Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Long Live Xbox Live Arcade

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the geometry-wars-as-halo-killer dept.

Edge Online has a piece up talking about the success of Xbox Live Arcade. They wonder out loud if the Live Arcade won't end up being the most important next-gen platform in this round of the console wars. From the article: "Live Arcade's conversion rate - the proportion of people who upgrade the demo to the full, paid-for version - is extraordinarily high, according to Canessa: 'The industry average on PC is about 0.8 per cent to one per cent, and in the first generation of Arcade we were hitting about 8.5 per cent, which was fantastic. But in this generation of Arcade we're hitting up to 35 per cent, and averaging over 20 per cent across all the titles. I mean, we had to check the data to make sure it wasn't a mistake. It's absolutely unheard of.'"

6 of 66 comments (clear)

  1. live arcade by apoc06 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    teh arcade is a great draw, but the real success is geometry wars. its a runaway smash with alot of buzz. that and the lack of a wide variety of solid retail titles. buying a full version of a demo for a fraction of the cost of a regular x360 title [and happens to be more fun] is a no brainer. when the AAA x360 titles arrive, maybe thats when we should compare numbers.

    basically people have a $400 machine and are dying to play something on it. no big deal. but for the time being, they need to give geometry wars most of the credit there.

    1. Re:live arcade by apoc06 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      the funny thing is i own the original mutant storm for xbox. i downloaded it from their early incarnation of live arcade. it runs at high res too. this is regular xbox here mind you.

      the let down is that it costs $400 to play a few titles that could very well run on the $150 xboxes we already own.

    2. Re:live arcade by bigman2003 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      But for me, these arcade games are just the little sprinkles on top of the icing on the cake.

      Ghost Recon- now that is the cake- and the icing.
      Call of Duty- lotsa cake, but some fucked up icing.
      PGR 3 - carrot cake- which is cake, but I hate all of the guys on line who have a fit when you rub fenders with them. How is it that a single game can attract so many self-righteous jerks who feel that I am being an asshole, just because I am not GOOD at a game, and therefore can't drive in a straight line?

      Hell, I've even spent some time playing Robotron on XBLA. Which is almost an exact port of a 20+ year old game. But it is still fun. And my $400 console is what delivers it to my fat ass while I sit on the couch, so I'm happy.

      I *love* fancy, shiny, beautiful graphics. I really think they can add to a game. But if a game is good, I don't need those graphics. So I don't mind playing a game that could be played in last generation's consoles, as long as it is still fun.

      Just a disclaimer though, it bugs the crap out of me that many people tend to think LESS of a game because of shiny and fancy graphics. Like there were only 1,000 hours of development available, and the time put into graphics was time taken away from 'gameplay'. I don't think games always need them, but I do think they benefit from them. But the XBLA games are usually the type that are based on very simplistic, repetitive gameplay- which is fun no matter what they look like.

      --
      No reason to lie.
  2. Who'da thunk? by interiot · · Score: 3, Insightful
    WHO KNEW these activities would be popular???
    • Flash-based downloadable games
    • Being able to IM your friends, no matter what game they're in
    • High-score lists
    Okay, granted, it wasn't clear that this stuff would readily trasnfer to consoles, and still be popular. What I don't get is, now that one console has shown these are far and away very popular, why other consoles don't pick up on it ASAP?

    I guess, to some extent, we have to wait and see whether Sony's PNP or Nintendo's online service do these things. But given how unenthusiastically the companies have been dragged into having a centralized online service, and the likelihood that Sony will focus on trying to sell its other media assets, and might neglect the gaming aspects of the online service (central IM, high-score lists, and there's still room for more features).

  3. Re:New Market Strategy by gorbachev · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I don't think the trial versions are the main factor why XBox Live Arcade titles are doing so well.

    I think the main factor is the marketplace points. Consumers are making the purchase not with real money, but with some abstract points. What's 400 points when you still have 1600 left. Making purchases doesn't feel like you're spending any money. That, I think, is the real reason why the titles have such a high conversion rate.

    --
    In Soviet Russia, I ruled you
  4. Going to the Arcade by ClamIAm · · Score: 2, Insightful
    I have mixed feelings about services like this.

    On one hand, I find it ironic that the most popular feature of a four hundred dollar console primarily propagandized as ZOMG POWREFUL is a service that lets you download games that could run on ten-year-old consoles.

    On the other hand, I'm excited for what could be the "return" of the arcade, shifting from a physical place to an online service