Origen Takes Gamers To The Mojave Desert, USA

London, 8 November, 2005 - The internet has been buzzing with rumours about Origen since those white rabbits, Boss and Didier, hopped into our lives at www.origenxbox360.com on 27 September. So what exactly is the promised Gamers' Paradise and when will it take place?

Microsoft today revealed that Gamers' Paradise is a massive two-day party, in an undisclosed location in the Mojave desert, in the United States. Gamers from around the world will gather there to celebrate the launch of the next-generation-defining video game and entertainment system, Xbox 360. The huge event will feature hundreds of gaming stations, live entertainment and around-the-clock gaming at a venue immersed in the Xbox 360 experience. It begins on 20 November when the sun sets on the desert horizon and ends at 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday, 22 November - the official launch date for Xbox 360 in North America.

Among the thousands of partygoers will be the winners of a series of competitions hosted on www.origenxbox360.com. The winners from around Europe will be flown to the US where they will receive rock-star VIP treatment including a trip in a private jet from Santa Monica airport directly to the event.

"Xbox 360: Zero Hour" will also host thousands of other gamers from around the world including those who are invited to make the pilgrimage to the Mojave Desert and witness the dawning of the next generation of gaming.

"Xbox 360: Zero Hour" is expected to be a true gaming paradise with hundreds of Xbox 360 gaming stations featuring high-definition monitors and digital sound. All that attend will get the chance to play the full Xbox 360 launch line-up along with other highly anticipated games that will ship this year and into 2006 from 2K Games, 2K Sports, Activision, Bethesda, Capcom, Electronic Arts, Microsoft Game Studios, Namco, Sega, Square-Enix, Tecmo, THQ, and Ubisoft. Among other gaming highlights, attendees will be the first ever to play a 32-player match of "Perfect Dark Zero" over Xbox Live, have access to the full Xbox Live Arcade line-up and witness demonstrations and sneak peeks of hotly-anticipated non-titles including live game play of "Gears of War".

In addition to gaming nirvana, attendees will enjoy live entertainment and music, including a "Kaiju Big Battel" (www.kaiju.com) and a musical performance by raucous rock band from Southern California, "Louis XIV.". Attendees will also receive exclusive event give-aways such as "Zero Hour" Xbox 360 console faceplates.

"Our goal with the party is to reward the gamer by creating the ultimate Xbox 360 oasis," said Peter Moore, Microsoft corporate vice president, Worldwide Marketing and Publishing for Xbox, who will be celebrating at the event along with J Allard, Microsoft corporate vice president and chief XNA architect, and leading game developers and members of the Xbox team. "Gamers at 'Zero Hour' will have bragging rights to say 'I spent over 24 hours at the epicentre of the gaming universe, I was among the first generation of the next generation of gaming.'"

European gamers who missed out on the opportunity to get the ultimate, luxury VIP access through the Origen competitions still have the chance to attend this exclusive event. Dedicated gamers willing to fund their own pilgrimage to the Mojave desert, can obtain one of just 3,000 tickets to the event by registering on selected Xbox fansites from 10 November. Although they won't get the same VIP access, the 3,000 global registrants will attend the same party as the European Origen VIP winners and the VIP winners from the US "Hex 168" campaign to be the first gamers in the world to fully experience all that Xbox 360 has to offer.

About Xbox and Xbox 360

Microsoft revolutionized the gaming industry with the November 2001 launch of Xbox (http://www.xbox.com), its first-generation video games and entertainment system, now sold in 26 countries around the world. This holiday season Microsoft debuts its next-generation system, Xbox 360, in Europe, Japan and North America, to be followed by availability in Australia, Colombia, Hong Kong, Korea, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore and Taiwan in 2006. Xbox 360 is the most powerful video game and entertainment system, delivering the best games, the next generation of the premier Xbox Live online gaming service, and unique digital entertainment experiences that revolve around you.

About Xbox Live

Xbox Live continues to transform and unite Xbox game communities worldwide, with a presence in 24 countries worldwide and a global community of more than 2 million members. As the first and only global, unified online console games service, Xbox Live offers world-class games, intelligent matchmaking, tournaments, unique programming and integration with Xbox.com. More information can be found online at http://www.xbox.com/live.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

For more information:

Marie-Claire Suter

UK PR Manager - Xbox & PC Games

Tel: +44 (0) 118 909 4599

Email: i-maries@microsoft.com