28 minutes ago from Joystiq
Microsoft's Xbox reveal event went down today, where the company unveiled its next Xbox, called the Xbox One.
It's a cloud-based machine sporting an improved Kinect camera, along with a rejiggered controller with a new dpad and integrated battery compartment. The console itself has a Blu-ray drive, 500GB of internal storage and an eight-core x86 CPU running 8GB of system memory. In many ways, it's similar to the make-up of the PS4.
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1 minute ago from Joystiq
Microsoft's reveal of its next-gen console, the Xbox One, was high on broad entertainment apps such as Skype, interactive programming, media management and Kinect-powered features. Games saw a smaller showing, with two new announcements and a trailer for Call of Duty: Ghosts. Indie games got an even smaller nod - that is, none at all.
E3 is right around the corner, with the Microsoft conference on June 10. Maybe that's where all of the Xbox One games are hiding, along with the console's indie plan. We asked a handful of indie developers what Microsoft's presentation today said to them specifically, and what they want to see at E3. Below we have responses from Rami Ismail of Ridiculous Fishing fame, Octodad's Philip Tibitoski, DLC Quest's Ben Kane, Charlie Murder's James Silva, Retro City Rampage's Brian Provinciano and Fez's Phil Fish.
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31 minutes ago from Joystiq
Apart from its whiz-bang voice, motion and video capture features, the Xbox One also features some new tech under the hood to improve Xbox Live. In addition to a huge server boost and dynamic Achievements, the new Xbox Live will use a feature called Smart Match, which "uses advanced algorithms to pair players based on skill, language, and now reputation."
Microsoft hasn't provided further details, but it sounds like reputation is the biggest difference between Smart Match and TrueSkill, Xbox Live's current skill rating system. TrueSkill only takes player skill into account when creating matches.
Microsoft has also provided a little more info on the new persistent side of Xbox Live. Called "Living Games," the tech leverages cloud computing to create persistent worlds. The company adds that "your games stay in sync with the real world, which means the latest stats can be automatically fed into your sports games." Furthermore, "Advanced AI even allows your friends to play against your shadow when you're not available."
We're assuming Microsoft got the idea after a late night viewing of Michael Keaton's 1996 comedy smash, Multiplicity.
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48 minutes ago from Joystiq
The Xbox One's connection to the cloud can alter a game's Achievements in response to player behavior, Microsoft has revealed at its ongoing unveiling event in Redmond. Dan Greenawalt, Creative Director at Forza developer Turn 10 Studios, cited the "I took an arrow to the knee" meme as an example of how game makers might hinge their extrinsic rewards on post-launch reactions.
The meme began with The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim, in which droves of melancholic guards told the same story about an old injury.
To extrapolate from Greenawalt's comment, it seems Microsoft is keen to further distance itself from the idea of the game as a static disc. Xbox 360 games had their Achievement lists extended with significant title updates and downloadable expansions, but the Xbox One is expected to update the rewards list more fluidly. Game creators may use Achievements to encourage comical or topical behavior, or use them to educate players if they're missing certain features or secrets.
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1 hour and 1 minute ago from Joystiq
Are you too popular for the Xbox 360? The Xbox One is here for you with an expanded friends list limit of 1000, as revealed by Microsoft Support's official Twitter account. That's ten times the limit on Xbox 360, so even the most beloved of gamers should be placated.
[Thanks, Dan]
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1 hour and 16 minutes ago from Joystiq
Infinity Ward is back in the driver's seat of Call of Duty with Call of Duty: Ghosts. In this behind-the-scenes video diary, key talent opine on what that means for them.
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1 hour and 25 minutes ago from Rock, Paper, Shotgun
Call of Duty has a dog now. Not just one that attacks you in multiplayer, either. This one’s yours, and it’s meticulously mo-capped to boot. While last year’s edition was all about DRONES DRONES DRONES (and occasionally horses), Call of Duty: Ghosts is trying to tell a Truly Human And Emotional Story about “underdog” military [...]
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1 hour and 34 minutes ago from Joystiq
Battlefield 4 has announced via its Facebook page that the game will launch on October 29 of this year. In addition to versions on the PC, Xbox 360, the PlayStation 3 and the PlayStation 4, the team has also confirmed the game will be coming to Microsoft's newly announced Xbox One console. The Xbox One doesn't have a confirmed launch date just yet, so it's possible that version will arrive later.
Additionally, EA's announced Battlefield 4's first expansion pack, called China Rising. The pack will contain four extra maps, along with extra vehicles and weapons. It will be available at launch, and come free with any pre-order of the game.
And speaking of confirmed Xbox One titles, Bungie has also made it clear that Destiny is due out on Xbox One as well. Stay tuned for more confirmations on next-gen titles for Microsoft's new console.
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1 hour and 36 minutes ago from Joystiq
Info on Microsoft's 'Meet Xbox One' page reveals the newly unveiled console allows you to play 'immediately as games install.' The Xbox One can install games to the console's 500GB hard drive, and according to one report may require games to be installed. Either way, going by this, players can boot games as soon as they start installing them.
In terms of instantly switching between games and the system's other functions like live TV and movies, as detailed during Microsoft's presser, the page confirms the Xbox One lets you suspend games "right where you left off, so you can resume instantly." Think how the Vita works when you exit and suspend a game to use the system's other available functions. Except not with a Vita, but with a shiny new Xbox.
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1 hour and 44 minutes ago from Joystiq
Xbox One, Microsoft's next-gen console, does not require users to be constantly connected to the internet, but it does require an internet connection, a Q&A post on Xbox Wire said. The post itself has since been removed.
The answer said the Xbox One "does not have to be always connected, but Xbox One does require a connection to the Internet."
Developers are able to use Microsoft's Azure cloud computing service with Xbox One - this could potentially shift certain computations to the cloud and require players to be online, even for single-player runs, Wired reports.
For pre-owned games, the Xbox One is designed "to enable customers to trade in and resell games," Microsoft said in the same Q&A post, promising more details later.
All games can be installed to the Xbox One's 500GB hard drive, removing the need for a disc entirely after the initial load-up, Microsoft tells Wired. If a second account wants to play that game the player will be asked to pay a fee and install the game on his own console. Whether this is a mandatory installation for every game, Microsoft says, "On the new Xbox, all game discs are installed to the HDD to play."
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