Microsoft has had a forgettable start to the year with the Xbox 360 finishing third for the first time on US sales charts in January 2008. The news of Blu-ray triumphing in the HD format war has only aggravated its woes, although it is putting up a brave pretense. But at the Game Developers Conference, Microsoft gave itself a few reasons to cheer by announcing a stellar games lineup, which includes the much awaited Gears of War 2, Fable 2, Ninja Gaiden 2 and Too Human.
Cliff Bleszinski, the lead designer at Epic Games, took center stage just as Microsoft’s GDC keynote was about to culminate and dropped a bombshell by announcing that the Xbox 360-exclusive Gears of War 2 will be out in the market come November 2008. The title is a sequel of the 4.5 million-selling Gears of War. If last year Microsoft had Halo 3 headlining the holidays, this year Gears of War 2 might just reprise that glamorous role.
But that is not all, the keenly awaited RPG title Fable 2 was also showcased at the event. The game’s designer Peter Molyneux presented a precursor of the amazing multiplayer features of the game including the much touted dynamic co-operative multiplayer features, a first for the series. He promised that gamers will get the first glimpse into the surreal Fable world before the game’s release, as small Fable 2 pub games will be released later this year as stand-alone Xbox Live Arcade downloads. Also, in an unprecedented move, the in-game currency earned in the pub games will be transferable to the main Fable 2 game. The game takes place five centuries after the first Fable game for the Xbox. Fable 2 is another Xbox 360-exclusive title, scheduled for release on November 15, 2008.
The curtain was also raised over a new Ninja Gaiden II feature, Ninja Cinema, which will allow gamers to share their most mesmerizing moves on Xbox Live. The hack-and-slash game will land on the 360 on June 3, 2008. Another major title to be showcased at the event was another exclusive Too Human, developed by Silicon Knights, it has educed a lot of anticipation among Xbox 360 gamers. It is the first title in a trilogy and slated for a spring 2008 release.
This is certainly an impressive lineup of games. Titles like GOW 2 and Fable 2 will certainly set the holidays ablaze. Microsoft has been flawless on one count in this console race: the uninterrupted supply of quality games for the Xbox 360. It needs to ensure that there is never a shortage of 360-exclusives as that is one thing the PS3 lacks. Despite the Blu-ray advantage the PS3 will be no good without quality games as it is primarily a game console.
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yeye mah niggaz 360 rulz. BTW this is a brown MAN