Now that we are nearly into the last quarter of the calendar year, it means that the holiday season is officially coming and we need to be thinking about getting into that gift purchasing overdrive mode that sees us spend our hard earned money on friends, family and loved ones. Alternatively, we could just see it as an excuse to go out and buy ourselves all the great things that we want and blame it on holiday madness. I know which one I'd prefer.
Grand Theft Auto has, for the past 15 or so years, been one of the most popular titles available on most platforms, and with GTA V beckoning, Rockstar is giving fans more to salivate over with some beautifully-realistic visuals.
One of the driving forces behind Microsoft's Xbox 360 gaming console’s success was the introduction of the Xbox LIVE platform that allows gamers from all over the world to compete against each other from the comfort of their own homes. As you would expect, Microsoft offers a free of charge LIVE package, but serious gamers who want to get the most out of their connected video game world, the Gold subscription is usually the way to go.
Although Microsoft has done fantastically to bring its Xbox brand of console from nowhere to market leader in less than a decade, the Halo franchise has had a big hand in proceedings. It was the first title to release along with the original Xbox console, and with Halo 4 set to arrive this fall, the buzz about the title is still as prevalent as ever.
In the gaming world, Assassin's Creed is kind of a big deal, and if you like your stealth/action adventure titles, then it's more than likely you're a fan of the series. Sure, it doesn't manage to garner the same kind of following as your Halos and Call of Duty(s) of the world, but it's certainly not far off, and naturally, Assassin's Creed III is one of the most hotly anticipated future titles on the horizon.
Over the years, the eBay online marketplace has proved to be the home of some pretty obscure and often bizarre things which have been snapped up by users all over the world at some pretty insane prices. Although, any seasoned eBay member will more than likely be used to coming across something a little out of the ordinary, it's often the high-end of rather unique technology listings that tickle our fancy. One of those items came only last week with a member attempting to sell an original and unboxed original iPhone for $10,000, and now we have seen an Xbox Durango development kit shift for a cool $20,100.
Microsoft's Kinect peripheral, which allowed the kind of interactivity with its Xbox 360 console only previously seen in the Nintendo Wii, went down a storm with consumers, becoming the fastest-selling gadget of all time when it launched back in 2010. Like all good new tech releases, it's hard to believe the Kinect motion sensor hasn't even reached the two year mark yet, and talk of its successor has been fairly prevalent for the past couple of months now.
If you are sitting in the office right considering switching jobs, and you happen to have marketing experience that involves leading development of brand positioning, can demonstrate strength and passion for managing large virtual teams and have eight years of experience, then it is quite possible that Microsoft could be looking for you to help bulk up their marketing department in time for busy eighteen months. It shouldn't really come as a shock that Microsoft is looking for staff, but it's the actual content of the job posting that resonates with us and leaves us a little bit excited for the future.
Windows 8 has always been highlighted as the point when Microsoft's main products would unite as one, with desktop, tablet, smartphone and gaming all intertwined in one way or another by the new operating system. With that in mind, it should be of no surprise that Microsoft has based the structure of gaming on Windows 8 around the flagship Xbox platform, and the built-in games within the upcoming version of the Redmond company's operating system will be branded as "Xbox Windows."
Back in the 1980s, you were required to pay hundreds of dollars to play primitive games with even more primitive graphics. Since then, gaming has slowly but surely become a much more accepted hobby in the world. Helped by increasing graphical, storytelling and gameplay complexity, and decreasing prices, gaming is now amongst the most popular hobbies in the world.
