Check out the Spartan Ops for Halo 4 on the Xbox 360 from Microsoft and play weekly updated Co-Op multiplayer missions with your Xbox friends online. Spartan Ops will provide updated content and gameplay missions in Halo 4 and you will have the chance to compete with friends and others in these new challenging mission.
Microsoft is set to release a new audio codec for the Xbox 360 console which should offer some improvements for Xbox Live users who so enjoy smack talking on the popular online gaming platform. I say some because no matter how clear the voice is there will alway be some idiot yapping about something completely ridiculous and aggravating my game play. I have come to realie that the average Xbox user is sub intelligent to at best and downright dumb in most cases and the conversations had are some of the most p[ainful experiences i have ever witnessed. when I see just how dumb some of these kids can be it saddens me for the future and what will happen when these trolls and smucks take over.
From grade school punks with unaware parents to drunken adults, lip flapping rap wannabe’s and eminem fans from around the the world it’s a no holds barred shoutout of the dumbest people on earth as you try to navigate popular games like Modern Warfare 2 and Halo where the boosters and youtubers are ruining the game spirit with hacks, cheats and glitches that jack things up for legit users.
I hope they make it easier to ignore the chatter and focus on the game because that would be the best improvement they can make in my opinion.
Microsoft Improving Xbox 360′s VOIP Quality – GameZone – News
Microsoft is planning to improve the quality of voice over Xbox 360 headsets with their next major update, which is coming this fall alongside Kinect.
The update will upgrade the audio codec used to communicate between systems, according to Xbox LIVE Studios’ Jerry Johnson, who spoke with Eurogamer at the Edinburgh Interactive Festival. He explained that the codec used when the console launched was a a low bit rate and that Microsoft “stuck” with it for a while.
new zune hd games
Reviews for Zune HD games are coming in from multiple sources and as expected everyone is quite impressed. I agree with Geek.com that the graphics are impressive as expected. The Zune HD screen and hardware are dying for something to flex their muscles on and 3D games are the best test to date for the latest Zune player. The Tegra processor handles the graphics with no pixelation and the controls are responsive.
Project Gotham Racing: Ferrari Edition features 12 cars and 33 events on London, Tokyo, and New York race courses. PGR takes advantage of the wireless features and supports up to four player races. It also offers time trials against your friends best race finally making the Zune the social device it was meant to be at launch. It’s only two years late to market or right on time as far as Microsoft is concerned it seems.
Audiosurf Tilt is one of the most interesting of the new game apps for Zune. Load up your favorite MP3 and it’s kinda like a screen saver you can control with the tilt of your Zune. The software has an incredible ability to follow along with the music and really shows off the power of the hardware.
Vans Sk8: Pool Service has 10 skateboarding events to shred with hot skaters Bucky Lasek and Omar Hassan with some hidden extras like unlockable board designs and bonuses.
The other games are basic and straight forward of what to expect from Checkers or Bowling. I was hoping for something more exciting but this is decent enough for 6 free games for Zune. I have great hope the future of gaming on Zune includes bigger and better ports of top Xbox games. I think we need good first person shooter like Halo or Call of Duty on Zune portable game players but we’ll need a game specific device for that.
I was accepted to the new Xbox Live Preview which incorporates Facebook, Twitter, Last.fm and Zune Video to your gaming console. I was very excited about the possibilities that this holds and I was glad to install the new update as soon as it was available. I ran the setups for everything yesterday and was able to update my Twitter account from inside Xbox. I’m not big on Twitter but it all seems to function. I thought it was weird that you have to sign out of Twitter when you go back to game play and it would be cool if we could tweet inside game play but maybe thats a future upgrade to look forward to.
I have a Last.fm account but I did not get into this one very deep. I use my Zune for music playback and I save bandwidth for Xbox Live. No reason really to use the Last.fm service yet but I will check it out more later. What I really wanted was Facebook on Xbox and although it’s not exactly what I wanted it is a step in the right direction. I can access all of my Facebook features including friends, status updates, photos and even video but I could not find my Inbox there to reply to any messages. I found that strange but I suppose there is a a reason for it. All in all it’s pretty cool and somewhat useless to me. My PC lays about 3 feet from the Xbox and I can update my FB from there faster than I can from inside the Xbox interface. My biggest complaint is the lack of qwerty keyboard on my Xbox and the time it takes to flick around the screen with the Xbox joystick but there are hardware upgrades to deal with this and if I chose to stick with it I’ll need to buy the Xbox keyboard.
What improvements can be made? Oh let’s see how about Xbox Live video uploads? I would like to make a movie of my game play and then upload it to Facebook so I can show off my mad game skills and taunt my lame ass gamer friends. I would like my gameplay to update my FB status so my friends will know when I’m online and what game I’m playing. this way I can announce my gaming and maybe get some friends to join me online in Halo 3 ODST.
I purposely have not looked at Zune Video on Xbox Live yet because it takes so damn long to download videos that I would rather not deal with it. My Xbox downloads are significanlty slower than my PC downloads and I have no idea why. The network settings ae highly tweaked and should offer the same but it’s not. I think the Xbox lags it somehow.
Here is another review of the New Xbox Experience which says that its more like a discovery experience rather than a task based one. Its more of a social experience with Xbox Live and Friends content taking center stage in the new game console interface.
The article writer goes on to say that Microsoft holds huge potential to develop a content delivery ecosystem through the Xbox, Zune, Windows, Windows Mobile and Windows CE platforms and I have to agree. Using Zune as the example once we are able to purchase Zune content from anyone of these Zune enabled devices we will and Microsoft will have the advantage over any other individual platforms.
Is it reasonable to assume some day people will be porting their content services to Xbox or Windows? Can we expect to see other PMP manufacturers designing hardware devices to interface with such a powerful platform?
Jerry Johnson, General Manager, Xbox Live EMEA, explained that the new dashboard had been designed for a discovery (rather than a task-based) experience. The intention ws to make users feel more comfortable exploring on their console, rather than simply switching it on for a single purpose. Exposing users to a wider array of paid-for content is a significant upshot to the redesign, and there is plenty of this available in the form of video downloads, the Xbox Live Arcade (downloadable games), game fan content and in-game add-ons (such as map packs, songs or character costumes). This premium downloadable content is clearly generating significant revenues, with the most popular content including map packs for some of its ”triple-A” game titles (Halo 3 and Call of Duty 4), and song packs for music game Rock Band.
Microsoft is beating the drums over hitting the 10 million units sold mark Xbox has had an extra year over Wii and thats not a good sign. Nintendo is going to hit the same mark much faster and Microsoft has certainly laid out a lout more in order to get the as well. It’s costing them big bucks to get to these benchmarks so I guiess they need to toot them up as often as possible.
I love Xbox Live but it’s going to be awhile if ever before Microsoft can claim dominance by any real measure. The Playstation and Wii will both be around for quite some time to come. I think Microsoft should start looking at how to broaden their fan base with more add ons and games for other demographics not including the hardcore gamers. The success of the Wii is certainly not just because every top gamer went out and bought one. The Wii is becoming the family unit and thats whats most dangerous to Microsoft. the true success in the Xbox package is Halo and that may be their biggest problem. Microsoft needs to offer more for the other household members if they want their console to truly dominate.
Xbox 360 sales surpass Wii, PS3 | Reuters
SEATTLE (Reuters) – Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Wednesday its Xbox 360 game machine beat Nintendo Co Ltd’s (7974.OS: Quote, Profile, Research) Wii and Sony Corp’s (6758.T: Quote, Profile, Research) PlayStation 3 to reach 10 million units in U.S. sales.“History has shown us that the first company to reach 10 million in console sales wins the generation battle,” Don Mattrick, a Microsoft senior vice president who heads the company’s Xbox business, said in a statement.
The Xbox 360 was the first of this latest generation of game machines to launch in the United States when it was released in November 2005. The PS3 and Wii were launched in the United States a year later.
The Wii is closing in on the Xbox 360, with 8.8 million units sold as of the end of March, while Sony has totaled 4.1 million PS3 units sold, according to market research firm NPD.
Microsoft also said global membership of its Xbox Live online service reached 12 million members.
Microsoft’s, Chris Lewis, stated that their main focus with the Zune phone was to allow people to connect and share music. The Zune and XBOX are integrated, so people can connect their Zune phone to it and play games. Although, games in the device itself are something they are considering. With the Zune phones 2 Mbps streaming, being able to game on it would be especially nice. Without that cool feature, the Zune phone would be just another MP3 player.
There are some people out there thinking that the Zune phone’s small physique wouldn’t be suitable for gaming. Well, that all depends on the person. Some people may enjoy its compact style. With the excellent streaming it provides, you would be sure to have a great gaming experience.
Microsoft isn’t foreign when it comes to video games since they have a team that works on PC games. Peter Moore, also with Zune, said they there should be games for the Zune within the next 18 months. This will definitely bring it up to par with the iPod, Microsoft’s well known rival. By this time, the iPod will have more than likely upgraded to its sixth generation.
With all of the great features the Zune us rumored to have, it would be great to add games onto the list. All of us have a fetish for them whether it be Pac Man, Tetris, Sims, or Halo. I really don’t think the Zune would make much of a first person shooting game, especially since a lot of controller buttons would be missing, but I say, “The more features the better.â€
Microsoft to PC gamers: Prepare to go Live – CNN.com
Microsoft Corp. Wednesday said its Live online service, which has attracted 6 million Xbox 360 console gamers, will be open in May to PC gamers who use its new Windows Vista operating system.The move comes nearly a year after Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates said the company’s vision was for “anywhere” gaming that would link video game consoles, cell phones and computers, and is a key step toward reaching that goal.
The PC version of Live will debut on May 8 with the launch of the Windows Vista version of “Halo 2,” Microsoft’s popular alien shooter game.
In June, Microsoft Game Studios will release “Shadowrun,” the first game where Live will support competition between players on the Xbox 360 and PCs.
Live members will need just one account, whether they play on the Xbox 360, the PC, or both machines.
Microsoft offers two Live subscription levels. Silver membership is free and the Gold level, which includes cross-platform play and other multiplayer features, costs about $50 per year.
Microsoft’s online gaming service has been a key selling point for its Xbox 360 video game console, which was released in November 2005 and competes with Sony Corp.’s PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Co. Ltd.’s Wii for top billing in the $30 billion global video game market.
