xbox

E3: 'Call of Duty 4' trailer

To date, the Call of Duty franchise has been strictly a World War II affair. But with Call of Duty 4, Activision and developer Infinity Ward move the action to a 21st century setting. The military shooter brings an all-new graphics engine to the Xbox 360, PS3, and PC when it hits stores this fall. Can you say, "Halo who?"

E3: 'Halo 3' trailer

Master Chief fans were finally treated to a trailer that actually shows off gameplay, last night at Microsoft's E3 press conference. Microsoft VP Peter Moore gleefully announced that Halo 3 is part of the three biggest game franchises today (the others being Grand Theft Auto and Madden NFL) and that if you plan on playing all three, you'll need to own an Xbox 360. Halo 3 will be released September 25. Also look for Halo 3 Special Edition Xbox 360, which will include a spartan-green Xbox 360 with matching accessories and a play and charge kit.

UPDATE: If … Read more

E3: 'Resident Evil 5' teaser

NOTE: This trailer contains some violent imagery.

The Resident Evil franchise has always been a mainstay on Sony and Nintendo consoles, but never the Xbox--until now. Microsoft provided a glimpse of Capcom's Resident Evil 5 at its E3 media event. The next-gen horror survival game is due to hit the Xbox 360 in 2008.

E3 2007: If Microsoft told you to 'jump in,' would you?

Microsoft's media event on Tuesday evening--the first slot on our E3 2007 agendas (aside from picking up our press badges)--came with the company slogan: "Jump In." It was displayed on signs outside Santa Monica High School's outdoor amphitheater, where the event took place, and on the giant projection screen behind the stage (when the screen wasn't displaying a tag cloud of the Xbox Live usernames of those present). The slogan was even on the access badges that were mailed to us a week in advance, with the admonition that if we didn't have … Read more

The rest of Sega's E3 2007 lineup: Xbox 360, PS3, and PC

Talk about expanding your horizons--Sega has an incredibly diverse lineup at this year's E3 convention. We've already covered what's in store for Nintendo, so now let's take a look at what we can expect for the other consoles.

When the Xbox 360 launched in November of 2005, the horror action game Condemned: Criminal Origins was regarded as one of the top launch titles to go along with the new console. At this year's E3, Sega will show off the sequel, entitled Condemned 2: Bloodshot, set to release for the Xbox 360 and PS3 in February … Read more

The new console war: pricing

Leading up to the Electronic Entertainment Expo, most companies try to release information that will either (1) become a springboard for the show or (2) become lost in the heavy news traffic -- by design. With Sony's announcement of a $100 price cut, it has effectively achieved the former. And while some brushed my opinion aside claiming I was biased or a Nintendo-hater when I told them Sony and Microsoft would take the day, it seems that opinion may not be so far off after all.

Although I still believe the Xbox 360 will take the lead in this … Read more

E3 2007 preview

In years past, E3--the Electronic Entertainment Expo--involved as many as 50,000 members of the video game industry descending on the Los Angeles Convention Center in early May. This year, the show--now dubbed the "E3 Media & Business Summit"--has been radically downsized, rescheduled to July, and moved out to Santa Monica.

With all of the gaming consoles now effectively old news, the show doesn't quite have the air of anticipation as it did the last few years, when gamers were scrambling to get a glimpse of the then-unreleased Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Nintendo Wii. Still, … Read more

Sony to announce PS3 movie and TV download service?

It's E3 week, folks, and the video game world is revved up for the latest news, and, it turns out, Sony may have something noteworthy to announce.

According to Newsweek, Sony, at its E3 press conference, may offer up some details on what would be a PlayStation 3 TV show and movie download service.

If it's true, Sony would be catching up to Microsoft, which has offered such downloads since last fall. And it seems to me it had better be true, because even though Sony has said it is dropping the price of the PS3, it needs … Read more

Microsoft E3 preview: Price drop anyone?

Rumors are flying around about what will be announced at E3, yet little of this speculation has anything to do with Microsoft exclusively--until now. Not to be outdone by Sony's recent actions, at this year's E3, Microsoft is planning to announce a price drop on all three versions of the Xbox 360. Next-gen is reporting that the new prices will go as follows:

"The $299 Core pack will drop to $249; the $399 Premium pack will drop to $349; and the recently released $479 Elite model will drop to $399."

Also potentially showing its face at … Read more

Taking the measure of the computer warranty scam

Credit Microsoft for moving fast to try and recover from its Xbox stumble. Truth be told, management didn't really have an alternative but to pledge to fix the faulty consoles immediately. But I'm not about to strain my throat singing hosannas.

U.S. customers used to be covered by a one-year warranty (!), while European Xbox owners had two-year coverage. Now every Xbox owner in the world will be protected for three years. What do I think? As former New Jersey Nets forward Derrick Coleman once put it during a particularly touching moment with the press, "Well, whoopty … Read more