The Xbox 360 version of Minecraft was originally said to be coming out at some point this year, and now we know exactly when that will be: this May.

Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition will be joining several other high-profile titles in a new promotion from Microsoft, dubbed ‘Arcade NEXT’. The promotion kicks off on April 18 with the release of Trials Evolution, the sequel to 2009′s popular physics-based puzzle game. Trials Evolution will set you back 1200 Microsoft Points.

Next up in the Arcade NEXT promotion will be Bloodforge, which will see its debut on Xbox Live Arcade on April 25, also for 1200 Microsoft Points. Bloodforge is described as a hardcore, gory, story-driven action game from developer Climax. Rather than being a mindless hack-and-slash like, say, Dynasty Warriors, Bloodforge‘s action sequences are described as being more akin to Bayonetta and the like.

Fable Heroes is the next digital title in line for Microsoft’s Arcade NEXT promotion, and it will see a release on Xbox Live Arcade on May 2 for 800 Microsoft Points. Not to be confused with Fable: The Journey, Lionhead’s Kinect title, Fable Heroes is a lighthearted spin-off of the Fable franchise that has you and three others hack and slash their way through “familiar foes and new enemies” to collect unlockables.

Last but certainly not least in Microsoft’s Arcade NEXT promotion is Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition, which will be released on Xbox Live Arcade on May 9 for 1600 Microsoft Points. If you’ve ever played Minecraft before, you know what to expect here: a whole lot of digging, a whole lot of building, and a whole lot of rebuilding after Creepers blow your creation to bits.

One of the “big” features announced for the Xbox 360 port was Kinect functionality at launch, but Microsoft issued a statement to Kotaku saying otherwise.

Kotaku reports:

Microsoft has informed us that this version of Minecraft will not include the Kinect functionality promised at last year’s E3 conference. “We’re still excited about the potential to deliver Kinect-enabled features for this title in the future,” a representative said.

Are you interested to check out Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition? What about any of the other Arcade NEXT titles?

Minecraft XBLA, Trials Evolution and More Dated is a post from: The Inquisitr