Official Xbox 360? Thread...Part Deux

[blurredvision]

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/784/784281p1.html

Madden 08 preview. FINALLY, it looks like EA might be getting off their asses now that 2K Sports is back in the football (somewhat). I wasn't stupid enough to purchase Madden 06 when I first got my 360, but I was stupid enough to buy Madden 07. It was horrible, and as a long-time Madden fan, I was finally starting to get pissed at the lack of competition in the football game market. Luckily, 2K Sports have finally decided to come out with some type of football game, and even though it couldn't be NFL licensed, it's still something.

The one thing I've always wanted improved about football games is the animation system. I couldn't understand why they wouldn't devise some type of fluid system where you weren't locked in to particular animations once they started, and why they couldn't figure out that gamers didn't want all the players on the field with the same exact freaking animation, doing it at the same time. Time will tell, but it sounds like they are on their way to starting to fix this.

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

IGN posted a new Forza 2 gameplay video yesterday, with a '68 Camaro against some Japanese cars at Suzuka. It looks damned good, and the sounds seems to be much better than the Mugello video they put up last week.

 

[blurredvision]

Anybody pick up an Elite this morning?

 

[jlmadyson]

Originally posted by: blurredvision
Anybody pick up an Elite this morning?

Yep, at my local eb games. They had a bit of a line, but only got 4 in total.

 

[Heller]

Originally posted by: jlmadyson

Originally posted by: blurredvision
Anybody pick up an Elite this morning?

Yep, at my local eb games. They had a bit of a line, but only got 4 in total.

pics and general thought?!!

 

[jlmadyson]

Originally posted by: Heller

Originally posted by: jlmadyson

Originally posted by: blurredvision
Anybody pick up an Elite this morning?

Yep, at my local eb games. They had a bit of a line, but only got 4 in total.

pics and general thought?!!

If I could actually take worthy pics I would certainly post them.

However on thoughts so far;

I can definitely tell the difference in PQ over my old connection with component. Much crisper overall on my 61inch Sammy. Halo 2 over HDMI looks delicious and the color and clarity in Kameo just jumps out on screen.

As far as noise goes, it looks as if I got the Hitachi drive, but amazingly enough everything sounds quieter than my old one for some reason (I had an original launch 360, not sure what drives were in those, I believe Samsung maybe).

Anyhow, when the disc drive is not running it sounds quieter and when the disc drive is going it sounds quieter than before. I haven't put it through the real test though. Oblivion has always been the hardest on my old drive (and loudest) so I need to test it some time.

Drive space, about 100gigs after downloading most of what I want so far. I seriously will never need an upgrade as far as that goes.

I haven't personally tried the upconversion of DVDs over HDMI yet, but so far I'm hearing good things anyway.

Thus far taking into account my new 1-year warranty as well I'm quite pleased with my upgrade. My local EB games got 4 units in and sold those 4.

 

[Heller]

360 Elites - Already DYING!
Seriously, you gotta be fvckidding me.

http://nexgenwars.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6867

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=153089

 

[JackBurton]

Well I just got a 360 Elite today so we'll see how it holds up. I've got a two year warranty so I'm good to go. I just hope they'll have a replacement Elite if mine goes out.

 

[Queasy]

4/30 - Link

Sources at equipment makers were cited by a Chinese-language Commercial Times report as saying that the Xbox 360 will be equipped with a 65nm-made Xenos graphics processing unit (GPU) in the fall and that corresponding foundry partner Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) will see benefits.

The paper cited the sources as saying that an engineering version of the 65nm-made Xenos has been sent out and production will start in May. TSMC projected sales contribution from 65nm would amount to 5% during mid-2007.

On a separate note, TSMC announced the introduction of 65nm-made embedded DRAM in March. Embedded DRAM is one of the two dies that comprise the Xenos. In the 90nm version of the Xenos, embedded DRAM is manufactured by NEC.

 

[Queasy]

MS really kicking out the XBLA games now - Three games this week...sort of.

THREE Arcade titles are dropping this week. Let me introduce this weeks additions to the Arcade Family:

Catan (800 points)
Centipede and Millipede (Packaged together for 400 points)

Full detail in the media alert below:

Legendary board game "Catan" arrives on Xbox LIVE Arcade

Brush up on your plans for expansion and hone your trading strategies because "Catan" is coming to Xbox LIVE Arcade for Xbox 360 this Wednesday, May 2 at 0900 GMT (2:00 a.m. Pacific).

"Catan" from Big Huge Games is the Xbox LIVE Arcade edition of the legendary multiplayer board game Settlers of Catan. With over 10 million units sold, Settlers of Catan is one of the most popular board games to hail from Europe, and has been translated into twenty-five languages from the original German.

"Catan" for Xbox LIVE Arcade puts players in the role of colonists on a newly discovered island, where they vie for control of valuable territory and resources through strategy and trading. The game can be learned in just minutes, but will challenge players of all skill levels, even the experts!

Klaus Teuber, creator of the original Settlers of Catan board game, had this to say about the collaboration with Big Huge Games: "I had no doubts that Brian Reynolds would do a great job, and the first version of the game exceeded my highest expectations. The AI is so clever that I even lost several games in a row! Hands down, this game for the Xbox LIVE Arcade is an amazing achievement."

"Catan" will be available worldwide for 800 Microsoft Points and is rated E for Everyone.

Game Features

* Learn As You Play tutorial, making the game instantly accessible even to players who have never played "Settlers of Catan" before
* All New 3D "Living World" Board
* Play against any combination of 13 historical personalities such as Alexander, Cleopatra and Tokugawa, which provide a range of play styles and difficulty levels that will test players' wits and strategy
* Fans of the board game will enjoy the inclusion of popular house rules like Friendly Robber and Friendly Resources
* Multiplayer gameplay over Xbox LIVE for up to 4 players
* The ability to taunt opponents with engaging animations and use emotes to compliment (or belittle!) the opposition over Xbox LIVE
* Voice Chat enabled
* Earn up to 12 Achievements and 200 Gamerscore points

More information is available at http://www.xbox.com/games/livearcade and http://www.catanlive.com.


Arthropods Attack! "Centipede" and "Millipede" Invade Xbox LIVE Arcade

Two of Atari's best loved coin-op classics, "Centipede" and "Millipede," will be available for download on Xbox LIVE Arcade for Xbox 360 beginning Wednesday, May 2 at 0900 GMT (2:00 a.m. Pacific).

The classic version of "Centipede" challenges gamers to defend their villages against an onslaught of centipedes, spiders, army ants and more. Xbox LIVE Arcade gamers will also have access to an "Evolved" version which features pre-rendered, high definition graphics, special effects like motion blur, trails and particle-based explosions that make this classic as enjoyable today as it was in the arcade decades ago.

In "Millipede," the primary challenge is to obliterate chains of arthropods that creep down from the top of the screen. Scattered mushrooms are the gamers' main tool to shoot, destroy and redirect the menacing millipedes. "Millipede" also offers up Xbox LIVE Arcade gamers an "Evolved" version of this coin-op classic.

"Centipede" and "Millipede" will be available worldwide as a joint download for 400 Microsoft Points and are rated E for Everyone.

Game Features

* Two games in one! Enjoy both classic and evolved versions of both "Centipede" and "Millipede"
* Dolby Digital surround sound
* Earn up to 12 Achievements and 200 Gamerscore points

More information is available at http://www.xbox.com/games/livearcade.

 

[Queasy]

New GoW Map Pack this week

On Thursday May 3rd at 4:00 AM EDT, four new Gears of War maps will be hitting Xbox Live Marketplace as part of the "Hidden Fronts" Multiplayer Map Pack. Running you 800 Microsoft Points, you'll be able to do battle on Process, Garden, Subway, and Bullet Marsh. For those of you concerned about the price, fret not, as you'll be able to download the pack for free four months later, on September 3rd, 2007. We've got the map descriptions from the press release after the break, but the question we've got for you is this: Are you going to get the maps now, or wait a bit first to see if it's worth your hard earned points and hold off till they're free in the fall?

"Bullet Marsh: In this Kryll-infested swamp, an old generator still powers the area lights. A few stray bullets could easily knock out the generator, leaving combatants to fend for themselves against the Kryll.

Garden: This overgrown and crumbling conservatory still has a working fertilization and pesticide system. This system can pose a serious hazard to anyone who ventures into the greenhouse without first venting the air.

Process: Teams must fight for control of this subterranean Imulsion processing plant, still active despite the cessation of the Pendulum wars.

Subway: Timgad's Central Subway station used to serve as a central hub for commuters. Now the tunnels are crawling with Locust."

 

[UpgradeFailure]

Anyone know if they fixed the problems that (Some) people were having with the wireless headset?

 

[bucwylde23]

As far as I know they haven't. The wireless headset was so horrible when I bought it I don't think I used it for more than 10 minutes before taking it back.

It's a shame, because I like it better than the wired headset except for the sound quality/background noises

 

[Queasy]

Originally posted by: chrisg22
As far as I know they haven't. The wireless headset was so horrible when I bought it I don't think I used it for more than 10 minutes before taking it back.

It's a shame, because I like it better than the wired headset except for the sound quality/background noises

Oddly, mine didn't have those problems. When I first got it, I asked the guys I was playing with if they could hear me fine and they all said yeah. <shrugs> I wonder if it is an interference thing.

 

[Queasy]

Fracture - new game from LucasArts. 3rd Person shooter where terrain deformation is the selling point.

 

[SpiderX]

Alright so back about 10 years ago when I made my current Hotmail addy, I just zipped through and left the settings as is. The country is set to US (I'm Canadian). Never thought this would be a problem until I started my Xbox live account last November. I am unable to change the country in my billing address with that hotmail account. MS won't change it for me either. So I can't use my Canadian credit card nor can I use Canadian Xbox Live points. So I apparently need US Xbox live points. Is anyone planning on going out to a place where they sell them anytime soon? If so would they be interested in grabbing me one and I'll just shoot you the paypal for it?

It's really pretty annoying that MS won't change a minor thing for me so I can give them more of my money. Bah.

 

[blurredvision]

Originally posted by: SpiderX
Alright so back about 10 years ago when I made my current Hotmail addy, I just zipped through and left the settings as is. The country is set to US (I'm Canadian). Never thought this would be a problem until I started my Xbox live account last November. I am unable to change the country in my billing address with that hotmail account. MS won't change it for me either. So I can't use my Canadian credit card nor can I use Canadian Xbox Live points. So I apparently need US Xbox live points. Is anyone planning on going out to a place where they sell them anytime soon? If so would they be interested in grabbing me one and I'll just shoot you the paypal for it?

It's really pretty annoying that MS won't change a minor thing for me so I can give them more of my money. Bah.

Ya, I've been annoyed the past few years because Microsoft refuses to change the email that's linked to a Live account. Right now, I have an old email linked to it that I hardly ever use, and up until about a year ago, they still wouldn't change it. I've quit trying since then.

 

[bucwylde23]

Originally posted by: blurredvision

Originally posted by: SpiderX
Alright so back about 10 years ago when I made my current Hotmail addy, I just zipped through and left the settings as is. The country is set to US (I'm Canadian). Never thought this would be a problem until I started my Xbox live account last November. I am unable to change the country in my billing address with that hotmail account. MS won't change it for me either. So I can't use my Canadian credit card nor can I use Canadian Xbox Live points. So I apparently need US Xbox live points. Is anyone planning on going out to a place where they sell them anytime soon? If so would they be interested in grabbing me one and I'll just shoot you the paypal for it?

It's really pretty annoying that MS won't change a minor thing for me so I can give them more of my money. Bah.

Ya, I've been annoyed the past few years because Microsoft refuses to change the email that's linked to a Live account. Right now, I have an old email linked to it that I hardly ever use, and up until about a year ago, they still wouldn't change it. I've quit trying since then.

Maybe I'm not totally understanding what you are talking about, but when my ISP got taken over by comcast, I was able to change my MS Passport/Live email address with no problem at all.

But on to more serious business. blurredvision, in GHII, how the hell do you play hard and use the orange button without totally screwing up your hand position? I have done pretty good on medium, but hard is kicking my @$$.

 

[Eug Wanker]

Anyone get the Xbox 360 Dashboard Update yet?
Anyone get the Xbox 360 HD DVD Update yet?

I'm mostly looking forward to the latter myself.

 

[five40]

Originally posted by: Eug Wanker
Anyone get the Xbox 360 Dashboard Update yet?
Anyone get the Xbox 360 HD DVD Update yet?

I'm mostly looking forward to the latter myself.

I turned on my xbox a couple minutes ago and nothing. I really want mp4 support. That's all I care about.

 

[Spineshank]

This update scares me more than anything.

 

[purbeast0]

when the updates out, it'll be on majornelson.com

Gnrslash4life why does it scare you?

 

[bucwylde23]

Update doesn't scare me a bit.

At this point I don't think the update will affect me at all from what I have read about it. Unless there are some things included that haven't been released yet, which I doubt.

 

[blurredvision]

Originally posted by: chrisg22

Originally posted by: blurredvision

Originally posted by: SpiderX
Alright so back about 10 years ago when I made my current Hotmail addy, I just zipped through and left the settings as is. The country is set to US (I'm Canadian). Never thought this would be a problem until I started my Xbox live account last November. I am unable to change the country in my billing address with that hotmail account. MS won't change it for me either. So I can't use my Canadian credit card nor can I use Canadian Xbox Live points. So I apparently need US Xbox live points. Is anyone planning on going out to a place where they sell them anytime soon? If so would they be interested in grabbing me one and I'll just shoot you the paypal for it?

It's really pretty annoying that MS won't change a minor thing for me so I can give them more of my money. Bah.

Ya, I've been annoyed the past few years because Microsoft refuses to change the email that's linked to a Live account. Right now, I have an old email linked to it that I hardly ever use, and up until about a year ago, they still wouldn't change it. I've quit trying since then.

Maybe I'm not totally understanding what you are talking about, but when my ISP got taken over by comcast, I was able to change my MS Passport/Live email address with no problem at all.

But on to more serious business. blurredvision, in GHII, how the hell do you play hard and use the orange button without totally screwing up your hand position? I have done pretty good on medium, but hard is kicking my @$$.

Yep, you're understanding me correctly. Did you have to call to get your email addy changed that's linked to your gamertag? Or can you do it online somewhere?

As for using the orange button on hard, you're not going to like my answer. Practice. Go into practice mode, and play a song on full speed, the entire song. This way, you won't fail the song, but can still pause for a couple of seconds and get your fingers figured out where they are, then continue. I've gotten pretty decent with knowing where my fingers are at all times, but once the note changes get quicker, I tend to lose track fairly quickly. I've started on the hard career, but I failed "Woman" on the second set a couple of times now, and haven't tried again. The other songs gave me no problems. I have to beat that song to go any further, also .

Also, practice your hammer-ons and pull-offs. I've been trying to do that myself, and have gotten a little better at it. I can recognize the HO/PO notes coming pretty easily, but haven't gotten my timing down yet on the ones that are spaced farther apart.

I did manage to get 5 stars on all songs in Medium last week, though, and got my first 100% on a medium song on "Jordan" over the weekend.

 

[bucwylde23]

Originally posted by: blurredvision
Yep, you're understanding me correctly. Did you have to call to get your email addy changed that's linked to your gamertag? Or can you do it online somewhere?

As for using the orange button on hard, you're not going to like my answer. Practice. Go into practice mode, and play a song on full speed, the entire song. This way, you won't fail the song, but can still pause for a couple of seconds and get your fingers figured out where they are, then continue. I've gotten pretty decent with knowing where my fingers are at all times, but once the note changes get quicker, I tend to lose track fairly quickly. I've started on the hard career, but I failed "Woman" on the second set a couple of times now, and haven't tried again. The other songs gave me no problems. I have to beat that song to go any further, also .

Also, practice your hammer-ons and pull-offs. I've been trying to do that myself, and have gotten a little better at it. I can recognize the HO/PO notes coming pretty easily, but haven't gotten my timing down yet on the ones that are spaced farther apart.

I did manage to get 5 stars on all songs in Medium last week, though, and got my first 100% on a medium song on "Jordan" over the weekend.

I did all the email address changing online. I went under xbox.com in my account and changed it. The site seems to be down now (or it doesn't work for me at work) so I can't give you the exact instructions. I click on "Manage profile" or "manage account" something like it.

I ended up at the MS passport site and could change my email address there. It's the same site you can see your purchases such as live subscriptions/points purchases and your credit card info. I can look when the site works for me or when I get home for exact instructions.

I guess I'll be practicing my GH2 then. Every time there is a fast sequence switching between all the different buttons, or even worse: green and orange at the same time, I get all screwed up. I'll have to devote so much time to become good at GH2.