About Xbox Live

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Monday May 12, 2003

 

About Xbox Live

Xbox™ Live is the first and only worldwide online game service fully dedicated to intense, always-connected broadband gaming experiences.

Xbox Live allows our diverse gamer community to play multiplayer Xbox games with other gamers around the globe on the Internet via a broadband connection. With a built-in hard drive and Ethernet port, the Xbox console was built from the ground up to be an online gaming system so there's no need to buy additional peripherals or upgrade the console.

Xbox Live enables all gamers to find their friends easily; talk to other players during game play through the Xbox Communicator headset; download current statistics, new levels and characters to their Xbox hard drive; and play online.

Xbox Live Availability:

The Xbox Live community is rapidly expanding and now spans 11 countries with players meeting and competing globally from the United States, Canada, Japan, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.

Xbox Live Requirements:

To play Xbox Live, gamers need an Xbox, an online-enabled game (available at retail); a broadband connection (available from any broadband service provider); and the Xbox Live Starter Kit. The Starter Kit includes a year's subscription to Xbox Live, a Xbox Communicator headset that plugs into the Xbox controller and facilitates all voice communication with other players, and two pack-in online trial versions of "Tetris Worlds" and "MechAssault" (Demo edition).

Xbox Live Service:

With its service approach, Xbox Live delivers the most seamless, easy-to-use and consistent online gaming environment for gamers, developers and publishers alike.

It was designed by gamers for gamers and includes features such as delivery of real-time scores and statistics so gamers can compare themselves to the best players in the world; quick and easy game launches; fast downloads; the ability to find friends online across games with only one click; and the ability to maintain a single identity across all games with a single password.

Microsoft built four data centers — in Seattle and Tukwila, Wash., Tokyo and London — in order to run a scalable, secure and gamer-friendly service. Xbox will assist publishers by managing the hosting, networking, security and billing so that game creators can focus on creating awesome game content.

Xbox Live Key Features:

  •  Xbox Communicator - Voice communication is required to ship with all Xbox Live multiplayer games, enabling teammates and opponents to speak to one another during games. Key elements of this feature exclusive to Xbox include voice masking, global muting and parental control.

  • Ability to download content to the Xbox hard disk -Only Xbox enables console players to download and permanently store both free and fee-based content that can include new levels, characters, missions and statistics.

  • Friends list - Using the Gamertag's, players will be able to find their friends online and invite them to a game, no matter which Xbox Live game they're playing.

  • Matchmaking - QuickMatch allows players to enter a multiplay experience with a single button click, and with OptiMatch, an Xbox Live exclusive, players will be able to select games and opponents based on similar skill levels

  • Gamertag - Players have a single identity across the entire global gaming service. Similar to one's "handle," gamertags are one's call sign or alias. Players only get one gamertag per account, so their reputation's on the line.

Xbox Live Since Launch

Xbox Live now hosts a community of over 500,000 gamers worldwide.

The Xbox Live community will continue its global trek with launches anticipated in 9 new countries– for a total of 20 Live countries -- over the next year, including Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Australia, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Switzerland and Ireland.
 
Xbox Live will continue to evolve over the next year:
In the next 12 months, we'll be focusing on three key areas:
 
Expanding the Content

Xbox Live already supports over 20 Xbox Live-enabled games: "Return to Castle Wolfenstein" from Activision, "Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon" and "Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell" from Ubi Soft Entertainment, "Unreal Championship" from Infogrames Inc.; "Midnight Club II" from Rockstar Games, "Phantasy Star™ Online", SEGA Sports™ "NFL 2K3," SEGA Sports™ "NBA 2K3", SEGA Sports™ "NHL® 2K3", SEGA Sports™ "NCAA® Basketball 2K3" and "ToeJam and Earl™ III: Mission to Earth" from Sega®; Star Wars:  "The Clone Wars "from LucasArts Entertainment Company, "MotoGP", "MotoGP 2" and "MX Superfly Featuring Ricky Carmichael" from THQ; "Capcom® vs. SNK 2: EO" from Capcom®; "Whacked!™",  "MechAssault™", "Inside Pitch 2003" and "NFL Fever 2003" from Microsoft Game Studios.
Upcoming Xbox Live titles include "Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six™ RavenShield™" and "XIII" from Ubi Soft® Entertainment; "Counter-Strike," "Midtown Madness® 3," "Halo 2," "Project Gotham Racing 2" from Microsoft Game Studios
 
Worldwide, Xbox has 60 companies committed to developing more than 50 Xbox Live games by the end of this year. Xbox Live has incredible support from our partners around the world. In Japan, 40 publishers are planning to bring 47 Xbox Live titles to market. •         Many more games will include downloadable content, allowing gamers to continue to extend their game experiences for months.
 
Expanding the Community

  • Xbox Live Alerts: We deliver the ability to get a game invite on your PDA, cell phone or PC with instant messenger – something only available through Xbox Live.

  • Xbox Live Web: Live stats and friends lists will be available to view through a new Xbox site that links to the service – something only available on Xbox Live.

  • Xbox Live Aware Games: More games will let you be "logged on" while playing, even if playing single player so you can receive invites, and keep up with what your friends are doing. 


Expanding the Competition

  • Live Now: This is the place where gamers meet and use voice chat to determine where to begin their gaming experience.  Decide which game to play, how to team up, and wrap up after the game.  In addition, there will be expanded real time information about who is online, your rankings, messages from other gamers and events in the Live community.

  • Team & Competition features on Live make it is easy for gamers to form teams with friends, and create and participate in structured competitions on the web and within games.

  • Xbox Live conducts regular competitions and tournaments for its members, so if you're a legend the whole world will know and respect you. This year at E3 we're holding the Ultimate Championship where four semi-finalists who have played online meet in person in the Arena at the Xbox.  The Ultimate Champion will have to be victorious in three games:  Star Wars Clone Wars, Castle Wolfenstein and Midnight Club 2, to take the ultimate crown.  Xbox Live will be hosting regular tournaments of all sizes, all exclusively for its members

Xbox Live Pricing:

In the United States, the Starter Kit is currently available for $49.95. For the estimated retail price of a single game, gamers receive a year's subscription to Xbox Live, an Xbox Communicator headset that plugs into the Xbox controller and facilitates all voice communication with other players, and two pack-in online versions of "Tetris Worlds" and "MechAssault (Demo Version)!".
 
Next fall, Xbox Live will be available at the following prices

  • $49.99- Xbox Live one year renewal/subscription       

  • $5.99-  Xbox Live monthly rate                               

  • $29.99- Xbox Live Voice Communicator                    

  • $69.99- Xbox Live Starter Kit                                       
     

Participating games will ship with a two-month free trial.
 
The starter kit offer will include the Voice Communicator, one year's service and some fun pack-in games, is the perfect all-in-one choice for those wanting to experience the thrill on online gaming.  Over $100 in value, the starter kit is all anyone needs to begin playing any Xbox Live game with players all over the world.

 

 

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