I have been playing video games since the dawn of the PC. I remember as a kid playing the little skiing game on the Commodore VIC20!!! I have always been a PC Gamer, but recently I changed the venue a little to include some console gaming!
I really wanted to get the best gaming system on the market, and did a lot of research about what I would like the best, what would best suit my gaming habits, etc. Sony has a really great system in the Playstation 3, but there are a few drawbacks, and the Nintendo Wii is fun, but just not serious enough, so I went with the MicroSoft game console for several reasons.
Everyone loves to moan and groan about MicroSoft, especially Windows, or Vista, but the fact is that MOST of the PC's out there function because of the ability of MicroSoft to figure things out, and to have the money to research and develop cool new things. Sure they have a couple of problems, but they also have great support and they really do want you to have a good experience with their products.
One of the really great things about the XBOX 360 is that it is backed by one of the industry giants in hardware and software. Microsoft has been around making computers and games for forever, and has recently become a huge name in gaming, buying up all kinds of game developers. And they have some of the most fun games, with the sweetest graphics and sound, but best of all, awesome gameplay... I recently bought a new (well, for me... it was actually refurbished) High Definition Sony WEGA 60"
rear projection TV (WOW, TALK ABOUT AWESOME!!!) and I had some bonus points from my American Express card that needed to be burned up, so I went ahead and ordered a brand new XBOX 360 package with Halo 3
graphics and controller. Of course, I made the mistake of assuming that the Halo 3 XBOX 360 came with Halo 3, but WRONG!!!! It is just a different color of console. I had to go out and buy the games separately, along with 3 other controllers in order to get the most use out of it at parties!One word about the controllers... the wireless ones are definitely the way to go. I have one with a rechargeable pack, and a charging wire that you can plug in and keep playing if the battery gets low during a game, and then I have 3 that I keep Super Energizer alkaline AA batteries on the shelf next to them... one advantage to doing this is that the alkalines won't lose their charge like a rechargeable, and the extra controllers don't get used all the time. So the controller that gets 90% of the usage is rechargeable, but the others are ready to go anytime. If the batteries get low, just pop in a couple of extra Energizers, and for the price of an energy drink, you are ready to roll, and everyone is happy.
My brother and I really love the first person perspective shooter games like Call Of Duty 3
, America's Army True Soldiers
, and just recently Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter
. These can be really difficult (and frustrating, until you get good with the controls for a particular game) but very rewarding when you get good at them. Halo 3 is great for having a few friends over and passing the controllers around. Up to 8 people can have a lot of fun and not get too bored. I have a few sports games that I will play with my friends, Madden NFL 07
, and NHL 07
, I'm not a huge sports fan, but it's fun to have a buddy to razz while you play. I rarely play against a computer opponent with the sports games. I also played through the surprisingly fresh and fun Eternal Sonata
. Some of you may think that I am weird, but I really enjoy a game like that once in a while. It wasn't really hard, but it's rewarding to really whip up on the enemy once in a while. :) And the combat, while admittedly somewhat repetitive (hey, what fantasy role playing game doesn't get a little that way?) had enough different elements to keep you coming back for more. Fun!!! I also picked up a used copy of Need for Speed Carbon
. That game is a blast, and trying to the the different challenges are fun to do with buddies, handing the controller around so everyone gets a chance.Are you seeing a trend here?? Buy your games used, and save a lot of money! An old trick I learned from my years in PC gaming. The best places I found to buy games are GameStop
(just up the road, somewhat pricey) and Amazon.com
(best possible prices, but might have to wait a couple of days). You can also rent the games and have them delivered to your door through a service like Gamefly.com. You can get started with them for only $8.95.
I have not had any serious technical difficulties with my XBOX 360, I never had to send it back to MicroSoft. There are enough horror stories out there about the "flashing ring of death", which I guess refers to the light on the front that flashes red when the unit crashes (I personally ahve never seen it), that a lot of people may be afraid to buy one. I must admit I had my doubts. I spoke to a lot of people about the problems that were happening (check with people at GameStop, or a similar place where the salespeople actually use the equipment) and they pointed to overheating as causing most of the trouble. So I made sure that my XBOX 360 is separated from my sound system amp and the cable box, with plenty of airspace around it.
A couple of weeks after I set it up, I had a scary thing happen. The CD drive would not read any game disc, or CD or DVD, for that matter. The console worked fine (you could access the free game demos that were installed on the harddrive), but for a week or so, I was ready to throw rocks at it. I didn't want to part with it and send it back, and being somewhat technically proficient (I have built several computers, and can troubleshoot and repair some electronics) I felt that if it just needed a new CD drive, I could change that my self... but I couldn't bring myself to break the little pieces of tape that said "Warranty void if removed"!!! So I just fiddled with the drive and was just pushing it closed and pulling it open when it started working fine!! And I have not had a bit of problem whatsoever since.
To wrap things up, I can give my XBOX 360 a solid TWO THUMBS UP!!! I still use my PC for strategy games, but for FAST ACTION AND MULTI-PLAYER FUN, on a 60" High Definition SONY TV, with 500 watts of Dolby 5.1 Digital Surround Sound, you can't beat the MicroSoft XBOX 360!!!!
