Kinect Finally Priced, New Xbox 360 Models Incoming

Nearly a month after its E3 media briefing, Microsoft has announced that Kinect will make its hardware debut for $150 on November 4th. Kinect will come bundled with Kinect Adventures, one of the launch titles that was unveiled at E3.

In addition to the pricing announcement, Microsoft revealed a $200 Xbox 360 S Model that includes 4GB of internal storage. Intended to replace the Arcade model, the new model releases August 3 in North America.

Furthermore, a Kinect bundle has been priced at $300 with the new S Model. Microsoft’s Aaron Greenburg has started that first-party Kinect software will be priced at $50 although retailers have priced third-party software at $60.

Promising an “offer” those who preorder “today” will get an exclusive token to unlock three new levels in Kinect Adventures.

E3 2010: Microsoft Media Briefing Liveblog

We set up the liveblog, catch it shortly at 10am PST, 1pm EST, 6pm BST.

Microsoft Calls It Kinect, We’re Waiting for the 4

Microsoft has finally ousted its motion tracking camera with an official name, Kinect. USA Today confirmed the rumors swirling around the internet before the scheduled Cirque Du Soleli event.

The publisher has announced several titles that are similar to the current line of Wii casual video games. There will be a series of sport-themed minigames, Kinect Sports, a whitewater rafting title called Kinect Adventures, and a pet-simulator aptly named Kinectimals.

Joy Ride which was shown previously is now a Kinect launch title as well as MTV Games dance game called Dance Central. In addition, a Disney and Lucasarts Star Wars game, respectively, are also in development for the Kinect platform.

But that’s not all, Kinect will establish a UI interface that allows users to touch and move applications on the Xbox Dashboard.

No word on a price point or a target release date but stick around for our liveblog Microsoft Press Conference tomorrow for those details.

E3 Liveblogs – We Have Them

E3 is basically around the corner and for the first time in MonsterVine history, we will be in attendance at the event. However, not everyone gets to go so our online team will be holding the fort down at MonsterVine HQ to bring you breaking news coverage and present liveblogs of the big three press conferences. They are listed below:

Microsoft Media Briefing – Monday, June 14 at 10:00 am PST, 1:00pm EST, 6:00 pm BST
Natal will be a focus this time around with a fully blown reveal and numerous third-party publishers announcing their projects in addition to a slew of first-party development by Rare and Lionhead Studios. There will still be a good focus on first-party games such as Gears of War 3, Fable 3, and Halo: Reach but what suprises will be in store? Well our newest staff member Malik Faldiga will tell you!

Nintendo Presentation – Tuesday, June 15 at 9:00 am PST, 12:00 pm EST, 5:00 pm BST
With Craig and Will going to see Cammie Dunaway inarguably make a fool out of herself for another consecutive year, Sarah will be liveblogging the Nintendo conference and bring you the epic tears that will be shed around the world during the Zelda Wii reveal. We will have information and launch titles on Nintendo’s handheld successor, 3DS. And expect the occassional “livetweets” from Will of the antics that will surely ensue (most likely when we find out the mindblowing features of the Wii Vitality Sensor) from this two-hour presser.

Sony Media Briefing – Tuesday, June 15 at 12:00 pm PST, 3:00 pm EST, 8:00 pm BST
Following up, our last but surely not least Sony will be showcasing Playstation Move and the first-party lineup including Gran Turismo 5, Killzone 3, Resistance 3, Infamous 2, Motorstorm: Apocalypse, and LittleBigPlanet 2. Yet, that may not be all as we are due for another appearance of The Last Guardian, Agent, and perhaps even an appearance of Final Fantasy Versus XIII. Gyuri and Malik are tag-teaming up for this one so look forward to it.

Bungie Signs 10-Year Publishing Deal with Activision

Halo developer Bungie has announced today that it has signed into a ten year publishing deal with Activision to bring the “next big action game universe to market.”

Activision has secured exclusive rights to publish and distribute worldwide for all future Bungie games based on the new intellectual property, although Bungie will be allowed to keep its independence and retain complete control over its intellectual property.

The new game will be available for all platforms, as to which publisher Sony has stated CVG that “marrying their creative minds and incredible talent to the power of PS3 will be like giving PS3 fans Halo on steroids.” It remarks Bungie’s departure of exclusivity from Microsoft for a long while. Readers interested in what this means for the future of Bungie can check out their open letter to the community. Nevertheless, Industry Gamers points out that the announcement of Activision-Bungie’s parnership effectively ends the Bungie made Halo series. For Halo fans, it has to be a somber day given the uncertainity over how Microsoft will carry the fruitful IP after the release of Halo: Reach.

Giant Bomb brought to light the unfortunate circumstances that plague Activision considering the terms of the deal has to resonate ironically with the former heads of Infinity Ward, Jason West and Vince Zampella who have gone on to form Respawn Entertainment and partnered with former employer Electronic Arts. G4TV’s Patrick Klepeck has been keeping up-to-date with the developing situation and should definitely be read up on. Again, the irony seems to all demonstrate the terms that West and Zampella were looking for with the Call of Duty series.

Microsoft Holding Press Conference at E3, Adds Natal Experience

Microsoft has announced its plans to hold one main press conference at this year’s E3 in addition to a “Project Natal” experience on that Sunday prior.

The official premiere for Project Natal for the Xbox 360 will take place Sunday, June 13 at the USC Galen Center, and on Monday morning Microsoft will hold its annual Xbox 360 press briefing at the Wiltern Theater.

Greenberg adds, “We’re gearing up for a really exciting E3 and wanted to share some key dates to put on your calendar.” The Xbox Production exec states that Microsoft’s E3 Natal event on Sunday, June 13 will be an “all ages” affair intended to show the “the universal appeal of Xbox 360.”

“We’re gearing up for a really exciting E3 – unlike any E3 we’ve ever had before,”

“As you may have heard, our traditional news briefing is on the morning of Monday, June 14. Additionally, as a kick off to the week, we will be hosting a can’t-miss exclusive “Project Natal” World Premiere experience designed for all ages and demonstrating the universal appeal of Xbox 360 on Sunday evening.

“We’ll have more details on both events and additional media opportunities for Xbox 360 at E3 in the coming months, but wanted to get the word out now as you make your plans.”

Hope this gets you pumped for E3, we sure as hell are!

Third Person Survival Horror Returns in Deadly Premonition

Ignition Entertainment, worldwide publisher of video games, and Marvelous Entertainment have announced Deadly Premonition, a third person survival horror action title that is set to debut exclusively on Xbox 360.

The premise will have players investigate clues and fit together the pieces in order to solve the mysteries involving a series of gruesome murders in a rural town of Greenvale.

Check out this utterly bizarre trailer that features golf club wielding undead.

Halo Anime Confirmed with Portal Hub ‘Waypoint’ on Xbox Live

Microsoft has announced “Halo Legends,” a collection of short animated films by various Japanese animation studios.

Each short will explore “different times, themes and characters” in the universe with each having a distinct art style. Microsoft Game Studios is producing the series through the newly revealed 343 Studios, an internal house developer that will be dedicated entirely to the Halo franchise.

The company also announced a Xbox Live “destination” called “Halo Waypoint,” said to be an information portal that will give fans news, activities, behind-the-scenes videos, screenshots, and podcasts in addition to “a career system and player rankings tied to both in-game and out-of-game accomplishments related to Halo.”

A preview of “Halo Legends” will be available this fall through the “Halo Waypoint” with Warner Bros. yet to specify a release date to retailers.

The LA Times managed to obtain new details related to the various video shorts:

Studio4 C’s project, tentatively called “Origins,” is a two-parter that’s about 30 minutes long in total and tells the entire 100,000 year history of the Halo universe. Another, from Toei, is the only one outside of the official canon and pokes fun at some of the game’s characters.

Microsoft in the meantime offered information and background on the studios involved:

# Bones. Founded in 1998, Bones has become one of the top animation studios in Japan in less than a decade. The studio is best known for its incredible body of work on mega-hit franchises such as “Cowboy Bebop: The Movie,” “Fullmetal Alchemist,” “Sword of the Stranger” and “Eureka Seven.”
# Casio Entertainment. Casio Entertainment was founded in 2004 and is renowned for its visual effects work on the movie “Dai Nipponjin” (“Big Man of Japan”), which was officially invited to the 2007 Cannes Film Festival and nominated for Best Visual Effects at the 2008 Asian Film Awards. Casio Entertainment is also known for its computer-generated animation support work on several top Japanese video games.
# Production I.G. Production I.G has produced a number of acclaimed feature films, original video animation, TV shows and video games. For their storytelling and quality of animation, “Ghost in the Shell,” “Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade” and “Blood: The Last Vampire” have earned critical accolades in Japan and all around the world. “Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence,” directed by Mamoru Oshii in 2004, was the first Japanese animation feature ever to compete for the Palme d’Or at the Festival de Cannes.
# STUDIO4 C. STUDIO4 C is one of the top animation studios in Japan. Founded by the industry veteran Eiko Tanaka and acclaimed animation artist Koji Morimoto, it has become globally known for its uncanny ability to marry the spirit of high art with mainstream anime aesthetic. STUDIO4 C is known for works including “The Animatrix,” “Tekkonkinkreet” and “Batman: Gotham Knight.”
# Toei Animation. Toei Animation, established in 1956, is the oldest animation studio in Japan. Toei has produced the largest number of global hit TV anime series for kids, such as “Dragon Ball,” “Digimon,” “Sailor Moon,” “One Piece” and many more.