Just one more day until the huge new Xbox 360 interface launches. We’re excited! Lets just hope that XBL can withstand the tremendous rush of everyone wanting to update, worldwide, at the same time. read on for the last bit of official info, and get ready for a whole new Xbox Experience.

In 1954, the introduction of color TV heralded the dawn of a new era in entertainment. On Nov. 19, more than 50 years after that dramatic shift, a new era in home entertainment begins with the New Xbox Experience, as millions of Xbox 360 consoles will transform in an instant through the power of software. A bold new future begins now, where high-definition (HD) entertainment is delivered in an instant, the best games share the stage with the best movies and TV shows, and every experience is shared with friends and family in the same room or around the world.

By the end of this month, Xbox 360 will reach another industry-defining milestone: 25 million Xbox 360 consoles sold worldwide. It has taken the leading next-generation game and entertainment console just three years to eclipse the total lifetime number of original Xbox consoles sold.

“The future of home entertainment is Xbox 360 — it’s on-demand, it’s high-definition, it’s always social, it’s all in one place,” said Don Mattrick, senior vice president for the Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft Corp. “With the New Xbox Experience, we will reach the next generation of Xbox owners, 25 million and beyond. We are at a watershed moment, backed by the largest entertainment brands, with an incredible lineup of entertainment unmatched in any industry.”

All Your Friends and Favorite Entertainment, One Remote Control

With the launch of the New Xbox Experience, Xbox 360 owners will enjoy a limitless world where the best games, movies and TV shows are ready to share with friends across the globe through Xbox LIVE:

 
• Netflix instantly streaming in HD. The New Xbox Experience isn’t the only thing that will look great on your TV. Netflix is taking the first step by instantly streaming movies and TV episodes in high definition with the introduction of approximately 300 choices in HD via Xbox 360, including “La Vie en Rose,” “Flawless” and “Heroes.” Xbox 360 is the only Netflix-ready device to offer high-definition movies and TV episodes.
• Xbox LIVE Party. Xbox 360 allows you to create a virtual party on your TV with up to seven friends. With Xbox LIVE Party, use voice chat while you play games,1 share photos in real time and entertain friends all over the world.
• Personality plus. Create a customizable, animated avatar and literally jump into the world of Xbox LIVE. Your avatar is your game face throughout the New Xbox Experience and represents your personality — whether you are serving as an Xbox LIVE Party host, playing a game of “Scene It? Box Office Smash” or chatting with a friend.
• On-demand entertainment. Xbox 360 is home to the best TV and movie entertainment, including more than 12,000 movies and TV episodes from Netflix and a large online library of more than 15,000 on-demand high-definition TV shows and movies from global partners such as Constantin, The Walt Disney Studios, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (MGM), NBC Universal Inc. and Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.
• Your personal game room. Play revived classics such as “PAC-MAN Championship Edition,” “Galaga Legions” and “Portal: Still Alive” alongside games that put your avatars in the action, such as “A Kingdom for Keflings,” “UNO,” “Hardwood Hearts” and “Hardwood Spades,” exclusively for download from Xbox LIVE Arcade. Xbox LIVE members also will be able to access all of Xbox LIVE Marketplace, including Xbox LIVE Arcade, and even queue content to download straight from Xbox.com.
• Games for the community, by the community. For the first time in the history of console gaming, thousands of games developed by the creative community will be available to the public. The Community Games channel on Xbox LIVE will include games made by students, hobbyists and maybe even your next door neighbor, and will be exclusive to Xbox LIVE.

The World’s Biggest Names in Entertainment, All in One Place

No device offers more entertainment than Xbox 360. In addition to Netflix in the United States, major film studios around the world unveiled their plans to offer feature films on Xbox LIVE in Canada, Italy and Spain, truly transforming Xbox 360 into the world’s largest online entertainment center:

 
• Magnolia Pictures. The studio that released such groundbreaking and award-winning feature films as “The World’s Fastest Indian,” “The Host,” “Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room” and “Ong-Bak: The Thai Warrior” will be bringing its slate of compelling feature films to Xbox LIVE in Canada and the U.S.
• MGM. MGM is bringing its library of blockbuster movies to Xbox LIVE in Italy and Spain. MGM, already available in Canada, France, Germany, the U.K. and the U.S., will offer films such as “Carrie,” “Rocky” and “Species” on Xbox LIVE around the world.
• Paramount Pictures. Paramount Digital Entertainment will mark the two-year anniversary of making its movies available on Xbox LIVE by becoming a content provider in Italy and Spain. Films such as “Iron Man,” “Stop-Loss” and “The Ruins” will be made available worldwide this fall.
• Warner Bros. Digital Distribution. Warner Bros. Digital Distribution will make 100 movie titles available on Xbox LIVE in Italy, including “Interview With the Vampire” and “The Matrix Trilogy.” Xbox LIVE in Spain also will offer 100 movie titles, including “Sweeney Todd” and “One Missed Call.” Currently the studio offers content in Canada, Germany, France, the U.K. and the U.S.

Xbox 360 Puts You in the Spotlight This Holiday

While Xbox 360 has evolved into a world-class entertainment device, it remains the best place to play. In concert with the launch of the New Xbox Experience, two entertainment heavyweights step into the spotlight, ready to wow audiences across the world. Today is the launch of “Lips” and “You’re in the Movies,” two games that promise to get you on your feet and performing like a star.

 
• “Lips” is an all-new music franchise exclusively for Xbox 360. “Lips” is the only singing game that offers wireless, motion-sensitive microphones and the ability to sing to a diverse list of included songs representing multiple musical genres, ranging from pop, rock and dance to hip-hop, country and R&B, as well as compatible songs from your music collection.2
• “You’re in the Movies” brings out the movie star in everyone this holiday season with its release exclusively on Xbox 360 coming Nov. 18. It’s the first and only game of its kind that transports players into a magical world of cinema and hilarious improvisations. Using the Xbox LIVE Vision camera, friends and families choose a script, act it out and in minutes watch the often hilarious, always entertaining results.

Just a quick update concerning iONvideogames and where it’s been and what is going to happen to it.

Real life has basically taken over every one on the staff, myself included, to the point that when we do have spare time the last thing we want to do is write about video games. We’d obviously rather be playing them! Actually, over the past couple of months, I’ve been so busy with work and other things that I really haven’t played many games, and even botched up a very important project I was working on for a friend of 6+ years. Hope he can find it in him to forgive me for my long absence!

Anyways, as to if the site will come back, I have no idea. It depends on if one of the current staff members wants to get on stage and show what he can do. Will he do it, no idea, I’ve yet to ask. If he does, things will pick up here a lot, otherwise the site will remain pretty-much dead. A shadow of it’s former self.

Owner-EIC,

Carl A. Rhoades

Yes, you read that correctly!

Buy.com currently has an Connect3D 2GB Secure Digital Card available for $0.00 after a $50 mail-in rebate. Sure, you have to pay $50 up-front but, if my past experience is any indication, you’ll have your rebate back in about a month. All you Wii owners trying to find a good price on an SD Card can rejoice! Click the link below for the product page:
Link

Edit: Notice I did not say free anywhere above ^_^

In the US at least ^_^

Square Enix has dropped what quite possibly is the biggest bomb any game company has in a while, announcing that the next true sequel to their much-loved Dragon Quest series will be hitting the Nintendo DS.

Personally, after the huge falling-out between Nintendo and Square some ten years ago, I would have never expected to see the following:

Things sure are looking amazing for Nintendo, what with the success of the DS and getting back into what seems the be great relations with Square Enix. Nintendo under the helm of Iwata is a wonderful thing!

Sources:
IGN
Go Nintendo
1up.com

From Go Nintendo:

“The entire Wii community is still abuzz with talk of cross-region VC purchasing. We discussed this awhile back, and now AzaMcWazza has sent in a video. Nintendo must know about this…I wonder if they are going to do something about it.”

Direct Link

Source: Go Nintendo

Note: Be wary of the music in the video… seems really loud and obnoxious!

From Los Angeles today, Reuters has reported that Manifesto Games, out of New York City, has announced that “The Shiva” will in fact be the first game of its kind, in that it will star the head of a Jewish congregation.

Manifesto, a developer of downloadable games, has said that the game’s story revolves around a rabbi who is trying to hold together his congregation, which is experiencing a crisis of spirit due to the alleged murder of either a member of the congregation or someone related to a member. The catch is, Rabbi Stone, the protagonist, is the individual who receives the inheritance from the controversial member of the congregation.

The title, which will sell for $5, is the first commerical product of creator Dave Gilbert.

This may be a little late seeing as it was shown on Monday but hey better late than never eh? This is the first commercial for Halo 3 that was aired during this weeks Monday Night Football game. The 60 second clip doesn’t show any gameplay and is all in CG (well mostly). The fact that Halo 3 is being advertised this early is more proof that this is going to be the biggest game release ever. Halo 2 was already HUGE! Halo 3 will no doubt dwarf the Halo 2 launch and sell a billion Xbox 360 systems in 2007. Why did you buy an Xbox 360? Whatever be honest, it was for Halo 3.

So here the trailer, get goosebumps?

2old2play reports:

“Buy.com, as well as a few other online resellers, have been running a promotion with Google and it’s new check out service. Back in October, you could save USD $10 off a purchase of USD $30 at Buy.com if you check out using Google Checkout. For Thanksgiving, a new promotion has been posted, this one will save you USD $20 off a purchase of USD $50, again, if you check out using Google Checkout.“

I just used this to pick up a 2GB SD card for my Wii for $13.85! Now, if only I hadn’t purchased soo many Wii games on launch ^_^

Click for the full story!

Go Nintendo reader Eddy saw this new Wii commercial on Nickelodeon. Has a nice retro feel to it… I still prefer the “Wii would like to play” ads, but this is still leaps and bounds better than most of Nintendo’s GameCube ads!

Direct Link!

Source: Go Nintendo