25 minutes ago from Joystiq
Microsoft has announced that the live TV features coming to its newly revealed Xbox One will first be available in North America, and then will then transition into other regions after that. In a press release from the company, Microsoft noted that "live TV with Kinect Navigation, live TV with OneGuide, Trending, and NFL on Xbox" will all roll out in the US "at launch," but was "anticipating global scale over time."
Microsoft also said that the Xbox One will require a separate cable box, specifying "at launch," so it's possible that the console maker has other plans to deliver television content. The Xbox One is set for release later on this year, and Microsoft has not yet revealed a price.
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1 hour and 10 minutes ago from Joystiq
While no one explicitly named any streaming media applications during Microsoft's Xbox One reveal ceremony, screenshots have emerged on the new console's official site that give us a hint at what we'll be watching on day one.
So far, apps listed include such staples as Netflix, Hulu Plus and HBOgo, in addition to slightly more esoteric offerings such as Crackle and The CW. Microsoft has yet to specifically name any of these apps during today's flurry of announcements, however, so we're keeping an ear to the ground for further confirmation and (hopefully) information on other streaming media apps launching with the system.
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1 hour and 40 minutes ago from Joystiq
The Xbox One's next-generation Kinect has a greater interest in your facial features, and is capable of discerning your identity, even if you hand off the controller.
In a brief demonstration in one of its Kinect testing rooms, Microsoft showed press how the Kinect kept track of two player profiles, each tied to a controller in use. When Player 1 and Player 2 swap controllers, the Xbox One is able to recognize which profile is the new Player 1. The Kinect also monitors the position of players, meaning it can match portions of split-screen games to the side of the screen at which that player is looking. This may also translate to fighting games, which is good news if you're the sort to get confused when your spot in the couch isn't aligned with your character.
Microsoft also demonstrated a few more tricks made possible by the new Kinect's enhanced sense of depth, its greater field of view - which does make closer gaming in smaller apartments a more feasible - its ability to see in the dark via infrared, and its flattering scrutiny of facial features. By examining your face's skin color and transparency, the Kinect and Xbox One are able to estimate your current heart rate. Whether or not someone puts that information to good use in Kinect games or fitness programs is another matter, as we've learned from Nintendo's flatlined "vitality sensor."
Valve has experimented with biometric data in games too, adjusting game difficulty, objectives and timers in response to the player's physical state. With a Kinect shipping alongside every Xbox One, and assuming the camera is relatively accurate, biometric influence over gameplay may become less esoteric in the near future.
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2 hours and 10 minutes ago from Joystiq
Microsoft's plans for the used games market on the newly announced Xbox One were a roller coaster ride this afternoon, with GameStop being the one to lose its lunch on the ride. The company's stock started an immediate dip once the news began to circulate that the console wouldn't support used games, closing the day down five percent (down -1.98 to 36.78/share).
Microsoft issued a statement after the market's close regarding Wired's report, stating the news wasn't accurate, but wouldn't detail exactly how the information was incorrect.
"It doesn't help Microsoft to block, and will alienate consumers. They should stay out of the controversy," said Wedbush Security analyst Michael Pachter who attended today's reveal of the new console at the Microsoft campus. "It is a dumb idea for Microsoft to get involved."
He continued, "They could just as easily invalidate a download if the same disc is subsequently downloaded to another Xbox One, and the seller of the game wouldn't complain. The article reaches a conclusion without foundation, and was irresponsible."
As of this posting it's still unclear what Microsoft's plans are for used games market. GameStop's pre-owned video game products represented $2.4 billion in sales, representing 27.4 percent of the company's income and $1.1 billion (48.1 percent) of company's gross profit. [Image: nuttapol yupothong via Shutterstock]
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2 hours and 40 minutes ago from Joystiq
We don't know when it's coming out, but the Xbox One is available for pre-order at European retailers Game and Zavvi. It's also up for "pre-order notifications" on Amazon, the Microsoft Store, GameStop and Best Buy. Best Buy's ad lists the Xbox One with a "holiday 2013" release window, though all we know officially is that it's coming "later this year."
Game lists a pre-order holding price of £20 for the Xbox One, while Zavvi's pre-order down payment is £400. Zavvi also has a lineup of Xbox One games for £50, including Call of Duty: Ghosts and four EA Sports games.
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3 hours and 10 minutes ago from Joystiq
Microsoft senior director of product planning Albert Penello confirmed with Engadget that the upcoming Xbox One console will ship with 500GB of non-removable, non-replaceable integrated storage. He assures, however, that alternative storage solutions are available.
While users will be unable to service the Xbox One's internal hard drive or replace it with a larger-capacity device, Penello notes that external storage devices can be connected via one of the console's three included USB 3.0 ports. Connected USB devices will be capable of storing all content supported by the Xbox One's hard drive, including installed game data and downloaded software.
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3 hours and 40 minutes ago from Joystiq
Huffpost Live is diving into today's Xbox One announcement at 6:20 ET tonight - right now, even - for Tech Tuesday. Of course the Huffpost team needs an expert on the matter, so it brought in Joystiq Reviews Editor Richard Mitchell - after all, he spent the day immersed in Xbox One news.
Watch Huffpost Live's "Tech Tuesday Talks Xbox, Apple & Microsoft!" right here, right now.
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4 hours ago from Joystiq
Eidos Montreal confirmed through its official Tumblr today that Thief will be coming to Xbox One. The game, first announced in 2009, was confirmed for PS4, PC and other next-gen consoles in March, which we can now take to mean the next-generation Xbox revealed today.
The Thief reboot reportedly suffered many setbacks during its five-year development period, including significant turnover in staff at Eidos Montreal. The developer included a "glimpse" at the next-gen game in its Tumblr post in the form of a screen with an alarming amount of fire in it.
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4 hours and 30 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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5 hours 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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