Late Night Consoling

Eurogamer spent some time with Microsoft's Chris Satchell and grilled him for all sorts of definitive answers regarding Xbox 360. The article is cleanly organized into categories and bullet points, so it seems sort of redundant for me to try and summarize it here, but I will distill the most noteworthy parts:

Interface/Functionality:

- Regardless of what you are doing on the console, you can always bring up a friends list and media player.
- 360 can be powered on or off by way of remote controll or wireless controller (what about the wired controller?)
- Certain preferences (such as using the right analog stick for camera control) will be globally applied to games using those features
- "Ring of light" on console indicates which wireless controller is being used. There is also an on-screen right of light that will let you know which of your buddies is being annoying and pressing buttons when he or she shouldn't be.
- Microsoft is hoping for cross-platform development, with Xbox users playing against Windows users at some point "in the future." (didn't this already happen with Dreamcast?)
- Games will award you Gamerscore points for achieving certain goals, such as beating levels or getting a high score.

Xbox Live:

- The process to transfer your existing Live account begins as soon as you connect your console. There was no word on whether you can continue to use the account on your old Xbox to play games that haven't been made 360-compatible yet.
- There is an Ebay-like reputation system over Live in general (presumably similar to Halo 2's current system).
- There will be various MSN Zones on Live, including but not limited to casual, pro, family, and underground. Apparently "anything goes" in underground. I entertain visions of all the racist homophobic twelve year olds just staying there, but sadly it's probably not to be.

Multimedia:

- DVDs will play in progressive scan and won't require a separate remote like with Xbox.
- Jeff Minter's wacky audio visualization thing will accept input from all controllers.
- You can access content from connected devices like iPods, laptops, PSPs, etc.

Peripherals:

- Keyboards plugged in via USB cannot function as a controller for games but can be used to input text.
- The Media Remote will only be included with the premium package until the initial batch runs out, then it must be purchased separately.
- RGB video output cables will only be sold separately regardless of which console package you buy. Presumably they are referring to the European SCART standard.

IGN is reporting, as some previously speculated, that Xbox 360 will be released on Friday, November 25, the day after Thanksgiving. The site also claims that ship dates for launch titles have been set for Monday, November 22. However, November 22 is a Tuesday, so IGN is mixed up either on the day or the date. Games tend to come out on Tuesday, so the 22nd is probably correct. In any case, the date seems slightly last minute in terms of the holiday season for such a big-ticket item, but it's definitely believable.

I've mentioned this several times in the past week or thereabouts, so it shouldn't come as much surprise. Especially if you live in Europe or Oceana. But here it is again: the Sony PSP has been released in those regions. Maybe games will come out now!

It is with a heavy heart I must admit that Keita Takahashi, designer of Katamari Damacy and man of my dreams, is not actually developing a game that brainwashes grandmothers. However, he, along with several other game designers, took part in a game design competition at Game Developers' Conference Europe in which the prompt was "What do Grannies like?" Takahashi designed a game that uses a controller that looks and feels like cat, which tricks grandmothers into thinking they can communicate with cats. The cat then tells the grandmother to do things. The game requires the participation of the grandmother's family.

Takahashi won the competition.

Infinium Labs' vaporware very real ware Phantom console is apparently heading to Europe. In true Phantom style, though, there's no information on when this will happen or how much it will cost. For those who don't know, the Phantom is a long-rumored confirmed console which will allow players to access "a broad library of games" online by way of a broadband connection when it is released never at a later date.

Continuing to be awesome, Katamari designer Keita Takahashi delivers another keynote distinctly unlike most game industry keynotes.

JIVE Magazine discusses the Canadian game development scene, known for such studios as Bioware and various Ubisoft dev houses.

Over at GameSpot, the Designer Diary party never stops! This one is about Monolith's Condemned: Criminal Origins (PS3, X360, PC).