Windows 8 has always been highlighted as the point when Microsoft's main products would unite as one, with desktop, tablet, smartphone and gaming all intertwined in one way or another by the new operating system. With that in mind, it should be of no surprise that Microsoft has based the structure of gaming on Windows 8 around the flagship Xbox platform, and the built-in games within the upcoming version of the Redmond company's operating system will be branded as "Xbox Windows."
For many gamers, the current release cycles of consoles is simply not frequent enough. The market leaders - Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3 - are both several years old, and while many gaming fans are content running on old hardware, the majority are looking to the future in anticipation for what's next.
Nike+ Kinect Training was first revealed by Microsoft back at E3, and showed much promise in combining Nike's fitness technology with the interactivity offered by the Kinect. Now, Xbox's Major Nelson has revealed it will arrive on 30th October, costing a very reasonable sounding price of just $49.99.
Electronic Arts' collection of sports games are possibly the company's real cash cows these days, and one that is quite possibly up there with the best of the money makers is the FIFA series. One of the longest running football (or soccer, depending on your particular persuasion) games that originally made its debut back in the Sega Genesis days, EA is now getting ready to usher in the latest update to the franchise.
By means of a press release, Electronic Arts has officially announced Battlefield 4, and noted a beta release will be made available in fall 2013. Additionally, those pre-ordering Medal of Honor Warfighter Limited Edition will be granted free access to the Battlefield 4 beta, and although the game is quite a significant way away, EA has stated more details regarding Battlefield 4 will be revealed in due course.
Medal of Honor has been around for a long while, and would certainly go down among most gamers as a classic. Medal of Honor Warfighter is the next in the series, and a couple of leaked "Alpha" clips of the popular first person shooter have just surfaced online.
Microsoft's Xbox 360 console is the most popular on the market by quite a distance now, which is rather surprising, given how the full experience with Xbox LIVE Gold Membership relies on continual payments from consumers. Sony's PlayStation Network, for example, is absolutely free of charge, rendering the 360's continued dominance as all the more commendable.
Halo is an extremely iconic title, and with the development involved in creating each new iteration to the series becoming more meticulous and time-consuming, Microsoft had to look for other ways to entertain the large number of Halo enthusiasts between titles. With Halo 4 being the next in the series, the Redmond company plans to lay on a short series of live-action episodes, and to whet the appetite of those anticipating the Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn series, a teaser trailer has been released.
Angry Birds has been, by quite a distance, the most popular and successful title to stem from mobile-inspired casual gaming industry. As well as being among the most popular titles on mobile devices, it has also reached a number of browsers, as well as PC, Mac, and Facebook in its quest for world domination. Now, those yapping, bullish poultry specimens are hitting the big time, with version of the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Nintendo's 3DS in the reckoning, according to creators Rovio.
Kinect PlayFit, a fitness-based Xbox LIVE feature announced by Microsoft some time ago, has officially launched today, with details of the service being announced by Larry Hryb, otherwise known as Major Nelson.