Anniversary of a Red Ringed Monster - Xbox 360

[EvilBoris]

It's not necessarily the power thing, but it's nice to see there are plenty of games coming out on a regular basis and developers haven't started cancelling titles to start making them for next gen formats.

[smouty]

And you bought your first 360 when? If you're a launch day man I will have to call you out on that one. It is a FACT that launch day machines WILL fail at some point in their life.

I said it has been fine for me. The original one was replaced when working for a HDMI one a few years ago. The original one has subsequently failed just not for me.

[Family Fry]

5 Years it will be come Dec 2nd, time flies!
Traded in all my xbox stuff and the console for a large credit note in prep, went home Dec 4th/5th midnight launch with PDZ, PGR3 and Xbox 360.
Had it on my SD tv via RGB Scart (which I got as an xmas pressie!) for a good while too, so I didn't experiece True HD for quite some time.
On Nov 14th 2007 it died (almost made 2 years) I got a brand new console which lasted, surprisingly until I bought the Halo Reach Slim console. My old unit is now 3 years old still works fine, I have always said I have been VERY lucky with 360s, I know several people who have had more than 4 360s.
Best experience for me has become XBLA and XBLIG, from a very slow start with Geometry Wars and not a lot of new games released after the inital period the serive became a 1 game (minimum) a week service and now at least 2-6 games a day on XBLIG as well, we are pretty much spoiled for choice on the download marketplace from Xbox Live.
Remember PGR3 sapping ALL of my time as I was progressing through it all aiming for platinum in everything, never got it in the end due to wiping my HD clean, not so long ago! DOH!

[nakamura]

BTW, in my eyes, the PS3 has long passed the 360 in terms of "real sales". I feel you have to consider consoles working in the field. If every 360 owner has had as many consoles as me going through the tills, they're actually below 10million real units!

That, my good man, is a very good point and I never thought about it like that.

[Rossco]

Xbox 360 - Xbox Live - Awesome

The fun I've had for the last 5 years playing so many different types of games with so many different people from real friends to forums friends can't be compared to any other time.

I'd say Microsoft done for gaming again what the PS1 done originally. Brought it to a whole new market and made the industry grow dramatically.

[CMcK]

The 360 has provided us with some great games and XBLA is the killer application for this generation of consoles. The 360 has also shown us that Microsoft has paid attention to everything that it learned from the DC and Xbox and must have the other platform holders running scared of what they will produce for their third generation of console.

Personally the 360 is now one of my favourite systems. Loads of good shooters from Japan and plenty of western developed stuff like PGR3, Halo, Gears of War etc. But XBLA has been the key to the 360 doing so well IMHO. So many good original games as well as classic arcade games. Honestly would you have believed it five years ago that stuff like Guwange and Radiant Silvergun would be mixing it with the likes of Braid and Limbo?

Microsoft has focused on what they know best this time with software for developing games at the forefront of their efforts. And selecting good custom hardware made their system competitive with the oncoming Sony system despite launching earlier.

I was actually lucky to get my system at launch. I flew back from Vegas the day after launch. I had a system reserved but it was pushing it to get to the shop on time. I cheekily dropped of my still jet lagged good lady and made a dash for Game. With the remainder of our spending money and winnings in hand I made it to town just before closing time and spent the lot on 360 stuff.
After setting it all up it was all about PGR3. Just awesome. I had already bought an HDTV knowing the 360 was coming out so I was able to revel in the grahical leap right away. Shame Perfect Dark Zero was pish. Discovering Geometry Wars and demos on Live was great as well.
My only criticism has to be that, hardware issues aside, there is to much focus on FPS games. Which for me personally have lost a lot of their appeal over the long years since DOS Wolfenstein. There are exceptions like Gears and Halo of course.

The launch of Kinect is being treated as a relaunch of the 360 by MS. Will we really se another five years from this generation of systems? I doubt it but as long as XBLA continues as it has I will have no complaints.

[JSR]

Scrapped together enough cash (without a job back then) to buy a Core unit, a memory card (64MB, enough to hold Geometry Wars and my saves) and Call of Duty 2. Was amazed over how well Live was integrated. "I can download game demos over the internet? For free?"

Probably my favorite console this generation. Have spent way more time on it than PS3 and Wii combined. Overall it's an excellent console with a brilliant gaming library.

My only complaint (if you can call it that), is that it lacks a defining identity. When remembering back on older consoles, they all had their "thing". The Mega Drive had fast action games, SNES had JRPGS and colorful Nintendo games. The Dreamcast had online gaming and perfect arcade conversions. The PSX had CG videos and voice acting. While the XBox 360 clearly started many of the trends we see today, most of them are so common now (Achievements, online, HD gaming), that the 360 feels less unique than I think it deserves. But still, the best of the three.

[Neon Ignition]

With the 360 I found myself to be really undecided about it on the run up to release as PGR3 looked great but I'd not long since played PGR2 and I was suspicious of Rare's games (especially of Kameo which ironically turned out better than PDZero). Come launch day though I waltzed into Game and picked one up without pre-order as you do and got home to try it, finding the experience to be underwhelming. This was my introduction to HD gaming... on a small SD screen.

The introduction of HD gaming has probably been it's biggest contribution for me as getting the set up for it was labourious but made a massive difference and suddenly I was getting all my games on it. The pad is a great evolution of the previous S model and the NXE was easy to use.

I think it's place today can also be largely attributed as to whether its still the format you go to for multi-format releases. Exclusives wise there are some great titles but I've overall found it to be weaker for them than the other 2 formats or its predecessor and as the PS3 has improved in leaps since launch and MS has hacked away at the number of new exclusives and the quality of the NXE my 360 has recieved less and less play.

It shouldn't be needed but I always set a limit with the RROD of 3 systems and then I'd abandon the 360. My third and final Halo 360 is still going strong so hopefully it'll hold out and allow the systems final years to go out strong. The real star this gen for me with it has probably been the XBLA titles which they've really taken a lead with.

I could never regard it as one of the best formats ever made as it falls short in too many areas but its certainly worthy of a lot of respect and hopefully it's legacy won't end up being known mainly for RROD and possibly being MS's last core centric format.

[eastyy]

well when i got the xbox first i was impressed but didnt have broadband so when i finally did got it i finall saw the appeal of online play and the xbox live arcade

however on my 4th machine now ...which is annoying still love the machine was my most played console by far

though i noticed i have a bit of a bias...with multiformat games always get the xbox one

[JSR]

It shouldn't be needed but I always set a limit with the RROD of 3 systems and then I'd abandon the 360. My third and final Halo 360 is still going strong so hopefully it'll hold out and allow the systems final years to go out strong. The real star this gen for me with it has probably been the XBLA titles which they've really taken a lead with.

You do know that MS offers a three year warranty on the console?

[Team Andromeda]

When it comes to the broadest range of best games the 360 is unbeatable this gen. The 360 is one of the best console I ever had the pleasure to own.
When it comes to On-Line enabled front end it has changed the industry for ever (and its still the best) Its joypad is the best since the Saturn and N64 pads. Also I must give full credit to MS for treating the Pal gamer with the utter most respect, no long waits for games or Hardware unlike the piss poor treatment from SONY and NCL to the Pal Gamer.

I got mine from Gameplay at Launch and playing PGR 3 in High Def was just something else at the time .

[Baseley09]

My personal shift towards AV rather than gaming leaves me feeling that PS3 is a superb centre piece of any cheaply assembled entertainment suite....and the 360 is just a games console, in that respect it has all the games you could want, no love for it from me though.

I'm not into online gaming in a big way and the dashboard and overall colour scheme is some rancid lime green. Good pad though I use one on my PC, nuff said.

[Neon Ignition]

When it comes to the broadest range of best games the 360 is unbeatable this gen.

I always find this stance curious (not spoiling for a fight, lol ) just because the multi format titles between the 360 and PS3 are the same but I find the PS3's exclusives to be far more diverse than the 360's which have largely always seemed geared at the same audience. Certainly not as varied as going from Eyepet to Heavy Rain to Gt to Killzone to Uncharted etc compared to Fable to Gears to Halo to Forza etc

[Team Andromeda]

I always find this stance curious (not spoiling for a fight, lol ) just because the multi format titles between the 360 and PS3 are the same but I find the PS3's exclusives to be far more diverse than the 360's which have largely always seemed geared at the same audience. Certainly not as varied as going from Eyepet to Heavy Rain to Gt to Killzone to Uncharted etc compared to Fable to Gears to Halo to Forza etc

I think when it comes to Traditional shooters, racers, RPG's, sport games, 3rd person action games, FPS the 360 has the better line up (or does them better), That to me is a pretty broad range of games.

What about Viva Pi?ata to Alan Wake. Forza to HALO. Gears of War to Fable, Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts to Blue Dragon .

I agree SONY has the better In-House support and the better exclusives, which is why I'm pissed with the money MS is wasting on Natal. That doesn't change my view that other than its serious weak point platform games (like it was for the X-Box) is the best all round console 'for me'

[cavalcade]

I'm an adult. I'd like to retain an aloof, mature stance with regard to the consoles. "It's all about the games", I'd like to say. "Platform isn't important".

But ultimately I detest the PS3. It's a deep seated hatred. I don't like anything about it. The pad. The UI, and in general the games. Yes, I will play on it occasionally. I'll play the exclusives. I'll use it as a media centre. But ultimately nothing about it screams FUN like the 360. I don't care how utterly deluded and brainwashed by Microsoft that makes me seem, but when I slump into a sofa at the end of the day only one of the two boxes screams "TURN ME ON BIG BOY" and it isn't the Sony one. I don't even play on Live a lot. There is just *something* about it. I reckon it's largely down to the fact it makes you feel like you're jumping in to a like minded community of game playing addicts. My "friends" on PS3 might as well not be there. On the 360 there is a pervasive feel to the UI that suggests you're connected to something bigger. Which conversely makes the entire act of playing the 360 more worthwhile. Not just achievements and party chat, but the entire ground up concept of the console. PS3 has no ground-up concept. It's a cobbled together hodge podge of ideas cribbed from other things.

I can see the PS3 suiting many people as a lead game machine. But I'm not surrounded by people who play games, and I don't chat to people about games on a daily basis. The 360 for me is like dressing in women's underwear all day under a business suit, and finally getting home and being able to parade around your own living room dressed in a bra and panties.