CES: Games For Windows Interview

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First, Microsoft has announced 9 new titles that will be released under the Games for Windows brand in 2008:

* "Alone in the Dark" (Atari)
* "Bionic Commando" (Capcom)
* "Conflict: Denied Ops" (Eidos Interactive)
* "Empire: Total War" (SEGA)
* "LEGO Indiana Jones" (LucasArts)
* "Microsoft Train Simulator 2" (Microsoft Game Studios)
* "Sins of a Solar Empire" (Stardock)
* "Space Siege" (SEGA)
* "Tomb Raider: Underworld" (Eidos Interactive)

Second, Kevin informed us that Microsoft plans to invest much more heavily in GFW and GFW Live in 2008. They see 2007 as laying the "plumbing" and infrastructure and 2008 is where the platform (yes, they see it as a platform, just like the 360) will grow.

Kevin restated Peter Moore's belief that the PC should be a cross-platform and they hope to build upon the brand, while introducing new Live features.

Microsoft apparently learned a valuable lesson with the release of Halo 2 for Vista noting that the "delta" or difference between the two release dates is a very important factor. They would not announce a release date or even if the game would be ported to the PC.

The sales for Gears of War on PC were higher, but Kevin cites the exclusive PC content as a major factor maybe even more than the quicker time between releases.

As for the numbers, Microsoft has announced that 100 million users are currently rocking Vista, but only about 10 million gamers are using Vista. The number is presumably smaller when you look at gamers that have Vista and DX10 compatible cards.

When asked about features that Games for Windows Live has versus traditional PC games, Kevin admitted that Microsoft has done a poor job of educating gamers about all the free features GFW Live offers. He notes that all GFW Live games have PC to PC multiplayer and voice chat for free.

We brought up the subject of Steam and how successful it has been, but Kevin reminded us that when Steam first launched it wasn't nearly as successful as it is now. He points to this rise in popularity as something he envisions will happen with Games for Windows Live. For the future, he didn't rule out (or announce) Steam-like features including digital distribution, casual games, and an out-of-game client (you can bet on this one).

We also asked Kevin about when they are going to raise the cap on the Experience Index in Vista, which is currently set at 5.9. For example, bleahy's computer at home is a 5.9, but can't run Crysis above medium. The computers here at the office are also at 5.9, but run it cranked to full. Clearly, the cap needs to be raised so that Microsoft can deliver on its promise to help users determine if a game will run on their system. Kevin couldn't tell us when this was going to happen.

Whether you still play PC games or not, expect big things from Games for Windows and Games for Windows Live in 2008.

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