Which one to buy? I have a 1080p LCD HDTV, so I'm thinking the PS3 for Blue Ray and the higher rez on games.

Don't say WII, I will probably buy that in addition for Christmas.

I'm assuming that most of the big games are both, but which console wins for exclusives? Back in the day I was hurting because I couldn't play some of the FF games on the Xbox, or Xenosaga. Are there any exclusives that are game-breakers for either console?

Which has the better online systems? I've heard alot of stuff about downloading demos on Xbox 360...

For online gaming, no question. Xbox all the way. Sony offers it, but who cares. Sony has a lot of proving to do if they even want to match up.

System exclusives seem to go both ways at the moment. Nothing super extraordinary out of the PS3 camp yet. Everything available is pretty mediocre at the moment. 360 has Bioshock, Gears of War, the Halo franchise for starters.

PS3 has Ninja Gaiden Sigma. Which is a remake of Ninja Gaiden Black, which is a remake of Ninja Gaiden, both for the origional XBOX. Worth picking up. HARD as hell. Resistance:Fall of Man is a mediocre standard offering shooter. Nothing special at all, especially if you have played F.E.A.R. which was a much better game.

You probably want to see whats coming out from now till Feb 2008. This holiday season is going to be amazing on all 3 consoles. Not sure how much will be exclusive, but the list of coming soon is pretty hot across the board.

Sports games favor 360 110%. PS3 is notorious for very unresponsive controls and poor graphics compared to their 360 counterparts.

Performance issues, I have not heard any negitive from the PS3. Xbox is of course fighting off a ton of bad consoles and the dreaded red rings of doom.

And ps3 doesn't have rumble, what the fuck is up with that.

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World of Warcraft: Kallaystra, Gweila, Steakumn, Tarathia [ Feathermoon/Horde ]

Also a good point.

360 also will have Stranglehold soon. Looks pretty sleek and sexy.

Yeah I was pleasantly surprised by the Stranglehold demo, when I first saw video of the game it looked kind of mediocre but playing it showed how entertaining it can be going into bullet time and just flying around off walls, sliding down railings, doing all kinds of stylish slaying. Pretty fun.

If you are into FPS games you want a 360 really. Bioshock is absolutely the most amazing FPS I've played in a long, long time. Halo 3 is going to be coming out soon and everybody knows how that's going to be: awesome. Orange Box is coming out soon from Valve for 360 and PS3 and that is going to be awesome. It's going to include Half Life 2, Portal and Team Fortress 2. Portal is kind of an FPS/puzzle game and if you haven't looked into it I suggest finding a video. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is looking sweet, I believe it's going to be 360 and PS3. The exclusives really make 360 the winner in the FPS category (and 3rd person shooter too with Gears of War). Sony's going to have

RPGs have always seemed to be more plentiful on Sony consoles, but the 360 has a few good ones coming out soon. Eternal Sonata is pretty cool judging by the demo. Blue Dragon I've heard great things about, the demo wasn't too revealing of how the game actually plays but it had promise. Then there's another coming out from Mystwalker studio that I forgot the name of suddenly but the videos I saw of it looked amazing and it had an intriguing story. Then of course there's Mass Effect from the makers of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, which will be 360 only. It's going to be a huge, expansive RPG and will suck days of your life and may in fact become your life. So there's hope for 360 RPGs, but we'll see in the long run how they sell on the system and who keeps making them. No Final Fantasies to speak of but quality RPGs none the less. Of course the next Final Fantasy (13, 14? who knows) and it's spinoffs are going to be on PS3 so if that's your cup of tea it looks like you're only going to get it from Sony for the time being but of course the FF games won't be out until at least next year.

Racing games are pretty much the same on both consoles (as usual) with the exception of Motorstorm on the PS3. I don't play many racing games but that would be one I'd get if I had a PS3.

As for other games I know that Lair is coming out soon for the PS3 and it's being created by Factor 5, the guys who did Rogue Squadron and the sequels for N64/Gamecube so just judging by their past efforts I have high hopes for that one. Dragons flying around and burning shit, my idea of fun. Assuming it plays as good as it looks that's going to be one hell of a game. Heavenly Sword is going to be good for the PS3, although it looks like it plays almost exactly like God of War if Kratos had boobs. Assassin's Creed will be out for both PS3 and 360. Warhawk should be a good multiplayer only game for PS3.

Those are just a few of the notable games coming out in the near future. Each system has their exclusives that are going to be the overall deciding factor. You just have to see what's unique to each console and what floats your boat. 360 is stepping it up in the RPG category thankfully so if that's important to you you may want to check out what they have in store compared to PS3's offerings. Like I said no Final Fantasies but there's enough there to make up for it.

"I have a 1080p LCD HDTV, so I'm thinking the PS3 for Blue Ray and the higher rez on games."

1080p isn't going to make too much difference from 1080i that 360 can put out. If you can notice a difference between 1080p and 1080i please tell me. Yeah there's the blu-ray which is a definite selling point considering stand alone players are more expensive than the PS3. Also remember for the PS3 you have to buy the cables to run it in high def where as 360 comes with component cables included. Online gaming is superior on the 360, and the XBL marketplace/arcade is great. Sony's Playstation Network has promise but a lot to prove. Sony's going to have Home, but from the looks of it it's going to be more homo than a home. It looks like an MMO with absolutely no point. It baffles me how anyone can think it's going to be cool and worth the time and effort. If you bought a PS3 what makes them think you want to walk around in a virtual world with no objective rather than playing games? I'm really confused by it.

Hope something in there helped. Check out the games I mentioned, see what you're going to play. I bought a 360 because PS3 just doesn't have any "must have" exclusives yet, and won't until probably next year but you may see something that makes the PS3 what you want. 360 has a killer lineup for the rest of the year and I'll be entertained (once my 360 comes back from being fixed of course) with it for a long, long time. I just don't know how I'm going to afford all the gaming goodness that is to come.

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-The Artist Formerly Known As Neotrunx

Actually Van the developers have started receiving rumble controllers now that the suit with Immersion has been settled. I thought Resistance was a pretty fun FPS but on average Gears was more fun. I would have said Resistance was more fun but it didn't have enough large scale battles and that is where I found myself finding the game at its best. In terms of better resolution both systems go up to 1080P however as it was stated most of the time on the multiplatform or any EA title the 360 was better but if you look at the new Call of Duty 4 the PS3 version looks better(I hear Oblivion has better lighting and AA but I don't own the game).

If you want to watch HD movies you might want to look at the breakdown
PS3 60gig version with Blu-Ray"$499.99 (PS3 also upscales old DVDs to 1080P along with PS1/PS2 games)
Xbox 20gig version($349.99) with HD-DVD Player add-on($179.99):=$529.98
Add another $99.99 to the 360 if you plan on using TVersity over a wireless network.
(Cables are cheap enough, I know its annoying to have to buy then but monoprice.com has cheap cables)

I own both and right now and since I don't own any HD movies and just a monitor that allows 720P I would go with the 360 for gaming especially right now but Red Ring of Death is so damn annoying even if it's under warranty.

Better online system hands down goes to 360 and if you are hurting for FF then Square has both FFs as a PS3 exclusive for the time being but don't expect them till 2008 and with the current trends don't be surprised if it somehow gets announced for 360 like Devil May Cry did.
Edit: I know Van posted that MGS4 isn't an exclusive but that's false unless he has a link to prove it.
Ten reasons why MGS4 is a PS3 Exclusive:
http://kotaku.com/gaming/believe/ten-real-reasons-why-mgs4-is-ps3-only-282093.php
Number 9 was just funny to me.

@BuckStarr: Motorstorm rocks if you forget about load times and lack of offline multiplayer.

Xbox 360 currently offers more bang for the buck right now. End of story.

PS3 will also get Stranglehold and if you pay another 10 bucks you can get Hard Boiled on Blu-Ray, I guess thats for big John Woo fans I have no idea what that movie is about.

PS3 just realeased a 80g HDD model with cables (HDMI)

Xbox 360 is releasing a new model with 120g HDD and a few mechanical upg's including HDMI cables.

I'm leaning towards the 360. Price drops incoming as well.


I already have a Wii and it just sits collecting dust.

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--Rosepedal

they've already released the xbox you're talking about, it's called the "elite" edition, or whatever.

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World of Warcraft: Kallaystra, Gweila, Steakumn, Tarathia [ Feathermoon/Horde ]

Yeah I haven't seen anyone recommend a PS3 yet. Honestly, I watch so many movies on OnDemand that I've just not bought many DVD's lately, so I guess I will skip the Blue Ray and get that next year.

Do I definitely want to get the Elite version of the Xbox? I don't need the extra hard drive space but I'm thinking the HDMI port is worth the expense.

They've already done the price drops for it too but heres the thing you don't need an elite for HDMI anymore, all new premium consoles have HDMI and the cable Make sure you read the box and it says on the side HDMI I wouldn't buy an elite unless you plan on spending lots of time and money on XBL Marketplace because the only difference is a black case and a bigger HD, someone correct me if I am wrong please.

Here I found a picture of a premium with HDMI to help you in your hunt


It will note it uses the zephyr board that the current elites do

Larger Picture:http://pictures.xbox-scene.com/xbox360/hdmi/hdmi-sticker.jpg

No the elite isn't needed unless you like to buy lots of online content and im talking lots I bet most here haven't even filled up the 20gig premium HD and as I just posted HDMI is now on the new premiums.

http://www.amazon.com/Xbox-Console-20GB ... 222&sr=8-2
Free Shipping too and most likely tax free that should be all the proof needed =p

Edit: There is no 65nm in any XBOX360 and it might not have the new heat sinks as only some do I thought I would throw that warning in there because a lot of people are getting confused and thinking it has the cooler 65nm chip.

Thanks for the help.

The only other thing that I wanted to say is how incredibly fucking lame it is that the wireless network adapter is $100. This shit ought to be cheaper.

Think I'll get Madden and Bioshock..

Also, aren't the newer xboxes supposed to be coming out with some sort of thinner chips? Something to reduce all the heat related deaths?

Not this year. They haven't even confirmed 65nm in new Xbox 360s. Let alone began producing them.

My new 360 that was just returned has the new heatsink, which is supposed to help with the Red Ring of Death.

There's no real reason to get an elite, I don't pay for movies / tv shows from the marketplace, so I just use TVersity to stream the stuff I download for free.

So, a bigger hard drive is kind of a joke. The fact that they cost 179.99 on their own is a fucking joke too. The 100$ wi-fi adapter is also retarded. I use a wired network for the 360 so there aren't any latency issues when streaming media.

Only rumors and no current plans, these chips you are talking about are what I referenced as the 65nm processor. Microsoft also said there are thousands of parts in a 360 and you can't just blame one for RROD because it's to general of an error and just a hardware failure, the article is around kotaku.

@Joxor I completely agree, 100 bucks is lame, good thing for me is that I live in a small enough apartment and can just run a cable to my "living" room.

I have the wireless network thing and I really prefer it with the cable, as the wireless seems a little iffy.

Cable isn't really an option, as all my networking gear is setup upstairs. I'd have to get Comcast to come hook me up and it's not worth it at the moment.

Last question: Is Xbox Live Gold worth the cost? Is it necessary?

If you want to play multiplayer you have to get it, if you look around slickdeals.net you can usually find some decent deals on them. You also said earlier no one would suggest the PS3 but I would if you plan to watch HD Movies and wanted those FF/MGS exclusives its a lot less expensive because you are looking at Premium(20gig)+HD-DVD+Wireless = 629.97 vs PS3(60gig and media ports) 499.99. XBOX360 has better exclusive at this very moment though but some of my friends are going to drop 500 for MGS alone.

xbox live gold is ok. you can do stuff with the free silver accounts, but gold lets you play online and get demos first. at 50$ a year, it's really not a huge financial hit and it really boosts the gaming experience.

Not using Xbox Live is a tad retarded, it easily doubles the shit to do with the console, plus all the other stuff they've crammed into it now.

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Marauder Harabakc Goat

There's only a handful of arcade games that are really worth buying. I wouldn't say it "easily doubles" -- because it doesn't. I mean, people who buy that offline game pack and don't have the internet would have just as much fun as the guy with 30 arcade games but only a handful he regularly plays.

But like I said, I don't use the video marketplace, maybe you do. I don't feel like paying for TV shows that I can watch on cable and DVR.

That was mentioned as an after thought, but perhaps you can't see commas.

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Marauder Harabakc Goat

I find this to be untrue and am guessing that you haven't tried many of the titles because you didn't want to fork over the $10. There are plenty of XBLA games that are worth getting, you just have to go in with an open mind. I don't think anyone that has played Hexic HD thinks it wasn't worth the money (and there's a Hexic 2 that is equally good). Games like Catan and Carcassonne are also huge hits. I really like Carcassonne and would never have even given it the time of day had it not been for several reviews of it that I read. Castlevania SOTN is worth it for the memories, as are other ports of old classics (Doom split screen deathmatches, anyone?).

I can get pretty much any game that I want from a friend for 10 bucks, but I still think that several XBLA games are worth forking over the money for, even though they aren't the uber games that you can get in stores. Some aren't even my cup of tea, per se, but I still think they add value to the 360 and I still find myself going back and playing those old games every now and then.

I've bought the following:

Bomberman Live
Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved
Lumines Live
Marble Blast Ultra
Small Arms
UNO
Castlevania: SOTN
Mad Tracks

I think the rest of them I dislike because of the way they scale down to a weird resolution. It's like the game has two huge bars on the right and left sides, leaving a lot of dead space. That's weird to me, I'd rather have a full screen game.

I will try Catan and Carassonne.

What do you think of Bomberman Live, xskycrasherx? I'm thinking about buying the game if its not too laggy online and people play it

Get the free game: Aegis Wing.

Aegis wing is actually pretty fun, I was playing it the other day by myself and it was kinda hard, I wanna try playing it with 3 others to make the mega ultra ship of doom.

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Of note, if it matters to you.

If you purchase a 360 as of this writing, you will be getting a 90mm chip, as opposed to the new 65mm ones. The new Zephyr boards only have the HDMI port, as well as the new heat sink they put on the 360 if you send it back in for matinence.

There will be no word when the Falcon 60mm chipset consoles ship to consumers, as Microsoft will no doubt want to sell it's previous inventory before even letting the Falcons out the door and take its risk with the old consoles not failing on them.

I don't know if it matters really. The smaller chips are better allocated to deal with thermal issues, but the warranty extension is a good thing too. For most people, details like that aren't a big deal. Some would prefer to hold out for the new tech for a safer bet. However, I am betting it is going to take the christmas rush plus the Halo 3 launch to clean MS out of its old inventory.

If the "new" boards and heatsinks fix the RROD issues, I have no issues with keeping mine. I mean, I only have one HDMI port on my HDTV and it's used by the PS3. Component works just fine for the 360.

The 60nm chips will be a neat tech thing and all, but they don't lower power consumption that much. The Xbox 360 already runs pretty low on power as it is. I think power consumption goes:

Wii
Xbox 360
PS3

With PS3 using insane amounts compared to the other two.

It's more of a fuck up on Microsoft's part rather than a "must have" for the consumer. Naturally the new tech will work, or should work, more efficently but the hidden agenda is actually a poor financial decision on Microsoft's end. The 60mm chips were avalable for contract from both IBM and Intel about a year and change ago. Not only were they smaller, and able to handle thermal dynamics better, they were cheaper due to competition between the two to promote them and would have net more, or cost less to produce depending on how you look at it, on each xbox sold.

Not to mention it would have saved them the one billion dollar backend loss due to extended 360 warranty service extension combined with RROD and a large portion of other errors as those problems may have never came to be so common as they are now.

In reality, hardware upgrades across consoles aren't a new thing. Usually it is around a 1.5 to 2 year turnaround before they roll out new hardware. Most of the consumer base never hear of it at all. The 360 is just getting the publicity due mainly to the RROD issues. Fact of the matter is, it's about right on time for them to release some type of hardware upgrade anyway. I think it's a bit late due to the amount of people they had to move over to warranty service as opposed to RnD.

As a consumer, I would feel pretty confident purchasing one today, provided it had the zephyr board in it, which is easy to find out as was already shown with the ID tag on the back of the console, and side of the box. The HDMI on board is more than enough of a deal to make me want to purchase one, regardless if it is using the 90mm chipset or whatever. The warranty extension also should be more than enough to carry you through.

The 65 nanometer chips will come on a motherboard codenamed "Falcon" and there are reports that it will start showing up this fall season.

Possible Source:
http://kotaku.com/gaming/microsoft/xbox ... 292934.php

Yes, but you won't see it on the shelves until they sell down their stock of 90 mm Zephyr board Elite retofits.

People said that about the 90 nanometer boards without HDMI but Amazon let you picked so it wouldn't surprise me if they did that again.

I finally have my hands on money. Going to go buy a 360. Yes, I have talked about it for years... but am *finally* going to get one


I plan on getting with first purchase-

Oblivion
Halo 3 reserved
Bio Shock
Madden (possibly, not 100% sure on this)

I will get Gears of War when it goes down in price, maybe I will wait for Oblivion to go down as well or on sale. But Bio Shock and Halo 3 for sure.... any other titles out there that are must haves? What was that zombie killing one, forgot the name of it....

Also, I currently have Xbox Live for my original Xbox. Can I just transfer that account to the 360, or do I have to get a new one?

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Are you getting Halo because you like the series or are you riding the hype train? I haven't preordered a copy myself because I was never a fan of the series and personally found Gears to be more entertaining but hey, that's just me.

Zombie killing sounds like Resident Evil to me!

I am getting Halo for the series. I thought Halo 1 was one of the best FPS games I have ever played on a console. Everything just seemed to work excellent. Halo 2 was an above average single player game, but the online capabilities was what brought me back continually (even though I suck online).

I am one of the few people who enjoy FPS games on consoles moreso than on a PC. I understand that the controls are far better on a PC, looks better, blah blah blah. I get it. I just personally like them on a console, where I can sit on a couch with a controller and play for 30 minutes. My PC is for strategy games (Civ series, Total War series), card games (spider solitaire, online poker) and MMORPG (none at this time).

The zombie killing game is not Resident Evil. It was some game where you were at a mall, and you could use anything in the mall to kill zombies. I guess it was based off of the Living Dead movies from back in the late 1960s.

It is cool, I am moving into a house in January with a friend. He just bought a 61 inch plasma TV, so anything we play on it is going to look excellent

I still want to get Gears and Oblivion; however, not at $60. When it drops in price to $40 then I will pick up a copy...

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Dead Rising is the zombie game. I'm going to save you a lot of heartache. Rent it. Get your fix and take it back. It's fun, but only for about the same length of time as a rental. If you really really have to have it, buy used somewhere and save 30 bucks. Unless it's 30 dollars at Wal Mart still.

Wait to get Oblivion. Game of the Year edition comes out in a month or abouts. Has more content than the vanilla one. Think it has both retail expansion packs for PC in it. Going to warn you now, 360 Oblivion sucks compared to its PC big brother. Mods made that game enjoyable.

I will reserve judgement on Halo 3 untill it hits, but after playing PC shooters, it seems like it might be a step backward. HL2 and F.E.A.R. raised the bar. Even playing Bioshock, I almost wish it were a HL2 mod instead of a stand alone game.

Speaking of Half Life 2, Orange Box is due soon. A super good deal.

Side note. Gears of War is coming to the PC, and the map pack is a free download MONDAY on Labor Day if anyone has Gears and does not have those for the 360 yet.

Avoid Two Worlds like the plague. This is a HORRIBLE GAME. PC or 360. Do not buy into it. It's been a while since an unfinished game of this magnitude hit shelves. I'm not even going to talk about the game. Look it up if you are really that curious.

Blue Dragon is getting mixed reviews. Finalball Fantasy VII Z people call it. Some complain its bland and boring, but it is visually stunning in my opinion. Story isn't too bad either.

The Darkness is also getting some good words. I personally haven't played it, but people say it has a pretty deep story and is also a FPS.

Unfortunately, my PC cannot handle Oblivion. That is one of the biggest advantages of consoles over PC gaming- you buy one console that can theoretically last you for 5+ years... whereas a PC that you buy today probably cannot run games that will come out in 3 years. Expensive to upgrade, always having to download patches and drivers, etc etc. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy PC gaming... moreso than console gaming. The games seem to play and look and sound better on the PC *IF* you have a strong and powerful system.

Having said all of that, thanks for the Oblivion info. I will hold out for the GOTY edition.

I always thought that the premium edition had a 60 gig hard drive, and the core version had a 20 gig hard drive. However, I went to amazon.com last night and saw that the premium HDMI edition comes with a 20 gig hard drive... and the core edition, from what I read, came with no hard drive?!? Was I just mistaken all along and the premium only came with a 20 gig, not the 60 I thought? Or do you lose 40 gigs from your hard drive because it is now HDMI?

I don't plan on downloading movies or TV shows to my 360. The hard drive is merely for downloading a couple Xbox Live games and saving games on it. Is 20 gigs going to be more than enough space to hold the above? I am not sure how much space a downloaded game takes up, nor how much space a saved game takes for the 360.

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The core comes with no hard drive, and only comes with composite cables.

The premium comes with a 20gb hd, and comes with component and composite cables. If you find a zephyr(elite) retrofit, it also has an HDMI port, but doesn't come with an HDMI cable.

The elite comes with a 120gb hd, and comes with component, composite and HDMI cables.

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World of Warcraft: Kallaystra, Gweila, Steakumn, Tarathia [ Feathermoon/Horde ]

The premium is what you want and it will never fill up if all you want to do is save games on it.

MedijinKazama,

what's your gamertag, foo?

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World of Warcraft: Kallaystra, Gweila, Steakumn, Tarathia [ Feathermoon/Horde ]

I found Oblivion to be pretty enjoyable without any mods. I can't wait for HL2: Orange Box though. That's going to be fun as hell.

Oh, and Dead Rising is on the "platinum hits" at $30 MSRP now, so it's worth picking up if you want to keep it. Rent it first tho.

I feel the replay value is there on infinite mode when you can just go murder zombies in creative ways.

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World of Warcraft: Kallaystra, Gweila, Steakumn, Tarathia [ Feathermoon/Horde ]

I think my gamertag is Atlus210 and my PSN tag is Ajit. I have never logged on Live much though so my gold probably expired. I also have a Wii but no clue as to how to get my friends code because I have never gone online

OK so I was checking out online prices, and I saw a special edition Halo 3 version of the 360 coming out in a couple weeks. According to Amazon.com, it is going to be $399 compared to the $349 of the premium edition. However, when I went to compare the two... they both list identical features. 20 gig hard drive, wireless controller, HDMI, ethernet cable, headset, Silver membership, etc. Nowhere does it list the Halo 3 game included with the system.

So, from what I can understand... if you want the Halo 3 version console, you are spending an extra $50 for a green color?!?!? Or did I miss something major that warrants the extra $50? I would not mind having the green color, but not for an extra penny...

Anyone know for sure?

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It's just a different paint, that's all. I think it looks stupid. I'd just get the regular premium.

Yeah, if it is just a green color, then it is worthless for an extra $50. However... I did some more research and found out that this Halo 360 console comes with one of those play/recharge kits inside. Even it did not list it in the product listing, the summary of the system says it comes with it. Still wanting to 100% verify the truth, but it leads me to this question-

The premium edition does not come with a play/recharge kit, correct? That is separate?

Also, one thing I am thinking of is... these new Halo consoles may have all the updated circuitry and components inside. Which may mean that they will not break down and get the red ring of death like the old ones did. I am not sure of the return rate of the newer premium editions, but I would think that Microsoft would not want any defective Halo consoles since it is their flagship title. So they may be going through all the stops to make sure that their Halo console is perfect.

I know I bought the Halo Xbox console that came with Halo 1 many many years ago when it first came out, and it has yet to give me any sorts of problems even to this day...

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By the time you decide on an XBOX 360, the Xbox 2010 should be hitting the shelves. :p

If I was going to buy a new one today, I would look for one of the XBOX Premiums with HDMI included. That would be guaranteed to be "newer" and it should have the best parts available (at the same price). To answer your other question, no, it doesn't come with a play/recharge kit. This kit is normally prices at 20 bucks.

Just get this one:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp ... 6003685732

I don't see it listed anywhere in the specs, but wouldn't it make sense if the Halo 3 version of the 360 was bundled with... Halo 3? It would make up for the difference in price and would make it seem more worth it than a simple coat of paint.

Edit: Nevermind, just noticed it specifically points out that the console does not contain Halo 3. Well don't that suck. Otherwise it would still be in line with other bundles they've had with the original Xbox, like the Halo bundle, the Crimson Skies bundle, and the Forza bundle.

even if the halo3 360 comes with a play/recharge kit, you can buy two play recharge kits for the price difference.

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World of Warcraft: Kallaystra, Gweila, Steakumn, Tarathia [ Feathermoon/Horde ]

Just so everyone understands, the "Halo 3" kit is nothing but fanboy bait.

You do not get Halo 3. You get a baby shit green shell and faceplate.

As far as which hardware is included with the Halo 3 edition 360s, it is a safe bet they are Zephyr board systems, not Falcon. It doesn't really matter honestly. Just look for the HDMI included as has already been mentioned. Premium is the better buy. Average user will not need the extra crap in the Elite.

Here's a brief review of each game that I have:

BioShock -- nothing really needs to be said. Along with Gears of War, this is the must-have game for the 360.

Gears of War -- anyone with an XBox 360 should have this game. Anyone without an XBox 360 should get one just to play this game, or at the very least, go to a friend's house who has it so you can play it, which will then make you go out and buy an XBox 360, along with this game.

Two Worlds -- terrible game. I hear it gets better as you get into it and used to it, but I wasn't able to do either. Therefore, TERRIBLE GAME.

Blue Dragon -- very pretty game. It is made by the guy who made the original Final Fantasy (and Dragonball-z) so it will seem familiar to fans. It is a bit on the "kiddie" side, but if you enjoy turn-based RPG, this is your best option (comes on 3 disks).

Carcassonne -- excellent game and strangely addictive. This game is based on a German boardgame. It's tough to describe, but it's certainly enjoyable (from the people who made Catan).

Hexic HD -- GET THIS GAME. I don't care what anyone says, if you play this game, you will get hooked.

Hexic 2 -- more of the same Hexic love. I prefer the original, though.

Oblivion -- get it. You already know you will. There's plenty of downloadable content for it, including a full expansion (that you have to pay full price for). It's as pretty as the top-end computer version without any of the computer problems (but without the ability to get mods). I guess there's a deluxe edition that you could wait on if you wanted to.

Rockstar Table Tennis -- definitely a unique game. Who knew that Ping Pong could succeed as a video game? I expect to see copy-cats before long (Rockstar presents: Shuffleboard!).

FIFA 07 -- soccer fans only. FIFA '08 is around the corner, so wait on that.

Shadowrun -- meh. It's weird and from what I have heard, it's too short (I obviously didn't finish it, like normal). You can play online against people playing from PCs, however, which is a cool bonus. I couldn't get into the single player.

LOST PLANET -- cool game (no pun intended). It's one of those "just run around and shoot everything you see" games, though, so it can get old.

NCAA® Football 08 -- if you're a football fan, get this game. I don't have Madden, but it really comes down to if you want college or the pro game. I love how they incorporated the Weather Channel into the game so when you play in a city, the weather matches the real-time weather in that city.

DEAD OR ALIVE 4 -- if you're into fighting games, don't miss this one. It's the best available for now. It also has online play and bouncy boobs. When you enter your age, put 99 and see even bouncier boobs.

Call of Juarez -- I liked this game. It definitely has that western feel and earns its mature rating with the language and content (you almost get a blowjob pretty early on omg). One problem is that it's more sneaking around and less being Wyatt Earp. It could have been much better.

Overlord -- some people love it. I think it's pretty goofy and I had a hard time getting into it.

Texas Hold'em -- you're better off playing on Pokerstars.net.

Forza Motorsport 2 -- awesome game. This is much more "realistic" than Test Drive Unlimited. Unfortunately, that is also one of the problems with the game. You can tweak every aspect of your car and even make some out of this world graphics on them... if you are an artist.

Crackdown -- it's a blast. It came with the Halo3 beta invite so it was worth getting just for that, when it came out, but it is a good enough game to survive on its own. It also has lots of downloadable content.

Test Drive Unlimited -- this game redefined what a racing game should be with the online play, and it was/is a reasonable price.

Aegis Wing -- very fun XBLA game. When you play multiplayer, this game really shines. Plus, it was (still is?) free! You can't beat that with a stick.

Boom Boom Rocket -- think: Guitar Hero with fireworks. If that sounds like your cup of tea, get it. Otherwise, don't bother.

Castlevania: SOTN -- old-school. Get it for the nostalgia, if you are in the mood for an old-fashioned side scroller.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance -- I wouldn't waste my money on this, but the game is pretty cool. They released an update with some additional characters so if you're a Marvel Comics fan, you may want to get it.

Small Arms -- neat graphics (the first true HD game for XBox Live Arcade, I believe), but I got bored with it very quickly.

Contra -- it's Contra! Get it if you want to relive the past.

Smackdown vs RAW 2007 -- if you like rasslin' games, this is about the best there is (until the 2008 one comes out). I got it so a friend's son could play it when she came over, because he loves fighting games. If it had more videos of the girls, it would be worth it. No Bra & Panties matches either, and 2008 is right around the corner.

Street Fighter II' HF -- it's Street Fighter. The controls kind of suck, but again, it's nostalgia. I prefer DOA 4.

TigerWoodsPGATOUR®07 -- awesome game, but '08 is here now.

Splinter Cell D.A. -- I barely played this game.

Call of Duty 2 -- you can get it cheap. It's worth it if you like shooters and are a collector of all things COD.

Call Of Duty 3 -- awesome game. Blows CoD 2 away. CoD 4 will be even better, though.

DIG DUG -- if you become an Achievement Points whore, this is an easy way to acquire some points.

Gauntlet -- it's Gauntlet! If you loved the old game, you'll love this one. "The Elf shoot the food! Wizard is about to die..."

The Godfather™ -- I neve really played this one, but if you like the GTA-style games, I am sure you'd like this one.

DOOM -- this one is great for when you have friends over and want to play split screen deathmatches or for when you want to relive the one that really started it all. The graphics suck, it's great!

Saints Row -- many people will say that this game is better than GTA. I thik the cussing in it is a bit much, but other than that, it's pretty cool.

DEAD RISING -- get it. Thanks.

Madden NFL 07 -- the graphics were amazing when it came out, but '08 is out so don't bother with this one unless you are a cheap ass.

G.R.A.W. -- many people consider this the best 360 game ever made (pre-Gears, of course). You can get it cheap, so do it if you want to see what all the hype is about, or if you plan on getting G.R.A.W. 2.

Chromehounds -- unless you are a huge Mech Warrior junkie, save your money.

UNO -- another XBLA game that is pretty fun once you start playing it. It's even better when you beat Melfice's ass the first time you ever play him in it.

Burnout Revenge -- pretty game. It used to be a "must-have" for the 360, but it's kind of old now.

LEGO Star Wars II -- some people LOVE this game. I say get it if you like this sort of game (whatever "sort" of game it is). It's cool how they let you play through all 3 movies, though.

EA SPORTS Fight Night 3 -- this is one of those games that I think you should get just so you can show your friends who have never seen an XBox 360 just what they are missing. The graphics are simply amazing. I cannot wait for FN 4 to come out (assuming they make a 4).

Frogger -- the chicks dig it. If you have a girlfriend or wife, you can justify the $500 you spent on a gaming machine just by buying this game.

Enchanted Arms -- it's a Japanese RPG. If you like Japanese RPG, you'll probably like this game, even though the gay character in the game is pretty damn annoying.

PAC-MAN -- does anything really need to be said about Pac-Man? I hear Pac-Man CE is cool as well, but I don't have it.

MLB 2K6 -- old.

Well, I did it. Finally. Everyone laugh... but I finally bought one

Went with the premium, since I don't want to spend an extra $50 for green. I cannot avoid the game hype (even though I was gonna buy it anyways), but I can avoid the green color hype

I bought Bio Shock. As far as the other games, I know I want to get some of the games on Xbox Live like Dig Dug, Gauntlet, Frogger, Castlevania, maybe Zuma Deluxe.

I will buy Gears of War when it drops to $40. Since I have Bio Shock, the Live old school games, and a dozen original Xbox games... I won't be worried about "needing" to play Gears right this very moment. But yes, I will eventually get it. I figure Christmas sales will abound, so will get it then.

I will get Oblivion GOTY edition when it goes on sale. Again, with Bio Shock I don't need it right this very moment. But will get it eventually.

MORE SILLY QUESTIONS-

1. Is Madden 08 good for just single player, or is it too easy and boring like the old school Maddens? I don't know if I will play online since I will probably get my ass kicked, and most of my friends down here are not into gaming that much. Every now and then sure, but I figure most of my Madden play is going to be solo.

2. Is Dead Rising a sandbox game where you can do whatever you want, like a GTA? I would just want to run around and kill zombies without having to go through a story or timed thing.

3. Is Mass Effect a RPG? I hear it is by the Bioware guys, so that gets me excited. Any other RPG games besides that and Oblivion?

4. Is there a Tetris that I can download and buy on Xbox Live, or do I have to buy that Tetris Evolution thing for $30?

5. Will my old school Xbox games look better with a 360, or same graphics?

6. I have an Xbox Live account with my old Xbox. Can I just transfer that account to my 360, or do I have to upgrade or buy a new one?

It has been so long since I played with my Xbox that I forgot my Live name. Will post it when I figure it out. I am sure you all will kick my ass online, but will still be fun nevertheless

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Gears of War is still 59.99$, it's going to be a very, very long time before it gets 40 -- if ever. Even as a "classic hit" title, it'll probably be 49.99$ at the lowest. It's just kinda like how Halo 2 is still 24.99$ used, 29.99$ new. It's been out forever now, and just only recently dropped that low.

Gears of War is worth the 60$

PS: Bioshock is one word.

The Madden franchise (and the College counterpart) has lots of other "modes" besides just playing the computer.


It's tough to explain, but it's pretty free form with the stipulation that you only have a certain time to complete it. However, you will play it repeatedly (it is how the game is designed).


I dunno, but it's supposed to be the shit when it comes out


There is no Tetris, but Hexic HD is just as addicting as Tetris was. Isn't Puzzle Fighter a Tetris clone? That is available in the XBLA.


I think it's pretty much the same graphics, maybe a slight improvement. Not every game can be converted to run on the 360, however. Chronicles of Riddick is one that comes to mind.


You can transfer the acct.

Mass Effect is gettig STUPIDLY AWESOME positive reviews and might even be a bigger hit than Bioshock. I don't know why to tell you the truth, I have not read up on the game at all.

I am currently watching Conan for the 360, not the MMORPG. There are several more whose name escape me at the moment but they were in last months Game Informer magazine. Established titles like Metal Gear and Devil May Cry don't even excite me any more. These new bloods have enough shit to warrant paying attention to as opposed to an aging Solid Snake, or some bishonen gay Dante clone. There seems to be a rising trend again, that you can in fact combine a compelling story with awesome graphics and create a super popular game.

Unfortunatly for every awesome game like Bioshock, you will always have one "Oblivion Killer" turd called Two Worlds.

I am very thankful it's getting more and more easy to identify between the two.

I own both a PS3 and 360 and at the moment I get a lot more enjoyment from my 360. Game selection for PS3 is either fps or sports games it seems. Gonna be a while until it gets a rpg I think, which is why I play consoles. 360 has a lot of great games that Neesha mentioned. I haven't bought Blue Dragon yet based on the reviews, though I loved the demo. I'll probably pick it up around the same time I pick up Eternal Sonata later this month.

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Avelle <Risen>
80 Mage
Ner'zhul Server (Fuck Illidan)
Avelle 75 PLD/DRG/DRK/BRD
Midgardsormr - Active again
Elidrin 75 Paladin
Midgardsormr - Retired
Elidrin 65 Ranger
Lanys T'Vyl - Retired

I think I may get Blue Dragon & Eternal Sonata as well. I am going to pick up SKATE for the 360 first though, then early October will have NBA2K8.