I’m considering taking the plunge and buying a XBox 360 and I’d like some advice for those of you who’ve gone through the process.
FTR, I’m not a hardcore gamer. I like sports games and some RPGs. I generally don’t do FPSs and online gaming. I’ve got a nice 43" plasma and Yamaha 5.1 system as well as a broadband connection with a home PC network.
I’ll leave it at that and welcome any an all experiences you guys can share.
I’d buy one with the hard drive. Hubby and I bought the core system (and a memory card) which worked fine, but if you plan to playing a lot of games, you might run out of space quickly. (Assuming you want to keep the saves, of course.)
We also bought a wireless controller, which I love. If you get one, turn off “vibrate” on your game options, or it eats up the batteries really quick.
My favorite game for the XBox360 is “Oblivion.” It’s a very open RPG which lets you do whatever you want, and I think it’s a lot of fun. I have a blast just exploring the hundreds of dungeons and caves.
My box is kind of weird. I have to turn it on and off at least twice before it starts working. I don’t know if this is a common problem or not.
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I’m considering taking the plunge and buying a XBox 360 and I’d like some advice for those of you who’ve gone through the process.
FTR, I’m not a hardcore gamer. I like sports games and some RPGs.
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It’s good and it’s bad. I suspect we have very similar tastes in gaming.
Madden is a quantum leap backward. No owner mode, no challenges, no training camp, again no custom playbooks, no custom hot routes, no formation-specific audibles, no usable playmaker (click in the analog first? wtf?), and a few more missing features that I never cared for in the first place. (No superstar mode, no tony bruno radio show, no storyline central, etc…)
Also note that every single aspect of the game is much more awkward: calling plays, pre-snap adjustments, setting audibles, reviewing rosters, making trades; the entire user interface – down to every last minute detail – was made incredibly awkward compared to the previous generation’s version.
ESPN’s NBA game is amazing. EA’s NBA took a step back by ditching the franchise mode, but its pathetic control scheme – when compared to ESPN – makes that a moot point.
The hockey is awesome.
The racing game – project gotham I think – allows you to build custom tracks through the cities. That’s way cool, but of limited interest.
I highly recommend gettiong Xbox Live, as the integration is seemless, helpful, and it offers cool mini-arcade games that are great fun. (Geometry Wars in particular kicks ass.) But you can also use it for roster downloads, new maps, etc… It’s well worth it even if you rarely use it to play online, although once you try it you’ll find online play is pretty fun.
Basically, the deal with the 360 is exactly like everything else having to do with HDTV; you sacrifice content for presentation. Most people who have HDTV find themselves watching unmitigated garbage simply because it’s in hi def. The most comprehensive hi def package has maybe 25 channels to choose from, compared to 500 lo def options. Same concept with the 360, in that the games have a miniscule amount of features, but they look fantastic.
Think of Madden as watching Letterman instead of The Daily Show. Content sucks in comparison, but it’s so damn pretty that you end up watching/playing anyway.
My actual advice for you is to wait until the next season’s worth of games (Madden and NBA) come out. Hopefully they’ll have the kinks worked out by then. The current (launch) season of sports games is a pathetic joke. Figure sometime in August or September would be ideal.
I bought one a week or two ago and I’m going to return it soon because there aren’t enough games for it. It’s been nearly half a year since its release and the only good game out (IMO) is Oblivion.
But if you don’t mind waiting a while for more games to come out, it is a pretty cool system. Looks great with an HDTV. Here are a few random suggestions:
-Go for the “Premium” (non-Core) system. The hard drive is a must (and costs $100 by itself), the wireless controller is a true blessing and the Component Video cable (necessary for HD resolutions) is another $20-$40 bucks by itself. Definitely a better deal than the Core.
Note that it’s not actually called “Premium”, but rather just “Xbox 360” without the “Core”. People call it Premium for clarity. You can thank Microsoft for their ever-so-clear naming scheme.
-You’ll need to get a separate digital audio cable for your 5.1 audio system; the 360 only comes with standard red+white RCA stereo cables.
-If you don’t already do this, consider signing up for a game rental service. They include Gamefly.com, your local Blockbuster, your local Hollywood Video store, and possibly smaller local rental chains. You can try all the games at a tiny fraction of the cost this way.
-If you care about pricing, consider signing up for a Target credit card and using it for an immediate 10% ($40) discount. Target’s one of the few places that lets you use a discount with the 360.
-DO NOT MOVE THE SYSTEM WHILE IT’S ON. If you move it from the horizontal position to the vertical (or vice versa), you’ll horribly mangle your disc.
-You may or may not experience overheating issues that result in crashes. If you do, consider getting a cooling solution like the Nyko Intercooler 360. Circuit City usually carries them.
My first 360 would not stop crashing on me (Oblivion would die every 10-30 minutes) and, actually, the cooler did nothing to help. I had to exchange the system for another one and the new one worked perfectly with the cooler. Haven’t tried it without the cooler yet.
-Some original Xbox games are playable on the Xbox. If you run out of 360 games to play like I did, check out the official list of compatible games. Some notable RPGs in there include Jade Empire, Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance II, and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 1 & 2.
It should be noted that, at least as far as RPGs go, virtually anything worthwhile for the XBox systems comes out for the PC at some point (often at the same time, sometimes later on - even Jade Empire is coming out for the PC soonish, and they said that would NEVER EVER happen). Oblivion is the only big RPG title out for the system right now, and it came out simultaneously for the PC; additionally, with the PC version it’s extremely moddable and you can do a lot more with it (though it takes a pretty hefty computer to play it). As Reply alluded to, the earlier systems have some pretty notable overheating issues - this will presumably be fixed completely at some point; there is no excuse for needing an additional 3rd-party cooling system for a console, IMO.
For sports games and RPGs, depending on how much cost and timing are an issue, you’d likely be better served to wait for what the fall brings, both in the new release cycle for 360 sports games as well as the PS3. Sony had a pretty significant advantage in those two genres in the last generation, IMO, and there has been little so far to suggest that it’s going to change in the new one. The only real problem is the prohibitive cost that it looks like we’ll be seeing from the PS3. So I think I’d join Ellis in saying that you might want to wait a little if you don’t need it right away.
Waiting might be the smart move. I was wondering if there was going to be a Fall/pre-Christmas price drop as well. Thanks for the replies so far, you’ve confirmed some of my questions.
Does the XBox work as well as a media hub as it’s claimed? Networking it so that you can stream MP3s and Video off my PC onto my plasma?