Cologne, Germany, 20 Aug 2013 - Microsoft hosted invitation based press conference, highlighting their new console, the Xbox One. Microsoft shed some light on information regarding their new policies and a few time-exclusive game offers, apart from features such as integration with Smart Glass and Kinect.
The press conference floor had playable Xbox Ones’ present with demos of highly anticipated titles such as Forza 5, Ryse and Call of Duty: Ghosts. Microsoft also announced that FIFA 14 download codes will be shipped with every Xbox One preordered console, till supplies last.
Sealing the deal with a widely-popular European franchise like FIFA can be seen as a substantial blow to arch rivals Sony. One of their key highlighted advantages over Microsoft was the USD$100 price difference, which would now effectively be lower, if you throw the cost of the game into the mix. Additionally, FIFA Ultimate Team Legends mode is going to be exclusive to the Xbox One.
Indie publishing has received a considerable boost by altering their policy towards Microsoft. They will receive two free developer kits, no fixed price setting from Microsoft and most importantly, the publishing and licensing deal will be free.
Multiplayer co-op games like the Halo series are very popular and went a long way in helping Xbox sales over the years. Microsoft has similar hopes attached to Fable Legends, a four person co-op online game that will be exclusive to the Xbox One.
Microsoft says that at least twenty titles will be available at the time the Xbox One is launched, plus Call of Duty: Ghosts, will use the power of cloud computing and dedicated servers on the Xbox One.
