Time foe the bi-annual question again of the blog … sure has been quiet of late. I know my set up has changed. Maybe the snippet url shold direct to say … the facebook group, and post in there?? as most people seem to be on there??

Any thoughts anyone??? Blog’s can’t survive without oxygen

Just had a quick knock around today - anyone else played it? Feels like Mass Effect a little - not sure on it though ……

New XBOX Dashboard anybody??

Taken from Major Nelson and from the current/recent E3 expo:

Here is a look at some additional features you will find interesting:

· Play from hard drive. Copy your games from the game disc and play directly from the hard drive.  Not only will the drive not spin, but load times are quicker, as well. Of course, you will still need the disc in the tray to prove you own the game.

· Access Xbox LIVE Marketplace on the Web. Browse and purchase Marketplace content whenever you want from Xbox.com and it downloads automatically to your console.  Purchase that new map, television episode, the latest Xbox LIVE Arcade game or set up a movie to watch when you get home from work.

· Dashboard built into the new Xbox Guide. For everyone who loves the blades interface, it’s not going away; they are now built directly in to the new Xbox guide. Every feature and option is available right from the guide.  You can even access your full games library at all times.  No matter where you are (in dash or in game), immediately call up your games played list and directly launch a game.

· LIVE Party system. Create a party of up to eight friends, and stay with them from one game to another, or watch a Netflix movie together, or share a slideshow of your personal photos.  It works with all Xbox 360 titles, not just upcoming games.  LIVE Party allows up to eight people to chat in the dashboard, so you can meet up before playing.

· Xbox LIVE Primetime. This whole new category of games is going to give you more reasons to get online with your friends.  Games will support everything you’d expect, like Achievements and leader boards, but many of these games will include real prizes. You can invite your friends, and even set a reminder for an upcoming show.  Each game is broadcast simultaneously, so everyone is answering the same questions.  Many events will have a live host, calling the shots as they happen.

· Avatars. Your online identity started as a Gamertag - it then grew into a personalized Gamercard. Now, it has evolved even further into avatars.  You can express your style, check out new outfits and share this with the community.  Avatars will also be integrated into Xbox LIVE Arcade games, LIVE Party, as well as retail games.

· New display support. Because you asked for it, we are adding 16X10 over VGA or HDMI, and support for 1440×900 or 1680×1050.

Emmmmm em - play from your hard drive Sounds good to me

Still looking an impressive game, visualy …

Major Nelson is reporting a free Halo 3 map on Monday plus some other goodies -

7 Exclusive new gamerpictures and a Bungie day theme will be available on Marketplace. These are available for one day only.

Cold Storage, a free new Halo 3 multiplayer map inspired by the original map Chill Out found in Halo 1

According to various sources, some (hopefully) free R6V DLC is coming soon and contains a big long list of features and fixes and tweaks to make game quite different from the initial offering, including a couple of new maps.

http://www.xboxic.com/news/4794

The first footage of the next instalment in the Call of Duty series will be shown exclusively on Xbox LIVE this weekend.

Call Of Duty World At War is being developed by Treyarch whilst Modern Warfare’s creators, Infinity Ward, presumably take a well earned rest. It’s purported to be a darker, grittier game, swapping some of the ‘Boy’s Own Adventure’ stylings of the previous games for a sense of real endangerment. In fact, according to Treyarch head Mark Lamir, “This is a scarier Call of Duty than we’ve ever seen.”

[Eurogamer]

Well, well, well, what have we here? Looks like we’re finally getting some real evidence that Microsoft really does have some sort of response to Nintendo’s Miis on the way. It’s been rumored for some time now and the above shot of the linked flash page seems to portend the end of the rumors

[XBOX360Fanboy]