Save Ferris

That live setup looks great. I HATE bad online players and I really hope this will be a revolution of sorts for online gaming. I may never leave the house.

mrpayroll

I've only been playing Halo 2 for a couple of months now and I HATE players that quit during the game just because they are not doing well.

And this is from a person who usually finishes last!

The kids who play with me are usually better than me and I tell them that we will never quit no matter how bad we are doing!

Chris

live gamertag : mrpayroll (what else )

Michael Corvin

That is friggin brilliant!

Now see, if this is true, it just pisses people off. So there will only be a finite number of people without the hard drive(first year production), dragging the majority down by limiting the game designers options.

One brilliant move and one idiotic one, all in one post.

MasterofDVD

That XBOX Live demo vid is outstanding. Only 63 days left until we get to see it in person.

Save Ferris

I think Ive thought of a problem with this live system.

Say these asshole kiddie gamers are all such jerks that normal gamers give them bad reps, sending them to the underground area which is fine. So they play with other jerk gamers and eventually start getting high marks from those gamers with low standards. Then their game ranking goes up in a matter of hours. Eventually you see them in the same game with you again?

Flay

As long as you are a good player, your rating should continue to rise. So if the assholes attempt to climb out of the basement up to a 2 or 3 star rating, you will have probably pushed on to the 4-5 star area.

Plus you will always have a much more advanced friend's list if you want to avoid matchmaking entirely.

Schloob1

I do not mean to come off harsh flashburn,but that really helps me out, I have been watching this thread since the get go and have never seen anything here or elsewhere saying that. Perhaps are you going off of this qoute stated just in the past few days which a few here have speculated and elsewhere signifies a price drop:


Speaking to Reuters, Todd Holmdahl, corporate vice president of the Xbox product group stated: "We will wind up cost-reducing the product every year," and given the use of licensing technology rather than buying off the shelf components, Microsoft should easily be in a position to do so.


If in fact this is what you are going off of, then it is not completely wrong to think there will be a price drop but not what that EXACT amount will be. Personally that would just be crazy to let people know they could just wait until a specified time and save $100, as I already mentioned. What this qoute also implies everyone must realize is that MS believes they will not lose big like they did with the original Xbox. As you can see, this MS rep is talking to Reuters which means he is talking to investors and not to us videogame people(true some us may hold stock in MS). Hence, I find it funny how the article qouted here and on other websites think it is talking about price drops in the system. When in fact the main purpose of this rep's qoute is to let investors know that over time the system will cost less to make and assuming they do not do drastic price drops will make them even more profits
going forward.
But if I am wrong, please find the qoute you recall seeing because I find it impossible that a rep would say these words. Maybe we will see words like this out of their mouths say one month before the PS3 launches but not 2 months before their own system launches.

Michael Ballack

My only concern with the new ranking system, is the people ranking you. I'm a respectful player, never taunt people, leave matches, or cheat. My problem is that I do suck sometimes. So if I suck at a game, will people give me bad ratings? I hope not, because I still have fun in the experience.

sdcrym

From one of the videos Flay posted, the system differentiates game skill level from social skill level. You may be matched up with lower skill players, but not with the cheaters and jackasses.

DJ_Longfellow

[INDENT]Best Bundle Yet: CostCo.com
http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product...th=2805*21682*

Bundle includes:



-Xbox 360™ System ($399.99)
-Xbox 360™ Game Console
. Wireless Controller
. Combination High-Definition Component and Standard A/V Cable
. 20GB Detachable Hard Drive
. Ethernet Cable
. Headset
. Xbox Live® Silver
. Xbox Live® Gold 30-Day Trial
-Extra Wireless Controller
-Play & Charge Kit
-Games: Project Gotham Racing® 3

$479.99 + $23 S&H + TAX

Basically it's $520 worth of product for $530 shipped (w/tax)....I would jump on this if I didn't have it pre-ordered from GameRush (w/credit)

Legolas

Try playing fantasy sports online with poor sport jackasses who cut their entire roster when it becomes clear they don't have a shot.

flashburn

Taken from Cheapassgamer :
That would be a pretty amazing launch if that list is even close to being true. I can't say I am interested in too many of those titles though. I wish there wasn't so many god damn EA Sports and FPS games. The only two that I feel are 'must haves' are PGR3 and Oblivion. I am interested in checking out Kameo and GUN as well.

I am still disappointed that it looks like Full Auto might not be a launch title (ebgames still says 11/15 but gamestop says 2/1). That game was looking really cool back at E3.

PixyJunket

HUGE thumbs up. Let's hope Sony and Nintendo follow suit.

lotsofdvds

Well that didn't last long.

Stoney

Damn. I was considering ordering that one.

Stoney

Strange...it's back up. Too bad I don't have a Costco card. Not paying that 24 buck surcharge.

HotThang

Crap! Now I have to decide between this bundle and the one at WalMart

$709+25 S&H + TAX for your choice of three games, a face plate, remote control, headset, 1 year of Gold, and the souped up 360 doesn't sound bad to me at all!

Decisions...decisions...

Flay

Tons of HD Gameplay trailers today. Call of Duty 2 looks really good. Dead Rising, Ridge Racer 6, NFS:MW, FF XI are up as well.

http://www.gametrailers.com/

DJ_Longfellow

Looks like the CostCo bundle is officially gone.

The launch lineup does look pretty good...I have some interest in almost every game. I will probably get most of them...we'll see. I'm hesitant about the 2K sports games though, since they are no longer budget and the main reason I did buy them for XBOX was they were budget titles. They always seem to have some kind of bugs in them.

Michael Corvin

Why? Nobody forces you to buy third party peripherals. It gives people [cheaper] options.

DJ_Longfellow

I think MS will have MONSTER as a 3rd party cable supplier. I like having options, but I NEVER buy 3rd party controllers. Also, I thought 3rd party companies could do WIRED controllers, only wireless will be MS.

I think EBGames.com even has a 3rd party controller for X360 on the site.

Josh H

Really. Especially for cables. I'm not a videophile so I'm fine with third party S-video cables.

mrpayroll

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/652/652597p1.html

Controlled Evolution
The new wave of controllers is about to arrive. We go hands-on with the Xbox 360 controller.
by Douglass C. Perry


September 21, 2005 - As the slow, dreadful drought of summer games finally comes to an end, Microsoft and its partners have reached a point in game development where its finally showing games, and we're finally playing them. That puts us in the beautiful position of being able to handle the final Xbox 360 controller, which, simply put, is a wonderful piece of ergonomic equipment. David and Tal have give us their impressions while attending the 2005 Tokyo Game Show, but I felt too compelled to describe the experience because it's a totally new one.



The two versions of the controller, the wireless and the wired, are entirely the same in industrial design. That is, with the exception of heavier weight given to the wireless controller because of the added batteries and the lack of a wire tethering it to the console, there is no variation. While at a recent Activision QUAKE 4 demo and in New York at an additional event that I cannot name right now because of timely material (and an embargo), I used the controller extensively.

Design

The Xbox 360 controller feels incredible. It is almost exactly the same size as the black Xbox S controller, but it's much lighter, better designed to sit in the palm of your hand, and the industrial strength material it's comprised of is strong and expensive feeling. It feels anything but cheap. (The Xbox 180 controller never felt cheap either, by the way.)


Far more ergonomic and satisfying in the hand.

The main and most important thing about the design is that unlike the Xbox 180 controller, which has a slightly rougher surface texture than the smooth-surfaced Xbox 360 controller, is that it's designed to fit in your hand comfortably. It is thinner and less bulky underneath the central section. It's also thinned out around the inside contours of the "handles" -- the prongs on each side that you grab onto. So it's crafted to rest in your hands with comfort and usability in mind.

Instead of feeling strong bulky plastic underneath your fingers, you feel smooth, strong material, but less of it, and additional with room to move your fingers and hand around. Compared to the muscle-bound, steroid-popping Xbox 180 controller, the Mark McGwire of controllers, you've got the new, natural Ken Griffey, Jr. model, a lean, athletic well-proportioned controller.

Compared to the Xbox 180 controller, which looks like three geometric shapes fused together in a 101 welding course, creating a convex set of protruding, slightly hulking forms, the Xbox 360 controller is more subtly and more gently designed. It has more concave elements. While it's basically the same general design as the first, the base part, or the center part, seamlessly melds with the prongs (which sit in your hand). The smooth transition between the handles and the central section create one smoothly flowing, streamline design that just feels right. From a strictly sensory perspective the result is remarkably first-class.

Feeling It

When using the wired controller, one can't help but notice how light it is. It weighs a fraction of the previous controller, and if truth be told, it feels a little like the Dreamcast controller. I know, I know, it's also white-ish, and it's got triggers and a similar design too, so one might think the Microsoft borrowed quite heavily from the Sega Dreamcast controller. They did. But this is better.

The black and white buttons moved to the shoulder pad position works smartly.

The interesting thing about a wireless controller is that it also can be plugged into the Xbox 360. The top section is detachable. The detachable battery pack also fits underneath that unit. For instance, when at the QUAKE 4 event last week I walked over to an Xbox 360 system that wasn't working and held the controller. It wasn't plugged in, but it registered the signal anyway. So I started goofing around on the screen until the sullen Activision guy asked me to stop.

Nintendo's Wavebird, the first successful wireless console controller, was certainly a great innovation, and the Xbox 360 controller borrows from that design and makes it work as well if not better. The feeling of controlling a game wirelessly is instantly gratifying. You'll quickly give up those long dangling wires once you've got the wireless one in hand. With batteries intact the controller is heavier than without, obviously, but it's not significantly weighty.

Triggers and Buttons

The triggers are different too. They're a fraction less springy than the Xbox controllers. They're not worse by any means. The strength of the spring still works perfectly, and the triggers are totally functional, but there is less force in the return from pressed to un-pressed. Instead of less functional, they feel toned down. Also they appear to be slightly shorter than the Xbox triggers. In other words, the distance between the controller and the full extended trigger is shorter. They're still just triggers, and they function perfectly, but those differences are more noticeable once you feel them and play games with them.

The black and white buttons, now moved into the shoulder positions, are also petite. The base of the controller subtly protrudes out like an outline and the shoulder buttons push out through them. The shoulder buttons feel and handle perfectly, and depress only a small fraction -- less than the PlayStation 2 shoulder buttons. This really doesn't amount to much in terms of gameplay, because the response is still instant, but it does mean more from an ergonomic standpoint. The buttons don't require the fingers to extend as far, making the feel of the controller, again, more streamlined, comfortable, and ergonomic.

The Xbox 360 face buttons also protrude slightly less than the Xbox face buttons. The outline casing surrounding the buttons also subtly ascend upward, creating a sense of continuity from the casing to the buttons, which is also different than the previous controller. The combination works well, and the feeling on your fingers is less painful. I don't know if you felt that the Xbox 180 oval face buttons were ever a little annoying, but after hours of playing they weren't that comfortable. The face button shapes are smoother, more round and comfortable on the fingers. I haven't played any games for hours deep into the night yet, but I can say that they look to be designed to eliminate that problem.

Circle of Light

The circle of light, the button at the top center of the controller, isn't just a pretty little green light show. It's actually a button that lights up. It's split into four quadrants. In a four-person multiplayer game, the quadrants indicate player one through four, and the software replicates the circle design on screen to make things consistent.


The top center button controls Xbox Live access.

When you're playing games, Microsoft has set as a rule that of the 512MB Unified System Memory given for programmers to use for games, 40 MBs of that is set aside for Xbox Live functionality. That means that while you're playing a game, there is enough RAM to enable Xbox live to interrupt gameplay without touching your framerate or experience. When a message comes up, you press the circle of light button and decide to answer the message or put it off 'til later. It's all very functional and Jetson-esque.

Outlook

The Xbox 360 controller is an evolution of game controller design. It's not a revolution. Instead, Microsoft's tool shows off a studied design, borrowing ideas from its previous design, the Nintendo Wavebird, Sony's PS2, and the Dreamcast controller (or going back a little further, the Sega Saturn Nights controller).

It eliminates all of the issues with the large, phased-out Xbox controller and even the very likeable S controller, lightening it up, creating space for your hands, and forging a comfortable, sleek, and smooth feeling tool. It's lightweight, very functional, and an example of erudite controller design. In short, if you plan on buying an Xbox 360, you're going to love this controller.


Chris

DJ_Longfellow

Nice controller review.

How does the play and charge kit work? You do use AA batteries right, so how do you charge those up? OR, does that just charge the $12 battery pack they are selling? I'm curious what I'll need to pick up come release date.


Only 2 months away....I want it now. I've never been hyped about a system release, until now...weird. (I guess that's what happens when you pre-order)

Save Ferris

I didnt see anything about the rumble feature in that review. Is it weaker than the original controller?