Game Daily News 3/7/07
http://gamerscoreblog.com/team/archive/2007/03/06/542176.aspx
Xbox LIVE Reaches 6 Million Members 4 Months Ahead of Schedule
At E3 this past year, Microsoft announced the goal that the Xbox LIVE community would be 6 million members strong by June 2007. We underestimated ourselves.
Microsoft is proud to announce today that more than 6 million gamers worldwide are connected to Xbox LIVE, a milestone that was reached 4 months ahead of schedule. Xbox LIVE, the premier online entertainment network, offers the best in online gaming, ubiquitous voice, video and text chatting, Achievements, demos, trailers and more.
And, with Xbox LIVE Video Marketplace, gamers can download thousands of hours of premium entertainment content, from high-def TV shows like “CSI” or “Robot Chicken,” to full-length films such as “Saw III” or “Crank.” And, as announced this past week, Xbox LIVE members can download the first ever HD episode of “South Park,” exclusive to the Xbox 360 and available free starting today, March 6.
Below you will find the latest in Xbox 360 and Xbox LIVE momentum data, including how many Achievements have been unlocked to-date and the top 5 Xbox LIVE Arcade list.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to let us know.
Xbox 360 | Momentum Fact Sheet
Xbox 360
- More than 10 million Xbox 360s have hit store shelves since launch in November 2005, and more than 160 high definition games are now available, including Viva Piñata, Gears of War and Crackdown.
- Xbox 360 is available in 37 countries.
- The overall software attach rate for Xbox 360 is 4.6 titles per console in the
Xbox LIVE Connectivity & Usage:
- More than 6 million people are members of Xbox LIVE.
- Following the launch of the Xbox LIVE online gaming network in November 2002, gamers have spent over 2.3 billion hours on the network playing games online with their friends around the world. This is equal to 95 million days of gaming or over 260,000 years. With our top title, Halo 2, which is being played on both the Xbox and Xbox 360, gamers have spent over 710 million hours playing online with over a half a billion games played.
- In fact, online gaming through Xbox LIVE is now a proven form of mainstream entertainment. The 18-34 male audience is comparable in size to the same audience tuning in to see the most popular network TV shows like CSI or The Office.
- Xbox LIVE on Xbox 360 continues to grow as a social community; we are seeing an average of over 2,000,000 text and voice messages sent every day between members on the service.
· The average Xbox LIVE Gold subscriber has 22 friends on their Xbox LIVE friends list.
· To date, Xbox 360 owners have unlocked nearly 300 million Achievements. All of those unlocked Achievements have created a total combined Gamerscore of nearly 7.5 billion.
- Top WW Xbox LIVE Titles on Xbox 360 to date:
1 Halo 2
2 Gears of War
3 Hexic HD
4 Call of Duty 2
5 Ghost Recon 3
6 Call Of Duty 3
7 Oblivion
8 PGR3
9 Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six® Vegas
10 Perfect Dark Zero
(Based on the number of unique users)
Xbox LIVE Marketplace:
- Consumers have quickly jumped to the Xbox LIVE Marketplace as their one-stop download center. More than 70 percent Xbox LIVE members are downloading content from Marketplace, driving more than 135 million downloads since the launch of Xbox 360.
- Xbox LIVE Marketplace is home to more than 7,000 pieces of individual gaming and entertainment content, downloadable at the click of a button.
- Gamers have also quickly adopted the new Microsoft Points stored value system, with more than 5 Billion points activated on Marketplace to date.
- Online entertainment through Xbox LIVE is not just limited to games. Xbox 360 is the only console offering movie and TV downloads, and the new Xbox LIVE Video Marketplace is packed with HD content from top partners such as
Xbox LIVE
- Xbox LIVE Arcade has been an instant hit on the Xbox 360, with nearly 70% of all connected consoles already downloading and playing Xbox LIVE
- Xbox LIVE
- Top worldwide Xbox LIVE
| 1. Street Fighter II' Hyper Fighting |
| 2. Bankshot Billiards 2 |
| 3. Marble Blast Ultra |
| 4. UNO |
| 5. DOOM |
(this has to be wrong, where is Geometry Wars?!)
http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3157812
Sega's Pachinko Game Using Miis , Wi
Didn't we just hear this wouldn't happen till 2008?
By Dan Dormer, 03/07/2007
In an odd turn of events, it's being reported by Cubed3 that Sega Sammy's Jissen Pachinko/Pachislot Hisshouhou! Sammy's Collection Hokuto no Ken Wii is going to be using both the Wi-Fi and Mii capabilities of Wii. Take a look at the screen to the right, and you can see clearly a Mii in usage within the game's menus.
This flies directly in the face of what we reported earlier this week, when an EA producer said that Nintendo hadn't provided any third-party developers with the tools to use Miis in their games. Now, since Pachinko games are directed towards Japanese gamers, chances are it won't show up here, either. You have to wonder when a non-Nintendo game will include online play or utilization of the Miis.
http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3157807
EA Expects PS3 to Lose Ground this Gen
Sony will still win, but they'll pay a price this time around.
By Patrick Klepek, 03/07/2007
There's no doubt Microsoft and Nintendo came with guns blazing this generation. Even if PlayStation 3 avoided many of the roadblocks that have plagued Sony, Xbox 360 and Wii have surprised a great number of people, so it's hardly a surprise they would lose some key marketshare to the two giants. Electronic Arts, speaking during an webcast investor conference listened in on by Reuters, agrees.
"We expect that there will be a more level playing field this time around than last time. I think the issue is that (the PS3 is) expensive. This should not have surprised anyone," said company CEO Larry Probest, simultaneously warning that "No one should count Sony out at this point in the game. This is going to be a long race."
To EA and other companies that have so heavily invested in Sony products in the past, however, the concern isn't really so much if Sony will lose marketshare, but how much, and what does that mean for the next set of consoles?
http://www.gamedailyxl.com/2007/03/07/gdc-little-big-planet/
GDC: Little Big Planet Impressions
Posted Mar 7th 2007 1:31PM by Bob Workman
Filed under: PS3, GDC, GDC Game Impressions, GDC Live Updates
Sony's new little wonder could change the face of game creation as we know it.
During last night's pre-GDC conference with Sony, Phil Harrison introduced two development team members from Media Molecule, the creators of the innovative PC game Rag Doll Kung Fu. The members then introduced a new project for the PlayStation 3 service, aptly named Little Big Planet.
Think it's just another take on the "cute little mascot" in a "cute little created world"? You might want to think again. Little Big Planet covers a whole lot of territory.Little Big Planet is a game where players take the role of characters that look like stuffed monkeys. Players can manipulate the arm movements of these cute little creatures with the analog sticks, allowing them to wave them with careless abandon. Multiple players can enter into this universe at once, as the demo showed four characters interacting together all at once.
The Media Molecule team members showed off a small portion of the game's creative field in the beginning, an area enclosed with tarps. From there, they called up several icons with the press of a button, including a pirate ship steering wheel (in which the characters could hang off of and run on top off with continued momentum), a huge soccer ball, and an orange, which they happily decorated with eyes and a goofy smile. The two messed around with slapping the terrain with all kinds of wacky designs... but that was just the beginning of the demo.
From there, the two were joined on stage by two other Media Molecule members, each dressed up in interesting garb, including a spaceman's outfit and some kind of twisted Chinatown-like outfit. They even put accessories on each other, like ear bobblers and other small things. But then the four broke free of the small contained area, entering into an even larger, pre-designed world. Here, they competed in a contest across the vast level, collecting yellow globs while working competitively...as well as cooperatively.
Confused? Here's an explanation The competitive angle of the demo came in the form of collecting the globs, seeing who had the most picked up over the journey. However, parts of the level required teamwork to get ahead, such as activating a lever or pulling down something so the other characters could access it. The game went through many twists and turns, showing off several fantastic lighting and animation effects before eventually coming to a close, with the four cute little characters riding on a skateboard down a steep ramp and waving us off with smiles on their faces.
The best part about all this? Little Big Planet lets players design levels such as this without requiring previous experience. Seriously. The Media Molecule team promised easy-to-use tools to be on hand, along with lots of interactivity. How much interactivity? Players can download other levels created by other users with the mere push of a button. They can upload their levels as well.
Little Big Planet won't be available for a little while, as it's not set to debut until fall 2007. But the promise of this project looks very, very fulfilling thus far...and those characters are just too damn cute to ignore, aren't they? Look for more coverage on this innovation in the weeks ahead.
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=23339
Guitar Hero developer on board with EA for MTV-branded title
Electronic Arts has used its pre-GDC event in
The deal will see the next game from the developer, which is best known for the hugely successful Guitar Hero titles, being published by EA, and was announced by EA Partners boss David DeMartini and Harmonix founder Alex Rigopoulos last night.
Harmonix is owned by MTV Networks, having been purchased by the media giant in a $175 million deal shortly after Guitar Hero's publisher, RedOctane, was snapped up by Activision for over $90 million.
The developer is no longer working on Guitar Hero titles, with work on the franchise being brought in-house by Activision to its wholly owned Neversoft subsidiary, and Harmonix' next title will instead use the MTV branding of its new parent company.
The deal with EA gives MTV and Harmonix access to the most powerful marketing, sales and distribution channels in the industry - for a game which Harmonix CEO Rigopoulos told US website GameSpot last night would be "by far our most ambitious undertaking ever."
http://www.gametab.com/news/835480/
Microsoft's sneaky Xbox 360 "update"
Posted Mar 6th 2007 1:17PM by John Bardinelli
Filed under: Culture, Hacks, Microsoft Xbox 360, Online
In an underhanded move -- some would say, without honor -- Microsoft has covertly patched a security vulnerability in Xbox 360 that allowed hackers to run their own software. Disguised as an "operating system update," the patch seals off the console's non-privileged memory areas, which hackers are using to do such depraved things as write "Hello World" and try to run Linux. The update will be included with all games released after February 20 and is available to download via Xbox Live or the Xbox website (burnable onto CD or DVD). You best grab it before the uncontrollable urge to indulge in naughty hackery takes hold.
Next time, Microsoft, tell us what we're downloading instead of slipping us a patch in an update's clothing. We're on to your shenanigans...
http://www.gametab.com/news/836129/
GDC 2007: Games for Windows Live Pricing Revealed
Will PC gamers be willing to spend $49.99 a year?
By Dan Dormer, 03/06/2007
During a press event attended by Game Informer, Microsoft finally, finally revealed just how much they're going to be charging for the Games for Windows Live and despite popular speculation (and hope), it's no where near free. In fact, the model rings in at the same price as a yearly subscription to an Xbox 360 membership: $49.99 a year ($7.99 a month, $19.99 for three months) for Gold, while Silver, as it is on Xbox, is free.
However, if you're already a subscriber to Xbox Live via Xbox 360, Microsoft won't be forcing you to shell out any more cash -- the subscription carries over. Outside of MMOs, multiplayer gaming on the PC has been a free experience for a very long time. With Live working as a matchmaking service and not hosting games (that's actually what you're doing), is it fair for Microsoft to expect PC owners to pay the same for the Live experience? On a console, there are no options without Live, whereas plenty of games don't require a paid matchmaking system on the PC.
http://www.gametab.com/news/834705/
Nintendo's corporate briefing: declassified!
Mario factory releases full transcript and video presentation of its recent management policy briefing that details its vision for the Wii.
By Tor Thorsen, GameSpot
Posted Jun 21, 2006 4:59 pm PT
Two weeks ago, Nintendo's top brass held a media briefing in
Unsurprisingly, the presentation focuses on the success of the Nintendo DS, which Nintendo now claims has greater market share than the PlayStation 2 in
Iwata also talked up Touch Generations, the subbrand which targets nontraditional gamers such as seniors and women. The division has enjoyed phenomenal success in
On its own site, Nintendo also released the transcript of a Q&A session held after the event with Iwata and legendary game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. When asked about the exact price and launch date of the Wii, Iwata said he "believe[d] we will need to announce the precise price and launch date of Wii in or before September this year." He also reiterated his belief that, unlike the PlayStation 2 and Xbox 360, the Wii will not be sold at much below its manufacturing cost. "We do not intend to lose a great deal of money from the hardware sales," he said.
Iwata dodged questions about whether Nintendo intends to lower its software prices to promote adoption of the Wii. "Many in this industry once appeared to believe that marking down hardware prices or attaching free software was the only way to expand the installed base," he said. "What is notable today is, people are actively purchasing a 15,000 yen [$130.69] DS or a 16,800 yen [$146.37] Lite just because they want to play 2,800 yen [$24.39] software."
Iwata was then asked about how he expects Wii sales to stack up compared to the GameCube, whose third-place finish in the current-gen platform race has been considered a disappointment, given Nintendo's former console supremacy. The executive was blunt in his appraisal: "Wii will be a failure if it cannot sell far more than GameCube did," he said. "In fact, we shouldn't continue this business if our only target is to outsell GameCube. Naturally, we are making efforts so that Wii will show a far greater result than GameCube." Later on in the Q&A session, he would predict that Nintendo expects to ship 6 million Wii hardware units and 17 million Wii software units during its current fiscal year, which ends on March 31, 2007.
Iwata also tacitly admitted that the GameCube had not lived up to expectations. "When we launched GameCube, the initial sales were good, and all the hardware we manufactured at that time were sold through," he said. "However, after this period, we could not provide the market with strong software titles in a timely fashion. As a result, we could not leverage the initial launch time momentum and sales of GameCube slowed down."
Then it was Miyamoto's turn. A questioner asked the Legend of Zelda creator how he thought consumers would react to the Wii's dramatically different, motion-sensing control scheme. "We believe that we have already reached to the stage where we need to show the new vision for the whole entertainment," he said. "This is why we have decided to alter the game-control interface significantly, not just slightly." Displaying his trademark playfulness, Miyamoto added, "I have just been trying to make something fun."
Naturally, the subject of the Wii's name came up, and Iwata was quick to shoot down conspiracy theories that the moniker was some sort of elaborate hoax. "I am one of the people who have decided this final product name," he said. "Of course, I am not the only person to make this decision, but I have never thought that it was a mistake to name it 'Wii.' I understand that a great many people have already accepted this product name. When someone has some hesitation today, we'd like to make efforts so that they will come to like this name in the end."
Genyo Takeda, general manager of Nintendo's Integrated Research & Development division, also chimed in on the process of making the Wii. "Talking about the process on how we come up with new console ideas, Wii development was the hardest in my own experience," he said. "Nintendo has developed NES, Super NES, N64, and GameCube, and when we looked back, I felt that we were just rushing forward following
http://www.joystiq.com/2007/03/07/playstation-home-the-free-virtual-world-of-playstation-3/
PlayStation Home, the free virtual world of PlayStation 3
Posted Mar 7th 2007 1:31PM by Jared Rea
Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, MMO
Sony has validated the "blackball rumor" with the unveiling of PlayStation Home -- a free to download, virtual world for the PlayStation 3. While earlier murmurings mentioned customizable avatars and achievements, our brief demonstration revealed that to be just the tip of the iceberg.
Comparable to Second Life, PlayStation Home is a virtual community of PS3 owners living together in both public and private environments. Users will be able to login, chat with both text and speech and play casual games together such as pool, bowling and even embedded arcade machines. And when the old stand-bys grow stale, users can invite one another into other PlayStation Network titles outside of PlayStation Home.
Every user will have their own virtual apartment to decorate with furniture, their trophies from various games (see: achievements) and content from their own PS3s. For example, Phil Harrison took a snapshot of us in the crowd, slapped it onto a USB stick and right into a picture frame in his virtual flat. Not content at just images, users will also be allowed to share both music and videos with friends inside their private homes, which will most likely lead to some sort of underground pornography syndicate on the PlayStation Network.
Check out video footage of PlayStation Home after the jump!
And while the download itself is free, users can choose to accentuate their looks with additional clothing for an unspecified fee. The PlayStation Home will also feature dynamic advertising -- the details of which are not currently known. A large scale beta for the service begins this April with the final product to see release this Fall.
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KATHERINN TRAN
