Microsoft Unveils Hottest Upcoming Games

About a year and a half ago, Microsoft marked the one-year anniversary of its Xbox 360 launch with the release of one of its most anticipated games ever: Gears of War. The violent, action-packed story of barbaric foot soldiers fighting a futuristic war won gamers around the world over, and at a recent Microsoft Game Studios event many got the chance to see the next in the already beloved series.

Also on showcase: Fable 2, the Role Playing Game (RPG) that gives gamers the chance to choose to be good or (very) bad in a fantasy world; a new Ninja Gaiden, the visually-astounding slasher; and Too Human, a Norse-inspired RPG we're still learning about.

The Xbox 360 library showcase coincides with the company's recent announcement that it has surpassed 10 million units sold in the United States alone. Despite the booming success of Nintendo's Wii and the rising potential of Sony's PlayStation 3, the Xbox 360 is the first to reach that impressive plateau.

It sure has Microsoft gaming brass excited. "This year will be the largest in the history of the video-game industry, with Xbox 360 leading the charge in the U.S. and abroad," said senior vice-president of Interactive Entertainment Business for Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices Division, Don Mattrick. (Source: canada.com)

The star of the event has clearly been awarded to the new Gears. The game's design director, Cliff Bleszinski of Epic Games, put it pretty simple when he stated, "It's a bigger game, it's better, it's more bad ass with a larger, grander scope." Although real details are sparse, many reports are suggesting that the game itself has expanded, offering more weapons, characters, and levels.

The first of the anticipated releases, Too Human, ships in August. Also exciting for Xbox 360 gamers is word that popular console exclusive Bioshock will be making its way to theaters sometime in the future. Even more scintillating, rumors of a Gears of War flick have risen to the surface, too. (Source: teamxbox.com)