Blu-Ray

During the format war, HD-DVD and Blu-Ray were battling it out with Microsoft and Sony supporting their chosen formats respectively. After Blu-Ray won, Microsoft focused their efforts on digital distribution. With broadband coverage in Xbox Live regions fantastic and speeds ever-increasing, this has been a successful choice and allowed larger Arcade games to be downloaded by gamers. But, until (if ever) the physical discs are phased out, videogames will be restricted to the size of the disc / drive they are on. With the largest standard DVD discs limited to just over 8GB of data, multiple discs, whilst not too interfering and common, are still a hindrance to a freeflowing gaming experience. Blu-Ray with sizes up to 100GB removes the need for multiple discs, as well as allowing the freedom to not compress data, meaning sharper and cleaner graphics, higher quality sound and more content. So, we are more than expecting a Blu-Ray drive add-on, much like Xbox did with the HD-DVD but with the reigning champion of home disc storage.

Bigger Hard Drives

Unless you have a limited edition Xbox, such as the Modern Warfare 2 or Forza Motorsport 3 ones, the largest Xbox hard drive you can purchase is a 120GB. Whilst it seems that the 120GB is being phased out to make way for a standalone 250GB, with games such as Final Fantasy XIII needing almost 15GB to install to the drive, Arcade titles continually getting larger and easily averaging a few hundred megabytes and titles like Shadow Complex using over a gigabyte. As well as the increased emphasis on software such as the NXE, Facebook and Twitter apps, Last.fm, 1 vs 100 and video downloads, the seemingly ‘infinite’ 120GB and even the 250GB drives are surely set to be redundant by 2015. We’re likely to see much larger 1TB and larger drives, or even online storage if a ‘cloud’ option is to be used. Whatever happens, bigger will be better for storage capacity.

New Peripherals

Every console and console era has seen an assortment of peripherals welcomed to the industry to keep the gameplay fun as well as offering a unique selling point for developers. We’ve seen printers for the Gameboy, Lightsabers for the Wii and soon Natal for Xbox 360. With claims by Microsoft of a controller-free experience (if and when we choose, we aren’t going to be flailing constantly to play games!) Natal looks set to be more than a simple peripheral. Utilising motion sensing technology, voice recognition and more technological goodies, this ‘camera’ is set to be the first in a long line of game changing hardware. So, Natal this year, 3D televisions and whatever that brings for gaming in 2011 and who knows what in the years after that.

Interaction / Participation

Before reminding me that all games require interaction, I am referring to the likes of 1 vs 100, hence live participation with live hosts to win prizes. We all have watched TV. We have all seen a game show and thought “I could do better”. Well, now you can in an environment you know and enjoy and we can definitely expect to see more of this, especially for non-beta versions. With gaming now attracting the premium advertising rates that other mediums do, console makers can afford live hosts, flashy gameplay and sets and best of all, prizes! Imagine winning a new games console and games after your teammate guessed your charade, aided by Project Natal. Sound fun?

Engaging The Internet

We’ve seen the Facebook application on Xbox Live. Nothing notable, it’s simply sharing photos and updating your status. Look deeper, and we find the ‘friend linker’ where we can see our friends gamertags from their Facebook accounts. It sounds nothing special, but this is one of what is set to be many interactions between videogames and the Internet. Gran Turismo 5, I know is not an Xbox title, but is set to allow you to export your videos to YouTube. Now, with games like 1 vs 100, imagine seeing yourself as the One answering questions on YouTube after your video has been exported. Imagine being able to instantly interact with online gamers by finding out their Twitter / Facebook (subject to privacy settings of course) and the whole videogame community being more aware of one another on other mediums.

Do you have any thoughts of what other things we will see that will prolong the lifespan of the Xbox? Whether it be software, hardware or a handheld Major Nelson reminding you to achievement whore. Let us know in the comments below or post on the forum article.

“We hinted at this a couple of weeks ago but today it’s official, a big Xbox event called X10 will take place in San Francisco next month showing all the upcoming Xbox games!,” is what the Facebook post stated.

“Of course Lionhead is excited about showing the latest of Fable III, but we’re also very much looking forward to all other games and announcements… coming from this event! So put it in your diaries; 11th February in SF and on the internet, X10!”

The game was announced almost a year ago at last years Gamescon convention in Cologne, Germany. Lionhead director Peter Molyneux has not given us much detail on what the game as of late. Yet he has confirmed multiple times that Fable 3 will use Project Natal and also include Micro-Transactions.

Titles such as Fable III, Halo:Reach, and Project Natal will almost certainly be on show to the press and as with many other of the ‘X’ events, that have been running since 2001 upto 2006, there will no doubt be some surprises on offer for those who show an interest. One thing that should be really interesting to see is what is revealed by Capcom and Microsofts partnership project that was mentioned in 2009 and hinted at in early January.

More details on X10 after the jump.

Imagine, a blank black screen fills up your television set. As you patiently wait for some kind of sign to let you know that the game has indeed started strange noises of early morning announcements for the Black Mesa employees travel from the stereo and to your ears. Onto what was once blackness upon your screen a title emerges, it simply reads, Half-Life.  This was the only thing that was separating you from total immersion into an eerie, strange, and virtual world.

The title disintegrates along with the emptiness of the screen, and appearing is the inside of what seems to be a shuttle to a research facility.  As your avatar transit through locked out security guards, nuclear missile tests, radioactive sludge facilities, and underground caverns he finally arrives at his final destination, the research lab.

As my character exits the transit work shuttle he walks across a cold metal bridge connecting the train to the lab. Guarding the door to the facility are two security men dutifully standing at their posts. “Hey Freeman how’s it going?” one of the guards ask, as I wait reply for over a minute I say to myself in an upset fashion, “This game is freaking broken!” To my surprise the guard responds, “Whoa, whoa, whoa take it easy! What are you talking about Gordon?!”  Thinking that the game has finally responded to its aggravating glitch I speak to myself yet again, “That’s better.” The guard responds and looks almost confused, “I still do not understand what the hell you’re talking about?”

Shockingly I realize that the guard is responding to me and what I am saying to myself. Just to test my theory out I respond to the fictional guard, “Are you talking to me?” “Well who else would I be talking too there is no one else here, except for Joe, and he never talks to anybody,” the guard affirms. Amazed at the technology that has been placed before me I respond with my jaw dropped, “I’m sorry I just don’t know what to say? I’ve just never experienced something like this.” The guard replies, “Something like what?”

Now collecting my thoughts and throwing my sense of awe into the past I acknowledge the guard in a more sensible and astute way, “Never mind what I said. Do you think you can open up the door for me?” The guard, with a confused look about him, replies with a long drawn out response, “Sure did you need anything else?” My reply being, “No thank you,” as I quickly march into the Black Mesa Research Facility, which has been renovated in beautiful HD graphics. I walk up to the counter using my Xbox 360 controller, and the guard informs me of an experiment that requires my attention, and little did I know that this experiment is to start the abnormal and astonishing journey that has been placed before me.

This is the future of gaming, this is Half-Life adapted for the Natal technology.

During CES when Microsoft was presenting Project Natal, and assuring us that this is a technology that hardcore gamers will fall in love with. I couldn’t help but think that, “they may be right.” Think about it for a second how many RPG’s have you played that have restricted you to only 6 sentences, what if you could respond with what you were actually going to say in reality.

Let’s take another example, Star Wars: Knight of the Old Republic. Remember when Darth Malak, the ruthless Dark Lord of the Sith, revealed that you were the once his master and former Dark Lord, Darth Revan. What would you have said to Malak? What would you say to your companions? How would you deal with that? The scope of the game rises to infinite possibilities, and immerses us so deep into a fictional universe that I may never want to leave it.

Now I’m not supporting the motion control in any way, shape, or form. I hate wiggling and waggling just as much as the next gamer. What I am supporting about Natal is the highly intelligent Milo concept. In my opinion, Milo is the stepping stone in what can be a revolution in the way we play games.

Contemplate the cinematic possibilities you can have with some of the characters using the Milo concept.

How would you tell your father in Fallout 3, that you blew up Megaton and how would you deal with yourself for blowing up a community who could actually respond to you in an all too real way. How would you feel for a little boy who lost his teddy bear in the Wasteland of D.C. Would you endlessly search the Wastelands looking for it, or would you spend some caps to buy the little tike a new loveable bedtime buddy?

This is the next step of gaming, there is no denying it. Natal gives us a technology that immerses us so deep into a fictional world, which Hollywood can only envy. I for one am looking forward to this Christmas when I let myself spend some money on a technology in which I consider the future of gaming.

-Quinn Sullivan (Soulibon)

Introducing Project Natal, a revolutionary new way to play: no controller required. See a ball? Kick it, hit it, trap it or catch it. If you know how to move your hands, shake your hips or speak you and your friends can jump into the fun — the only experience needed is life experience.

Right. I will firstly start with Xbox 360 and their project Natal.
I must admit that it doe look impressive, but it also just reminds me of the Playstation eyetoy which was on ps2 aswell as the Playstation 3. So it is not a new way to play overall, but Xbox may think its a new step fowards for their console.
For the Playstation 3 they have slightly copied the Wii remote, only making a better copy of it.

Playstation have swapped round which way the remote and infrared is tracked making it more accurate.

Also there are better graphics and live proof it works already in the early development stages that they are in, unlike the Xbox which only released pre-recorded demos and adverts of it meaning it may be unlikely to play as smoothly as it is shown.

For the Nintendo Wii is the motion sensor plus, which I have already talked about in the Wii review section, meanin they are making you spend more money on what the Wii is already suppose to be doing. The plus sensor isnt really a big step fowards, more like an upgrade, unlike the other two.

Although Natal is just a better version of the Eyetoy. Seems to be there just coping eachother but making a better copy each time. Kinda like Saints Row coping GTA, although Saints Row 2 was a far superior game from my opinion to GTA IV. Anywho leave some comment on what thoughts you have about them.