Grave Gamer News & Views — xbox one

Xbox One Rumors Go Critical This Week

Plus: Halo Anthology Coming to X1?

We have been positively slammed by Xbox rumors. If not slammed, then definitely shaken about. We’re used to leaks. Some of us inter-tube journalists are expert at making articles sail on leaks. But this is no mere leak. This is a goddamn deluge.

The leaker in question is one ntkrnl, a NeoGAF knight and supposed legitimate insider (Bish-verified… if that means more to you than it does to me) unafraid of ripping open the pinata of Microsoft secrets because “talking about it ahead of time isn’t going to hurt anything.” Here be ntkrnl’s harmless truths which Microsoft is looking to take legal action over:

• Halo 2 Anniversary is arriving Nov. 11th. Saber Interactive and Certain Affinity, 343’s wingmen on the first Halo Anniversary, are once again remaking the Chief’s past. The game will have two SKU’s: a Collector’s Edition featuring beta access to Halo 5 and episodes of a Halo-based “real-time” show not related to the Spielberg/Bloomkamp project; and a War Collection with all of the above plus Halo 3 and 4 ported (not remade) for the Xbox One.
• Halo 5 drops Fall 2015. Yeah.
• Forza Horizon 2, Forza’s open-world cousin, is heading to X1 “probably September.” Said to feature 1080p resolution and loads of social integration (which is the tread on every modern day racer).
• Crackdown 3 is in development… but won’t come out until the distant future of 2016. Ruffian Games isn’t developing, however.
• Sunset Overdrive hits Fall 2014, Quantum Break lands Holiday 2014, and Fable Legends drops Summer 2015.
• Titanfall DLC will be made available a month and a half after release with more incoming after that. Plus, a fancy bundle with game and custom console/controller is on cards. Here, lookit.
• The previously “Dev Team Only” white Xbox One will be made available to the public later this year.
• A cheaper Xbox One unit will launch with a Bluetooth adapter and possibly without an optical disc drive. And, for a limited time, a 1TB model will go on the market.

Now, that last rumor has an addendum. A “well-respected source” has confirmed to VG247 that Microsoft has already reached out to publishing partners about a newer model of Xbox One. This Bluetooth-ful, disc-less business, however, remains unconfirmed, but the source did say the new unit would retail for a lower price than the current model.

The fact that, amongst this barrage of rumor mongering, an outside source was able to confirm one of ntkrnl’s bigger bombshells lends some weight to the rest of their bullet-points. This individual is beyond fired if the Big M ever finds him or her out, of course, but they’ll have gone down swinging.

Check out the user’s hull of leaks hereabouts.

Microsoft Rewarding Xbox Loyalists in Anticipation of the One (The Console; Not, Like,“The Chosen One”)

Spend an inordinate amount of time bulking up that Gamerscore? Do you make sure your Live subscription is renewed even before your water bill is paid? Sounds like you’re a worthy candidate for Microsoft’s latest bout of charity.

Today, various Xbox users have received an email from the Big M thanking them for their dedication and a heads up that they’d be privy to fully unlocked downloads of Rare’s rebooted fighter Killer Instinct for the Xbox One.

After being tapped by IGN, a Microsoftian rep confirmed that, to celebrate the incoming Xbox One, they would be doling out a variety of “Xbox gifts” to its fans. What exactly ups your chances of earning free shit? The rep says a number of criteria are being taken into account, “including Gamerscore and Xbox Live tenure, as well as other factors in markets where Xbox One is available.”

Sounds to me that if you do score via email, you may want to have one of them new fangled Xbox One’s ready to redeem your gift. Otherwise, The Red Herb greatly appreciates every donated Killer Instinct code.

Xbox One Release Date Locked In

Microsoft’s next home console will launch globally November 22nd. The $499 next-gen successor to both the Xbox (1) and the Xbox 360 will invade 13 territories in late November including the United Kingdom, Canada, and the good ol’ U.S. of A.

Having been confirmed to have gone into mass production yesterday, the One’s CPU horsepower was also revealed to have been increased from 1.6 GHz to 1.75 GHz (a further upgrade to 1.21 gigawatts will be required in order to play games from the distant year of 2015).

The Xbox One’s late November launch date gives Sony’s own next-gen construct, the PlayStation 4, a week jump on Microsoft, their system already in place for the 15th. Seven days shouldn’t seriously impact your buying decision but I understand gamers can sometimes be – dare I say it? – impatient.

Either way, the Holiday slugfest is set and a new console war has been ignited. Will the Dualshock out-rumble the One’s gamepad? Will the Kinect’s cold gaze see farther than the Eye? Will Sony’s system out-ventilate Microsoft’s ventilati– I’m getting carried away. But I want to know; with both consoles’ release dates announced, which one might you be getting?

PlayStation 4’s Launch Date Will Be Announced at Gamescom

Today I must serve to you one of my most hated forms of news – an announcement of an announcement.  Before images of Xzibit’s shit-eating grin pop into your head (too late), let’s get this over with.

Sony has confirmed that they plan on sharing the PlayStation 4’s ‘release plans’ with the gaming masses at Germany’s Gamescom on August 20th, 1:00 P.M. EDT.  Updates on the PS3 and PS Vita are also planned but not snazzy enough to deserve a headline.

A few weeks back, listings on Toys R Us’ UK site dated Sony’s next-gen console for December 13th while the Xbox One saw a November 29th release date.  The big box retailer backed up the listings as legitimate but their partners, Sony and Microsoft, did not.  What I’m trying to say is that if you have a serious addiction to betting on mundane things, your opportunity has presented itself.

So.  Which console will hit retail first?  More importantly, with the dawn of the next-gen upon us – GET BACK TO YOUR CORNER, WII U – which console will you folks be getting?