NEWS - Saturday, March 15, 2003
Live Launches in Europe
Xbox Live has officially launched in Europe. To kick off the service, Microsoft held a star-studded bash at the Tate Modern in London. Among the celebrities present where the Dynamic Duo Ant and Dec. Who exactly "the Dynamic Duo Ant and Dec" are, we have no idea. They're probably either members of the royal family, or Britain's pop group of the week. Maybe they're both. At any rate, they seemed to like Xbox Live. "Xbox Live is great because it means I can still play against Ant - but he doesn't have to come round my house any more," said Dec. "And I can still shout at Dec and hear his excuses as I whip him at Moto GP," said Ant, "But I don't have to see his ugly mug." European gamers will be able to pick up the Starter Kit for just under 40 pounds, which translates to about 63 dollars, or 59 Euros. The European version of the Live Starter Kit is more or less the same as the American iteration, with the exception of an included Mechassault demo. European launch titles include: Mechassault Unreal Championship Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Whacked NFL Fever 2003 Capcom vs. SNK 2 EO Additionally, downloadable content will be available for Splinter Cell, MX Superfly, and ToeJam and Earl III. "Xbox Live is officially open in Europe, and it's going to change the way we play games," said Michel Cassius, European Director of the Xbox. "Live gaming is uncharted territory for most players, and we can't wait to see friends connect and have rivals fight it out to become the superstars and heroes of Xbox Live. Our infrastructure is ready to go after rigorous testing, which has gone according to plan--hundreds of thousands of Xbox gamers have already been living Live. We're thrilled to bring the next step in social entertainment and community to console gaming."Source: http://www.ign.com
