Celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the Contra Franchise with “Super Contra”!
Konami is celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the seminal Contra franchise with the release of “Super Contra” for Xbox LIVE Arcade this Wednesday, July 25 at 9:00 a.m. GMT (2:00 a.m. PDT).
The fight for freedom continues! Reprise your role as either Bill Rizer or Lance Bean in this follow-up to the arcade classic “Contra,” which made waves in arcades everywhere in 1987. The nefarious forces of Red Falcon have been wounded but they are far from defeated! The alien menace has taken control of a military installation in South America and they must be defeated for the sake of humanity. Experience the authentic gameplay of “Super Contra” with an updated look and feel by battling through several risky missions either solo or in two player co-op mode, just like in the original.
“Super Contra” will become available worldwide this Wednesday for 400 Microsoft Points and is rated E10+.
Game Features
Two gameplay modes: single player or two player co-op, either locally on the same Xbox 360 or over Xbox LIVE.
Players can choose to play with either the original graphics or the enhanced graphics.
Compete for the weekly and all time high scores on the Leaderboards.
Take Flight with Wing Commander Arena on Xbox LIVE Arcade this Wednesday!
Electronic Arts brings “Wing Commander Arena” to Xbox LIVE Arcade for Xbox 360 this Wednesday, July 25 at 9:00 a.m. GMT (2:00 a.m. PDT).
Flash forward to the year 2071: in “Wing Commander Arena,” players form an elite flying squadron to combat the enemy armada of the Kilrathi Empire. Featuring four modes of gameplay, nine maps and the first 16 player multiplayer combat on Xbox LIVE Arcade, “Wing Commander Arena” is the perfect mix of arcade fun and modern multiplayer chaos.
“Wing Commander Arena” on Xbox LIVE Arcade is a completely new iteration in the “Wing Commander” franchise. “Wing Commander Arena” will become available worldwide (with the exception of Japan and Korea) for 800 Microsoft Points and is rated E for Everyone.
Game Features
The first Xbox LIVE Arcade title featuring multiplayer gameplay for up to 16 players over Xbox LIVE.
Four gameplay modes: Single Player, Multiplayer Team, Free for All, and Duel
Players can choose from 18 different ships that can be customized with cloaking devices, mines, energy weapons, missiles and more!
Epic Games has informed Next-Gen that Too Human developer Silicon Knights is suing the Gears of War developer for fraud, breach of contract and other claims.
Epic VP Mark Rein sent an e-mail to various press outlets today which stated, "This morning we were served with a lawsuit by Silicon Knights. We believe the claims against us are unfounded and without merit and we intend to fully defend against them."
Silicon Knights, which is currently developing the anticipated Xbox 360 title Too Human, is licensing Epic's Unreal Engine 3 for development of that title.
"We'd love to tell you more about it but unfortunately our lawyers want us to save our comments for the courthouse so we're going to do our best to comply with their wishes," Rein added. "In that vein we'd appreciate if our friends in the industry and media would refrain from asking us about the suit because we're only going to say 'no comment.' We just wanted to share the news directly before the rumor mill starts churning."
Xbox 360 warranty charges drove Microsoft's Xbox division to post a $1.89 billion operating loss for the fiscal year.
Losses for the Entertainment and Devices Division (EDD) increased by 47 percent for the year ended June 30, due primarily to a $1.06 billion charge stemming from the extension of the Xbox 360 hardware warranty.
Microsoft said reduced console manufacturing costs partially offset the charges caused by the upgraded warranty.
Annual revenues for the EDD (which includes the media player Zune, TV platform products and mobile embedded devices) increased by 28 percent to $6.08 billion, driven by Xbox 360 hardware, accessories, software and Zune sales.
The fourth quarter in the EDD was down, with operating losses increasing 183 percent to $1.2 billion, again due to the billion-dollar-plus warranty charge. Revenues dropped 10 percent from a year ago to $1.16 billion due specifically to "decreased Xbox 360 console sales."
Microsoft shipped 700,000 consoles during the quarter compared to 1.8 million for the same period a year prior.
Xbox and PC game revenue decreased $265 million or 28 percent.
The firm has shipped 11.6 million consoles to date since the Xbox 360's November 2005 launch.
Microsoft is confident that the Xbox business will be profitable throughout the current fiscal year.
Overall, Microsoft announced revenues of $13.37 billion for the quarter and $51.12 billion for the full year, up 13 percent and 15 percent, respectively. Windows Vista and Microsoft Office 2007 were the primary earnings drivers.
For the quarter ending September 30, Microsoft overall expects revenues of $12.4 billion to $12.6 billion and operating income of $5.0 billion to $5.2 billion.
For the fiscal year, the software giant anticipates revenues of $56.8 billion to $57.8 billion and operating income of $22.2 billion to $22.7 billion.
While a two-player co-op mode has been confirmed for Halo 3 (player two assumes the role of the Arbiter) it looks like it'll be available in LAN or split-screen only as Bungie struggles to get the mode running over Xbox Live.
In the latest issues of EGM, it's reported that online co-op isn't happening, yet. "We're not dumb," says Bungie's Frank O'Connor. "We know that people want it and we're trying to make it happen. I think the biggest problem for us for online co-op is that we have a situation where you can be in a Warthog with five troops, almost a mile away from the other player. That's a significant challenge. And there's lots of design things you could do to prevent that from happening, but they would make it not feel like Halo anymore. If we can make it happen in a way that works well, we will - and if it works badly, we won't."
Bungie didn't rule out that online co-op could become a possibility via downloadable content post release. Looks like those rumours of four-player Live co-op have gone forever.
Click the read more link to view the entire story from computerandvideogames.com..
This Friday the 20th July, 2007 "Lost Planet: Extreme Condition" gamers will be able to download Map Packs 1 and 2 for absolutely free.
Normally the additional Lost Planet Map Packs costs Microsoft Points but this Friday it will be free for all. We can also expect a patch to address the online connectivity issues sometime in the very near future.
In "Lost Planet: Extreme Condition", human snow pirates navigate VS (Vital Suits) through hostile ice-covered environments, fighting against the indigenous Akrid creatures for the precious thermal energy they need to survive. For one such pilot named Wayne, death almost seemed imminent until he was fortunately rescued.
However, he can only remember a few fragments of his past, including the slaying of his father by the monstrous beings. Yet under the veil of ice, a devious plan has been set into motion for the termination of all Akrid and snow pirates alike. What really happened to Wayne? Who is plotting the destructive scheme? Encounter valuable allies and dangerous enemies on Wayne's search for the truth.
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