This week Microsoft announced that 19 original Xbox games would be coming to the backward compatible program this month. This includes some notable Starwars classics coming out on April 26. Starwars Battlefront, Starwars Battlefront 2 and Starwars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy. They are also releasing Jade Empire, The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind and SSX3. I am really excited to play the original Battlefront games on my Xbox One. The pixel count will also be increased so that the games look better than ever before. What do you think about being able to play the original Battlefront games on Xbox One? Click the link below for the full list of Xbox games coming to Xbox One this month.
This week Activision announced the Spyro: Reignited Trilogy. The trilogy includes Spyro the Dragon, Spyro 2: Ripto’s Rage and Spyro: Year of the Dragon. I am honestly looking forward to this more than I was looking forward to the Crash remakes. Right now it is coming to Xbox One and PS4. I hope it comes to Switch in the future. The game looks incredible in HD, and I can’t wait to try it out. Are you looking forward to playing the remastered Spyro games?
Activision revealed Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 on March 8th. The game will come out on October 12, 2018. I have never been a big fan of the Call of Duty games. That doesn’t mean that the games haven’t been solid. It will be interesting to see how this one pans out. More details about this game will come out on May 17th. I hope this game comes out on the Nintendo Switch. Are you excited for Black Ops 4?
Last week Microsoft revealed more information about Project Scorpio. The system will have a 6 tearflop GPU, 12GB of GDDR5 memory and 1TB of HDD storage. It is the most powerful dedicated gaming system to date. The system plays games in 4K, and it can play 4K UHD Blu-rays. It will be compatible with Xbox One games, and accessories.
Project Scorpio definitely feels like a next gen system. Originally Microsoft said that it was just meant to be an upgrade like the PS4 Pro. However I think that may hold the system back. I think that they should brand Project Scorpio as next gen, but continue to release less powerful versions of games for the Xbox One. It will be interesting to see what Microsoft does when Project Scorpio is released. The system is set to come out this holiday. Will you be getting Project Scorpio?
Microsoft is currently rolling out the Xbox One summer update. This update is fairly impressive. It adds a lot of new features to the Xbox One. It adds Cortana voice control, background music, dashboard improvements, and language region independence. It also adds some other smaller features like Facebook integration. The new user interface works well and feels very similar to the previous user interface. However the store is different to make way for the cross buy between Xbox One and PC. It is great that Microsoft is adding the ability to play Pandora music during a game. What do you think of the new Microsoft update?
Microsoft had their big press conference earlier today. They officially revealed the new Xbox One S. The Xbox One S has 4K Ultra HD, an internal power supply, 2TB of storage and it also has High Dynamic Range. It is definitely a nice upgrade from the original Xbox One. The new Xbox One S is also 40% smaller. It will cost $399 and it will be released this August.
Microsoft also showed off a variety of upcoming games for the Xbox One and PC. They showed off Gears of War 4, Forza Horizon 3, Halo Wars 2, ReCore, Killer Instinct: Season 3, Sea of Thieves, Scalebound, State of Decay 2 and Crackdown 3. I think ReCore looked like a pretty neat game. ReCore is an action adventure game that pits you against robotic foes. The game comes from the makers of Metroid Prime. Gears of War 4 looked like a sequel that fans of the series will be excited to play. I have never been a big fan of the series, but this one might be worth trying out. Sea of Thieves looked like a very strange game. It is a shared-world adventure game that pits you against your pirate friends.
Microsoft also announced Xbox Play Anywhere. This program allows you to purchase a game on PC and play it on Xbox or vice versa. It is similar to the cross buy that Sony had for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita. There were several other cool announcements. One of those announcements was the reveal of Project Scorpio. Project Scorpio is a more powerful version of the Xbox One that is coming out in 2017. Overall I think Microsoft had a decent conference. They showed off some great new games and a powerful upgraded console. I can’t wait to see what Microsoft has in store for the future. What do you think of the new Xbox One S?
Yesterday the Oculus Rift price and release date was revealed. It is coming out on March 28 and it will cost 600 dollars. However, you will need a very powerful PC to run the Oculus Rift. The box comes with a headset, a sensor, an Oculus remote and an Xbox controller. I think that the Oculus Rift is a bit overpriced considering that you need an expensive PC to use it. What do you think of the Oculus Rift’s pricing and release date?
Star Wars Battlefront has finally been revived. The last main series Battlefront game came out in 2005, over ten years ago. Last time Star Wars Battlefront was developed by Pandemic Studios. This time it was developed by EA Digital Illusions. The new Battlefront game is faster paced than the original one. It is also supposed to be played in first person, although you can switch it to third person.
The three things that stood out to me include the graphics, speed of the game and the Fighter Squadron Mode. The graphics in Battlefront make the player feel like they are watching the movie. I don’t think a Star Wars game in the past has nailed it. Battlefront is fast-paced like Halo, Call of Duty and other modern shooters. This really keeps you on your toes. My favorite multiplayer mode in Battlefront is Fighter Squadron Mode. This mode allows the player to fight in an X-Wing, A-Wing, Tie Fighter or a Tie Interceptor. In the past, I haven’t been a fan of space shooters; however, the controls are excellent in this game.
There are a few things that I don’t like about Star Wars Battlefront. It only has four planets to explore, and EA didn’t include a single player campaign. The four planets are Hoth, Endor, Tatooine, and Sullust. There is also a fifth planet that is coming out as free DLC, but it wasn’t included on day one. These four planets don’t give the player enough to explore. I also miss the option to play a single player campaign. It was one of the things that I enjoyed doing in the original games.
Overall, Star Wars Battlefront is an exciting multiplayer game that lacks single player options. My favorite multiplayer modes include Fighter Squadron, Blast and Heroes vs. Villains. I also like the mission mode in single player. I do miss the option to change characters every time you die and control points from the original game. I give Star Wars Battlefront a six out of ten.
Microsoft recently updated it’s End User License Agreement. The update gives Microsoft the ability to remotely disable pirated software on a Windows 10 computer. However, it looks like this just applies to Windows Store and Xbox Live content. The user agreement states that Microsoft can scan a users computer for pirated games and software. It is good that Microsoft is cracking down on piracy. Windows 10 forces users to download updates. This makes the user follow the End User Agreement. In past versions of Windows there was an option to disable updates. What do you think about Microsoft going after pirates?
I downloaded Windows 10 yesterday, and so far I like the experience. Yesterday, July 29th, was the first day that Windows 10 was officially released to the public. Windows 10 feels a lot more like Windows 7 and a lot less like Windows 8. I really like the appearance of Windows 10. It has a black task bar on the bottom and this task bar includes the start menu, a search bar, a task view button, applications and some notifications. It also includes the time and a desktop button. The new search bar and task view button are very useful. The task view button allows the user to easily switch between Windows, and the search bar makes it a lot easier for the user to find what they are looking for.
Microsoft also released a new web browser called Microsoft Edge; it is very fast compared to Internet Explorer, and I think Microsoft is going in the right direction with the new browser. I also got to try out the new Xbox app and it worked well. The new Xbox app allows users to stream Xbox One games to the computer. This is probably my favorite feature so far in Windows 10. It was a little bit laggy but the games are still playable. The Xbox One is hooked up via Wireless; I bet it would be less laggy if it was hooked up via Ethernet.
The only concern I had was downloading apps off of the Windows store. It wasn’t working for me at first, but once I installed some updates it worked fine. Windows 10 has been a great experience so far, and I can’t wait to see how they continue to tweak and improve it.
Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony showed off a variety of games at this years E3 Conference. There were several games that stood out to me and I can’t wait to play them.
Microsoft showed off Halo 5: Guardians, and the gameplay looks great. The trailer makes it seem like the player will be hunting Master Chief. It definitely seems like a different take on Halo and I can’t wait to jump into the action. There is also a new multiplayer mode called Warzone. This new mode allows ups to 24 players; in the past Halo games have only supported 16 players.
I also liked what I saw from Starwars Battlefront. The visuals and sound effects are superior to the original Battlefront games. One of the trailers showed multiplayer battles on Hoth and they include AT-AT’s and AT-ST’s. They also include X-Wings, Tie Fighters and Snowspeeders. It is great that vehicles are returning and I can’t wait to get into the action. The game play footage also showed that players can play as Jedi and Sith when they activate a power up. Everything looks really polished and this is my most anticipated game of 2015. However, I am disappointed that there is no campaign mode.
Many Nintendo fans were not impressed by Nintendo’s E3 Direct. However, I liked several of the games that they showed off during their direct. I liked what I saw from Star Fox Zero. It looks like the player can transform their ship into several different vehicles. This new mechanic looks really cool and I think that it will add a lot to the gameplay. It has been a while since Nintendo has released a main series Star Fox game. I also thought Mario Maker looked like a lot of fun. Nintendo is giving the user a ton of different assets and tools to use. It looks like the player can randomly drop Bowser in the middle of any level. This game looks crazy and I can’t wait to see what other people create. I am also pretty excited for the new Mario Tennis game. The player can get a power up that makes them grow huge. I have always enjoyed the Mario Tennis games and hopefully this one delivers.
What was your favorite game at E3 this year and what games are you excited for this year?
Earlier today Microsoft and Facebook announced a partnership. The Oculus Rift will ship with the Xbox One controller. It will also be able to stream Xbox One games. The Oculus Rift is built with Windows 10 in mind and it should also be noted that the new Xbox One controller will be able to connect to the computer with a wireless adapter. The Oculus Rift is set to come out in Quarter 1 of 2016. What do you think of this new partnership?
Mattina Technology 