More than 7.3 million copies of “Halo 3” have flown off store shelves, upwards of 500 million hours of frag-tacular online gameplay have been logged on Xbox LIVE and the Heroic Map Pack has been downloaded by 1 million plus gamers and counting. But it’s not over yet… Microsoft and Bungie today announced that April 15 will mark the release of the next wave of “Halo 3” downloadable content. Available exclusively on Xbox LIVE Marketplace for 800 Microsoft Points, the Legendary Map Pack will introduce three new maps to the title’s award-winning multiplayer experience, Ghost Town, Avalanche, and one map yet to be revealed. And with the addition of some exciting Forge options, fans can explore new ways to create and share their custom “Halo 3” content.

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Ever since the release of Halo 2, it’s been a dream of ours to have MLG settings incorporated into Matchmaking. There just isn’t anyone out there who loves to play Halo as much as the MLG staff and our community, and seeing MLG inside the game has always been one of the things we hoped for most. So you can understand how excited we are to see that dream come true: In just a few weeks, Bungie will be launching a new MLG Playlist in Halo 3, replacing the existing Team Hardcore Playlist.

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While certain games will receive praise from all varieties of hardcore gamers, the allure of competitive gaming is something that tends to be hit or miss. Even gamers who love the games that are the focus of the various tournaments may not be interested in watching strangers play. This is due to a variety of reasons, including lack of media exposure for the gaming leagues and a failure of the various professional circuits to truly differentiate themselves from one another. Things might be changing, however, if recent announcements have been any indication. Major League Gaming has signed several key sponsors and partnerships for the coming 2008 season. If its momentum continues, it could well emerge as the number one competitive gaming league in North America.

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More top-selling arcade titles available Wednesday at discounted prices as they become Xbox LIVE Arcade Hits. Whether you’re avoiding spring cleaning or revving up for spring break, be sure to check out the latest Arcade Hits coming to Xbox LIVE Arcade on Wednesday, including “Assault Heroes” and “DOOM.” The Arcade Hits program offers some of the best-selling Xbox LIVE Arcade games at permanently reduced prices. They can be found within the Xbox LIVE Arcade section of the new Game Store, making it easier than ever to build a library of great downloadable games.

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D3Publisher of America, Inc. today revealed a robust new expansion pack for critically acclaimed Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords for Xbox LIVE Arcade. Code-named "Puzzle Quest: 1.5" internally to reflect its tremendous amount of content, the expansion pack includes four new Hero professions, scores of new spells to cast and items to collect, challenging new quests, monsters and bosses and much more including the introduction of a new archenemy, Antharg, the Lord of Plague.

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Disruptive Media Publisher, the leading provider of lifestyle customization content (gamer pictures and themes) for Xbox LIVE on Xbox 360, today announced the official launch of the DP Content Creation Challenge. This marks the first time that individual artists have had the opportunity to get their unique content published on Xbox LIVE Marketplace as downloadable Xbox 360 themes, which can then be purchased by the over 10+ million members using Microsoft Points. The contest kicks off on March 17, 2008, and runs until April 28, 2008.

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For February’s NPD reporting period, Xbox 360 remained in a supply constrained situation.  The situation is improving and we are confident consumers will soon be able to find the Xbox 360 SKU they seek, in time for the launch of “Grand Theft Auto IV”, which we expect to be one of the biggest titles of the year with huge impact on the Xbox 360 platform. What makes a winning platform? It’s more than console sales. It’s about consoles + content + community. Below is a complete picture of a healthy console ecosystem, and how Xbox 360 is contributing:

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