Games Video

Xbox Live Arcade: Still Growing

As you probably already know, I am a huge fan of Xbox Live Arcade. The system is so easy to use, and it provides an outlet for creative game developers to have their game published. X06 had more then a few announcements about the future of Live Arcade, so here is an update on what has been going on:

The Xbox Live Vision Camera recently shipped. Four Xbox Live Arcade titles were automatically updated to include support for the new camera. These include Bankshot Billiards 2, Hardwood Hearts, Hardwood Spades, and Hardwood Backgammon. Up till now, the Xbox Live Arcade version of UNO was the only game to include camera support. The camera can be found for around $40.

TotemBall, the first game to require the camera, should be released tomorrow. Players use gestures read by the camera to control the characters. The game will be a free download.

Doom was released last Wednesday on Live Arcade. I was actually hoping to see classic games like this remade. The Live Arcade version of Doom features multiplayer support, new graphics and sound, achievements, and online leaderboards. I have already spent a few hours playing it and so far it is excellent.

The release schedule for the rest of the year looks like its going to be pretty packed. While there are no official dates as to which games are coming out when, expect to see the following games before the end of the year: Lumines Live!, Contra, Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, Small Arms, Gyruss, Mutant Storm Empire, Defender, Assault Heroes, Heavy Weapon, Carcassonne, Alhambra, Settlers of Catan, and Dig Dug. Some of these are games that I have been looking forward to for a while now.

Anyway, expect the rest of the year to be a busy time for the Arcade.

Games Video

Itagaki: I’m not going anywhere

It appears that some Playstation 3 fans have been spreading rumors that Team Ninja’s producer Tomonobu Itagaki, one of the Xbox’s most loyal developers, is leaving the console. One can only wonder how this rumor started, but it probably has something to do with Ninja Gaiden Sigma.

But don’t let that PlayStation 3 version of Ninja Gaiden trouble you. Tomonobu Itagaki is not going anywhere. In fact, he isn’t even working on it. He’s left that up to Yousuke Hayashi, who requested that he be allowed to bring the Ninja Gaiden franchise to a broader audience. Hayashi worked on Ninja Gaiden Black for the original Xbox, so it seems that Sigma is in capable hands.

Check out this interview for more on Itagaki’s love of Sega and Microsoft hardware, as well as a clue as to what he’ll be focusing on after Dead or Alive Xtreme 2 ships (hint: it’s Ninja Gaiden 2)

Mix 1

Trance Set 8

Well, it has been a while since I have put up a new one. I decided to sit down and quickly put one together before the weekend. Its mostly pretty new stuff, so hopefully you have not heard any of it before. Enjoy!

Games 1

X06

Well, there is a ton of news coming out today from X06. While I don’t feel like writing about all if it (since you can find it elsewhere), I will write down a few of the news items that I personally think are cool.

First up is news that Halo is being turned into a real time strategy game by Ensemble Studios, the studio behind the Age of Empires franchise. The game is currently titled “Halo Wars“, but I would not be surprised if that title changed. Personally I was not too surprised at this announcement. Not too long ago, Microsoft shut down a Command & Conquer Generals: Zero Hour mod called “Halogen”, which was a Halo based RTS. The game will obviously be 360 exclusive, but there is no release date announced yet.

In other news, Bioshock and Splinter Cell 5 (not the upcoming Double Agent) will be exclusive to the Xbox 360 and PC. This is a pretty big blow to Playstation 3. If it continues to lose high profile games like these two, Sony will have a hard time convincing people to spend $600 this holiday. Bioshock should be out next spring. Splinter Cell 5 obviously has no release date (it doesn’t even have a name yet).

Doom is making its way onto Xbox Live Arcade. It should actually be up on there right now. It features multiplayer support, new graphics and sound, achievements, and online leaderboards. Lets hope this turns out to be awesome.

GTA4 was talked about in a bit more depth this time around. Peter Moore announced that Rockstar is working on two exclusive content packs to be released a few months after the game has shipped. He also promised that the content packs will have a lot of substance to them. He said that they are not talking about “an extra car or character here” and that the content packs will be lengthy. This is pretty big since that means that Xbox 360 is the only place to play the full GTA experience.

Sierra announced Assault Heroes and 3D Ultra Mini Golf for Xbox Live Arcade. I believe these will be the first two Sierra games to be available over Live, so this could be the start of something great. I am definitely looking forward to Assault Heroes.

Forza 2 will ship with 300 Cars on disc. Expect to see downloadable cars available after release. 300 cars is about 80 more then the previous game if I remember correctly.

The HD-DVD drive has an estimated retail price of $199. This is actually cheaper then I was expecting. Then factor in that it is being bundled with an Xbox 360 Universal Media Remote, and for a limited time, an HD-DVD copy of Peter Jackson’s King Kong and you got yourself a sweet deal. Expect it to be available in mid-November.

Peter also announced a partnership between Microsoft Game Studios, Marvel, and Cryptic Studios, developer of the acclaimed City of Heroes. “Together we will create a truly epic game, Marvel Universe Online.” It’s a massively multiplayer online exclusive for both Xbox 360 and Games for Windows.

Gears of War was shown again at well. I am not sure if anything new was revealed, but expect to see some new Gears of War footage showing up on gaming sites soon.

And lastly, Banjo-Kazooie is coming to Xbox 360. There should be 160 games for Xbox 360 by this holiday.

Expect more news tomorrow.