Microsoft has announced a ton of details on the gaming capabilities of its upcoming Windows Phone 7, including how the mobile OS interacts with Xbox Live. Here are the press release bullet points Xbox Live connectivity:
- Be omnipotent. View, access and launch your full game library from one easy-to-navigate hub.
- Get mad props. Earn, view and track Achievements, view Xbox Live leaderboards and build your Gamerscore every time you play an Xbox Live title.
- Release your inner Mini Me. Connect to your Xbox Live profile and Avatar, or easily create a new one right from the phone.
- Get tricky. Access Spotlight feeds, including the latest game titles, breaking news from Xbox LIVE, game tips and tricks, and more.
- Play before you pay. Easily find, try and buy the games you want, either in the Marketplace or Games hub.
- Flaunt your skills. Invite, connect and play against friends on other Windows Phone 7 phones or PCs with turn-based (asynchronous) multiplayer gaming.
Microsoft has also promised more than 50 launch games. Here are the upcoming Windows Phone 7 titles and their respective publishers:
- 3D Brick Breaker Revolution (Digital Chocolate)
- Age of Zombies (Halfbrick)
- Armor Valley (Protégé Games)
- Asphalt 5 (Gameloft)
- Assassins Creed (Gameloft)
- Bejeweled™ Live (PopCap)
- Bloons TD (Digital Goldfish)
- Brain Challenge (Gameloft)
- Bubble Town 2 (i-Play)
- Butterfly ( Press Start Studio)
- CarneyVale Showtime (MGS)
- Crackdown 2: Project Sunburst (MGS)
- De Blob Revolution (THQ)
- Deal or No Deal 2010 (i-Play)
- Earthworm Jim (Gameloft)
- Fast & Furious 7 (i-Play)
- Fight Game Rivals (Rough Cookie)
- Finger Physics (Mobliss Inc.)
- Flight Control (Namco Bandai)
- Flowerz (Carbonated Games)
- Frogger (Konami Digital Entertainment)
- Fruit Ninja (Halfbrick)
- Game Chest-Board (MGS)
- Game Chest-Card (MGS)
- Game Chest-Logic (MGS)
- Game Chest-Solitaire (MGS)
- GeoDefense (Critical Thought)
- Ghostscape (Psionic)
- Glow Artisan (Powerhead Games)
- Glyder 2 (Glu Mobile)
- Guitar Hero 5 (Glu Mobile)
- Halo Waypoint (MGS)
- Hexic Rush (Carbonated Games)
- I Dig It (InMotion)
- iBlast Moki (Godzilab)
- ilomilo (MGS)
- Implode XL (IUGO)
- Iquarium (Infinite Dreams)
- Jet Car Stunts (True Axis)
- Let’s Golf 2 (Gameloft)
- Little Wheel (One click dog)
- Loondon (Flip N Tale)
- Max and the Magic Marker (PressPlay)
- Mini Squadron (Supermono Limited)
- More Brain Exercise (Namco Bandai)
- O.M.G. (Arkedo)
- Puzzle Quest 2 (Namco Bandai)
- Real Soccer 2 (Gameloft)
- The Revenants (Chaotic Moon)
- Rise of Glory (Revo Solutions)
- Rocket Riot (Codeglue)
- Splinter Cell Conviction (Gameloft)
- Star Wars: Battle for Hoth (THQ)
- Star Wars: Cantina (THQ)
- The Harvest (MGS)
- The Oregon Trail (Gameloft)
- Tower Bloxx NY (Digital Chocolate)
- Twin Blades (Press Start Studio)
- UNO (Gameloft)
- Women’s Murder Club: Death in Scarlet (i-Play)
- Zombie Attack! (IUGO)
- Zombies!!!! (Babaroga)
In addition to strong thid-party support, it’s great to see first-party franchises like Crackdown and Halo coming to Windows Phone 7. Like I’ve said several times before, Microsoft is going to have an extremely difficult time catching up to Apple iOS and Google Android. Gaming is one of the ways it can differentiate Windows Phone 7 from its competitors. The initial announcements are a great start and are making gamers pay attention to the OS. It also makes the Android/PSP rumor a bit more interesting, hey?
As always, I want to know what you think about Windows Phone 7’s gaming initiatives. Fire away (please)!
All that connectivity to XBL is awesome but I haven't had the best time with WindowOs on cell phones. I really don't like the Os on the pc either. Ms needs to make an Android app because that phone looks and sounds awesome but it isn't enough to get me off of Android.
I can easily see this turning into TRUE real life achievements. Take a picture of blah blah and get 30G.
@ Slicky
That's an awesome idea!
Call your mom 50 times – 20G
Call a friend on Christmas – 10G
Walk into a A Starbucks – 5G
Call 1-800-4-MY-XBOX – 30G (Sorry about the Red Ring)
Travel 100 miles with your phone – 20G
Prank call an Apple Store – 60G
Receive an email from MS – 5G
… The list goes on…
@SlickyFats I love real-life achievements. That's why I'm into foursquare. (Well that and I'm hoping to acquire a really cute 19-year old stalker.) That's actually tomorrow's Coffee Talk.
Would you have to be a gold subscriber to use this phone??
My sub to gold has expired. Not sure if I will renew it or not.
@smartguy
welcome to the club! i'm still not sure if i will ever renew my xbl gold account. maybe for an Rpad invitational but i'd really like to have one on a PS3 sometime soon.
@tokz
I haven't even updated my ps3. It seems that every time I'd turn it on to do something, I'd have to update and wait forever.
That or my life has been sucked up by Blizzard's games. We should have a Starcraft 2 invitational.
@smartguy You have to be Xbox Live Gold if you want to make calls.
@Ray
That would not surprise me lol. "In addition to the already $80 monthly charge, you will need to pay MSFT $5.00 for the privilege of using their dialer and other options". Kinda like the upcharge to use data on the EVO in non 4G markets.
@smartguy
well at least you have an alternative. i wonder if there is another way to update the firmware???
@tokz
I think it is just a combo of Sony releasing too many mini patches instead of one big one per quarter or year and me not playing hardly at all on my consoles anymore. Not for now anyway.
@smartguy
well if you ever want to update it let me know. i think we can save the updates on a usb stick, so with the next one i can save it on there and then give you the dropbox link to download it from.
@tokz
thanks. i should try pulling it down on my computer and loading it manually onto the ps3 instead of letting it pull it down off of PSN. I'm sure I will get back into console gaming but the story in Starcraft 2 has me hooked and I main tank for my guild in WoW so my time gets kind of slim for the time being.
This is what I have been waiting to read about the WinMo7 phone. It makes me want it all even more. I can adjust to a new phone for this and everything, and several of those games have caught my eye. I wish there were more popcap game on there, but maybe in the future they will do that. Plants vs. Zombies isn't coming out for a couple more weeks on XBL so maybe after that point they will announce that or more.
I am glad they are doing all of the XBL connectivity on the phone instead of the Zune like I said they should do a long time ago (it's like I'm on the MS commercials where the people claim to have thought of the ideas for something on an MS OS, and I should have proof in the cache somewhere for this site, lol). Looking forward to this even more now.
@N8
Can I get the 60G multiple times for pranking Apple non-stop?? HA
I'm loving the XBL integration, but I can't commit to Windows being my phone OS anytime soon. I was planning on my next phone to be a Droid or iPhone, with me leaning towards the EVO since our IT department at work can create a lot of custom programs for our business on a Droid phone (plus, our business phone account is with Sprint).
My wish continues to be for Microsoft to come out with an official "XBL App" that has most of the functions that are described above.
-M
@Iceman
But then you would be missing out on all the games that you can have with you on the phone.
@Anyone who knows
What about tethering options? Would that be capable with this phone. Seeing the Outlook symbol on the phone's display made me think about how easy they will make it to check email on this phone, especially with my 6 gmail accounts. However, my ipod touch has a great system for email already, and since it is my ipod I will most likely have it close by wherever my phone is…just wasn't sure if tethering was a viable option here.
@Bsukenyan;
Yeah, I know I would be missing out on the first-party titles that Microsoft will no doubt have on this thing, but I can play games on the iPhone and EVO. Sure it won't be Halo Wars Mobile or Forza Phone, but I can't forgo customized business integration with my company's accounting and operations software for a few games no matter how good they are. Also, I haven't been much of a mobile gamer as of late. My DS is collecting dust with Chinatown Wars still in it. I thought I would really like it since I liked GTA 2 way back in the day, but I just can't seem to really get into it. Most of my mobile gaming now is done on my iPhone, which isn't saying much.
-M
@Iceman
I am really looking to pick up my mobile gaming (especially if it is tied to my XBL gamertag) because my console is sometimes just too far away and I want something substantial to do. There are only so many games I can play on my iPod touch, and since that version of Plants vs. Zombies does not have survival mode on it, the games get really old really quick. I am hoping something with more substance will keep me more occupied and entertained when I'm away from my 360. But you do have more pressing needs if a different phone has integration with software that you will use for business, so I can understand that need being a priority over mobile gaming.
The iPhone is still a good option, but if I have my iPod touch and this WinMo7 phone then I should be in good shape still. Best of both worlds especially if I could tether the iPod touch.
@Bsukenyan;
I'd ask Smartguy or Mr. Padilla about the tethering. They seem to know more about smartphones than god.
-M
@bsukenyan I would bet that tethering would be similar to iPhone — it would be an extra charge from the carrier. Windows Phone 7 isn't open source like Android and I doubt Microsoft wants to piss off any carriers.
@Ray
What type of charges are there for doing that then? And how would I go about tethering something to a phone?