whose control scheme turns the 1978 Taito classic into an exergaming ordeal. Extend left arm, move left. Extend right arm, move right. OK, but you have to extend both to fire. That means, even if you’re a perfect shot, you’re doing 55 jumping…

By Owen Good Published February 19, 2011

Farewell to a Fast Friend

Dedicated to all of the talented men and women at Bizarre Creations, this video created by the team’s trailer editor should only be viewed with someone to hug nearby. Goodbye Bizarre. We’ll miss you.

By Brian Crecente Published February 18, 2011