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Microsoft will reveal the next Xbox on May 21

Xbox Reveal May 21

Microsoft has announced that it will reveal the next Xbox on May 21st at an event to take place at the Xbox campus in Redmond. Gamers have been patiently waiting for an announcement from Microsoft on the next Xbox (codenamed Durango,) especially after Sony announced the Playstation 4 at an event in February. The company says that the event will "mark the beginning of a new generation of games, TV, and entertainment." Aside from inviting select press to be on hand, the event will also be broadcast as it happens on Xbox LIVE for all to see. It'll also be broadcast on SPike TV for those who are in the US or Canada.

Don't expect all the info on the next Xbox to be revealed on the 21st, though. Microsoft says that they'll wait about three weeks before announcing the full line-up of games, which it'll do at E3. There's a lot riding on the next Xbox, which follows up the current generations most successful console, the Xbox 360.

Read More | Major Nelson

Gallery: Microsoft will reveal the next Xbox on May 21


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Xbox SmartGlass now available for Amazon Kindle Fire tablets

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Microsoft, Xbox 360,

Xbox SmartGlass amazon kindle

This morning Xbox SmartGlass made its long-awaited debut on the Amazon Appstore. You can now download Microsoft's second-screen app for the Amazon Kindle Fire and Kindle Fire HD, fitting perfectly on the display of all Fire and Fire HD tablet models. With Xbox SmartGlass, which has been available for iOS, Windows, Windows Phone, and Android for the past six months, users can navigate and control their Xbox 360 consoles right from the tablet or smartphone.

Read More | Xbox SmartGlass for Kindle Fire

Gallery: Xbox SmartGlass now available for Amazon Kindle Fire tablets


No one is buying the Wii U

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Corporate News, Nintendo, Wii U,

Wii U low sales

It looks like Nintendo's Wii U, the follow-up to the highly successful Wii, is continuing to falter in terms of sales. In fact, Gamasutra is reporting that it received a tip from someone with access to the latest NPD sales data for January, and it shows Wii U sales were well under 100,000 sold. In fact, it estimates that the number lies somewhere between 45k-59k for January. That is bad. To put that into perspective, the Wii U is not even four months old yet, and it has already sold less in January than the Xbox 360, Playstation 3, or Nintendo Wii sold in any month, ever. Nintendo is going to have to do something about this fairly quickly. The Playstation 4 has already been unveiled, and the next Xbox is reportedly set for an unveiling next month, and you can bet that both of these consoles will offer "true" next-generation experiences.

Read More | Wii U

Gallery: No one is buying the Wii U


Will the next Xbox require game installs, killing used games for good?

Xbox Infinity Used Games

The big rumor on the street about the next Xbox is that Microsoft will block used games from working with the console. Reports from sources have hit various news outlets saying that the new Xbox, which should launch later this year, will require mandatory game installs to the hard drive of the console, and will require an activation code in order to get them to play. Once the code is used, that game is activated for that console specifically (or, maybe, that specific Gamertag,) and won't work on other consoles, effectively killing the used game market.

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Read More | MCV India

Gallery: Will the next Xbox require game installs, killing used games for good?


Google Trends shows Microsoft’s next Xbox is already beating Playstation 4

Posted by John Kilhefner Categories: Culture, PlayStation 3, Sony, Xbox, Xbox 360,

Next generation Xbox 720

We trust Google with a lot of things: we trust that it will be there for us when our memory fails and that it will find the best information for us. Can we trust it to predict the future for us too? Well, the future of consumer electronics at least.

Based on Google Trends searches, Microsoft's next generation system is poised to take down Sony's next Playstation console. Google Trends previously held the data that showed the winner of the high-def DVD race, as Blu-ray yielded more search results than HD DVD films. This time, news site Ludos Mundi used Google Trends to discover whose winning the next-gen popularity contest, and found users search "Xbox 720" about 60 percent of the time, compared to searches for "PS4" that occur 40 percent of the time.

You can use Google Trends yourself to see the data. Simply compare "Xbox 720" and "PS4" using the Forecast feature.

Read More | Ludos Mundi via Venture Beat

Gallery: Google Trends shows Microsoft’s next Xbox is already beating Playstation 4


New Tiers added to Xbox Community Ambassador program

Posted by John Kilhefner Categories: Internet, Microsoft, Xbox Live,

Xbox Community Ambassador levels tiers

The Xbox Community Ambassador campaign now has five more tier levels added to it, which include awards ranging from free Avatar swag to the Xbox Live gamer spotlight. The Xbox Community Ambassador program rewards Xbox Live members who assist other members through chat or the forum, acting as a reputation system that awards XP that can be redeemed.

The new tiers are listed below:

  • Level 11, gold star avatar t-shirt.
  • Level 12, gold star avatar hat and 10 tickets for periodic ambassador sweepstakes.
  • Level 13, gamer spotlight, ilomilo on Xbox Live Arcade.
  • Level 14, one month Xbox Live subscription and 10 ambassador sweepstakes tickets.
  • Level 15, avatar spacesuit, 800 Microsoft Points.

If you're interested in becoming an ambassaor, you can apply here.

Read More | Xbox Community Ambassadors

Gallery: New Tiers added to Xbox Community Ambassador program


Xbox 360 Sells 750,000 Last Week, more than Wii U and Wii combined

Xbox 360 black Friday sales

If Major Nelson's calculations are correct, the Xbox 360, a seven year-old console, has outsold the Wii U and Wii combined during the week of November 18th. The Wii U sold 400,000 units during its launch week, and the old Wii managed to still sell 300,000. The Xbox 360 sold 750,000. This is a remarkably high number for a console so late in it's life cycle, and it begs the question, do we need new hardware anytime soon?

The number of Xbox Live Gold subscriptions also increased more than 50 percent compared to last year's Black Friday week, with over 14 million people logged into Xbox Live on Sunday alone.

Sony hasn't revealed its numbers yet, but it looks like the Xbox 360 will end up being the best selling console in the US for November. You can pick one up on Amazon.

Read More | Major Nelson via Neowin

Gallery: Xbox 360 Sells 750,000 Last Week, more than Wii U and Wii combined


Max Payne 3 gets “Painful Memories” DLC, revisits older games

Max Payne 3 painful memories

New DLC is coming for Max Payne 3, well, sort of. The "Painful Memories" map pack releasing December 4th will bring four new maps inspired from past Max Payne games. These maps include Roscoe Street Subway, Marty's Bar, Shoot First and Canal De Panama.

Painful Memories also comes with two new assault rifles, the IMG 5.56 and the UAR-21.  A new ability, Hangover Burst, allows you to force enemies to respawn with impaired vision, as well as reduced stamina and health. There's also a few new avatars and items as well.

The Painful Memories DLC will release for the Xbox 360, PS3, and PC on December 4th for 800 Microsoft Points, or $9.99.

Read More | Rockstar

Gallery: Max Payne 3 gets “Painful Memories” DLC, revisits older games


Microsoft developing smaller Xbox set-top box

Posted by John Kilhefner Categories: Microsoft, Rumors, Xbox,

Xbox set top box

Microsoft is developing a set-top box as an alterntative to a fully-fledged next generation gaming device. The set-top will run on core components of Windows 8, offering casual gaming titles (most likely through Xbox Live) instead of the big productions you'll find on the next-generation of Xbox consoles.

Furthering the casual theme of the set-top box, Microsoft is planning on incorporating a chipset enabling the device to boot up practically instantaenously for quick and simple access to TV, games and other entertainment services.

The set-top box is but one step in Microsoft's plan to bring the core architecture of the next-generation across several devices, such as a phone capable of handling a complete Xbox Live experience.

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Gallery: Microsoft developing smaller Xbox set-top box


Xbox 360 gets custom design marking 10 years of Xbox Live

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Hardware, Microsoft, Xbox 360, Xbox Live,

Custom 10 year xbox live xbox 360 console

Microsoft has put together another custom-designed Xbox 360 console, this one celebrating the 10-year anniversary of Xbox Live. As you can see in the image above, it's a dark gray console with green and orange accents, and an "X" design papered all over the hardware. It's a great looking device to our eyes. It was announced on Twitter by Major Nelson, who confirmed that the company is giving these out to a number of Xbox Live members who've stuck around since the beginning.

Click to continue reading Xbox 360 gets custom design marking 10 years of Xbox Live

Gallery: Xbox 360 gets custom design marking 10 years of Xbox Live


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