1. necessary..if u want  to live .....

3. i think no different ...in content ..correct me if im wrong sifu sifu

mzaidi, you have been missing for such a long time... I thought you promised us to have a xbox live account before?

jom join the club.  How's my ole 6800GT? 

ahh also got intercooler...

No, as long as you have points you can buy stuff, doesn't matter wheter you're gold or silver.

Game X? Say... Call Of Duty 2? Yes.. it seems to allow it. I'd think it all depends on the game really.

Speaking to Godfree at Gamertag Radio, Xbox Live Arcade Manager Aaron Greenberg confirms that some of their current XBLA offerings will be updated to make them compatible with the Vision Camera, including Spades, Bankshot Billiards 2, and "other classic titles." The aforementioned games will be joined by UNO, which is already compatible with the camera.

The games will be Vision-compatible via updates when the Vision Camera launches on September 19.

For anyone that really loves spending their hard-earned cash, Microsoft's Xbox Live Marketplace is like a dream come true. For example, having blown your wad once on your original game purchase, the obligatory follow-up content expansions offer infinite opportunities to splash even more dough. Sometimes, this actually works out quite well - see Oblivion's run of quality stuff like the Thieves Den swash-buckle-a-thon. Sometimes, it's a bit of a gip - see Oblivion's utterly rubbish horse armour pack.

Now however, Microsoft is set to launch its latest initiative, known as "Consumables" - unveiled at Gamefest 2006 by Xbox Live Marketplace business manager, Rohan Oommen - promising new and exciting opportunities to spend more money in increasingly diverse ways. Essentially, "Consumables" are in-game assets that can deplete and be re-purchased - think forking over cash for the equivalent in in-game currency, or paying for armour that wears down as you battle. Microsoft intends to incorporate this technology into its next Xbox 360 SDK update.

Additionally, Microsoft plans to integrate Marketplace more closely into games themselves, enabling players to purchase items in-game, via NPC vendors and the like. Initially, goods purchased during play will be stored in a 'shopping basket', with a visit to the Xbox Live Marketplace required to hand over your cash and complete the transaction. No word yet if you can skip that whole handing over real-world money thing by stabbing your friendly vendor in the face with your scabbard.

Microsoft has confirmed the next Xbox Live Arcade title and is giving gamers a great reason to try it out early. The full version of Texas Hold 'em will be available to download and own on Wedneday, August 23 at no cost for the first 48 hours for all Xbox Live Gold and Silver members. Those who want to download the poker title after the first 48 hours of its release will have to pay 800 Microsoft Points ($10 USD). The free window ends at 1:01am Pacific on Friday, August 25.

Texas Hold 'em has multiplayer support for up to 8 players and features a persistent bankroll. Your stack of chips will be tied to your gamertag, so if you want to play with the big dogs then you'll have to earn your way onto the table.

Microsoft has also laid out its Live Arcade plans through September 6. Today, August 16th, a Cloning Clyde picture pack is available for download at a cost of 100 Microsoft Points. On Wednseday, August 30, Konami's classic Time Pilot will be available for 400 Microsoft Points. Finally, the side-scroller from 1981, Scramble, will be up on the Arcade for 400 Microsoft Points on Wednesday, September 6.

Speaking at its GameFest event in Seattle, Microsoft has talked candidly about its Xbox Live service, specifically the Xbox Live Marketplace, which makes both free and premium content available for download for Xbox 360 users, and has been a notable success since launch.

Specifically, Microsoft's Marketplace Business Manager Rohan Oommen sketched out a detailed GameFest presentation on the Marketplace, which covered what has been accomplished since the service went live in November 2005 with the launch of the Xbox 360, as well as where Microsoft envisions it heading in the months to come.

New Marketplace Stats

Since the service has launched, the Marketplace has seen 40+ million downloads, Oommen revealed. In addition, Microsoft noted that three quarters of those players with a Xbox Live subscription have downloaded content from the service, and that on average a user has downloaded 20 or more items from the selection of more than 2000 downloads currently available over the Marketplace.

Microsoft noted that of those items, game demos have demonstrated the greatest appeal, and that these serve as a great promotional tool for the games themselves. On average, Oommen commented that when released, a demo will see an average of 250,000 downloads, though he noted that the demo for Prey, which rode a wave of anticipation dating back to the original game's announcement by 3D Realms in 1995, saw an impressive 300,000 downloads in the first week, following its debut on Xbox Live.

Microsoft also commented that the timing of a demo's release is critical, drawing attention to the fact that it saw a 40 percent conversion rate between those users who downloaded the demo for EA's Fight Night 3, and those who purchased the game when it was released.

Xbox Live Arcade Updates?

Looking to the service's popular Xbox Live Arcade, which recently saw the debut of a plan to release a new title for download each week, Microsoft confirmed an outstanding 22 percent average conversion rate, with ranges between 10 and 50 percent of those players who downloaded a demo later returning to download the premium product.

Oommen also intriguingly commented that titles released over Xbox Live Arcade seem to be less price sensitive, and that higher priced titles such as those costing 800 points ($10) and 1200 points ($15) have resulted in more total revenue over the game's lifetime so far than 400 point ($5) games.

Game Add-On Successes

Microsoft also indicated that downloadable add-on content for games was the "most significant" Marketplace engagement point, revealing that three titles had already achieved $1 million in sales of additional content.

However, the company conceded that such content has not been coming out as fast as it would like, and that companies should plan ahead and devote small teams to creating new content in order to meet the user community's demand early on, specifically within the first 60 to 90 days following a title's release.

Recent titles such as Chromehounds and Dead Rising saw additional free content released over the Marketplace immediately following their release, while Ubisoft released a premium 1200 point ($15) download for Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter, titled 'Chapter 2', just over three months after the game was shipped to retail.

Another important part of Microsoft's online agenda is its focus on personalization through the use of Gamer Pictures and themes, to which the company noted it has seen a "surprisingly great response." However, the company also quickly combated the notion that these sorts of relatively small downloads should be given away for free, noting their belief that personalization downloads should be looked "as a revenue stream, rather than a promotional opportunity."

Oommen also addressed the topic of community videos, which he categorized according to four specific types: Game tips and help videos; humor, parody, and machinima videos; videos for specific events such as those created for E3 and X06; and others that drive brand affinity, such as "behind-the-scenes" and "making-of" videos. He noted that such videos represent a both an incremental revenue opportunity (though none have yet been released with a cost attached), as well as a way to stay connected to a game's audience.

'Consumables' For XBL?

In the final and perhaps most interesting part of the presentation, Oommen revealed that Microsoft is planning a number of user interface enhancements, as well as the ability to integrate the Marketplace into games - such as role-playing games - so that, for example, rare items will be be able to be purchased from within a game itself. Though full integration into game interfaces is the long-term goal, for now, in the short-term, users may be able to create a list of items they need and switch back to Marketplace to purchase that aggregated list.

Also in the works currently is a new type of microtransaction called "consumables", according to Oommen, which will allow a player to purchase items that can be used up and then repurchased at a later date. This feature would be used with items such as tokens to use within a game, or other specific objects which will actually decrease over time or with use, and specific uses of it will be revealed at a later date.

how to make it work? i notice that i can only resume if i dont turn off my xbox. if i turn off n on then dl again it will start fr 0%   

This wed is poker rite..?
Next week what game ar..?

Proton will bring in their new 4WD called the Warthog for everyday use.Machine gun optional

is the poker game out yet??? anyone gonna dl and play tonight???