Mom's Minute

Xbox One

Looks like Microsoft will not be receiving any PR awards based on its conference where little if any really innovative features of the new system were revealed. The Microsoft conference was held in Redmond, Washington on May 21, 2013, 1:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, 10:00 a.m. Pacific Standard Time.

Xbox - A New Generation Revealed

The tag line of the event was "Xbox - A New Generation Revealed." Following a montage of people shown as an intro to the event, Don Mattrick, President of Microsoft Interactive Entertainment took the stage. He discussed the previous accomplishments of the Xbox 360 since its launch 8 years ago, as well as the current goals of the system today, which include making your television set more intelligent. He talked about how living rooms have changed and how the new Xbox will make it change even more. Designed to be an All in One System, the next Xbox video game console is expected to be: Simple, Instant and Complete.

New Name - Xbox One

Don Mattrick introduced the new generation Xbox as the Xbox One -- not the Xbox 720 or some other name the system may have been called previously. The system's new name is officially Xbox One. Visuals of the new system were shown and depending on your preference, you either liked or disliked it. In my opinion, the system, including the controller, did not look revolutionary, new or different. However, in Bill Mattrix's words, the system was "built to amaze."

Xbox One Demos

Yusuf Mehdi of Microsoft demonstrated the system using voice commands. Some of the enhancements he discussed were that the system is always ready and connected, manual log ins are going away, and the system will remember what you were doing last, and return you back to that screen once you log in. Other new features included "Trending" where you can see what your friends are watching, as well as television schedules. Additionally you can use hand motions to instantly return to screens. He also talked about the new Snap Mode as well as using Skype not only for individual calls, but for group calls as well. Some of these features were demonstrated in conjunction with his mobile phone.

The technicalities of how these features were done were explained by Marc Whitten of Microsoft who took the stage next. The tag line of his presentation was that Xbox One was designed by gamers for gamers. Andrew Wilson of Electronic Arts followed and discussed sports video games that will be playable on the Xbox One, namely, FIFA 14, Madden NFL, NBA Live and UFC. These games will be powered by a new engine called EA Ignite. He stated these games will have about 10 times more animation and depth in motion, than what was provided previously. More attention will also be focused on the crowds watching the sports events. His presentation included live sports players discussing their games, such as football, basketball and soccer. 

The head of Microsoft Studios, Phil Spencer followed and discussed how the video game, Motorsport Fortza 5, will play on the new system.

Games for the Xbox One

It was announced that there will be 15 exclusive games available at the launch of the Xbox On with 8 of the 15 being brand new franchises, Specific titles of the games were not provided.

Halo 

Nancy Tellem of Microsoft and Bonnie Ross, general manager and studio head of 343 Industries discussed Halo which will be an upcoming television series. Steven Spielberg, via satellite, also talked about the Halo television series.

The rest of the conference included Don Mattrick returning to the stage restating that the Xbox One will be an All in One system for all living rooms. He added that Xbox One will have exclusive, interactive content which will bring fantasy football to life. There will also be a partnership between Xbox and the NFL -- only for the Xbox One. 

Xbox One Launch Date

A specific launch date for the Xbox One was not disclosed during the conference. The statement made was that Xbox One will "launch around the world later this year."

More at E3

Most of the presentations were suffixed with the notice that more information will be shared at E3 in June, 2013.

Xbox One Conference Finale

The conference ended with a world premiere of Call of Duty Ghost, introduced and shown by Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision. According to Eric Hirshberg, Call of Duty Ghosts will provide gameplay driven tech, a whole new story, a whole new world, a different cast of characters, character customizations, gameplay involving fighting against superiors, a super elite fighting force, dynamic mass, player driven action, artificial intelligence, new weapons never seen before, revamped multiplayer, and something unique -- a fighting dog based upon an actual seal team dog -- and much more.

The Microsoft conference, in my opinion, did not show anything overly different. Some of these features are readily available on your television set with just a touch of your remote, and voice commands are currently available on the Xbox 360 using the Kinect.

Interesting enough, the controversy over not being able to play used games on the system was not brought up duing the conference.

On a positive note, Microsoft did show the actual Xbox One clearly, without any shroud of mystery -- unlike the previous Sony conference where the PS 4 next generation system was nowhere to be seen.

With E3 just around the corner, maybe Microsoft has something else more innovative up its sleeve to reveal?  What do you think?

Xbox One Video Game Console Conference: Xbox One Revealed Read more

Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag

Ubisoft's  golden age of piracy will come to life as depicted in the latest Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag trailer.  With actions set in the eighteenth century, Ubisoft seeks to be true to the historical plight of the soldiers of fortune and in some ways may be attempting to show different sides of the adventurous video game characters. 

The main protaganist in the game is Edward Kenway, father to Haydem Kenway and grandfather to Connor from Assassin's Creed III. Edward Kenway is described as a privateer, an assassin, and an occasional pirate.

Tall ship from Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag 

UbiSoft appears to be striving to provide a video game that is not only exciting to play, but may also give you a history lesson -- poitical and otherwise. 

 UbiSoft's statement:

"Every Assassin's Creed game is based in an actual historical setting with a sense of place and time that provides the  backdrop of amazing adventures fraught with peril and political intrigue."

Every ame is based in an actual historical setting with a sense of place and time that provides the bac

Every Assassin’s Creed game is based in an actual historical setting with a sense of place and time that provides the backdrop to amazing adventure fraught with peril and political intrigue," says Ubisoft in a statement.

Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag

The trailer creatively uses artful silhouettes to give you a preview of the masterful actions in Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag.

Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag releases October 29, 2013 in the U.S. and on November 1, 2013 in Europe.  This video game will be playable on the PS3, Xbox 360, WII U, PC, Mac, as well as the PS4.

Assaassin's Creed IV: Black Flag New Screens Leaked Read more

EA Sports has Fight Night video game franchise on hold.

If you have been waiting for the latest installment of the video game, Fight Night,  to be released, unfortunately,  you will have to wait longer.   Fight Night, Electronic's Arts',  premiere boxing game is now on the "wait list" due to the need to shift resources to its Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC ) video game.

EA Sports to focus on UFC video game

The Fignt Night team will be working on the UFC video game that EA purchased from THQ in 2012. EA has not divulged when the Fight Night video game development will resume.  In fact, there are reports and rumors that the game will be on hiatus indefinitely.

UFC will be powered by the Ignite engine

On the brighter side, Andrew Wilson of EA sports, states that he sees a future in Fight Night, but that right now, the fighting video game focus will be on UFC.

A specific release date for EA's UFC was not available at press time; however, the rumored release time-frame is 2014.

UFC will be rated M for Mature and will be playable on the Xbox One, Xbox 360 and the PS4.

Ouya Video game system and controller

Are you excited about the Ouya video game system, or are you waiting to actually play or develop a game on the system before you decide how you feel about it?  The good news is that if you are in a "wait and see" mode, at least you will not have to shell out an "arm and a leg in money" to get a Ouya. The big selling point of the Ouya seems to be its relatively low price of $99 when compared to other systems such as the upcoming PlayStation 4 and the Xbox 720.

The questions are -- What will you really be getting if you buy the Ouya, even at the $99 price and will you be getting a bang for your bucks?    

Ouya video game system

Due its small size, the Ouya has been compared to such devices as the Nexus 7 and the Asus Transformer Pad Infinity.

The Ouya runs on its own Android  operating system. You can play games on the Ouya, or if you like, you can also develop or create your own video games on the system.  The open source capability of Ouya sets it apart from some of  the other video game consoles.

Several video game  companies have announced they will be developing and publishing video games for the Ouya.  The first to commit to  making games for the Ouya console was Infinity Ward with a plan to  create a prequel to its game, Human Element,  which is a post-zombie-apocalyptic game.  Other video game companies followed suit in providing games, including Square Enix's with Final Fantasy III,  XBMC from the developers of the game as well as others. Recently another exclusive game, Soul Fjord from the Portal makers has been announced for the Ouya.

Soul Fjord video game for the Ouya

By being an open source video game system and selling at only $99, the Ouya may look like it is headed for success. But not so fast.  There have been some complaints about the low number of video games that will be available when the Ouya launches and  there were tactile and other problems reported with the controller.  There were some complaints about the  plan to release Ouya units, yearly after the initial release, as well as the fact that the technology for the Ouya may be inferior to that of your regular smart phone.  In fact, during initial tests, a small delay was noticed during game play -- which may or may not be corrected prior to the Ouya being released for retail.

Ouya

With the June 4, 2013 release date for the Ouya steadily approaching, you can purchase a Ouya very soon if you are in the market for one.  The downside is that you will be out of $99 if you are dissatisfied with the Ouya and it ends up just sitting idle, gathering dust. The upside is that if you buy and enjoy your Ouya, you will be able to play and even develop games on a new, innovative video game system, which will hopefully enhance your video gaming experiences.

Update:  Due to demand, the new launch date for the Ouya as of May 9, 2013 is June 25, 2013.

Microsoft reveals the next Xbox on May 21, 2013

During the Microsoft reveal of the next Xbox video game console, a surprise may not have been how the system looked -- but exactly what it is called.  Don Mattrick, President of Microsoft Interactive Entertainment, introduced the next Xbox, as "Xbox One."  One may think of the President's airplane, Airforce One, when this name was announced -- Or even "The One" from the Matrix movies.  However, based on the information revealed about the next Xbox, one may also conclude that the "One", may originate from the system being projected to be "All in One", for your entertainment experiences.

Xbox One is not to be confused with Airforce One

Xbox One is also not named for "The One" from Matrix

Don Mattrick kicked off the conference by reviewing how the Xbox 360 has enriched the lives of many for the past eight years since its launch.  He stated; however, the Xbox One will offer more benefits, with the goal of making your television set ultimately more  "intelligent."

The Xbox One video game system 

Another goal of the Xbox One is to offer a system that is seemingly always ready, and connected.  Yusuf Mehdi of Microsoft,  demonstrated how manual logging onto the Xbox will become a thing of the past.  By a simple voice command to the Xbox One, the system will not only come on and land at your favorite video viewing area, but you can also toggle back and forth from television shows, music, games and vice versa -- all with your voice command.  Of course, the voice command feature is currently available on the Xbox 360, using the Kinect; however, the new system will include new options as well, such as "Trending", which lets you know what your friends are watching.  As an added feature,  you can use your hand motions to maneuver where you would like the Xbox One to take you -- viewing-wise.

Xbox One Controller

 The highlight of Microsoft's Xbox One reveal, in my opinion, came at the end of the conference when Eric Herishberg of Activision introduced and showed an extended world premiere of the highly anticipated video game, Call of Duty Ghosts, which included a visual comparison between the graphics from the previous Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 -- to the pending release of Call of Duty Ghosts video game.  

Most of the presentations alluded to E3 scheduled for  June, 2013, so it remains to be seen if this conference was a "watered down" version of what will be presented at that time.

Even though, in my opinion, the Xbox One is not revolutionary to look at, and may even look to be a step backwards in its appearance and name, at least, unlike Sony,  Microsoft was upfront with how the new system looked.  Pictures of the actual Xbox One were shown at the conference, in contrast to Sony's plan and insistence to keep the reveal of the PS4 a secret, except for the short, blurry picture of the system that was recently leaked.

Hopefully, Microsoft has more to reveal during E3 about the Xbox One that may excite you more so than what was shown on May 21, 2013.  Maybe (fingers crossed), they gave the somewhat drab main course of Xbox One today, with possibly the delicious dessert to be served at E3 in June 2013.