Pre E3 2005: Xbox 360 CONFIRMED

360 News | We watched the MTV event so you don't have to! Including the official name, launch titles and DOA 4 shots.

For those looking for a sneak peak at the Xbox 360 before we unveil all the information, they should direct there browsers to:

http://msxb.wmod.llnwd.net/a274/o2/ourcolony/TheColony_v1_750k.wmv

Which is the Xbox 360 Our Colony video! Look out for "PAL Gaming Network" mentioned in the credits

We're proud to unveil the official name of the Xbox 2 is in fact Xbox 360, as has been heavily speculated.

WWW.XBOX360.COM is the official website of the new console and includes images of the logo and the confirmation of the official name.

Microsoft are also touting the fact that the Xbox 360 will connect to your iPod, digital camera and PC. The game list that we've managed to obtain come directly from Microsoft, the games that Microsoft are touting as the launch lineup are:

NBA 2K6
Call of Duty 2
Tony Hawk's American Wasteland
Quake 4
The Darkness
Need for Speed: Most Wanted
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2006
Perfect Dark Zero
Kameo: Elements of Power
Project Gotham Racing 3
Gears of War
Madden NFL 2006
Saint's Row
Ghost Recon 3

We expect more titles to be unveiled at E3. Microsoft also unveiled the new Live system, Xbox Live Gold.
Gamers who subscribe to this premium service can experience the thrill of multiplayer online game play. On Xbox Live, Gamer Profiles will provide a foundation for intelligent matchmaking, so players of similar skill levels and interests can easily connect. The Xbox Live Camera peripheral will let gamers see their friends while they game together and add their own faces into their games. Other Xbox Live Gold features include video messaging, tournaments and ladders, and exclusive, original programming such as playing with celebrities online and joining sponsored tournaments to win prizes. All Xbox 360 owners will kick-start their Xbox Live experience with a free month of the full subscription service, in order to hook them so they buy the whole thing.

Every Xbox 360 has built-in progressive scan DVD movie, CD music and photo playback support. The integration of Xbox Live into the system lets players receive game invites from friends while they're watching
movies or listening to music. Every MP3 player, digital camera, and Windows XP PC plugs right into the Xbox 360 USB 2.0 ports to stream music and photos through any home-entertainment system.

We've also managed to score the first images of Dead or Alive 4 - bloody amazing aren't they? Refer to the media panel for these high definition shots.

The images we revealed last week of the Xbox 360 are indeed the real images, so remember you heard about the final design at PALGN first!

The full official spec list is as follows:

An IBM PowerPC based CPU with 3 symmetrical cores running at 3.2 GHz each, packing the most-advanced artificial intelligence and physics processing available

A custom ATI Graphics processor and more than 512 MB of memory for high definition games and entertainment applications

All games optimized for 16:9 aspect ratio, HD Output (720p and 1080i); multichannel surround sound output

Detachable and upgradeable 20GB hard drive to download demos and trailers along with new game levels, maps, weapons, vehicles, skins, community-created content, and more; to rip music for playback and to listen to custom play lists in every game

A wireless controller with Microsoft-patented wireless technology; Xbox Guide Button on every controller, the launch pad that instantly connects gamers to their games, friends, and music and to power on or power off Xbox 360 without leaving the couch

Gamer Profile software that remembers what players have achieved in games

Instant, out-of-the-box access to Xbox Live, including: a built-in Ethernet port for connectivity; Xbox Live Marketplace for downloadable content; a Message Center to receive voice and video messages from friends; ability to talk to friends, even while watching movies or listening to music; and an Xbox Live Headset

3 USB 2.0 ports for Xbox Live Camera peripheral; to plug in wired game controllers that are also common for Windows PCs; to stream media from any portable media device, digital camera, and Windows XP PC

Progressive-scan DVD movie playback out of the box; DVD and CD music and photo playback out of the box; support for DVD-Video, DVD-ROM, DVD-R/RW, DVD+R/RW, CD-DA, CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, WMA CD, MP3 CD, JPEG Photo CD

Windows Media Center Extender built in to access recorded TV (including high definition) and digital movies (including high definition), music, video and photos stored on Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005-based PCs through any Xbox 360

Support for up to four wireless game controllers and an optional Universal Media Remote with Windows® XP Media Center Edition Button for Media Center Edition functionality

Support for Xbox 360 Wireless Network Adapter via 802.11b,

Interactive, full screen 3D visualizers

Two memory unit ports to save data on portable memory units, starting at 64 MB

Detachable Face so each console can be personalized

Parental Controls to restrict the games and movies that are played; Xbox Live controls to manage Friends List, voice and video communication, and Gamer Profile sharing.

PALGN will reveal more information as it becomes available over the next few days.

Related Content

Xbox 360 specs and next-gen Xbox Live details leaked
10 May, 2005 Yup, MORE rumoured information.

Xbox 360 Design Revealed
08 May, 2005 First picture! Updated to include photos of the controller and remote!

Microsoft cuts price of Xbox in Europe and UK...again
10 Apr, 2003 £129.99 or €199.99 is the new price, placing it in the same range as Gamecube. Will Nintendo follow suit?

17 Comments

Aussie

7 years ago

XBox360 - To be Released in Australia early 2006

MICROSOFT is set to make its biggest-ever push into the lounge room via the second generation Xbox 360, promising an all out assault on the games and entertainment market that will topple rival Sony and its own next generation console.

But would-be Australian Santas will have to wait until after Christmas before the Xbox 360 is available locally.
Announcing details of the new Xbox and upgraded Xbox live online service, Microsoft said the console would not be available in Australia until early 2006.

http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/0%2C7204%2C15273200%255E15338%255E%255Enbv%255E15306%252D15321%2C00.html

XBox 360 : Home Page
http://www.xbox360.com/home.html?lang=en-au&langmap=null&charType=latin

Andronicus

7 years ago

The MTV thing was cool, but I was hoping to see more graphics and gameplay - I guess that's what E3 is for...

Still, the next gen just keep looking better and better as the 3 companies slowly (or in Microsoft's case, quickly) reveal stuff to the public.

Qbert

7 years ago

lol, that video was kind of funny. When Nintendo made a microphone, touchscreen, pictochat and 2 screens into a handheld, they said that it would give developers many new and exiting ways to make games. Now the 360 has more RAM and processing power they say it will give the developers a chance to make more creative games.

Also, I think it's a really good idea about having skins - that's cool.

I thought it was kind of lame how they said that you can create skateparks and colour new decks, hasn't that been around since like 5 years ago when when TH2 was out?

The best thing I think about it - bar LIVE - is the detatchable harddrive. I like it because it is just like a larger (memory and size) memory card. That was one problem I had about the original XBOX, that you saved to the hardrive, so if you went to a friends house, your progress wouldn't be there.

Anyway, looks interesting and still time for ALOT more game footage before 2006.

Hyperworm

7 years ago

Qbert wrote

The best thing I think about it - bar LIVE - is the detatchable harddrive. I like it because it is just like a larger (memory and size) memory card. That was one problem I had about the original XBOX, that you saved to the hardrive, so if you went to a friends house, your progress wouldn't be there.

There's always been the disadvantages of limited storage space for memory cards, unportability for built-in harddrives, and restrictivity for cartridges (data must go where the game goes; you can't trade the save to a friend and not the game, and even if your friend has copies of the same games you still have to take every single cartridge with you just to carry your save files).
A portable harddrive seems to be a solution, giving you large storage and portability, but it's even more restrictive than cartridges; data will go wherever the harddrive goes, you can't trade the save to a friend and not the harddrive (unless you can? will that be a feature?), and worse if you plan to transport the save file for just one game you have to take the entire harddrive along with all saves for all your games with you, which introduces problems ... what if two or more people share a console, and one wants to take a piece of save data somewhere else while the others play on the Xbox 360? What if you drop the harddrive and smash it? Is it as portable?

Hopefully, in addition to the harddrive, there'll be a portable storage mechanism - perhaps copying saves to flash memory or something.

Gtpod

7 years ago

Revolting controller...

Quin

7 years ago

GTPod wrote

Revolting controller...

What happened to the "Corect me on Xenon and die" stance?

Gtpod

7 years ago

Quinsisdos wrote

GTPod wrote

Revolting controller...

What happened to the "Corect me on Xenon and die" stance?

It was specifically about it being called Xenon, I couldn't care less about the thing itself.

I will correct you on 'corect' though.

mrcivic

7 years ago

Qbert wrote

I thought it was kind of lame how they said that you can create skateparks and colour new decks, hasn't that been around since like 5 years ago when when TH2 was out?

I think you missed the point. Xbox Live will play a big part in customising things in your games. Yes we've been able to customise things before, but now you can download new designs for your character, car, board, whatever through Live. So you won't be restricted to just what the game comes with.

David

7 years ago

The dead or alive 4 images don't look 'bloody amazing' to me. They look about the same as DOA 3, or even Tekken 5.

In fact, are you sure they aren't DOA ultimate shots? (I haven't played it, so don't know the scenery).

Tekken 5: obviously some jaggies since it's PS2, but the scenerey is at least as advanced.

And here's a shot from dead or alive ultimate, which actually looks better then any of those DOA4 pics:

mrcivic

7 years ago

I agree. I was expecting DOA4 to blow my socks off! Looks like a higher detailed 'Ultimate'.

Qbert

7 years ago

mrcivic wrote

Qbert wrote

I thought it was kind of lame how they said that you can create skateparks and colour new decks, hasn't that been around since like 5 years ago when when TH2 was out?

Oh thanks, I see. I just hope this is free and they don't make you pay for every little thing you download.

Cerebral

7 years ago

Well, given DOA3 there really wasn't much you could improve graphically since these are basically 3D adaptation of anime/manga style characters where face blemishes or creases on the skin simply do not exist.

So I'm hoping for a fighting system that doesn't reward doing the same move over and over again. That's the sole reason why I can't seem to win a game of DOA:U against one of my mates.

armageddon12

7 years ago

CerebralAssassin wrote

So I'm hoping for a fighting system that doesn't reward doing the same move over and over again. That's the sole reason why I can't seem to win a game of DOA:U against one of my mates.

That's not a flaw of the system. That's a flaw of your knowledge.

The backgrounds look awesome. But we'll have to see it in motion to see if its an improvement.

mrcivic

7 years ago

armageddon12 wrote

CerebralAssassin wrote

So I'm hoping for a fighting system that doesn't reward doing the same move over and over again. That's the sole reason why I can't seem to win a game of DOA:U against one of my mates.

That's not a flaw of the system. That's a flaw of your knowledge.

The backgrounds look awesome. But we'll have to see it in motion to see if its an improvement.

Or you just suck at the game, Cerebral.

Anyway, here's more new shots which are now looking much better! You can see characters are smoother and I think I see normal mapping on the environments and clothes.

Tekken-what-now?

Cerebral

7 years ago

Yes, I walked right into that one.

The backgrounds look very impressive in the new screens, though I still think the character models are a bit too glossy. Hey, at least we aren't going into Kakuto Chojin territory.

armageddon12

7 years ago

Is that Lisa in the first three images? Did anyone else think the one thing she deffinitely wouldn't be was a wrestler?

That's so incredibly rubbish.

Those images however are not, quite the opposite. I'd go far as to say they are spiffy. But I'll have to see what happens when I knock someone into that cherry tree, or onto those ropes. To see if its any great improvement over 3.1/Ultimate.

Is that a new character shoulder barging Kasumi? Sweet.

Ninja Gaiden 2 anyone?

Fresh face:

Brad Wong?

Christie and Hitomi

ObsoletE

7 years ago

Quote

i'm thinking this picture was made a while ago...

"Congratulations on the Xenon Launch!!"

seems even developers were confused about what to call it...

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