Xbox 360 Launches In U.S.

Well, it's here. Braving long lines and launch parties, and even jail time, those that were willing to pony up the time and money have their hands on the first player in the next-gen war. 360 impressions are available all across the web, with [H]ardOCP and Gamespot offering exhaustive experiences for the interested gamer. The BBC, as always, offers a bigger perspective on the launch, and Gamasutra confirms that Microsoft is in for the long haul in the games industry. From the BBC: "Sony and Nintendo are planning to unleash their next gen consoles during 2006, giving Microsoft an edge over its rivals. The software giant is virtually tied with Nintendo for second place, way behind Sony, in a games market worth $25 billion globally. Microsoft has ambitious plans for its new machine. It said it expects to ship up to three million 360s worldwide within 90 days. But the company has admitted that the worldwide launch of the console could mean shortages in the run-up to Christmas. The console is due to hit Europe on 2 December and Japan on 10 December and some retailers are also warning about limited supplies."

Comments

Re: Microsoft is in for the long haul

[xero9]

Actually, I bought an original Xbox not to play games on, but to use as a media device. It really worked great for all the TV shows and movied I snagged off usenet. Simply put all my files in a shared folder on my computer and fire up Xbox Media Center on the Xbox, and watch what ever I wanted on a nice 35" TV instead of my 17" monitor. It wasn't until I discovered Rainbow Six 3 that I actually started to use it to play games.

Actually if you read the HARDOCP review

[Shivetya]

you will see that this machine really is well done and offers lots of useful features. It is very well thought out and if you opt for the harddrive you get even more options.

I was actually impressed with its ability to work with other devices to include an iPOD and PsP. The nice thing about this machine is that it really is expandable as wireless gives them many options. You will probably see an addon keyboard/mouse combo one day.

There are many of us out here who don't need our PCs to program on, we have them for games, other entertainment, e-mail, and surfing. Give me an insta-on box with those features and I may just consider it. The XBOX360 is actually the first console I am seriously considering because of the potential.

Playing DvDs is a bonus, if it means one less component I have to hook up or keep up with all the better. People harped on the PS2 for the same reason yet I know many who have one for that very reason.

Just because its Microsoft doesn't make it wrong which seems to be your whole beef against it. (who made it)

(allow me to run some IBM style emulator/vpn over the net with a wireless keyboard and I really really need a PC even less)

Re:Actually if you read the HARDOCP review

[HanzoSpam]

I was actually impressed with its ability to work with other devices to include an iPOD and PsP. The nice thing about this machine is that it really is expandable as wireless gives them many options. You will probably see an addon keyboard/mouse combo one day.

There are many of us out here who don't need our PCs to program on, we have them for games, other entertainment, e-mail, and surfing. Give me an insta-on box with those features and I may just consider it. The XBOX360 is actually the first console I am seriously considering because of the potential.

That's the point I think is being missed. After everything is said and done, the thing is still, design-wise, pretty much a glorified PC. Microsoft has come out with a proprietary platform which they're using the gamer market to propagate. They can gradually add other functionality to increase it's market.

Don't be surprised when it eventually evolves into what amounts to the Microsoft version of the Mac.

Re:Actually if you read the HARDOCP review

[badasscat]

That's the point I think is being missed. After everything is said and done, the thing is still, design-wise, pretty much a glorified PC. Microsoft has come out with a proprietary platform which they're using the gamer market to propagate. They can gradually add other functionality to increase it's market.

What, you mean kinda like this?

The fact of the matter is every console is pretty much a "glorified PC" (or a "dumbed down" PC, depending on your perspective), and every single time - yes, every single time a new console is released, the manufacturer claims that it's going to do this, that and the other thing eventually, or that it's going to converge a whole bunch of devices into one. This is true going all the way back to the Odyssey II and Atari 2600, which also promised PC functionality. The Sega CD and NEC Turbo CD were the first (or among the first) to then promise home entertainment functionality once optical storage became the norm.

The reality is people just don't care. A few do, and those are the kind of people that sued Mattel when they never actually released their promised keyboard component from lack of interest (they only had something like 4,000 orders, which meant they couldn't get the component cost low enough to make a profit). Those people can be very vocal. They're the real hardcore. They're on the internet complaining when companies don't release promised add-ons, they're the ones that always have to be the contrarians when someone like me points out that they're the minority.

But they are the extreme, extreme minority. I agree with the parent poster who said as soon as the next hot console comes along, gamers will abandon the Xbox 360, because it really is about the games and only about the games, and it always will be. This is not going to be some great window into the living room. It is simply the console of the moment, and in five years it will be forgotten like every other console of the moment. MS is not creating some sort of home entertainment "standard" with the Xbox 360.

It never ceases to amuse me how people say the exact same things every time a new console is released. "It's going to do all these great things besides playing video games! It's revolutionary!" Ha! So in other words, it's just like every other console ever.