Microsoft E3 Press Conference: Xbox Live Redesign, Final Fantasy XIII, Rock Band 2
(Photo Credit: Daniel Terdiman/CNET News)
Microsoft kicked off E3 with a bang, making a slew of announcements this morning, including a sneak peak of Final Fantasy XIII, Rock Band 2 and a redesign of Xbox Live.
Highlights of the Press Conference included:
-New FF XIII Trailer, confirmed for Xbox 360.
-Rock Band 2 will be released this fall, with an exclusive tracks from Guns & Roses, Bob Dylan and AC/DC. All songs from the first Rock Band will also be transferable to Rock Band 2, eliminating disc swapping. In all, Rock Band 2 will have a total of 500 songs.
-Xbox Live is getting a huge makeover this fall, via software update. No more blades, instead XBL will have a cleaner look based on the new My Xbox Channel. The new update will also include avatars, similar to Mii characters on the Nintendo Wii. Microsoft also confirmed the rumored Netflix partnership, allowing users to access movies from their Netflix queues via Xbox Live.
-Guitar Hero World Tour’s new wireless drum kit, new guitar and new game modes were shown, along with the “music studio” which allows users to create and share tracks online. Also, Metallica’s Death Magnetic will be available for download when the album launches this fall.
-Gears of War 2 will be released November 7. A new online mode called “horde” was also unveiled, allowing up to five players to take on locusts.
-Fable II is finished.
-Resident Evil 5 Playable Demo unveiled. Given a March 13 release date.
-First Fallout 3 gameplay revealed.
Microsoft’s Gamerscoreblog released a media alert of some of the games shown during the press conference. You can view that video here.
YOOOOOOOOOOOOO this conference was big!!!! The new avatar for the 360 is a Big Plus!! I would enjoy the new netflix add on to the market place because it make watching movies a whole lot easier. Plus the new dash board rocks!!!! I love the 360 and the upcomming games like gears and fable 2 also final fantasy 13!! #60 is the best!!!
if you need someone to do vocals for your rock band 2 review, you know where to find me…
Everyone wants to follow the Wii’s examples and create avatars which I think is a great feature. I wish the avatars for the 360 were a little less cartoony coming from the more mature system.