It’s time to officially say farewell to HD DVD. Following the mass shifting to Blu-ray support from major retailers and movie studios as of late and Toshiba’s announcement this past week that it was ceasing development and marketing of all HD DVD players, Microsoft has now pulled the plug on the manufacturing of HD DVD add-on players for the Xbox 360 as well. Here is the official statement Microsoft sent me earlier this evening:
As a result of recent decisions made by Toshiba, Hollywood studios, and retailers, Microsoft plans to withdraw from HD DVD. Xbox will no longer manufacture new HD DVD players for the Xbox 360, but we will continue to provide standard product and warranty support for all Xbox 360 HD DVD Players in the market. As we stated earlier, we do not believe this decision will have any material impact on the Xbox 360 platform or our position in the marketplace. HD DVD is one of the several ways we offer a high definition experience to consumers and we will continue to give consumers the choice to enjoy digital distribution of high definition movies and TV shows directly to their living room, along with playback of the DVD movies they already own.
So I guess we can finally say for certain that Blu-ray has won the HD format wars. It’ll be interesting to see what happens next as far as the possibility of a Blu-ray add-on for the 360 and better Blu-ray content in general now that it has come out on top.
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Following up on last year’s Blu-ray and HD DVD remakes of Dragon’s Lair, Digital Leisure is now set to release an HD-remastered Space Ace to the two rival disc formats, both of which will hit retail on April 8th. Both versions will share much of the same content — full-length picture-in-picture commentary, interviews, 1080p visuals, 5.1 surround sound, etc. — however, the HD DVD version will feature internet-based functionality as part of an exclusive “Leisure Online” mode. Not quite sure I get why this content is only on the waning HD DVD, especially with Blu-ray recently beginning to assert itself as the dominant format, but it’s no biggie.
Trailer, screenshots, box art and feature lists after the break.
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The Blu-ray disc includes the following special features:
– Interviews with game creators Don Bluth, Gary Goldman & Rick Dyer
– Picture in Picture video commentary from the creators
– Viewing Mode Option: Widescreen (16:9) or Anamorphic (4:3) video playback
– Watch Mode – Watch Don Bluth’s stunning animation without playing
– Subtitled: English, French, Spanish, Italian and German
The HD DVD includes the following special features:
– “Leisure Online” – A unique online player experience that includes “Head 2 Head” gaming – an incredible first for the HD DVD format.
– Interviews with game creators Don Bluth, Gary Goldman & Rick Dyer
– Picture in Picture video commentary from the creators
– Viewing Mode Option: Widescreen (16:9) or Anamorphic (4:3) video playback
– Watch Mode – Watch Don Bluth’s stunning animation without playing
– Subtitled: English, French, Spanish, Italian and German
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In a clear attempt to fight back against Blu-ray in the ongoing HD format wars, Microsoft has announced at Comic-Con today that as of August 1st it is cutting the price of the Xbox 360 HD DVD Player add-on from $199 to $179 (US only). Anyone who purchases a 360 HD DVD Player at its new price between August 1st and September 30th will also be able to take advantage of a special mail-in offer and choose five free HD DVD movies (from a selection of 15) to go with their new player. A $20 price cut doesn’t seem like all that much, but hey, any drop in price is always a good thing. The five free movies is a great deal too, though I’m not sure which 15 movies will be available to choose from…
Along with the HD DVD Player price cut, Microsoft has also announced plans for exclusive Xbox Live Marketplace content relating to the HD DVD versions of 300 and Heroes: Season 1. For starters, 300 will be available on demand in HD via Xbox Live starting August 14th. In addition, the pilot episode of Heroes will be made available for free download for a limited time in advance of the Heroes: Season 1 HD DVD boxed set’s official release date. Trailers, teaser scenes and other promotional materials for Heroes: Season 1 will be released as well.
]]>“With the price reduction to $179, the Xbox 360 HD DVD Player continues to be the most affordable way to enjoy high definition,” said Jeff Bell, corporate vice president of Global Marketing, Interactive Entertainment Business, Entertainment and Devices Division at Microsoft. “From the beginning, we set out to offer Xbox 360 owners an unrivaled high-definition experience, with a choice of optical discs on the HD DVD format and digital downloads through Xbox LIVE Marketplace — both of which have a selection of the best content Hollywood has to offer. Today’s announcements around ‘300’ and ‘Heroes: Season 1’ are great examples of how we believe HD content can be offered to consumers.”
Following a successful HD-remastered Blu-ray re-release of Dragon’s Lair, Digital Leisure has now announced release details regarding the upcoming HD DVD version (trailer below). Dirk the Daring’s classic arcade adventure will be available in HD DVD format for standalone players and the Xbox 360 add-on drive on August 15th, featuring full 1080p HD video, interviews with Dragon’s Lair creators Don Bluth, Gary Goldman and Rick Dyer, and full length video commentary.
“I’m amazed at the high definition video.” says Don Bluth, one of the original creators of Dragon’s Lair. “Finally, the game looks as good as it did on film. And, the 5.1 audio sounds even better than original. Now whether you have Blu-ray or HD DVD you can enjoy this terrific, high definition version of Dragon’s Lair.”
Digital Leisure will also be releasing Space Ace and Dragon’s Lair II: Time Warp in HD DVD (and Blu-ray) format later on down the road. We’ll keep you posted as additional info comes along.