The official Xbox 360 thread - the console of choice on nuclear submarines

[MoviePage]

Originally Posted by superfro

Dark Void demo is out today for Gold members. Looking forward to seeing how this one plays.

http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/ga...-d802434307e0/

I have this one pre-ordered at Amazon, so thanks for the heads up. I'll try it out when I get home.

By the way, if anyone decides to get the game based on the demo, it's another one of the upcoming titles for which Amazon will give a $10 video game credit. So basically, it's $45.99 there.

[mhg83]

12 month xbl card $35

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listi...&condition=new

[JasonF]

Originally Posted by superfro

Dark Void demo is out today for Gold members. Looking forward to seeing how this one plays.

http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/ga...-d802434307e0/

Game looks "meh," but the price is right on the demo, so I'll give it a try.

[Decker]

CES Micorsoft show done. To nobody's surprise, Natal coming Holiday 2010.

There's something called "Game Room" coming to Live in the Spring. You design your own virtual game room and show off your arcade collection to your friends or something. Some sort of clips will hit Inside Xbox later tonight.


edit: Here's a little more info on Game Room. You can buy a game "machine" for 240-400 points or you can play it once for 40 points.

In the never-ending exclusivity-wars, MW2 map packs will premiere exclusively early on Xbox this spring, FWIW.

[superfro]

Originally Posted by Decker

Can you elaborate on that reaction?


As for Dark Void....I was very interested in the game subject and idea, but I kind of thought the demo was not good at all. Bummer. I may still check otu the full release in a few weeks, but my anticipation level is all but bottomed out on it at the moment.

[chuckd21]

At first Game Room sounded kinda sweet. But it sounds like games you already own won't carry over? You have to buy the "machine"?

[TheBigDave]

Originally Posted by Decker

....or you can play it once for 40 points.

They're charging $0.50 to play Asteroids (circa 1979)?

Game Room sounds cool. But I think they're gonna nickel-and-dime it to death.

[Decker]

Originally Posted by superfro

Can you elaborate on that reaction?

Originally Posted by TheBigDave

They're charging $0.50 to play Asteroids (circa 1979)?

Game Room sounds cool. But I think they're gonna nickel-and-dime it to death.

this.

As unimaginably terrible as Home is, at least they let you play retro arcade games for free there. I might buy a couple of old "machines" of games I like, but no way I'm spending 50 cents for the chance to play Mrs Pac Man once.

[Kelkee]

So you design a game room, buy games to put in it and invite your friends to come play? OK sounds interesting.

Can you and your friends play games together or is everyone playing their own?

If your friend has his own game room with the same games you have does he have to pay to play those games in your room?

*Note to MS: This would be a great way to use up those worthless gamerscore points and actually make them worth something. Sure charge us for the games but being able to spend G points on stuff to decorate your room would be neat. Charging people real money for a virtual Pac-Man poster to hang on a virtual wall in a virtual gaming room is really stretching things a bit.

[Groucho]

Originally Posted by Decker

As unimaginably terrible as Home is, at least they let you play retro arcade games for free there.

Maybe it's changed, but when I tried that here's what I ran into:

1. If another user was using the "machine" I couldn't play the game. Most machines had 10-15 avatars crowded around spamming the play button.

2. In the unlikely event that I finally got onto a machine I was prompted to insert the "NAMCO Arcade Classics" disc or somesuch.

Like most aspects of Home, it was completely ridiculous.

[superfro]

Originally Posted by Decker

As unimaginably terrible as Home is, at least they let you play retro arcade games for free there. I might buy a couple of old "machines" of games I like, but no way I'm spending 50 cents for the chance to play Mrs Pac Man once.

Do you still have to wait in line to play on Home?

And of couse you wouldn't pay 50 cents to play once, you'd buy the machine, which is what they're banking on anyway, but there are probably a lot of folks that will. And hey...if someone just plays a game or two once or twice then it's worth it to add the option. (For Microsoft)

I think the arcade is a sound idea personally. It'd be amazing if they had a section that was a virtual arcade of your XBLA games too. With fake cabinets made from their "box" art. (I know it's not going to be the case.)

[Decker]

Originally Posted by superfro

Do you still have to wait in line to play on Home?

No idea. Haven't been there in a year. maybe I shoudn't have even brought it up, but the thought of charging 50 cents to play a thrity year old game once is ludicrous.

And of couse you wouldn't pay 50 cents to play once, you'd buy the machine, which is what they're banking on anyway, but there are probably a lot of folks that will. And hey...if someone just plays a game or two once or twice then it's worth it to add the option. (For Microsoft)

Yeah, I'll probably get a couple of them, I suppose. In residency I used to play Burger Time all the time waiting for patients to arrive or lab results (they had an arcade machine, with terrible burn-in, on the cancer ward). I'd love to have a virtual version of that machine. But if I only have one or two machines, I can't imagine I'd want to fire up that option very often, especially considering how long it takes just to populate my current games list on the dashboard.

I think the arcade is a sound idea personally. It'd be amazing if they had a section that was a virtual arcade of your XBLA games too. With fake cabinets made from their "box" art. (I know it's not going to be the case.)

Certainly, if they suddenly made an Arcade filled with my 100+ XBLA games in it, for free, I'd be thrilled. Clearly that was never going to happen. And as the Williams Collection has demonstrated, a virtual arcade sounds like a cool idea, but can actually be pretty disappointing when implemented as a user interface.

[Decker]

Here's some more deatils courtesy of Joystiq.

Originally Posted by Joystiq

An online fact sheet has detailed the pricing structure for Microsoft's newly announced Avatar-occupied Game Room, and we'd suggest gamers stock up on Microsoft funny money. Players have three options: 400 ($5) grants a dual-platform license (playable on Xbox 360 and PC), 240 ($3) gets you the virtual arcade cabinet on one platform (Xbox 360 or PC), and, for the old-fashioned types, 40 ($0.50) is exactly "two quarters" worth of playtime -- for an authentic arcade experience, minus the sticky floors. Additionally, when visiting friends' game rooms, you can "try" their games before you pump in Microsoft Points of your own.

The Game Room itself -- developed by third-party outfit Krome Studios (Viva Piñata: Party Animals, Star Wars: Republic Heroes) -- will be free for users to download. Customization options are mentioned in the fact sheet, but pricing for these features is not addressed. At launch the service will include 30 original arcade titles -- with "over 1000" planned in the future -- from multiple publishers, including Atari, Activision, Intellivision, and Konami. (A list of 31 confirmed titles is posted after the break.)

Games will be presented in 1080p (because that's why you bought that HD set) and will support multiplayer for up to two players, as well as cross-platform leaderboards and Achievements. Microsoft's Home Game Room is slated to launch this spring.

The most interesting thing is that it'll be $3 for Xbox only or $5 for Xbox + PC. I certainly don't need those for PC, so that makes things a little easier to tolerate.

[pinata242]

I'm an Intellivision whore. Sadly, few games really translate to a non-keypad controller. I really wish Intellivision Lives! DS came to fruition because it would have been the closest with the touchscreen implementation.

Still, some games will work. I can't wait to see how this thing really works.

[TheBigDave]

Here's a screencap from that promo video at Kotaku. Looks like they're going to be offering some Atari 2600 games. I can't imagine paying $3 for those.



Here's a review of Outlaw for the Atari 2600:

[Decker]

Just what the gaming community was demanding : Another wired third-party controller!

The Razer Onza Professional Gaming Controller for Xbox 360 was created to improve the players Xbox 360 gaming experience with a series of special features, including Razer Hyperesponse™ buttons, designed to give faster actuation and a crisp, tactile feel. The Razer Onza will allow gamers to vary the tension required to tilt the analog stick for maximum comfort and customization bringing an element of personal preference to the world of console gaming. Razer has also added a multi-function button (MFB) that can be mapped to act as one of the action buttons, the analog stick buttons or an auto-fire button by using a sliding selector switch on the bottom of the controller. The Razer Onza Professional Gaming Controller for Xbox 360 is further distinguished by a sharply-lit edge, for gaming that stays in style, even in the dark.

Razer Onza Professional Gaming Controller for Xbox 360
MSRP: US $49.99; Europe € 44.99

Razer Onza Professional Gaming Controller for Xbox 360 Features:

•Razer Hyperesponse™ technology
•Adjustable Tension Analog Sticks
•Programmable Multi-function Button
•Wired Control for Virtually Lag Free Gameplay
Razer Onza Professional Gaming Controller for Xbox 360

[pinata242]

"Virtually Lag Free"!

[MWB]

. . .and I *just* ordered a lame official wireless controller with Play & Charge Kit for $42. Figures. If I only would have waited. . .

[superfro]

Originally Posted by Decker

Just what the gaming community was demanding : Another wired third-party controller!

And here I thought reading about how the Heathcliff license was secured, ushering in 7 years of Heathcliff themed games across all systems was the best news story of the day!

[JasonF]

So how is this virtual arcade different from buying Joust or Robotron 2084 on XBLA and playing it there?

Also, insofar as Intellivision goes, if they manage to bring us a faithful port of the original Intellivision Advanced Dungeons & Dragons game, I will pay eleventy kajillion points for it.

[starman9000]

Originally Posted by Raul3

I never was a fan of those games, but they had great reviews and a big following at their time.

I guess if you have played any of the series and liked them you won't get disappointed with these games. On the other hand $10 for both of them sounds good.

Thanks,

I decided to hold off. (Looked at my huge backlog from the Hollywood video sale and realized it would be pointless).

[JasonF]

Originally Posted by superfro

And here I thought reading about how the Heathcliff license was secured, ushering in 7 years of Heathcliff themed games across all systems was the best news story of the day!

Heathcliff: America's second favorite sarcastic orange cartoon cat!

Unless you're talking about Wuthering Heights: The Video Game, in which case I'm going to hold out for the Jane Eyre FPS.

[MWB]

Originally Posted by JasonF

So how is this virtual arcade different from buying Joust or Robotron 2084 on XBLA and playing it there?

I've been wondering the same thing. If this means an across-the-board price reduction on all those old-school XBLA titles, while retaining achievements, I'm all for it. I get the feeling this won't be the case, though.

I'd buy so many more of those old games if they weren't $5 each.

[Chew]

Originally Posted by JasonF

Unless you're talking about Wuthering Heights: The Video Game, in which case I'm going to hold out for the Jane Eyre FPS.

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Video Game might be alright.

[Michael Corvin]

I'm still waiting on Frasier Crane's version of A Tale of Two Cities to be made into a game.