Microsoft announced today that they have officially sold more than 10 million Xbox 360 consoles in the United States, with over 19 million sold worldwide since the product launched in late 2005. The Xbox 360 is the first console of this generation to reach the 10 million mark in the US, a very significant fact according to Don Mattrick, the VP of Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices Division, "History has shown us that the first company to reach ten million in console sales wins the generation battle. We are uniquely positioned to set a new benchmark for the industry."
The press release has a few other statistics worth noting as well. First of all, the launch of Grand Theft Auto IV helped push the number of Xbox Live members to 12 million, which Microsoft claims is double what it was a year ago (it was at 7 million last July, so that sounds about right). On the software front, Microsoft boasts more than 16 games that have sold a million copies or more, which the company claims is twice as many as the Wii and more than the PS3 by a margin of 16:2 (so, 8:1 in other words). MS is also trumpeting the critical praise lavished on 360 games, noting that 91 Xbox 360 titles average 80 or higher on Metacritic, whereas the Wii and PS3 have 22 and 50 respectively.
Rosy numbers indeed, though that's to be expected from Microsoft PR. Some of the language is a little strange, like the 16:2 ratio, which sounds bigger than it is. Also, "more than 16" is a rather odd choice of words. Does that mean 17? 20? Enough PR dissection though. Such things are the pursuit of madmen. The point is that MS has sold over 10 million consoles in the US. Whether or not this milestone truly cements Microsoft's victory remains to be seen.
If history remains true the Xbox 360 Spring update should be on its way soon, but unlike previous updates we've heard nothing about new features. According to a tip sent to Joystiq regarding the spring update there are nearly 80 new features and tweaks possibly incoming for the Xbox 360.
The completely unconfirmed list can be found after the jump but we can tell you it includes some features we've dreamed for. Voice chat conferences for up to four people, an Inside Xbox Portal which includes news, entertainment, weather and various community features, downloading audio from feeds (such as the Xbox 360 Fancast, or other podcasts we guess), a DRM check for downloaded content which lists items that will not be accessible when disconnected from Xbox Live and a new (hopefully working) way to correct the DRM issue are some of the features on the list.
Other notable features include being able to delete games from your played games list if they list a gamerscore of zero (and zero obtained achievements) and the ability to save game data onto the hard drive for faster loading (presumably the way PS3 handles the feature).
The most interesting addition is the ability to calibrate motion sensor based peripherals again pushing the Wii-like controller rumor into the limelight.
Keep in mind that this all squarely falls under the category of "rumor" for the moment. We'll let you know as soon as we hear otherwise. Find the full list of (rumored) features after the break.
Because one just isn't enough, this month Microsoft has crowned four bands, yes four different bands May's Artist(s) of the Month. Freakin' epic! As part of their honor, each band has a little blurb over on Xbox.com and video content goodness on the (U.S. only) Xbox Live Marketplace. Anyway, we should just tell you who the four Artist(s) of the Month are shouldn't we? We're such teases. Ahem, we proudly present to you May's artists which include Voltio, Tyga, Death Cab for Cutie and Dierks Bentley. And, sadly, we only have ever heard of Dierks Bentley.
In a few weeks time, the Sasquatch! Music Festival (the same festival that will NOT have a GoW2 beta) will kick off and hundreds of thousands of music fans will decend upon the festival grounds. But even if you won't be attending the musical fun, you can still play games with a few of the bands thanks to the Xbox.com sponsored Game With Fame.
Scheduled for Game With Fame fun on May 24th will be Wil-Dog Abers and Asdru Sierra from fusion band Ozomatli who'll be playing Halo 3 and indie rock group The National's own Bryan Devendorf will be online playing MLB 2K8. If you're interested in playing with either band, click the links below for GWF playtimes, band Gamertags and other important details. Game on!
Read - Ozomatli GWF from Sasquatch! Read - The National GWF from Sasquatch!
Well that didn't take long. Major Nelson has posted the most recent Xbox Live activity top ten. As predicted, Grand Theft Auto IV has (appropriately) stolen the top spot from Call of Duty 4. It would be interesting to find out the percentage of players playing multiplayer versus those that are sticking to the single-player campaign. Regardless, given the amount of content there is to discover in GTAIV, it's likely that it will remain at number one for quite some time. The question now is what game has the power to knock it down. The only thing that comes to mind is (Game of the Year 2008) Ninja Gaiden II. As much as we know Ryu could probably take Niko one-on-one, we're not sure his game has the strength to topple GTAIV.
Over on Xbox.com, TriXie posted a GamerchiX enrollment update announcing that, to date, their group of GamerchiX has reached the 5,000 member milestone. Now, that's a lot of chiX ... man. This group of gaming females is now (though, they've always been) a force to be reckoned with, with members spanning across the globe, in thirty countries and on all continents except Antarctica. Which we can't fault them for. Congrats TriXie and to all the members of the GamerchiX community as we wish you continued membership success! We also promise to quit asking you for your a/s/l while waiting in Halo 3 matchmaking lobbies.
A statement released by Microsoft on Tuesday reminds everyone living under a rock that Grand Theft Auto IV is now available and features online play and future DLC. One line in the statement may reveal the size of the content stating, "starting this autumn, Xbox 360 owners will also have access to exclusive Grand Theft Auto IV episodes that will provide hours of additional game play."
Recently Rockstar co-founder Sam Houser discussed the scope of the forthcoming episodic content with Next-Gen's Edge. "... You'll get a lot of content for your money, which I think is really important. You know, there are too many stories at the moment of people having the feeling that they're not getting enough for their money in terms of downloadable content, and it's easy for publishers to get away with," he said.
Houser also joked that the team at Rockstar North plans to "fry those Xbox Live servers" when the content is finally released. Currently, no pricing details or gameplay specifics for the downloadable content have been announced by Rockstar Games or Microsoft.
Update: According to some of our readers not all copies of Grand Theft Auto IV include the one-month free trial card. This does not seem to be based on which version you purchase (regular or special edition) or which region you live in. We're awaiting a comment from Microsoft.
Aside from securing exclusive downloadable content for Grand Theft Auto IV and being the primary promoter of the game in ongoing advertisements is there anything else Microsoft can do to make GTA IV standout? How about give away a month of Xbox Live service to everyone who purchases the game? According to THEBBPS, and verified when we all cracked open our retail copies, GTA IV includes a one-month free trail for Xbox Live Gold service which allows players to take their experience online.
Ordinarily Microsoft packages 48-hour trial cards with select titles to entice gamers to go online but with the popularity of GTA IV and the potential increase of membership activations this looks like a smart strategic move on their part. Maybe this is what they meant by future growth of the service the last time they did system maintenance?
Xbox Live gets us mad. We don't mean because of the dips in service that happen from time to time, we don't mean some of the exorbitantly priced content; we mean the people. We love people, but on Xbox Live social normality is thrown out the window as some gamers just need to turn on that hate. We always thought it was because some people (not all, but you've met these people too) are just straight up jerkfaces (see also, Asshats) but apparently some gamers were just introduced to Live via this orientation video.
X-Play created a (sometimes) funny video that's meant to shine light on the personalities of Xbox Live and how the hate came to be. Video's embedded after the jump due to some NSFW language and crude humor, but remember the whole thing is a gag and is meant to have you shake your head in both understanding and disgust because it's pretty accurate. Unfortunately.
It's almost time for Bonnaroo, (Tennessee's music and arts festival that takes up some 700 acres of farmland) which is set to go down in June and Xbox.com wants to send one lucky Play & Win gamer to the festivities.
To enter for the chance at an all expense paid trip to Bonnaroo, all you have to do is play Rock Band online between May 9th and the 11th and KAZAAM! You're entered. Of course, you'll have to register here first or download the exclusive Bonnaroo Play & Win gamer picture off the XBLM, but you already knew that. If you win and are flown to Tennessee, be sure to tell Kanye, Metallica and Willie Nelson that X3F says hiya! Good luck fanboys!
Well, it only took two days after the initial update but Xbox Live seems to be back to normal again. According to the support page on Xbox.com the service is fully functional and thank goodness!
Xbox Live is sure to be tested this Tuesday when Grand Theft Auto IV hits store shelves. Will the service be up to the task? We'd like to think the tech ninjas at Microsoft have been preparing for this very situation, but don't ask us to put money on it. What? Gambling is wrong, that's why.
Update: According to the Xbox.com support page, Xbox Live is up and running but some users may encounter issues with matchmaking and voice communication. Apparently technicians are working on the issue as we speak ... uh ... I mean type.
Reports are coming in from readers that Xbox Live is currently encountering intermittent connection issues, by that we mean playing online, voice communication and even connecting to the service seems to be touch-n-go. The support page for Xbox.com has verified the service has hit a snag, while Major Nelson updated the situation at 11PM EST letting Xbox Live users know that "[the] team is updating [the support page] as conditions change."
While we understand the frustration our readers are feeling we'd like to echo a comment made when Live was down on Monday, better it be now than on or after April 29. No excuse we know, but we're trying to find that silver lining.
Yesterday Xbox Live was scheduled to go online at 1:00PM EST after an 8-hour hiatus for maintenance. However, like any guarantee, Xbox Live suffered from staggered connection issues well into the evening. According to the Xbox.com support page and Major Nelson, Xbox Live was back to business early this morning. Today, in a rare poll, we wonder what your experience is like. Fire up the Xbox 360 and connect to Live, play a game or two online and let us know what your experience is like now that the dust has settled on the connection problems.
Update: Major Nelson updated his initial post letting XBL users know that the tech team is aware of some issues with the rolling restarts. They are looking into the situation. Again, we ask that you be patient and just think about all the dudes you'll be shooting on April 29.
According to Major Nelson, the scheduled maintenance for Xbox Live that left the service offline since early this morning is complete. Before you fashion your trendiest riot clothes and pitchforks we'd like to remind you that while the service maintenance is complete users may experience rolling restarts around the globe. As an example, the service has restarted for our own Dustin Burg but has left this Canadian out in the cold (see what I did there?) with connection issues.
If you are experiencing connection issues we ask that you be patient before flooding our inbox with "ZOMG, they broked Live" news tips. Looking for something to do? May we suggest checking out X3F TV! While our Nielsen ratings aren't anything to write home about, we can at least assure you our gaming related videos are more entertaining than watching anything that Spike TV does with this industry in mind.
Hey kids, just a reminder that Xbox Live will be down today until 10:00am Pacific time (1:00pm Eastern). It shouldn't be too much of an inconvenience for most gamers, as they will have to contend with the likes of school or work (or perhaps both ... *shudder*). Still, some of us (ahem ... bloggers) are deeply upset by the matter. Just what are gamers with different schedules supposed to do? We suppose we could finally start that Halo needlepoint project we keep stalling ....
Yesterday 
