Might as well get it started now.

Microsoft starts off the show on July 14. Please keep all discussions relative to the convention or topic discussed at the convention.

http://media.techeblog.com/images/gears2interview.jpg

Too Human demo will be on XBOX LIVE next week as part of Microsoft's "Bringing it Home" program. That should clear a lot of things up about that game.

http://www.joystiq.com/2008/07/10/microsoft-bringing-home-too-human-demo-next-week/

G4TV coverage schedule:
http://www.g4tv.com/e32008/splash.aspx

G4TV coverage schedule:
http://www.g4tv.com/e32008/splash.aspx

They need to hurry up and make some of those shows in HD. Sorry to go off-topic if it was just excited for E3.

I'd like to see it in HD, too. They do have game previews in HD in the OnDemand stuff.

They need to hurry up and make some of those shows in HD. Sorry to go off-topic if it was just excited for E3.

Right. A technology channel (at least by name) that is behind the times is pretty comical.:D

Well, interesting article on CNN. I hadnt even heard this, but supposedly rumors are flying about Bungie having a big announcement at E3 due to some comments made on their podcast.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/ptech/07/11/e3.2008/index.html

Will it be a new Halo game? The infamous Peter Jackson project? Halo 3 is a good game but I think they can do better now that they are out from under the MS cloud as a company.

Bungie is probably working on a new Marathon, not a new HALO......

its a halo platformer! master chief galaxy!

Pre E3 visit by Gametrailers to Epic Studios revealed that they are toning down the violence a little bit for Gears 2. The ability to de-arm an opponent and subsequently beat him with his own arm has been pulled from the game. Epic would not say if this was their decision or if it was handed down by Microsoft. They are also emphasizing story quite a bit more in Gears 2 and have hired a new team for this purpose. Looks like a slightly different direction for the sequel.

Some good HD footage here.
http://www.gametrailers.com/gametrailerstv_player.php?ep=27&sd=1&ch=1

Pre E3 visit by Gametrailers to Epic Studios revealed that they are toning down the violence a little bit for Gears 2. The ability to de-arm an opponent and subsequently beat him with his own arm has been pulled from the game. Epic would not say if this was their decision or if it was handed down by Microsoft. They are also emphasizing story quite a bit more in Gears 2 and have hired a new team for this purpose. Looks like a slightly different direction for the sequel.

Some good HD footage here.
http://www.gametrailers.com/gametrailerstv_player.php?ep=27&sd=1&ch=1

Gay. It's a game with a freakin' chainsaw assault rifle as it's main protagonist. Gears is about violence.

Agreed. But, you know they could have been risking a AO rating if they would have left the arm gig in there. 2 late in the game 2 take a chance. I also think MS has some pull on it as well. I remember when Gears 1 came out. MS did not want the chainsaw in there because it was to violent.

Gay. It's a game with a freakin' chainsaw assault rifle as it's main protagonist. Gears is about violence.

Bungie is probably working on a new Marathon, not a new HALO......

I hope so, Marathon was as amazing game back in the day. I enjoyed replaying the XBLA version also.

rumor: XBOX 360 was outsold when MGS4 came out so they are making a MGS4 clone called, "rattle"

Pre E3 visit by Gametrailers to Epic Studios revealed that they are toning down the violence a little bit for Gears 2. The ability to de-arm an opponent and subsequently beat him with his own arm has been pulled from the game. Epic would not say if this was their decision or if it was handed down by Microsoft.

When I first heard about this new execution, it did seem a little over the top. But, being able to break off a head with your foot and place it one the end of your Torque Bow seems a little out there as well-but I'm not complaining. My guess is it's Microsoft butting in again. But sometimes artists are so concerned with their work, they forget about marketing and general appeal-which makes the money. GOW is very much about violence, but I can also understand why certain cuts have to made. I do wish developers were able to give us their full vision, though.

Well, interesting article on CNN. I hadnt even heard this, but supposedly rumors are flying about Bungie having a big announcement at E3 due to some comments made on their podcast.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/ptech/07/11/e3.2008/index.html

Will it be a new Halo game? The infamous Peter Jackson project? Halo 3 is a good game but I think they can do better now that they are out from under the MS cloud as a company.

The X-play TV show said it's probably going to be a prequel Halo game.

Is it bad that E3 is my second favorite time of year right behind winter for snowboarding?

I can see where maybe the ripping off an arm and beating would be considered too much, but when you can shoot a guy point blank with a shotgun and turn them into hamburger meat any number of ways, I dont think there is such thing as a "line" that you really cross. Oh well though.

I can see where maybe the ripping off an arm and beating would be considered too much, but when you can shoot a guy point blank with a shotgun and turn them into hamburger meat any number of ways, I dont think there is such thing as a "line" that you really cross. Oh well though.Couldn't you do that on the SNES in MK2? Jax' fatality?

The X-play TV show said it's probably going to be a prequel Halo game. I would be ecstatic if it was the Fall of Reach game.

Bungie needs to make the real Myth 3, the first two were awesome.

Some good HD footage here.
http://www.gametrailers.com/gametrailerstv_player.php?ep=27&sd=1&ch=1

Just watched the link. Thanks!

A.I. bots confirmed!!! YES!

Couldn't you do that on the SNES in MK2? Jax' fatality?

Yeah, but the graphics were nowhere near as realistic as today.

According to a recent article the 360 price drop was confirmed for the base unit and the new 60 gig HD version.

Also, someone produced a Wal-Mart internal database SKU for a game called Halo Blue.

I can't wait to hear more!

Appeal to Wii's audience: Lips (karaoke game made by Elite Beat Agents company) + Avatars + Motion Controller packed in with Banjo Kazooie. Now they just need to get that price down.

live ms conference begins in an hour... watch online @g4

http://e3.g4tv.com/e32008/press_conf_detail.aspx?pressconference_key=1

Agreed. But, you know they could have been risking a AO rating if they would have left the arm gig in there. 2 late in the game 2 take a chance. I also think MS has some pull on it as well. I remember when Gears 1 came out. MS did not want the chainsaw in there because it was to violent.

Are you sure?
Times must've changed; you could do it in the Original Dungeon Master on Atari ST. (Chop off a monster's arm and use it as a club. You could also eat it.)

The X-play TV show said it's probably going to be a prequel Halo game.

That would be good. I'd like a chance to see the other Spartans at work.

Are you sure?
Times must've changed; you could do it in the Original Dungeon Master on Atari ST. (Chop off a monster's arm and use it as a club. You could also eat it.)

times have changed! haven't you read?

...And because of the digital chip age in which we live - "Mass Effect" can be customized to sodomize whatever, whoever, however, the game player wishes. With it's "over the net" capabilities virtual orgasmic rape is just the push of a button away.

live ms conference begins in an hour... watch online @g4

http://e3.g4tv.com/e32008/press_conf_detail.aspx?pressconference_key=1


scratch that, the connection sucks, and its unwatchable. any alternatives?

scratch that, the connection sucks, and its unwatchable. any alternatives?

G4TV Live also. I am at work recording on the DVR.

G4TV Live also. I am at work recording on the DVR.

forgot to set the dvr :(

ign.com looks promising.

http://livewire.ign.com/2008/e3/index.html#

Just started about 2 minutes ago.

forgot to set the dvr :(

ign.com looks promising.

http://livewire.ign.com/2008/e3/index.html#

Damn man whats wrong with you :D. Nevermind it is a Monday. It happens.

By the way they will be showing it again at 6 central time.

Damn man whats wrong with you :D. Nevermind it is a Monday. It happens.

By the way they will be showing it again at 6 central time.


its ok... for one i'd rather not watch G4, and for two, the IGN feed has really good feed quality.

fallout 3 looks pretty good.

its ok... for one i'd rather not watch G4, and for two, the IGN feed has really good feed quality.

second that. IGN's quality is great.

Fallout 3 is up first.

where's the website that offers the up to the minute in writing updates?

substantial DLC for fallout 3, exclusive to 360/windows

Apperantly all the new games are in black and white.

Apperantly all the new games are in black and white.

gears was very successful, why not :)

Metal Gear, too.

Wait...I think there's actually some color in Fable 2...

RE5 release - March 13 2009 (friday the 13th)

whoa... fable two co-op implementation looks sweet.

october 2008 release

RE5 LIVE demo announced just a little bit ago ...

-- Jason

Cliff B and another guy ran through some of Gears 2. Looked pretty sweet and similar to the first one.

5 player co-op in horde mode.... where players fight waves and waves of increasingly difficult horde waves.

nov (7th?) 2008 release.

gears looks well improved, still linear but less claustrophobic, and a little more color.

nbc and universal announced as new xbl dlc partners.

Showing new interface now. Radically different. Includes stupid avatars.

Avatars this Fall in a brand new interface (I am reading a live text update, anyone see it? Are they getting rid of blades? One can only hope...).

GOW2 looked sick, but not very similar to the first one, IMO. Much more action-packed, with alot more guns, scenery, options, dialogue, etc.! I hope EPIC and other developers learned alot from Bioshock about more involving narratives.

Avatars this Fall in a brand new interface (I am reading a live text update, anyone see it? Are they getting rid of blades? One can only hope...).

Blades are gone as they are now. Sort of 3-d windows you scroll through.

amazing new dashboard!

Anyone got a description. Damn I need to go home for lunch

Avatars are sort of like Home. You can join a 'party' to view pictures, videos, etc.

where's the website that offers the up to the minute in writing updates?

Here's a few:

1UP (http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3168697)
Gamespot (http://e3.gamespot.com/story.html?sid=6193729&tag=latestnews;title;1)

amazing new dashboard!

XMB-like but very cool.

does anyone really care about these avatars?

5-year old girls.

party chat! finally!

Geometry Wars 2 next month.

Blades are gone as they are now. Sort of 3-d windows you scroll through.

Sweet. Blades was a great idea when the system came out but there is too much content and too many features for it. They constantly were changing the interface but it didn't work anymore. I am glad MS has recognized that.

Game shows featured, 1 vs 100 looks pretty cool with all the avatars on stage...also briefly mentioned prizes.

http://www.joystiq.com/media/2008/07/msft-e308-keynote-9-8.jpg

5-year old girls.

And women of all ages. My wife and sister in law have burned HOURS creating avatars of the whole extended family on thier Wiis.

New Galaga sequel coming next month. Exclusive to XBLA.

New Portal: Still Alive exclusive to XBLA this fall.

South Park game for XBLA this fall.

netflix

but hd?

live party can share netflix movies..... interesting.

Pretty powerful stuff there. I like it.

Totally psyched about Portal: Still Alive and the South Park game..

did I hear that correctly that you get the Neftlix online service free through Live?

I assume this will only be the movies that are already available to watch online for Netflix subscribers, but that's a pretty big discount to include it for Live users.

any hd movies and can we keep them for as long as we want?

did I hear that correctly that you get the Neftlix online service free through Live?

I assume this will only be the movies that are already available to watch online for Netflix subscribers, but that's a pretty big discount to include it for Live users.

Yeah, I heard that too. But then they were talking about sharing with your party, which would seem useless if it's free for everyone.

Dammit more Netflix details please??


And wow I'm really impressed with the system updates.. I expected the same games we've been hearing about forever to just be shown.. with real gameplay. Its pretty shocking to see the huge dashboard updates and other announcements.

did I hear that correctly that you get the Neftlix online service free through Live?

I assume this will only be the movies that are already available to watch online for Netflix subscribers, but that's a pretty big discount to include it for Live users.

The way I heard it was that if you were a subscriber to Netflix, you could access their online offerings via Live.

this announcement is about what i would expect from a new console.... not a mid-life update.

pretty amazing stuff.

My wife will dig the Avatars. New interface for 360 is great looking.

Showing off some simple Eyetoy type games right now.

GTA4 1st episode before the end of the year.

this announcement is about what i would expect from a new console.... not a mid-life update.

pretty amazing stuff.

Yea... you know, its stuff like this that leads me to believe we might not see another console until 2012. There's clearly a lot more they can do with these things, and, lets be real, if the Wii graphics are "good enough" for a lot of people the 360/PS3 ones are as well.

about time they make use of the vision cam.

http://www.joystiq.com/media/2008/07/msft-e308-netflix-6.jpg

Wow, there is so much stuff coming. I thought the avatars would just be a gimmick of sorts, but seems like they're integrated into everything. Great stuff.

And that In the Movies game is neat. Could be fun...good party game.

New Scene It content. Woot!

the movie it spit out was actually pretty cool

More than 85 songs on the GH:WT disc.

Van Halen and Eagles are exclusive to GH.

Metallica's new album will be available for GH when it launches.

The way I heard it was that if you were a subscriber to Netflix, you could access their online offerings via Live.

that makes more sense.

so I, as a Netflix subscriber, could start a movie and invite my brother, a non-Netflix subscriber but live friend, to my party where he would be able to watch the movie on his tv as well?

that makes more sense.

so I, as a Netflix subscriber, could start a movie and invite my brother, a non-Netflix subscriber but live friend, to my party where he would be able to watch the movie on his tv as well?

That appears to be the idea.

that makes more sense.

so I, as a Netflix subscriber, could start a movie and invite my brother, a non-Netflix subscriber but live friend, to my party where he would be able to watch the movie on his tv as well?

That's how I understood it.

I just cannot believe how cool all this stuff looks. If it even lives up to 1/2 the hype we're all in for some treats.

- Fallout 3 - Continues to look utterly fantastic. Watching the mini-nuke take out baddies was impressive. The scope and scale of the world around your character is mind-blowing.

- Fable II - Didn't care much for the first game, but the look and design of this one has me interested. That new co-op mode they showed was cool. Lionhead generally swings for the homerun and misses IMHO but we'll see.

- GOW2 - I loved the first game and this one looks like GOW on Steriods. The baddies are HUGE. Like the new HORDE mode idea also.

- Resident Evil 5 - Not a RE fan, but looks good.

- New Interface - wow, talk about taking a giant leap forward. Now that's evolution. Don't care about the Avatars but the new style and design is neat.

NETFLIX!!! YES! Now, if only the Watch it Now movies were worth a damn we'd be getting somewhere. :)

Edit - oh, and don't know about you but I prefer dancing Master Chief to whatever lousy song they are showing live now anyway.

In the Movies=pass.

Screenshots of the new dashboard and avatars system (and the "new" booth babes :rolleyes: ) for those that can't access gaming sites at work...

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13772_3-9990517-52.html?hhTest=1

In the Movies=pass.

Not my cup of tea either but this couple with the new Pinata and Banjo game is for the family/kid audience. I'm sure they'll eat it up.

when did e3 turn into a karaoke bar?

GH:World Tour sounds great. That took some negotiating, I bet to get three unreleased Metallica tracks.

New GNR track from Chinese Democracy on RB2?!? Whoa.

Announcing the RB2 setlist now. (GnR, Dylan, etc.) List is in another thread.

rockband 2 = 360 exclusive

84 tracks, all master.

You'll be able to export "almost all" of the tracks from the first game disc if you own it.

rockband 2 = 360 exclusive

During September.

20 (free) dlc bonus tracks

and as someone said, all DL's from rb1 works in rb2, and you can export most of the rb1 songs to rb2

infinite undiscovery - 360 exclusive - sept 2nd
star ocean - spring 2009
last remnant - 360 gets it first, this holiday. (11-20-08?) (unreal engine?) also on games for windows!

No motion controller announcement! Guess all that talk was just that.

Not a fan of the new dash...

Final Fantasy XIII on 360, holy crap, Sony is dead.

Final Fantasy XIII on 360, holy crap, Sony is dead.


WoOt!!!!!

FF XIII ... how many discs will it be on? 10?

Wow, FFXIII. Nice finish! Portal is a great catch too for the 360.

No motion controller announcement! Guess all that talk was just that.

They said the microphone from Lips was motion controlled, I believe.

Final Fantasy XIII on 360, holy crap, Sony is dead.

LOL

Show is now over.

ff on the xbox 360...now i know its the apocalypse.

Don't forget they have to leave some announcements for the game and peripheral companies. I do believe Motus said that they wouldn't announce anything for the manufacturers.

Final Fantasy XIII on 360, holy crap, Sony is dead.

Do we care?
All that matters is we get to play it (those of us into JRPGs) without having to buy a BD player. ;)

MS strikes with MASSIVE DAMAGE

http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd292/tronn4/Massivedamage.jpg

LOL

Yea, that was hyperbole. We'll have to wait and see what surprises Sony has in store tomorrow. But still, FF13 was Sony's BIG exclusive, and now its gone. I don't know what they can offer up to replace it. But I guess this is what happens when your hardware isn't gaining any steam.

In fact, it seems like MS just destroyed Sony with that presser, offered up everything Sony has been talking about the past couple years. Good job from MS on that, but I am disappointed on the no motion controller announcement.

*is* it really a new dash?
The way CNET described it, it's a new interface for *XBL*. Maybe you launch it from the Dashboard...?
(Or did MS say it replaces the entire dashboard?)
To me its a bit too much "Vista meets wii" but hardly offensive.
Of course, now I have to worry about designing a frackin' avatar. :rolleyes:

Bring on the haters saying that FF will be on 42 discs because it's not on Blu-ray, or how the game is limited because it's on the 360.

WOW!! Final Fantasy XIII on the 360!!

Which ever "side" you're on, thats a pretty big deal. I have both so it matters not, but I'm trying to imagine the meltdown thats gonnna happen now. Remember Devil May Cry going multiplatform? This is gonna be huge.

WOW!! Final Fantasy XIII on the 360!!

Which ever "side" you're on, thats a pretty big deal. I have both so it matters not. But I'm trying to imagine the metldown thats gonnna happen now. Remember Devil May Cry going multiplatform? This is gonna be huge.

Agreed all around (have both as well).

*is* it a new dash?
The way CNET described it, it's a new interface for *XBL*. Maybe you launch it from the Dashboard...?
(Or did MS say it replaces the entire dashboard?)
To me its a bit too much "Vista meets wii" but hardly offensive.
Of course, now I have to worry about designing a frackin' avatar. :rolleyes:

its a new dash

they showed the old dash, a "system update" popped up and downloaded, the xbox rebooted INTO the new dash, no more blades.

WOW!! Final Fantasy XIII on the 360!!

Which ever "side" you're on, thats a pretty big deal. I have both so it matters not. But I'm trying to imagine the metldown thats gonnna happen now. Remember Devil May Cry going multiplatform? This is gonna be huge.Heh, it killed neogaf.com. Of course it never works very well during E3 anyway.

But I guess this is what happens when your hardware isn't gaining any steam.

It has been outselling the 360 for most of this year. Regardless, I don't really care which because I have both and want both to suceed. If you call yourself a gamer and are happy when a major part of the industry struggles, you're a moron.

Great conference all around. I hope there are still a few more surprises in store from developers and publishers.

Good job from MS on that, but I am disappointed on the no motion controller announcement.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=14286884#post14286884

;)

Quick question: Is the Press Conference going to be available on Xbox Live?

(Sorry if the question has already been asked and answered)

Bring on the haters saying that FF will be on 42 discs because it's not on Blu-ray, or how the game is limited because it's on the 360.

on PS3 it will have a 20 gig 6 hour install :P

It has been outselling the 360 for most of this year. Regardless, I don't really care which because I have both and want both to suceed. If you call yourself a gamer and are happy when a major part of the industry struggles, you're a moron.

Believe it or not I really would rather Sony succeed. I do have a PS3 after all. But man... this press conference really beat the **** out of them. They lost their #1 exclusive and now have a competitor doing a lot of what they were planning to do with community features. I hope they have some very good news tomorrow and not vague BS about games coming out late next year and how awesome Home will be whenever the hell it comes out. Which is what their press conferences have been like recently.

Great conference all around. I hope there are still a few more surprises in store from developers and publishers.

Super Mario Galaxy HD :eek:

Pretty good conference for MS.

Getting FFXIII was definitely big for MS, though it won't help MS in Japan when it'll be available on another console with the much larger installed base.

Netflix may or may not be a big deal, depending on whether they can deliver sound and video comparable to Blu-Ray.

That was a really nice E3 for MS, I wonder how the others will fair? FFXIII is a huge deal for gamers in america that have a 360 that were on the fence they will now just hold onto the 360 and not worry about a PS3. I also do not think the netflix thing is going to be that great other than if you already have an account and want to watch something, I doubt it can be as good as a blu ray. GG MS

Believe it or not I really would rather Sony succeed. I do have a PS3 after all. But man... this press conference really beat the **** out of them. They lost their #1 exclusive and now have a competitor doing a lot of what they were planning to do with community features. I hope they have some very good news tomorrow and not vague BS about games coming out late next year and how awesome Home will be whenever the hell it comes out. Which is what their press conferences have been like recently.I think they have some great stuff in store but MS has probably "won" E3 already. I can only think of one thing that could match that announcement and it also involves Square Enix. :)

its a new dash

they showed the old dash, a "system update" popped up and downloaded, the xbox rebooted INTO the new dash, no more blades.

Thanks.
I'm counting on getting the feed from XBL VM tonight.
I was a tad skeptical because CNET also reported FFXIII as "360 exclusive" and we haven't heard of any Sony execs making peace with their honorable ancestors yet.

"Update 12:05 p.m.: Finally, maybe the loudest applause of the day was for the announcement by Square Enix that it's much-anticipated Final Fantasy XIII will be coming out exclusively on the Xbox 360, though there was no specific date announced."

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13772_3-9990517-52.html?hhTest=1

Believe it or not I really would rather Sony succeed. I do have a PS3 after all. But man... this press conference really beat the **** out of them. They lost their #1 exclusive and now have a competitor doing a lot of what they were planning to do with community features. I hope they have some very good news tomorrow and not vague BS about games coming out late next year and how awesome Home will be whenever the hell it comes out. Which is what their press conferences have been like recently.

Hopefully we're as pleasantly surprised by Sony as we were Microsoft. We'd all win right? :)

More than anything still, it's all about LittleBigPlanet for me.

Quick question: Is the Press Conference going to be available on Xbox Live?

(Sorry if the question has already been asked and answered)

Major Nelson said (on Inside XBOX) that it would be.
Last year it was, so...
That is going to be fun to watch.

I've been seeing a lot of Final Fantasy VII remake/sequel rumors lately. Maybe that's one of Sony's surprises. Either way, I don't really care about FF anyway. I know, shoot me.

1. Nobody should be called a moron. Its just an opinion that differs from yours. In a fair world he should be able to consider you a moron for your opinion.

2. Of course the PS3 is outselling the 360 right now. It had a $100 price cut over the holidays, BluRay won the format war, and it dropped its 2 biggest exclusives of the year. GT5P and MGS4. I mean damn, if you cant compete giving a combination of those factors maybe this isnt the market for you anymore.

3. As a 360 & PS3 owner.. I still clearly have a preference for gaming on the 360. It just seems to get the experience right. Or more right. Or however you wish to word it. Xbox Live, the existing game library, the old & new dashboard, the multimedia capabilities and the new announcements (netflix at the top of that list) are exactly the features that make me prefer the 360 over the PS3.

This is where competition pays off though. Sony upped the game with its annoucements, price cuts, and multimedia abilities.. and MS is pushing the bar even higher.

I for one am glad to see MS "fight back" as it seemed like their system was the one losing steam. And since its the system I prefer that makes me pretty happy. Also as the above poster said.. MS seems to deliver more and promise less. Sony on the other hand seems to have promised more and delivered less with the PS3.

I wonder if Sony will be able to step it up again with their conference.. when is that by the way?

Ugg, is that new dashboard going to be optional? If I wanted a Wii I would have bought a Wii.

New games look sweet.

I've been seeing a lot of Final Fantasy VII remake/sequel rumors lately. Maybe that's one of Sony's surprises. Either way, I don't really care about FF anyway. I know, shoot me.

I don't play the Final Fantasy games, either, so I'm struggling to understand this talk of how a remake of an old game is supposed to soothe the wounds of the brand new game appearing on another system.

In the end ps3 owners still get the game. This hurts their overall, 3rd party status, I guess, but it really just means something that should have been apparent beforehand: Sony's in house developers need to step up and deliver.

I've been seeing a lot of Final Fantasy VII remake/sequel rumors lately. Maybe that's one of Sony's surprises. Either way, I don't really care about FF anyway. I know, shoot me.

I've not seen any FFVII rumors recently, but I would love to have it remade. That is one of the few games I would buy a remake of.

After trying and trying for many years or is it decade now?...I think not understanding what the big deal is with FF is something I am simply going to have to deal with.

1. Nobody should be called a moron.

To be clear, only a "gamer" that wants a gaming system to fail should.

I never heard the word exclusive when they were talking about FF13. They did "360 version" a few times.

Here are my quick takes:


Fallout 3 = Not as impressive as I was expecting. Pretty typical design. Of course, I was watching a SD feed of G4TV, so maybe it looks much better in HD

RE5 = similar feelings regarding Fallout 3. Again, alot of it is probably the fact that I'm not watching an HD feed. Still, the way the zombies were walking around, both looked good and lame at the same time, lol I'm slightly disappointed it's an 09 release. I expected that, but was still hoping...

New Dashboard = Actually, I like the blades system as is. I'm not really looking forward to this. It looks pretty generic to me. They should have hired the guys that made the Dirt interface. It looks "kinda" like the Dirt interface, but not as cool. I was also hoping for the rumored "Minority Report" dashboard with motion control deal. Hopefully they will give you the option of still using blades if you like.

Avatars = beyond lame. I was never a big fan of Mii's, but these avatars look way worse. Never thought that the Mii's would look good in comparison to something else. To me, these Avatars strike me as "trying to be cool, but failing miserably". As corny as the people in Sony's Home look, these guys look even more silly to me. I'm just not digging the style at all.

Need for Speed something = A new Need for Speed game was mentioned, but now I don't remember the name. Has this game ever been announced? It's news to me.

No Motion Controller = I was pretty suprised by this. I really thought it could be a cool addition (if used the right way) to the 360. I could imagine it being used in games like Top Spin and MLB 2K9 and stuff like that. Basically, I was hoping that maybe we would get some of the Wii experience, except in High Def, with a much more accurate controller. I'm not at all interested in it "replacing" the current controller, but it could be a cool addition, as an option for certain games. I'm pretty disappointed about this.

Final Fantasy 13 = First thing that popped into my head... "How many Brinks trucks did MS have to back up at Square Enix headquarters for this. Man, they must have paid a shite-ton for that! This is really going to be huge. It's a huge psychological blow for Sony. In fact, the longer that FF13 is delayed for both platforms, the better it is for MS. Once a game is released, the hype starts to die down, and it's not as huge a deal anymore (GTA4), but when a game isn't yet available, there is still a huge amount of hype surrounding it, so if FF13 doesn't come out till say Xmas 09, or maybe even 2010, this will be a huge, huge, victory for MS, cause it will be in the back of gamers minds all that time.

Ugg, is that new dashboard going to be optional? If I wanted a Wii I would have bought a Wii.

New games look sweet.

link (http://majornelson.com/archive/2008/07/14/some-of-the-features-in-the-new-xbox-experience-8-person-chat-vga-plus-more.aspx)

Some of the features in the new Xbox experience (8 person chat, VGA support and more)

Xbox LIVE GM Marc Whitten (Notwen) has sent me the following letter to share with the Xbox LIVE Community. I goes into a little more detail about some of the new features that are coming as part of the new Xbox Experience this Fall. I'll work on getting Marc on a future show to discuss further.

Dear Xbox LIVE Member,

When we launched Xbox 360 in November 2005, Xbox LIVE was integrated directly into the console. Back then, Xbox 360 was the first system to deliver access to experiences beyond just the disc in the tray. With the Xbox guide and dashboard you had access to everything on your console as well as your community.

We also imagined that Xbox experience would continuously improve over time, through the power of software.

Since launch, you’ve always pushed us to continuously innovate. It is because you spoke with one loud voice that we added new features like background downloading, 1080p support, movies and TV shows, video chat, a Marketplace blade and instant messaging.

Over time, as we’ve delivered more and more content into the Xbox LIVE Marketplace, we’ve heard from many of you that it has become increasingly difficult to find the games and content you want.

And that brings us to today.

Because of your feedback, we started rethinking the entire Xbox experience. What we discovered was that we could not only provide a better experience for you, but also something that reaches out to new audiences.

What John Schappert unveiled for the world on stage at E3 was just a sneak preview, so I wanted to share some deeper details on some of the new features in the new Xbox experience.

Here is a look at some additional features you will find interesting:

· Play from hard drive. Copy your games from the game disc and play directly from the hard drive. Not only will the drive not spin, but load times are quicker, as well. Of course, you will still need the disc in the tray to prove you own the game.

· Access Xbox LIVE Marketplace on the Web. Browse and purchase Marketplace content whenever you want from Xbox.com and it downloads automatically to your console. Purchase that new map, television episode, the latest Xbox LIVE Arcade game or set up a movie to watch when you get home from work.

· Dashboard built into the new Xbox Guide. For everyone who loves the blades interface, it’s not going away; they are now built directly in to the new Xbox guide. Every feature and option is available right from the guide. You can even access your full games library at all times. No matter where you are (in dash or in game), immediately call up your games played list and directly launch a game.

· LIVE Party system. Create a party of up to eight friends, and stay with them from one game to another, or watch a Netflix movie together, or share a slideshow of your personal photos. It works with all Xbox 360 titles, not just upcoming games. LIVE Party allows up to eight people to chat in the dashboard, so you can meet up before playing.

· Xbox LIVE Primetime. This whole new category of games is going to give you more reasons to get online with your friends. Games will support everything you’d expect, like Achievements and leader boards, but many of these games will include real prizes. You can invite your friends, and even set a reminder for an upcoming show. Each game is broadcast simultaneously, so everyone is answering the same questions. Many events will have a live host, calling the shots as they happen.

· Avatars. Your online identity started as a Gamertag - it then grew into a personalized Gamercard. Now, it has evolved even further into avatars. You can express your style, check out new outfits and share this with the community. Avatars will also be integrated into Xbox LIVE Arcade games, LIVE Party, as well as retail games.

· New display support. Because you asked for it, we are adding 16X10 over VGA or HDMI, and support for 1440x900 or 1680x1050.

This is only the beginning. Over the next few months, we will share more details on the upcoming changes.

See you online,

Marc Whitten

Gamertag- Notwen

Did IGN miss any of the new exclusives? From their list it looks like Geo Wars 2, Lips and some other arcade games.

Any videos of GeoWars 2 out yet?

I don't play the Final Fantasy games, either, so I'm struggling to understand this talk of how a remake of an old game is supposed to soothe the wounds of the brand new game appearing on another system.


If you don't play FF games you have no idea.

Yes, an exclusive FF7 remake would be much bigger news than FF13 being released on 360. To know that you have to know what FF7 means to many RPG fans today. FF7 is one of the most influential games ever made, Square switched to Sony to do it and Nintendo never recovered. Sony backed it with a huge ad campaign and it became the first RPG millions of people played, and opened up the US market to Japanese RPGs (before that game we got crumbs off the table).

Unfortunately by now its quite old and crusty, with bad 3D graphics and CG which, while groundbreaking back in the day, is cheesy at best (sort of like Reboot). The translation is also... peculiar to be kind. The game could really use a modern remake.


To be clear, only a "gamer" that wants a gaming system to fail should.

Sure, but nobody here wants that.

link (http://majornelson.com/archive/2008/07/14/some-of-the-features-in-the-new-xbox-experience-8-person-chat-vga-plus-more.aspx)

Thanks...hope that means I can choose to keep my dashboard looking like it doe s now and that I can avoid all the silly avatar stuff.

Wow, sure glad I stuck with the 360. Was extremely close to a PS3. Guess waiting on cheap stand alone BR players now. 5 Square RPGs, nice.


If you don't play FF games you have no idea.

Yes, an exclusive FF7 remake would be much bigger news than FF13 being released on 360. To know that you have to know what FF7 means to many RPG fans today. FF7 is one of the most influential games ever made, Square switched to Sony to do it and Nintendo never recovered. Sony backed it with a huge ad campaign and it became the first RPG millions of people played, and opened up the US market to Japanese RPGs (before that game we got crumbs off the table).

Unfortunately by now its quite old and crusty, with bad 3D graphics and CG which, while groundbreaking back in the day, is cheesy at best (sort of like Reboot). The translation is also... peculiar to be kind. The game could really use a modern remake.

Am I the only one that remembers playing FF7? As amazing as everything about was when I was 12, it's all quite embarassing now. I would imagine it will be modeled after that ****** movie too boot.

Thanks.
I'm counting on getting the feed from XBL VM tonight.
I was a tad skeptical because CNET also reported FFXIII as "360 exclusive" and we haven't heard of any Sony execs making peace with their honorable ancestors yet.

"Update 12:05 p.m.: Finally, maybe the loudest applause of the day was for the announcement by Square Enix that it's much-anticipated Final Fantasy XIII will be coming out exclusively on the Xbox 360, though there was no specific date announced."

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13772_3-9990517-52.html?hhTest=1

Updated at 12:35 p.m. PDT to correct the news about "Final Fantasy XIII." It is coming to the Xbox 360 but not exclusively. Also, the item about R.E.M. earlier gave the incorrect status of the band's new album. It has been released.

I for one am glad to see MS "fight back" as it seemed like their system was the one losing steam. And since its the system I prefer that makes me pretty happy. Also as the above poster said.. MS seems to deliver more and promise less. Sony on the other hand seems to have promised more and delivered less with the PS3.

Well said. That's where my humor comes from with this FF announcement. Like it or not, you gotta respect Microsoft's business game. As long as their keepin' me happy, I couldn't care less about "the competition". Why should I?! ;)

Thanks...hope that means I can choose to keep my dashboard looking like it doe s now and that I can avoid all the silly avatar stuff.

still trying to interpret his quote...just bring up the guide and the old dash appears? i wonder if the old dash is just a skin on the new dash?

wish (in this instance) MS was more like apple by just saying "its available today" as I hate...HATE waiting to find out stuff :-)

i would also like to see how browsing nextflix works with just a joypad...or how browsing content now works with the new dashboard would love to have inline searching

I can;t say I love the new Dash, but I don't hate it. As long as it does not make things needlessly complicated for the sake of prettiness and does not get in teh way, no skin off my nose either way. I guess we can see why there was no dahs update this past spring. THey were obviously working on this.

I really like being able to set soemthing to download automatically when you turn on the 360. ALso, lots of people have asked for 16:10 support so that should go over well.

I have not found any games with really objectionable load times, so I am not sure how much I would use the load on drive feature since the disc must still be in there. SOunds like that might come in handy with FFXIII though.

Well said. That's where my humor comes from with this FF announcement. Like it or not, you gotta respect Microsoft's business game. As long as their keepin' me happy, I couldn't care less about "the competition". Why should I?! ;)

You should care about the competition because what the competition does should push everyone to make better products all around.

Must have Fallout 3 now....

A lot of exciting news in there. Lets hope for Nintendo/Sony to 1-up them, yay for competition :)

The Netflix things is a bit confusing. Right now you can watch netflix streams from Windows Media Center, which the 360 is an extender of. So now the 360 gets direct access to netflix? I guess that means the video cannot be shared with other extenders on the network?

You should care about the competition because what the competition does should push everyone to make better products all around.

You're right. But, the funny thing is that Sony isn't even doin' much and Microsoft continues to pound on them. ;)

I got a message from a friend. I was planning to not follow anything today (backed up at work) and sift through here as well as through the fanboy dribble on other sites. but my buddy told me and I went WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW!!!

I don't even care for FFXIII as I don't care for RPGs but I know it being no longer exclusive is a massive bomb drop!!!!

I'm hoping the new dash is a little snappier. It's been just a bit sluggish for me ever since the last update in the fall.

The 16:10 support is huge, and supposedly copying games to your hard drive is also huge, but they said you have to have the game in the drive. What would be even cooler, is if it would randomly ask for you to put the game in the drive to verify, that way, Microsoft could sell 300 gig HDD's, and I would actually want one. I miss the old modded Xbox 1 days when you could have 100 games on your hard drive, and press a button and instantly be playing one game, and then quit that game and instantly be playing another game.

Access Xbox LIVE Marketplace on the Web. Browse and purchase Marketplace content whenever you want from Xbox.com and it downloads automatically to your console. Purchase that new map, television episode, the latest Xbox LIVE Arcade game or set up a movie to watch when you get home from work.

Best feature yet.

Wow, sure glad I stuck with the 360. Was extremely close to a PS3. Guess waiting on cheap stand alone BR players now. 5 Square RPGs, nice.



Am I the only one that remembers playing FF7? As amazing as everything about was when I was 12, it's all quite embarassing now. I would imagine it will be modeled after that ****** movie too boot.

You thought Advent Children was a ****** movie?

And why would you be the only one that remembers playing FF7? It sold how many games worldwide?

Access Xbox LIVE Marketplace on the Web. Browse and purchase Marketplace content whenever you want from Xbox.com and it downloads automatically to your console. Purchase that new map, television episode, the latest Xbox LIVE Arcade game or set up a movie to watch when you get home from work.

Best feature yet.

Yea, that is awesome. Does your 360 need to be on all the time to do that though?

You're right. But, the funny thing is that Sony isn't even doin' much and Microsoft continues to pound on them. ;)

Not sure what you mean by pounding them?

Yea, that is awesome. Does your 360 need to be on all the time to do that though?

it doesnt need to be now so id assume there will be a way to "wake" up your 360... and yet ive asked a bunch of times for this to be added. will be really cool to remove some of the load on my isp right at 5pm when everybody gets home to start downloading all my stuff could be done.

like this morning for instance when the too human demo launched.... i could have already downloaded it by now.

I have to say that I'm more than a little worried about picture sharing.

it doesnt need to be now so id assume there will be a way to "wake" up your 360...

I don't use the current feature, so I apologize for my ignorance.

it doesnt need to be now so id assume there will be a way to "wake" up your 360...

I would think as long as it's connected to a network you could do it. I think I can do it on my PS3 if I had a PSP.

I for one was looking forward to the netflix thing. Now if XBL can give us most of those useless movies as some say in hd it would be a great plus. MS also made them some extra money by having only gold members able to use Netflix. MS came up this yr very excited about everything.

...i would also like to see how browsing nextflix works with just a joypad.
found the answer (http://www.xbox.com/en-US/community/events/e32008/articles/0714-netflixteamup.htm)


From the Netflix Web site, simply add movies and TV episodes to your individual instant Queues. Those choices will be automatically displayed on the TV screen via Xbox 360 and available to watch instantly. Once selected, movies will begin playing in 30 seconds or less. In addition to instantly streaming movies to the TV, Gold members can fast-forward, pause, and rewind—all using either the Xbox 360 Controller or Media Remote. In all, the user interface crea
it would be nice to use the netflix service without the computer but maybe its something they can add over time

I don't use the current feature, so I apologize for my ignorance.

i was referring to the background downloading process.... it can download while it is off but the issue that needs to be addressed is the wake on lan stuff. but i cant imagine ms not planning for that part of it.

1- 16x10 support is huge. In real terms, probably bigger than FFXIII availability.
2- Retaining the existing Dashboard as the *new* pop-up in-game interface is, frankly, inspired.
3- Am hoping that with the new interface we also get new a new media player and a new photo viewer with significantly better capabilities.
4- The online coop system for Netflix viewing sounds way cool. Wonder if they'll offer a similar feature for XBL VM rentals...

As pointed out above, we're really talking about XBOX 360 v2.0.
Exactly 3 years after launch.
Nice timing.

found the answer (http://www.xbox.com/en-US/community/events/e32008/articles/0714-netflixteamup.htm)


it would be nice to use the netflix service without the computer but maybe its something they can add over time

Hmmm...Gold Members...that's disappointing. I like having the Netflix Watch Now service but it's not worth paying for a gold membership just for that. Back to using the browser on my HTPC.

did they say when the updated dashboard is going to be released?

"LIVE Party system. Create a party of up to eight friends, and stay with them from one game to another, or watch a Netflix movie together, or share a slideshow of your personal photos. It works with all Xbox 360 titles, not just upcoming games. LIVE Party allows up to eight people to chat in the dashboard, so you can meet up before playing. "

Now this is what I have been wanting for a long time. Its going to make playing with friends even easier and better to coordinate things. Just as Sony has barely approached 2005 Xbox live dashboard/interface levels, Xbox jumps two steps ahead again. I was thinking of getting another PS3 for the other room, but this update seals it for me. I am getting another Xbox instead.

did they say when the updated dashboard is going to be released?

I believe most of the new features are coming in the Fall Update.

This is where competition pays off though. Sony upped the game with its annoucements, price cuts, and multimedia abilities.. and MS is pushing the bar even higher.

I wonder if Sony will be able to step it up again with their conference.. when is that by the way?


i agree completely, without the good competition from sony, a lot of these features might not ever come our way.

as for the sony conference, it's tomorrow, following nintendo.

What's Bungie's deal? I see the countdown.

To be clear, only a "gamer" that wants a gaming system to fail should.

I have to disagree.. because too much competition can push things in the wrong direction hurts the overall quality of the gaming experience. Sometimes its good to limit the number of players so that people can focus better and harder on one or two experiences. Instead of trying to focus on everything put before their plate.

And theres nothing wrong with a gaming system failing. A gaming system should fail if its too expensive (PS3), using old technology (Wii), or unreliable (360). And I'm not saying fail by bringing the company down never to be seen again.

But should fail in that the public deserves better. 2 years later we've seen the PS3's price almost cut in half.. and reliability of the 360 greatly increase thanks to a $1 billion redesign of the board, heatsink and processor shrinkage. Nintendo is enjoy ultimate Wii success now, but how will that picture look 2-3 years from now if the controller fad wears off on their non-HD system.

Sometimes getting your azz kicked.. teaches you a valuable lesson. How quickly you learn that lesson and turn things around is alot more important than rather you fail or not.

Any videos of GeoWars 2 out yet?

only what i saw on ign, maybe 3 min of gameplay... looks very similar, though at one point it looked like for people were playing simultaneously.

I can;t say I love the new Dash, but I don't hate it. As long as it does not make things needlessly complicated for the sake of prettiness and does not get in teh way, no skin off my nose either way. I guess we can see why there was no dahs update this past spring. THey were obviously working on this.


the main reason for the revamp (and was planned for a while now) was to improve the ease of access to content... i dont think it'll make anything more complicated or cumbersome, and from what i saw, it looks like it will work well (similar to xmb, or the dirt interface as someone said)

only what i saw on ign, maybe 3 min of gameplay... looks very similar, though at one point it looked like for people were playing simultaneously.

Ok, thanks. I guess I missed as I wasn't watching the stream and it isn't listed under their videos yet. Co-op would be great :)

Apparently there will be an install option in the new dashboard as well, which is great, because I've already had a couple of dirty disc errors on my used copy of Mass Effect. It isn't scratched really, and wiping the disc clean seems to make it get past that part fine, but its still annoying to have it happen in the middle of something and have to redo parts. Installation would stop that from happening, I'd imagine.

Also, you'll be able to buy things on XBLM from the xbox.com website and have them downloaded to your console automatically, though I wonder how this will happen if the console is already off.

Apparently there will be an install option in the new dashboard as well, which is great, because I've already had a couple of dirty disc errors on my used copy of Mass Effect. It isn't scratched really, and wiping the disc clean seems to make it get past that part fine, but its still annoying to have it happen in the middle of something and have to redo parts. Installation would stop that from happening, I'd imagine.


Also, you'll be able to buy things on XBLM from the xbox.com website and have them downloaded to your console automatically, though I wonder how this will happen if the console is already off.

this is the best news from E3 for me.

its odd how diverse we are, and how one feature means the world to some, and others dont care at all....

i dont always like to game with my stereo cranked up.... and i was waiting for an announcement that said that 3rd party HARDWARE companies can now make their own 360's, or that the hardware is revamped and silent, or we can now install the games on the hard drive.

i'm actually surprised it took so long....

"well, we put out this 120gb hard drive, and its not really selling very well"

"hmmm, if we let gamers install the discs on the drive, even if they put their favorite 5 or 6 games on there... we could sell these drives like hotcakes"

"wow, you're really onto something, lets do it."




Also, you'll be able to buy things on XBLM from the xbox.com website and have them downloaded to your console automatically, though I wonder how this will happen if the console is already off.

this wont happen, but they could code in WOL (wake on lan) and provide a dynamic dns service included in the live service fee :D

this is the best news from E3 for me.

The thing that impresses me most about MS is how well they seem to listen to what people want. I just caught the part about the disc thing. And I gotta tell ya.. I never knew how loud the 360 was.. until I played a game on my PS3. Its absolutely ridiculous that one console is that much louder than the other when spinning a game disc.

Being an Elite owner, the ability to install a game on that vast and mostly empty HDD.. then play the game from there not hearing that jet engine from the game disc means worlds to me.

Now I realize the competition has done the same (2.4x upgrade for the PS3 that brought ingame XMB). And I absolutely realize MS still needs to work on its overpriced accessories. The hdd prices are still ridiculous.. but I accept the fact they are tryin to make profit after losing billions and billions coming into a fierce market.

But I have to say.. I'm pretty satisfied with the current and future abilities of the 360. And I greatly welcome the ability to play games quieter, faster, with less load times and even more performance.. with them allowing the use of the harddrive.

Wonderful announcements and upgrades overall, I'd say this is hands down Microsoft's best E3 conference ever IMO. And thats saying alot, considering I have ZERO interest in FFX13, and no desire to purchase it on any system.

*is* it really a new dash?
The way CNET described it, it's a new interface for *XBL*. Maybe you launch it from the Dashboard...?
(Or did MS say it replaces the entire dashboard?)
To me its a bit too much "Vista meets wii" but hardly offensive.
Of course, now I have to worry about designing a frackin' avatar. :rolleyes:

Yep. Vista desktop options meets the "Cover Flow" style on Apple's Ipods and Iphones.

What's Bungie's deal? I see the countdown.

Yeah, Id like to know as well. What is the countdown at? Can't wait to hear if its a new Halo game of some kind.

this announcement is about what i would expect from a new console.... not a mid-life update.

pretty amazing stuff.


in addition to this...

"the New Xbox Experience update coming for the Xbox 360 is akin to launching a new console generation without requiring anyone to actually buy a new console is definitely attracting big attention."


it's kinda funny looking back at how they blew off the spring update, pretending like they really didnt think anything was wrong with it.

Ok, thanks. I guess I missed as I wasn't watching the stream and it isn't listed under their videos yet. Co-op would be great :)

http://www.gametrailers.com/player/36204.html

if you look at the comments, someone made statement "local multiplayer only? wtf?" and if that is the case, it is welcomed... but come one we need live! i get 4 people on aegis wing... and it was free!

in addition to this...

"the New Xbox Experience update coming for the Xbox 360 is akin to launching a new console generation without requiring anyone to actually buy a new console is definitely attracting big attention."


it's kinda funny looking back at how they blew off the spring update, pretending like they really didnt think anything was wrong with it.



honestly ms still played it wrong.... when they said no spring update they should have said something to the effect of we have something big planned and stay tuned. that would have gone over much better.

Also, you'll be able to buy things on XBLM from the xbox.com website and have them downloaded to your console automatically, though I wonder how this will happen if the console is already off.

I read this to mean that you could basically make a list of downloads on the XBOX/Marketplace website and they would automatically show up in your download que next time your console was turned on. Keeping you from having to browse and select the downloads via the dashboard.

I never knew how loud the 360 was.. until I played a game on my PS3. Its absolutely ridiculous that one console is that much louder than the other when spinning a game disc.

You have to attribute most of the drive noise to the speed the 360 disc is spinning as opposed to the PS3. Not saying that accounts for all of it, or that it should be that loud, but if they slowed the 360 drive down, bring on the load times.
Try burning a disc on your PC at 2x, then another at 24x or faster and compare the noise difference.

The 360's drives are varying levels of junk, no way does speed account for ALL the difference. Perfect proof is the fact that there are four different drives currently on various 360s all spinning at the same speed but output very different levels of noise.

http://www.gametrailers.com/player/36204.html

if you look at the comments, someone made statement "local multiplayer only? wtf?" and if that is the case, it is welcomed... but come one we need live! i get 4 people on aegis wing... and it was free!

Thanks.

Well any lag at all on this game would probably kill you instantly. Looks like 4 player co-op if I'm seeing that right, so many colors hard to tell.

Yeah, I played through most of Aegis Wing back in the day when it hit, it was ok, but I can see why it was free.

Access Xbox LIVE Marketplace on the Web. Browse and purchase Marketplace content whenever you want from Xbox.com and it downloads automatically to your console. Purchase that new map, television episode, the latest Xbox LIVE Arcade game or set up a movie to watch when you get home from work.

Best feature yet.if you can actually access that site at work.... most jobs do not allow gaming sites.

if you can actually access that site at work.... most jobs do not allow gaming sites.

QFT. Damn you websense! I will beat you one day I swear!

Yeah, I played through most of Aegis Wing back in the day when it hit, it was ok, but I can see why it was free.

i would have paid full price for it... but i love the old side scrollers like r-type and gradius/twin...


all in all, i'd say a great E3. there was a day when the xbox was halo, and here they just put up the best showing ever.... without any word from bungie (halo wars doesnt count :P)


QFT. Damn you websense! I will beat you one day I swear!

three letters.

t-o-r

google it when you can get home, hopefully you can use a flash drive on your work pc?

I guess we all need to start saving money now again, i want that scene it game with rockband2 and gh world tour and yea that LIPS game so i can sing lol

i would have paid full price for it... but i love the old side scrollers like r-type and gradius/twin...


all in all, i'd say a great E3. there was a day when the xbox was halo, and here they just put up the best showing ever.... without any word from bungie (halo wars doesnt count :P)

So do I, played plenty from the NES, PC Engine, Genesis, etc all the way up. I think I've owned every Gradius game (Life Force), Thunderforce (II being my favorite), most of the Type R's, tons of Japanese shooters for the PC Engine and SNES. I just didn't dig this one that much. Entertaining with friends but I doubt I'd play alone like most of the other shooters I've played. Still free games are always nice to have.

if you can actually access that site at work.... most jobs do not allow gaming sites.

Luckily, I can!:o

What's Bungie's deal? I see the countdown.

Whoa, I checked out bungie's website. Some very weird stuff. The countdown is at 1 day, 16 hours and 40 minutes last check. Strange messages too......

www.bungie.net

There's a Halo Wars video on XBLM in the E3 section, maybe its something to do with that?


Also, for anyone who's interested, Tales of Vesperia demo now up as well. I never played any of this series, but I had some friends who played Tales of Symphonia in college, and this appears to be a very similar game, admittedly much prettier though.

A gaming system should fail if its too expensive (PS3).

LOL :rolleyes:

Engadget interviewed somebody from microsoft about the netflix partnership and here are some details.

sd resolution only possibly hd in the future

all party members must be gold members of xbox live and have a netflix membership.


Check it out http://www.engadget.com/

Mike

all party members must be gold members of xbox live and have a netflix membership.


Then really, what is the point?

The 360's drives are varying levels of junk, no way does speed account for ALL the difference. Perfect proof is the fact that there are four different drives currently on various 360s all spinning at the same speed but output very different levels of noise.

Didn't say it was all of the difference, but it has to account for a good bit of it.

Then really, what is the point?
To make Silvers, Golds.

To make Silvers, Golds.

Bingo, and of course bring in new subscriptions for netflix as well.

To make Silvers, Golds.

No, I was referring to any sort of 'sharing' of Netflix.

gizmodo also said the xbox.com integration isnt as good as we all wanted to believe... they say the console has to be on for the downloads to start automatically.

no word if there will be some sort of low power mode we will be able to use but i would think the next update to the dashboard they could figure something to automate that process better.

I am not a fan yet of the new "Aero" pages desktop. My wife looked over at me and said "It looks like a cross between the Wii (Avatars) and the PS3 one".

Avatars.. ugh... I think we can expect the 3D world for them to populate at next years E3.

How come nobody is mentioning the EXCLUSIVE Fallout content coming to the 360 version?? Sure there may be Dog Armor but nobody does download content like Bethesda! Knights of the Nine took longer to complete than many games out this gen for $10.

FF on 360... guess we know SE has no confidence in Sony building a vast userbase who buys games anytime soon. Probably not for me but I am sure its going to be a big deal for some. Me I want Lost Odyssey 2 far more than yet another FF game.

I was very pleased with Fable 2. Its looking better and online co-op should add a lot to the game. I would have liked to see a way to go to your friends game from yours... like after you finish something together being able to switch to your friends unique world seamlessly. Thats probably asking a lot though.

RE5 looked good other than the fact that it still looks like the movement is pulled right from RE4. Still terribly dated...

i just watched the trailer on the marketplace for the new dashboard and it kinda looks like wii meets ps3.

Getting FFXIII was definitely big for MS, though it won't help MS in Japan when it'll be available on another console with the much larger installed base.

It's exclusive to the PS3 in Japan.

Apparently there will be an install option in the new dashboard as well, which is great, because I've already had a couple of dirty disc errors on my used copy of Mass Effect. It isn't scratched really, and wiping the disc clean seems to make it get past that part fine, but its still annoying to have it happen in the middle of something and have to redo parts. Installation would stop that from happening, I'd imagine.

Also, you'll be able to buy things on XBLM from the xbox.com website and have them downloaded to your console automatically, though I wonder how this will happen if the console is already off.


An additional benefit may be that the DVD drive isn't constantly roaring in the background.

An additional benefit may be that the DVD drive isn't constantly roaring in the background.


THE benefit, not an additional one LOL. I'm sooooooo excited that they finally addressed the friggin' noise issue!!!!!:):):):):) If you go back through my post history since the day the 360 came out you'll find one constant complaint from me about the 360: it's too f'ing loud! I'm totally stoked about this. T-O-T-A-L-L-Y S-T-O-K-E-D!

Not sure why so many people are crying over Avatars, isnt the point of having a 360 to play games? How does having Avatars stop or hinder you from doing that?

It's exclusive to the PS3 in Japan.
Makes sense.

Not sure why so many people are crying over Avatars, isnt the point of having a 360 to play games? How does having Avatars stop or hinder you from doing that?

i agree that it takes away from the whole expirience, they said the reason for no motion sensing controller was because they didnt want to "segment the market" but what the heck are they doing with avatars?

i'm not complaining though, as you said, it doesnt change the way i game or use the media features.



on another note, its sad that the IGN webstream i watched this morning looked better than what G4 is running in SD on crapcast right now.... it looks absolutely horrible.

i agree that it takes away from the whole expirience, they said the reason for no motion sensing controller was because they didnt want to "segment the market" but what the heck are they doing with avatars?

i'm not complaining though, as you said, it doesnt change the way i game or use the media features.



on another note, its sad that the IGN webstream i watched this morning looked better than what G4 is running in SD on crapcast right now.... it looks absolutely horrible.

I think more people are pissed about the changing of the dashboard interface they've gotten used to for years than they are about avatars themselves.

i agree that it takes away from the whole expirience, they said the reason for no motion sensing controller was because they didnt want to "segment the market" but what the heck are they doing with avatars?

Avatars aren't segmenting the market. Everybody will have them. I'm guessing, like jhoff, that people are reacting negatively to the new GUI and taking their frustration out on the sort of face of the new dashboard.

odd, i welcome and LOVE the new gui, if it was athletically possible for someone of my stature, i'd do a back flip... but i still dont like the childish avatars :), and the community tab (aka friends list) being completely oriented around the avatars, making a normal xbox expirience without avatar involvement impossible.

I personally think the new GUI is a step up. The blades interface is just so horribly CLUTTERED now that I dont like using it.

"Can I click on that? Wait what is highlighted....NO I dont want to change to the next blade.." etc.

I like the cleaner look of the new OS.

I need to see more of the new GUI but so far I'm a fan. The Avatar (Mii Ripoffs) don't do anything for me. Of course I'll make one but I'm not going to be buying DLC for it. I just want to get online, find my friends, and play. FFXIII was a huge blow to Sony in Europe and North America.

I'm glad to see the blades going away as long the overall experience isn't so agonizingly slow like it is now. It looks about as close as they could make it to Apple's "Cover Flow" layout without being totally obvious.

a lot of talk about copying ideas.

to me it looks like a cross between the media center interface, and vista's 3d flip.

as for the avatar, sure it's a page from the wii book, but nintendo was hardly the inventor of the avatar :D

Damn with all the excitement today I forgot what they didn't show. I am hoping to see somthing on Halo Wars and what ilovebees.com is going to show.

I am hoping to see Forza 3 this week and still looking to see somthing (fingers crossed for Killer Instinct.)

No, I was referring to any sort of 'sharing' of Netflix.

I think the idea is that you and your "party" can watch a movie together. I'm really not sure why anyone would want to do this, but some probably will.

I guess if you and your friends have seen the movie before, it could be something to watch and laugh at while your chatting or something?

I am hoping to see Forza 2 this week and still looking to see somthing (fingers crossed for Killer Instinct.)

You can normally find Forza 2 pretty cheap nowdays. :p

a lot of talk about copying ideas.

to me it looks like a cross between the media center interface, and vista's 3d flip.

as for the avatar, sure it's a page from the wii book, but nintendo was hardly the inventor of the avatar :D

Thats pretty much what it is. The text is the same as the Zone UI and Media Center.

Fable 2 is looking sweet, a definite purchase, and bungie has something to announce as well.

Looks like I will most likely be sending much more this fall, then last fall which is hard to believe.

...


FF on 360... guess we know SE has no confidence in Sony building a vast userbase who buys games anytime soon. Probably not for me but I am sure its going to be a big deal for some. Me I want Lost Odyssey 2 far more than yet another FF game.

I guess we know the same reason applies to why Bioshock, ES:IV, etc etc are no longer 360 exclusive. Was it Bill Gates failed promised of 10 million by PS3/Wii launch the turning point? :(

Nah, I really don't buy that, if I did then I'd have to believe the Wii would get FFXIII, Bioshock, ES:IV, etc..

RE5 looked good other than the fact that it still looks like the movement is pulled right from RE4. Still terribly dated...

I actually thought it looked better in the older trailers, still good but not pushing the envelop like I expected as far as I can tell..

Also, first thing I could think of was "where did the color go"? It had to be the game because the life bar has color. Still I loved RE4 on the Cube so I'm sure I'll buy. It just looks almost exactly the same in a new location so far. I love the idea of co-op :)

E3 2008: Square Enix Talks Final Fantasy XIII for Xbox 360

Producer Yoshinori Kitase discusses what the game's newly announced 360 version means for the company and the series.
By Jeremy Parish, 07/14/2008



Yes, Final Fantasy XIII is coming to the Xbox 360. In fact, not only is it coming, but the 360 version is slated for simultaneous American and European launch alongside the PlayStation 3 release. Sony fans no doubt feel betrayed; Microsoft groupies have something to mitigate the bitter banality of the company's E3 press conference. Discussion threads will burn bitterly into the night on forums across the Internet. E3 is smaller this year, but it still offers great conversation pieces.

But is this new twist in the long-running FFXIII saga really surprising? The writing was on the wall at this year's Game Developers Conference when Square Enix announced its multiplatform Crystal Tools development environment. Designed to facilitate the simultaneous creation of games for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 (and Wii, to a lesser extent), Crystal Tools mostly served to paint a clearer picture of the schizophrenic divide between the company's two very different halves. Western-focused games like The Lost Remnant come from the Enix portion of the corporation, which means it's being developed by an external studio on Unreal Engine 3. Crystal Tools appears to have been created exclusively for the use of Square's internal teams, for the creation of games with the self-described "Square style," that elusive mix of cutting-edge technology and beautiful-yet-angst-ridden characters struggling to simultaneously save the world and emote. At the moment, Square's known, internal current-gen projects boil down to FFXIII, its spin-off, and a mysterious massively multiplayer online role-playing game. Coupled with the rising costs of game development and the fact that nothing substantial has been revealed of FFXIII since its debut at E3 2006 more than two years ago, the subtext of Crystal Tools should've been obvious: FFXIII was destined to go multiplatform, if only to cut the company's losses.

Immediately after Microsoft revealed the news of the game's new platform destination, Square Enix's Shinji Hashimoto and Yoshinori Kitase (a corporate executive and FFXIII's producer, respectively) met with the press for a question-and-answer session regarding the game. The actual substance of the press conference was expectedly lacking; Square Enix's intentions for E3 clearly began and ended with announcing the game's move to Xbox 360. New details on things like "gameplay" and "characters" won't appear until the company's big Final Fantasy event next month in Tokyo. Still, the subtext was every bit as enlightening as the details we were given.

Perhaps most notably, FFXIII's move to 360 is exclusively a development for the West. "The Japanese plans for 360 haven't changed," said Hashimoto. "We considered the situation, and we would like to provide the game to as many fans as possible given the spread of the hardware." As the Xbox 360 is extremely popular in the West and practically a nonentity in Japan, the split decision makes sense. Furthermore, the migration to 360 is clearly a recent decision. According to Hashimoto, development has yet to begin in earnest for Microsoft's console. "We're ready to start developing FFXIII for 360," he said. "First, we will complete the game for PS3 in Japan, then begin localization for America and Europe while developing the 360 version simultaneously. The PS3 and 360 versions will be released at the same time outside of Japan ? although, due to language and other conditions, the game may not be released simultaneously across territories."

In short, the series' core market -- Japanese RPG fans, who have a long history of loyalty to Sony platforms -- will be catered to first and foremost. Hashimoto promises the company will do its best to bring the localized versions of the game to market more quickly than previous FF games, which have often taken nine or 10 months to hit the U.S. -- and even longer in Europe. Good intentions notwithstanding, this essentially makes cross-platform development in Crystal Tools a function of localization. It will be interesting to see if Square takes this approach with future releases or if it's simply a side effect of the fairly recent decision to take FFXIII to 360. And Square has yet to determine its plan for other Asian markets, where the console industry lacks the clear-cut distinctions that characterize Japan and the West.

One gets the impression that FFXIII's multiplatform plans are an experiment -- the less charitable might even suspect the company is groping in the dark. Hashimoto freely admitted that he doesn't know how this shared-platform approach will work out. "We want to ask your opinion," he said. "We've just made the announcement [of the 360 version], and now we'll begin to research the market. Further decisions will be made after some research."

The company's in the dark even on technical considerations. "The content will be the same on both platforms," said Kitase. "However, we have yet to determine how many discs will be required for the 360 version. We'll have to consider the differences between formats. Currently the game is being built on PC, where it's actually functional. We're still focusing on making it work on PS3, so it's difficult to know how long the process of taking it to 360 will take."

But don't despair, Final Fantasy fans; the conference wasn't all cautious no-comments and bad news. The move to Crystal Tools seems to be serving a dual purpose; not only will FFXIII be appearing on 360, but the development process has reportedly sped up. "Now that we're developing on a PC base, the pace is going a bit faster," Kitase said. "We haven't introduced new footage of the game, but we should be able to show something new in the near future."

For the time being, though, FFXIII remains nothing more than a very pretty prerendered trailer. With luck, or at least a little more openness on Square's part, we'll have more concrete details to report soon.

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3168716

If you don't play FF games you have no idea.

Yes, an exclusive FF7 remake would be much bigger news than FF13 being released on 360. To know that you have to know what FF7 means to many RPG fans today. FF7 is one of the most influential games ever made, Square switched to Sony to do it and Nintendo never recovered.

Yeah, what ever happened to Nintendo anyway?

I guess we know the same reason applies to why Bioshock, ES:IV, etc etc are no longer 360 exclusive. Was it Bill Gates failed promised of 10 million by PS3/Wii launch the turning point? :(

Nah, I really don't buy that, if I did then I'd have to believe the Wii would get FFXIII, Bioshock, ES:IV, etc..


Apples and Oranges Brian. Bethesda and Take Two are third parties who do cross platform games as a rule, Bethesda at one point spoke about the code for Oblivion as being so portable it could be brought to the Wii and PSP.

Then we have Square and specifically the FF series. This is a title so close to Sony that they have been touting it as an exclusive since before the PS3 was even released. Over the years Sony has marketed FF with their console, the series had been exclusive since it jumped form Nintendo.

There is nothing like FF and Sony out there. It is unique. Nothing could have been a bigger blow as far as losing an exclusive. Over a decade of you NEEDED a Sony console to play the Square flagship series and now you do not. Two entire generatiosn of a Sony/Square relationship changed yesterday... harly something so trivial as a company that releases multiplatform... releasing more multiplatform games.

The Wii of course does not support the engine Bioshock and many games run. (I read someone is porting it but it is not Epic) Add in the fact the assets cannot just be ported while mainting anything resembling their original visuals and its a very expensive proposition to bring these HD games to Wii and then you need to deal with the fact the market there is not really all that interested in shooters or third party games.

I bet investors stay awake at night dreaming of a world where their 3D shooters could be marketed to the 35M+ Wii owners, but sadly for them they don't live in that world :)

I like the new interface. It looked pretty cool and I could see where adding a motion controller would make it even more fun to use. I dont mind the Avatars either. I suppose its kinda cool to have a little 3-D version of yourself for all your friends to see when they check out your games. I agree that I dont know why people would complain or not like the Avatars. They are probably the same folks who will spend hours decking them out in clothes and tweaking them.

Access Xbox LIVE Marketplace on the Web. Browse and purchase Marketplace content whenever you want from Xbox.com and it downloads automatically to your console. Purchase that new map, television episode, the latest Xbox LIVE Arcade game or set up a movie to watch when you get home from work.

Best feature yet.

I missed this; I agree, fantastic feature.

What a great press announcemnet from Microsoft. Some excellent things coming down the piple. I love how they keep the 360 current and add tons of new things and all the titles coming out look freaking sweet. I can't believe some of those game play videos. Holy crap!

You can normally find Forza 2 pretty cheap nowdays. :p

Damn rdank :D

I think more people are pissed about the changing of the dashboard interface they've gotten used to for years than they are about avatars themselves.

Yep. It's classic Microsoft though. Everyone learns the interface then they go and re-design it. Hopefully there's improvement but sometimes with Microsoft I find the learning curve for a new interface simply doesn't outweigh the supposed benefits of the new interface. We'll see once it's delivered, but I guarantee at least some portion of the user-base isn't going to like the change.

Yep. It's classic Microsoft though. Everyone learns the interface then they go and re-design it. Hopefully there's improvement but sometimes with Microsoft I find the learning curve for a new interface simply doesn't outweigh the supposed benefits of the new interface. We'll see once it's delivered, but I guarantee at least some portion of the user-base isn't going to like the change.

I thought the new interface was optional.

Edit: Looks like it may not be. No big loss, it isn't like it is a huge interface system to begin with. This one looks a bit like Windows Media Center too.

Yep. It's classic Microsoft though. Everyone learns the interface then they go and re-design it. Hopefully there's improvement but sometimes with Microsoft I find the learning curve for a new interface simply doesn't outweigh the supposed benefits of the new interface. We'll see once it's delivered, but I guarantee at least some portion of the user-base isn't going to like the change.

Well, with an installed base of 20 million+ its a given a significant portion of the users are going to dislike something in everything. ;)
And anytime you change *anything* people are going to complain that its not the same. Can't be helped. Shouldn't be catered to, either.

And yes, it *is* classic MS but not in the way you mean it.
If you can get past the avatar thing, which I'll admit many folks are going to have trouble getting past, the actual *mechanics* of the UI are the exact same as they are now. Its just that instead of a finite number of blades with sliding, "twist" panes, you have an unspecified number of borderless blades and panes residing in a 3d emvironment.

Except for the 3d pop-out, it looks like it operates pretty much the same as it does now; an evolutionary rather than revolutionary rewrite.
Classic MS.
Only this time, they've gussied it up a bit with Zune-style flash and (yes) avatars.
Me, I coulda done without the flash and the avatars but I find neither particularly offensive and I do understand why they're doing it: to sell 360s to casual gamers. Well, anything that expands the user base and brings in more games, even if they're not my kind of games, is a good thing.
It'll be 4 months or more before we see what this is all really about; I'm willing to give'em a bit of rope to see where they take us.
Could be a fun ride...

odd, i welcome and LOVE the new gui, if it was athletically possible for someone of my stature, i'd do a back flip... but i still dont like the childish avatars :), and the community tab (aka friends list) being completely oriented around the avatars, making a normal xbox expirience without avatar involvement impossible.


This would be my main issue when I was talking about making things complicated. Hopefully, scanning the freinds list will still be as simple as looking at it and scrolling down. What I would really hate is for random Miis to be walking around and I have to then highlight them to see who is playing what or invite them.

I personally think the new GUI is a step up. The blades interface is just so horribly CLUTTERED now that I dont like using it.

"Can I click on that? Wait what is highlighted....NO I dont want to change to the next blade.." etc.

I like the cleaner look of the new OS.

On the other hand, I have definitely experienced the frustration outlined here. How many times have they tricked me with the box that advertises some nice new content, but since that is the one box I cannot click on I have to go searching for it in the Marketplace. Then that content does not come up under Featured so I have to go looking all around.



I wonder if they will be increasing the size of the Dash program (which has been crammed into a really small payload up till now) as this looks more graphics intensive than before.

how bout a show of hands...now that Final Fantasy is being released multi-platform...who is drooling over buying a PS3 ???...SINGLE DISC FTW !!!!
Or, multiple 5 minute installs FTL. Pick your poison, I guess.

As long as I'm not stuck with "Clippy" as an avatar, I think it will be okay.

On second thought, I wonder if we'll be able create Clippy with the avatar tools.... :)

Or, multiple 5 minute installs FTL. Pick your poison, I guess.

Right..or multiple DVD's installed to the hard drive so no swapping required.

BluRay....so much promised..so little delivered....

Right..or multiple DVD's installed to the hard drive so no swapping required.

BluRay....so much promised..so little delivered....
Heh. I can't knock Blu-ray as an HDM format at all. But for gaming... well, it needs to mature a bit. I also think that devs nowadays simply don't have the time/financial resources to take real advantage of what all that extra space offers.

Or, multiple 5 minute installs FTL. Pick your poison, I guess.

Who would drop $400 to $500 on another system just to own a game that is sold on a single disc.

I figured everyone just ignored that post.. because it was plain silly.

I wish MS would give up this craving it has for the casual gamer. How many casual gamers drop $300-350 for a system with $60 games and accessories?

I wish MS would give up this craving it has for the casual gamer. How many casual gamers drop $300-350 for a system with $60 games and accessories?

The ones that have already traded in their Wii's even before this announcment came out.

I wish MS would give up this craving it has for the casual gamer. How many casual gamers drop $300-350 for a system with $60 games and accessories?

I think MS is actually playing this pretty well. They've raked in the hardcore gamer no problems. Now, as price is going down, and people want more out of the gimmicky Wii, in comes MS with an even better/similar system that appeals to the casual and female consumer....and its going to bring more business. Why does that bother you?