In 
the Xbox universe, there’s “Halo” —and there’s everything else. The venerable franchise has sold more than 60 million copies to date and shows no signs of slowing down.
While the Master Chief and his crew cast a big shadow, Microsoft has actually put together a strong catalog of other go-to franchises along the way, including “Gears of War” and “Fable”. In late October, it published its latest effort to build another franchise: “Sunset Overdrive”.
“Minecraft” 
is the videogame world’s equivalent of lightning in a bottle—an indie gaming sensation that grew organically, eventually becoming one of the industry’s biggest franchises. It was a game that opened the doors for several other independent developers, who, in turn, brought a new burst of creativity to the industry.
So Monday’s news that corporate behemoth Microsoft was buying Mojang, the developer of “Minecraft,” for $2.5 billion might seem an odd fit to some, but it could be a key strategic move for Microsoft.
The 
second quarter – those days that run from April 1 through June 30 – don’t tend to be big saleswise for video game companies. But this year (at Microsoft, at least) seems to be an exception.
The company, as part of its quarterly earnings statement Tuesday, announced it had sold 1.1 million Xboxes in that period – about 100,000 more than it did in the same time a year ago.
Call 
it a good news/bad news situation for Microsoft.
The good news: sales of the Xbox One “more than doubled” in June, compared to the May figures. The bad news: It’s becoming increasingly clear that no one cares about Kinect, which was the console’s big differentiator this generation.
Sony’s 
PlayStation 4 may have gained the early lead in console sales, but a new promotion, aimed at a subset of Xbox 360 owners, is offering a pretty compelling incentive to upgrade to the Xbox One.
NeoGAF user BeforeU rooted out the promotion, which offers a code for a $75 promotional credit to select users who buy either an Xbox One or Xbox One bundle. The offer is apparently appearing onscreen for select Xbox 360 owners when they turn their Internet-connected systems on.
E3 
is a hydra. There’s so much going on at any given moment that it’s hard to keep up with everything being shown, talked about and hinted at.
While the show is closed to the public, Nintendo once again offered fans the chance to play demos of “Super Smash Bros.” at over 100 Best Buy locations around the U.S. And while that may gave fans a taste, it hardly filled their appetites.
While it’s impossible to fully showcase E3’s eccentricities, here are a few snapshots of the industry’s annual party/trade show to give you a taste.
In 
theory, the idea sounds fine. Get a personable, well-liked young star to promote the Xbox One, and, even though you’ve unbundled Kinect from the system, feature it prominently in ads to keep awareness high.
In practice, though, Microsoft’s latest Xbox One commercial is driving current Xbox One owners crazy as it tries to sell the system to people who don’t have one yet.
The 
E3 after a console hardware launch is always an awkward one for investors.
The excitement that surrounds new game systems often has a sweeping effect on share prices of companies in the video game space—but it’s hard to get as worked up about game announcements the following year.
The 
worst part about E3 is the waiting.
After ingesting a flood of information for hundreds of titles and watching their excitement levels rise to critical peaks, players now must sit back and be patient. Some of the games won’t be out for months. Others could take years.
Figuring out which will top sales charts is always a dangerous exercise. Publishers show carefully controlled demos of small segments of their games, specifically designed to pique interest. It might be fun in a five-to-10-minute microburst, but truly terrible after an hour of gameplay.
As we do each year, we’ve compiled a list of the games most likely to perform well when they hit stores. That doesn’t mean they’ll be critical smashes, but they’re likely to connect with today’s gaming audience.
Here’s what turned our head at this year’s E3.
Microsoft 
has long painted the Xbox One as a system that’s about more than just video games, saying home entertainment is equally important.
To underline that, a year ago it announced a live-action “Halo”-themed series produced by Steven Spielberg—and has since revealed a fairly extensive lineup.
But the division has undergone changes, and now original video content is being de-emphasized.
Chris Morris: Journalist 