Kurt Shintaku's Blog

If you have an Xbox 360 you’ve seen the hype machine going for this thing there but the Windows version is just getting warmed up.

GameRoom is an utterly phenomenal new download available for both Windows PC’s as well as Xbox 360.  It’s effectively a universal emulator similar to what people know as “MAME” however it takes the concept to a completely new level.  Instead of relegating the concept of running original video games ROMs to the illegal download backrooms of the Internet, GameRoom makes them available in an arcade atmosphere for a mininmal charge AND brings about the competitive element of 80’s style video gaming to today’s PC’s and Xbox’s.

WHY GAMEROOM?
GameRoom is more than just an emulator for video games.  It provides features from old school arcades missing from traditional emulation.

• THE ARCADE ATMOSPHERE
  Remember the sound of hundreds of video games playing at the same time?  The themed deco and the low lights of each gaming room?  How about the artwork along the side of each game cabinet?  The soda and candy machines?  GameRoom brings all of that back in wonderful new environment that allows you to walk through from game to game with your Xbox 360 Avatar.
• XBOX 360 & WINDOWS
  You can play each game on both Xbox360 & on Windows by “buying” the game on each platform for $3, or $5 for both.  Each contributes to your high scores on the game in a central database – and it doesn’t matter what platform you obtained the score on.  It all counts.
• PAUSE OR REWIND
  Playing at work on your Windows PC and it’s time to go home… but you’ve got an awesome score running?  Pause the game!  Then… pick up where you last left off on your Xbox 360 at home!  Or maybe you’re just practicing and your screw up a move because someone called you.  Press the ‘rewind’ button and undo your mistake LIVE in the game!  (Rewinding is only available in practice games – not games that are eligible for high scores… of course.)
• YOUR OWN ARCADE
  Set up your personal arcade with its own decorations and your own games, arranged the way you want!  Obtain that childhood dream of yours of finally having your own arcade and allow friends to come by and play your games FOR FREE one time.  Earn ‘tokens’ to play other un-purchased games for free whenever people come by your arcade to play.  Go to other people’s arcades and play their games as well.
• HIGH SCORE BANNERS
  This is where is gets wicked:  Whenever you get the high score on a video game amongst your friends, a RED banner with your name and high score appears above the video game in the community arcade or your other friend’s arcades – virtually taunting everyone else with your score – and there’s nothing they can do about it until they BEAT your score.  In your arcade, a green banner appears over every arcade game that you own the high score to.  You can even issue challenges to friends to dare them to beat your score.
• BIG TITLES & CROSS-CONSOLE ROMS
  Asteroids Deluxe, Centipede, Tempest, Gravitar, Lunar Lander, Crystal Castles… remember these classics?  They’re up and available right now with all their audio & video.  And games aren’t just available from stand up arcade titles.  Games from the Atari 2600, Mattel’s Intellivision, Colecovision, etc. are all available.

…and the best part:

• THOUSANDS OF ROMS
  Microsoft has contracted with all your favorite game manufacturers (many of which don’t exist any more by the way, and we had to go try to hunt down who the IP owner is of those titles now that they’re long gone) to LEGALLY license their games and port them over to the GameRoom, guaranteeing that you’re playing the original game in it’s entirety.  We’ve even hired experts in these games to run through them to see how they ‘feel’ when played on Xbox 360 & Windows.  The number of titles already licensed by Microsoft number in the 1000’s however we anticipate releasing an average of 1 game per day… for the next several years apparently.

Personally, one of the great things about this title is the quality of the product.  The software was developed by Krome Studios, the same fine people that developed “SceneIt?: Box Office Smash”, the fantastic game for the Xbox 360 that proved this developer’s mettle.  They didn’t mess around SceneIt?:BOS – they produced a very high quality product that got all the nooks & crannies in the game to make it perfect.  GameRoom follows a very similar pattern.  Excellent product, very well produced.

The engine is free, so what are you waiting for?!?

• DOWNLOAD:  Games for Windows:  GameRoom  (FREE!)
  http://www.microsoft.com/games/en-us/GAMES/Pages/gameroom.aspx