Microsoft"s upcoming XGD3 game format, to be used within newer Xbox 360 games, is apparently incompatible with certain models of Xbox. To combat this, one Reddit user has reportedly received an email from Microsoft promising to provide him with a new slim Xbox 360 and a year"s worth of Xbox Live subscription.
Avery Penn, the lucky recipient, was at first skeptical, until a tweet from an official Microsoft account confirmed it as an official email. "I"ve placed my order for a Flash drive at Amazon so I can back up my existing 360"s hard drive and when that arrives I"ll put the gears in motion," Penn said, "I don"t care if their next console falls flat on its ass, MS" customer service just inspired me to carry on buying Microsoft products." According to the email, Microsoft were able to detect the fault over Xbox Live automatically.
The new format, which has been in beta testing since April, allows for developers to use an extra 1GB of disk space, as well as improved anti-piracy features. How this is achieved is unclear, though it seems the methods employed may raise issues for some owners. The update is scheduled to go live in separate "waves" to avoid any problems, starting from May 19th. The update will also include PayPal support and multilingual Kinect voice commands.