Microsoft Starting E3 With A Bang!

The Microsoft E3 2004 Press Conference was a great beginning to start the amazing week we are about to have. So here is some inside on what’s to come for the new year, more of the fact that X-Box Live is a big corner stone for the success of the X-Box, and here are some of the new features for what is being consider X-Box Live Now. The first that has Microsoft excited about is the new Voice Mail, so that Live subscribers can talk to each other through the Live network. The next is the Video Chat that’s right video chat that happens in real-time with no lag which is being released in Japan first. One thing that bothered me is how last year at the conference they spoke about an internet browser for Live, we saw the link on the interface at the conference but no talk about this time.

The first speaker of the night was J. Allard, and the first thing that he spoke about is the fact that everyone has been talking about how hardware is the key to success in console gaming. That is not Microsoft’s view Allard said and I quote "Software is the Key" and that key was because of the aforementioned software that is being add to X-Box Live. Along with the Voice Mail and Chat is Live Arcade where gamers can download classic games like Dig-Dug, Galaxians and Pac-man. These are just some of the title that Namco is supplying to the Arcade, there are many other publishers that publishing games for the Live Arcade is Wild Tangent, Tecmo, Atari, Sprout Development, Gastronaut Studios, U Wink, Raptisoft, Reflexive, Pop Cap Games, Oberon, Kraisoft, and Garage Games.com. These are the first thirteen Developers that are working with Microsoft on the Live Arcade.

The Next thing is the games, the line up that is showing at E3 this year is looking great, games like Star Wars: Republic Commando, Knights Of The Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords, Conkers: Live and Reloaded, Burnout 3, Doom 3, Juiced, Mech Assault 2: Lonewolf, Full Spectrum Warrior, Spiderman 2, and those are the ones that are just the beginning. The games that are the headline for Microsoft are games like Halo 2, Fable, Jade Empire, Unreal Championship: The Liandai Conflict, these are the titles that are the next best of the best for Microsoft.

So as you can see we as gamers are excited, so recently Microsoft made announcement canceling the XSN Sports line up, many where wondering why? Which I had to admit I was wondering what they had up their sleeve. I mean Sports games are not really my thing but without sports games this is something that can really hurt a console. Now, the answer to the question what did they have up their sleeve? EA Sports!!! That’s right because of the support that X-Box Live has from gamers EA Sports are in the game with Microsoft to help make Live Even Better. Already this as you can see is helping launch Microsoft into the number spot in the console war. Along with the entire EA Sports line up going Live, games like Madden, Fifa, NBA Live, NCAA Football, NHL Hockey and NASCAR. This is big of course now there are EA Games being developed for Live also like Bond, Timesplitters, Need For Speed, Battlecry and more. As you can see this is a good way to end the year, most of these titles are being released between now and the fourth quarter.

So what do I think of these announcements, I believe that this is a new way to help Microsoft enter a whole new chapter in the console market which is definitely going to make Sony and Nintendo thing about were they are headed. Now don’t get me wrong this is not the end of it, the Sony and Nintendo Press conference is tomorrow and the war can get worse.

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