Digital Trends

At E3, Microsoft announces a fresh take for Xbox Live, with an emphasis on community — and some ideas that sound oddly familiar.

At E3, Microsoft has announced a revamp for its Xbox Live service, with a strong emphasis on the idea of creating communities, and making the games console the heart of a home’s entertainment system.

In many ways they’re chasing the incredibly successful Nintendo Wii, which has diven the casual games market and drawn in millions who would never normally consider gaming – and it shows.

Xbox Live will have avatars to represent gamers – shades of Wii. It will also boast a new social karaoke game, Lips, that would appear to be inspired by Playstation’s Singstar.

But Shane Kim, head of strategy and business development for Xbox, insisted Microsoft was putting its own twist on the ideas, according to the BBC:

"We're not claiming to invent music games, or avatars. But we're innovating by bringing something new to these games, and taking them to the next level.”

Additionally, Xbox Live Prime Time will begin offering quiz shows developed by British company Endemol.