Boomtown X

Turn 10 has announced details of what will be in the box for the Forza Motorsport 4 Collector's Edition.

Along with some exclusive cars we're also going to get a glossy book from the Top Gear boys.

Check out the details after the jump.

Microsoft has announced at its E3 press conference that Halo 4 will be released in 2012. Steve Butts has also stated that Halo 4 will be the first part of a new trilogy in the Halo franchise.

Peter Molyneux is well known for speaking his mind, but today a different developer at Lionhead Studio's has decided to say a few choice words to those that criticised Fable III. Lead combat designer Mike West believes Fable III is the series best game and can't understand why it has received so little praise upon release.

"Every time you finish playing Fable you'll have a smile on your face. Every time you play Oblivion you'll say 'I enjoyed my time there but now I want to go play something fun'. [Fable III is] a different type of game: it's more of a fun, comedic TV show than a serious Lord of the Rings film. I think a lot of people that play it think it's a Lord of the Rings - and it isn't."

One of his main gripes was the criticism of the game's story. "People saying the story wasn't very good was unfair. It's an interesting situation of you gather people together and then defeating the main bad guy. It's a pretty good story and it's pretty fun," he said.

Even the lack of recognition for voice acting has his knickers in a twist. "I'm slightly disappointed we haven't won any audio awards to be honest, because our music's great, our vocal talent's great - and then you'll see a standard shooter get an audio award. I just think that's because they're more popular than us."

So there you go. It's all your fault for not enjoying Fable III. We all should be ashamed of ourselves. I'm going to crawl back into bed with a bottle of amaretto and think about what I've done.

Full interview with Mike West can be found over on Eurogamer.

Microsoft has confirmed that it will release a PC software development kit for non-commercial Kinect use.

The Xbox 360 motion sensor is already being widely used by enthusiasts and researchers as an easy in to motion sensing technology, rather than using hacked third-party software in future such users will be available to development software with an official development framework.

Press release after the jump.

Microsoft says it has now sold over 2.5 million Kinect motion control systems, with sales boosted in particularly by Black Friday sales in North America.

"We are thrilled about the consumer response to Kinect, and are working hard with our retail and manufacturing partners to expedite production and shipments of Kinect to restock shelves as fast as possible to keep up with demand," said Don Mattrick, president of the Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft. "With sales already exceeding two and a half million units in just 25 days, we are on pace to reach our forecast of 5 million units sold to consumers this holiday."

"Kinect on Xbox 360 was a top performer at Target this weekend," said Nik Nayar, vice president, merchandising, Target. "We expect Kinect will be a must-have gift this holiday season, so Target will continue to receive consistent shipments of Kinect throughout December. The hands-free, active gaming experience that Kinect offers is something that everyone in the family can enjoy."

We wonder how many people have bought Kinect to play around with on their PC now open-source drivers have been created by the tinkering community.

With Microsoft's Kinect just around the corner, a new trailer has been released pimping one of its launch titles: Kinect Sports.

What we see is the typical happy family engaging in healthy competition on the wide variety of sports the game has to offer, including boxing, bowling and football, and although it presents us with nothing new in the way of information, I'll be damned if it doesn't make it look fun.

Kinect Sports and Kinect itself both launch tomorrow in the US and next Wednesday 10th here in the UK.

Continue reading to view the joy.

Microsoft had previously said that the new Kinect motion control system for Xbox 360 would use around ten to 15 percent of the console's resources.

However the company has been working hard at reducing the overheads for the system and according to lead developer Alex Kipman now only makes use of a "single-digit" percentage.

Source: Engadget

A new Sonic Free Riders trailer has emerged from SEGA detailing the upcoming game's weapons - and just how to execute them with your Kinect unit.

These range from standard boosts and jump tricks to giant cans of soda that act as makeshift jet propulsion. You can't make this stuff up!

Hit the break to watch.

Sonic Free Riders launches with Kinect on November 10th 2010.

Microsoft has released the latest major dashboard update for Xbox 360. You'll be prompted to download the update next time you connect to Live and you won't be allowed to use the online service unless you accept this new update.

The majority of changes are there to pave the way for the release of the Kinect motion control system and once you've installed the update you'll see options for the device.

There's a new colour scheme for the dashboard that clearly pays homage to Nintendo Wii - it's easy to see where Microsoft is headed following the launch of Kinect. On booting the console for the first time you're met with a guide for those who've never used an Xbox before along with links to the family settings.

The overall look following the update is a simpler, neater affair though in my opinion lacking some of the style of the previous version.

For a full list of changes to the Xbox 360 dashboard head over to Major Nelson.

Microsoft will have 19 games ready for Kinect at the launch on November 4th.

"The line-up of games we are launching along with Kinect delivers an astonishing range of experiences and entertainment which can be enjoyed by everyone," said Chris Lewis, Vice President of IEB, Microsoft EMEA. "Kinect creates a more natural and responsive experience for people of all interests and skill levels. That’s why we are so excited to offer people something truly unique that exists nowhere else."

There's a family feel to the launch line-up as you'd expect with a peripheral set to go head to head with Wii this Christmas.

Check out the list after the jump:

Microsoft has delayed Gears of War 3 from spring 2011 until the autumn of next year.

Epic Games has been keen to point out this is not due to development issues, the decision was made by Microsoft for purely marketing reasons.

"I know fans are going to be disappointed with the new release date, but rest assured that this is a business decision between partners, and not a quality issue," said executive producer Rod Fergusson. "Gears 3 was on track to be the most polished Gears of War game ever when it released in April, and this additional time allows us to polish it that much more before it hits shelves next fall."

Microsoft this is what you get when you have way too few flagship first-party exclusives lined up for your console.

Source: VG247

Microsoft has this morning announced the Special Edition Xbox 360 250GB with Kinect which will be available in the UK for £299.99 on November 10th.

The package comes complete with the slim X360, Kinect controller and a copy of Kinnect Adventures - which features 15 minigames.

Full PR after the jump: