|
Week of June 7, 2009
Rumor: Xbox Natal is Actually Microsoft's Next Console
>> From 1up.com:
[QUOTE]
On this week's Listen Up podcast we discussed Natal, and David Ellis and I talked about what we've been hearing regarding the new technology -- and how it's actually the cornerstone of Microsoft's next evolution of the Xbox. Microsoft will not only release Natal as an add-on for the Xbox 360, it will come standard with the next Xbox console.
Yes, there will be a new Xbox console next fall.
However, the new console won't just be an Xbox 360 with a camera, though -- we've heard it will be considered a new platform and carry a new name (Xbox Natal?). It's not clear what sort of upgrades we might see, but some have suggested it will be an slight upgrade of the current Xbox 360 technology. Current Xbox 360 games would be playable on it, but future games would be able to take advantage of the added muscle. Similar to what we see in the PC space, games played on the more advanced Xbox would look or perform better, but publishers will still be able to support owners of both systems. Some developers have complained that they've already maxed out the Xbox 360; perhaps this will give them room to expand.
[/QUOTE]
Full Story: 1up.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
NPD May 2009 Numbers and Microsoft Response
>> Here are the NPD May 2009 HW sale numbers:
* Nintendo DS: 633,500
* Wii: 289,500
* Xbox 360: 175,000
* PlayStation 3: 131,000
* PlayStation 2: 117,000
* PSP: 100,400
Micorsoft response via gamasutra.com:
[QUOTE]
Responding to a slow sales month as reported by NPD, in which industry revenues dropped 23 percent, Microsoft positioned its Xbox 360 as being the most robust console in 2009.
The company pointed out that Xbox 360 saw a 22 percent year-to-date increase over 2008, the only home console to do so.
Of course, it was still outsold by Wii and Nintendo DS, and on a monthly basis it dropped in May from 2008 -- but Microsoft is correct when it says its system exhibits "the most year-over-year resilience of any console" for the month. With 175,000 sales, it dropped only 6.2 percent from last May, a significantly smaller drop than any of the other systems for which NPD reported data.
[/QUOTE]
Full Story: gamasutra.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
XNA Game Studio 3.1 is here - Community Games Renamed
>> From creators.xna.com:
[QUOTE]
You spoke and we listened! We've added a number of new and improved features to XNA Game Studio 3.1 enabling hobbyists, academics, and independent game developers to easily create video games for Xbox 360, Windows, and Zune digital media players by using optimized cross-platform gaming libraries based on the .NET Framework in the C# programming language. This release is incremental to Game Studio 3.0 and contains many new and improved features:
* Avatar Support: Render and animate Avatars to use in your game to represent gamers and other characters within your game.
* Xbox LIVE Party Support: Enabling gamers to communicate, even when each gamer is not playing the same game in the same multiplayer session. LIVE Party supports up to an eight-way group voice chat for gamers and keeps gamers connected before, during, and after a gameplay session, persisting across title switches.
* Video Playback: XNA Game Studio now supports the ability to play back video that can be used for such purposes as opening splash and logo scenes, cut scenes, or in-game video displays. This set of XNA Framework APIs supports the following features:
o Full screen video playback
o Video playback to simple textures in game
o Control of playback such as pause/resume and stop
o Retrieve properties of the video, such as playback time, size, and frame rate
o Determine the type and usage of the audio track, such as if it has music, dialog, or music and dialog
o Play back multiple video streams at the same time
* Audio API: 3.1 has a new usage pattern of SoundEffect.Play. Sound instances created by Play calls are disposed automatically when playback ends, and SoundEffect.Play returns a Boolean to indicate success or failure.
* Content Pipeline Enhancements: improvements making it much easier to add customer types (custom attributes for run-time of an object and run-time type version of an object, and the ability to determine if deserialization into an existing object is possible).
* XACT3 Support: includes support for XACT3 with new features including the ability to enable a filter on every track, and support for the xWMA compression format.
* Visual Studio Changes: XNA Game Studio 3.1 supports both 3.0 and 3.1 projects, and it includes support for upgrading projects from 3.0 to 3.1.
Submitting 3.1 Games
XNA Game Studio 3.1 games can be submitted to Xbox LIVE Community Games starting late July. Please note! Currently, if Premium Creators want to submit or service their game to Playtest and/or Peer Review, those games must remain XNA Game Studio 3.0 projects. On July 23rd, you can submit games upgraded or created as 3.1 projects to playtest and/or Peer Review, but they will not go live to consumers until we are able to upgrade Xbox LIVE Community Games Marketplace later this Summer.
For more details on using XNA Game Studio 3.1 with Xbox LIVE Community Games, check out this quick walkthrough!
Name Change
We've got one last surprise for you today! Savvy Creators that carefully read the documentation for XNA Game Studio 3.1 will note one big change we're making in direct response to your feedback. The launch of XNA Game Studio 3.1 begins the process of renaming Xbox LIVE Community Games to Xbox LIVE Indie Games. We're starting the communication about this transition with you - our incredible Creators. With your help hopefully this name change (along with other new features such as User Ratings!) will increase understanding and discoverability of your games! Late July, when we update Creators Club Online, we will begin revealing the name change to the Consumer side of our business. We believe this name better represents the independent spirit of XNA Game Studio gaming and creations!
[/QUOTE]
Official Site: http://creators.xna.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
New LiteOn Revision - 83850c
>> A forum post on a German website has the following information....
Here is a picture of the drive:
There appears to possibly be a new firmware/hardware revision for the LiteOn drive that was originally posted on these German forums. It is being discussed on our forums
here
So far, it is just speculation at this point. It appears the user is claiming the key's are coming back all 00's. We are unsure if it is user error, or a new protection. Any users with this revision please email iriez at xbins dot org with any information. If it truely is new protection, we will need to get our hands on it! Donors will be taken care of!
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
Xbox Live Service Maintenance - June 16th 2009
>> From :
[QUOTE]
On Tuesday, June 16th from 7:01AM UTC (12:01 AM PST) for up to 24 hours, Xbox Live will be offline for maintenance. As a result, Xbox LIVE and the 'My Xbox' section of Xbox.com will be unavailable, and the Xbox forums will be in read only mode (you won't be able to post.)
The remainder of Xbox.com will be available with limited interruptions.
This service maintenance is to prepare for some of the recently announced features that will be available later this year.
Let me reiterate: When the service returns, you will not have any new functions or features. This is for scheduled maintenance only.
[/QUOTE]
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
Microsoft Addresses 360 Hulu-Support Rumors
>> From 1up.com:
[QUOTE]
Microsoft is keen on providing multimedia internet services on the Xbox 360, but one of the most persistent rumors -- Hulu functionality on the system -- has so far gone unfulfilled. It does sound, however, like the company is considering their options. G4 talked with Microsoft corporate VP John Schappert about the rumors. "I will say that we are always -- I think as evidenced by our partnerships that we've announced -- we're always looking at new opportunities," he said. "We want to offer the best entertainment on Xbox Live in as many countries as we can. But it takes a while to get these deals done... Suffice to say, I don't think the Facebook, Twitter, Skye partnerships are going to be the last ones we're going to announce, but nothing new beyond that."
[/QUOTE]
Full Story: 1up.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
Microsoft kills 'coffin' policy, time to pack your RRoD Xbox yourself
>> From joystiq.com:
[QUOTE]
Microsoft - the manufacturer of the RRoD-prone Xbox 360 - has confirmed to Joystiq that it's discontinued its policy of providing a prepaid box with shipping label, more commonly referred to as the "coffin," for all Xbox 360 repairs. As of May 26 the policy was discontinued "in an effort to expedite the repair process." Customers will have the option of receiving an e-label to slap on the box they ship their bricked consoles in, but the days of the "coffin" are now over. A Microsoft spokesperson tell us, "Customers can now ship their consoles themselves using an e-label provided by Microsoft and do not need to wait for an empty box to be shipped to them."
[/QUOTE]
Full Story: joystiq.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
Taking A Closer Look At Last.fm On The Xbox 360
>> From kotaku.com:
[QUOTE]
The service will be made available later this year, and will be free to all Xbox Live Gold subscribers. Once accessed, the Last.fm section of the 360 dashboard will function in much the same way as the popular internet radio station does on your PC, allowing users to do things like:
- browse artists & tracks and compile custom playlists
- share those playlists, and other recommendations, with friends via "Party Radio" (you'll also be able to listen in on the same songs/playlists together)
- create your own Last.fm station
- check out artist pages complete with photos, band info and other info like how to find similar artists.
[/QUOTE]
Full Story (with screenshots): kotaku.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
360 Modification USB Drive v1.6 Revision 2
>> FrostyTheSnowman released a new revision of his 360 Modification USB Drive(info).
What's new/fixed in v1.6:
* Removed manual firmware dump check screen (due to keyboard incompatibility)
* Added firmware dump validation scripting (to replace manual checks)
* Added 'Advanced Options' menu
* Added direct custom firmware flashing menu for Samsung/BenQ/Lite-On drives
* Corrected USB Boot Drive Letter detection
* USB Drive can now be created with either FreeDOS or MS-DOS (compatibility fix for older PCs)
Official Site: n/a, by FrostyTheSnowman
Download: n/a (contains modified FWs)
News-Source/Full Readme: xbins.org
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
