Our Spring '07 XBTR Winter WonderLAN finalists and champion!

Winter WonderLAN '07 a huge success!

Despite a couple of early power issues, XBOX Team Rochester's Winter WonderLAN '07 went very well. Many new faces attended the event, and we will have a full recap soon of how everything went. Thanks again to all who participated, and to our event sponsors, the Webster Public Library, MK Computer Solutions, Microsoft Game Studios, and BAWLS Guarana!

BAWLS comes through for XBTR tourney...

A big shout out to BAWLS Guarana for coming through big time for this Saturday's LAN event.

Three large boxes full of BAWLS drinks and gear arrived today and we're looking forward to having it for you at Saturday's event.

For those of you unfamiliar with BAWLS, they are a major promoter of computer gaming and paintball events, and the XBTR team extends a huge thanks to everyone at BAWLS for their sponsorship of this event.

See you all Saturday

XBTR

NO FEES TO BE ACCEPTED AT DOOR! PAYPAL ONLY!

At the venue's request, XBTR WILL NOT be accepting registration fees at the door for Winter WonderLAN '07, as previously stated.

Should you wish to participate in this Saturday's event, please go to the PayPal website and submit your payment in the amount of $15.00 to the team PayPal account using e-mail address xbtr@rochester.rr.com

Again, no payments will be accepted the day of the event, so if you want to play, please submit your PayPal payment asap!

XBTR

CNET.com XBOX360 vs. PS3

The latest info in the console battles by CNET.com. Click HERE

XBTR logo'd t-shirts available soon...

We'll be picking up the first batch of logo'd XBOX Team Rochester apparrel just in time for the event next Saturday. T-shirts will be available in XL and L (for right now) with more sizes to come out later should there be a demand for them. We don't know how much they'll cost, however rumor has it a couple of shirts may be given away during the event on Saturday. I guess you'll need to be there to find out.

Tournament rules for next Saturday

Here are the tournament rules for next Saturday's event. Hope you're all ready!

For the Halo 2 tourney:

HALO 2 Tournament Rules

Eligibility

• Open to all those who register for the WinterWonderLAN event to be held on February 24, 2007.
• Must have signed in at the event by no later than 11AM on February 24, 2007.
• Must be able to provide equipment and Halo 2 software to play or have a memory card with a valid XBOX Silver or Gold profile and arranged to use equipment provided. Both XBOX 360 and classic XBOX players are allowed.

Match Settings

• 2 vs 2 varients with randomized teams picked at the event
• First round will be Team Deathmatch, second round will be Capture the Flag, In the event of a tie the thirds round will be Team Ball.
• ALL GAMES - RULES:
  - Starting Weapon: BATTLE RIFLE
  - Secondary Weapon: NONE
  - Weapons on Map: ALL HUMAN
  - Motion Sensors: OFF
  - Invisibility: OFF
  - Overshield: OFF
  - Banshee: OFF
  - Vehicles: OFF
  - Resolve Ties: OFF
  - Respawn Time: 3 Seconds for Slayer
  - Respawn Time: 5 Seconds for CTF & BALL
  - Suicide Penalty: 10 Seconds
  - Betrayal Penalty: 10 Seconds
  - Weapon Respawn Time: Double Time
  - Time Limit: 20 Minutes
  - First to 50 Kills on Slayer Matches
  - CTF Classic: First to Score 3
  - Team Ball: 5 minutes
  - Maps: Lockout, Beaver Creek, Ivory Tower, Sanctuary, Turf, Warlock & Midship
• Upon winning a match the winning team will progress to the next round until there are two finalist teams. The final round will be a deathmatch shootout with the 4 players from the finalist teams all playing individually.
• The Championship match will be a deathmatch style game and consist of three rounds. The first round will retain all the previous game rules with the exception being that the starting weapon will be pistols, the second round will be sniper rifle and the final round will be energy sword.
• The winner of the Championship match will be awarded their choice of a Microsoft Game Studios retail game title from a selection provided. They will also receive a Gears of War faceplate for their XBOX 360 and a commemorative Gears of War display poster.

Match Rules

• During the event It is up to the players to determine the appropriate time to have their match. If their matches haven't been completed by the time the new tier starts, both players will be disqualified.
• There will absolutely be NO glitching or cheating. Anyone caught glitching or cheating in the tournament will be automatically Dishonorably Discharged. No exceptions.
• In the event of a dispute in regards to the results of a match, there will be a rematch with a mandatory moderator (either Jeremy DeMar, Chris Bolton or Michael Klimchuk) to watch over the match.
• Moderators can also be called to observe normal matches if both parties agree to it.
• Once a the match is concluded, it is up to the winner to report the results to a moderator.

ModeratorGuidelines

• The moderators will be there to observe the match only and not interfere in any way.

For the Gears of War tourney:

Gears of War tournament rules:

Eligibility

• Open to all those who register for the WinterWonderLAN event to be held on February 24, 2007.
• Must have signed in at the event by no later than 11AM on February 24, 2007.
• Must be able to provide equipment and Gears of War software to play or have a memory card with a valid XBOX Silver or Gold profile and arranged to use equipment provided. Match Settings
• The game mode for all the matches throughout the tournament will be Execution
• Each round will last 3 minutes.
• This is a 1v1 tournamentl.
• The bleedout rate for these matches will remain defaulted.
• Each tier will have its own map that all matches in that particular tier will play on. In other words, matches in the first tier will play on Mausoleum, matches in the second will play on Old Bones, etc. (These map choices are for example only and will be announced at the time of the tournament)
• The first player to win 3 rounds over their opponent will be declared the winner of the round.
• All weapons are legal and useable.
• The weapons spawned on the map will be default.
• Upon winning a match the winning player will progress to the next round until there are two finalists. The winner of the final match will be awarded their choice of 2 Microsoft Game Studios retail game titles from a selection provided. They will also receive a Gears of War faceplate for their XBOX 360 and a commemorative Gears of War display poster.

Match Rules

• During the event It is up to the players to determine the appropriate time to have their match. If their matches haven't been completed by the time the new tier starts, both players will be disqualified.
• There will absolutely be NO glitching or cheating. Anyone caught glitching or cheating in the tournament will be automatically Dishonorably Discharged. No exceptions.
• In the event of a dispute in regards to the results of a match, there will be a rematch with a mandatory moderator (either Jeremy DeMar, Chris Bolton or Michael Klimchuk) to watch over the match.
• Moderators can also be called to observe normal matches if both parties agree to it.
• Once a the match is concluded, it is up to the winner to report the results to a moderator.

ModeratorGuidelines

• The observer will be the host for the match between the two players.
• They are there to observe the match only and not interfere in any way.

Microsoft defends 'Crackdown' path to 'Halo 3'

As the latest in a spate of urban action video games, Crackdown was getting little attention until Microsoft's game studio played a trump card--giving buyers early access to the latest version of blockbuster game Halo.
Microsoft in early January announced that retail buyers of Crackdown, due out on February 20 for the Xbox 360 console, would also get a special key allowing them to be on the team that will test Halo 3 this spring.
The marketing strategy set off buzz about Crackdown, which was created by the maker of the original Grand Theft Auto games and, like the blockbuster titles that came before, allows players to cause mayhem in an open virtual world.
Beta test key holders will get to play an unfinished version of the game and help developers work out any glitches in its code before the expected release of Halo 3 at the end of the year, Microsoft said.
The marketing scheme also sparked complaints from some gamers, who in online forums have charged that Microsoft is forcing people to buy a $60 game they may not have otherwise purchased to get prerelease access to one of the most hyped games of 2007.
"(Crackdown) was not highly anticipated," said Garnett Lee, managing editor of video game network 1UP. "Millions might pick (Crackdown) up now."
Microsoft defended its strategy.
"I can understand why people might think that," said Craig Evans, Microsoft's director of marketing. "But the bottom line is that Crackdown is a game that stands on its own."
Evans said more than 600,000 people downloaded a free demo of Crackdown over the Xbox Live online service in just a couple of weeks, demonstrating its worth as a game.
"People are definitely saying, 'I'm getting a free beta with Crackdown,' not the other way around," Evans said. "The Halo 3 beta isn't going to push the game's sales into the millions. Crackdown is going to push its sales into the millions."
Beta tests for console games are usually conducted either behind closed doors or with small, preselected groups of hard-core gamers.
While public betas are common for PC games, the Halo 3 test marks the first time a major console game beta test has been opened to so many players.
Since it will be a downloadable game, the Halo 3 beta will only be available to players registered on Microsoft's Xbox Live online service.
Halo and Halo 2, both for the original Xbox console, have sold a combined 14.7 million units worldwide, according to Microsoft.

Article courtesy news.zdnet.com

XBTR salutes Microsoft Game Studios!

Hats off to the crew at Microsoft Game Studios for coming through on a super selection of prizes for Winter WonderLan '07, which is only a little over a week away!

GhostRiderTGAC (our official prize coordinator) won't give out alot of details, but assures those of you who are true Gears of War fans that you won't be disappointed....

Can't wait to see you all at the event....

XBTR

Quake Wars Confirmed for PS3, 360

Developer id Software has confirmed that the highly anticipated team-based FPS Enemy Territory: Quake Wars is heading to the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

The title, which is being published by Activision, was formerly only confirmed for PC.Mesquite, Tex.-based id will be executive producing the console versions of the game, although Nerve Software will be handling the Xbox 360 version of Quake Wars and Z-Axis will take on PS3 development duties.Dallas-based Nerve Software released Return to Castle Wolfenstein: Tides of War for Xbox and DOOM 3: Resurrection of Evil for PC and Xbox. Foster City, Calif.’s Z-Axis is known for the Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX series and Aggressive Inline.London’ Splash Damage, which contributed to DOOM 3 and Return to Castle Wolfenstein: Game of the Year Edition, is developing the PC version of Quake Wars.The console versions will feature 16-person online multiplayer.Quake Wars, which is set to launch later this year, has players taking the role of the Global Defense Force (GDF) or the Strogg invaders.

Article courtesy topix.net

Michigan State to offer master's in ``serious'' video game design

Associated PressPublished February 12, 2007, 5:34 AM CST

DETROIT -- A new academic program in the works at Michigan State University will allow students to focus on their true passion -- video games. The school will launch a graduate-level program in so-called "serious" video game design in the fall. Rather than encouraging students to design the next generation of Xbox games, the degree program will teach them to design games that help educate, train or present messages in a fun way.

Concepts for the games range from programs that allow emergency workers to practice making real-time lifesaving decisions to games that teach adolescent girls about self-esteem and maintaining a healthy body. Carrier Heeter, the professor leading the program, said video games make for good teaching tools because they can be sequential, teach patterns and offer progressive levels of challenge. "Any video game you play, you're learning," Heeter told The Detroit News for a story published Monday. "It's just with most games, you're learning fiction or inconsequential information." The program will build on the school's undergraduate video game design specialization and its Games for Entertainment and Learning Lab, both of which started in 2005. ------
On the Net: Serious Game Design program: http://www.seriousgames.msu.edu ------ Information from: The Detroit News, http://www.detnews.com
Copyright © 2007, The Associated Press

Chronicles of an Xbox 360 Support Odyssey

Hardware issues and poor customer support are ruining the Xbox 360 experience for some fans. Part 1 of a special five-part series. -->
Tom Mainelli
Tuesday, February 13, 2007 01:00 AM PST

Microsoft has a problem.
I'm not talking about the fact that very few people actually seem excited about their 13 different varieties of Windows Vista. No, I'm talking about the Xbox 360, a product that has become a favorite among the geek set thanks to its fantastic graphics, solid game selection, and excellent online service. The Xbox 360 has earned an enviable lead over its chief rival, the Sony PlayStation 3; and in an often hard-to-impress industry, it has clearly established itself as a success.
So what's the problem? Well, the Xbox 360 hardware seems prone to breaking down. Worse, the customer service designed to help owners when their hardware goes belly-up seems to be breaking down, too.

For the complete story, click HERE

Article courtesy pcworld.com