|
Late last night, the gaming world stood in wait for the
announcement that, according to many journalists, could make or
break our industry. After taking the same opportunity, some five
years ago, to announce their plans for their forthcoming Xbox
console, Microsoft took to the stage with only one goal; Xbox360. 
The anticipation in the crowd was phenomenal, especially
considering Japan's love-hate relationship with the Xbox at retail.
Kicking the Tokyo Game Show (TGS) to starting by making the
surprising move of springing an introduction to the system before
the show had actually started, Microsoft announced the system would
launch worldwide within an incredibly tight time frame. The system
will arrive on store shelves Tuesday, 22nd November 2005
in North America, Friday, 2nd December 2005
in
Europe, and Saturday, 10th December 2005
in Japan.
Microsoft will use the remaining keynote slot at the TGS to
outline forthcoming releases and key strategies towards their
success in Japan, highlighting the 40 Japanese publishers signed to produce work
for the Xbox360 and avoiding the rather contrary Japanese opinion
of the Xbox system as a “budget” console.
“This holiday season, gamers in
Japan, Europe and North America pining to experience jaw-dropping
high-definition graphics, unmatched online play and compelling
digital entertainment features of Xbox360 will finally have the
chance,” states Robbie Bach, Chief Xbox Officer for Microsoft.
“Renowned development studios around the world are busy putting
the finishing touches on their Xbox360 games. We expect a strong
portfolio of titles on launch day and through the holidays that
will appeal to fans of every genre and gamers in every region, and
with more than 200 games currently in development, continuous new
additions to the library are on the way.”
Below is a short list of the titles on-hand at the show.
With TGS being the first chance for consumers to get their
hands on the Xbox360, it’s obviously a much more impressive
showing than E3 2005, with system crashes and tech-demos now a
distant memory.
|
|
·
(eM)-eNCHANT-arM (FromSoftware Inc.)
·
BomberMan: Act Zero (Hudson Soft Co. Ltd.)
·
Call of Duty 2 (Activision Inc.)
·
ChromeHounds (Sega)
·
Dead Rising (Capcom)
·
Dynasty Warriors 5 Special (Koei Co. Ltd.)
·
Everyparty (Microsoft Game Studios)
·
Far East
of
Eden
: Ziria (
Hudson
Soft)
·
Final Fantasy XI (SquareEnix Co. Ltd.)
·
Frame
City
Killer (Namco)
·
Gears of War (Microsoft Game Studios)
·
Kameo: Elements of Power (Microsoft Game Studios)
·
Mobile Suit Gundam (Tentative Title) (Bandai Co. Ltd.)
|
·
Need for Speed: Most Wanted (Electronic Arts)
·
Ninety-Nine Nights (Microsoft Game Studios)
·
The Outfit (THQ)
·
Project
Gotham
Racing 3 (Microsoft Game Studios)
·
Resident Evil 5 (Capcom)
·
Ridge Racer 6 (Namco)
·
Rumble Roses XX (Tentative Title) (Konami)
·
Shutoku Battle (Tentative Title) (Genki Co. Ltd.)
·
Sonic the Hedgehog (Sega)
·
Saint's Row (THQ)
·
Test Drive Unlimited (Atari Inc.)
·
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter (Ubi Soft
Entertainment)
·
World Air Force (Tentative Title) (Taito Corp.)
·
Wrestle
Kingdom
(Yuke's Co. Ltd.)
|
|
All the titles on show are due for release within the Launch
Window – which, as far as the Xbox360 is concerned, should be no
later than Christmas 2005, but we’ll probably see a couple of
names drop till January. There are a few other titles key to
Microsoft’s launch strategy, obviously including the
yet-to-be-played but bound-to-be-astounding Dead Or Alive 4,
but, for now, this taster of things to come should be enough for
all but the most hardened Xbox fanatic… you know who you are.
|
| Return to the Articles Archive 2005 here.
Each of these articles has been written
either independently of Electronic Theatre or by an external viewer. The opinions
discussed in these articles in no way reflects the opinions of Electronic Theatre.
If you wish to inquire about pricing of any titles
for these formats not listed on this site, drop me a line at kjoyce@electronictheatre.co.uk |
