Imagine you have been playing Oblivion for 10 hours straight. You are completely immersed in the game world. Then suddenly this little pop-up box comes on saying "Achievement Unlocked". That just totally kills the immersion. That little pop-up is akin to crying babies and ringing cell phones in the movie theater IMO.

The 360 hardware is just problematic. No game actually harms the system. The 3 red lights occurs no matter what game you are playing or movie you are watching.

To each their own, I guess. It brings a tear of joy to my eye whenever I unlock an achievement. I'll fully admit I'm a GamerScore whore, and I eat 'em like candy. For someone who has an addictive personality or a collector's mentality, MS can really get someone hooked.

I will play a mediocre game on the 360 just for achievements. Meanwhile I've got great games for PS2 like God of War 2, Rogue Galaxy and Odin Sphere, which I haven't even touched yet. If they had achievements, I'd probably be more apt to play them.

Does that make me superficial? Perhaps. But I have fun going for the achievements, and as long as I'm having a good time, then it's all gravy.

And I am the complete opposite. Heck, I don't even know what my gamerscore is. :D2:

I totally agree. I've said in the past that I've finished and in some cases replayed, more games this Generation than I have in the past and it has a lot to do with achievement points. I must admit that -for me personally- playing old games without achievement points is a little less satisfying.

Hell. No.

It just means you appreciate that little extra something for you efforts and there's NOTHING wrong with that. Just like there's nothing wrong with not caring about the points.

Agreed. Bugged the hell out of me playing through Gears of War twice at my friends.

But like you, I'm the type that couldn't give a shit less about something like a gamerscore.

Achievements=worst idea ever.

I think there's nothing wrong with them. I couldn't care less about them, but others love them and get more enjoyment out of their games because of them and that's great.

Because achievements have certainly hurt xbox sales. :rolleyes:

How so?

Achievements just appeal to the OCD videogamer, and God knows there's a lot of them out there.

I like the achievements especially in the case of the arcade games because they give you something new to try for. Anyone play Pacman ce yet dl'ed the trail yesterday and it is pretty cool. Also tried Shadowrun which is real nice, Hour of Victory which wasn't fun but looked good.

Blanket statements = Bad way to carry on a conversation.

Arpeggi + Ignore User= Best Idea Ever.

Josh H = Genius

I love my best buy warranty, instead of waiting time for them to send some refurb back to me, I get to get a new console right away.

Yeah it sucks that you have to buy a new prp, but for not having to wait and possible getting someone else's coffin it's worth it to me.


Also if anyone wants to play Gears co-op with me let me know!

Oh and I'm a huge Gamerscore whorer, I usually never complete games and now I do because of achievements.

Hardly. They are wonderful for adding replay value and extending the life of your purchase beyond "I beat the final boss, time to dump it on ebay." Especially with the $10 premium price on games that this gen ushered in. Every little bit helps get your moneys worth.

It's not any different tha online features. You have the single player campaign and the multiplayer mode for your dollar. Achievements have brought this third entry that people expect for their money. Kinda like a single player 1.5 built in. Essentially another mode to play around with.

Green Smurf, I sent you a friend request (Oz Rosenberg). I've been trying to get in on some co-op GoW games for a while now :lol:.

I'll be on later tonight like 8pm cst. Just to let you know I'm not very good.

Heh, ok. Give me a hollar when you get on, I'll probably be in some other game but will switch over.

edited to add: *looks at the time* Hrm, I think I just missed you :lol:.

Yeah I am trying to get my brother to bring me his copy of Crackdown but no luck yet. I rented Forza and I am actually enjoying it more than I thought I would, then again I am on Easy lol.

Hey Lori whenever you're ready to play through on Insane let me know. I'd like to run through it with someone :)

my 360 ate my Forza 2 game already. It started giving me disc read errors non stop. I did manage to get it to play again after buffing out some scratches with a micro fiber cloth.

I'll have to exchange the game later, but I might have to do the same with the 360 itself

I was having the dirty disc problem with Dead Rising this weekend. Which coupled with the already brutal save system and going for the Saint Achievement and you have one frustrating weekend of gaming. I'd be in the middle of escorting 7 people and bamm, dirty disc. Go back and replay that last 40 minutes of work. :mad: This may not work for you since Forza is obviously brand new, but for everyone else this may help:

Anyway, I have some Monster brand TV cleaner that came with a microfiber cloth. I used that on the disc(technically sprayed it on the cloth then cleaned the disc) and haven't had a problem since. A bit pricey at $20 if you don't have a big TV but the stuff is great on my 57" TV and it seems to last forever. I've had it for almost two years and still have 95% of the bottle left. I only use it once a month(couple sprays).

So if you have a big screen I HIGHLY recommend this stuff. Especially now that I know it works wonders on game discs.

my TV is only a 32" enhanced def TV, so its nothing spectacular


I'm definitely going to make the change to laying my 360 on it's side :/

Probably a good idea. I never understood putting the 360 (or old PS2) on their sides, as the disc doesn't actually snap into place. I've just never felt comfortable using my consoles that way. I'd probably even lay the Wii flat if I ever got one, although I haven't heard any issues with that one yet.