Xbox Live surpasses 50 million downloads from Xbox Live Marketplace, doubling the 25 million mark hit just three months ago, with gamers logging more than 2 billion hours online to experience online multiplayer gaming, Xbox Live Arcade titles, the latest game demos, movie trailers and music videos.

Better late than never, Ubisoft has released a singleplayer demo for last year's Far Cry Instincts Predator on Xbox Live Marketplace (not available in Asia). Far Cry Instincts Predator includes two games in one – all new Far Cry Instincts Predator content, as well as the original Far Cry Instincts.

Emergent Game Technologies today announced that it has launched the Gamebryo Element, Emergent's flexible, full-featured game engine and toolkit, for use by Xbox Live Arcade developers through a special licensing model.

Xbox Live members in all regions can now download the arcade classic 'Time Pilot' from the Xbox Live Arcade. You can download a free demo of the game, or purchase the full game for 400 points.

Step up as the lead blocker to create a hole, and then take control of the tailback and smash through, overpower, or slash away from would-be tacklers as you fight for every yard. Innovative rushing controls give you a game-breaking ground attack featuring all-new jukes, cutbacks, and the distinct running styles of your favorite backs. EA released a Madden NFL 07 demo on Xbox Live Marketplace, allowing you to play the Seattle Seahawks vs. Pittsburgh Steelers in one minute quarters.

Microsoft has released a new backwards compatibility update, now available over Xbox Live. This free update adds 48 more titles to the original Xbox games that can be played on your X360, bringing to total to almost 300. Titles of note are Burnout 3: Takedown, Counter-Strike, Call of Cthulhu, The Suffering, X-Men II, MK: Deception and plenty more ...

Starting today, you can download Battlestar Galactica: The Story So Far available FREE to all connected X360 gamers in the U.S. Courtesy of the SCI FI Channel, Battlestar Galactica: The Story So Far is a one-hour recap special incorporating footage from the original SCI FI miniseries and the show's previous two seasons. To check it out head to Xbox Live Marketplace today.

Xbox Live Arcade Unplugged provides a taste of the Xbox Live Arcade experience for gamers everywhere, with a great collection of new and original casual games that are fun, engaging, and easy to learn and pick up and play.

Today Ubisoft announced that Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter was the top single-player and multi-player game on the Xbox Live online gaming service worldwide. Figures are based on the number of unique users during calendar year second quarter 2006, according to Microsoft. Additionally, Ubisoft recorded year-over-year sales growth of 81 percent in July on the U.S. market according to NPD.

Being patient might help you win a hand at poker, but it certainly won’t help you get ‘Texas Hold ‘em’ for free. All Xbox 360 gamers who log on to Xbox Live Marketplace between 1am Pacific Wednesday, August 23 through 1am Pacific Friday, August 25 can download ‘Texas Hold ‘em’ for free.

SouthEnd has been green lit by Microsoft to develop a new Xbox 360 Live Arcade title based on a SouthEnd IP. More information about this title will be revealed as launch gets closer, but speculations are that SouthEnd might be working on an XBLA version of its 2002 multiplayer enabled, although splitscreen only, Xbox brutal fighting sport title DeathRow.

It seems at least one X360 fan got lucky as he was able to purchase Microsoft's Xbox Live Vision camera, a month ahead of its scheduled Sept. 19 release date, at his local Toys 'R' Us. The package includes a headset, the camera, 1 month of Live Gold, and a registration key for fan-fave Uno. Whether this is a across the board occurance at Toys 'R' Us is not yet known, as it looks now this is merely a stocking error, but it does mean the cameras are already in stores, albeit get in the back.

Microsoft announced today that it will offer a fully featured Texas Hold 'em on Xbox Live Arcade, for free, for the first 48 hours after launch on Wednesday, August 23 at 0800 GMT (1AM PST) through Friday, August 25, after which it will be available for 800 Microsoft Points.

To promote season three of Battlestar Galactica, which begins Friday, Oct. 6, Sci-fi channel will be airing a one hour story-recap special called Battlestar Galactica: The Story So Far on August 13th. Narrated by Laura Roslin, the Secretary of Education turned President turned resistance leader on Cylon-occupied New Caprica. Learn about humanity's costly struggle to survive against its deadliest enemy. Microsoft announced that the one hour special will be available on Xbox Live, although no date, or price, were revealed.

Pac-Man may be celebrating 25 years, but the timeless game still plays like its 1981. Today classic becomes the new next-gen with the arrival of Pac-Man on Xbox Live Arcade. The little yellow pellet-eater from Namco/Bandai is the latest retro title to debut as part of the Xbox Live Arcade Wednesdays program and is packed with tons of X360 exclusive features.

The latest issue of Official Xbox Magazine has revealed what Microsoft has in store for us on Xbox Live Arcade through September 6, 2006. Konami seems to represent heavily with 3-4 titles, and that does not include the hinted-at Castlevania. On deck are: Texas Hold 'em (Aug. 16), Time Pilot (Aug. 23), Scramble (Aug. 30) and Lumines Live! (Sept 6).

Dead Rising is survival horror game, in which you play Frank West, a freelance photographer who has made his way to an idyllic, but zombies ridden, suburban town to get his hands on the scoop. Capcom has released a 1gig demo, featuring about 15 minutes of gameplay, but is not available in Mexico, Germany, Australia, New Zealand or Asia.

The September issue of EGM claims that Konami's classic PSOne RPG title Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, known for its nonlinear level design, may be making an appearance on Xbox Live Arcade. Rumors are that the 9 years old SOTN, scheduled for Q1 2007, is around 480mb, which might indicate that Microsoft has eased the initial 50mb restrictions for XBLA titles.

As we mentioned yesterday, Street Fighter II: Hyper Fighting hits Xbox Live Arcade today, Wednesday, August 2. The old-school classic from Capcom stays true to its roots with an amazing retro feel, and brings multiplayer action to the classic title for the first time.

Tomorrow Xbox Live members will be able to download Capcom's Street Fighter II Hyper Fighting Arcade title from the Marketplace for 800 points. It will be available in all Xbox Live regions except Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Singapore or Taiwan.

An evolution in open world gaming, Saints Row provides an unprecedented amount of freedom to experience the game as the player sees fit. The game, based in the fictional urban surroundings of Still Water, is action adventure with its core as a third-person shooter. THQ has released a 900mb singleplayer demo, now freely downloadable on Xbox Live.

A 590mb demo for Phantagram's Ninety-Nine Nights, a fantasy game that mixes action with strategy elements, is now available on Xbox Live Marketplace, in all regions. You control a massive army that is challenged by hordes of enemies, in a multi-angle scenario, where you can assume the role of various characters and see the game world from totally different points of view.

Rockstar has released a demo for its recently launched Table Tennis game, allowing you to try out single-player and LAN modes. However, what the demo does not make clear is that it is time-limited and will expire by the end of August and no longer work, even if you had previously downloaded it. At the same time, the demo will also disappear off Xbox Live itself and will no longer be available for download.

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesdays continue with the launch of 'Galaga', one of the most popular retro arcade games of all time. Originally released in 1981 by Namco, the addictive action shooter marks its 25 year anniversary with a next generation debut on Xbox Live Arcade on July 26 for 400 Microsoft points ($5).

NinjaBee announced that Cloning Clyde has been released on Microsoft’s Xbox Live Arcade, available on, and designed for, the Xbox 360. Cloning Clyde is a 3-D side-scrolling adventure, featuring crazy action-oriented puzzle solving and hectic multiplayer gameplay.