Microsoft Increases Production for the Xbox 360 Consoles and Announces 80 New Titles

Forced by the retailers' inability to meet the demand for the new Xbox 360 gaming console, Microsoft has decided to increase production.

The company has announced that beginning this week, it will double or even triple the number of Xbox 360 consoles.

According to the Finnancial Times, analysts estimated only 1.3m units shipped worldwide by the end of 2005 and predicted Microsoft would miss its target of 3m units shipped by the end of last month.

Finnancial Times also says that thanks to the production increase, Microsoft's plan to ship 5m to 5.5m units by its fiscal year-end in June is now achievable.

Aside from boosting production, the company has also announced 80 new titles, available by June, and new content and experiences for Xbox Live.

"Today we have turned a major corner. With more consoles on their way to retail, 80 games available by June, and new content and experiences coming to Xbox Live all the time, there has never been a better time to own an Xbox 360," said Peter Moore, corporate vice president of the Interactive Entertainment Business in the Entertainment and Devices Division at Microsoft.

Of the 80 titles announced for Xbox 360, the Redmond company is emphasizing three, which are extremely popular among gamers: "The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion" (Bethesda Softworks/2K Games), "Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter" (Ubisoft Entertainment SA) and "Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Legend" (Eidos Interactive Ltd.).

The Microsoft list also includes:

- "2006 FIFA World Cup" (EA SPORTS)

- "Battlefield 2: Modern Combat" (Electronic Arts Inc.)

- "Blazing Angels" (Ubisoft)

- "Burnout Revenge" (Electronic Arts)

- "Dynasty Warriors 5 Empires" (KOEI)

- "The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion" (Bethesda Softworks/2K Games)

- "Far Cry Instincts Predator" (Ubisoft)

- "FINAL FANTASY XI" (Square Enix Inc.)

- "Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter" (Ubisoft)

- "Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Legend" (Eidos)

- "Major League Baseball 2K6" (2K Sports)

- "The Outfit" (THQ)

- "Rockstar Games Presents Table Tennis" (Rockstar Games)

- "Rumble Roses XX" (Konami)

- "Top Spin 2" (2K Sports)

- "X-Men: The Official Game" (Activision)