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SugarDVD, the adult video service that began streaming onto consoles last year, has confirmed that it will be available on the new Xbox.

We all had a good giggle last year when SugarDVD launched its streaming porn service for the PlayStation 3, but I also predicted at the time that it would be a hit nonetheless. And although I don't have hard numbers to back it up, the fact that it's still available on the PS3 (and the Xbox 360, Wii U, Ouya, iPad, Android and other platforms) speaks for itself, as does the announcement that it'll be coming on the new Xbox, set to be revealed to the world on May 21.

SugarDVD starts at $7.95 for unlimited streaming service and also offers options for DVD rentals through the mail and "Pay-Per-Minute" viewing - because hey, who watches these things for more than a few minutes at a time, am I right? There's even a free trial, for those who aren't 100 percent clear about what's on offer here.

Game consoles these days are "multimedia entertainment delivery systems," and "Any console would benefit from having unlimited HD adult content at the click of a button," said SugarDVD rep Rebecca Bolen. And she's right: You may not be terribly inclined to put your copy of Scale Bustin' Babes 41 on the shelf next to Gears of War 3, but that doesn't mean there's not a big demand for this stuff. Sex sells, and sometimes you just have to mash your button a little bit. It's normal!

As usual, no links will be provided.

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Microsoft is killing off its Points system that's primarily used for its Xbox console. The death of Microsoft Points has been a long time coming, and follows Microsoft's move away from the virtual currency towards cash in Windows 8. Sources familiar with Microsoft's Xbox plans have revealed to The Verge that the software maker plans to replace Points with a new gift card system.


The new gift cards will be offered in a similar way to Apple's iTunes vouchers, allowing Xbox owners to purchase true currency to be used to download content. We're told that normal cash transactions, using credit and debit cards, will also be supported. Microsoft currently offers gift cards in its retail stores, but these can only be used for purchases in brick and mortar stores. The new system will work across Microsoft's various marketplaces, including the Windows Store, Windows Phone Store, and Xbox. We understand that Microsoft is planning to unveil the system as soon as E3, with a planned launch later this year in time for the next-generation Xbox console.

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As we're all getting excited about next-gen consoles, whether that's the PS4 or the next Xbox, it seems not all developers are anticipating them quite as much as the rest of us.


In an interview with games™ Magazine, legendary developers Peter Molyneux and Ian Livingstone discussed the future of the games industry, and how next-gen consoles have their work cut out for them.


"The question is: do I want to cash my current generation in for the new generation?" asked Molyneux. "There's definitely a price sensitivity. They're not the must-have gadgets they used to be."


Livingstone agreed, adding that the "platform of choice for indies and consumers is smartphones and tablets."

"I think we have got to start realising that we're a broad and diverse industry," said Molyneux. "I do think that the console manufacturers have to wake up to this very different world we're in now.

"To keep all those brilliant epic console games," said Molyneux, "to keep them alive and to keep their investment we need the hardware manufacturers to realise that they need to be part of this incredibly nimble and ever changing world.


Molyneux added that he wanted "consoles to be around forever" but that to do this "they've got to be cutting edge and I just hope that's what they are."

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The word "gamer" is regressive. It accepts the portrait of us painted by the mainstream news media, and every time I hear it or read it it actually makes me feel a little sick. I believe in this art form, and I believe in the people who make it. That's why I am so hard on this industry, because I believe that as great as it sometimes is, it can get better.

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But that impression of the game player as a do-nothing, thoughtless drone persists to this day. And that impression is perfectly encapsulated in the word "gamer." That is the word marketing people created to target and describe the basement-dwelling manboy. The person who just wants to play games and cares about nothing else. That person who only exists to shriek with horror and offense on internet forums about something he or she absolutely loves. And yet we have embraced this word with open arms, and proudly display it on our twitter tags. Microsoft even has its Gamer Points

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After the big North American console game crash of 1983, and Nintendo's subsequent rise, you got a new group of people playing games. But popular opinion was now firmly established -- these things were for kids. Then these game players grew up, and they kept playing games. This was viewed as regressive -- people still playing with children's toys. From here, you got games as villainous, creating a Peter Pan syndrome in our youth, or the "basement-dwelling manboy." The impression is that "gamers" are just playing with their childhood toys. In the 90s, there was a mainstream view of the older game player as a deviant.

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If you want to call yourself a gamer, fine. I can't tell you what to do. But if you want to start changing the public perception of the game playing public, so that the definition includes everyone who plays games, I say it's time to retire the word "gamer."

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“There are still many unknown factors, such as pricing, launch dates and quantities, the level of first-party support and, importantly, consumer purchase intent in a world where consoles are no longer just competing with each other, but also with new platforms, such as smartphones and tablets," said Activision CEO Bobby Kotick.

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Former Microsoft Games Studio director and current mobile developer, Peter Molyneux, is anxious to learn more about Microsoft's next Xbox, set to be unveiled on May 21. However, he fears that Microsoft might be playing up the "media hub" capabilities too much and is losing sight of what truly matters in a home console: the games.

"What I would do is double-down on what this console is for: it's for playing games," the perennial promise man told EDGE in a recent interview. "It's for playing console games for this massive, incredibly loyal audience of gamers out there. When they start to mix all this other stuff in there I'm kind of slightly like: 'look, I don't want another way of looking at Facebook.' You know, I've got all the ways of looking at Facebook. I don't want another way of looking at Netflix. Just give me what I've paid my £299 for, and that is to play amazing, incredible computer games."

Ignoring Molyneux's own history of aiming for the stars but coming up woefully short, the man has a point. When Microsoft spends a hefty chunk of its E3 conferences talking up SmartGlass or even Internet Explorer like it's some big thing, or releases a barely functioning Kinect app to order pizza because using a phone or web browser is so exhausting, you have to wonder if the company has completely missed the point. These are supplementary features that don't deserve all the time and attention awarded them. Can the machine play games? Talk about that, please.

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In April of this year, Microsoft won a legal battle that means every Android OEM must pay Microsoft to sell a phone, including LG, HTC and Samsung.

That deal may be one of Microsoft's most profitable, after BGR estimated earnings from 2013 Android sales at $3.4 billion. According to Microsoft, 80% of Android phones sold in the U.S - as well as devices sold around the world - come under the patent deal, which nets Microsoft $8 per Android device.


And that $3.4 billion figure is set to increase exponentially as more Android devices are sold over the coming years. In 2017, Microsoft is expected to make $8.8 billion in revenue from the sale of 1.5 billion Android devices, assuming Microsoft collect royalties from 75% of Android devices. If Microsoft only collected royalties for 50% of all Android devices sold, they'd be inline for a $5.9 billion payout during 2017. This money is essentially free, as Microsoft contributes nothing to the Android ecosystem.


Not only does Microsoft make money from "most" Android devices sold, but also from a massive range of other companies who use the exFAT file format. Microsoft has deals with Sharp (for TVs), Nikon, BMW and Volkswagen, all of which pay Microsoft a substantial yearly revenue.

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