Xtival Offers Free Xbox Live to Europeans

European gamers are in luck this month, as Microsoft has announced Xtival ‘07, a four day festival of gaming, competitions and exclusive downloads, bringing the features of Xbox Live Gold membership free to everyone in the region for one weekend. The event runs from Firday 23 until Monday 26 November.

Besides making Xbox Live Gold free for the time, Microsoft will also host themed activities. First up is “OLD SKOOL vs. NEW SKOOL”, which will be held on Friday 23, that will see gamers take their skills online in FIFA 08, Halo 3, Lost Planet, Gears of War and the latest titles from Xbox Live Arcade. There will also be the opportunity to take on developers, including Bizarre, the team behind Project Gotham Racing 4.

Saturday will see gamers taking up an unannounced celebrity in Guitar Hero, as well as developers of Naruto, Call of Duty 4, Rainbow Six Vegas and Viva Pinata Party Animals. Sunday will be sports day, which, as the name implies, will let gamers take each other on in sports games like Tiger Woods, Table Tennis, Virtua Tennis, Forza Motorsport 2, and Pro Evolution Soccer 2008.

There will also be a Halo 3 art competition, having players submit their best video or still image from the game. The lucky winners will get a print to hang on their wall. Finally, there will be a Mystery Gamer competition, awarding Microsoft points to gamers playing over the weekend. Additionally, there will be free exclusive Xtival theme packs and gamer pics available during the weekend only.