Final DLC For Titanfall Due Out “Soon”

Over at Gamescom 2014, where a frenzy of news relating to games and Xbox are being thrown about, Respawn Entertainment got an announcement of their own into the mix with the reveal of their next DLC offering, titled “IMC Rising”.  The third and final DLC pack is said to be releasing “soon” and will include another three maps for players to do battle on.  The three maps being released will be named “Blackwater”, “Zone 18” and “Sandtrap”.  No word on whether Respawn intend to bring any more noticeable updates to Titanfall, though the graphics update could make it out into one of these patches sooner or later.  The game runs at 792p natively and is upscaled to properly display onto a 1080p screen because Respawn were more concerned with frame rate consistency than raw detail.

This final DLC is likely the last hurrah for Titanfall, which will face heavy competition for income and game time with the likes of Destiny, Far Cry 4, Assassin’s Creed and many other games making their way to Xbox One this fall. 

If you’re an Xbox Live Gold subscriber, this months Games With Gold deals include a $25 Titanfall purchase and a discounted “Frontier’s Edge” DLC purchase for $6.99 (usually $9.99).  If you haven’t picked up Titanfall yet, this is the best deal around.  The game is still excellent for those that enjoy frantic competitive shooters and could continue to improve itself through updates after the final DLC lands, which we expect will come out sometime in September.

Exclusive Call of Duty Xbox One Bundle Coming In November

Call of Duty has been a bit harped on, to say the least.  Sledgehammer Games intends to change that with the next iteration of Call of Duty.  Advanced Warfare is set to launch this November and with it a new Xbox One limited edition console bundle.  Microsoft’s “play it first” deal with Activision over Call of Duty continues and, just like the Xbox 360, will see a special edition bundle released.  The Advanced Warfare bundle will include a specially-designed Xbox One console with a 1TB hard drive (twice the storage of the standard 500GB), a headset, special edition controller and the Day Zero digital edition of Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare.  You’ll get it all for $499 on the day before launch for Call of Duty in November, making for a solid deal.  This bundle does not include the Kinect sensor but CoD fans probably won’t care much and the accessory can be purchased later and connected to the Xbox console for voice and gesture controls.

The Xbox One About To See Media and TV Streaming Improvements

More news from Gamescom 2014, where Microsoft had a near 2-hour press briefing.  Microsoft has announced that new media streaming capabilities are going to be added to the Xbox One in the near future.  The Xbox One has only been able to stream via a Windows 7 or Windows 8 machine thus far and with only moderate success.  The digital formats supported via Xbox Video are decent but a bit limited in comparison to what you could stream or play via an application like VLC, a media player that is extremely popular on Windows machines.  To combat the limited streaming capabilities, Microsoft will allow video and audio play via USB devices as well as network streaming, similar to what was available via Windows Media Center on Xbox 360, natively on the Xbox One.  If you’re a media guru who enjoys a wealth of digital content, you are going to enjoy the coming updates to Xbox One the most.  DLNA content is said to be the focus of this media streaming movement, but formats like MKV are also said to be coming to Xbox One which has been very popular recently for video encoding/compression.

But wait, there’s more!  Not only will streaming content become easier and more capable, but TV is going to expand.  Like a Comcast streaming application, you’ll soon be able to use Xbox Smartglass applications to stream live broadcasts currently being broadcast on your Xbox One console, meaning you can take your tablet or smartphone across your home and still be keyed in on a sporting event currently happening live, which is nice if you’re entertaining several people and don’t want to hit the pause button just because you want to grab some snacks from the kitchen.  This will be a first for any home gaming console and, if Smartglass ever breaks away from home network-only restrictions, could be a huge benefit and selling point for Xbox in the future.

The Xbox One Lost $400 Million – NOT!

The news wire was hot this week on some analytics based on Microsoft announcing their revenue counts for the company’s hardware division.   This seemed a bit fishy to us at XOGS as we awaited more information since not all the numbers were out.  Attack of the Fanboy has a more detailed explanation and we’ll link you to their article at the end of ours, but simply put: the Xbox One did NOT lose $400 million.  The fact that Xbox sales are well above normal with the introduction of a new console late last year would suggest that Microsoft would either be breaking even or seeing profits.  Had the Xbox One incorporated more expensive hardware components perhaps noticeable losses would incur, something that the PlayStation 3 suffered from considerably for years after its initial launch because of the inclusion of “cell processors” that were not mass produced at the time.

Xbox One hardware sales are up, as are revenues.  For a detailed breakdown, check out the link below:

http://attackofthefanboy.com/news/microsoft-didnt-lose-400-million-xbox-one/

Rise of the Tomb Raider Is An Xbox One EXCLUSIVE

Shots fired!  Microsoft are rolling out new game demos and announcements this morning at Gamescom over in Germany.  There are several pre-existing titles getting new looks, however Microsoft had promised something pretty significant in terms of announcements that we didn’t see coming.  The sequel to Crystal Dynamics’ Tomb Raider reboot, Rise of the Tomb Raider, will be coming to Xbox One during the holiday season of 2015 as an exclusive.  You read that right, the formerly-multiplatform action/adventure game (which was also a PlayStation exclusive during its first few iterations) will not be available on any of Sony’s consoles.  Microsoft are definitely pushing hard and throwing money at their console to sway gamers on the fence toward their new Xbox One.  Picking up a Tomb Raider exclusive is one way to earn some much-needed game library bolstering.

Microsoft @ Gamescom 2014: Is Backwards Compatibility On Tap?

Microsoft made it known that they would hold some meaningful presence at the German-hosted Gamescom this year.  On August 12, Microsoft will be hosting a major press conference to showcase what’s coming to Xbox One over the course of the next year or so.  We should be getting more extensive looks at games like Fable Legends and Quantum Break, two titles that should help bolster and round out the Xbox One’s exclusive offerings.  Sunset Overdrive could see some extra light as well, though we’ve seen a reasonable amount already.  Xbox team members have hinted at a possible reveal or news break that would be very significant.  New information leaking onto the internet suggest the return of a full-fledged backwards compatibility update that will allow Xbox 360 games to play on the Xbox One.

EVOLVE, Battlefield: Hardline Delayed to 2015

In what was looking to be a jam-packed 2014 holiday seasons for games, the competing for consumer dollars will be at least a little less intense for game developers/publishers as two high profile releases have been confirmed to be delayed until early 2015.  The first is the well-established Battlefield entry, dubbed Hardline, which pits cops against robbers and is supposed to be a big step up for story quality in the series.  The second is what many billed as the most exciting cooperative game, titled EVOLVE.  EVOLVE runs a 4v1 cooperative/competitive play setup where four players will assume specific classed hunters and try to take down a beast that is controlled by a different human player.  Early demos at gaming conventions have lead EVOLVE to being talked about as much as other heavy hitters like Destiny and Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare.

With EVOLVE and Battlefield out of the 2014 picture the game-scape may be a little less crowded, but there’s still plenty to look forward to, such as:

• Call of Duty Advanced Warfare
• Halo: The Master Chief Collection
• Assassin’s Creed Unity
• Far Cry 4
• Sunset Overdrive
• Destiny
• Shadow of Mordor
• Forza Horizon 2
• Project Spark
• Madden 15
• The Witcher 3
• Dragon Age: Inquisition

Also included in the mix are current-gen console updates for games like Grand Theft Auto 5, Metro 2033/Last Light (named “Redux” together), A Wolf Among Us, Diablo 3 and more.

EA Launching Subscription Service For Games on Xbox One

Microsoft and EA announced a new partnership yesterday that Xbox One owners should seriously take notice of. Coming to the Xbox One is a new subscription service that will let gamers play most (maybe all) back catalogue games currently available on the Xbox One platform. The service gives you unlimited access to Battlefield 4, Peggle 2, FIFA 14 and Madden 25, all of which launched late last year. The console exclusive Titanfall isn’t on the list yet, but EA confirms that the available number of games will only expand with time, making for a better value. This new service will set you back either $5 per month or $30 a year. As long as you keep your subscription you can keep playing these games.

Harmonix Is Polling Their Community Over New Rock Band Title

When Dance Dance Revolution was big, it was only big at arcades or movie theaters with dueling dance pads.  Games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band brought the rhythmic experience into a gamer’s living room and expanded the experience to get a full set of faux-musicians into the mix.  But this was all so long ago – rhythmic games are dead, right?  Not if you ask Harmonix who are bringing a new Dinsey’s Fantasia exclusively to Xbox One as well as an updated Dance Central within the next year.  Now, Harmonix wants to know if you are interested in seeing a new Rock Band experience and, if so, what console would you want it on?  We loved Rock Band and even found a bar or two locally that offered Rock Band-style karaoke that seemed to draw a decent crowd on certain nights.  There is a market for the game, but if there is ever to be a resurgence of this franchise on a console like the Xbox One then the community needs to pipe up.  Go to http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/HMXRockBandSurvey and answer a few questions to get the ball rolling!

Game Demos To Rapidly Expand On Xbox One

A try before you buy feature was frequently requested by the Xbox community through Xbox’s forums and feedback surveys provided through Xbox Live.  Microsoft has responded by unrolling an updated Xbox Live system that allows for demos to be widely adopted with games that have dedicated demos developed to drive interest in various titles.  While we won’t immediately see the fruits of this move, very soon we’ll see a huge increase in titles in the Games section of Xbox Live that have playable demos.  Games that are developed through the ID@Xbox program will likely benefit the greatest from this update, where promotional efforts and visibility in a crowded market are a premium.  Having more demos also give gamers better visibility of games without having to take critical or other user views at their word.  It’s a win-win for all!