Microsoft Expands Xbox Live to Windows
Microsoft continued to build on the success of its Xbox platform by extending it's popular Live gaming platform to Windows PCs. The service would debut on May 8, and would connect gamers on both platforms together.
"Shadowrun" will be the first PC and Xbox 360 title to allow gamers on either platform to play one another in a single environment starting in June, although the Vista version of "Halo 2" due May 8 will permit person-to-person matches across either platform.
"UNO," which has become a popular Xbox Live Arcade title, is slated for release later in the year.
In a humorous twist, Microsoft's Live naming convention has forced the company to give the new service an odd name: "Games for Windows -- Live," with the double hyphen meant to signify that the office is not a Windows Live service, but a different type of "Live" service altogether.
Gamers would be able to use their "gamertags" between either platform, and maintain a single list of achievements. The service for Windows PCs would be available in every country where Xbox Live is currently available.
"The benefits of expanding Xbox LIVE to Games for Windows titles is twofold: We're bringing together two communities that share a passion for playing online games, and we're enhancing the online experience for PC gamers who have long desired seamless game and voice connectivity," Microsoft's Interactive Entertainment chief Peter Moore said.
Certainly, the cross-platform tie-in highlights an area where Microsoft is in a league of its own. Neither Sony nor Nintendo produce PC versions of their games, and both companys' online services are currently seen as inferior to that of Microsoft's.
There will be no additional charge for the PC functionality, and a single Xbox Live subscription would cover both platforms.