Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary may be just a couple months away, but Halo franchise development director Frank O'Connor is still keeping mum on some of the remake's Kinect functionality. He did let a few bits of info slip, however. "For example, you can switch to Classic or Anniversary mode using voice commands," he explained to me in a meeting at TGS 2011 this week. Wait, really? That's it?

"We actually have some more story content in the game that's gonna be supported by Kinect," he added. Unfortunately, either the folks at 343 Industries or its corporate benefactors at Microsoft Studios have deemed the rest of the information too early to mete out. "We've added a really interesting feature we're gonna talk about in October that uses Kinect to add some story to the game."

As interesting as the content may be, it may never make it to the final product -- apparently the October reveal is about more than a carefully timed marketing plan for the re-release of a decade old game. "We're still testing the features, so if it doesn't work, we're gonna change it." And with just under two months to go until launch, 343 had better get a move on.http://www.joystiq.com/2011/09/16/halo-anniversarys-kinect-functionality-partially-explained/ ...

Yeah, we knew it was possible, but knowing and seeing are two very, very different animals. Just before closing the doors at Build 2011, Microsoft's Avi Ben-Menahem took the time to briefly showcase what would be possible with Xbox Live and Windows 8. It's obviously in a very early state, but already we're seeing signs of cross-platform multiplayer game support, and an (unsurprisingly) Metro-style universe supplanting the existing Games for Windows Live. We get the feeling that Microsoft's thinking this one through; rather than just shoehorning a gaming element in, things like "cloud saves" and dedicated Music / Video panes will be around to enjoy. Moreover, participation in the Xbox Live development program will purportedly be free, and if Ben-Menahem has his way, this will bring "everything you know and love on Xbox 360 and Xbox Live to Windows." Bold. Peek the pair of videos just after the break.

http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/15/m...ndows-8-video/ ...

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It’s arguably the biggest release of the year to date and retail is gearing up for a bloody fight to win the biggest market share possible on Microsoft’s Gears of War 3.
HMV is the first retailer to show its hand. It will sell the game for just £1.99 to anyone who trades in a copy of current UK No.1 Dead Island. The offer is available in-store until September 25^th.
HMV is also offering F1 2011 (released on September 23^rd) for jus £3.99 for customers who trade-in copies of either Gears of War 3, Dead Island or Resistance 3. That deal is open until September 29^th.
GAME has also revealed its Gears of War 3 offer. It will be selling the game for £4.99 when customers trade-in either Dead Island, Driver: San Francisco or Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine.
It has a second Gears offer, too – the Limited Edition Gears of War 3 320GB Xbox 360 can be had for £99.99 when a 250GB Elite Xbox 360 is traded-in.
It’s running the same deal for F1 2011, with Resistance 3 also added into the mix. It’s also offering an extra 20 per cent on any trade-ins made against FIFA 12.
The big question now is exactly how low supermarkets will be prepared to drive down the price of Gears of War 3. Will anyone dare drop below the £30 price point?

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/gears...-begins/084907
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Nintendo made their SNES for 13 years, shelving the console in 2003, though the last big games landed in 1996 shortly after it was replaced by the N64. Six years is long enough for any console - it was long enough for the PS1 (1994- 2000) and PS2 (2000-2006), the Mega Drive (1988-1994) and DS (2004-2010), and it's long enough for the 360.

When the clock strikes midnight on 16 November the 360 will head into its seventh year, with dozens of games still to come. This isn't the usual console life-cycle; by now the big games should have dried up, with only one or two first-party essentials tiding players over until Microsoft release their next console, which would typically be revealed in the middle of the predecessor's fifth year.

Instead we're looking forward to a year with Ghost Recon: Future Soldier, the rebooted Tomb Raider and Bioshock Infinite - and the beginnings of an eighth year where we'll see the likes of Halo 4.

The 360's longevity has set developers free to push the hardware further than anyone ever thought possible. This was the generation game development got stupidly expensive; teams grew, deadlines moved into the distant future, budgets inflated.

For a long time studios were happy with the power the console offered, and software solutions from Crytek and id have milked the last drops of power from those half decade-old processors.

Not until this year have prominent voices in the industry started demanding more. Crysis proved the 360 was outgunned by the PC back in 2007, but building a machine to run Crysis on its highest settings was beyond the bank accounts of most players. Crysis was a 'what if?' kind of game and it sold poorly, but four years on that Crysis-capable PC isn't such a pipe dream.

Cosmetics matter, and high-end PC mods for GTA and Crysis show what the next generation of games deserves to look like. Hobbyists are modding games to look near-photorealistic without the support of major publishers, while cutting-edge developers are once again looking to the PC to lead the way. The technology powering Epic's Unreal 3 'Samaritan' demo isn't some pipe dream; it's here now, in the modern PC.



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It's personality that counts, of course, and developers need more power for that, too. Battlefield 3 looks smoother and prettier on a heavyweight PC, but the lack of grunt provided by the PS3 and 360 cripples the basic mechanics of the game - online multiplayer is capped at 24 on consoles, 64 on PC, just as it was in Bad Company 2.

Speaking to Gamesindustry.biz Ubisoft Montreal's Yves Jacquier bemoaned the current generation's inability to do the things Ubisoft Montreal need - beautiful graphics, complex sound, large scale, and smart AI - all at the same time.

"We're extremely limited in what we can do," he explained. "It's a challenge for the engineers to provide everything with a small amount of memory and computation time. We think that the next generation of consoles won't have these limits any more. What's the value of making something more realistic and better animated if you have poor AI?"

The Xbox 360 is a 2005-spec PC in a slimline box at a consumer friendly price, and the next Xbox will likely follow the same model when it arrives in late 2013, but building the next generation will be a challenge for everyone.

For Microsoft, the challenge is selling such a monster machine at the right price; for developers, it's creating so many HD assets in such a volume, on time and on budget; for the tech experts, it's everything from finding the right storage media to worrying about whether broadband data caps will kill the dream of a fullydownloadable future.



Until it's settled, games on console and PC are hamstrung by the needs of a generation long past its sell-by date. Years seven and eight will be fruitful but filled with envy - that feeling you get when L.A. Noire stutters to around 20fps on 360 while the PC version blazes along at 60fps will become all too familiar, as developers reach for the stars with a boat anchor around their ankles.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com...next-xbox-now/ ...

Starting Monday 15th September, Microsoft will be kicking off a Kinect tour at shopping centres throughout Australia.
The tour will be showcasing upcoming Christmas Kinect releases including Kinect Disneyland Adventures and the Australian-developed Fruit Ninja.
Andy Coughlin, retail lead at Microsoft Australia, said: "There will be some amazing new games and experiences to come to Kinect in the next few months including voice control, Kinect Disneyland Adventures, Kinect Sports Season 2, Dance Central 2."
"Couple this with HD movies on demand⁺ and FOXTEL on Xbox 360value on the Xbox is the strongest we have seen."
The full schedule of Kinect appearances is as follows:
New South Wales:
19-25 September: MacArthur Shopping Centre, Campbelltown (centre court)
26 September - 2 October: Warringah Mall, Brookvale (opposite Woolworths)
Victoria:
24 September - 4 October: Royal Melbourne Show, Melbourne Showground (Grand Pavillion)
3-9 October: Chadstone Shopping Centre, Chadstone (outside Target & opposite EB Games) AND Knox City Shopping Centre, Watirna (opposite Saleras & EB Games)
Queensland:
19-25 September: Robina Shopping Centre, Robina (Under the chandelier) AND Pacific Fair Shopping Centre, Broadbeach (opposite Baskin & Robbins and Crema Espresso)
13-17 October: Redcliffe Place Brisbane Square, Brisbane
Western Australia:
10-16 October: Garden City Shopping Centre, Upper My Gravatt (centre court)
ACT:
3-9 October: Canberra Centre, Canberra City (centre court)
South Australia:
10-16 October: Elizabeth Shopping Centre, Elizabeth (outside Myer and Big W)

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/micro...-kinect/084778
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The other kids TV giant, Cartoon Network, has partnered with Xbox to market the arrival of its new hit TV show, The Amazing World of Gumball.
The cartoon – which is developed in the UK – is already a smash hit in the US and is notable for combining 2D, 3D and live action imagery.
The deal with Xbox will see bespoke animations appear on Xbox Live, with Cartoon Network’s parent Turner Broadcasting, the show’s creators and Xbox’s design team working together to create an ‘animated environment.’
This will showcase avatars, videos and wallpapers based on the show, and there will be millions of Xbox credits to give away.

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/carto...ew-show/084697
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Microsoft's will host the Gaming and Giving for Good (G3) Xbox LIVE charity event in October to raise funds for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals.
Microsoft will supply participants with free Xbox Live gold memberships, who will ask friends and family to donate for evey hour they play online on October 1.
"We are inspired by the support from the gaming community and how it has rallied around our Extra Life programs to support Children's Miracle Network Hospitals," said John Lauck, CEO of the Children's Miracle Network.
"We're honored and thrilled that Xbox is helping the Extra Life fundraising effort with its G3 event on Xbox LIVE."
GameStop and 2K are also supporting the charity, and have already raised $70,000. Hulu, EA, Capcom Entertainment, Square Enix are also contributing.
"GameStop associates are passionate about giving back to the communities in which we operate," said Paul Raines, GameStop CEO.
"We look forward to raising awareness and money for this tremendous cause with the help of gamers nationwide."
More information about the event can be found at the official site.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...work-hospitals
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