Xbox Windows games for PC, tablets to release along with Windows 8

It seems that Microsoft intends to blend two of its most massive brands into one, with the slated release of Windows 8 along with the Xbox Windows game service. The game brand Xbox Windows for the Windows 8 operating system and for the Microsoft Surface tablet is scheduled to release along with Windows 8.

Xbox360Achievements.org has reported finding Achievements for three of the pre-installed Windows games - Minesweeper, Solitaire and Mahjong.  Xbox360Achievements has also disclosed that the three free games bear the Xbox Windows branding.

Xbox Windows, different from the much-disliked Games for Windows Live, seems to have many of the features of Xbox Live such as Achievements, Avatars and a gamer profile. Microsoft had earlier said that it will not abandon Games for Windows Live, but now it seems that the service will take a back seat with the release of Windows 8.

Xbox Windows will have many features from Xbox Live

Windows 8 seems to be attracting a lot of flak from game developers. We had previously reported that John Carmack, co-founder of id Software, said during his keynote speech at QuakeCon this year that he wasn’t very keen on Windows 8. During the keynote, one of the audience members asked Carmack about Windows 8. Carmack said that he and his team had worked with Windows XP “until the bitter end.” He added, "Windows XP did everything we needed for quite a while". The 3-and-half hour keynote has been uploaded on YouTube.

CEO of Valve, Gabe Newell is one of the first developers to have spoken about the upcoming OS being a “catastrophe” for gaming, in an interview with VentureBeat. Newell said that many don't realize how critical games are when it comes to a consumer choosing an operating system. “The big problem that is holding back Linux is games. People don’t realize how critical games are in driving consumer purchasing behavior,” he said. “We want to make it as easy as possible for the 2,500 games on Steam to run on Linux as well. It’s a hedging strategy." He goes on to say, "[W]e’re trying to make sure that Linux thrives. Our perception is that one of the big problems holding Linux back is the absence of games... I think that Windows 8 is kind of a catastrophe for everybody in the PC space. I think that we’re going to lose some of the top-tier PC [original equipment manufacturers]. They’ll exit the market. I think margins are going to be destroyed for a bunch of people”.

Blizzard VP Rob Pardo had also stated his concern over Windows 8. "[N]ice interview with Gabe Newell," Pardo wrote on Twitter. In reference to Newell's prediction that Windows 8 would be a catastrophe for everyone in the PC space, Pardo said, "[N]ot awesome for Blizzard either."

Windows 8 is scheduled to release in October, along with an RT version for tablets such as Microsoft's Surface.