Xbox Live will store your profile and game saves to the cloud this fall
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Internet, Microsoft, Xbox 360, Xbox Live,
Microsoft didn't have enough time to cover everything that's coming down the pike for Xbox Live with the fall dashboard update, but they sent us an email detailing some of the new hotness that they didn't talk about on stage, and we're super excited to hear that profiles will be able to be saved to the cloud. What does that mean for the average Joe? Well, this means that instead of saving your games to your hard drive or USB stick, you can instead save them to the web. Same goes for your Xbox Live profile, along with achievements, friend list, etc. One thing I've always hated about having two Xbox 360 units in the home is that I need to remember to grab my USB stick and bring it upstairs and down if I want to log into Live. Now, I just enter a username and password on any Xbox 360, from any location, and I am logged in. The days of recovering a Gamertag will be history come this fall!
Gallery: Xbox Live will store your profile and game saves to the cloud this fall
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Microsoft sending upgraded Xbox 360 consoles to users with disc issues
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Hardware, Microsoft, Xbox 360, Xbox Live,
Microsoft is offering a small number of Xbox 360 owners replacement consoles and a free year of Xbox Live as compensation for a firmware glitch, according to a report.
According to Kotaku, some customers have received emails stating that consumers can trade in their defective consoles in return for an upgrade.
Microsoft also confirmed the report via Twitter, in response to the posting of a screenshot of the letter by user Avery Penn.
However, the email from Microsoft appears to anticipate problems with the console, as Penn told Kotaku that his console is still able to read the discs. "The email was most likely referring to the Xbox LIVE update which is being phased in between May 19 and May 30 – an update which reflashes the DVD drives to a new stock firmware, and adds support for new XGD3 disk format," Kotaku added. "It's this update that allows an extra GB of usable storage on game discs."
Click to continue reading Microsoft sending upgraded Xbox 360 consoles to users with disc issues
Gallery: Microsoft sending upgraded Xbox 360 consoles to users with disc issues
Microsoft looking for testers for next Xbox 360 system update
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Microsoft, Xbox 360, Xbox Live,
Microsoft is looking for "multiple thousands" of Xbox Live members to test a new Xbox 360 disc format; in exchange, Microsoft will send you a free copy of the best-selling Halo: Reach and other branded freebies.
"We are conducting an open call for US based participants for a public preview to help us prepare for an updated Xbox 360 disc format," Major Nelson, the gamertag for Microsoft Xbox Live's programming director Larry Hryb, announced on his blog.
"We're looking for multiple thousands of participants, so your chances of making it in are good," he wrote.
Click to continue reading Microsoft looking for testers for next Xbox 360 system update
Gallery: Microsoft looking for testers for next Xbox 360 system update
Nintendo Wii sales plummet by 31.5 percent from January 2010
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Corporate News, Nintendo, PlayStation 3, Wii, Xbox 360,
January has just not been a pleasant month for video game sales. At least, that's according to new numbers released by NPD. Total January 2011 sales for gaming accessories, portable systems, and games for PCs and consoles fell to $1.16 billion from last year's total of $1.22 billion. And the $1.22 billion figure for January 2010 is itself a decrease from January 2009 figures, or $1.33 billion in total sales.
Breaking that number out a bit, hardware sales took the biggest year-to-year hit, dropping 8 percent from $353.7 million in January 2010 to $324 million in January 2011. NPD no longer splits this number out into publicly available data for the various console manufacturers; however, Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter said that Microsoft was the only big player to experience year-to-year growth on hardware sales.
According to Pachter, Microsoft sold approximately 332,800 Xbox 360 units, representing a year-to-year growth of 14.4 percent for the company. More than half of the systems sold were also bundled with Microsoft's Kinect accessory.
Nintendo, on the other hand, found its sales down 31.5 percent compared to the same period of time last year. That's a drop from 465,800 Wii consoles sold in January 2010 to 319,000 sold in January 2011. The company still leads the current console market with 34.5 million Wii units sold in the U.S., in total, with Microsoft's Xbox 360 coming in second place at 25.8 million, followed by Sony's PlayStation 3 at 15.7 million.
Click to continue reading Nintendo Wii sales plummet by 31.5 percent from January 2010
Gallery: Nintendo Wii sales plummet by 31.5 percent from January 2010
Kinect for Xbox 360 Interactive Art Installation by Seeper
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Culture, Microsoft, Xbox 360,
Check out the video above which features further info on the Kinect Munich art installation used by a company called Seeper at the launch of the Xbox 360 motion sensor. Get a look at how Seeper put together the large-scale interactive motion control art at the Stachus gate. Nice tie-in to the Kinect product, for sure.
Gallery: Kinect for Xbox 360 Interactive Art Installation by Seeper
Gears of War on Kinect?
Posted by John Kilhefner Categories: Rumors, Third Person Shooters, Xbox 360,
A pretty decent sized portion (read "all") of the hardcore market has been hesitant to pick up a Kinect for their Xbox 360, worried that Kinect's main use is solely geared to the casual crowd. Y'know - workout games, shallow kiddie games, and, wait, the entire Kinect line-up is comprised of these types of games? Well, maybe they do have a point there, but perhaps not for long. Many Xbox gamers (yours truly included) have been searching for a real reason to purchase a Kinect aside from the voice recognition and hand gesturing menu fun. Well, Microsoft is apparently going to be using Spike TV's Video Game Awards to intro some big action games for Kinect, with Gears of War rumored to be headlining the bunch.
Now, mind you this is just a rumor, so don't go breaking your piggy banks just yet. Also, it is not clear whether or not (if there is even a GoW game) this Gears of War title will be the third in the series, a current GoW reworked with Kinect controls, or a special Kinect GoW version.
Still, it's hard not to get excited over the possibilities of a Kinect GoW, and speculate on just how it would work. Would you be willing to play GoW on Kinect? Do you even think it's possible to pull off well? Let us know!
Read More 
| IGN
Gallery: Gears of War on Kinect?
Kinect Munich launch brings Stachus gate to life
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Culture, Microsoft, Xbox 360,
Dutch sweetheart Sylvie van der Vaart joined shoppers in Munich's famous Karlsplatz to create a breathtaking piece of interactive, art inspired by Kinect. State of the art technology allowed shoppers to take control of the iconic Stachus gate, bringing the ancient medieval structure to life by jumping, dancing, waving and gyrating. Definitely a cool sight to behold.
Gallery: Kinect Munich launch brings Stachus gate to life
Xbox Live Gold Family Pack now available
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Microsoft, Xbox 360, Xbox Live,
A couple of days ago, Microsoft raised the price of an annual Xbox Live Gold suscription by $10, to $59.99 per year. However, realizing that there are people out there with multiple accounts in a family setting, the company has finally incorporated an Xbox Live Family subscription into their offerings, and it's a great deal. For $99.99 per year--$20 less than the cost of two Xbox Live Gold subscriptions--you get a pack of four Xbox Live Gold accounts. Even cooler, though, is if you have young children, you get details on their activity and can set up preferences and allowances, and even get activity reports. Here's a look at the features that are exclusive fo the Family Pack:
- Family Center: It’s a single easy-to-use destination to manage your family’s memberships and online settings.
- Activity reports: Sign in to Xbox.com to view reports on your family’s activities on Xbox LIVE, and encourage discussions with your family about safer, healthier, and more balanced gaming.
- Microsoft Points Allowances: Parents and caregivers can purchase and gift Microsoft Points to their children.
- Family Pack Deal: Get exclusive discounts on family-friendly content.
You can convert over to the Family Pack from any existing Xbox Live account. If you're already a Gold member, then you get $5 towards the purchase of the Family Pack for each month of Gold that you have remaining on your account. Even better, if other accounts that you want to add to your Family Pack have time left on a Gold subscription, the entire family will get another month of Gold added for every two months remaining on each account.
The Xbox Live Gold Family Pack is available now, and you can set it up online, or from the Xbox 360 dashboard.
Read More | Xbox Live Family Pack FAQ
Gallery: Xbox Live Gold Family Pack now available
Mandatory Xbox Live update coming Nov 1st
Posted by Patrick Lambert Categories: Microsoft, Xbox 360, Xbox Live,
If you've been waiting for the Fall 2010 Xbox Live dashboard update to drop, tomorrow is the day, just in time for the launch of Kinect. This'll be a mandatory update, and anyone who refuses to get it will find themselves unable to connect to the service. According to the message Xbox Live users are receiving in their inboxes, the update will also add minor changes the Dashboard so that: "You will notice a change to the layout of the Xbox LIVE Dashboard, a new color scheme, and new fonts being used.
If you want a look at all the new features the update will bring to your Xbox 360, hit our video after the jump.
Click to continue reading Mandatory Xbox Live update coming Nov 1st
Gallery: Mandatory Xbox Live update coming Nov 1st
Xbox 360 Kinect Edition appears on store shelves early
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Microsoft, Xbox 360,
Okay, so Kinect is the next big thing from the Xbox team over at Microsoft, and the launch is scheduled for November 4th here in the USA. You'd think that'd mean that you'd be unable to get your hands on one until then, but thanks to some slip-ups at select retail locations, you may very well be able to get ahold of Kinect starting today. As you see above, one store has mistakingly put out the 250GB Xbox 360 Kinect Special Edition on the sales floor. Now, we're not saying that it's time for you to start calling around or anything, but if you happen to be hearing to a WalMart or Target type of place, you may wanna give the video game section a glance.
Gallery: Xbox 360 Kinect Edition appears on store shelves early
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