'Xbox Live Tournaments' coming with Virgin partnership

Microsoft is teaming up with Virgin Gaming to offer Xbox Live Tournaments, coming sometime this year.

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As we prepare for the bevy of announcements to come from Microsoft in a few hours, it seems that one of its partners has jumped the gun and made its announcement a bit early. Microsoft is partnering with Virgin Gaming to open "Xbox Live Tournaments" for Gold subscribers. The new feature will roll out sometime later this year.

The announcement promises skill-based events, with both free and paid-entry tournaments. It also mentions "leading publishers," so this won't just be relegated to first-party titles like Halo and Gears. Naturally, the tournament will include prizes for the winners. The functionality is likely to come through a dedicated app. Microsoft will likely share a few more details at its press conference.

"The launch of the Xbox LIVE Tournament service, powered by Virgin Gaming will bring a wide variety of competitive and casual tournament options to Xbox LIVE subscribers," said Xbox Live general manager Alex Garden, in the announcement. "Our goal is to deliver a play experience that makes tournaments fun and accessible, in a way that resonates with both the core and casual Xbox gamer, and we've found a partner that shares that same vision."

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  • reply
    June 4, 2012 8:30 AM

    Steve Watts posted a new article, 'Xbox Live Tournaments' coming with Virgin partnership.

    Microsoft is teaming up with Virgin Gaming to offer Xbox Live Tournaments, coming sometime this year.

    • reply
      June 4, 2012 9:27 AM

      Let me guess: Only for the US.

    • reply
      June 5, 2012 7:46 AM

      It's really cool to finally see this level of integration for competitive gaming. Gives gamers access to tournaments where they're already playing rather than leaving the console to find and setup matches. Should be good for growing the community!

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