The next step in the evolution of gaming is nearly here, as we're a little less than a week away from the launch of Microsoft's Xbox 360 console. By now, you've probably already heard just about everything there is to know about the system. It'll feature greatly improved graphics (after all, this is the beginning of the HD Era), better sound, more processing power, tons of multimedia capabilities, blah blah blah. We've all heard the sales pitch before, right?

When it comes to the future of Xbox Live, however, there's still a lot we don't know. We've been told a bit about the membership packages, what sort of content we can expect to see in the Live Marketplace, and the games that we'll be able to play against our friends. There are still a few lingering questions, however, particularly about the more technical aspects of the Xbox Live service. Thankfully, Jerry Johnson, the Group Program Manager for Xbox Live, had some spare pre-launch moments to chat with us.

GameSpy: Did Microsoft have to build a new Live infrastructure from the ground up for the Xbox 360, or did the company just expand the existing Live system?
Jerry Johnson: Yes and No. First off, the Xbox Live for Xbox 360 infrastructure is being deployed on completely new hardware and in a new data center. We are growing in numbers of users and features and the service is prepared to meet the demands. All customer and title data is being migrated to the new center during the upgrade. The Xbox Live Service is actually an aggregation of many services working together.


Some of the new 360 services to support things like intelligent matchmaking and Gamer Profiles are completely new and were built from the ground up. A few of the services were migrated to the new infrastructure with minimal work. Many of the services went through significant re-architecture to support adjustments in the features as well as the projected growth through this next generation of the service. Even with all the changes, Xbox users should be confident that they will have a smooth and uninterrupted transition during and after the upgrade.
GameSpy: Is it easier to implement Xbox Live features in Xbox 360 games than in the original Xbox games?
Jerry Johnson: Definitely. Out of the gate all titles get some Live functionality without doing a thing. For things like voice chat and Friends List management, games, and more, all Live users, get it. It doesn't get much easier than that. One of the major things we focused on with Xbox Live for Xbox 360 was not only creating a consistent user experience, but taking some of the more system like features and building them for the games. So not only do users now have consistent ways to interact with some of the Live system features, the games don't have to do anything to get these features - they're built into the experience.