Product Info | User Reviews | Article Images | Image Gallery | Comments | Forum Thread
360
Microsoft Xbox 360
It says a lot about a console that, after getting hit with a huge publicity scare, has seemingly come through unscathed. We are, of course, talking about the whopping $1 billion charge that Microsoft took in late June after increasing its Xbox 360 warranty to three years, refunding owner's repairs on the "three red lights" hardware issue and releasing new consoles to stores that won't have as many hardware failures (so far their efforts have been mixed with unconfirmed reports saying that there is still a lot of Xbox 360 console owners dealing with hardware issues). Despite analysts' predictions of lower sales following Microsoft's efforts, the Xbox 360 still manages to sell higher than the relatively issue free PS3.
After two years, however, Microsoft is dealing with Nintendo's resurgence as the top selling hardware console. Microsoft three different Xbox 360 versions (to be joined by a fourth this month with the limited edition Halo 3 version) still can't outsell the Wii on a per month basis. However, sales should increase thanks to a recent price drop (especially the $50 price drop of the 20 GB version to $349) .
Microsoft's biggest asset is its upcoming games. It already has a big console exclusive title with the third party game BioShock and in just three weeks you won't be able to get away from seeing Bungie's sci-fi shooter Halo 3 everywhere you look. With Microsoft claiming that the game has already gotten one million pre-orders you can expect a lot of copies to fly off the shelves on Sept. 25. Upcoming first party games like Project Gotham Racing 3 and especially BioWare's long awaited sci-fi RPG Mass Effect should also help the Xbox 36 0 console sales along with exclusive third party games like Ace Combat 6 and Beautiful Katamari.
So can Microsoft get ahead of Nintendo? Yep. Here's how we think they can win the console war at this stage:
Get rid of the Core version of the system
We think that the time has come for Microsoft to just dump the hard drive-less Core system outright and simply sell the 20 GB Premium version and the 120 GB Elite version (the Halo 3 version is supposed to be a limited edition). Less confusion in the marketplace means more sales overall.
Keep improving hardware support
The change in warranty was a good start to getting the Xbox 360's reputation as an unreliable hardware device fixed but Microsoft needs to quickly deal with existing issues on their previously released versions as well as make sure that the new systems coming off the assembly line don't have as many "three red lights" failures.
Make sure Halo 3's launch is perfect
Even though the game has gone gold there are still things that could happen that could make the launch an issue. There could be copies of the game that are unplayable due to issues in manufacturing. Pirates could gain access to the game early. A rush of online players on Xbox Live on launch day could cause slowdowns in the network. Microsoft has pretty much everything riding on Halo 3 being a huge success. It can't have anything happen that could cause the Xbox 360 as a whole to suffer.
Emphasize Xbox Live features
Microsoft has by far the best online service for any console and as we said earlier Xbox Live has new content being released on nearly a daily basis. With the fall/holiday season people will want to download new demos, new Xbox Live Arcade games and other new content. In a recent study it was shown that not many Xbox 360 owners were even aware of downloadable Xbox Live Arcade games. Microsoft might get more customers by going on a campaign to really push their online service as the big difference between its console and the competition (we are also guessing that Microsoft has a major fall Dashboard update upcoming that will add even more features).
Outlook-Solid
Microsoft might find itself behind Nintendo's Wii in sales but if they can overcome the hardware issues and have a successful Halo 3 launch (among other things), the Xbox 360 will still have a successful fall/holiday season in the US and Europe (we won't talk about Japan).
Conclusion
So what will the console war bring as we head into this all important fall shopping season? We will take a look in mid-December after the season ends and give you a fourth report on the war. In the meantime let us know what you think might happen in the comments page and on The Matrix.
Elemental: Fallen Enchantress Preview Elemental: Fallen Enchantress is a standalone expansion pack and follow-up to developer Stardock's previous game in the series, subtitled War of Magic. That 4X strategy game was highly-anticipated and slated to compete with games such as Sid Meier's Civilization V for your turn-based strategy play-time, but was released in an incredibly broken and unfinished state that it never fully recovered from. Lead designer Brad Wardell apologized profusely to fans and set out with his team to go back to the drawing board and try again.
Almost two years later, the result of that proverbial mulligan is currently undergoing closed beta testing. In today's article, Will reports his thoughts on how Fallen Enchantress is shaping up, and will tell you whether or not you should be keeping an eye on it as it nears release later this year.
The Elder Scrolls Online Details Leak - Should Fans Be Excited? The Elder Scrolls Online, long rumored to be in development, was officially announced yesterday. Still in development at Zenimax Online Studios, this MMO aims to combine traditional genre mechanics with the spirit and sensibilities, not to mention setting and lore, of the immensely popular series of single-player RPGs. Though the game is set for a full unveiling in the next issue of Game Informer magazine, what appears to be the entire cover story article has been leaked to the interwebs already. In today's article, you'll find summary and analysis of all the alleged details, as well as feast your eyes on the very first screenshots and concept art from the game. Of course, the burning question now is, should you be excited?
ANNO 2070 Review
The year is 2070. The majority of life on Earth was devastated when global sea levels surged after the melting of the polar ice caps. Swaths of previously habitable land are now deep underwater, and sovereign nations are a relic of the past. But there is still hope...
This city-building RTS/simulation game from Ubisoft tasks you with re-colonizing what little land areas are left on the planet following a global warming apocalypse. Does it have what it takes to be worthy of your time and money, or should it be cast out to sea with the rest of civilization? Find out in today's review!
Hear that? It's the sound of the largest computer chip manufacturer in the world churning out new processors to power your gaming rig. This week, Intel is launching their next generation of Core CPUs, code-named Ivy Bridge. Like last year's Sandy Bridge chips, they're low-power, quad-core powerhouses that also feature integrated graphics processors. Want to find out more? Maybe check out a whole bunch of performance benchmarks on both the CPU and graphics sides of things? Well you can, in today's review!
Intel Z77 Chipset & DZ77GA-70K Motherboard Overview
Looking forward to those new Ivy Bridge CPUs? In anticipation of their release later this month, Intel has already unveiled the new Series 7 chipsets designed especially to take advantage of what will be the 3rd-generation of Core processors. In today's article, we take a look at the architecture of the enthusiast variant, the Z77, and how it's used in the Intel Desktop Extreme DZ77GA-70K motherboard. Even if you're not particularly interested in the motherboard itself, you'll probably want to see some of the new features that come along with it, so read on!
Mass Effect 3 PC Review
This latest release from EA/BioWare is the final entry in their trilogy of sci-fi action RPGs, putting you in a dire situation: rally the troops to save Earth at all costs. There was a lot of hype surrounding the final act of what has been a vast and highly-customizable story-telling experience, and the reception among many hardcore fans has been less than stellar. Even people that haven't played the game have probably heard about all the nerd rage going on over Mass Effect 3's ending...
If you want to cut through all the crap and find out whether or not the rest of ME3 is worth playing, come check out Will's spoiler-free take on the first blockbuster game release of 2012.
Batman: Arkham City PC Review Batman: Arkham City is the sequel to 2009’s smash-hit action game Batman: Arkham Asylum. As the name suggests, you will be reprising your role as the Caped Crusader and going against an even larger 'prison' filled with Gotham's criminals and villains. A textbook example on how to do a proper sequel, Arkham City takes what worked in the original, excised or improved upon what didn’t, and elevated everything to an even greater scope. The PC version suffered from a few months of delay, but in that time, Rocksteady worked closely to NVIDIA to implement some familiar technologies from the last game, such as PhysX and 3D Vision, along with new DirectX 11 optimizations. But how well was the whole package executed? Read on to find out!
Saints Row: The Third PC Review Saints Row is one of most unique series of games to build upon the open-world action template forged by Grand Theft Auto, and has met with plenty of critical and commercial success since it began on consoles back in 2006. This latest iteration, titled Saints Row: The Third promises the most outlandish fun and freedom of customization of them all, and in a much more PC-friendly package than its predecessor. Does it live up to those expectations and, more importantly, is it worth the price of admission? Find out in Will's latest review!
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim PC Review The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is Bethesda Softworks’ latest offering in their series of epic fantasy RPGs, as well as one of the most highly-anticipated PC titles of 2011. As the Dovahkiin, or Dragonborn, prepare to take the fight to the mythical beasts that have returned to the realm after centuries of slumber, all the while exploring a huge and highly-detailed open world.
The PC version of the game promises enhanced graphical fidelity, standard RPG trimmings such as hotkeys and quick-save, as well as unbridled mod support, something we’ll all be thankful for once they release that SDK. Skyrim has already sold millions of copies and set records for play-time on Steam... Find out why in today's review, which happens to be one of the biggest and most in-depth articles on the subject out there!
L.A. Noire Complete Edition PC Review L.A. Noire, as the name clearly states, is a video game built on the tropes of one of the greatest periods of American cinema: film noir. Developed by the now defunct Australian developer Team Bondi and published by Rockstar Games, this title has been out on consoles for a full six months before finally making its way to the PC. This “Complete Edition” of the game features improved graphics, keyboard/mouse controls, and every bit of previously-released DLC for free. But was it truly worth the wait? Read on and find out!
PS3
Digg
Del.icio.us
Reddit
SU
furl
