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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.
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!
Intel Core i7-3960X Sandy Bridge-E Performance Review
Today marks the launch date for Intel’s Sandy Bridge-E line of processors, a new family of high-end Core i7 products based on the LGA 2011 platform. This new socket is poised to replace the existing LGA 1366 specification used by the more powerful Nehalem and Westmere parts from the past couple years, specifically Bloomfield and Gulftown, the Core i7-9xx+ line of CPUs.
With 6 cores, 15MB of cache, and support for quad-channel DDR3-1600 memory, the Core i7-3960X sounds like quite a catch. Want to know more about it and how it performs? Read on!
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Xbox 360 Review
The self-appointed "most anticipated game in history" launched worldwide this past Tuesday. Why, it's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, of course (of course), what else? Unsurprisingly, the military FPS debate between this and Battlefield 3 rages on, but now that both have been released, surely we can take a look and objectively evaluate them both? Luke's taken the Xbox version of MW3 for a spin this week, so to find out what he thinks of it in today's review!
Stronghold 3 Review
The latest sequel in the long-running real-time strategy franchise from FireFly Studios, Stronghold 3 is all about building your dream castle and defending it against sieging enemies. Almost exactly one decade after the first game was released, this new title promises a return to the classic and well-received gameplay that has been strayed so far from in more recent iterations. Does it live up to those expectations? Will (AKA Synchronous Failure) tells us all about it in his first official FiringSquad review, so read on!
Battlefield 3 PC Review - Single-player Impressions
One of the most highly-anticipated PC games of the year is upon us; Battlefield 3 is now available in North America! EA/DICE have finally delivered a sequel to the core Battlefield franchise, a proper follow-up to BF2. Having played through the game's single-player campaign already, ahead of the multiplayer festivities kicking off around midnight, I figured I'd share my impressions ASAP. Is it really a worthy addition to the core Battlefield series, or just another bullet point on the back of the box? Read on and find out!
Wrecked: Revenge Revisited Supersonic Software Interview
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Orcs Must Die! PC Review Orcs Must Die! is the first release from an independent developer named Robot Entertainment. Fans of classic real-time strategy games may have heard that name before, as the outfit is comprised of many veterans from Ensemble Studios, creators of the Age of Empires series.
Equal parts action and strategy, this is a tower defense game that not only puts you in command, but on the front lines of combat, as well. Slaughter thousands of orcs, ogres and other vile creatures of fantasy that invade your fortresses through 24 levels of the story-based campaign. With high levels of replayability thanks to its scoring and leaderboard functionality, multiple difficulty levels, and various styles of play, it sounds a steal at only $15. Does it deliver on all that’s promised, though? Read on and find out!
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