Hasta La Gadget!

Just yesterday, GameStop confirmed that they stopped accepting pre-orders for the new PlayStation 4 after they received incredible demand for the console. This time around, the Xbox One is seeing its first pre-order halt at Best Buy. The Xbox One Day One Edition, which is the only console on Best Buy’s website, is listed as “Sold Out Online.”

As for in-store pre-orders, a couple of Best Buy locations in the area told us that they were no longer accepting pre-orders in-store either, but they said it’s possible that they’ll open up again if they get more inventory in at some point, although that’s a big “if” at this point.

Gamers still wanting to pre-order an Xbox One can still do so at Amazon, Walmart, Target, or GameStop, although the Day One Edition on Amazon doesn’t appear to be available for pre-order — just the standard edition console, which is a bit odd. Nonetheless, there are still plenty of places to grab an Xbox One for yourself, but we’d recommend to hurry it up since Best Buy is already sold out. More stores are likely to follow soon.

As for Best Buy’s availability of the PlayStation 4, they still have everything up for pre-order, hinting to the possibility that the Xbox One is selling much better than the PS4 at Best Buy, but it’s the other way around at GameStop. Then again, it could entirely be an issue of inventory rather than who had the most pre-orders.

Frankly, we’re pretty excited for both of the consoles’ releases later in the fall, and a fresh new console war has long been overdue. The holiday season will arguably be the biggest that we’ve seen in the last few years thanks to the Xbox One and PlayStation 4, and we have no doubt in believing that these will be big ticket items when Santa comes to town.

VIA: IGN

Xbox One pre-orders sold out at Best Buy is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.

The original Xbox could have been called the 11-X.

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Microsoft’s Xbox One will now include a headset as part of the standard bundle, it’s reported, with the company apparently having another change of heart and opting to include the accessory after gamers voiced their dissatisfaction. The Xbox One Chat Headset had initially been billed as a separate purchase, but according to information from the official Microsoft distributor for the console, ElectronicTheatre reports, will now be thrown in the box too.

News of the changed standard package came from distributor Gem, which apparently notified retailers today. The company’s online listing for the Xbox One has not yet been updated to include the adjustment.

This 180-degree U-turn on Microsoft’s part is the latest change of heart the company has had around the Xbox One. Last month, Microsoft threw out its 24-hour-check-in requirement, after gamers were vocal in their disapproval of the system.

Originally, Microsoft had intended to force Xbox One owners to connect their consoles to the internet at least once every 24hrs, so that games could be checked against an online DRM system. That would allow for Microsoft to track license sales to authorized retailers but, also, enable features like family play, which would have allowed up to ten people to try a single copy of a purchased game.

Microsoft itself is yet to comment on the reported change in bundle, and it’s unclear if the adjustment to the Xbox One package will also apply to the US and other countries where the console is sold, or just to the UK.

The Xbox One Chat Headset is a wired mono headset which connects to the Xbox One’s wireless controller. It has mute and volume controls, as well as supporting digital wideband for better quality audio.

VIA Eurogamer

Xbox One Headset now reportedly bundled as Microsoft U-turns again is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.

It’s no secret that Xbox Live is filled with all sorts of mean people. While many of these young, naive gamers are laughable at times, cyber-bullying has been proven to be a pretty serious matter. In order to get gamers to behave on Xbox Live, Microsoft is looking into a reputation system to add into Xbox Live with the Xbox One.

Speaking with OXM, Microsoft’s senior product manager Mike Lavin said that the company has researched different reputation systems and have learned about what to do and what not to do when it comes to implementing their own system. Lavin says that the company is “trying to take it to the next level” with a reputation system of their own, and it seems pretty straightforward.

Lavin says that “there’ll be very good things that happen to people that just play their games and are good participants. And you’ll start to see some effects if you continue to play bad or, or harass other people en masse. You’ll probably end up starting to play more with other people that are more similar to you,” similar to match-making that we see in a lot of games, but this will be based on skill, as well as on reputation.

Lavin also says that it’s a system that works “over a period of time.” For instance, he says that if gamers “don’t like playing with you, that you’re consistently blocked, that you’re the subject of enforcement actions,” then you will most likely see your reputation score go down. Plus, it’ll be play an “important role” in Xbox Live, with Lavin saying that your reputation score “will be as fully visible as Gamerscore in your profile.”

Some gamers might wonder, then, how they can get their reputation score back up if they’ve had a change of heart. Lavin says that you can participant in various Microsoft community programs, such as Xbox Live Rewards, and if you just haven’t been reported in a long time, your reputation score will begin to slowly go back up.

SOURCE: OXM

Xbox One to get reputation system in Xbox Live to encourage good behavior is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Former Xbox chief Don Mattrick left his post at Microsoft and joined Zynga as the company’s new CEO. This left a vacant hole over at Microsoft, for which CEO Steve Ballmer is currently stepping in for the time being. However, it’s been reported that current Windows head Julie Larson-Green could be the successor to Mattrick and take over the Xbox division as well.

According to Bloomberg, Microsoft is said to be in the planning stages of reorganizing the company’s execs, and Mattrick is believed to have left Microsoft because of that. As for who will do what, it’s said that Skype president Tony Bates will be put in charge of acquisitions and relationships with software developers for Microsoft, and Larson-Green will oversee all hardware engineering for the company.

This means that Larson-Green would oversee hardware engineering for all devices, including Xbox consoles and Surface tablets. Furthermore, Windows Phone software chief Terry Myerson would be given more responsibility, and will oversee Windows operating system engineering.

Sources say that these shuffling moves aren’t finalized, and it’s possible that Ballmer will make changes before Microsoft officially announces the reorganization. This means that it’s possible that Larson-Green won’t end up getting the Xbox division under her authority, but seeing as how the Xbox One is merging ever so closer to the Windows platform, it makes sense to put the two together under the same boss.

As for Mattrick, it’s said that he was a contender for the hardware chief position before he left Microsoft, but knowing that the company would be going through a reshuffling, Mattrick probably didn’t want to get caught up in the changes. Of course, Mattrick isn’t heading to any steadier waters, as he’ll be responsible for picking up the broken pieces of Zynga and trying to put them back together.

VIA: CVG

SOURCE: Bloomberg

Windows chief rumored for Xbox lead position after Mattrick departure is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.