Peter Moore with Rock Band producer, Helen McWilliams
On the second night of E3, we stepped into a large, dimly lit room filled with tables -- 8 tables to be exact. At each table sat important folk from the ranks of Microsoft. Bungie's Frank O'Connor, Peter Molyneux: there's some big names in this room (we'll have more on them soon). Sitting in front of us is Peter Moore, VP of Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices Division -- i.e. Xbox. On the right hand side of the room is large LED chess clock. We have four minutes. That's it. The clock starts and we ask him the first thing we can think to ask. We've only got four minutes here, so there's no point in being coy about it.
How do you like Rock Band?
I love Rock Band. I actually, as you may or may not know, I actually went on stage again last night down in west Hollywood, and got up on the stage with the guys and had a good time. Once I can hear the music I can play the game, you know, so I think it's a great game. I love it, I flew to Cambridge, Massachusetts about six months ago, got my first taste of it. Just knew right then we needed to make it part of the briefing, and knew I'm stupid enough to go and put a guitar around my neck and give it a go.
Microsoft announced at the beginning of this year that it had reduced its shipment goal for the fiscal year to 12 million units, down from 13-15 million units. Speaking to gamesindustry.biz about the new 360 warranty, Peter Moore has confirmed that Microsoft has missed the target of 12 million units. The company has sold roughly 11.6 million units, missing its goal by 400,000 units. Despite this, Moore states that Microsoft feels "really good" about the state of the Xbox. In particular, he emphasizes Microsoft's holiday lineup, and notes that it will be featured heavily at E3 next week.
Speaking to Joystiq in a conference call, Peter Moore addressed some of the implications brought on by the recent Xbox 360 warranty extension. Among the topics discussed was Microsoft's speed at reacting to the situation. While it seems like complaints have been mounting for ages, Moore notes that time was needed to "gather data and weigh the financial implications" as well as identifying the hardware problems themselves. Before you ask, no, Moore did not reveal what those problems were, nor did he reveal Xbox 360 failure percentages. According to Moore, Microsoft has "no intention" of doing such a thing, as they see "no value" in doing so. Moore also discusses the apparent disappearance of Xbox 360 Elites and why the warranty extension applies only to the Red Ring of Death and not Xbox 360s with disc scratching problems. Head over to Joystiq for the full report.
The guys over at Gamerscore Blog expressed their discontent with the failure rate of Xbox 360s and the customer service for getting consoles repaired. As such, they are changing the warranty policy worldwide to 3 years after the consoles purchase when dealing with the 3 red rings of light hardware failure on Xbox 360s. Anyone who's payed for any repairs up to this point will be reimbursed in full. This means that anyone who bought their console at launch will be covered until November 22nd 2008. On top of the press release, Peter Moore himself posted an open letter to the community on the policy change, which is included after the break, as well as a FAQ on how it's being rolled out.
In a recent interview with Next-Gen, Peter Moore had some interesting thoughts on the current state of affairs for the PS3. Specifically, Moore offhandedly compares the machine to one with which he is intimately familiar: the Dreamcast. When given the opportunity to insult the PS3 asked a question about the PS3's problems, Moore said, "I'm digging up my tortured past here, but remember Dreamcast?"
The implication here, obviously, is that the PS3 is failing as the Dreamcast did. We would be remiss in our duties if we didn't note that the PS3's situation is vastly different than that of the Dreamcast. SEGA was coming off the unsuccessful SEGA Saturn before it launched the initially successful Dreamcast, only to watch it get crushed under the matte black boots of the PS2. Sony, on the other hand, is coming off the incredible success of the very console that killed the Dreamcast in the first place. Still, details aside, the meaning of the comment is clear, and those, Mr. Moore, are fighting words.
Looking past the initial swipe at Sony, the interview covers a fairly substantial range of topics. These include the Xbox 360 Elite, the continued existence of the Core 360, and how Microsoft plans to expand its software lineup. Hit the "read" link to check it out.
Speaking to Mike Antonucci of the Mercury News, Microsoft's Peter Moore answered readers questions about the Xbox 360. Among the more interesting questions was from a reader who had gone through two Xbox 360s within 7 months. When asked for a "straight answer" about 360 failure rates -- and whether or not they were higher than 3% -- Moore deflected the issue, saying that customers should focus on the treatment of the problem and not the problem itself. In other words, quality of customer service is more important than the quality of the product. According to Moore, "Y'know, things break, and if we've treated him well and fixed his problem, that's something that we're focused on right now." Moore further stated that he couldn't comment on specific failure rates because he was "shipping in 36 countries and it's a complex business."
Other issues discussed include [email protected], the shared processing initiative recently supported by the PS3. When asked whether or not the 360 would ever be used for such a purpose, Moore stated that if Microsoft believed it could aid projects like [email protected] with the processing power of the 360, it would certainly consider it. Moore also takes time to address the Xbox 360's variety of games (or lack thereof), and the state of affairs in Japan. Hit the "read" link for the full article.
So, Reggie Fils-Aime voiced his opinion on the 360's sales in Europe, and Microsoft wasn't going to just sit and listen to such statements. They came back to say that they are on track to meet their 12 million shipped worldwide milestone by the end of June 2007, having shipped 10.4 million back in December. They also pointed out that the 6 million Xbox Live users worldwide is nothing to scoff at either. Still, it will be interesting to see how things stack up after the other two consoles have been on the market for a year.
In a recent interview with EGM, Peter Moore gave some insight on the future of Microsoft's next console. He stated that the production team for the 360 is currently working on its successor, and are looking at what kind of computing power will be available around 2011 and 2012. That puts the lifespan of the 360 somewhere between 6 to 7 years, which is certainly better than the original Xbox's 4 years. Moore also stated that there will be support for the 360 "as long as it sells". So, that's a long way off, which is a good thing, as we are happy to see Microsoft's plans for the 360 look more long term than last time.
Speaking to Game Informer, Don Mattrick and Peter Moore discuss the future of the Xbox 360. Specifically, Moore discusses the great stable of games heading to the platform -- Mass Effect, Forza 2, Too Human, etc. -- and how Microsoft plans to combat the tiny white elephant in the room, the Wii. According to Moore, Microsoft began to see the significance of the casual market when the Wii was still known as Revolution. Moore states that Microsoft's strategy is more than simply throwing more E rated games onto the 360, saying "it's more experiential than that." This quickly leads to the speculation that Microsoft may have a motion controller of its own in mind. At this point it remains pure speculation. After all, Mr. Moore could easily be talking about more games involving the Vision Camera. Whatever it is, Moore states that there will be announcements within the next couple of months. With any luck, we might just hear something during GDC next week.
Do you think Microsoft has a Wiimote up its sleeve, or is it something entirely different?
Sooner or later, everyone winds up working together. It should come as no surprise then, that former head of Electronic Arts Worldwide Studios, Don Mattrick, is joining Microsoft as a "strategic adviser" to the Entertainment and Devices division. The Entertainment and Devices group houses the Xbox 360 as well as the Zune. Peter Moore was ecstatic about the announcement, claiming that he had been looking forward to working with Mattrick since he left EA in 2006. Moore -- once the head of SEGA during the Dreamcast era -- claims that there is no bad blood between himself and Mattrick. Game history buffs will remember that EA refused to support the Dreamcast, has a long rivalry with SEGA sports, and was hesitant to allow its games on Xbox Live (seems they can't get enough of it now). Moore is happy to welcome Mattick, though he admits some disdain for EA CEO, Larry Probst.
Exactly what Mattrick will be doing seems unclear though it seems he will be heavily involved in developing concepts like Xbox Live. Mattrick admits that online gaming is the biggest trend in the industry and he hopes to push Microsoft to the top of that arena.
Dean Takahashi recently sat down to talk with Peter Moore at CES. Some of the topics discussed include IPTV, gaming on Windows Vista, MMOs on 360, the importance of 1st party developers, Microsoft's hopes in Japan, and of course, a little offhanded PS3 and Wii bashing. Moore makes a particularly interesting point about the necessity of 1st party development. Takahashi points out that Microsoft doesn't have as many 1st party developers as Sony and Nintendo. Moore replies that Microsoft has many 1st party games being created by studios not owned by Microsoft. Examples of this include Bioware's Mass Effect, Silicon Knights' Too Human, and of course Epic's Gears of War. Moore notes that Microsoft has a great publishing model in which MS aids in funding and publishing externally developed titles. He further states that while these are developed by a third party, they are unmistakably 1st party 360 titles.
The interview is a little over half an hour long, and worth a listen to any dedicated 360 fanboys. Hit the "read" link to check it out.
Yesterday at CES, Zune Boards received some insider information about Microsoft's mobile gaming plans from Xbox rockstar Peter Moore. Moore told the press that the Zune would be able to play video games on its extra wide screen in the future, but no sooner than July 2008. If the current Zune model is what they're thinking of using to play games, then damned if we won't be jaded. We were thinking more along the lines of an actual stand alone portable to play games ... not an MP3 player with limited input devices. Maybe this is a stepping stone to what may bloom into a full fledged Xbox portable gaming system, but something we wouldn't see for years to come. So Mr. Zune, we've realized that you aren't our Xboy. Yes it's hard, but it would be best if we just went out seperate ways.
Coming from a recently vaporized post on Dean Takahashi's website (it was dated January 7), Microsoft is expected to announce that they have reached and surpassed their oft promised goal of shipping 10 million units by the end of 2006. The actual number is expected to be 10.4 million. We shudder to think what body part Peter Moore will tattoo next. Also expected is the announcement of IPTV support for the 360 from Microsoft bigwigs Robbie Bach and Bill Gates. Both announcements are expected on Sunday, during the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
With the recent (probably factual) revelation of the Xbox 360 v.2, Microsoft continues to expand the abilities of its wonder box. The larger hard drive would certainly be welcome for DVR features. We do share a sentiment with Joystiq, though: we're not sure we relish the idea of leaving our 360s running for hours at a time. We only do that when we feel like cooking some eggs or heating the office.
As mentioned above, the article in question has been taken down. It was dated for January 7, so it's possible Dean Takahashi hit the "publish" button a little early. Of course, we'd never to anything like that. No, never.
Next-Gen has compiled a list of the videogame industry's best and brightest of 2006, including the likes of Nintendo's Satoru Iwata and Reggie Fils-Aime, CliffyB, and Larry Hryb (AKA Major Nelson). Peter Moore, the charismatic voice of the Xbox 360 (sorry J) has been granted top honors. Next-Gen cites Moore's accomplishments this year: impressive 360 sales, a great relationship with 3rd party publishers and the media, and his (moderately successful) attempts to woo Japan.
Sure, Moore is an executive and he wants you to drink the Kool-aid, but man, by the time he's done talking, you want to drink that Kool-aid and ask for another glass. The Xbox 360 finally has some new gen competition, so here's hoping Moore can keep up its success through 2007 (Halo 3 should help).
Microsoft 
In a recent interview with Next-Gen, 
In a recent interview with EGM, Peter Moore gave some insight on the future of Microsoft's next console. He stated that the production team for the 360 is currently working on its successor, and are looking at what kind of computing power will be available around 2011 and 2012. That puts the lifespan of the 360 somewhere between 6 to 7 years, which is certainly better than the original Xbox's 4 years. Moore also stated that there will be support for the 360 "as long as it sells". So, that's a long way off, which is a good thing, as we are happy to see Microsoft's plans for the 360 look more long term than last time.
Speaking to Game Informer, 
Sooner or later, everyone winds up working together. It should come as no surprise then, that former head of 
Coming from a recently vaporized post on Dean Takahashi's website (it was dated January 7), Microsoft is expected to announce that they have reached and surpassed their oft promised 
