During this summer’s E3, the world’s most important annual gathering for everything that is interactive entertainment, it was mentioned that Microsoft’s Xbox Live would soon integrate with Facebook, Twitter and Last.fm. This would be an important expansion for Microsoft, as they can broaden the entertainment depth of the Xbox as well as create an even more involving product.
Being an avid gamer myself, I think it would be a truly great feature to have my achievements and online status broadcast to my friends lists in order to find friends to play with, and even peruse my social networking profiles from the comfort of my couch (even if my Macbook is next to me).
The beta is set to drop later this month, but Joystiq and Engadget managed to get a chance to preview these new integrations before the general public. Their first impressions seemed generally positive and for the most part the user interface received favorable reviews.
The Facebook integration seemed to be an easy segue from the already uncomplicated and useful photo album feature offered on the Xbox. The browsing interface of Facebook, was said to be responsive, had great load times and with the ability to display full screen images, there is a definite appeal to check your friends photo albums on your Xbox.
A new feature was also mentioned for Facebook where you can find friends on your social networks that have Xbox Live accounts. This will make finding and playing with friends a breeze and break up some of the monotony when playing with random strangers. The ability to auto update your status about games you are currently playing will not be ready on launch of the social network integrations, but in the future it will offer some great perks and variety for gamers.
The Twitter and Last.fm integration was described as bare bones, but a nevertheless worthwhile way to provide status updates, see updates from those you’re following, and also see trending topics and perform searches. It is kind of pointless in a way though, because the Xbox has no browser and cannot follow Twitpics or any other outbound links.
The Last.fm integration will allow you to listen to your stations, create new ones, skip tracks, add favorites, and get more information on artists and tracks. You cannot play music in the background while playing games though, so it’s more of feature you will use while the Xbox is idle, although welcomed by many users who can take advantage of the sound systems associated with their home theater.
I’m eagerly awaiting this arrival and will let you know how I fare with all the new features, gadgets and gizmos. Oh, and if you have a desire to beat up, score on, or kill an intern: my gamer tag is gr1m3y on Xbox Live and grimey– on PSN. Click the banners below to add me.
