14 DAY TRIAL // An impressive lineup of no less than 30 new gaming titles is in store for Windows Vista and Windows XP, announced Microsoft. All the games will be released under the Games for Windows brand umbrella and will deliver support for the Games for Windows - LIVE online service. Microsoft's E3 press briefing was the stage where the company unveiled its plans to make 2007 synonymous with gaming history. And in order to ensure this, Microsoft revealed that it is prepared to transition Gears of War to both Windows Vista and Windows XP.
"Windows gaming is set to see one of its best years ever," said Peter Moore, corporate vice president of the Interactive Entertainment Business in the Entertainment and Devices Division at Microsoft. "With an incredible range of phenomenal titles, amazing hardware and the rapid adoption of Windows Vista, Windows gamers will remember holiday 2007 as a landmark year for PC gaming."
"We are announcing nearly 30 new titles that will carry the Games for Windows brand, including some of the most anticipated games of 2007 such as "Gears of War," "Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts" and "Kane and Lynch." These join many already announced and eagerly awaited titles "Crysis," "Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures" and "Hellgate London," and will bring the portfolio of titles carrying the Games for Windows brand to more than 60 by holiday 2007," stated Kevin Unangst, global director of Games for Windows.
Microsoft also revealed that out of the estimated 200 million gamers worldwide, in excess of 10 million are already using Windows Vista and enjoying the benefits of the DirectX 10 graphics technology. The Redmond company however declined repeatedly to backport DirectX to Windows XP leaving gamers only one choice, namely that of upgrading to Vista. In this context, Microsoft's move was criticized as pushing users into a forced migration.
"We also announced that three top third-party publishers - Eidos, THQ and SEGA - are planning to release titles that take advantage of our online gaming service, Games for Windows - LIVE. This is just the start - we expect a dozen LIVE-enabled games on shelves by the end of this year. Anyone who loves first person shooters will be excited to hear that one of the bestselling Xbox 360 games of 2006, "Gears of War," is coming to Windows with full support for Games for Windows - LIVE along with five brand new campaign chapters," added Unangst.