Xbox live

Windows Live Messenger allows users of Xbox Live, PC ( Windows and Macintosh ), and Windows Phone to communicate. This allows 8 people to communicate simultaneously, while playing games, listening to music and watching movies. Users can immediately see contacts from Windows Live Messenger and their Gamertag . On December 4, 2007, Windows Live Messenger for Xbox Live became available for accounts of children over 13 years old. September 4, 2007 Microsoft launched the Xbox 360 Messenger Kit , a small QWERTY keyboard that plugs into an Xbox 360 controller, wired or wireless, to support text and instant messaging.

Current Functions

• Virtual avatars represent the user's image.
• Achievements earned during the game.
• Gamerscore showing the total number of custom Achievement points.
• Your reputation is set by other users. Reputation has 5 stars until at least one user changes it.
• Friends list showing up to 100 friends.
• A list of the last 50 people the user played with during the Xbox Live online game.
• A complaints system that allows users to report a violation of the Xbox Live User Agreement .
• Windows Live Messenger integration.
• Content downloaded from the Xbox Live Marketplace for games, applications, music, and movies.
• Voice and video chat.
• Play online up to 128 people through Xbox Live.
• Cross-platform multiplayer with Windows players through Games for Windows - Live
• Selection of players by gamerscore, reputation, location, language and zone of the player.
• Group meetings for up to 8 people for games and watching movies.
• Parental controls control children from adult exposure.
• The Inside Xbox video subscription tells the Xbox 360 news, events, products, interviews, and games. Content is streaming available through the Xbox 360 Dashboard .
• Netflix video service offering an unlimited stream of thousands of television shows and movies.
• Zune offers in-store video streaming in 1080p HD with 5.1 surround sound .
• Sky Go live and on demand television programs from Sky Movies , Sky News and Sky Sports .
• Last.fm's streaming music service offers music and related music radio stations.
• Halo Waypoint is the multimedia center for everything related to the Halo series.
• Game Room virtual arcade space offers a library of classic and retro games.
• MSN is an entertainment portal providing the latest news and rumors in the world of celebrities, music and films.
• Foxtel for Xbox Live , a live and on-demand television service, offers content from Showtime , CNN , and Fox Sports .
• ESPN Live and Sports Service upon request offers a stream of over 3,500 sporting events.
• AT&T U-Verse lets you use your Xbox 360 as a set top box.
• Compatibility with Windows Phone and Windows 8 allows users to manage their Xbox Live profile, send and receive messages, play video games, and earn achievements exclusively for Windows Phone and Windows 8 .
• Zune Music Marketplace offers an unlimited stream of music and music video.
• Kinect Avatar is a social media service that allows users to interact with each other and create media using their avatars.
• Hulu Plus streaming video service offers commercially-supported television content and films like NBC , Fox and ABC (USA).
• Kinect Fun Labs is an entertainment center that allows users to play, create and share their own experiences at KinectShare.com. This site was closed in July 2017.
• Telus Optik TV lets you use your Xbox 360 as a set top box.
• YouTube application giving unlimited access to shared videos.
• IPTV service offering television content depending on the region. For example, in Moscow, launched in partnership with Beeline [1]

Future Features

• Cloud storage allows users to access their profiles and saved data from any console.
• Skype allows you to use Video and Voice chat with users of other platforms (requires Gold membership, Skype account and Kinect).
• UFC Allows users to watch the Ultimate Fighting Championship within the app.
• iHeartRadio is a streaming service that includes more than 800 US radio stations.
• Broadcasts of all the Miss Universe Organization , which includes Miss Universe , Miss USA and Miss Teen USA (requires Gold membership and Club Universe membership).

Marketplace

The Xbox Live Marketplace is the center of all kinds of downloads : demos of games, trailers, add-ons for games, etc. Using the Marketplace is free, but most of the content has to be paid using Microsoft Points .

• Game Marketplace
  • Arcade (arcade games) - games of the lower price category;
  • Game add-ons ( add-ons ) - paid or free add-ons for games;
  • Games on Demand (games on demand) - digital distribution - having paid for the game, you can download it (that is, you do not need to buy a DVD). This section includes the most popular sales games;
  • Game Demos (demos) - demos of games;
  • Game Video (video) - trailers;
  • Themes & Gamer Pictures (themes and pictures of players) - a section in which there are various themes for the Dashboard and pictures for the profile (Gamertag);
  • All Games (all games) - a list of games by selecting a specific game, all topics, additions, etc. related to it will be provided.
• Video Marketplace (movie store)
• Music Marketplace (music store)

Arcade

Xbox Live Arcade (XBLA) - offers users a wide range of simple, inexpensive, casual , but at the same time exciting games.

• All Xbox Live Arcade Games can be downloaded and tried before the final purchase.
• Games can be recorded on the console’s hard drive or on a memory card.
• All games fully support high resolution mode, achievement system, etc.
• Most games support multiplayer mode
• Hexic HD , a puzzle game from Alexei Pajitnov (creator of Tetris ) is already preloaded on every Xbox 360 console from the start of the system.

Gamertag

Gamertag (GT) - a personal profile of the player, which indicates his gamerscore , achievements in games, as well as other information about the player. Gamertag can be used as an avatar on forums .

Gamerscore

Gamerscore (GS) - Points earned by a player during his game. Actually is a player’s reputation. Initially, retail games had a maximum of 1000 (GS), and games from the Arcade section had 12 achievements, giving 200 (GS).

On February 1, 2007, Microsoft changed its GS policy. Retail games had a limit of 1000 (GS) or slightly less, but subsequently added achievements should have been free. You can later add 250 (GS) to a total of 1750 (e.g. Halo 3). Arcade games must have no more than 200 (GS) with a possible increase in the future to 250 (GS).

Gamercard

Gamercard - is a player’s card, which displays various information and statistics from the user profile:

• Gamertag (silver or gold strip)
• Player Image (avatar)
• Reputation
• Gamerscore
• Game Zone
• Recently played games
• Some GameCards have a player character image

Microsoft Points

Microsoft Points (MSPs) is the currency on Xbox Live for which you can purchase various content on the Xbox Live Marketplace . You can replenish your account either through a bank card ( Visa , MasterCard , (American Express)), or through payment cards, which can be purchased in stores, online stores.

1 Microsoft Point = 0.52 rubles.

In August 2013, Microsoft Points were removed.

Game Zone

Game zone (from the English gamerzone ) - determines the level of skill of the player and allows you to search for opponents corresponding to the level. You select the game zone when registering your GamerTag, in the future, it can be changed

There are 4 main areas:

• For recreation ( Eng. Recreation) - for casual players.
• Family ( Eng. Family ) - for the game as a family.
• Pros (for English ) - for players who already “know their job”
• Extreme ( Eng. Underground ) - for veteran players

New Features Announced at E³

• Kinect is the game sensor that a player must face Kinect in a game supported with Kinect , or in the Xbox Control Panel
• The social networks Facebook and Twitter have partnered with Xbox Live to give players direct access to Facebook and Twitter.
• Movie Partys - Watch movies and TV shows on Netflix with friends on Xbox Live.
• On Demand Games - A catalog of Xbox 360 games that can be downloaded on Xbox Live.