EpicBattleAxe » Xbox 360

Halo 4 Release Date

"Bashing Axe" Tim — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 21:32:38 +0000

Halo 4 has a date. And as we know how Microsoft handles the series, it is a sure date. The Masterchief will return to the Xbox 360 on the 6th of November.
What will happen in the game? No one knows at this point at least, only that it will be four years after the events from the ‘official’ third game. I know that Halo doesn’t have the biggest of following here on the Axe, but I for one am happy that there is a new title will come out. However, I wouldnt mind if they would try to do something else then a shooter again. What are your thoughts on the game?

Source: Side Mission

New Marvel Pinball tables coming in May

Cuckoo4CocoaPuffs — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 19:14:47 +0000

Zen Studios will soon be releasing another four table DLC pack for the Marvel Pinball series. The new set titled Avengers Chronicles will be available for Xbox 360, PSN, and will premiere on the PS Vita this May.

The theme revolves around Marvel’s franchise team, with three tables focused on pivotal Marvel Crossover events and the final table will be based on the upcoming Avengers film. The movie tie-in is pretty self explanatory and will feature the likeness of the movie’s cast. The Infinity Gauntlet will have you taken down Thanos with the help of the Silver Surfer. You’ll be taking on the Hulk as he rampages through the events of World War Hulk. Finally you’ll be facing the Serpent in last year’s crossover event Fear Itself.

Check out the announcement trailer below

Visit the Official Marvel Pinball site for more info

Xbox 360 Dashboard Update Dated

"TheAxeWielder" — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 14:57:57 +0000

Microsoft recently revealed that the new, fancy-looking official Xbox 360 Dashboard Update will be taking place Tuesday, December 6th. The update, which will be free and available to all Xbox LIVE members, includes:

• New personal and social features including Cloud Storage for Game Saves and LIVE Profile
• Beacons and Facebook Sharing
• Enhanced Family Settings
• Integrated voice and gesture controls across the dashboard and in apps
• Bing voice search (Available this year in the US, UK and CA)

December 6th will also see the arrival of new, customized applications for television, movies, internet videos, sports and music that Msoft will begin rolling out from world-leading providers in more than 20 countries.

What are your thoughts on the new look and features associated with this latest update? Let’s hear em’ below!

Source

Microsoft Reveals List of Xbox 360 TV Partners

"TheAxeWielder" — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 17:48:11 +0000

Today, Microsoft Corp. announced plans to roll out what it refers to as “the next generation of TV entertainment” on Xbox LIVE. Nearly 40 world-leading TV and entertainment providers, including Bravo, Comcast, HBO GO, Verizon FiOS and Syfy in the U.S.; BBC in the U.K., Telefónica in Spain; Rogers On Demand in Canada; Televisa in Mexico; ZDF in Germany; and MediaSet in Italy, will begin rolling out entertainment services to the console this holiday, in more than 20 countries.

“Today’s announcement is a major step toward realizing our vision to bring you all the entertainment you want, shared with the people you care about, made easy,” said Don Mattrick, president of the Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft. “Combining the world’s leading TV and entertainment providers with the power of Kinect for Xbox 360* and the intelligence of Bing voice search will make TV and entertainment more personal, social and effortless.”

“We are continually evolving the television experience to bring Xfinity TV subscribers more personalized ways to search, find and watch the content they love,” said Sam Schwartz, president of Comcast Converged Products. “Our recently launched next-generation Xfinity TV platform is enabling us to bring Xfinity On Demand to a gaming console for the first time, and Kinect’s voice and gesture controls will offer our customers an innovative way to discover and enjoy Xfinity On Demand’s huge library of top shows and movies.”

Check out the full listing of both existing and new entertainment partners below and then let us know how you think this will impact the 360′s overall success moving forward. Of course, we’ll keep you posted as we learn more about the roll out process and upcoming Fall Dashboard Update.

• ABC iView – Australia
• AlloCiné – France, Germany, Spain, U.K.
• Antena 3 – Spain
• Astral Media’s Disney XD – Canada
• AT&T – U.S.
• BBC – U.K.
• blinkbox – U.K.
• Bravo – U.S.
• BSkyB – U.K.
• Canal+ – France, Spain
• Channel 4 – U.K.
• Channel 5 – U.K.
• CinemaNow (Best Buy) – U.S.
• Comcast – U.S.
• Crackle – Australia, Canada, U.K., U.S.
• Dailymotion – Available in 32 markets
• EPIX – U.S.
• ESPN** – U.S.
• Facebook – Available in all 35 Xbox LIVE markets
• FOXTEL** – Australia
• GolTV – Spain
• HBO GO – U.S.
• Hulu – Japan
• Hulu + – U.S.
• iHeartRadio (Clear Channel) – U.S.
• Last.fm**– U.K., U.S.
• LOVEFiLM – Germany, U.K.
• Manga Entertainment – U.S.
• Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment/Real Sports – Canada
• MediaSet – Italy
• MSN with MSNBC.com – Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Spain, U.K.
• MUZU.TV – France, Germany, Italy, Spain, U.K.
• Netflix– Canada, U.S.
• Rogers On Demand Online (RODO) – Canada
• RTVE – Spain
• SBS On Demand – Australia
• Syfy – U.S.
• Telefonica – Spain
• Televisa – Mexico
• “The Today Show” – U.S.
• TELUS – Canada
• TMZ – U.S.
• Twitter – Available in all 35 Xbox LIVE markets
• UFC – Canada, U.S.
• Verizon – U.S.
• VEVO – Canada, U.K., U.S.
• VimpelCom – Russia
• Vodafone Portugal – Portugal
• YouTube – Available in 22 markets
• ZDF – Germany
• Zune– Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, U.K., U.S.

Source

New 360 Dashboard Exposed

"TheAxeWielder" — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 13:06:52 +0000

Sure, the word “exposed” is pretty provocative – especially when you’re talking about a dashboard for a video game console, but considering that the above video showcases the sleek and sexy nature of the revamped Xbox 360 dashboard, the word seems somewhat appropriate.

Justified or not, we invite you to sneak a peek at the future of M-soft’s super sleek dash and then “expose” your thoughts below.

via Kotaku

Xbox Live Price Increase Announced

"TheAxeWielder" — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 19:02:02 +0000

Hang onto your hats…and your wallets…Microsoft is raising the price of an Xbox LIVE subscription by $10/year in North America beginning November 1. 2010. Other regions will see a price increase as well.

As posted by Major Nelson, the price hike will affect Xbox LIVE members in Canada, Mexico, the UK and the US, with various yearly, monthly, and 3 month subscriptions seeing an increase. In the U.S. the one month Gold subscription will increase from $7.99 to $9.99 while the three month will raise from $19.99 to $24.99. After the change takes place, the 12 month will set you back $59.99 as opposed to the current $49.99.

It’s worth noting that renewing your 12 month subscription via a special promotion being offered right here, right now, will allow U.S. customers to save $20 off the new price and renew for $39.99.

As for the regions outside the U.S., Canadian gamers can expect to pay $1 more for the monthly subscription, Mexico’s 12 month plan increases from 499 Pesos to 599 Pesos, and those of you in the United Kingdom will be charged 5.99 GBP for the monthly subscription instead of 4.99 GBP.

“Since launching Xbox LIVE in 2002 we have continually added more content and entertainment experiences for our members, while keeping the price the same. We’re confident that when the new pricing takes effect, an Xbox LIVE Gold membership will continue to offer the best value in the industry.”

So, do you think Microsoft has added enough new features and content to XBL to justify a price increase? Do you think the new rates are fair or unfair? Let us know your thoughts below.

Kinect Priced, Bundle Announced

"TheAxeWielder" — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 21:28:19 +0000

After countless amounts of rumors and speculation, Microsoft has today confirmed that the Kinect motion-sensing camera will retail for $149.99 when it ships to retailers this fall. A copy of Kinect Adventures, the casual mini-game collection which was demoed during MSoft’s E3 Press Conference, will be included with the hardware.

In addition, Microsoft also announced a new Xbox 360 “S” Model that includes 4GB or internal storage, but is capable of using up to 32GB of USB storage. You’ll be able to pick up this Xbox 360-Arcade-like unit for $200 by itself when it goes on sale in North America on August 3, 2010 or for $300 bundled with Kinect when it launches November 4th.

Lastly, according to Aaron Greenberg of Microsoft (via Joystiq), pricing on first-party Kinect software will be $50 while retailers are listing third-party games a bit higher at $60.

Oh, and if you pre-order Kinect in any form “today”, Microsoft has stated that you’ll earn a token good for three exclusive levels of the included Kinect Adventures.

Have an opinion on the pricing? What about the new “S” model? Plan on picking this thing up?!?!? Connect with your fellow gamers and share your thoughts below!

Source

Ice-T in Gears of War 3

"BodyLikeABattleAxe" — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 02:10:22 +0000

The Original Gangster is set to be an original character in Gears of War 3, voicing the role of Griffin, who leads “a rag-tag group of human survivors, known as the Stranded, who Marcus Fenix and Delta Squad will encounter as they battle the infected Lambent,” Xbox 360 Press said.

Speculation of Ice-T’s role began to appear after he mentioned it on a Ustream meet-up with his fans, followed by Gears creative director Cliff Bleszinski tweeting, “Yo Ice hit me up, we should talk about what happened this weekend…” Well now it is official, he’s in.

Grammy Award-nominated rapper Drake is also voicing Gears 3 character Jake Stratton, who was portrayed by Nolan North for his brief stint in Gears 2.

On top of his acting role in Law and Order: SVU, Ice-T (born Tracy Marrow) has performed voiceovers for a number of video games, most notably playing Madd Dogg in 2004′s Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

Gears of War 3 drops April 2011 exclusively for Xbox 360.

DemoUP! – Crackdown 2

"SkinnyAsAnAxeHandle" — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 13:34:03 +0000

Welcome to EpicBattleAxe.com’s DemoUP!, the feature that invites the EBA Community to gather around gaming’s hottest demos to play together and share your reaction. Pretty simple premise really, so hit the jump to participate as we DemoUP! for the highly-anticipated Crackdown 2.

Demo: Crackdown 2
Platforms: XBL
Demo Release Date: June 21, 2010 | Official Website

Demo Description: Pacific City is no stranger to chaos. But this is total anarchy. As part of a new breed of Agents armed with a more powerful arsenal, you must bring back peace and order to the city. Are you up for the task? This demo features accelerated Agent leveling, four player co-op, and the ability to earn Achievements to be awarded once you play the full version of Crackdown 2. This demo is available in English only.

NOW, GO DOWNLOAD THE DEMO, PLAY IT, THEN CAST YOUR VOTE BELOW AND USE THE COMMENTS TO GIVE THE COMMUNITY YOUR FEEDBACK!

Kinect Adds Five Years to 360 Frankenstein

"BodyLikeABattleAxe" — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 18:42:24 +0000

It’s alive! Microsoft is banking on Kinect to not only revolutionize our gameplay, but to also elongate the lifespan of the Xbox 360 itself. Paired with the new Xbox 360 model, Microsoft’s European executive Chris Lewis expects Kinect to keep the console’s heart monitor beeping for another five years.

“What you’ve seen is with this new sleek design and Kinect for Xbox 360 we’ve got at least another five years of this generation where we continue to offer great experiences for people,” Lewis told GamesIndustry.biz. “We continue to attach more games than competitive platforms and we have the healthiest ecosystem with 25 million people connected through Xbox Live. So we are uniquely placed to continue to do really, really well in this business and enjoy ongoing momentum.”

Elapsed time between the release of the Xbox and the Xbox 360 was roughly four years, so the current generation is already outliving its ancestor. But with Sony’s prediction of a 10-year lifespan for the PS3 (which was released in 2006), the 360 would still be dying prematurely if it wasn’t plugged into the correct hardware this year.

So Microsoft has created the technological fountain of youth – How do five more years of our current consoles sound to you? Are you ADHD Generation X-ers itching for something more than Kinect and Move, or are these hardware add-ons enough? Microsoft says it has “the healthiest ecosystem” and “more games than competitive platforms,” but after its E3 showing, it might be time to pull the plug after all. What do you think? Shout out below!