Microsoft has bought video discovery service Videosurf to “evolve search and discovery of entertainment content” on Xbox 360. The press release sent out by Microsoft this morning in the US confirms the company will be integrated into Xbox 360 “ecosystem” in some form, noting that it’ll “evolve search and discovery of entertainment content” via Xbox Live. “This holiday we will launch voice search across our entertainment partners on Xbox Live. Over time, as we integrate VideoSurf’s technology into our system, we are excited about the potential to have content tagged in real time to increase the speed and relevance of the search results,” said Xbox Live director, Alex Gar

Xbox 360 owners are getting a little update ahead of the next dashboard update. The next time you start up your console, Microsoft is pushing down an update that will add Kinect support for Netflix. The Kinect support for Netflix was talked about some time back, but no actual release timeframe was given when it would actually arrive. It appears that time is finally now. The additional Kinect support will allow Xbox 360 Netflix users to use the Kinect device to navigate the system interface as well as use voice control to play, pause, fast forward, or rewind streaming content. In addition, Kinect users will get a controller-free recommendation channel that is said to use a “sma

On Monday, gaming site Major Nelson wrote that Activision has revealed it will launch the next expansion pack for Call of Duty: Black Ops for Xbox 360 on May 3rd. Dubbed “Escalation,” the new downloadable content — for Xbox LIVE subscribers — will sport five new maps, including four that can be played in multiplayer mode. New maps include “Hotel,” where you’ll battle on the roof of a Cuban hotel and casino, a Russian “Zoo,” a WMD “Stockpile”, and “Convoy.” And what’s an update without some more zombies? Escalation will reportedly offer a new “Zombie experience,” with new playable characters. It’s unclear how much Escalation will cost, but we’ve a

We just found out that the french ps3 servers are now online. Only problem is we live in the UK so according to our source you can change the system language settings to French and you will be able to play online for the time being. 1. Head over to system settings on your ps3 xmb browser. 2. Go to language settings and change to French. 3. Restart your ps3 console 4. Sign into PSN and you should be able to play online! Please leave a comment if you got it to work in your country apart from France obviously. Game Preview

Microsoft Kinect for Xbox 360 will come this November. Microsoft has already sent out beta units to testers so that they can try out the Kinect hardware and the new software update with Kinect support which will drop this fall as a free update for all existing Xbox 360 owners. Folks involved in the beta program for the Kinect were kind enough to slip out some videos showing off the new Dashboard. Videos after the break. While the design is nowhere near as drastic a change as the last dashboard update for the Xbox 360, it’s still more than a slight nip and tuck, with only the overall concept of sliding tiles remaining. Everything else, from their perspective to the colours to

Microsoft will release a redesigned wireless controller for its Xbox 360 console which will feature a transforming directional pad. The silver controller includes a “transforming D-pad” that allows players to alter the way the directional pad is used. Players can use the standard plus format as they would with any Xbox 360 controller, or twist the D-pad into a disc format so it almost resembles a fatter thumbstick. In a statement, Microsoft says the disc format is ideal for “sweeping movements.” The controller will also include concave analog sticks and grey buttons on the face of the device. It hits stores November 9 for $64.99. For a closer look at the ne

While Microsoft has only really shown two people at most enjoying a Kinect game together in all their promotional material, that doesn’t mean the technology isn’t able to follow more players at once. Speaking to Videogamer, Xbox general manager Kudo Tsunoda said the limitation is really up to what developers think would work best for their games, but Kinect could recognize additional players if they wanted it to. “I think that it all depends on the kind of experience that you want to build,” Tsunoda said during GamesCom last week. “Certainly if you look at a game, go down on the floor, Dance Central is already incorporating a lot more than two players

Microsoft’s online store on Tuesday had a 150-dollar price tag on its upcoming Kinect controllers for Xbox 360 videogame consoles. The US technology colossus was taking pre-orders for Kinect, advising buyers that the device for adding gesture-sensing capabilities to Xbox 360 consoles would not be available until “on or after” November 4. “Kinect” is the name for the new game technology developed by Microsoft under the code name Project Natal. The potentially revolutionary device uses a 3-D camera and gesture recognition software to let people play videogames using natural body movements instead of hand-held controllers. Players can tell consoles what