Xbox 360

[jwest27 0]

I got an Xbox 360 yesterday, and I think I already need to send it Microsoft. I was playing Rockband for a few hours yesterday and then I got a disc read error out of the blue. I followed the instructions and ejected the disc to give it a clean to notice a perfectly circular scratch on the disc. I can still sometimes play the game for a few songs, but will then get the error again. Is this a recognised problem with the Xbox? I'm assuming I'm going to need to call Microsoft tomorrow and get it fixed. It's so annoying that this was my Christmas present and I haven't even got a full day of play out of it.

This happened to me the first time I tried to play a game with my new Xbox, in this case Madden 08. Actually, it looked like it was starting to form the circle you're talking about, and stopped. The only other time it happened was when I tried to lift my Xbox for some reason while I was playing NBA 2K8.

[Matt Young 0]

Exchangeit at the store before you try sending it to MS. You should have at least 30 days.

[Thoth 0]

So, you know if you install a game to your HD, it shows up in your "My Games" list?

 

As you know, you need to have the game disc in your drive to play it. But it certainly seems like it is possible, whether Microsoft releases an authentication key or something, to play that game without the disc in the drive.

 

There are a number of problems with this, for example, what if someone borrows the game, installs it, and pays the fee, right? There are other retail issues as well.

 

But is there a practical reason for allowing this? And then it hit me. What other annoying thing does Microsoft do? ...Okay, let me narrow it down. Movie rentals. You download the movie to your hard drive, and you can watch it as much as you want for a 24 hour period. After that, the license expires, and you can't watch it anymore. Where am I going with this?

 

Game rentals. Try out the full version of a game, as much as you want, in a 24/48/72-hour period, for a fee.

 

I hereby predict that in 2009, you will see this happen on the Xbox 360.

[The Ghost of bps21 0]

I got a disc read error on a game I rented every time I tried to play it. This was actually the benefit of the installing the games to the hard drive deal. I did that and it played straight through to the end with no more problems.

[migoli 0]

So, you know if you install a game to your HD, it shows up in your "My Games" list?

 

As you know, you need to have the game disc in your drive to play it. But it certainly seems like it is possible, whether Microsoft releases an authentication key or something, to play that game without the disc in the drive.

 

There are a number of problems with this, for example, what if someone borrows the game, installs it, and pays the fee, right? There are other retail issues as well.

 

But is there a practical reason for allowing this? And then it hit me. What other annoying thing does Microsoft do? ...Okay, let me narrow it down. Movie rentals. You download the movie to your hard drive, and you can watch it as much as you want for a 24 hour period. After that, the license expires, and you can't watch it anymore. Where am I going with this?

 

Game rentals. Try out the full version of a game, as much as you want, in a 24/48/72-hour period, for a fee.

 

I hereby predict that in 2009, you will see this happen on the Xbox 360.

 

 

That would be a great idea for them to do. Imagine what that would do to Gamefly and all them online rental stores. It would damn near kill them.

[fazzle 0]

I still have just a 20 GB HD though, so that wouldn't do anything at all for me.

[HollywoodSpikeJenkins 0]

Where can I get the 360 Wireless Network Adapter for cheap? I'm not shelling out $100 for it, but I'm having issues with my router.

[Scroby 0]

Ebay might be your best bet.

[The Tino Standard 0]

http://www.amazon.com/Xbox-Wireless-Networ...8710&sr=8-2

 

I bought the wireless adapter for the original Xbox, and after installing a software update, I've had zero problems using it with my 360.

[Anakin Flair 0]

I got the disk read error for COD:WAW, returned the game and got a new copy of it, and got the disc read error as soon as I put it in. In my case, I think it's just my X-Box is dying after over a year of hard playing.

[The Ghost of bps21 0]

Install it to your hard drive. It got me through the game I rented with the disk read error problem.

[daileyxplanet 0]

I got the disk read error for COD:WAW, returned the game and got a new copy of it, and got the disc read error as soon as I put it in. In my case, I think it's just my X-Box is dying after over a year of hard playing.

 

On the last page I noted that my Xbox is deteriorating. Every disc I put in, it says insert disc, endlessly.

[Anakin Flair 0]

Install it to your hard drive. It got me through the game I rented with the disk read error problem.

 

I couldn't. I already have COD:4 saved to my HD, and I don't have enough room. Although, even that doesn't always work- I have ot restart my machine once or twice for it to recognize the disc, just so I can launch the game.

[Obi Chris Kenobi 0]

Wouldn't be surprised if your machine stopped working soon

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

I just bought a 360 and Fallout 3 and want some advice on games. These are games I'm interested in. Should I buy or rent?

 

GTA IV

Fable 2

COD 4 & WaW

GoW 1 & 2

The Orange Box

BioShock

Oblivion & expansion

Mass Effect

Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 1 & 2

Left 4 Dead

 

Also, is there anything else I should definitely check out?

[AnonymousBroccoli 0]

If you're planning to get Oblivion and its expansions, just get the Game of the Year edition. Buying both Knights of the Nine and Shivering Isles on Xbox Live runs 3,200 points, which is about $40 at standard US point prices. And you don't get the option to re-sell there. Though if you've got Fallout 3, that'll probably be plenty of Bethesda RPGing for a good while.

 

Left 4 Dead and The Orange Box are better overall on PC, assuming you can run them. The Orange Box is only $20 on 360 around here, though, which is a pretty great deal for 5 excellent games. Left 4 Dead might be worth a rent first. A lot of people seem to play it through once, and then they're sick of it. Others get a group of 4 together and have a blast going through again and again.

 

A lot of people love Call of Duty 4, and are still playing it over a year later. So if you're into multi-player shooters, I imagine that'd be an ideal buy. I think it still retails at $60, though. And while the Game of the Year edition included a code for the Variety Map Pack when it was first released, it doesn't seem to anymore. (Activision dick move #39184) If you think you'd only do the single player, that's supposed to be great, but short. Finishable within a rental.

 

I love GTA IV, and you might be able to find it used on Craigslist for $30-40. It handles differently than the PS2/Xbox generation of games--especially the driving--but I like it. If you played the older games, and had fun just screwing around, get into Party Mode online with some friends with headsets, and you'll have a blast. I need to do this more often, frankly.

 

What I've played of BioShock is awesome. It's probably about $30 new now. There's a demo on Xbox Live that'll let you play the first 40 minutes or so. It's not supposed to be that long either, though. Might be able to finish it within a week.

[AnonymousBroccoli 0]

Both GRAWs are supposed to be very good. They're probably dirt cheap at the right place, and there's demos for both.

 

As long as you're not expecting a shooter, or a hardcore RPG, Mass Effect should be good. (It's somewhere in between.) I haven't played the game yet, but I read the first novel, and liked the way the universe was set up.

 

Gears 1 & 2 are both very good. I don't LOVE them like some people do. Might as well rent the first for single player, and if you're going to do multi-player, get the second. There's a code for a 5-map pack of re-done Gears 1 maps that you can only get if you buy Gears 2 new.

 

I bought Fable II at launch, but haven't played it yet. X-Play gave it their Game of the Year, for what it's worth. Here's a couple of related videos that I thought were interesting to watch. There might be a not-too-major, fairly well-known Fallout 3 spoiler in the second one. About

blowing up a city.

http://www.g4tv.com/thepile/hdvideos/35452...s_Fable_II.html

http://www.g4tv.com/attackoftheshow/theloo...f-the-Year.html

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

Thanks Brocolli.

[AnonymousBroccoli 0]

For what it's worth, GRAW isn't especially fast action, from what I played of the demo. Seems like it'd be more tactical. Rainbow Six: Vegas might be worth considering for something quicker. #1 should be cheap, with #2 coming down a little bit. Maybe down to $30 new. There's a demo for #1.

[Obi Chris Kenobi 0]

I enjoyed the GRAW games, nice story that built up to some nice set plays and climatic events. Though it does go a little '24' in the 2nd one. If you get them, let me know what the online community is like, as I might pick it up again if people are still playing. I miss a good slower FPS multiplayer deathmatch game.

 

Call of Duty used to be good, but its full of twats at the moment. Singing British kids, the US v UK wars and general xbox live shit that makes you want to quit.

[KingPK 0]

I just bought a 360 and Fallout 3 and want some advice on games. These are games I'm interested in. Should I buy or rent?

 

The Orange Box

 

Yes, yes, a billion times yes. Plus, it's only $20 now, which is the steal of the century for what amounts to 5 games in 1.

[Broward83 0]

I checked out Fifa 09 from work tonight. Anyone willing to play a game online and more than likely destroy me..send me a PM or just reply to this.

[Hawkius Maximus 0]

GTA IV

- I own GTA IV...I can appreciate what GTA IV is, and still not overly enjoy it. I've never been a GTA fan, but at the same time I enjoy how much you can do, even if I've never gotten far in single player. Online, it can be a blast...but it can also be a nightmare. You spend several minutes setting something up...Like finding a great car to jump with, or a helicopter, and either one of your friends, or douches online will blow you up. I've had this happen many times.

 

I can't really tell you how the single player is; other then I just really didn't enjoy it much. It just comes down to taste. GTA type games aren't my thing.

 

Fable 2

- Don't own, but I have friends who do. They enjoy the game, but the main storyline is said to be very short. They still seem to really like it and just doing random stuff, so maybe it'd be a good pickup.

 

COD 4 & WaW

- Owned 4. Sold it off. COD 4 online is ridiculously hard. There's a "level: system" in the game, but all it really means is that when you run into a Level 40 or higher, then they just have even more advantages over you then they would on skill alone. After awhile, it morphed from "fun, but frustrating" to just plain ass aggravating. When it hit that point, I just quit playing it. Getting sniped or blown up two seconds after spawning isn't much fun.

 

GoW 1 & 2

- I just rented 2 actually. I can see why people like it, but I don't really get it. The main storyline is so ridiculously trying to be "MANLY~!" with gruff characters, roids up the ass, and speeches that it almost feels like a parody. The game itself plays well, but it's really nothing special beyond being third person. You can get the same scope from a game like Halo. Albeit you can't curb stomp people in Halo, but that still doesn't make it better. It still boils down to a shooter, and I think there are better tactical shooters on the 360. Perhaps you could view it as a middle ground between "Run and gun" and "Hide for twenty minutes" type gameplay.

 

Oblivion & expansion

- If you've already got Fallout 3, then you have the superior Bethesda game. There's nothing that Oblivion does better then Fallout 3, and they used the Oblivion engine as a base for Fallout 3. I enjoyed Oblivion, but it suffered from the same problems the Elder Scrolls games always have had and even took it a bit farther by reducing the abilities to roleplay or build a character, and making it so you could do everything with one single character. So, I'd just stick with Fallout 3.

 

Mass Effect

- I absolutely adored Mass Effect. There's some problems with the game (Land Rover, almost entire last mission), but it's still a great game. Good gameplay, good leveling system, good personalities. Just a fun RPG to play. I think I'd recommend it more then any other game on this list.

 

Left 4 Dead

- Fun, but ultimately you're going through the same thing time after time. You, and some friends (or AI) tries to escape, get ambushed, try to survive to escape despite the zombies, etc, etc. I never got a chance to try the other mode where other humans play the zombies, so that could be a deal maker. But what I played was fun, but really nothing substantial or deep enough for a sixty dollar investment.

[the max 0]

I need to ROR this son of a bitch. It stopped reading any disc at all. $100 is awfully pricey too.

[Matt Young 0]

After it was first rumored nearly a year ago (along with Monopoly), EA has announced that Scrabble is indeed heading to Xbox Live Arcade. The company also announced the creation of a brand new Hasbro Family Game Night "channel" in Xbox Live Arcade. The channel will serve as a "digital game closet," according to EA Hasbro general manager Chip Lange, where players can quickly access various Hasbro games without leaving the channel. Players will be able to "earn virtual trophies, furniture and themes" to decorate their closets by playing Hasbro games. In addition to Scrabble, other titles planned for the service include Sorry!, Sliders, Battleship, Connect Four, Boggle and Yahtzee.

 

The Hasbro Family Game Night channel is set to debut this spring, though no specific dates have been given for any of the individual game releases. Oh, one more thing: No Monopoly mentioned, folks. Sorry.

 

http://www.xbox360fanboy.com/2009/01/06/sc...el-coming-soon/

 

This sounds like what games.com has/had. I love Scrabble and Sorry!, so playing on my Xbox would be fun. Battleship is okay, too.

[Edwin MacPhisto 0]

I just bought a 360 and Fallout 3 and want some advice on games. These are games I'm interested in. Should I buy or rent?

 

COD 4

GoW 1

BioShock

Mass Effect

Those are the four games that I think are more or less essential, besides Fallout 3. Bioshock's the most immersive console FPS available, and Mass Effect is killer storytelling with an excellent RPG/action hybrid feel, probably my favorite 360 game. That one's certainly worth a purchase, as it's only $20 now and you can easily get two full playthroughs out of it before you come close to getting bored. COD 4 has a brief single-player campaign, but is absolutely worth it if you can see yourself losing hours and hours in multiplayer games; the multiplayer leveling system is a brilliant way of maintaining interest, and you can literally be in a match blasting away 30 seconds after turning on the game.

 

Gears 1 is relatively short, but excellent. You can beat it in a couple of days, and I've never been a huge fan of the multiplayer--it's clunkier than Call of Duty or Halo and can be frustrating if you're not on a well-coordinated team--but I've played through the campaign a few times because it's so unique. For the $30 you can get it for, I think it's worth it, but a week-long rental could also be enough if you're saving cash. It definitely has the roided-up feel that Hawk cited, but it's essentially a sci-fi action movie where you do all the action-ing. Great setpieces and battles that reward creativity and your effective use of the environment. I started playing the sequel a few days ago, and it's an obvious purchase if you like the first.

 

I would advise renting GTA4, as I never came around on the game, which injects the series with a lot more seriousness and may not actually be what you're expecting from a GTA game. I found it to be a poor shooter, poor driver, and poor just in terms of the usual chaotic fun one expects from the series. I didn't find it nearly as interesting and forward-looking as the games previously mentioned, though I am admittedly in the minority on this one.

[Mike wanna be 0]

Give GTAIV and Saints Row 2 a rental, see which one you like better.

[Matt Young 0]

You can get Saints Row 2 for $40 and GTA IV for $30. Both are great, but very different, takes on a genre. Why not get both? Alternatively, you could buy the first Saints for dirt cheap.

[Obi Chris Kenobi 0]

Fable2 DLC is out 800ms.

[Exslade ZX 0]

Question, can you have two separate game saves on one hard drive for the same game?

 

Aka, I want to have 2 different rosters for Smackdown, one for my default Xbox Live profile, and then I was just going to edit the roster of another random profile on my Xbox. But I'm thinking if I do that when it autosaves it will overwrite my data. So I'm wondering if anyone else has tried anything similar, or knows if it's possible?