Computer and Video Games is reporting today that John and Jane E3-Attendee will be able to get their hands on the X-Box, as well as some of the neater games promised for that platform, come this May.

If you're not going anywhere, and have a somewhat current version of Windows Media Player (WiMP) (There is a downloadable Mac version at this URL) you should immediately head to Microsoft's X-Box site. In a little over an hour from now (at 0930 Pacific time) Bill Gates will begin his keynote address at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.

Well... Bill had Seamus Blackley come out and demo a couple of games, as described in the below PR. And then Bill and The Rock did a poorly rehearsed skit for a little while. The most comedic value for those hanging out at RHL came from Bill Gates' voice cracking once or twice, and the resulting good-natured puberty jokes. Still, the level of detail in the X-Box gaming demonstration wasn't bad for streaming A/V.

Well, in case you haven't heard Electronic Gaming Monthly has begun to start telling various sites to pull their scanned-in images of the X-Box. If you haven't had a looksie, you can either wait until the magazine hits the rack within the next week (the legal method) or head out there to look for images that are still up. Here's one site that hasn't yet pulled 'em.

At long last, a look at the console. Or at least, a look at a superbly done hoax. Kudos to PorkBringer, who posted links to these images on the forum:

First reported by Haloplayers, the XBOX 365 site has posted up some uncomfirmed information that a phantom informer supplied to them two weeks ago. It includes a rough sketch of the front and rear of the X-Box, as well as some information on some possible alterations to the specs. It's worth a look, but keep the salt-shaker handy in case it's not completely accurate.

Found first at /., Daily Radar has obtained an interview with Michael Abrash of the Microsoft Games Group. He talks a lot about why the X-Box looks so good as a development platform for him and others. For one thing, he seems to addresss some of his comments at the crowd that expect for the X-Box to be nothing more than a watered-down PC. Here's a blurb:

Thanks to 3of9 for posting some new links to our forum. First of all, Microsoft announced 150 third-party developers for the X-Box. And second, they came out with a new logo for the X-Box, which is now prominently displayed on the official website. As far as a new name... that one appeared to be false.