X07 Not Happening This Year

For the first time since 2004, there won't be an XO event in Europe this year. Gamespot suggests that Microsoft's annual press event is superfluous this year, as last year it fell directly within the timeframe of the Halo 3 launch. "Speaking on the E3 podcast of Microsoft fan site Squad XP, Xbox Live marketing manager Aaron Greenberg flatly said that 'There's not a real X07 this year.' And while Microsoft's official spokespersons refrained from comment, last night Xbox Live director of programming Larry 'Major Nelson' Hyrb posted a small note (pictured) on his heavily trafficked blog morosely confirming X07's demise."

WTF is XO?

[Anonymous Coward]

It would have been nice to at least give a short description of what XO is. From the blurb, we do understand it has something to do with Xbox, but for those of us who aren't Microsoft zealots, XO means nothing.

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[Broken scope]

"X" "07"

Look at the 'X' now look at the MS products, Xbox, Xbox 360, DirectX.

See a pattern there?

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[PrescriptionWarning]

so its Microsofts fault everybody is using "Xtreme" somewhere in the product name to sell their products... bastards

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[Yvan256]

And yet Dead or Alive Xtreme Volleyball 2 doesn't seem Xtreme enough to me.

Where's my XXXtreme edition? ;-)

BMX 30?

[tepples]

And yet Dead or Alive Xtreme Volleyball 2 doesn't seem Xtreme enough to me.

Where's my XXXtreme edition? ;-)

Might the M-rated sequel to BMX XXIX [wikipedia.org] help?

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[Yvan256]

The quality of the 3D models seems to be far better in the DOA games, especially volleyball.

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[powerlord]

XO is a level of Cognac. MS must have been drinking a lot of it to use the name.

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[Jason Earl]

Even Microsoft can't afford to throw money down a hole forever. Console gaming was supposed to be Microsoft's big hope for future growth. Instead Microsoft has lost billions of dollars subsidizing console hardware for gamers. Microsoft still hasn't even managed to become more popular than the companies that were actually making a profit. The PS2 destroyed the XBox in the last generation and the Wii is looking to clean up in this generation.

Worse, XBox gaming actually weakens Microsoft's hold on the de

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[solios]

XBox gaming actually weakens Microsoft's hold on the desktop.

Maybe for casual gamers. Keep in mind, there are a ton of games available for Windows that won't run on the X-Box - World of Warcraft, Neverwinter Nights, older games like Quake and Systemshock 2, Wolfenstein : Enemy Territory, etc.

As a casual gamer, I use my Windows box as a 3d workstation (no games installed), and I'm quite happy with my Nintendo DS. The only games Microsoft has that I might want are Halo 2 and 3, and it's not worth plonking d

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[drinkypoo]

Hell, outside of Halo I can't think of a single X-Box title. Let alone one I'd be interested in.

My favorite Xbox title is Grand Theft Auto:San Andreas; IIRC it was on PS2 first, but the control scheme is much, much better on Xbox (changing weapons is a little trickier to hit in a firefight, but the Xbox has real triggers.)

I played Halo on the Xbox very briefly once. My response was "fuck this controller crap". I got it for PC and played through it there; it was a competent (if not amazing) FPS. I'm kind of interested in playing Halo 2 but I'm moving away from Windows (NONE of my machines boot Windo

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[tepples]

My Xbox performs two main functions. It runs XBMC and it runs classic console emulators. Occasionally I play some GTA:SA. I have some other games but they all suck, as do most console games (let alone Xbox games.)

Can't your Linux box run mplayer and classic console emulators? What advantage does the Xbox have in this respect?

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[drinkypoo]

Can't your Linux box run mplayer and classic console emulators? What advantage does the Xbox have in this respect?

If you're using SD there is no cheaper way to get better TV out.

It doesn't have the horsepower to do HD, but it doesn't do HD anyway.

Basically I just can't seem to get a PC that is in the same form factor or smaller, and as good or better, for less money. And, let me remind you, you can run Linux on the Xbox. But mplayer is super-lame compared to XBMC (at least as an appliance.)

Devil's advocate to strengthen argument

[tepples]

Can't your Linux box run mplayer and classic console emulators? What advantage does the Xbox have in this respect?

If you're using SD there is no cheaper way to get better TV out [than a modded Xbox console].

"Who said anything about TV?" -- Smug PC weenies

I agree with you that a set-top box should be the best solution for some entertainment environments. But unfortunately, all stand-alone set-top boxes that are significantly cheaper than a Mac mini [engadget.com] are thoroughly Tivoized. I want to help us come up with some ammunition against smug PC weenies who almost unconditionally prefer the 2-foot experience over the 10-foot experience [microsoft.com], so here are four of their objections in increasing order of devil's advocacy:

1. I

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[drinkypoo]

I can't buy a modded Xbox in U.S. retail stores or on eBay [ebay.com]; where else should I buy a modded Xbox?

Cottage industry made america great. There are ads in small papers and on bulletin boards across America advertising modded Xboxes and Xbox modding. Or, you could mod your own, let us continue.

If you mean that I should learn to mod one myself, can version 1.6 [xbox-linux.org] be modded without soldering? Does your "no cheaper way" estimate include training for somebody who has never soldered before? And I still can't buy modchips in U.S. retail stores or on eBay for the same reason as above.

No, but modchips can be had easily enough; if you're willing to use ebay then why not another online service? Get a temporary CC number and go to town. You CAN buy them in retail stores in the US, but only small shops that probably won't exist in a year or two, and typically only in cities.

Does your "no cheaper way" estimate include the potential $750 to $30,000 statutory damages (per 17 USC 504 [cornell.edu] and foreign counterparts) for infringement of the copyright in the Xbox BIOS and/or the XDK libraries against which XBMC and most of these emulators are compiled?

It is possible

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[tepples]

Some of these are valid objections. The Xbox is a better device for a nerd than the average individual.

Then which set-top device that plays games developed by individuals or smaller studios, such as mods for commercial games, is suitable for the average individual?

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[drinkypoo]

Then which set-top device that plays games developed by individuals or smaller studios, such as mods for commercial games, is suitable for the average individual?

I have no idea. I personally only need to worry about devices for the above-average individual :D

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[tepples]

I personally only need to worry about devices for the above-average individual :D

How did you get lucky enough to get born into a family with only above-average individuals?

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[gad_zuki!]

Err, the xbox division is very very profitable in the long run. Aside from Nintendo, all consoles are money losing ventures. They make up for it by taking a chunk out of the games sold. Microsoft was been surprisingly successful with the xbox/xbox360. I dont think of MS as an exceptional company, but I see them as a decent company. If they can waltz into the gaming market and take all this marketshare, its further proof at how incredibly inept sony, sega, and nintendo have been with their products. nint

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[shplorb]

Very profitable in the long run? Please, put down the crack pipe son.

The Xbox is BILLIONS in the red. It better start making some spectacular returns pronto to pay back the money that's been poured into it, plus interest otherwise I predict large shareholders are going to start asking questions like "why are you pissing that money away when you could be giving it to us as dividends or investing in something profitable?"... you know, opportunity cost and all that.

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[Kalriath]

Like he said. This is Slashdot, replace his entire post with "fuck M$".

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[Anonymous Coward]

Why post as an AC? Sony won't know who to send the check to.

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[AKAImBatman]

I seriously doubt that Microsoft is ready to give up the fight yet. At the moment, they have Sony's "hardcore gamers" market by the balls. It would be foolish to give it up now, no matter what happens.

No, I imagine that Microsoft is regrouping and rethinking their strategy. They're examining what worked for them and what didn't so that they can focus on doing more of what works. Useless trade shows that no one has ever heard of probably fall under the "not working" category.

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[AKAImBatman]

The 360 is selling to the EXACT same people who bought the first Xbox.

Now that is provably false. The XBox sold a mere 24 million units in the 4+ years it was on the market. In comparison, the 360 sold about 10 million units in the first year. Unless sales fall off dramatically, Microsoft is still in a better position than they were with the XBox.

In addition, movements like Wii60 [wii60.com] are causing many gamers to see the 360 as a companion to the Wii rather than a competitor. This has driven the consumer thinking

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[Jason Earl]

And Nintendo is proving that wrapping up the "hardcore gamer" market is the classic Pyrrhic victory, especially if you have to subsidize the hardware so that normal folks will even buy it. Microsoft has lost billions of dollars chasing this mythical hardcore gamer, and Nintendo has consistently made profits, even when its console was the least popular console on the market. What's even more ironic is that the technology battle between Microsoft and Sony is likely to knock Sony out of the running for this

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[flitty]

I highly doubt this. Xbox live is to big of a success, and most of xbox's profits come from the games it sells, not the consoles it sells. Hard to believe that this comes from an Anonomous coward...

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[WIAKywbfatw]

There are so many inaccuracies in this post that I don't know where to start.

1. The 360 is selling poorly? Look at the user base.

2. Peter Moore was fired? Uh, no, he resigned, and he received a 7-figure golden hello from EA to compensate him for lost earnings at Microsoft. Why would EA give him over $1 million if he was on the street?

3. Execs sell shares all the time. At a company the size of Microsoft, I'd be shocked if you could find a single month in the last 10 years where one exec or another wasn't sel

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[drinkypoo]

Peter Moore was fired? Uh, no, he resigned, and he received a 7-figure golden hello from EA to compensate him for lost earnings at Microsoft. Why would EA give him over $1 million if he was on the street?

Uh, this kind of thing happens all the time.

CEOs and the like are often under contract. It's easier to get them to go away voluntarily than to fire them, which you have to explain. And firing your CEO makes you look very bad.

So most of the time, the CEO is just kind of pushed gently out the door. They are treated as if they had done a great job. Nary a word is said about them being ejected.

As a result, they get to go into their next enterprise smelling like a rose. They're greeted with open arms. then

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[WIAKywbfatw]

If, as you say, we don't know then how can the AC to whom I replied assert that he was fired?

The facts, as agreed by Microsoft, EA and Peter Moore himself have stated are that he resigned. If nobody directly involved has anything different to say then how can someone claim with any degree of certainty that he was fired?

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[mdenham]

I'm sure that most people who know Microsoft will tell you that losing money on Xbox in generations 1 and 2 probably doesn't faze them at all. Screwing it up the first time, making a semi-decent product the second time and then getting it right on the third attempt is practically a tradition at Microsoft.

In that case, the future timeline of the XBox series:

• The XBox 720 is released; (Win3.0)
• A short time later, the XBox 756 is released, which adds a few things and is considered the greatest thing ever, despite the fact that one game can lock it up for hours on end; (Win3.1)
• Two years later, the XBox NT is released... five years later than it should have been; (WinNT 3.5)
• Then, over the next six years, we will get the XBox 15, the XBox 18, and the XBox 18SE; (Win95/98/98SE)
• ...followed, two years later,

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[Cutriss]

Plenty here to ridicule, but this stands out the best:

1.1 billion in costs for defective 360 repairs So far no solution has been found to the 360 defect problem, 9-10 million 360s out there that will continue to fail over and over again

So...they don't know what the problem is, but they definitely know it will cost them $1.1B to fix? That makes perfect sense.

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[BlueParrot]

So...they don't know what the problem is, but they definitely know it will cost them $1.1B to fix? That makes perfect sense.

Lets say they have sold a million of them. Lets say that out of the first 100.000 X% came back defective. Since they don't know the problem, but strongly suspect it is a design flaw, they can only assume X% of the remaining ones will also come out defective. Multiply by number of units sold and the price by replacing each unit, and I would say that is a fairly good statistical estimate

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[DrXym]

HD-DVD is dead

I don't think Microsoft really cares about HD-DVD. Otherwise it would have appeared in the XBox 360 Elite.

Sure they released an HD-DVD add-on but I suspect they did it more to piss on Sony's parade than any particular commitment to the format. I bet Toshiba shouldered most of the cost too. Their VC-1 codec is in both the HD-DVD and Blu Ray specs so what do they care either way, just as long as people choose their codec? It sucks if you bought their add-on though. It wouldn't surprise me if

a good question

[master_p]

Why did Microsoft enter the console race anyway?

big reason

[Bizzeh]

the big reason behind no X07 is the fact that there is no point paying to set up something like this, when others do it for you. ie E3 just gone, and the TGS (Tokyo Game Show) coming up shortly...

Did not know there was an X06

[WillAffleckUW]

So I'm not surprised there is no X07.

But, given the continuing losses for xBox, isn't another event just more dollars down the drain?

MS moves into do nothing mode

[sysadmintech]

This rings of IE. Microsoft used it's game division to put all small designers out of business, as they planned. So don't expect anything out of XBox for the next 6 years.