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Banking on Direct X 10, the new gaming interface and a bevy of new Direct X 10 hardware, Microsoft will be using the Vista platform to really push Windows Vista computers into true “platform” style.

Including kiosks in the stores, Microsoft will push the PC to feel like a console segment in the store just like Xbox, Playstation and Nintendo do.

Many of the newest Windows games will take full advantage of the next-generation graphics technology in Windows Vista called DirectX® 10. DirectX® 10 will provide an incredibly detailed experience for gamers of every type, and will enable game creators to increase a game’s level of realism, enhancing details and complexity in gaming worlds, apply effects like dynamic lighting and weather, and much more.

While Windows Vista is fully compatible with games and hardware that use older versions of DirectX®, the new DirectX® 10 features are available with a DirectX® 10 compatible graphics card and games designed to take advantage of this new technology. Existing games (most of which were written using DirectX® 9) get world class performance, while unlocking the new generation of gaming graphics with DirectX® 10 optimized games.

From Microsoft, the Games for Windows brand on games means four key things:

• 1) Quality. Games for Windows branded titles undergo extensive testing, and not just by the publisher. Microsoft also invests in quality checking each title to ensure they meet performance and reliability standards.
• 2) Compatibility. Games for Windows branded titles work on Windows XP and Windows Vista based PCs, including both 32 and 64 bit editions. Games for Windows titles that support controllers are also compatible with the Microsoft XBOX 360 controller for Windows, including the XBOX 360 Wireless Gaming Receiver for Windows. They even support widescreen resolutions and more.
• 3) Safety features. You can be confident that any title carrying the Games for Windows brand will support the new parental controls and family settings features in Windows Vista.
• 4) Easy to Play. Games for Windows branded titles are easy to install, find and remove, especially in Windows Vista. Every Games for Windows title appears in the new Windows Vista Games Explorer (no more hunting around the start menu for that game you just installed). And Games for Windows branded titles all offer some form of “easy install”, putting you in the game more quickly.

It may take you awhile to find the games you install on Vista if your still in XP mode, it took me quite a few to find World of Warcraft after I installed it and removed the desktop icon.

I will be curious to see how this unfolds over the next few months, but the biggest key is bringing Live! to the Windows platform for cross system gaming. It will start small with games like Uno and Xbox Live! Arcade games, but the future is being able to play games like Gears of War, The Halo Franchise and Shadowrun.

Shadowrun is slated to be the first cross platform Live! enabled game, including acheivments that will count on both Xbox and Windows.

One last hardware note to mention, Windows Vista also includes native support for the XBOX 360 controller for Windows. Plug in the XBOX 360 controller to your Windows Vista PC’s USB connector, and you’re ready to go. Microsoft is also introducing new gaming accessories for Windows Vista, such as the Xbox 360 Wireless Gaming Receiver for Windows. This lets you take your wireless gaming experiences available for the XBOX 360 and experience them on Windows Vista, including the XBOX 360 wireless controller, wireless headset, and wireless racing wheel.