Xbox 720, Xbox Loop -- whatever Microsoft ends up calling it, that hot rod of a console looks to be on deck for a late fall 2013 release. According to IGN's sources, this successor to the Redmond gaming throne is purported to pack a GPU based on AMD's 6000 series of chips and will boast silicon circuitry that catapults its performance past Nintendo's upcoming Wii U by 20 percent. If you're looking for a more apples to green X's comparison, this next-gen console's graphical capabilities are also reportedly six times greater than its 360 progenitor. While MS is likely holding back its monstrous new platform for a big E3 reveal, it appears the company's still whittling down its spec list, with dev kits to be issued later this August. No mention was made of its rumored Kinect 2 integration, but we're more than certain that famous hacking tech will be front and center.

Those in the preview program may have already gotten an early taste of YouTube on the Xbox 360, but everyone else can now download that and more. Microsoft announced today that the first big wave of video services for the console are available in the Apps Marketplace, including Verizon FiOS TV for US users and Rogers on Demand for those in Canada. Those are joined by a number of other video and entertainment services including iHeartRadio and MSNBC.com (both US only), TMZ (US and Canada), and MSN Video (in Canada and some other countries, but not the US). Those outside of North America also have a few options of their own, including SBS On Demand for Australian users, Blinkbox in the UK, RTVE for Spain, and MUZU TV for a number of European countries. As for the remaining services, including the likes of Comcast and HBO Go, Microsoft is still only saying that they'll roll out later in December and in early 2012.

The "Call of Duty" franchise is a perennial blockbuster, with more than 65 million units sold so far in the United States and hordes of fans lining up each fall to buy the latest installment of the war-simulation video game. Now, Activision Publishing will find out whether fans who are accustomed to dropping $60 on a new "CoD" game each year will also cough up an extra $50 to keep their game content fresh.

The much-hyped "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3" is set to arrive in stores on Tuesday. As usual, players get inside the helmets of soldiers -- in this case, fighting a near-futuristic global war against Russian forces who have invaded multiple countries, including the United States.

Every bullet counts. At least, that’s would EA would like you to believe about their recent Battlefield 3 beta. The company tallied up several interesting bits of info gathered from its 8,125,310 users, and discovered you could build 3,900 jets from the brass casing fired from the virtual guns. There’s a host of other strange facts, like the ratio of Battlefield 3 beta kills to all beer in the world.

Microsoft’s latest announcement may be of interest to folks looking for gift ideas or anyone who has been waiting for the perfect time to buy a new Xbox 360. The two new bundles revealed on Major Nelson’s blog are tailored to different types of gamers: those who like a some motion in their gaming, and those who enjoy shooting aliens and leveling up.

One bundle includes a 250 GB Xbox 360, Halo: Reach, Fable III, and three months of Xbox Live Gold for $299. The other also has a 250 GB 360 and three months of Xbox Live Gold, but swaps out the core games with a Kinect, Kinect Adventures, and Carnival Games: Monkey See Monkey Do.

Check out intense gameplay action from each of the nine multiplayer maps available along with the very first glimpses from our upcoming expansion pack Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand.

Since its introduction, Microsoft's second generation Xbox 360 has had nary a stand-alone HDD option aside from the company's proprietary 250GB drive, priced at a spendy $130 -- this despite those occasional limited edition consoles packing a massive 320GBs of space. That's soon to change, however, as Major Nelson's announced a new 320GB HDD for the 360, set to be available this month. Possibly in an attempt to sweeten the deal, this platter maintains the 250GB's $130 cost of adoption, and comes pre-loaded with Lego Star Wars III: The Clone Wars (sadly though, no Lego love for Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Slovakia or Japan, where the game won't be available). Notably, rather than dropping the 250GB drive's price, it's now curiously absent from the Xbox website (and we won't hold our breath waiting for it to pop up again either). Nothing like a good ol' fashioned pricing premium for official Xbox storage, right?

In Battlefield 3, the battlefield is destructible. This means you can annihilate buildings, demolish cover, and even shoot through walls to eliminate that guy crouching behind the third floor windowsill.  Check out this video!

 

East Africa, 2015. Attached to an international peace-keeping force, Colonel Bishop leads a small squadron in operations to suppress an insurgent rebel force. The operation, however, rapidly escalates as Bishop and his company come face-to-face with the rebels' devastatingly powerful experimental weapon.
Tearing its way through the desert states and up into the frozen North, the struggle to control the weapon ignites a devastating global conflict.

Dramatic and realistic storyline – Written by New York Times Best-Selling military author Jim DeFelice, players will be immersed in an enthralling war drama spanning multiple real-world locations

Steel carnage – Incredible destructive detail and visual effects for every explosive attack, with aircraft shredded, enemy troops annihilated, buildings shattered, and machines bleeding their oil

All-new aircraft to pilot – Experience split-second manoeuvring and positioning, pinpoint targeting, hover attacks and other diverse gameplay with the introduction of the Attack Helicopter, Door Gunner, Bomber and Gunship

Revolutionary "Close-Range Assault" system – Delivering high-speed acrobatics, dizzying one-on-one encounters, satisfyingly visceral low-altitude aeronautics, and high-flying death from above

ACE COMBAT online reinvented – Completely reworked online modes, with new features including the new "Close-Range Assault" system"

Halo 4 is the next blockbuster installment in the iconic franchise that's shaped entertainment history and defined a decade of gaming. Set in the aftermath of Halo 3, Master Chief returns to confront his own destiny and face an ancient evil that threatens the fate of the entire universe. Halo 4 marks the start of a new trilogy that begins with its release in 2012.