September 20, 2006
Microsoft Showcases Library of Nearly 110
High-Definition Xbox 360 Games at the Tokyo Game Show
"Blue Dragon” Leads Holiday Lineup of Games;
“Pac-Man” World Championship, Xbox 360 HD DVD Player in Japan and 1080p Support
for Xbox 360 unveiled
Today at the Tokyo Game Show 2006, Microsoft
Corp. delivered information on new and improved entertainment experiences for
Japanese gamers, including details of the Xbox 360™ library of nearly 110
high-definition games available this holiday season in Japan, which will include
the highly anticipated “Blue Dragon” from Microsoft Game Studios. Microsoft also
paid tribute to NAMCO BANDAI Games and “Pac-Man,” announcing that the first
“Pac-Man” World Championship will be held in early 2007 using Xbox 360 and Xbox
Live® Arcade. Microsoft also revealed details of other entertainment offerings
enabled through Xbox 360, with availability date and pricing provided for the
Xbox 360 HD DVD player in Japan, as well as news of an update that will allow
the Xbox 360 console to output full 1080p games and video.
At the best-attended gaming convention in the
world, Microsoft showcased games that will boost the Xbox 360 software library
in Japan to nearly 110 titles by holiday season 2006 as well as more titles
coming well into 2007. The Xbox 360 games showcased include “Blue Dragon”
(Microsoft Game Studios), “Lost Planet: Extreme Condition” (Capcom), “Dead or
Alive: Xtreme 2” (Tecmo Inc.) and the newly announced “Trusty Bell” (NAMCO
BANDAI Games), and a host of anticipated Xbox Live Arcade titles. For 2007,
Microsoft also announced a pipeline of great games that include the epic
role-playing game (RPG) “Infinite Undiscovery” (Microsoft Game Studios).
“The key to winning the hearts and minds of the
Japanese market is great games, and this great lineup demonstrates that Xbox 360
has those games in spades,” said Peter Moore, corporate vice president of the
Interactive Entertainment Business in the Entertainment and Devices Division at
Microsoft. “Our lineup of role-playing games from the acknowledged masters of
the genre is proof positive that there has never been a better time for Japanese
gamers to jump in and pick up an Xbox 360 system.”
Many game titles, including the much-anticipated
epic RPG “Blue Dragon,” will be playable for the first time in the Microsoft®
booth at the Tokyo Game Show. Other playable titles include “Lost Odyssey™”
(Microsoft Game Studios) and “Viva Piata™” (Microsoft Game Studios).
Xbox Live Arcade and the “Pac-Man” World
Championship
The creator of “Pac-Man,” Toru Iwatani, announced
onstage with Moore that Microsoft and NAMCO BANDAI will host the first “Pac-Man”
World Championship in early 2007. The top 10 players in the world for “Pac-Man”
on Xbox Live Arcade will compete for the title in New York City. More details,
including how to qualify for the championship, will be made available in the
coming months.
Continuing its tremendous momentum, Xbox Live
Arcade has also announced in Tokyo a host of exciting new games, including some
that will be exclusive to the Japanese market. Gamers will have the opportunity
to try a host of new games on the show floor, including the classic side-scroller
“Contra” (Konami Corp.), the space-shooter “Gyruss” (Konami), the enemy-popping
classic “Dig Dug” (NAMCO BANDAI Games), arcade favorite “Track & Field”
(Konami), “New Rally-X” (NAMCO BANDAI Games) “Rush’n Attack” (Konami), a
favorite 1980s side-scroller, and the inimitable “Ms. Pac-Man” (NAMCO BANDAI).
In addition, the Japan-exclusive Xbox Live Arcade game “Yie Ar Kung Fu”
(Konami), one of the very first fighting games, was announced for release in
2007.
Xbox 360 HD DVD Player and 1080p Support
Microsoft announced pricing and availability
details for the Xbox 360 HD DVD Player in Japan. The accessory will launch on
Nov. 17, 2006, priced at 19,800 (estimated retail price), and will come with an
Xbox 360 Universal Media Remote.
“Xbox 360 and the HD DVD Player together deliver
the most powerful and affordable games and movie system for Japanese consumers,”
Moore said. “The freedom to choose their entertainment experiences is extremely
important for consumers as they enter the next generation.”
In addition, Microsoft announced that its fall
software update, scheduled for release later this year, will allow all Xbox 360
consoles around the world to output game and movie content in 1080p resolution.
XNA
Demonstrating its pledge to democratize game
development for tomorrow’s game developers, Microsoft announced that four
Japanese universities will use its XNA™ Game Studio Express software in
educational material and research within their course offerings. The XNA
software allows hobbyists, students and independent game developers to create
games for Windows® and, for the first time, Xbox 360 with the goal that
user-generated games made with XNA will arrive on Xbox Live Marketplace. Tokyo
University, Tokyo Polytechnic University, Ritsumeikan University and Osaka
Electro-Communication University join the dozens of universities worldwide that
have pledged support for Microsoft’s XNA vision and are recognizing the
potential of XNA Game Studio Express as an educational tool. As a result, these
four schools will integrate XNA software into their game development curricula,
labs and games-related research.
“As I turn my attention and passion toward
teaching the next generation of game developers, I am thrilled with XNA Game
Studio Express and related products,” said Toru Iwatani, a lecturer at Tokyo
Polytechnic University and original creator of “Pac-Man.” “I believe that these
products are attractive and effective because they create a development
environment that matches the skill level and area of expertise, widening the
entry of future developers into game development.”
XNA Game Studio Express beta was made available
to users worldwide on Aug. 30, 2006. The final version of XNA Game Studio
Express will be made available this holiday season.
