E3 has always been the bastion of major announcements for each console, and Xbox is no different. Over the past few years, Xbox Live has been a major focus of the Microsoft press conference at E3. Last year was the formal announcement of the XSN network. This year: Xbox Live Arcade.
Due to debut this fall, Xbox Live Arcade is a targeted approach at bringing casual gamers online. Xbox Live subscribers will be able to select from dozens of classic titles including Galaxian, Dig Dug, Bejeweled, and Feeding Frenzy, to name a few, along with several card games. Each game will be on demand in a dashboard-like setup, with games split up into several categories, including “retro arcade,†“action arcade,†“card & board games,†“puzzle & trivia,†“social sports,†and “strategy & sims.†There is also a section called “My Games†that lists each game you’ve purchased from the service, as well as a “new releases†category that promises to keep Xbox Live owners up to date on the newest content available on Xbox Live Arcade.
Thus far, the service is being supported by several high-profile developers, including Namco, Atari, Tecmo, and Wild Tangent among others. Several games will be subdivided by their developer in the aforementioned menus, so if you had forgotten that the good people at Namco brought you Galaxian back in the 80’s, now would be a good time to refresh your nostalgic memory.
Each of the games on Xbox Live Arcade will be available at a purchase price of $10 per game. The cost grants you unlimited play of the game henceforth as the purchased title will be downloaded to your Xbox’s hard drive. For those unconvinced that the games are worth the asking price, Microsoft will be giving away Xbox Live Arcade sample discs this holiday season, featuring several popular titles found on the service.
