All of a sudden I heard something give the lightshade above my head a good hit and I looked up straight away and saw it swaying back and forward and I'm like "Well that was really weird because there's nothing there". I expected to see something flying away from it but there was nothing there. There isn't any flying insects in the room let alone something big enough to make the whole thing move and I would of heard it fluttering around the place. If was something attracted to the light I would of seen it hanging around the lightbulb too but nope. I checked everywhere out of curiousty and it's a small enough room. The window wasn't open and the door was practically closed. There's literally nothing else in this room bar me. 

Maybe it was just hidding somewhere in your room you might ask? I would of noticed if there's things flying around in my room you'd have to be deaf and blind not to notice. I can't find any other explanition for what would of caused it but all I know is something gave it a good hit and it starting swaying and there's nothing in the room that's alive besides me to do that. It's just hanging there slap bang center of the room.

A few moments later my friend starts asking me what are those noises, your headset is making really weird noises ect and then all of a sudden my headphones just started going nuts with feedback, the whole thing just went beserk so I turned off the mic, turned it back on then pretty much everything went back to normal. 

One of those weird experiences, or maybe I'm just a total nut case who needs counselling haha.

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Where the hell is all the drug money?! I mean, why am I living in a 2 bedroom apartment, and can only buy one $60 game a month if I'm a goddamned drug dealer? Apparently, I must not be a very good one. Where are all the drugs at, anyway? I've searched my house, high and low, but they are nowhere in sight. I must keep them at warehouse, or something. But how could I afford a warehouse? All the money I'm making from selling drugs, of course! Or, maybe I'm just using a friend's. But none of my friends seem the type to own a discreet warehouse specifically designed for storing drugs. Maybe it wasn't specifically designed (it wasn't in the leasing agreement, anyway), but we made alterations. How? With all the drug money!

I do believe that I would remember going to prison, being 15 and all. I'm pretty sure you remember going to prison at any age, but I may have been selling drugs during that part of the prison oritentation. What the hell did I do to be sent to prison? Maybe I killed someone, but I probably would have remembered doing something like that, or something similarly fun. But no, I think I know why I went to prison: I sold drugs!

My rapping career must not be going very well, since I'm not shopping at thrift shops very often. I haven't been asked to sing in a song with Justin Bieber yet, or perform on Sesame Street. Goddamn it! Oh wait, wait, wait... I was in Call Me Maybe. Yeah, I was the guy who was watching Hillary Scott's fine cinema on my computer, in the top window of the house across the street when Carly finds out her crush is gay. That part wasn't cropped out, was it? How do I not remember being such a industrious connoisseur of the ghetto arts? Well, drugs, of course!

Well, it may not be a fantastic lifestyle, but if the ultimatum is giving up Grand Theft Auto, then I'll gladly accept the former. Thank you Rockstar, for all the wonderful memories and good times with my brothers, as well as the chance to be a drug-dealing rapping ex-con, who moonlights as an astronaut; you may know me, as I was with Neil Armstrong when he boosted his smug ego to the ultimate extreme. For now, Buzz Aldrin, signing off.

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Masters of Reality: By Pierst178
Why Tomb Raider Failed as a Reboot: By biggest_looser
If the rumors are true: 5 reasons the next Xbox will fail: By -Saigo-
BioShock Infinite: Baptism of the Human Heart: By adusenbery
and  The Zone of Influence: How Paratext can change our experiences with games: By tom_cat_01

These are features that are picked no by community members, but by GameSpot staff, myself, and Carolyn Petit. 

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The more I think about this rumor that Microsoft will charge a fee for playing used games, the more I realize it's impossible.  They couldn't charge a fee based on the remainder of the MSRP price.  Microsoft would have to know how much you spent in the first place and that would be impossible for them to know; used games cost a variety of prices.  What are they going to do, check your receipt?  So the only thing they could do is charge a fixed rate.  But, that would end up not working either. 

If there were a fixed fee for playing used games more often than not the gamer would end up paying MORE than he would have buying a new game.  Say new games are still $60 next generation.  MS charges a fixed fee of $15 to play a used game and you go out and buy a used copy of CoD or whatever for $55.  You'd end up paying $70 to play a used game, $10 more than the MSRP price!  Now where's the deal in that?

We all know Gamestop doesn't take off a whole lot for more recent used titles, so often with the fee added you would spend more than buying new.  The only way there would be a deal for you is if the price cut on the used game were more than the fee charged by Microsoft to play it.  But, it inevitably can't always work out that way.  It would would make buying used Xbox One games pointless.  So, this whole fee thing not only doesn't make any sense, it's logistically impossible.

 I'm afraid we've been victims of the rumor mill once again.

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Sums up the current situation with Xbox now hitting the next gen scene with PS4 and WiiU. 

All in all whats up everyone. I have not been on here again... but I wanted to list a few games I have finished and or currently playing at the moment

Mario Bros U

Fallout 3

Sleeping Dogs

Super Meat Boy 

Ni No Kuni

Just a few to name so far

Anyways, does anyone have an anime recomendation? I think Baka Test (I think that's the title don't remmeber is one to consider. Need some recomendation.

Also, here is my facebook. I am on this alot

https://www.facebook.com/Marvinramirez714?ref=tn_tnmn

I am only gonna keep this link up for a while. Talk to me through there ifnot, here will be fine. I need to catch up or I am trying to catch up with some of you awesome peeps. 

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ZENO CLASH - For PC - Review by Bamul

The human minds creative imagination and the work of a talented team of developers can create something truly special.

Difficulty: Just Right
Time Spent: 10 Hours or Less
The Bottom Line: "Surprisingly good"

INTRODUCTION:
How many first-person fighting games have you played? No, Im not talking about the Elder Scrolls series or Mirrors Edge. Sure, those games allow you to punch and kick from a first-person camera perspective, but that isnt their main point. Personally I dont think Ive ever played a first-person fighting game before, so you can imagine how intrigued I was when I saw Zeno Clash for the first time. What is this? A first-person fighting game? Well, thats unusual. I had never gotten around to buying it until the Steam Christmas Sale of 2012. After finishing it, I decided that I should share my opinion of the game with you.

REVIEW:
The first thing that makes Zeno Clash stand out is the unique artistic style of its visuals. I dont know what ACE Team (the developers of the game) were smoking when they made this, but the game sure does look really trippy. Remember the Shivering Isles expansion for The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion? Giant yellow mushrooms, rooms turning into butterflies - that sort of stuff. Well, if you took that and multiplied it by crazy times five then youd get Zeno Clash, and this is one of its strongest points.

Everything from the creature design to NPCs, weapons and environments looks fantastical. Most of the enemies you will fight are hybrids of different animals, like chickens, pigs, fish, elephants and so on, but with human features applied to their appearance. Its a really interesting world that they made for this game, full of vibrant colours, funky shapes and imaginative designs. These great visuals are used to create moments of baffling folly or enchanting beauty, and neither of these ever disappoints.

Zeno Clashs plot is just as strange as its graphics. The story is set in a fantasy realm called Zenozoik. As the player, you take on the role of Ghat - a man who wakes up after triggering an explosion that kills Father-Mother, a seemingly hermaphroditic being and Ghats supposed parent. Ghat belonged to Father-Mothers large and powerful family of offspring until discovering a dark secret and attacking his parent in result. Consequently, Ghat is banished from the family and forced to flee from his numerous revengeful siblings. On this journey he is accompanied by Deadra, a female companion who attempts to save him from apathetic madness and I wont spoil any more than that.

This story, as well as the world that it takes place in, might not and most probably will not make any sense to you when you start playing the game. The basics of the plot are simple enough, but all the little details beyond the outline seem nonsensical. However, this is all part of the games abstract themes, and the best forms of abstract art dont explain everything, thus leaving much to be explained by the viewers imagination and their own interpretation of whats what. If you look deeper into some of this narratives aspects - such as: the names of various characters, their appearance, the dialogue between them, the atmosphere of each environment and so on - then you might find some profound meanings and messages behind it all. If not, then at least the characters are likeable and fascinating.

As I mentioned earlier, Zeno Clash is one of the very few games out there that are considered first-person fighting games. Its been tried before, but it rarely worked because melee combat usually looks and feels very clumsy from this perspective. Zeno Clash actually manages to create something fairly original, innovative and most importantly it works! It does get a bit clunky at times, as the camera occasionally turns in an uncomfortable direction when punching a targeted enemy.

At first, the gameplay itself consists of mostly hand-to-hand combat. A diverse array of punch, kick, elbow and knee attacks (with various levels of speed and power) can be used to knock out hostiles. The lock-on option can be used to ensure that all of your strikes land on the chosen opponent. Later on in the game, a selection of weapons appears - some very creative designs of ranged armaments and a few simpler, bludgeoning tools can be used to defeat heavier foes. Its not perfect, but still highly entertaining with engaging action, challenging enemies and brutally satisfying combat. The level progression is linear, with some cutscenes in between segments of gameplay - which is a shame since it would have been a blast to explore Zenozoik in an open world environment.

The satisfaction in combat is achieved through not only well-animated characters, but also outstanding sound effects that make each punch feel impactful. The quality of the audio is equally awesome in the music, with strange tunes of many different types to match Zenozoiks oddness. The voice acting of each character is good, but nothing exceptional and there are no standout performances. The lines could have been spoken with more emotion, but instead many of the actors sound a bit confused. This is unexpected and unusual, which suits the rest of the games tone. Other less-humanoid creatures make bizarrely beastly sounds.

Now lets summarize what Zeno Clash is like:

GAMEPLAY - 8.5/10 (Great)
Its an interesting mix of melee and ranged combat, as well as being one of the very few first-person fighting games to work so well.

STABILITY - 8/10 (Impressive)
Apart from occasional freezes in menus with music glitches and other bugs present in most Source engine games, Zeno Clash is very playable.

STORY - 7.5/10 (Good)
Its well-written and makes enough sense to be understandable, but a lot has to be interpreted and sometimes perhaps its a bit too much.

GRAPHICS - 10/10 (Marvellous)
Technologically decent graphics, the human minds creative imagination and the work of a talented team of developers form something truly extraordinary.

SOUND - 8.5/10 (Great)
Sound effects add satisfying impact to combat, voice acting suits the narrative and the soundtrack is packed full of fittingly strange music.

LONGEVITY - 4/10 (Unsatisfactory)
Consider the facts: this game normally costs  6.99, but the singleplayer is under 4 hours long and there is no multiplayer some games are meant to be short, but considering the price, this is unfair. You could wait until another sale and buy it for  0.69 like I did (then its more than worth it), but that doesnt change the fact that the original price is off-putting.

When small and new developers from different places around the world come up with fresh, new and ingenious ideas like Zeno Clash, I grow more & more interested in the indie scene. Not bound by an oppressive publisher, ACE Team has managed to create something great. Not everyone may like this game, but its certainly something different and, for me, Zeno Clash is something special now if only it cost a bit less or was a bit longer. With news of a sequel coming sometime in 2013, lets hope this promising series gets the bigger budget that it deserves and reaches an even higher standard of quality.

OVERALL RATING 7.5/10 (Good)

If you liked this review, please give it a thumbs-up at: http://uk.gamespot.com/zeno-clash/user-reviews/811635/

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When I played the Halo 4 campaign I had that feeling. Halo 4 has changed drastically from the Halo I grew up with. The campaign is eerily reminiscent of Call of Duty. The first in game breaks in which Master Chief pushes a button seem out of place. In a way its glorifying a lackluster action that can be overlooked. The sole purpose of the first person actions is to make it more cinematic and Call of Duty-like.

The Call of Duty theme comes up time and time again. Halo 4 sports the same interactive gameplay elements that Call of Duty made popular. Remember climbing the glacier in Modern Warfare 2? Youll see those elements here. While its not bad, it just doesnt feel like Halo. I feel like Im playing a Call of Duty spinoff. This feeling is worsened by a change in the Needler inflicts damage. Every time a needle hits you, there is virtually no damage inflicted. The damage is only inflicted after the needles explode. While this seems trivial, it drastically impacts gameplay. I dont always realize when Im getting shot with a Needler and die seemingly randomly.

The story behind Halo 4 would have had me in tears had my roommate not been breaking my immersion every three seconds. I think it might very well be the most emotional game Ive ever played, at least the most emotional Halo game. Cortana has gone rampant, and the interaction between Master Chief and Cortana is incredibly well done. My only gripe is that it was too short. I miss Halo 2s long campaign. I completed Halo 4 in only about six hours. There was so much missed potential between Chief and Cortana due to the campaigns brevity. I would have loved to see their interactions play out for a longer period of time before the credits role. 

The story also ties in perfectly to the Forward Unto Dawn short films. The new characters have unique personalities, although Master Chief doesnt have long lasting relationships akin to his relationship with the Arbiter or Johnson. The new faces fade as soon as they come. One of the most interesting characters is a female O.D.S.T. although she only appears in two or three scenes. Shes the perfect candidate for a series long partner. The story however is a solemn tale of the struggles between two close friends, so I can understand why they didnt introduce that many new characters. The narrative focuses beautifully on Cortana and Chief.

While it feels a lot more like Call of Duty than Halo, Halo 4 is still not to be missed for its narrative alone.

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            Kinect remains overall unappealing.  The ability to turn your Xbox One on and off via a voice command is a nifty feat, but the 1080 camera, improved motion capture, etc., are all wasted on me.  Its like theyre milking a one-trick pony.  In all fairness, I feel the same way about Sonys Move.  I cant help that Im an old-fart gamer!

            Microsofts Xbox luster is gone from my eyes.  They seemed to focus more on what products to show via their new system than they were of the games one could play.  They mentioned a number in the teens of exclusive titles, apparently within the next year, but instead showed two of the games and spent the rest of the game trailers on multi-platform releases.  Granted, they did look very nice.

            On paper, the PS4 and XBO (XB1?) are identical.  The major differences between the two lay in the companies differing focus which gives Sony an advantage on the gaming side, and thats the point of the systems.  Sonys presentation showed us more of what gamers can do with the powerful system.  Microsofts every-man appeal has its draws, and Steven Spielberg, but I was turned off by the fact that it seemed like they were trying to say the gamer is not their main target.

            Forza looks awesome.  The controller looks cool, and theres no denying that the number of exclusives coming in the next year is impressive.  A lot of the new bells and whistles seem to over complicate the system and could threaten to ruin the entire experience.  But dont take an old gamers word for it.  Im just looking forward to spooning the PS4 controller.

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When Microsoft revealed the 21^st of May as their showcase for the future of the entertainment medium I was excited by the prospect. Having been disappointed by Sony's offerings of sequels and pseudo Frankenstein controllers, I was hoping MS would offer something more...much more. Well we all saw the console which is more than what Sony did, however upon feasting it's rather bland 1980's vhs player styled design should they have showed it at all? A small part of me thought it was deliberate in an attempt to make the console look similar to those of old, those from my generation. Maybe they wanted to grab the attention of the Space Invaders elite?

If that was the intention then they failed as the new Xbox One (it's now official name) looked more akin to a set top box than a console with the same features enjoyed by that said medium. As I sit here a cool breeze gusting through the balcony doors and a refreshing Orange juice greets my lips I wonder if this is the future of gaming? The Xbox One reveal seemed nothing more than MS wanting to get into a territory already frequented by other companies who quite frankly have much more experience with the subject matter. Has MS decided to put the other entertainment mediums first and games second? Such a prospect is so bizzarre and non coherent I dread to think it.

Then there is the rather more alarming concern of used game fee's and one user per console mentality. Do MS honestly expect a married couple to both buy the same version of the same game so both can enjoy it on the same console? In another world it would be comedy gold the kind of content that Laurel and Hardy would use to captivate audiences worldwide. The worrying feeling however is that this situation is no joke and it's a nightmare that we will never awake from. No matter how one looks at it the reveal raised more questions than eyebrows and alerted the gaming world to some very serious questions.

Please leave your thoughts on comments on the issue here and at my youtube channel found here: www.youtube.com/dragonps

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Very funny, but sadly so close to the truth as to be indiscernable. I have never seen a media launch come off quite so badly. One has to wonder if MS even has a focus group that studys gamers. It's almost like they're trying to emulate Nintendo's Wii success by purposefully marketing this to people who do not game. For someone like me, a former Xbox and 360 owner who turned back fully to Sony after becoming totally disillusioned with the 360 it's actually a little painful to watch.

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And we got specs of both consoles.So compare them :

http://madassgamers.com/blog/full-comparison-ps4-vs-xbox-720/

Btw XboxOne reveal - Dissapointing... TV TV TV TV TV TV TV TV oh i forgot to mention TV!

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^This is Microsoft!

Seriously what is wrong with them? You have to report to them once a day to be able to play games , you can't play used games unless you pay a fee for the game you have ALREADY BOUGHT , you can't upgrade your hard drive and 70% of their presentation was about TV and how you don't have to work hard to click the buttons on your controller but you can instead use the ability of human speech! I hate when things are so mainstream and even though i love Sony I'm scared that it wont be long until Sony starts doing things like that.   Instead of embracing their customers MS treats them like terrorists. And not to mention that freakin Eye of Mordor that is the Kinect!! It's completely ridiculous , even a hardcore MS fanboy can see that.

The gaming world is under attack!

What do you guys think?

~Rein

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The Xbox One. Here's what I've learned:

1. It's Always Watching You

Oh Kinect. Why would I ever want to turn you off? You're my best friend. You're my only friend -- after you sent that one guy adrift into the voids of space. I trust you are keeping me safe and watching over my oxygen supply while I sleep.

2. Using Bing to find pictures of "Xbox One" gives you pictures of Xbox (2001)

Really I couldn't think of a more perfect name for the console. It harkens back to older days when Microsoft was in their prime. When men mention the name Xbox One it will cause resentment to fester in the hearts of those who were not able to play the original. Microsoft is using psychological warfare here. It's a great name and typing it into Bing gives you images of a console that you could have had at sometime in the past if only you weren't so foolish. Don't make the same mistake twice.

3. XOne has a lot of TV and Sports

As a college student TV is a must. If I'm not up to date on my series knowledge well I'm just a plain loser. How is Breaking Bad going to end? How different will Game of Thrones be from the books -- which everyone started the series on the second one because why bother reading the first one after watching the first season, am I right? -- this season. How will Twin Peaks end? Is Lucy going to appear on BoardWalk Empire again? How will I know this if I don't have cable, netflix, or a internet connection?

What about my favorite Sports game pastimes? What will I do if I don't find out if the Miami Heat went to the World Series? How do I know where Wimbledon takes place this year? Did my favorite NHL team make it to the Superbowl this year?

I now have all the answers I need thanks to Xbox One. 

 

[ Watch Video ]

4. It's not Always On-line

Why were you people worrying so much? Jeeze. Conformation right here: XOne isn't Always Online. It's just a requirement to use the console. Duh! #DealWithIt.

5. Call of Duty has advance fish physics

So the new engine now allows for fish to swim away as you come near them among other improvements including and possibly limited to:

• Dogs with Tattoos and Scars
• Sliding
• Leaning out from cover
• Jumping over walls

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They bombed it badly with this console in my opinion. They could have shown off that the console was not a constant online, used games hating, with no forced Kinect and core gamer embracing console. It failed in all of these aspects. 

Now before i bash the console it has some upsides. It has 8 ram DDR 3. It also has a slick new controller.

The controller is something i was worried about, but it looks really slick and great. 

The processor also has the ability to switch between games, movies, tv and music. This is something that is really good feature for those that want to use it. 

Forza 5 was the real shining star of this show. With great graphics, It has really good lighting and just looks awesome. This will be a system seller. This is the only reason i am actually considering getting an Xbox One

Now to the really bad part. The used games fee is just flat out stupid and is an insult to gamers, it is actually worse than the Online Pass fee. Making everyone even force to be online to register the game is also as insulting to anyone. Requiring to be online at least once a day or to be online to register a new game. Also Kinect being forced to be used with the Xbox One and not even working without it is also flat out insulting. 

The conference itself was sorely lacking in anything appealing for core gamers. Only appealing with movies, tv and music apps. There was nothing that really appealed to anyone that have been a part of the core crowd. 

There is also no backward compablity despite the fact that the possibility is there for it. I get it with the Cell Processor and PS4. But why shouldn't it be possible to do it with Xbox One`?

I will not get this console, and i will go with Wii U and PS4

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So the new Xbox was finally revealed; what were my impressions? Personally Im on the fence; there were a fair amount of announcements, some of which I expected, some that were unknown. Overall the conference was a mixed bag and was rather short when compared with its competitors; of course E3 is just around the corner and Microsoft will likely fill their conference to burst with announcements, hoping to soar above Sony in terms of building anticipation for their system. In short here are my personal thoughts on the high points, the concerns and bits Im unsure about.

The High Points 

          Showing the system

I take back what I said about Sony not showing the PS4 hardware being beneficial; Microsoft did better in this regard in that they had the technical specs but they also had an actual piece of hardware to back up what they were saying. This is sure to raise faith in the system from the offset and proves that Microsoft has a proper prototype in place and ready rather than making it seem that they may still be working on the console. The technical specs are also no slouch either, falling into the same range as the PS4; though the 802.11n wireless functionality paired with Xbox Live could give Microsoft the edge in terms of online play. Showing the console straight away also proves that the system is ready for E3, meaning that the press will be able to test the system and gage their reactions more quickly. 

          Improved features and accessories

Microsoft is making subtle but worthwhile improvements to the system as a whole with the user interface receiving an upgrade. But the main focus was the new Kinect which (despite my insistence that Microsoft abandon the device completely) looks set to make improvements in leaps and bounds on the inaccuracies of the original, proving that it may still have a place in our console gaming lives. With these improvements in place, Microsoft is sure to build on top of them at E3, setting the Xbox One as a large update over its predecessor.

          A professional press conference with no embarrassments

After some truly embarrassing press conferences riddled with child actors and Kinect demonstrations Microsoft presented the event with no sort of hiccups or humiliation whatsoever. This allowed me personally to take them a lot more seriously this time around and for the hard-core crowd it may boost anticipation to know that Microsoft is not entirely focused on transforming its system into a family focused console right away.

The Concerns

          Too much focus on sports in general

Indeed American audiences love their sports, be it watching them or playing them; Microsoft will certainly satisfy this market but unfortunately their focus seemed far too biased towards this aspect of the system. This is what I was thinking through a sizeable portion of the conference while watching the live stream

Microsoft: Ok so we have a partnership with EA to release bigger and better sports games for the Xbox One

Me: Ok youve switched companies now lets see some of the new games

Microsoft: Were also partnering with NFL to bring you the best sporting experiences only on Xbox One

Me: Uh Im not really a huge fan of watching or playing sports games like many people in America are Can we see the games now please?

Microsoft is looking to satisfy its fan base stronghold in the US which they will undoubtedly succeed at doing, but for the rest of us in countries like the UK, Europe, Japan (if they plan to release there!) and Australia they will end up alienating us as consumers if they focus heavily on this sort of thing. If Microsoft is continuing to focus on making the Xbox the number one living room machine then they need to make sure that they have plenty of applications and features to satisfy a worldwide audience, not just their home turf.

          Recycling of franchises and not enough talk of new ones

As mentioned in my previous blog Microsoft needs new innovative franchises to win people including myself over but unfortunately they didnt talk about these enough to raise my anticipation. They said about Eight New Franchises but where are they? We only saw Quantum Break and that game did seem slightly similar to what Sony has pushed with Heavy Rain and Beyond Two Souls. Im all for new franchises on Xbox One of course but wheres the innovation in the gameplay? I couldnt see any of it and rather than focus on these new franchises we had Forza 5 being shown instead; at that point I was wondering if Gears of War and Halo were about to make appearances too, slightly damaging my hopes for the system. If Microsoft had focused on new experiences that could not be found anywhere else then people, even those not so fond of Microsoft may have stopped and taken note at the event.

          Call of Duty: Ghosts

Another year, another Call of Duty as many have come to say about the series. Infinity Ward developers claim that they are innovating like never before for the series but to me it seemed like Ghosts was bringing the almighty FPS series up to speed with its competitors. We were shown better technical presentation and further animations (To keep up with Battlefield and Crysis), dynamic multiplayer maps (To up the ante on what shooters like Crysis 3 have done with their maps) and character customisation (Has just been expanded from previous Call of Duty games). Even with everything Microsoft and IW said and their promises to redefine the series I still think they need to do so much more to win me back to the series again in terms of gameplay and design. More details will likely be shown at E3 in a few weeks which could change my mind.  

Bits Im unsure about

          The Name

Going from Xbox, to Xbox 360 to Xbox One seems like a rather radical change to me. The word One in particular raises many questions; it likely reflects the one place for all entertainment vibe that Microsoft is focusing on. On the other hand it could be considered by some as perhaps a cocky jab at its competitors; Microsoft could be saying were the number one place for all entertainment this console generation so jump on board quickly. Regardless a consoles name matters little and Microsoft has clearly put across what the system can do in the reveal event.

          Xbox Live

Microsoft only briefly mentioned Xbox Live at the conference, talking about updated achievements, and technical details which left me scratching my head as to what they plan to do with the service; it would have made sense to officially quell all the always online rumours so that consumers wont have as many doubts about the system but unfortunately well have to wait to E3 to find the answers.

Overall Microsoft did OK for an initial reveal; but not quite enough to win me over. The conference itself was carried out well enough, but it was rather short, and fairly unbalanced. Of course the Xbox One still has E3 and the coming months to truly prove itself in this console generation; by then well all know the full extent of what the system is capable of. What were your own thoughts on the system? Did Microsoft deliver? Are you decided on Xbox One yet?

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Microsoft needed a new console. The 360 may have been selling well, but not because of Microsoft. Third-party devs were the ones keeping people glued to their 360's. It was games like Dishonored, Far Cry 3, and Borderlands 2 that made the 360 a continued success throughout 2012. First-party titles were few in number, and while Halo 4 was a big success, it was the only major release from Microsoft last year that couldn't be found on another platform.

Microsoft needed to one-up Sony by offering a steady stream of games that you simply couldn't find on Playstation. This morning, Microsoft dropped the curtain on their 360 successor. It was a revelation not only of the hardware, but of Microsoft's vision for the gaming future...

...or should I say, lack thereof.

The Xbox One reveal was saturated with meaningless and culturally exploitative information catering to the most mainstream of mainstream video game player. It was bad.

Promoted as the unifier between TV, music, movies, social media and games, the Xbox One was Microsoft's way to capitalize on every entertainment format available right now, all condensing it into a package that fits perfectly in the living room. It remains resonant, a grandiose defragmentation of media that can deliver content from multiple fronts while simplifying the interface into a box reminiscent of a modern DVR. It's nothing too sensational and from that perspective, it works. But this wasn't a showing for those who watch Star Trek or The Price is Right religiously. Xbox is a name synonymous with video games, but Microsoft swept that concept far under the rug.

One problem that I discovered early on is that the interface looks as clumsy as Kinect did years ago. Microsoft wants people to like Kinect, going so far as to bundling the Kinect 2.0 with the Xbox One console. It's a standard feature now, but that doesn't mean it works. With the motion control fad dying, it's concerning seeing Microsoft continue to push Kinect. Even switching channels looks wonky and unappealing; why not just use the remote control like we've been doing for decades now? It's something out a sci-fi movie like Minority Report, only mixed with interpretive dance.

But Microsoft's presentation's biggest blunder was the sheer alienation of the gamer culture. Aside from three major game announcements (excluding the EA Sports lineup), the entire presentation was about the console's place as an entertainment system instead of a gaming system. Yes, being able to instantly go from live TV to a game is an interesting technological approach, but it's a novelty and I highly doubt that it'll become as front-and-center as a future game industry standard. Smartglass and Kinect navigation (auxiliary features that very few consumers truly consider to be essential) were promoted far more than they should have.

Even worse was that the games announced were in no way a decision maker. Call of Duty: Ghosts, for all its hair textures and dynamic fish AI, is a Call of Duty game. It's a multi-platform franchise that might see increased sales on an Xbox platform, but it doesn't serve the Xbox market in such a huge way as, say, Halo would. You can get Call of Duty on PS4, and even with the title of "exclusive first on Xbox One", it's not something to get people to buy your console for it specifically.

Yes, you do get Forza and you do get your EA Sports garbage, but the only game that I could say I'm really interested in is Quantum Break, a game developed by Alan Wake dev Remedy. It looks cool, yeah, but with only a brief and cryptic trailer, I couldn't get too excited over it.

Once I heard them start wrapping things up, I couldn't believe what I had heard, or more appropriately, what I didn't hear. For a console line so enamored with promoting deep and expansive video game content, Microsoft demonstrated a vision that only alienated the gaming crowd that praised them so much last generation. I know that we'll see more at E3, but right now, I'm not even excited about Microsoft's showing at E3 this year

But the news trickled out steadily, revealing even more questionable announcements. Mandatory installs, fees to play used games and no way to play 360 or 360 XBLA titles added even more facepalms to an already groan-worthy showing. While other games have been formally announced for the console, many of these are multi-platform like Watch_Dogs, Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag and Destiny. These aren't the ways to gather consumer confidence. Microsoft may think it's innovating, but with each innovation, they're stepping away from the video game world. If anything, the Xbox One is a "bro" or "Chad" console, a stereotypical game console that you'll see in movies and TV ads with generic shooters and online play without a trace of dev creativity.

At this point, Microsoft hasn't done anything to promote the Xbox One in the right ways. Fears of Microsoft's Draconian restrictions on second-hand games have been realized, their neglect for the smaller development houses has been shown without any doubt, and every negative opinion that I've heard the game journalism crowd say has been met with some form of truth. I do think it will sell, but to the people who don't value those true gaming experiences.

All I can say now is bring on E3. I'm gonna need something to wash this terrible taste out of my mouth.

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