Reviewed: November 22, 2005
Reviewed by: Mark Smith

Manufacturer
Microsoft

Type: Home Console
System: Xbox 360

Rating: 9.9

Core System ($299)

That’s not to say there aren’t some absolutely amazing titles still coming out for the aging system. One needs only look at the recently released Half-Life 2 to see that programmers are only now figuring out how to maximize the hardware in that black box.

But advances in technology continue to accelerate, much like the expectations of the gamers who buy these systems. What used to be a diversion for the kids is now a multi-billion dollar industry supported by gamers in their 30’s and 40’s, so you can be sure that Microsoft was already hard at work on the Xbox 360 before your old Xbox lost that new system smell.

Microsoft already had a lot of good ideas in place with the original Xbox, and their Xbox Live online gaming network is far superior to anything else out there. So building on that solid foundation and taking the concepts of online gaming, achievements, and community to the next level, the Xbox 360 slams into stores today with a fury that is frankly a bit overwhelming.

For those who haven’t had a system on pre-order for the past six months they will either get to camp out overnight at their favorite retailer, or for those with 24-hour stores, get to participate in the ritual now known as Midnight Madness. It’s this kind of loyalty, fanaticism, and yes, madness, that Microsoft is banking on to sell more than three million systems and lock in their dominance in the home video game market before Sony and Nintendo knows what hit them.

WHICH ONE TO BUY

Microsoft is following Sony’s PSP launch lead by offering their system as a Premium Bundle, yet unlike Sony who has not released their hardware-only PSP package, Microsoft is offering a Core, game system only solution. Yes, offering two SKU’s (product codes) is going to confuse the mom and pops who come in buying the system for their kids, but savvy gamers should know what’s right for them.

Frankly, nobody should even consider the Core bundle unless you simply have no other choice. Since most stores only received a fraction of their total system allotment as Premium Bundles only those who got in line 12-20 hours ahead of launch can hope to claim the superior bundle.

The $299 Core package includes the Xbox 360 system, composite cables and a wired controller. Out of the box you basically have a paperweight. Sure, it will play any 360 game you stick in it, but without a $40 memory card or a $90 hard drive, you won’t be saving any game data and you certainly can’t enjoy the new Xbox Live community features. You’ll also need an HDTV adapter if you want to experience all the graphical bonuses of the system and digital surround sound.

The $399 Premium bundle is the package of choice, and that extra $100 will get you the 20GB hard drive, a wireless controller (with batteries), an Xbox Live headset, the HDTV cables, Ethernet cable, and for the initial launch, a multimedia remote control. That’s more than $200 of extras if you were to purchase separately.

Both systems come with a massive external power supply, power cord, manuals, a free one-month trial Gold membership to Xbox Live and a free Silver membership. New system smell is included for free….mmmmm…..new system smell….

INSIDE THE BOX

The Xbox 360 is catering to a whole new generation of gamers. Much like the original Wing Commander game had people scrambling to buy 386 PC’s, Microsoft’s new system will have people flocking to stores to buy HDTV’s, assuming they don’t already own one. Those fortunate enough to lay their hands on a Premium Bundle will be HD-ready out of the box.

But Hi-Def support for every 360 game is just the tip of the technology iceberg. At the heart of the 360 is a liquid-cooled CPU with three separate cores running a 3.2 GHz each, 512mb RAM, and an ATI graphics chipset running at 500 MHz. When you combine just those three elements you already have a system that rivals any PC you could possibly build at this time.

The 20 GB hard drive, whether you get it with the bundle or separately, is already more than twice the size of the original Xbox hard drive, or at least it will be once you scan through the 9 GB of movies and extras Microsoft has preloaded onto it and delete what you don’t want.

The Xbox 360 not only wants to dominate your gaming experience, it now strives to become the centerpiece of your entire home entertainment system. You can now play DVD movies out of the box (no adapter required), and with the three external USB ports, you can now jack in your MP3 player or digital camera and access those devices through the Media Center menu. And you can do all this while being on Xbox Live.

PLUG-N-PLAY

Installing the Xbox 360 is just as easy as any other system you have ever installed, perhaps even a bit easier. Simply remove the contents from the box and then decide if you want to position the Xbox 360 vertically or horizontally. An interesting side note: the ring of light will shift the four green indicators 90-degree if you change the position of the unit so player one is always the top-left light.

Find a nice location for the power supply off the carpet to avoid excess heat and potential lock-ups, and hook up the AV cables. This can be as simple as a single yellow composite cable or the RGB component cables for HDTV.

The HDTV dongle also comes with the orange coaxial cable for Dolby Digital or if you are a true audiophile you can use a fiber optic cable (purchased separately) and use the optical input built right into the back of the HDTV plug. Either way, you get great 5.1 surround on a compatible home theater system.

Hook in your networking cable or use the wireless adapter (sold separately) and plug in your controller (or charge your wireless one). If you are going sans hard drive you will hopefully have purchased a 64mb memory unit that goes in one of the two front slots. Do NOT overlook the invisible piece of tape that covers the DVD tray door. It’s very hard to see and the tray won’t open until it has been removed.

One the system powers on and you have ooh’d and aah’d over the fancy new 360 logo you need to do a few setup features within the software. Select your language of choice and your time zone then watch in awe as the clock sets itself (assuming you are online).

Parents will no doubt enjoy the family settings that allow them to lock out movies and games based on ESRB and MPAA ratings. You can also block profiles to protect your kids from Internet stalkers and lock them out of the marketplace so they can’t rack up bills on mom and dad’s credit card.

The Xbox 360 menu is divided into multiple panels or blades, each serving a specific function like multimedia, setup, profiles, etc. These are all very self-explanatory and in no time you should have your system customized and ready to go. You can even port over your Xbox Live account from your previous system in just a few simple steps.

IT’S ALIVE

Xbox Live has always been an option for both gamers and developers, and while it still is to some extent, the new Xbox Live community is so compelling that it will be hard to resist becoming a member for life. Microsoft hopes to ensnare millions of new subscribers by splitting their membership into two types, Gold and Silver.

Xbox Live Silver is available to anyone with an Xbox 360 and a broadband Internet connection. Much like the Core system, this is pretty much a lame duck offering that will get you a taste of the online life (messaging, downloads) and hopefully compels you to upgrade to the Gold service where you can actually do something.

Xbox Live Gold allows you to play your games online, which is really what the Xbox Live experience is all about. This includes access to the Xbox Live Arcade where you can currently play Helix HD for free, and explore what will soon become the largest home of retro arcade games you have ever seen. Just imagine a virtual arcade with all of your favorite classics that can be purchased and played for a nominal fee, with your scores being ranked and compared to everyone else in the world.

There are some new features to the Xbox Live experience including Gamer Scores, Achievements, and the new Marketplace. You can basically buy Microsoft Points (virtual dollars) to spend online to download all sorts of fluff like new themes for your 360 menus, icons, music, game demos and trailers, and for the first time ever, you can actually change your Xbox Live Gamer Tag for the equivalent of about $8.

Whereas the previous Xbox Live allowed you to maintain a friends list and most recently added support for clans (game specific teams) the new Xbox Live community flourishes with new features and content.

Every gamer now has an online profile that will evolve the more the player participates online. This includes a Gamer Rep score that is the culmination of player reviews, both good and bad that can earn the player up to a five star rating. The profile also includes an achievement score that is a bit more complicated.

Achievement scores are quite ingenious really. At first I dismissed the entire scoring system as just another gimmick, but once you start comparing your games and scores with other people on your friends list it can actually get quite competitive.

The way it works is that each Xbox 360 game has various milestones that reward you with a variety of scores. Each game has somewhere between 900 and 1000 points divided among these achievements. In a racing game you might be required to drive x many miles, or in an adventure game you might get points for each completed chapter. Some games offer rewards for just completing them or perhaps completing them on harder skills settings.

As you can imagine, there is now a much greater motivation for not only completing the game, but also going back and trying to earn all those extra gaming points by completing the various milestones. For those gamers who require nothing less than perfection, the value of just about every Xbox 360 game title just shot through the roof. You can bring up the achievement list for each game and find out exactly what is required and compare your scores with other gamers by title and even by individual achievement.

Another nice feature for Xbox Live is that the 360 now maintains a game catalog of every game you have played. While this might be problematic for renters, those who buy their games will have a listing of every title in their library, and the 360 will routinely monitor the games in your collection for updates and add-ons.

Xbox Live also monitors what you and your contacts are doing whenever you are online, and with the auto-login option that is going to be just about every time your Xbox 360 is turned on. Others can see what games you are playing and how far along you are in those games, if you are listening to music, watching a DVD, or looking at digital pictures. You can even create slideshows and share them over Live and even attach custom MP3 soundtracks to the presentation.

Perhaps the feature I found most useful during my first week of playing online was the ability to track all of the gamers I had played with and against online whether they were on my friends list or not. You can now go to a separate tab and look at a growing list of people you have played and check the same stats and status as you could on your friends list. This is a great way to go back after a gaming session and add somebody to your core list of friends without having to do it during the game or before you know how they play.

And finally, there is a new spectator mode that is offered in select titles. This allows you to join an online game session and simply watch other people play. One can only imagine the possibilities of this feature, and it won’t be long before we have organized sporting events, races, and FPS tournaments complete with virtual celebrities and fans lining up to see them play online.

IT’S PERSONAL

The designers of the Xbox 360 have basically given gamers a blank canvas and now they want you to explore your options and mold the system to suit your personality. To that end you can now customize the front of your system with interchangeable faceplates. There are only a handful available at this time, but I can only imagine how many will be flooding the market soon.

You can also customize the way your system looks on the TV by choosing from several game-inspired themes or just some unique color options. It’s very similar to the desktop theme system in Windows on the PC. And when it comes to your gamer profile you can choose from dozens of ready-to-use pictures or purchase new one from the marketplace.

And finally, you can now personalize every game you play with custom soundtracks. It’s not just an option anymore. You can override the game music on anything. Just be careful that you don’t ruin some dramatic moment by having Metallica blaring in the background.

LOOK MA – NO WIRES

I’ve been a loyal Logitech game controller user since they released their first wireless controller, so the concept of “no wires” is nothing new to me, but for those who haven’t cut the cord, once you go wireless you’ll never go back.

Premium bundle owners will get wireless out of the box. Everybody else will need to bite the $50 bullet to enjoy the comfort and flexibility of playing from anywhere in the room. There is internal support for up to four wireless controllers with no receivers required. Simple activate each controller and it will scan for it’s place in the sequence, and the “ring of light” will indicate what player position that controller is assigned.

I will warn you now that the AA batteries will only last about a week of solid gaming, so the first thing you need to buy is the rechargeable battery pack. This gives you about 25 hours of gaming (depending on how much vibration is in the games you play), and then you can keep on playing while you recharge using the generous 10’ recharge cable. The battery pack will even continue to charge after you turn off the main system. You’ll also love the fact that the cable snaps into the front of the controller rather than coming out the back.

The Xbox Live communicator (or headset) could conceivably be called wireless, at least when it’s plugged into a wireless controller. The headset has a short cable that plugs into the back of the controller and shares the audio signal with the controller signal using standard wireless networking protocols for optimum clarity.

The controller and the headset aren’t the only wireless offerings. The Xbox 360’s Wireless Networking Adapter is an expensive, but necessary accessory for many gamers looking to get online without stringing Ethernet cable through the house.

Plug and play networking couldn’t be easier with this $100 adapter. Simply take the unit out of the box, snap it into the back of the 360 then plug in the USB cord. After that you’re done, assuming you don’t have a password-protected network. If you do, entering that information is simple using the system settings in the dashboard to update your network settings.

CONTROL FREAK

Whether you are going wireless or insist on being tethered to your Xbox 360, you are going to love the feel of the new controller, which is now much more in line with what PS2 gamers are used to.

First off, they controller has slimmed down now that they no longer have the expansion slots in the back for memory units and communicator modules. This makes the controller a great fit for gamers of all ages with smooth contoured grips and a familiar button arrangement. The dimpled analog sticks took some getting used to, but I quickly found my thumbs locked in firmly and never slipped out.

The only real learning curve will be adapting to the loss of the black and white buttons (no great loss in my opinion – did anyone like those?) whose functions have now been transferred to the new right and left “bumper” buttons above the familiar analog triggers.

The four shoulder inputs make this a near-perfect replica of the PS2 Dual Shock, but the analog triggers offer far superior input for racing games and those that require a greater degree of input. This is the ultimate evolution of more than ten years of game controller designs, and in my opinion, the best controller I have ever laid my hands on.

GOT GAME?

Ah yes…the age-old paradox. A gaming system is only as good as the games that are made for it. Well, the 360 hits stores today with no less than 17 launch titles and at least 3-5 more in the weeks to come. You have titles covering all genres including sports, racing, fighting, adventure, FPS, survival horror, and some killer RPG titles coming soon.

Many of the launch titles are already proving to be quite breathtaking, at least when it comes to stunning visuals and high quality Dolby Digital surround, but we have yet to see anything truly revolutionary when it comes to actual game design. Sure, QUAKE 4 and Call of Duty 2 look just as good as their high-end PC counterparts, but they don’t necessary play any better or different than anything we haven’t already been playing for the past decade.

Only time will tell where the Xbox 360 will take us when it comes to gaming. Most systems don’t even see their first innovative title until well after their first year on the market. 2006 should prove to be a most interesting year for gamers.

And of course we can’t overlook the backwards compatibility issue. For those afraid that having an Xbox and an Xbox 360 in the same house might create some temporal paradox that would destroy the universe, rest assured that you can probably unload your original system, if not immediately, in the months to come.

More than 200 original Xbox titles are compatible with the 360 at launch, although some of the choices were a bit cryptic if you ask me. The first 20 Xbox games I tried, mostly titles released in the past 60 days, apparently didn’t make the initial list and wouldn’t run. Since each title requires its own patch there will probably be a bit of lag as we wait for the majority of Xbox titles to achieve 360-compatible status.

BID, BUY, OR WAIT

Chances are if you don’t already own an Xbox 360 then you are either going to be paying premium eBay prices or waiting until next year for more retail units to arrive in stores. So, just how big of a frenzy should you be in right now if you don’t have a system?

While it’s true that the 360 is a killer console with some great launch titles there is no reason to freak out if you don’t have one before the year rolls over. Most of the better titles won’t even be coming our way until 2006 and by then you can get most of the current batch of games for significantly less than their $60 launch price.

If you (or your kids) simply must have an Xbox 360 under the Christmas tree in four weeks then there are more than 5,000 systems on eBay right now, so you shouldn’t have trouble finding one if you are willing to pay for your lack of foresight or unwillingness to wait in line 20 hours before launch.

And if you are thinking about holding back and waiting to see what the PlayStation 3 or Nintendo Revolution has in store for you…what are you thinking? Sony hasn’t even locked down a date for the PS3 and both systems are still too vaporous to even be considered as worthy competition to Microsoft’s 360lb gorilla.

If you want the ultimate in next-generation gaming then you need the ultimate next-generation game system, and for now, that system is clearly the Microsoft Xbox 360.