Microsoft sent out a press release saying that Games for Windows LIVE will be getting an update to v1.2 sometime in November.

The Games for Windows – LIVE v1.2 update will continue to add numerous end-user benefits to the service, such as support for offline Achievements, so gamers can continue to rack up Gamerscore when not connected to the internet, the ability to see whether your friends are “joinable” in games, along with additional UI features.

Microsoft is pushing out updates on a good schedule here. I think the problem still is that only gamers with both an Xbox 360 and PC are going to pay for LIVE. Strict PC gamers aren’t going to start dropping $50 a year for something they can do for free anyway.

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Microsoft sent out a press release today to let us know that new Xbox 360 bundles are coming for the Holiday season. Forza 2 and Marvel Ultimate Alliance will be packed in with all Pro and Elite consoles. Sorry Core buyers, no love for you. And no love for the Halo 3 Special Edition either.

This is a pretty good bundle for those looking to pick up a 360 (or replace a broken one).

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Microsoft issued a press release this morning to let us know that Bungie will “embark on a path to become an independent company“.

“This exciting evolution of our relationship with Microsoft will enable us to expand both creatively and organizationally in our mission to create world-class games,” said Harold Ryan, studio head for Bungie. “We will continue to develop with our primary focus on Microsoft^® platforms; we greatly value our mutually prosperous relationship with our publisher, Microsoft Game Studios; and we look forward to continuing that affiliation through ‘Halo’ and beyond.”

Microsoft will retain an equity interest in Bungie, as the continue to develop games in the Halo franchise to be published by Microsoft Game Studios.

So what does this all really mean? We’re not exactly sure. It does mean Bungie now has the opportunity to make multi-platform games, but not Halo. When and how they choose to reveal these projects is still up in the air.

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With the new release of Project Gotham Racing 4 comes a slew of brand new achievements, 50 to be exact worth 1,000 points, for every red blooded achievement whore to drool over. But the one that really caught my attention was the one where you need to buy a gamer picture?!

29. Buy an Achievement – Buy the K1,000,000 gamer picture to earn this Achievement. – 20 points

Ok, Achievement points have come in all shapes and sizes, some with great honor, others with shameless promotion, but now an achievement for buying something?! This is ridiculous! You get an achievement for spending money on something worthless. It is a pretty shameless way for Microsoft to make more money off of their gamerpics by forcing someone who actually wants to get all of the gamerpoints for this game to buy something they never wanted in the first place.

::Edit:: the money isn’t real money, but in game kudos, I take the finger pointing away from MS and smile. But it still is an interesting achievement and would have been pretty interesting if MS charged real money for it.

Many arguments have been waged discussing whether achievement points add to Xbox 360 games or if they just force people to play different parts of the games they wouldn’t have normally. What can we expect next? Achievement for sending angry voice messages to your friends list, points for sending a picture of your genitals or better yet send Microsoft a bag of money get 100 points! What do you think and what crazy non-sensical achievements can you think of?

Check out all of the achievements here.

Microsoft today released word that the Halo 3 franchise has topped off $300 million in sales since launch. MS have dubbed it the “fastest-selling video game ever and already one of the most successful entertainment properties in history.” This is hard to argue with as the boys at Bungie and MS really marketed it well and made sure everyone got a taste of the hype train. Kudos boys.

There is one part of the press release I don’t agree with, where MS states “Xbox 360 has the greatest lineup in the history of video games and is the only console where consumers can play all the year’s biggest blockbusters.” I think this is far too over zealous to state, the lineup is looking good, but the best in history, wow that is a tough call.

There have been some great lineups in the days of the NES, Xbox, PS1 and 2, which paved the way for what we have today in video games. MS has definitely the bankroll to show for their current success, which is also attributed to the fact that video gaming in the years of old was more of a underground cult, where gamers were a minority. Today video games have become a huge industry and I doubt we will diminish in size as all those kids that played the old consoles are now grown up and spending their hard earned money on games. I think their best in “history” is a bit over the top and minimalizes what the other older consoles have done to get games to this point.

It is impressive that about one third of all Xbox 360 owners have gotten a copy of Halo 3, I actually figured this statistic to be higher and will probably reach a lot more people during the holidays.

From the press releasse:

REDMOND, Wash. — Oct. 4, 2007 — Interactive entertainment will never be the same, with the launch of one title that has changed the way the world thinks about video games. “Halo® 3” has captured the attention of consumers worldwide and has made history as one of the biggest entertainment launches of all time.
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This seemed like only a matter of time. Bungie has become a juggernaut in the game development world. Seattlepi reports that Bungie and Microsoft are no longer a famiy. A confidential news source sent this email to the news site:

“Apparently MS just wants Bungie to make Halo for the rest of their natural days, and Bungie doesn’t like how MS is constantly trying to “handle” everything they do; the way they market their games, the way they interact with their fans (basically the fact that they do appreciate their fans), and how stingie they are with the profits (comparable to the rest of the industry). So as of today they are their own independent entity. They’ll probably make Halo 4 for Microsoft, however hey are also free to create new intellectual properties for whatever system they want. (Even though they prefer the xbox platform)”

You know what this means. Halo 4 is inevitable. Since Microsoft is no longer bounded to the Master Chief, could we see him come to the PS3?? That would be the ultimate way to stick it to the man. Again, this is not confirmed true yet, but it may be a reality. More to come.

Microsoft confirmed to Next-Gen that Halo 3 is the reason for Xbox Live and Xbox.com having issues the past few days. Is anyone surprised here?The game made $170 million for it’s launch. If anyone had any inclination that Halo 3 wasn’t the reason for the server issues, they live under a rock.

“Xbox Live and Xbox.com experienced minor issues [Tuesday] as a result of increased activity due to the launch of Halo 3. The issues were quickly resolved and both Xbox Live and Xbox.com are now working fine.”

There were still issues going on last night, so I’m not sure what this spokesman is talking about. I really can’t believe Microsoft didn’t see this coming. They knew the pre-order numbers for the game, they’ve seen how Halo 2 has performed over the year. I think they could have invested in some more servers to handle the load.

Even before the sale to Activision was announced, Microsoft handed Bizarre Creations a pink slip. They’re going to use in-house resources to develop their Project Gotham Racing series.

Could this have been the reason for the sale? Possibly. But Bizarre isn’t just a one trick pony. They’ve put together a few other nice titles, like Geometry Wars, Boom Boom Rocket, and The Club. They’ve confirmed they’re working on two new big franchises under the Activision umbrella.

A few things need to be looked at here. Does Microsoft have the in-house resources to keep Project Gotham at the current level of fun and style? Will Bizarre take their development knowledge and create a game with Activision to put Project Gotham at the bottom of the barrel? Only time will tell, and we’ll keep you posted.

Every time we say his name, he just gets more power. This is officially the last time you’ll see me say Jack Thompson. From now on, the law buff will be known as Chuckles, because every time he does something, the entire gaming world gets a laugh.

So Chuckles decided to rock out another “sting” operation. He previous sent his son in to a Best Buy to pick up a copy of BioShock. His son isn’t yet 18, which is what he’s trying prove. However, he’s going after 2K Games for the problem instead of Best Buy. 2K Games doesn’t control a retailer’s action. They brand the game as mature and it’s up to the retailers to enforce the sales. The new “sting” operation involves Halo 3.

Chuckles sent his son into a South Florida Target store to buy a copy of Halo 3, which he was able to do on the first try without an ID. Granted, this shouldn’t happen. But again, Chuckles isn’t going after Target, he’s going after Microsoft. Because somehow the gaming industry is responsible for this happening at retailers. Are they also responsible for R-rated movies and CD’s with Parental Advisory stickers being sold to minors as well?

This editor can only hope Chuckles stops his antics and gets put in his place pretty soon.

Well everyone foretold of the coming of Halo 3 and we all saw the fierce campaigns and marketing strategies, looks like they paid off big. Halo 3 is now the big daddy of entertainment, kudos to MS and Bungie, they have de-throwned Spider Man and Harry Potter.

Halo 3 pulled in a record $170 million in 24 hours, now that is one impressive statistic and shows the reach that video games and gamers have now a days. Yesterday when I was on Halo3 there was an impressive 600,000 people playing at the same time and this does not count those people playing offline, just think that all those people made up only $36 million of that reported $170, so there are a lot of peripherals, consoles, controllers, etc. flying off the shelves.

From the press release:

Microsoft today announced that the Xbox 360 exclusive game “Halo 3” has officially become the biggest entertainment launch in history, garnering an estimated $170 million in sales in the United States alone in the first 24 hours. The Xbox 360 title beat previous records set by blockbuster theatrical releases like “Spider-man 3” and novels such as “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.”
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