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Week of April 6, 2008
ArkTool Pack v6.1
>> This now contains a bunch of tools including a GUI and command line tool for editing ark/hdr files that are found in games such as: Guitar Hero 1, Guitar Hero 2, Guitar Hero 80s, Rockband, Karaoke Revolution. Sorry but Guitar Hero 3 uses a different format to all the above.
v6.1 changes - thanks to xport:
* removed debug code that could cause problems when decrypting pss files
* changed "gap detection" code to correctly find gaps when a file has been deleted
from an ark, then ark has been saved and closed and then reopened again.
* added changes to make it compile easier on linux (hopefully out of the box)
Note: This tool is for editing/injecting your own songs into Guitar Hero 1/2, Rockband and Karaoke Revolution.
Official Site: xorloser.com
Download: here
Interview with Microsoft's Chris Satchell
>> From eurogamer.net:
[QUOTE]
Earlier this year, Microsoft announced plans to allow small independent developers - even individuals - to put homemade games on Xbox 360 using a new version of XNA Game Studio and the subscription-based XNA Creator's Club. The idea is simple: make a game with XNA, submit it to peer-review, release it on Xbox Live. At the time we were told that a beta test would go on behind the scenes in spring, with a full launch later in 2008.
* Eurogamer: What specifically will be part of the beta?
* Chris Satchell (XNA group general manager): Well, the beta will be closed - it's for people in the Creator's Club, so it won't be open to everyone on Xbox Live. It will be open to anybody that joins [the Creator's Club], but what we're really trying to test is the full end-to-end process. Can somebody create a game, can they upload it, rate their content, can the community review it. We're going to go through all those stages of build-submit-review-play and make sure that whole pipeline works smoothly, and then also find out how people actually use it.
As a normal consumer, this will go on under the covers, because you'd need to be in the Creator's Club to be able to use it, but if you're in the Creator's Club you'll be able to go to the websites and see what new games there are, get involved in the rankings, and rate the game against the content, and then also when you're on Xbox Live you'll be able to go to a page and see all the games that are coming through and play them all, and really experience what the community's doing.
* Eurogamer: The peer-review system seems like it has the potential to be used outside XNA. One of the things that's in the headlines a lot is Epic's problem of wanting to do modifications for Unreal Tournament 3. Is the peer-review system something that could be reused to allow modified content of that nature?
* Chris Satchell: There's two parts to that question. Let me address the first one. I think, assuming we're successful, I think the pipeline really is an incredible piece of innovation that will definitely enable other scenarios, and what's important about it is it's really addressing some of the problems with user-generated content.
I think we're seeing from some of the lawsuits out there - outside of our industry - that just saying you have reactive takedown isn't enough. You need to be more proactive about protecting people's IP and having content that's acceptable. So I think that's a major innovation. I absolutely believe that our pipeline, if successful, can help inform the design of those or even be used directly for other parts of our business.
Now the modding's a little different. Yes it could help rate mods, but the core issue of modding is what we talked about earlier - if you're not running in that sandbox, how do you guarantee security?
That's really where we've got stuck - making sure that nothing will hurt the user's system, and I'm a little disturbed when I think about other systems and people using what we call native code - code that goes right down to the metal - and then allowing people to run script mods on top of that without the right security measures. It could be really dangerous.
We've drawn a hard line because we very much care about security, and it seems like some other platforms don't seem to care quite as much. That kind of worries me for consumers. But all I can control is what we do on our platform, so that's where I'm going to focus - we're going to keep you safe because that's really important to us.
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Full Interview: eurogamer.net (2 pages)
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
Xbox snaps up former SCEE man
>> From mcvuk.com:
[QUOTE]
Daniel Maher appointed Xbox Live editor for Europe.
Maher joins from SCEE's international software development team and will now be responsible for the editorial and production of the various European versions of Inside Xbox, the daily news magazine on Xbox Live.
Maher was recently voted by his peers in our 30 under 30 feature, a prestigious list of the top 30 up-and-coming games industry executives. He joined SCEE straight out of university in 2001, where he worked as a content producer on PlayStation.com for four years before moving to SCEE's international software development team.
"Daniel's background makes him inimitably qualified for the exciting plan of rolling out Inside Xbox across Europe," said director of Xbox Live Europe Robin Truchy.
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Full Story: mcvuk.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
BBC: MS wanted to 'control' streaming video
>> From joystiq.com:
[QUOTE]
A day after the BBC announced a version of its iPlayer streaming video service for the Wii, an obvious follow-up question arises: "Why isn't a similar service available for the PS3 and Xbox 360 as well?" A partial answer from BBC Future and Technology Group Coordinator Erik Huggers, who said in a BBC's dot.life blog that Sony and Microsoft weren't willing to open up their infrastructures to the iPlayer. "If you want to get on the PlayStation or Xbox, they want control of the look, the feel and the experience; they want it done within their shop, and their shop only," Huggers said.
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Full Story: joystiq.com | bbc.co.uk
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
MI6 Awards Honor Launch Campaigns of Xbox 360 Titles
>> From teamxbox.com:
[QUOTE]
Wrapping up another informative and insightful MI6 Conference, event organizers put on a lively MI6 Awards celebration to honor the video game industry's best marketing achievements. Among the night's big winners were the launch campaigns for 2K's BioShock, Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed, Microsoft's Halo3 and Activision's Call of Duty 4. With their industry peers getting the unique opportunity to bestow the awards, the marketers for each of these four campaigns were recognized in special individual presentations shown to attendees during the festivities.
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Full Story: teamxbox.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
Mednafenx-NES V9 Fix
>> A new version of MednafenX-NES, a NES Emulator for Xbox1, has been released:
[QUOTE]
This is a recompiled version of the latest mednafenx with a correction to a typo in the last release that disabled the ability to load custom palettes.
This version of mednafenx also includes the correct nes color palette. (this is enabled by default) You can always autogenerate your own palette or load your own palette. Included in this release is the old palette and the RGB palette. The RGB palette is colors that can be output by a svideo modded nes.
Compiled by madmab brought to you by XtecuterX73 and Madmab :)
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Download: n/a (built with XDK)
News-Source: xbins.org
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
Yahoo and AOL suddenly close to merging?
>> From engadget.com:
[QUOTE]
Yahoo's done its best to fend off Microsoft's aggressive advances until now, but it suddenly looks like the struggling company might be getting some help -- both the Wall Street Journal and Reuters are reporting that the Yahoo is "closing in" on a deal to merge with Time Warner's AOL division and partner up with Google on search advertising.
The idea is for Time Warner to sell AOL to Yahoo and make a large investment in the new company, which would probably be valued at around $10B.
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Full Story: engadget.com | wsj.com | reuters.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
MI6: Gaming 2020 - The Top 5 Quotes
>> From gamasutra.com:
[QUOTE]
* 1. Peter Moore, EA Sports: "I think we have to look East for indications of where this business is going. We're going to have to practice creative destruction quickly..." As for the retail/console model being the future: "We're kidding ourselves."
* 2. Alex St. John, Wild Tangent: "I think you'll see the console business is gone by [2020]... one reason is that there's a game which is the most profitable game in history, it's World Of Warcraft. More and more games will move to community models."
* 3. Nolan Bushnell, NeoEdge: "Traditional banquets with gaming, in the 10th and 12th century always had food and drink with them... so the living room, I think, of 2020, will likely have some kind of interactive coffee table. There will probably be an internet connection to some PC."
* 4. Kathy Vrabeck, EA Casual: "I think in 2020 we will not be making games accessible for the people we think of today... in 12 short years we've moved to 30% of the business being online and mobile? Is that a stretch to say it'll be 50% 12 years from now? I don't think so."
* 5. Laurent Detoc, Ubisoft: "If we make things very accessible and enlarge the population, we will have a very diverse population... nobody in my office knows my mom as a consumer, but if she starts buying games they're going to have to... that's really not 2020, it's right now."
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Full Story: gamasutra.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
Amazon Handing Out 50usd to HD DVD Victims
>> From gizmodo.com:
[QUOTE]
Following up Best Buy's $50 pledge to HD DVD victims, Amazon is also doling out a $50 credit to anyone who bought Toshiba's folly before Feb. 23, 2008. Naturally, they're encouraging you to use it on a shiny new Blu-ray player, but you could use it to take advantage of their HD DVD fire sale. Unfortunately, they're not doing trade-ins, so this is all you're gonna get.
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Full Story: gizmodo.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
Xbox Source about 'Newton' Motion Sensing Controller
>> From 8bitjoystick on seattlepi.nwsource.com:
[QUOTE]
I can now confirm the existence of the Xbox Wiimote clone project and I can tell you the project code name: "Newton"
The hardware is still being worked on and it might be a couple months before we see leaked shots of prototypes when they start to mass manufacture it but I am sure that there is an early software developer kit and prototype out there.
Microsoft is rumored to have licensed patents from Gyration and are using them to develop their motion sensing Wiimote controller. Legally Microsoft is not ripping off Nintendo but rather licensing the technology from the same place that Nintendo got it. For an example the Guitar Hero and Rockband controllers both use the same patent that is owned by Konami that they developed for Guitar Freaks.
From what I've learned from internal sources at Microsoft I can collaborate that the Newton project is moving forward and I can believe the time table that it has been in development for a while now and they could get it on the market by winter of 2008. The Newton is also going to use an LED sensor bar that can be powered by the USB ports on the 360, it is going to have an LED sensor on the front accelerometer and gyroscope sensor that can detect tilt and motion, rumble motors, wireless two way data communication with the 360, a built in Microphone for Xbox Live and voice-activated games.
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Full Story: seattlepi.nwsource.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
Infectus Programmer 0.3.9 is out
>> Team Infectus released a new version of the programmer for the Infectus2 chip with some new features for the Xbox360:
[QUOTE]
We are happy to release today the final version of PROGRAMMER 0.0.3.9.
Inside this file you will find all is necessary to program and manage INFECTUS2 and ARGON products... so a complete suite.
Here the principal new things in the new PROGRAMMER:
* 1- PROGRAMMER.EXE now have built in all the firmwares for INFECTUS2, included the A3P125 and A3P060 firmwares... simple choose on the menu what you want to program and voilaa...
* 2- ACTEL sent to all developers a warning again a BUG that is inside the library called DIRECTC... this bug cause problems in programming mode, we fixed the bug like suggested from ACTEL. This new version of programmer fixed CANNOT WORKS WITH OLD .DAT FIRMWARES.. so pls. from today who use PROGRAMMER 0.0.3.9 NEED TO USE THE FIRMWARES PROVIDED WITH THE PROGRAMMER.
3- Updated the JTAG programming process, now is more faster
4- Added the support of flash SST39vf010 (the flash of wasabi), who want to read and write this kind of flash need to replace the original flash of INFECTUS2 with this new one.
5- Now programmer understud automatically if is connect INFECTUS2 or INJECTUS
6- Programmer now recognize automatically what is the type of PLD/FPGA connected, and it select the correct firmware for programming. No more mistakes between firmwares. (this for infectus2, for ARGON you need to load manually the .DAT and take care about kind of PLD)
7- ERROR 65 reported on BENQ "trial firmware" application is now fixed.
8- IMPORTANT COMPATIBILITY WARNING: The programmer 0.0.3.9 will update the INJECTUS / INFECTUS USB JTAG controller, after this update the old programmers will not works... the update is automatically started when you plug INFECTUS or INJECTUS to PC USB port.
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Official Site: http://infectus.biz
Download: here
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
MTV Answers Questions about 360's Wii-Style Controller
>> From mtv.com:
[QUOTE]
On Monday, MTV News broke the story that Microsoft has been working on an Xbox 360 answer to the Wii remote since the summer. This story has provoked a lot of discussion and raised a lot of questions. How did we get these details? Why would Microsoft do this? Is this a late April Fools' Day hoax?
* You: Is this an April Fools' Day joke?
* MTV News: MTV News has been doing background reporting on this story for several months, but only recently felt the facts were solid enough to file a report.
* You: Isn't that just a sketch made in MS Paint? There's no way that's a real Microsoft development sketch. (See the sketch for yourself.)
* MTV News: Correct. Our primary development source (who isn't an artist) couldn't produce a photograph of Microsoft's controller prototype without potentially compromising his position and studio. MTV News instead asked him to produce a sketch, to give us an idea of what the prototype looked like, which he then produced in MS Paint.
* You: Is this story based on what just one person told you? What do they know?
* MTV News: Only one source was able to provide MTV News with a sketch. That source also provided MTV News with a project code name but didn't feel comfortable sharing the code name for fear it would identify him. That said, MTV News has been covering games in-depth for years, and reporter Patrick Klepek has more than 10 years' experience on the beat. The contacts gained during that time enabled us to confirm with at least two other high-level individuals in the gaming industry that Microsoft has been developing motion-controller prototypes, even if they hadn't seen this particular prototype firsthand. Other sources said they had heard rumors of varying degrees -- Rare's involvement, a Wiimote-like controller -- and didn't have firsthand knowledge, but their details supported our primary source's claims.
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Full Story: mtv.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
MS Releases Xbox 360 HD DVD Firmware Update
>> From majornelson.com (FYI: MS owned blog):
[QUOTE]
If you have an Xbox 360 HD DVD player, you'll be prompted for an auto update the next time you watch an HD DVD movie (and your are signed into Xbox Live.)
This update includes:
* Compatibility improvements with certain titles
* Additional support for network features
If you don't have access to Xbox Live, this update will be available for download from Xbox.com later this week.
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Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
Wii-Style Remote For Xbox 360: Truth Or April Fools'?
>> From informationweek.com:
[QUOTE]
Internet reports suggest Microsoft is working on a Nintendo Wii-style controller for its Xbox 360 video game system.
MTV's Web site first reported Microsoft's supposed plans to develop a Wii-style controller. MTV posted a picture of what it said was a rough mock-up of the device. The music station cited as its source an anonymous individual who has "business relationships" with Microsoft.
If Microsoft does have such a plan in the works, it's remarkably similar to an April Fools' joke posted earlier this month on a Web site maintained by the company's Macintosh business unit.
Microsoft Mac BU bloggers said on April 1 that the company was developing software that would turn the Apple Remote into a Wii-style controller that would allow users to play interactive games on the Apple Macintosh platform.
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Full Story: informationweek.com | officeformac.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
'Red Light Of Death' 360 Owner Wants Same Warranty As RRoD Sufferers
>> From consumerist.com:
[QUOTE]
Though Microsoft bowed to a gamer backlash and gave 3-year warranty protection for the widespread Xbox hardware failure known as "The Red Ring of Death," it seems another debilitating malfunction, "The Red Light of Death," hasn't become enough of a PR fiasco to merit the same treatment. Let's help it along with reader Steve's story...
"Three days ago my Xbox took a turn for the worst while playing a game of Team Fortress 2. During the match my screen started rapidly flashing green and vertical lines appeared. I figured it was just a glitch so I shutdown the Xbox and restarted, I still had the problem. I tried several different games (Oblivion, Orange Box, Rock Band, GoW, Condemned 2) and every single one of them has lines in the screen. I tried 2 separate LCD TVs and 2 separate video cables. All had the same result, lines in the game-play..
I then went to turn the Xbox on the following morning and received a flashing red light and an error code on the screen. I looked up the error code online and found this: E74: There is high chance it's a scaler chip problem (the "ANA" or "HANA" chip near the AV cable connection) it can also be caused by a faulty AV cable so check that first. In some cases it is a problem with the GPU
I believe the problem only occurs in areas of the screen that are being rendered 3D by the on-board video. Its pretty obvious that the video and/or motherboard are malfunctioning in some form. If you have a look at the screenshots you will see that all 2D graphics (in-game HUD, dashboard) are all fine, only 3D rendered graphics have the issue.
I called Tech support and they said the new 3 year warranty will not cover this issue.
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Full Story: consumerist.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
4 Reasons for Microsoft's Xbox to Go as Big as Possible
>> From seekingalpha.com:
[QUOTE]
Microsoft currently offers three Xbox 360 models. The Arcade, with no hard drive. The Premium with a 20GB hard drive. And the Elite with a 120GB hard drive. This is all going to change, to much bigger drives, and there are four reasons why.
* Firstly there is the business model of the hard drive manufacturers. They compete mainly not on price, but on disk size instead. They are constantly driving up the capacity of their drives (by 40% a year compound) using technology whilst trying to keep prices constant.
* The second reason is the demise of HD DVD. Now that it has gone Microsoft say that they are not going to switch to BluRay, instead they are going to concentrate on downloading content.
* The third reason is profit. The more storage space someone has, the more content you can sell them.
* The fourth reason is competitive advantage. By switching to downloadable content instead of physical media for distribution Microsoft can be seen to be more advanced than Sony. Also far more customer friendly.
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Full Story: seekingalpha.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
THQ executive: Console war is 'totally irrelevant'
>> From gamesindustry.biz:
[QUOTE]
THQ executive Jack Sorenson has branded the hardware battle between Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo as "totally irrelevant", arguing that the rewards offered by each represent a "win" for games publishers.
Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz last week at THQ's product showcase in San Francisco, the US publisher's head of worldwide studios said there was "too much of an emphasis on the sports aspect of who's winning and losing", and that his company was focusing on opportunities rather than installed base.
"I think [the console war] is totally irrelevant. Even in the history of the business, other than something like the Dreamcast, you can do decent business on lots of platforms," he explained. "So the issue is not who wins, it's can an independent publisher do a good business on that platform. We're thinking everything from high-end MMO all the way to cell phones."
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Full Story: gamesindustry.biz
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
Rumor: 360 Version Of Wii Remote Has Been In Development Since Summer
>> From mtv.com:
[QUOTE]
If everything goes according to plan, Microsoft's response to Nintendo's Wii will appear before the end of the year, a developer who has been briefed on the project told MTV News. The Xbox 360 manufacturer has been working on its own version of the motion-controlled Wii remote since last summer, the developer said.
While nothing has been officially announced, MTV News' source was able to provide us with details on one such 360 controller in the making: a controller designed to do all the Wii remote does, and more. Our source chose to remain anonymous in the interest of not compromising business relationships, but MTV News has confirmed Microsoft's active interest in developing a motion-sensitive controller with other industry sources.
The project has been in active development at Microsoft since last August, the source said. Rare, the Microsoft-owned studio behind Xbox 360's launch first-person shooter "Perfect Dark Zero" and the upcoming installment of the "Banjo-Kazooie" franchise, has been tasked with creating a unified interface and look for the controller. Rare has had trouble hitting its deadlines, according to the source.
Our development source sketched out a reproduction of the last prototype he'd seen, although the final product -- if it is indeed released -- may vary from this design. A key difference between the Wii remote and the prototype is the lack of a companion controller to be placed in the other hand, like Wii's Nunchuck.
Rare's difficulty in hitting development milestones has produced problems, however. "Microsoft is trying to decide how to get something out by the end of the year," said MTV News' source.
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Full Story: mtv.com
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
XBMC for Xbox 2008-04-06 SVN rev12544 build - T3CH
>> T3CH released a new SVN compile (rev12544) of XBMC for Xbox (XboxMediaCenter(info)).
This T3CH-compile is a complete snapshot of what is in SVN at the time the build was compiled, with just a few small additions.
Special Notes and Noteworthy/XML/Script changes:
* XBMC Lyrics updated to 1.5.8. AMT updated to 0.99.4
* merged: musicscrapers branch this adds scraper support for artists and albums in the music library. export/import library, nfo files, update on startup. pretty much everything is up to par with the video library features. note that some of these things are untested (in particular the nfo file support)
* modified: more performance tweaks to imdb movie scraper - rather than hitting the site 3 times for similar info we cache one html page local for 'cast > directors > writers' resulting in quite a significant speed up.
For the full changelog (all added/fixed/changed/updated stuff) since the 2008-03-23 SVN Rev12263 build click here.
Keep in mind this is a SVN snapshot of the current development tree. It's not an official (stable) point release. Use only if you know what you are doing.
Official XBMC Site: http://xbmc.org (manual and FAQ)
Official T3CH Site: http://t3ch.yi.se (release RSS feed)
Download Binaries: n/a (built with XDK) | Download SourceCode: here
Discuss this news item on our forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
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