Xbox Experience Release Date Set

During a press event at Tokyo Game Show, Microsoft officially announced the release date for the New Xbox Experience. First revealed at this year's E3 held in July, the New Xbox Experience facelifts the Xbox 360's user interface in addition to adding several new features.

The New Xbox Experience is free and can be downloaded like any other system updates for the Xbox 360. As long as your Xbox 360 is connected to the Internet, the system will automatically notify you on the update.

After the update, the aesthetic changes will become immediately apparent. Microsoft complete redesigned the user interface by replacing the clunky "Blades" system with a more streamlined dashboard. Although it may not be all that original, the new dashboard interface looks more slick and is easier to navigate than the old one.

The interface change cause some concerns initially for Xbox 360 gamers who was using the older Dashboards. Their concerns went away when Microsoft announced that Themes and Gamerpics will carry over from the old dashboard to the new one.

The New Xbox Experience also brings a new redesign for the Guide menu. In addition to being more aesthetically pleasing (it retains the same look as the old dashboard), the new guide is also more user friendly.

The changes for the New Xbox Experience go beyond skin deep. The new update includes Avatars, a virtual customized character similar to the Miis of the Nintendo Wii. In fact, many see it Avatars as a complete rip-off of Miis.

Avatars can be seen from the Friends Channel. This new feature allows you to party up with seven other buddies and invite them to play an online game with you via Live Party.

On the multimedia side, Netflix movies will be available with the New Xbox Experience. With both a Netflix and Xbox Live Gold Account, Xbox 360 users can stream thousands of videos for free.

Perhaps the most exciting new feature in the New Xbox Experience for hardcore gamers is the ability to fully install Xbox 360 games unto the hard drive. Doing so will decrease the loading times. Keep in mind that the game disc still needs to be in the DVD drive of the Xbox 360 in order for the game to load.

The New Xbox Experience is more than a system update for Microsoft. It plays a big part in their plans to change the perception of the Xbox 360 into a more casual friendly machine (as evident by the recent price drop and an avalanche of family friendly titles coming this holiday season).

The New Xbox Experience will have something for both the casual and hardcore demographics to enjoy. The system update will be available on November 19th.