Next Gen Xbox Might Not Support Used Games

This is only rumoured at the moment but I know a fair amount of people that would be pushed away from buying an Xbox (I refuse to call it a 720 because I very much doubt it will be called that) if this is the case. This would also hurt small video game stores that rely on renting and selling used games as their primary source of income. There is a couple of them in my town. Would be a shame for them to lose out on business due to some harsh policy on Microsofts end. I know exactly the reason behind this and it is the likes of EA and other such companies that are against the sale of used games because they won't get a cut. Which is the exact reason we are starting to see an rise in the likes of online passes.

If this is to happen they will need to drop the price of games brand new or I can see a lot of people taking their gaming needs elsewhere, be it Playstation, Nintendo or anyone else that decides to make a move in the console market (I mention the latter point as I read an article the other day about Neo Geo making a comeback with a portable device, this is again just rumoured but if they start off with a portable device I see no reason they can't come out with a full fledged console). A lot of gamers rely on used games to actually be able to afford all the different games they want to play.

Now for a little bit of good news about Microsofts latest console. First of all it is to be believed that the next Xbox will be six times as powerful as the current gen counterpart, which I find believable as the 360 is sitting on some dated tech, the thing came out in 2005 and technology has evolved a lot since then. It will also be stepping up on the disc format used,  from DVD to Blu-ray, which to be honest is the obvious thing to do as Blu-ray discs can hold up to 5 times as much data as DVD's. It may also be used as a DVR giving you the ability to record the media of your choice through your Xbox be it television and films or your gaming experience.

And lastly whether you like it or not Kinect is here to stay. I personally am a fan of the technology, and before the masses get out their pitchforks saying how it is a crappy little gimmick. The way they are using now for the likes of crappy dance games, yes, yes it is. However this tech has amazing potential behind it. All they need to do is replace the camera with a projector and we have augmented reality, granted I just made that sound a lot easier than it would be to do that but my point still stands. I don't really care who does this but someone should, be it Microsoft or be it a third party. If that were to happen it would be amazing.

Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet on PC

ESRB have rated a PC version of that strange little Xbox Arcade game. It would appear us PC gamers are getting another Indie title to add to our arsenal of games. As for its release date, that has yet to be set or at least released to the public. From the gameplay I have seen, it does look like a cool game but due to me not having an Xbox I haven't had the chance to play it. Well all that will change soon. I hope more games follow suit.

Super Meat Boy Sells One Million Copies

It's the game everyone loves to hate. Or just plain hates because it's so rage inducing. Anyway according to a recent tweet from Team Meat. This annoying yet addictive little platformer has breached the one million marker since it's release last year in October on Xbox. No doubt it's release on Steam and it's appearance in the Humble Bundle has definitely helped up the amount of copies sold

Xbla first or nothing at all.

Microsoft are being quite petty it would seem as it has come into the headlines that they can deny games having an Xbox Live Arcade release if they launch on PSN first. In a sense it's a type of bullying aimed at developers. 'You can't use our system unless we have priority' is essentially the message they are coming across with. I hope lots of developers tell them where to shove it and go promote there games on Playstation. Granted theres always going to be competition between different consoles, this is pretty much blackmail. Sony have commented on this saying "I think what [Xbox Europe Boss] Chris Lewis and the other representatives at Microsoft are doing is protecting an inferior technology". Read full article here about Sony reaction. I'm not liking all the shady business tactics that seem to be going on in the gaming world recently, hopefully it's not a sign of things to come.

Cross platform gaming with Steam for CS:GO

As we all know Valve are bringing out a new version of Counter Strike under the name Global Offensive. There is now use of cross platform being implimented between Playstation and PC, with Xbox hopefully joining suit in the near future. The PS version of CS:GO will have keyboard and mouse support, along with Playstation move (although I'm not sure how good/accurate this feature will be but fair play to Valve for using peripheral devices available to them) and of course Dual Shock Controllers, so you can play on PS however you choose.

For years there have been debates over which is better consoles or pcs. Now with Valve implimenting this we will be able to find out. While keyboard and mouse are obviously more accurate than controllers, I do think there will be some guys on PS that will give PC gamers a run for there money. Hopefully Valve can work things out with Microsoft and have Steam over on Xbox as well and we will have fully cross platform compatibility. So you can play against your buddies no matter what platform you happen to play and prefer. I do hope this is a sign of things to come and that we see more cross platform games in the future. Microsoft could (and should of IMO) have started cross platform play with GFWL and XBL. All they had to do really was put in keyboard and mouse support for Xbox, so they at least have the choice of having the same as PC guys, and just chuck a few ports of Xbox games over to Windows. While they did start porting over with the likes of Gears of War, and the first two Halos, which were all (apart from the original Halo I reckon anyway) were quite poor ports of the original Xbox games.  Hopefully Valve and MS will work something out as this would be great to see more games playable with people across all three platforms. We shall see soon enough.

I can see a lot of die hard PC gamers complaining about Valve branching out. I applaude them for forming this bridge between gamers. This imo is the first step to creating a bigger, better and greater gaming community for everyone. A chance for Xbox gamers to play with friends that only have a Playstation or PC and vice versa. And for Valve to be doing this is amazing as they do have great PR and actually listen to what customers want (except hiding away a certain Freeman but that's a completely different story. But everyone knows Valve uses Valve Time and gets things done when they get it done). I can see this making us a little more competitive and can prove once and for all who is better, Consolers or PC gamers.

Want a shiny new Xbox? Tough.

So the guys in the lab down at Microsoft are stopping production on Xbox's with a glossy case finish in favour of a matte finish instead. What brought on this ground breaking idea is any mans guess. Except the slight change in colour is there any other changes to better the Xbox? Not that I know of. I personally prefer the shiny version. Shiny things are shiny. So if you are wanting a lovely shiny Xbox instead of a bland matte finished one I would suggest buying one soon, otherwise you will have to get a second hand one. Not really much more to say on this matter really. So yeah discontinuing shiny versions.

Official annoucement for new Counter Strike

So we have a new Counter Strike heading our way, at the moment coming some point early 2012. We will see new maps, game modes (what modes I don't think has been said as of yet) and leader boards to name a few things, and no doubt updated graphics aswell.
I saw that they will also be releasing the game on Playstation and Xbox aswell. While most people will more than likely sit and complain about this with "ah man it's a pc game crappy consoles shouldn't get to play it yadda yadda bullshit" It's not that big a deal. As Valve being Valve have always been PC based, with a couple minor exceptions. But they no doubt will put the PC version as there priority and keep the majority of there fan base (ie pc gamers) happy. And yes there are going to be a lot of people complain about it just like they did when source was released but people get over that and end up playing the game anyway. If they don't they like this new version they will just return to there favourite version of the game. It's not going to die any time soon. There is still people who play 1.6 and even cz to this day. Hopefully we will hear more about this in the not to distant future.