Microsoft

New Gears 2 Content Striking Retail On All Fronts

Microsoft and Epic Games deliver seven new multiplayer maps to Gears of Wars 2 in July’s retail release of the Gears of War 2: All Fronts Collection, finally answering the question “what is Dark Corners?” Back in March, rumors flew about a new batch of downloadable content for Gears of Wars 2 called Dark Corners,…

Marvel: Marvel vs. Capcom 2 Slated For June Release

In its financial report, comic book giant Marvel dated the re-release of classic fighter Marvel vs. Capcom 2. That date is June 29. And that date is, if you check your calendars, a Monday. Marvel does note “scheduled release dates are subject to change” in its report, so that means just that: this release date…

Microsoft’s Rumored Motion Controller May Be The ZCam

Microsoft may finally be ready to make good on extended threats of a motion sensing controller for the Xbox 360 at this year’s E3, with a rumored camera accessory reportedly in the works. Last week, Engadget wrote that Microsoft’s long-rumored motion controller pursuits were real and that its solution was coming in the form of…

PC Broken Steel Error Is A Games For Windows Live Problem

The Broken Steel update for the PC version of Fallout 3 has been taken down for repair. Bethesda explains why. As we reported previously, PC users who downloaded the Broken Steel downloadable content via Games for Windows Live this morning were treated to a “cryptographic message is not formatted correctly” error. We contacted Bethesda’s Pete…

J Allard? No, It’s Doctor J Allard

J Allard has, tragically, been in hiding for some time now. And still is! But his name, at least, has come out of hiding. We’re glad. And so, so glad that when it did resurface, it was to share the limelight with some illustrious company! Yes, the former Xbox pin-up boy, who played a big…

Microsoft’s Full Body Motion Controller Revealed?

Microsoft says that it will “completely transform how people think about home entertainment” at this year’s E3. A newly rumored motion controller that detects “full body” movement may be what the company has planned. According to a report from Engadget, who cites an anonymous tipster claiming to have knowledge of Microsoft’s Xbox 360 plans, the…

Lips Gets New Edition In May

Microsoft’s karaoke game Lips adds a ton of new music this month, but none quite as impressive as the New Edition Song Pack. No, there’s nothing wrong with your line. The New Edition Song Pack for Lips is coming on the 15th of May, adding three of 80’s group’s biggest hits to the Xbox 360.…

Why Won’t Japanese Gamers Buy The Xbox 360?

Enterbrain, publisher of Japanese gaming mag Famitsu, has polled its readers as to why they don’t buy the Xbox 360. You know, the reasons why. Here is the breakdown: • Worried about its future 35.71 percent • Price is high 7.14 percent • No games I want to play 3.57 percent • Another reason 53.57…

Forza 3 Teased, Expected To Arrive In 2009

Forza Motorsport 3 is definitely coming to the Xbox 360. That’s a poorly kept secret, as confirmation of the game’s existence was leaked last year with early details spewing forth from the infamous Intellisponse breach. It’s starting to look like Microsoft and developer Turn 10 Studios will have something to show soon, more than likely…

The Big Three Escalate E3 Hype Levels To Code Orange

The glorious, obnoxious return of E3 proper is mere weeks away. The hype is now palpable, with Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony inflating expectations for their respective E3 showings. But Microsoft may be hyping the loudest. While Nintendo and Sony seem content to remind video game fans that they too will be attending the Los Angeles…

Fable II See The Future’s Future Foretold

Lionhead promised news today, and they’ve delivered, revealing the release date for the upcoming See the Future downloadable content for Fable II and a new episode of Inside Lionhead to boot. Those eager to See the Future of Albion have only two more weeks worth of waiting to down, as Lionhead announces a May 12th…

Xbox Exec: “The Game Industry Deserves Respect”

The gaming industry is big business — huge. Yet, according to Xbox Europe exec David Gosen, it doesn’t merit the same respect that Hollywood or the music biz does. “But it frustrates me that from a public standpoint, the industry still hasn’t got the stature, credibility and cut through that we all deserve. I still…

The Xbox 360 Truck Travels Through Hong Kong

Hong Kong doesn’t only get an Xbox 360 truck, but a cosplay lady to go with it. Recently, an Xbox 360 truck outfitted with LCD TVs and demo games hit the streets of Hong Kong to promote the console. There was also a cosplayer dressed as Reimi from Star Ocean 4. See that Xbox 360…

How Not To Address Homosexuality In Gaming

BioWare’s censoring of homosexual terms on the Star Wars: The Old Republic forums was not a wise move, but they certainly weren’t the first video game company to struggle with the issue of homosexuality. And they almost certainly won’t be the last. Homosexuality has long been a controversial issue amongst gamers, developers, and publishers alike.…

Celebrate Grand Theft Auto IV’s 1-Year Anniversary With Bundles

Happy birthday, Grand Theft Auto IV. You’re one year old today. Microsoft got you an Xbox 360 Elite “Limited Anniversary Edition” bundle to promote the occasion. But brace for pack-in disappointment… While the latest Xbox 360 Elite package packs in a copy of Grand Theft Auto IV, it doesn’t appear to offer a complimentary copy…

Lionhead Teases Tomorrow’s Fable II News

Why put off announcing something until tomorrow when you can announce the impending announcement today? That’s the apparent philosophy of Sam Van Tilburgh over at Lionhead’s Fable II development blog, who promises some sort of announcement and new content to arrive on the morrow. I’m picking up through the grapevine that tomorrow there is going…

Microsoft Calling For Year-Round Game Releases

Anybody outside the retail sector fans of the Christmas rush? You’re not. We’re not. And Microsoft may just be coming around to our way of thinking. Speaking with trade site MCV, Microsoft Europe’s David Gosen has questioned the gaming industry’s reliance on selling games at Christmas time, saying: We still have a very seasonally-focussed business.…

Microsoft Surveys NXE Avatar Changes, Including Wearable Achievements

The addition of the Rare-designed Avatars in the New Xbox Experience hasn’t amounted to much beyond an increasingly expanding virtual wardrobe. But Microsoft may have grander plans for the little guys. While there are a handful of games that already support Avatars in-game—Scene It? Box Office Smash, Uno, etc.—as far as games are concerned, they’re…

What Ails The World’s Biggest Gaming Platform?

It is the most powerful gaming platform in the world, and with more than 300 million users, the most widely owned as well, so why does computer gaming seem to be suffering from an inferiority complex? With retail chains increasingly limiting their shelf space for PC games, and most mainstream media coverage of gaming directed…

The Rules for 360 Achievements (Partially) Explained

Microsoft’s only on-the-record guidance on how Achievements are approved came more than two years ago, and the maximums it set then have been easily surpassed. Xbox360Achievements.org says it’s learned of new policies on Gamerscore ceilings. X360A’s Alan Pettit noted that the new batch of Fallout 3 achievements broke, once again, the stated maximum of 1250…