The Xbox network, formerly known and commonly referred to as Xbox Live, is an online multiplayer gaming and digital media delivery service created and operated by Microsoft Gaming for the Xbox brand. It was first made available to the original Xbox console on November 15, 2002. An updated version of the service, adding the Xbox Live Marketplace, became available with the Xbox 360 console launch in November 2005, and a further enhanced version was released in 2013 with the Xbox One. The service is used on the latest Xbox Series X and Series S and, in addition to a Microsoft account, is the account for Xbox ecosystem; accounts can store games and other content.
The history of video game consoles, both home and handheld, began in the 1970s. The first console that played games on a television set was the 1972 Magnavox Odyssey, first conceived by Ralph H. Baer in 1966. Handheld consoles originated from electro-mechanical games that used mechanical controls and light-emitting diodes (LED) as visual indicators. Handheld electronic games had replaced the mechanical controls with electronic and digital components, and with the introduction of Liquid-crystal display (LCD) to create video-like screens with programmable pixels, systems like the Microvision and the Game & Watch became the first handheld video game consoles.
Chicken Little is a 2005 action-adventure game developed by Avalanche Software for GameCube, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2 and Xbox and by Artificial Mind and Movement for the Game Boy Advance; both were published by Buena Vista Games. Based on the film Chicken Little, they were released in October 2005.
Uno is a video game based on the card game of the same name. It has been released for a number of platforms. The Xbox 360 version by Carbonated Games and Microsoft Game Studios was released on May 9, 2006, as a digital download via Xbox Live Arcade. A version for iPhone OS and iPod devices was released in 2008 by Gameloft. Gameloft released the PlayStation 3 version on October 1, 2009, and also released a version for WiiWare, Nintendo DSi via DSiWare, and PlayStation Portable. An updated version developed by Ubisoft Chengdu and published by Ubisoft was released for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in August 2016, Microsoft Windows in December 2016 and for the Nintendo Switch in November 2017.
Platform exclusivity refers to the status of a video game being developed for and released only on certain platforms. Most commonly, it refers to only being released on a specific video game console or through a specific vendor's platforms—either permanently, or for a definite period of time.
Sonic Colors is a 2010 platform game published by Sega. It follows Sonic's quest to stop his nemesis Doctor Eggman from enslaving an alien race and taking over the world. The gameplay is similar to prior Sonic games, with players collecting rings and defeating enemies; the camera perspective often switches from third-person to side-scrolling perspectives. The game also introduces Wisps, power-ups the player can use to increase attack power and reach new areas.
The eighth generation of video game consoles began in 2012, and consists of four home video game consoles: the Wii U released in 2012, the PlayStation 4 family in 2013, the Xbox One family in 2013, and the Nintendo Switch family in 2017.
Online console gaming involves connecting a console to a network over the Internet for services. Through this connection, it provides users the ability to play games with other users online, in addition to other online services.
140 is a platform game developed and published by Carlsen Games. It was directed by Jeppe Carlsen, who previously worked on Playdead's Limbo. The game is described as a "minimalistic platformer", using electronic music to create synesthesia as the player makes their way through four different levels, each with its own soundtrack. Its gameplay has been compared to other similar games which involve music synchronization like Sound Shapes and the Bit.Trip series, though with difficult platforming elements comparable to games in the Mega Man series. The game was released for Microsoft Windows, Mac, and Linux in October 2013, on Xbox One in August 2016, on PlayStation 4 and Wii U in September 2016, and Nintendo Switch in January 2020. A release on PlayStation Vita and Nintendo 3DS was planned, but later cancelled.
Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4, known in Japan as Naruto Shippūden: Narutimate Storm 4, is a fighting game developed by CyberConnect2 and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows in February 2016. It is the sixth installment and the final main installment of the Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm series inspired by Masashi Kishimoto's manga Naruto, and the sequel to the 2013 game Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 Full Burst. It was also the first Naruto video games released for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, as well as the first to include Latin American Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese voices in the Western release.
Tetris Ultimate is a puzzle video game developed by American studio SoMa Play and published by Ubisoft. Ubisoft partnered with The Tetris Company to develop the game to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Tetris franchise.
The Escapists is a strategy game developed by Mouldy Toof Studios and following a Steam Early Access release in 2014, was released in 2015 for Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux, Xbox 360, Xbox One and PlayStation 4. It was released on iOS and Android in 2017. A Nintendo Switch version of the game containing all downloadable content was released in 2018. The game was launched on the Epic Games Store on 23 September 2021, with the weekly free game campaign of Epic Games. Players assume the role of an inmate and must escape from prisons of increasing difficulty.
Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes is a puzzle video game developed and published by Canadian studio Steel Crate Games. The game tasks a player with disarming procedurally generated bombs with the assistance of other players who are reading a manual containing instructions. It was designed around virtual reality support, with availability first on Android-driven Samsung Gear VR, with later ports to supported devices on Microsoft Windows, OS X, PlayStation 4, and Linux; though could be played without virtual reality in some cases. An update for the game released in August 2018 removed the virtual reality requirement for these existing systems, as well as included releases for the Nintendo Switch and Xbox One. Non-VR ports for iOS and Android were released in August 2019.
Super Mega Baseball is a baseball video game series developed by the independent studio Metalhead Software in Victoria, BC, Canada and published by EA Sports.
In video games with online gaming functionality, also called cross-compatible play, cross-platform play, crossplay, or cross-play describes the ability of players using different video game hardware to play with each other simultaneously. It is commonly applied to the ability for players using a game on a specific video game console to play alongside a player on a different hardware platform such as another console or a computer. A related concept is cross-save, where the player's progress in a game is stored in separate servers, and can be continued in the game but on a different hardware platform.
Just Dance 2017 is a 2016 dance video game developed and published by Ubisoft. It was unveiled on June 13, 2016, during its E3 press conference as the eighth main installment of the series, and was released in October 2016 for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Wii, Wii U, and Windows; and on March 3, 2017, for Nintendo Switch. The game was the only title of the series to be released on Windows, and was released as a launch title for Nintendo Switch.
Just Dance 2018 is a 2017 dance rhythm game developed and published by Ubisoft. It was unveiled on June 12, 2017, during its E3 press conference as the ninth main installment of the series, and was released in October 2017 for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Wii, Wii U, and Nintendo Switch. This was the last Just Dance game to be released on the PlayStation 3 console, and by extension, the final PlayStation 3 video game to be published by Ubisoft.
The Escapists 2 is a strategy role-playing video game developed by Mouldy Toof Studios and published by Team17. It is the sequel to The Escapists (2015) and it was released worldwide for Linux, macOS, PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One in August 2017. Nintendo Switch and mobile phones versions were released in 2018 and 2019, both iOS and Android respectively.
Assault Android Cactus is a twin-stick shooter developed and published by Witch Beam. The game was released for Microsoft Windows, OS X, and Linux in 2015, PlayStation 4 in 2016, Xbox One in 2017 and Nintendo Switch in 2019. An enhanced version for the Switch was released in 2019 as Assault Android Cactus+.
