Rumors on the next generation Xbox have been circulating around the internet like a wildfire out of control. Most people are calling the next Xbox, the Xbox 720, (how clever) and the rumors about what it can do are speculation at this point. Fortunately for us, that doesn’t mean we can’t break it down here at GameZone and dream about what features the Xbox 720 should offer.

Disc Based or Streaming/Downloadable Games?

Although eventually, discs will probably be gone forever, replaced by downloads and streaming, the Xbox 720 should still be disc based at launch. That being said, Microsoft has to let go of the HD-DVD/Blu Ray debacle that ended with Blu Ray being touted as the successor to the DVD and HD-DVDs hitting the clearance bin to never be spoken of again.

Thats’ right. Microsoft has to embrace Blu-Ray on the Xbox 720. There should be no more living in the past. Microsoft starts thinking into the future and how to continue to compete with Sony’s consoles. Embracing Blu-Ray would, in one step, bring the Xbox brand into the next-gen.

To Be Small or Not to Be?

Consoles seem to have a past of being launched as big and gaudy and then as the years and technology allow it, the slim and sleek younger versions become available. This time, however, Microsoft needs to flip the switch.

Even with upgraded hardware to the 720, Microsoft will find a way for the Xbox 720 to be as small or a little bit smaller than the slim Xbox 360 available now. Will it be as big of a deal as laptops and netbooks/tablets? No, but it should offer a smaller model right out of the launching gate.

Completely Gesture Controlled?

Microsoft has made it clear that their focus on Kinect is far from over; it is actually just beginning, and it could be fun to watch the Kinect grow into a stand alone controller. With a few years in between Kinect’s release and the Xbox 720, we foresee Microsoft  continuing to pursue and make the Kinect as much of a controller as the physical controller you’ve used for years. While constantly bettering the Kinect to work with gesture controls, once the Xbox 720 comes out, it will be an amazing experience and one where you won’t need a physical controller to navigate Xbox Live, game menus and many stand alone games.

On the other hand, although the perfect integration with Kinect works well, it still doesn’t replace the precision players have with a physical controller. So, the physical controller remains the default controller for the hardcore.

Bigger Hard Drives!!!

Of course, throughout the course of the Xbox 360′s lifespan, the hard drives have gotten bigger and bigger. This time, however, we want to see the Xbox 720 go big or go home. Is it so far-fetched to want a 1TB hard drive on the next-gen console? We are going all out on this one.

Think about all the DLC and downloadable games you could have on a hard drive like that in your console. Not only that, but it’d be a smooth transition to streaming/downloadable games if Microsoft decided to do without discs.

.

Completely Revamped Xbox Live

Right out of the gate, Xbox Live is updated wholeheartedly with new menus, options and of course, even more Kinect integration. Now, not only will people be able to voice chat, video integration should be implemented. That way we can see exactly how our friends react when we sticky frag them right in the face in the next big Halo.

Get With The Times!

The Xbox 720 is rumored to have a six-core CPU and a dual GPU. To be next generation, it must have the best that technology has to offer at the time. Right now, this is some of the best technology and is a must have in the next-gen Xbox.

However, with this technology, it’d also be nice to see an amazing cooling system developed to offset the heat that the high-powered hardware will produce. As for the Xbox 360, it has been a recurring problem with the red rings of death and it’d be nice to sit back and relax and not have to worry about the Xbox 720 overheating and essentially dying on us time and time again.

What do you guys want to see out of the fabled next-generation Xbox?

The release of Microsoft’s hotly anticipated Xbox 360 dashboard update earlier this month is causing a bit of a problem for some Xbox Live members: They still can’t get their consoles online.

Microsoft recently rolled out a big dashboard update to the Xbox 360 — in addition to new voice and gesture controls, Bing search, television and social options — but a glitch is keeping some consoles offline by not being able to sign into their Xbox Live profiles.

“We have recently identified an Xbox Live profile data error that results in Error Code ’801540B7′ for a small number of Xbox Live members,” an Xbox spokesperson told Joystiq. “The error instructs users to attempt to re-download their Xbox Live profile and directs them to customer service support for further assistance. We apologize for the inconvenience this has caused to our loyal Xbox Live members and are working to resolve the issue as soon as possible.”

This means that Xbox Live members are currently stripped of accessing multi-player games and buying new content through the service.

The latest setback comes after a bumpy debut for Microsoft’s update. The system’s video player has been experiencing problems with its color levels, with some shots looking washed out.

The update was also initially delayed — it was supposed to go live around 10 a.m. EST on Dec. 6 and as of 3 p.m. that day, the update had still not been offered. It finally made its debut around 6:30 p.m. that night, but many still reported problems signing on to Xbox Live.

Xbox said it is working on fixing the issue as soon as possible.

• 
  
  

  How to Set Up a Google+ Brand Page

• 
  
  

  Tech the Halls: 12 Christmas Decorations for Geeks [PICS]

• 
  
  

  5 Free iPhone Apps for Counting Down to Christmas

• 
  
  

  Black Friday: Twitter Affirms Your Decision to Stay Home [PICS]

• 
  
  

  10 Tips and Tricks for Better Google+ Brand Pages

• 
  
  

  Facebook Timeline: 10 Fresh Designs for Creative Inspiration [PICS]

Comment
Share

Update: Bowling has released the first screenshot of the content coming in January on Twitter. What you see above is the first look at a new level named Park.

Original Story: The first batch of downloadable content for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 will be available in about a month’s time, but only for Call of Duty Elite subscribers on Xbox 360 at first.

Microsoft’s exclusivity deal on Call of Duty DLC continues and will allow Elite subscribers on Xbox Live to be the very first ones to receive the new downloadable content. Once that period is up, PlayStation 3 owners are then likely to get their hands on it. Although it’s still scheduled for release on PC, Call of Duty Elite remains unavailable on the platform as of this time, meaning PC gamers will have no choice but to play the waiting game.

What the content coming in January actually is, at this point, we don’t know. A video released to Elite subscribers on the Elite website today mentions the release date of January 24 as the start of the DLC season. Infinity Ward creative strategist Robert Bowling talks about releasing more than just maps, which is all we’ve gotten in the past — we’ll also see Spec Ops missions and other things. That’s not to say the initial release on January 24 will contain all of this, but that’s what we can expect to see over the next nine months or so.

Another thing that is also unclear at this point is how long of a wait there will be for non-Elite subscribers, a group that represents the majority of players on 360 and PS3, as well as everyone on PC. DLC packs for non-Elite users are expected to be released in a similar form to the $15 ones we’ve been used to seeing with Blacks Ops and Modern Warfare 2, though we’ll have to continue to wait to find out exactly when they will be coming. The matter becomes more confusing now that there is an exclusivity period both for Xbox Live users and Elite users.

Elite subscribers will get all playable downloadable content for free along with the other perks that have been announced like Elite TV access, tournaments with real-life prizes at stake, and additional storage for replay videos.

The Xbox 360 Kinect Star Wars Bundle could finally receive an official release date after a series of delays that started with an announcement in July of this year, but pushed to 2012 because of the Kinect Star Wars game’s availability.

US online retailers have just started to post a February 7, 2012 release date for Kinect Star Wars, a strong indication that the Xbox 360 Kinect Star Wars bundle might get a release date on or around the same period.

Online retailer Amazon still lists the game for a December 31 release, whereas Kmart and Walmart both schedule the Star Wars-themed Kinect bundle for a release date of February 7 of next year.

VideoGameCentral lists the console as backorder with a pre-order ETA of December 30 while Best Buy has it on pre-order but without an estimate arrival time as of this post.

In July, Microsoft unveiled the Xbox 360 Kinect Star Wars Bundle for a retail value of $449.99, but a company representative told UK’s OXM the following month that the game console would not arrive until “beyond holiday 2011.”

According to OXM, the spokesperson said that LucasArts and Microsoft have opted to postpone the Kinect Star Wars to a later date in order to make ascertain its full potential, a move that applied to both the standalone game and the console bundle.

The Kinect Star Wars had weak exhibits at E3 and Gamescom, large gaming events that gave previews on the next big game titles, which could have affected the firms’ assurance for an early release date.

The Xbox 360 Kinect Star Wars Bundle is a limited edition gaming console that comes with a custom R2-D2-themed Xbox 360 Console and C-3PO-themed Xbox 360 Wireless Controller. Image: Microsoft

The recent release of ESRB for Kinect Star Wars, however, gives another hint that the game’s February 7 release is logical.

On the contrary, gaming site Kotaku says the Xbox 360 Kinect Star Wars Bundle will appear on a popular TV show in February, saying, “Rumblings have the console itself hitting stores in April,” which also means Kinect Star Wars will not come out until then.

The Xbox 360 Kinect Star Wars Bundle is at the top of every Star Wars enthusiast’s dream console wish list.

According to Microsoft, the Xbox 360 Kinect Star Wars Bundle will come as a package worth $449.99, including the Kinect Star Wars game, a custom R2-D2-themed Xbox 360 Console with custom sounds, a white Kinect Sensor, a custom C-3PO-themed Xbox 360 Wireless Controller, a 320 GB Hard Drive, an Xbox 360 Wired Headset, a Kinect Adventures game and exclusive downloadable content.