Related Links | The Xbox 360 E3 revolution
During the E3 show taking place in California this week, Microsoft proved yet again that it has the greatest next-generation games in the world. But more crucially this year every new game Microsoft presented at E3 will be available to buy in time for Christmas, guaranteeing Xbox 360 the greatest line-up in videogame in season history. But that’s not all (because it never is) – with a rapidly increasing Xbox LIVE Arcade line-up, and the high-definition video store coming to Xbox LIVE Marketplace 2007 will be a year we’ll never forget and it starts right here, right now.
The atmosphere at this year’s Microsoft press briefing was electrifying as big names were announced one after the other. Let’s do this alphabetically and fill you in on the details when you’re done slobbering: “Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation,” “Assassin’s Creed,” “Beautiful Katamari,” “BioShock,” ”Blue Dragon,” “Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare,” “Dance Dance Revolution UNIVERSE 2,” “Grand Theft Auto IV,” “Guitar Hero III,” “Halo 3,” “Madden NFL 08,” “Naruto: Rise of a Ninja,” “Project Gotham Racing 4,” “Rock Band,” “Scene It? Lights, Camera, Action,” “Virtua Fighter 5,” “Viva Piñata: Party Animals.” All of this will arrive before the end of this year. For the uninitiated out there, Grand Theft Auto IV will have downloadable episodic content exclusively on Xbox 360. Versus gameplay in Virtua Fighter 5 is only happening on Xbox 360. Ace Combat 6 will only take flight on Xbox 360. Then of course we have the not too insignificant arrival of Halo 3 and Project Gotham Racing 4 only on Xbox 360 and mainly because, of course, Microsoft owns them… hah! With titles such as the movie trivia game “Scene it?” and “Viva Piñata: Party Animals” the kind of audience Xbox 360 attracts is expanding too. Big things are happening on Xbox LIVE too, starting with Xbox LIVE Arcade. Very soon you’ll be able to download Sega classics “Sonic the Hedgehog” and “Golden Axe,” while “Bomberman Live” extends the classic console-gaming connection. Arguably the biggest news for Xbox LIVE Arcade is that Bungie Studios’ “Marathon: Durandal” is scheduled to appear. This trail-blazing FPS still looks amazing, as does underwater strategic shooter “Undertow.” If you’re feeling more casual you have “Hexic 2” and “Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords” to keep your brain in shape. And finally, for those times when you need a break from gaming, Xbox LIVE Marketplace is being prepped for its high-definition video store this year in Europe. This has already proven a success in the US where over 2,100 hours of premium entertainment content across 28 television networks and movie studios plus nearly 500 hours of HD content is already available. You don’t need to read between the lines to find the juicy news here. It’s all in your face, 100 percent guaranteed as in definitely going to happen because Microsoft always delivers on an Xbox 360 promise. |
