Is your Xbox 360 worth $1 million? For a 21-year-old Yale student, the answer is yes. Jesse Maiman sued US Airways for $1 million after his tricked-out Xbox 360 console disappeared from his checked luggage, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer. Maiman packed the Xbox console--which he says includes a specialized hard drive worth $1,000--in his suitcase for a December 17 flight between New Haven and Cincinnati. At baggage claim in Cincinnati, however, the bag was there, but the console was nowhere to be found.

via pcmag.com

Sometimes an Xbox Live Arcade title comes out of nowhere, with no advanced notice, no first-look preview showings and no events to demonstrate it. In some cases, it’s a pleasant surprise, such as when Peggle was announced as coming this week. However, Peggle’s release counterpart this week, Square Enix’s Crystal Defenders, represents the other side of the coin. It hit XBLA this week with few details in advance, though its tie-in with the Final Fantasy series makes it an immediate buy for some gamers.

via reviews.teamxbox.com

It's doesn't take too long to fly from New Haven to Cincinnati. But in that short time, student Jesse Maiman's precious, beautiful, indispensable Xbox disappeared from his luggage. This was no ordinary Xbox. It had a very specialized hard drive and components. Which Mr. Maiman believes are worth $1000. So you might be wondering why Mr. Maiman is suing US Airways for $1million. Actually, you're probably not wondering. You already know that the loss of an Xbox is akin to losing one's child, one's lover and a couple of vital organs all in one devastating moment.

via news.cnet.com

Eidos Interactive today announced the release of the second downloadable content pack for Tomb Raider: Underworld for Xbox 360. Exclusive to Xbox Live, Tomb Raider: Underworld – Lara’s Shadow allows gamers to experience Lara’s universe from an entirely new perspective: that of the Doppelganger. With faster movement, shadow powers and a melee attack that decimates enemies with devastating accuracy and speed, the Doppelganger will open up all new gameplay mechanics, areas and puzzles which wouldn’t be possible while playing as Lara Croft.

via gamersdailynews.com

Digital distribution is big business for this generation of consoles, and the smaller, cheaper games are often compelling buys for consumers. Sony and Microsoft have two very different strategies for downloadable games however, with Sony offering full titles such as Burnout Paradise on the PlayStation Network, and Microsoft sticking to smaller, more bite-sized games. That strategy may be changing for Microsoft, with the size limit for games becoming relaxed, if not going away altogether. The newest evidence? The Watchmen game was over 1.2GB in size, making it the largest Xbox Live title yet.

via arstechnica.com

Xbox Live’s Director of programming Larry Hyrb, more commonly known as Major Nelson, announced the past week’s most played Xbox Live games today via his official blog. Halo 3 fragged its way back to the top, giving Call of Duty: World at War, the backsmack dropping it to number two for the week, in the Xbox 360 category. The influx of Halo activity can most likey be attributed to the March 3rd release of Halo Wars, with the LE containing the exclusive Mythic Map Pack

via blastmagazine.com

Microsoft Corp., the world's largest software maker, should pay a New York company $90 million for using its inventions in the Xbox video-game system, a lawyer told a federal jury yesterday. PalTalk Holdings Inc. says Halo games and the Xbox console on which they are played infringe two patents for inventions developed by MPath Interactive Inc. PalTalk bought the patents for less than $200,000, Microsoft lawyer David Pritikin said.
The trial in Marshall, Texas, centers on technology for ways to control interactive applications over multiple computers.

via boston.com

Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection for Xbox 360 has been a trip. Oh Sega Genesis. How long as it been? It feels like the first time I laid eyes on you in 1989 was yesterday. Hard to believe that this November will be the the 20th anniversary of the launch of the Sega Genesis in North America. Most gamers of my generation have a special place in their heart for the 16-bit Sega Genesis/Megadrive video game system.

via blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com

Fallout 3 for the Xbox 360 just got a face lift. A currently available update provides a noticeable graphics boost that adds dynamic specular lighting, according to Digital Foundry. Fallout 3 for the Xbox 360 just got a face lift. A currently available update provides a noticeable graphics boost that adds dynamic specular lighting, according to Digital Foundry.

via blog.mlive.com

Capcom and its line up of games would not have gotten the popularity they now enjoy in the West if the company had not taken the decision to develop titles for the Microsoft made Xbox 360 gaming console. The statement was made by Keiji Inafune, one of the most important developers working for Capcom. Inafune, who has created successes like Mega Man and Dead Rising, said that “I think I can only get away with saying this now, but I really thought that the using the Xbox was [the] only way to break into overseas markets.

via news.softpedia.com

The culture of videogaming and that of comics are quite intertwined. Of course, there are videogames based on comic books, but publishers, like Electronic Arts with last year's Dead Space, have begun to see limited runs of comic books as an efficient means of promoting upcoming videogames. Now, one retailer is taking one step further, as it is giving out tickets for the upcoming Watchmen with sales of Xbox Live Gold accounts. Can the box office success of the Watchmen movie be tied to that of multiplayer gaming through Xbox Live Gold?

via news.softpedia.com

The game doesn't ship until April 7, but a free demo for The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena is now available for download on the Xbox Live Marketplace. The official announcement of the demo's release is a mess of marketing speak, so I'll just let you read the description for yourself: I'm pretty sure that translates to "the demo contains one level from the game," but feel free to draw your own conclusions.

via blog.wired.com

If you want to like Ninja Blade, you had better appreciate quick-time events. Microsoft sent us an early preview code so we could peek at the demo, and after playing through it I'm a little gobsmacked. Without timing things, I can't say for sure that I spent more time watching cinemas and "playing" quick-time events, but I'm willing to go out on a limb and say it was pretty close. This looks and feels much like Ninja Gaiden, down to the different weapon choices and glowing orbs collected from fallen enemies.

via arstechnica.com

n early 2006, several months after it launched the Xbox 360, Microsoft ceased manufacturing the original Xbox. Today, the company pulled the plug on its first console entirely. The company has officially ended out-of-warranty support for the original Xbox, some eight and a half years after Bill Gates handed out the first device. "On March 2, 2009, service repairs for Original Xbox video game systems for which the Warranty has expired will no longer be available.

via news.zdnet.com

Grand Theft Auto IV has broken more records throughout it's release than any other video game in history, and now it has another one to put under it's belt. The Lost and Damned, the first ever DLC for Grand Theft Auto IV, exclusive to Xbox 360, has beaten all previous DLC that have debuted on Xbox LIVE, eclipsing all of them in its first-day sales revenue. The DLC is also relatively more expensive compared to the past titles that have held the record. The Lost and Damned has also become the most reviewed Xbox LIVE download ever.

via rockstarwatch.net