Xbox 360 World Premieres Biggest Blockbuster Games and Entertainment
(NewDesignWorld Press Center) - Today, on the eve of the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), Microsoft Corp. premiered a spectacular lineup of new games, demonstrating that Xbox 360 continues to deliver the biggest hits and blockbuster experiences â bar none. This year, Microsoft showcased a host of new groundbreaking exclusive titles on Xbox 360, including âGears of War 3,â âForza Motorsport 4â and the world premiere trailer for âHalo 4.â In addition, Microsoft debuted the next installment of the famed âFableâ franchise with âFable: The Journey,â a game imagined from the ground up for Kinect on Xbox 360 by famed developer Peter Molyneux. Fans were also treated to a preview of the Kinect-powered historical epic, âRyse,â created by acclaimed developer Crytek GmbH. Finally, Microsoft revealed that this winter, âMinecraft,â the independent PC game phenomenon, is making its console debut exclusively on Xbox 360.
In 2010, the controller-free magic and instant fun of Kinect for Xbox 360 captivated consumers all over the world, making it the fastest-selling consumer electronics device in history. This year, millions of Kinect owners will use their entire body to experience the worldâs most iconic entertainment brands through âKinect: Disneyland Adventures,â âKinect Star Warsâ and âSesame Street: Once Upon a Monster.â Fans will also get their bodies in motion while playing the successors to the platformâs best-selling titles, âDance Central 2â and âKinect Sports: Season Two.â
In addition, Kinect Fun Labs, a new hub showcasing the latest Kinect innovations, was unveiled and is available to all Xbox LIVE members starting today. Create magical moments with never before seen Kinect technology, including player capture, object scanning and finger tracking. Kinect Fun Labs will launch with four Gadgets: Kinect Me, Bobble Head, Build A Buddy and Kinect Googly Eyes. More experiences will begin arriving in July, including Avatar Kinect and Kinect Sparkler.
With Kinect and Xbox LIVE, Third-Party Blockbuster Games Are Best on Xbox 360
The industryâs best creators and publishers demonstrated their commitment to immerse Xbox fans even deeper in the action. On Microsoftâs E3 stage, Ubisoft announced that all future Tom Clancy games will be Kinect-enhanced including âTom Clancyâs Ghost Recon Future Soldier.â Microsoft further delighted audiences with the first public demonstration of âCall of Duty: Modern Warfare 3â and reminded them that in 2011 and again in 2012, all âCall of Duty: Modern Warfare 3â add-on content will launch first on Xbox 360.
EA SPORTS announced Kinect support for several of its blockbuster titles in 2012, including âTiger Woods PGA TOUR,â âMadden NFLâ and âFIFA.â In the next 12 months, EA also has several additional titles that will feature Kinect, including âThe Sims⢠3 Pets,â âFamily Game Night 4â and what is sure to be one of the biggest games of 2012, âMass Effect 3.â
âFor Xbox, games have always been at the heart of who we are: the worldâs biggest blockbusters, enduring stories from the worldâs best storytellers and innovative entertainment experiences that you canât find anywhere else,â said Phil Spencer, corporate vice president of Microsoft Studios. âWhether itâs Kinect games like âKinect Star Warsâ and âKinect: Disneyland Adventures,â or the latest installments of our most acclaimed and anticipated exclusive franchises like âGears of War 3â and âHalo 4,â our existing fans, and new ones alike, will find something here to delight them and their families.â
Ultimate Fighting Championship Comes to Xbox 360 and Xbox LIVE
In addition to all the best titles on Xbox 360, Microsoft also announced new blockbuster entertainment, teaming up with UFC. Starting this fall, Xbox LIVE Gold Members can subscribe to UFC to access live pay-per-view matches, classic fights, interviews and exclusive behind-the-scenes looks into the lives of the worldâs greatest fighters; itâs access to the octagon in an all-new interactive way.
With games and entertainment for every member of the household, Xbox 360 continues to bring the best in interactive entertainment to living rooms around the world with the following:
â˘
âCall of Duty: Modern Warfare 3â (Infinity Ward, Sledgehammer Games). The best-selling first-person action series of all time returns with the epic sequel to the record-setting, blockbuster phenomenon âCall of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.â
â˘
âDance Central 2â (Harmonix Music Systems Inc., Microsoft Studios). Following up to the best-selling dance game for Kinect, Harmonix expands the full-body dance game universe with âDance Central 2,â which provides new multiplayer experiences and all-new routines set to an unstoppable soundtrack, featuring Usher, Rihanna, La Roux, Nicki Minaj, Montell Jordan and more. Meet the crews and dance collaboratively with friends in Perform It! or challenge them to a simultaneous head-to-head Dance Battle to determine dance floor supremacy.
â˘
âFable: The Journeyâ (Lionhead Studios, Microsoft Studios). Set five years after the events of âFable III,â âJourneyâ takes you on a magical journey with only your loyal horse at your reins, Theresa, the mysterious seer of âFable III,â by your side, and a malevolent evil to defeat before it claims all of Albion. With the power of Kinect for Xbox 360, craft and control magic in a way that canât be done with a controller. âFable: The Journeyâ draws players deep into the action and adventure of the âFableâ franchise like never before.
â˘
âForza Motorsport 4â (Turn 10 Studios, Microsoft Studios). The highest-rated racing franchise of this generation returns, delivering the most expansive and vividly realistic automotive experience across any console. With genre-defining controller-based racing, game-changing Kinect experiences, such as head tracking, and new social features that connect players in ways no other racing game can, âForza Motorsport 4â is transforming the racing category.
â˘
âGears of War 3â (Epic Games, Microsoft Studios). âGears of War 3â wraps up the ambitious trilogy starring Marcus Fenix and Delta Squad. With civilization in ruins, Delta Squad must wage brutal war on two fronts in order to save their world. âGears of War 3â continues to innovate with new multiplayer experiences on Xbox LIVE,* including the genre-defining cooperative campaign mode and the return of five-player Horde mode. Surpassing more than 1 million copies pre-sold to date, âGears of War 3â hits store shelves on Sept. 20, 2011, worldwide, except for Japan, where copies go on sale Sept. 22, 2011.
â˘
âHalo 4â (343 Industries, Microsoft Studios). âHalo 4â is the next blockbuster installment in the iconic franchise thatâs shaped entertainment history and defined a decade of gaming. Set in the aftermath of âHalo 3,â Master Chief returns to confront his own destiny and face an ancient evil that threatens the fate of the entire universe. A new trilogy begins when âHalo 4â releases in 2012.
â˘
âHalo: Combat Evolved Anniversaryâ (343 Industries/Microsoft Studios, Saber Interactive, Certain Affinity). Created in celebration of the 10th anniversary of one of the most beloved franchises in gaming history, âHalo: Combat Evolved Anniversaryâ is a spectacularly re-mastered version of the original âHaloâ campaign, bundled with some of the most beloved multiplayer maps in âHaloâ history reimagined for Xbox LIVE.* Releasing only on Xbox 360 on Nov. 15, 2011, âHalo: Combat Evolved Anniversaryâ will include a bounty of new features, including cooperative play over Xbox LIVE, new challenges and new fiction to uncover.
â˘
âKinect Sports: Season Twoâ (Rare, Big Park Games, Microsoft Studios). The sequel to last yearâs No. 1 hit for Kinect is back with more full-body action, featuring six new sports: American football, golf, baseball, winter skiing, darts and tennis. Whether you want to go for a hole-in-one in golf, throw a Hail Mary touchdown pass in American football or compete against a friend during a few sets of tennis, âKinect Sports: Season Twoâ has something to appeal to everyone.
â˘
âKinect Star Warsâ (Terminal Reality, LucasArts/Microsoft Studios). Drawing on iconic action from many of the âStar Warsâ major motion pictures, âKinect Star Warsâ allows to you to physically experience training and battling as a Jedi, using the Force and battling with a lightsaber like never before, thanks to the full-body recognition of Kinect.
â˘
âKinect: Disneyland Adventuresâ (Frontier Developments Ltd., Microsoft Studios). This holiday, Disney Interactive Studios and Kinect for Xbox 360 invite you to take a journey where stories come to life and dreams come true â right in your living room. With âKinect: Disneyland Adventures,â the first title coming out of a licensing agreement between Microsoft Studios and Disney Interactive Studios, children, parents and Disney fans can explore Disneyland park â from Main Street U.S.A. to Critter Country â joining Peter Pan to battle Captain Hook, high-fiving Mickey Mouse or hugging Snow White using their full bodies and voices, no controller required.
â˘
âMass Effect 3â (BioWare, Electronic Arts). The galactic war has begun. An ancient alien race known only as the âReapersâ has launched an all-out invasion of the galaxy, leaving nothing but a trail of destruction in their wake. Earth has been taken, the universe is on the verge of total annihilation, and you, as Commander Shepard, are the only one who can stop them. Whether you are playing with a controller or through new voice recognition technology made exclusively for Kinect on Xbox 360, âMass Effect 3â allows you to immerse yourself in the Mass Effect universe like never before, as you decide how to rally the forces of the galaxy in a game that will react to each decision you make.
â˘
âMinecraftâ (Mojang, Microsoft Studios). Known for its limitless possibilities, âMinecraftâ will come to life this winter in a whole new way through the magic of Kinect and also feature cross-functionality between the PC and Xbox 360 versions.
â˘
âRyseâ (Crytek, Microsoft Studios). Be the warrior in this cinematic, visceral, action-packed experience that brings ancient Rome to life through the stunning visuals and innovative gameplay that Crytek is famous for. âRyseâ defines whatâs next on Xbox 360 by creating a truly immersive experience that only Kinect can enable.
â˘
âSesame Street: Once Upon a Monsterâ (Double Fine Productions, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment). Join your favorite Sesame Street characters Elmo, Cookie Monster, Oscar and Grover, and friendly new monsters in a colorful and whimsical storybook adventure filled with learning, discovery and fun. Each chapter is full of life lessons, including friendship, sharing and teamwork. âOnce Upon A Monsterâ features co-op game play so kids can play alone, with each other or with Mom or Dad in this controller-free gaming experience only on Kinect.
â˘
âTom Clancyâs Ghost Recon Future Soldierâ (Ubisoft Paris, Ubisoft). Welcome to the U.S. Special Forcesâ most legendary unit, the Ghosts. Equipped with the most advanced combat technology, track down high-value targets in eight spectacular locales around the world in the latest chapter of the celebrated âTom Clancyâs Ghost Reconâ franchise. Teamwork is key, whether it is fighting alongside your teammates in the campaign, Elite Co-op, or multiplayer modes. With the magic of Kinectâs body tracking and voice recognition, a special mode called âGunsmithâ will allow gamers to customize their weapons into more than 20 million variations in a way that simply canât be done with a controller alone.
â˘
âTomb Raiderâ (Crystal Dynamics, Square Enix Europe). Experience the intense and gritty origins of Lara Croft and her ascent from a frightened young woman to a hardened survivor. Armed with only the raw instincts and physical ability to push beyond the limits of human endurance, start at the beginning of where the âTomb Raiderâ adventure all began.
â˘
UFC.** UFC on Xbox LIVE drops you dead center into the octagon, with live pay-per-view events in full HD and exclusive live event experiences. Launching this fall, UFC on Xbox LIVE is the ultimate fan destination with pre-fight coverage and a deep catalogue of past fights to put you closer to the action than ever.
Bury