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7月26日 Filed under: News, Peripherals 
Microsoft's first announcement to come out of Comic Con is an Xbox 360 HD DVD player price drop. Beginning August 1st (in the US), the Xbox 360 HD DVD player add on will receive a $20 price cut, retail for $179 and include five free HD DVD movies as part of the "Perfect Offer". The five free movie deal runs from August 1st through September 30th, full list of free HD DVDs to choose from posted after the break.
Also announced was Microsoft's partnership with Warner Bros. to feature 300 in HD on the XBLM starting August 14th and offer exclusive Heroes Marketplace downloads prior to its season one release to HD DVD. The free Heroes content will include trailers, episode teasers, promotional materials and a free Marketplace download of the pilot episode in HD.
With today's HD DVD player price drop it makes it one of the cheapest ways to experience HD content and is quite the tempting offer. We just might end up caving in this August and splurging to experience the look and sound of perfect. HD content FTW!
Free HD DVDs to Choose From:
Apollo 13
Blazing Saddles
Casablanca
The Chronicles of Riddick
Constantine
The Dukes of Hazzard
Four Brothers
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider
The Perfect Storm
The Rundown
Seabiscuit
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow
U2: Rattle and Hum
U-571
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Today at Comic-Con International 2007, Microsoft Corp. announced it will lower the price of the popular Xbox 360™ HD DVD Player from $199 to $179 ERP (United States only) starting Aug. 1, 2007, and will add five free HD DVD movies for anyone purchasing an Xbox 360 HD DVD Player between Aug. 1 and Sept. 30. In addition, Microsoft further solidified the Xbox 360 as the ultimate high-definition (HD) entertainment platform, with key announcements around the HD DVD launches of “300” from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group and “Heroes: Season 1” from Universal Studios.
To promote the HD DVD versions of “300” and “Heroes: Season 1,” Microsoft unveiled exclusive content for Xbox LIVE® Marketplace. Xbox LIVE will offer “300” on demand in HD starting Aug. 14, and is working with Warner Bros. at Comic-Con on a Bringing It Home campaign featuring “300” and other Warner Bros. properties. In advance of the street date for the “Heroes: Season 1” HD DVD boxed set, Xbox LIVE members will be able to download for free the show’s pilot episode in high definition for a limited time. Members will also be able to download trailers, teaser scenes and other promotional materials highlighting the “Heroes: Season 1” boxed set on HD DVD.
Already the most affordable high-definition player available, the Xbox 360 HD DVD Player is the best solution for movie lovers seeking HD content in the highest possible resolution. The player’s price reduction to $179 (U.S. ERP) continues to set the bar for value, making the Xbox 360 platform the most affordable solution for consumers seeking the broadest, most compelling selection of next-generation gaming and HD video experiences.
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Continue to this article at Bink.nu 7月17日 This just in. Peter is returning to the Bay Area to be with his family, and he’ll join EA as President of their sports division. More details on the official media alert. I am headed over now to record a show with him that I’ll post later today. 
   
7月13日 Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, Business  It's one step forward and a giant lurch back as Sony is poised to pull the plug on their 60GB PlayStation 3. You know, the same PlayStation 3 that they generously shaved $100 dollars from earlier this week.
In an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, SCEE president David Reeves casually mentioned the end of the 60GB model when asked if they would offer the European market a lower priced model, as SCEA did here in the States.
"Well, they're not really are they, because what the US are offering from the 1st of August is a USD $599 version with one game."
Reeves goes on to say that SCEA marked it down to move and that once it's gone, it's gone. When asked for the dreaded confirmation as to if this was the end of the 60GB model, Reeves replied "In America, yes."
Now don't you feel silly for quitting that second job.
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]
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7月12日 The free update will introduce several significant features, bug fixes and updates based on user feedback, including Xbox LIVE Vision Camera support (player bankrolls will not be reset with this update). Now with live video, players can put on their best poker face and scrutinize the faces of their opponent’s in true poker fashion. Using the Xbox LIVE Vision Camera also allows players to use a series of game faces using the snapshot mode for all-ins, wins, losses, folds and more. Other features of the update include the following: - Improved usability such as the addition of Custom Match Lists, which allows gamers to view and select which available Custom Match game they would like to join.
- Improved rich presence in the game, allowing players to not only see what their friends are up to, but also if they just won that big pot!
- Improved matchmaking and user results.
- Scoring and screens are more readable than before.
- Multi-language support including English, French, German, Italian and Spanish.
- New premium downloadable content allows players to customize the in-game environment, and access new gamerpics and themes.
 7月11日 Here is a list of the Disney content that went live on the video marketplace earlier tonight:
Alice In Wonderland
Armageddon
Atlantis: The Lost Empire
Bad Company
Bringing Down The House
Cold Creek Manor
Coyote Ugly
Déjà Vu
Ghosts of the Abyss
Gone Fishin'
Grosse Pointe Blank
Hercules
Meet the Deedles
Metro
Mighty Joe Young
Moonlight Mile
Brother, Where Art Thou?
Pooh's Heffalump Movie
Prefontaine
Primeval
Sky High
Tarzan
The 13th Warrior
The Aristocats
The Brothers Grimm
The Emperor's New Groove
The Fox and the Hound 2
The Great Raid
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
The Queen
The Waterboy
Unbreakable
Valiant
Venus 
   
Filed under: News, E3 
Microsoft's E3 press conference ended earlier this morning and boy oh boy do we have stuff to talk about. Actually, we have so much to talk about that we'll be breaking down all the announcments into digestible blog "wraps" recapping the news in themed categories. So, be sure to watch for those blog wraps throughout the day. But right now we're sure you want the quick and dirty rundown of what Microsoft announced, showed and demoed at this year's E3. And who are we to say no? Check out a the quick rundown of what we learned during Microsoft's E3 press conference after the break with more info to come later in the day.
Here's our quick and dirty list of all the goods that came from the Microsoft E3 press event. We're tired ... we need sleep ... enjoy.
Big Announcements
- First Halo 3 campaign trailer shown as well as a special Halo 3 themed Xbox 360 launching in September.
- Disney has signed up to offer content on the XBLM. Some of which is live right now.
- Rollout of the "real" XBLM to Canada and Europe this Fall along with the Xbox 360 Elite making its way to Europe.
- Call of Duty 4 multiplayer beta to be offered exclusively on Xbox Live.
- Resident Evil 5 trailer shown and announced.
- Gears of War coming to the PC with new campaign missions and multiplayer maps. Also, Xbox Live functionality will be built into the Unreal Engine 3.
- Mass Effect release date pushed back into November.
Other Announcements
- Today's XBLA releases are Sonic the Hedghog and Golden Axe and both purchasable right now for 400 Microsoft points.
- Blue Dragon demo is up on the XBLM for download.
- Numerous XBLA games featured and announced including Marathon: Durandal, Hexic 2, and Undertow.
- Scene It? game exclusive to the 360 and to offer new controller peripheral.
- Lots of games, games, games.
- New Xbox 360 controller colors (pink and blue) announced.
- No price cut announcments.
Games Shown or Talked About
Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation
Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures
Assassin's Creed (demoed)
Beautiful Katamari
Bioshock
Blacksite: Area 51
Blue Dragon
Bomberman Live
Brothers in Arms Hell's Highway
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (demoed)
Civilization: Revolution
Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts
Dance Dance Revolution Universe 2
Devil May Cry 4
Eternal Sonota
FIFA Soccer 08
Gears of War PC (demoed)
Golden Axe
Grand Theft Auto IV
Guitar Hero III
Halo 3
Halo Wars
Hexic 2
Lost Odyssey
Madden NFL 08
Marathon: Durandal
Mass Effect
Naruto: Rise of a Ninja
NCAA Football 08 (demoed)
Need for Speed: ProStreet
Project Gotham Racing 4 (demoed)
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords
Resident Evil 5
Rock Band (demoed)
Scene It? Lights,Camera, Action
Sensible World of Soccer
Sonic the Hedghog
Spider-Man: Friend or Foe
Stranglehold
The Simpsons Game
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Conviction
Too Human
Undertow
Virtua Fighter 5
Viva Pinata PC
Viva Pinata: Party Animals
War World
Note: This is far from being a complete list of all the games shown or announced at the press conference. But it's still a pretty darn good one. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments 
7月10日 Filed under: Culture, Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Business 
Konami executive Kazumi Kitaue, head of Konami North America and European ops, dropped a bombshell today saying that Metal Gear Solid 4 may move to other consoles in an attempt to recoup development costs. He also said the PS3 price drop may not turn the ship around. The natural assumption, given the console hardware technology, is that Metal Gear Solid 4 will see its day on the Xbox 360, destroying one of the final feathers in Sony's hat of exclusives.
In regards to the PS3 price cut, Kitaue unleashes the backhand with quickness. "I don't expect a substantial impact ... with $500, you can buy a person computer," Kitaue told Reuters. It's been surprising to see the mainstream media pick up on the $100 price drop without acknowledging that there is a new "better" model at the same price which caused all the calls for a price drop in the first place.
But for gamers, the first acknowledgment that Metal Gear Solid might find its way to other consoles is what's really going to shake things up. Kitaue says, "Since Metal Gear Solid was born for the PlayStation, we would like to keep it a PlayStation game. But we might have to take some steps." Whether those steps are announced this week or if this is some last ditch effort by Konami to force Sony to pony up exclusivity cash, which they say they do not do, is worth wondering about. If MGS goes to the Xbox 360 ... well, all eyes will be on Final Fantasy XIII as the last famous third-party man standing. Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments 
 
Filed under: News, Xbox Live Marketplace, E3  Less than an hour ago we were graced with our first Bringing it Home XBLM content which offered up gamer pictures and a theme. And now we're happy to announce that we have our first Bringing it Home demo! Up for download off the Marketplace is a NCAA Football 08 demo coming in at 684MBs of what we expect to be full of football fun. Though, this cannot be guaranteed. We welcome football fans to give the demo a download, tell us what you think and share your overall impressions as we aren't overly familiar with the genre. Heck, maybe you could count every frame in a second to see if the game runs at its promised 60 FPS.
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7月6日 Microsoft Corp. today announced that it will expand its global Xbox 360™ warranty coverage. Any Xbox 360 customer who experiences a general hardware failure indicated by three flashing red lights will now be covered by a three year warranty from date of purchase. All other existing Xbox 360 warranty policies remain in place.
As a result of what Microsoft views as an unacceptable number of repairs to Xbox 360 consoles, the company conducted extensive investigations into potential sources of general hardware failures. Having identified a number of factors which can cause general hardware failures indicated by three red flashing lights on the console, Microsoft has made improvements to the console and is enhancing its Xbox 360 warranty policy for existing and new customers.
Microsoft stands behind its products and is taking responsibility to repair or replace any Xbox 360 console that experiences the “three flashing red lights” error message within three years from time of purchase free of charge, including shipping costs. Microsoft will take a $1.05 billion to $1.15 billion pre-tax charge to earnings for the quarter ended June 30, 2007 for anticipated costs under its current and enhanced Xbox 360 policies.
“The majority of Xbox 360 owners are having a great experience with their console and have from day one. But, this problem has caused frustration for some of our customers and for that, we sincerely apologize,” said Robbie Bach, president of Microsoft’s Entertainment & Devices Division. “We value our community tremendously and look at this as an investment in our customer base. We look forward to great things to come.”
For any customer who has previously paid for repair expenses related to the three flashing lights error message on the Xbox 360 console, Microsoft will retroactively reimburse them.
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