Xbox Live all set to go

Microsoft has happily confirmed that Xbox Live starter kits will go on sale for the first time in the UK, France and Germany on Saturday, November 30th as planned. Gamers will be able to buy a place on the Test Drive, which lasts until March 13th, 2003, also securing a further 12 months' access which will take them all the way through to March 2004.

Participants in the Test Drive phase will not be without incentive, either. Unreal Championship and MechAssault, both very accomplished titles, will be available and support Live-based multiplay. What's more, Ghost Recon and Whacked! will both be made available shortly. More titles are expected in the run-up to the service's general release on March 14th.

And if none of that floats your boat, an online demo of Climax's fantastic MotoGP will be included in the starter kit. Although only a few tracks are available, owners of the full game will be able to extend their racing experience to include the rest of the game's bikes and tracks.

The wording in Microsoft's latest press release suggests that the kits will only be made available on Saturday, November 30th. This is just as well, because so far today all our attempts to reach the designated order page at www.xbox.com/uk/live/now - or indeed anything on Xbox.com - have failed.