
E3 (Electronic
Entertainment Expo) - the largest gaming event of the year -
will take place this week from June 5 to 7 in Los Angeles.
Microsoft's annual Xbox 360 Global Media Briefing is happening a
day earlier on June 4 at 9:30
AM PT, and you don't want to miss it.
E3 is a great time for gamers as new games and gear are unveiled
and more details about upcoming games are revealed. It's also an
exciting time when a new console is anticipated. Titled "Xbox:
Entertainment Evolved", here's what you can expect from Microsoft
at this year's 90-minute conference:
But first, here's what not to expect - the "Xbox 720". The Xbox
360 has been the best-selling console in the US for almost a year
and a half now, and the Kinect motion sensor has only helped boost
sales. The 360 has been so successful that Microsoft says
they don't think releasing a new version anytime soon is
necessary.
What we can expect though, are a number of brand new Better
with Kinect, as well as Kinect-exclusive titles (including
Fable: The Journey), and maybe even a dashboard
update.
Halo 4 and Forza Horizon, both published by
Microsoft Studios, and exclusive to the Xbox 360, will be the games
to look forward to most this E3. Both games are set to release
later this year.
It's reasonable to expect new games for Xbox LIVE Arcade and
Windows Phone to be announced. We might even see Windows 8 Metro
style games with Xbox LIVE integration.
Over the years, the 360 has transformed into an all-round
entertainment device rather than just a gaming console and we'd be
surprised if Microsoft does not announce partnerships with more
content providers, such as the launch of
Amazon Instant Video for the Xbox last week.
Microsoft is also rumored to announce
"Xbox Smart Glass", a companion app for Windows Phone and
future Windows 8 tablets that will let you play videos and other
media and stream them to your 360. Smart Glass will allow users to
control their Xbox remotely from these devices and will also be
available for iOS and Android.
The Verge has reported that a full-blown version of
Internet Explorer for the Xbox is also in the works, complete
with Kinect voice and gesture support. IE will also extend the
existing Bing functionality to provide a wider variety of
results.
The Verge also says we can expect Microsoft to preview a
new music service for the Xbox at E3 as a replacement of Zune.
Codenamed "Woodstock", the cross-platform service will also work on
Windows 8, Windows Phone, iOS and Android. It will sport deep
integration with Facebook, and will launch in late 2012.

Can't wait to watch the Microsoft press conference? Larry Hryb,
Xbox LIVE's Major Nelson, has pointed out the following several
ways you can watch the event:
- Xbox LIVE: If you are an Xbox LIVE Gold member, then for the
first time ever, you can watch the briefing right from your
console.
- Xbox.com: Don't have an Xbox
LIVE subscription? Watch the live stream on xbox.com/e3.
- Facebook:
You can also watch the stream from Facebook.
- Xbox.mobi: Head over to xbox.mobi for a
mobile version of the feed.
- Spike TV: Microsoft has also partnered with
Spike to broadcast the live feed, but is available in select
regions only.
If you still miss it, don't worry as we'll be following the
event and will post a summary soon after here at Redmond Times.
Update: Well, it turned out to
be an exciting event, to say the least. Check out our
E3 recap to know which rumors came true, and which
didn't.