xbox 360 avatar awards

New Xbox 360 items available in the Avatar Marketplace, future content also revealed today

A few hours ago Microsoft released a whole truckload of new items on the Avatar Marketplace.The new content will be available to all Xbox LIVE members when the new dashboard update goes system wide on August 11th, 2009.

Members who signed up for the preview of the new content will find the new items available for immediate purchase. Details about the preview program can be found in last month’s overview article, fohnd here, including a link to Microsoft Connect, the go-to place for all Microsoft related previews.

The new content includes various new shirts, headwear, watches, and even new props. Most of the items are additional HALO content, while others are from Tokidoki , including two new wristwatches. The new props are two Tokidoki skateboards, rounding out the currently available prop number to eight.

While these are all nice new additions, gamers will be happy to know that Microsoft has also issued a press release including details about future content that will soon be available in the Avatar Marketplace.

The first round of upcoming branded content includes items from companies such as Adidas, Quiksilver, Roxy, and the previously mentioned Tokidoki. Game brands will include BioShock 2, Gears of War 2, Splinter: Cell Conviction, and Star Wars Clone Wars: Republic Heroes. Games with content already available include Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, Fable II, and The Secret of Monkey Island.

Also in the announcement is news that the first game to receive Awardable Content will be Splosion Man, who will be giving away a free logo t-shirt to those gamers who earn it by playing the game. The Awards program is certainly going to appeal to a lot of players who have been hoping for something more than just gamer points as a reward for all their "hard work". No further titles offering awards have been announced just yet, but they are certainly on the way!

Microsoft has also released the names of the first round of Games on Demand titles. This new channel will apparently be updated weekly to include full Xbox 360 games for download directly to the console.

The first round of titles include:

Assassin's Creed (Ubisoft)
LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga (LucasArts)
Rainbow Six Vegas (Ubisoft)
BioShock (2K Games)
Mass Effect (Microsoft Game Studios)
RidgeRacer 6 (Namco)
Burnout Paradise (EA)
Meet The Robinsons (Disney)
Rockstar Games Presents Table Tennis (Rockstar Games)
Call of Duty® 2 (Activision)
MX vs. ATV Untamed (THQ)
Sonic The Hedgehog (SEGA)
Dance Dance Revolution Universe (Konami)
Need for Speed Carbon (EA)
Test Drive: Unlimited (Atari)
Fight Night Round 3 (EA)
Need for Speed: Most Wanted (EA)
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (2K Games/Bethesda Softworks)
Kameo: Elements of Power (Microsoft Game Studios)
Perfect Dark Zero (Microsoft Game Studios)
Viva Piñata (Microsoft Game Studios)
Karaoke Revolution American Idol Encore (Konami)
Prey (2K Games)
Viva Piñata 2: Trouble in Paradise (Microsoft Game Studios)

Note: These are US releases.

Microsoft also reiterated that future updates will include new features such as Zune, Last.fm, Facebook, and Twitter. No date has been set for these new features, but previous announcements indicated that some of these features will be available by year’s end.

For more details about the new dashboard update, just have a look at the ongoing coverage by clicking the headlines below: