Is Xbox 360 doomed in 2009?
When Microsoft announced it was revamping the Xbox 360 dashboard, concern, not congratulations, was the first thing I thought of voicing to Microsoft.
The update promised better graphics, avatars, easier access to movie and TV downloads — in short, a more robust interface than the “blades” presentation that greeted gamers when they started up their consoles.
Something more robust implied a need for more processing power, more work for Xbox. And that meant more worries that my console would crash and display the “red ring of death” yet again. (The consoles tend to run hot and warp the circuit boards.)
I am on my fourth Xbox — this time, one of the black-box Elites sporting a large hard drive, HDTV compatibility and an alleged resistance to crashes. Twenty months have passed and … well, so far, so good.
Of the three that died, the longest surviving one lasted a grand total of nine months. After the third died, Microsoft decided on its own to replace it with an Elite, without question and without my request. Meanwhile, my first PlayStation 3 and first Wii are humming along. Both were among the first ones sold in the United States. Both have performed flawlessly.
Both sit in a warmer room.
Perhaps Microsoft thought it looked bad that a gaming reporter couldn’t write about Xbox games any more after the third crash, and that he might have better luck with a console upgrade.
It’s unnerving to think though that my latest luck could run out anyway, even though the console is dusted regularly and has an extra cooling fan attached, even though as an added precaution the Elite sits in the coolest room of my house — which during winter turns downright cold.
Now I’m tentative about turning on my Xbox. It might survive my next bold move toward the galaxy’s fringe with “Star Trek,” or my next diplomatic overture with “Civilization”; it might not. Microsoft supposedly made the Elite systems more heat-resistant, but they are not impervious to crashing.
Microsoft might worry about my Elite, too, given my track record. However, I believe the company has more pressing concerns:
* None of the Xbox titles announced for 2009 has “Halo”-like market appeal. Microsoft enjoyed substantial media attention and a subsequent increase in Xbox 360 sales when “Halo 3″ arrived in September 2007. So, what’s next? A “Halo” prequel. By a show of hands, how many of you who aren’t “Halo” fans have heard of it?
* Casual gaming has made a huge leap forward due to the graying of the gaming population. However, Xbox 360 is not a console for casual games; it was designed to become the hub of home entertainment — the place everyone would go to see movies, listen to music and surf the Internet, perhaps all at once, in addition to playing richly designed games in high definition and with surround sound.
But for reasons already explained, it’s probably not be wise to try multiple tasks on Xbox.
* The swooning economy will get worse before it gets better. Just ask President-elect Obama. In the coming months, more jobs will disappear and disposable income will reduce to a trickle (if it hasn’t already), thus making even a $199 Xbox 360 Arcade — still the lowest priced system around — sound unappealing after Christmas.
Microsoft needs console sales to remain strong through the first quarter of 2009. Otherwise, it will have to raise prices on Arcades to cover the cost of a recent hardware upgrade. Or raise game prices.
Or, maybe Microsoft will get in line to ask Washington for a bailout.
So, now I look at my Xbox 360 with concern that it won’t last and that I cannot afford a replacement. And Microsoft probably won’t be as generous next time.
And I probably won’t care.
I believe I saw this article in early 2008 as well. Multiple times in fact. It didn’t work out too well, heh. Kind of like Year of PS3. We all know how that turned as well.
Wow…where do you get off?
You’re afraid to install the NXE update on your XB360? Then don’t review it. And don’t talk about how you’re afraid it’ll break your XB360 either. Read the forums, and read the reviews…there have been minimal issues with the NXE update and people are raving about it.
A Microsoft-Washington bailout? They’ve sold over 25 million consoles, continue to be ahead of the PS3 by 6 million or more, and sales are rising because of the reduce price and the NXE update you’re so afraid of.
Do you even understand what responsible reporting is?
You don’t have fact number one to support anything you’ve said in this article. If you’re so afraid of your XBox breaking…pack it up and send it to Child’s Play where some sick kids will get to have some enjoyment.
Articles like this are a waste of time and money.
This article is about why the Xbox 360 could be doomed in 2009, but could also be about the Playstation 3. If the 360 is going to fail, it will be a year after the Ps3 fails. stop nuthuggin for Sony and print an unbiased article.
RRoD is a hardware issue, not software, NXE is all software.
Hardware upgrade ? New 360’s are coming out with the Jasper chip that is smaller, runs cooler, quieter and costs much less.
What does PS3 have that has Halo or Gears of War market appeal ???
God of War 3 is the only thing close to Halo or Gears of War. Killzone 2 wont’ have near the numbers. The average joe PS2 owner got raped on the original Killzone and won’t go for Killzone 2 no matter how pretty it is.
I agree with the other commentors. I have had no issues with my 360 (as far as I’ve read they corrected the red rings issue for the most part and very few 360s made after Nov 2007 have the rings issue). The new dashboard is slick (besides the avatars) and you can even choose your own background (ATHF!) & watch some netflix movies.
If you are writing this article about a game system failing then it should include the PS3. It is also a great system and while it does have a blu-ray player, it costs $200 more. Before Blu-ray players started dropping below $400 that was the PS3’s biggest advantage over. Now you can get some blu-ray players for as low as $129 if you catch a doorbuster sale and regularly they are now under $200 for some older models.
I had a wii up until last week when I sold it because I never played it. Casual gaming may bring more people to the video game world but its not stealing regular and hard core gamers from the powerful consoles.
I think you pissed off the fan boys……lol
While I don’t think the 360 will have the sales that it has had in 2008, I highly doubt it is doomed in 2009. With a $200 console on the market and a strong line up of titles already out, there is plenty to keep new users happy. Add in that we don’t know half of the games coming to the 360 in 2009, I’d say its a little too soon to say they have nothing to offer.
IMBECILE!!!!!
I have to say your article is nothing more than utter trash, you have no clue what your talking about, wow you had 4 dead Xbox’s well I’ve had 5 yes five and you know what id go through 5 more, there is no console that even comes close to what MS has to offer, you wrote this before didn’t you? You should be fired, all you can do is bad mouth and for this web site to even allow you to write trash like that they should be pulled from online.
Of course you’ll care. We all know and love the XBOX 360 for good reasons. Exlusive games, a controller that feels not just OK when held but great, and of course XBOX Live which offers the best and easiest way to play games on the internet. I own a PS3 as well but in my opinion there has only been a handful of games that Ive purchased and played. If their available on the 360 then thats what I purchase. Why? Simple. XBOX Live and the controller. Graphics are normally the same on both versions so this doesnt sway my decision and whether you like Achievments or not they just feel good when you get one. PS3 Trophies just dont seem to give me that same sense of accomplishment. I will always own multiple gaming systems but will always have a favorite depending on what makes me happy!
Xbox 360 is one of the worst gaming console ever made plus is %10 doom for 2009 common sense. Microsoft can’t touch quality everything Sony has.
1. Microsoft didnt announce any of its plans for 09 yet . that is why there are “no games”. Sony is in full power damage control and are announcing as much as they can and they will have nothing for their fans in a short while. MS on the other hand only announces what matter , what is coming that year for the holidays.
There are games coming , and there will be announcements at e3 that will decimate sony.
No games my ass…
Even though the highly anticipated alan wake should be coming out in 2009 and that looks to be a better game then anything the ps3 has lined up.
2.your entire article is biased , you should try to be more professional. Everyone has had their 360s break , but that doesnt stop it for being the number 1 gaming platform.
I meant %100 doomed to fall it has nothing to offer.
The guy who wrote this article is an idiot…
His article says, “it will have to raise prices on Arcades to cover the cost of a recent hardware upgrade.”
and links to another article for proof of a hardware upgrade that says, “Apparently, the console’s new design means it’s cheaper to manufacture, which is part of the reason Microsoft was able to slash 360 prices back in September.”
Oh dear… well, I guess we know why it is you write for the local press, eh?
Still, you did write a pretty amusing article, perhaps you could get the onion to republish? Your explanation of what the RROD means is pretty great, it reminded me of the clip floating around youtube where Icelandic singer Bjork explains how a television works. The bit about keeping the 360 in the coldest room in the house was also hilarious… I have to ask, do you believe that technology is a product of magic and runs on pure magic? Or do you just adopt this tone for your articles? Either way, brilliant!
I read this hoping to find some actual news about new legitimate issues about the Xbox 360. The whole entry was just about you worrying that your Xbox will die. What’s the point, how is this informative? NXE is not a legitimate concern for your console to overheat. That’s just ridiculous. Besides, how is an overheating Xbox news? It’s been a major issue since the box dropped 3 years ago, and the failures have been reduced.
I’m a gamer. I have all of the current gen systems. I like good games, no matter what system they are on. I’m on my third Xbox. Yeah, it stinks, but I deal with it because I still love a lot of the games on the system. I also had to send in two Wii’s for repair. The power button somehow stopped working on my first one, and the replacement Nintendo sent me didn’t work correctly. But what’s the point in complaining over and over about systems breaking?
Furthermore, why does Microsoft need a “Halo” to come out every year? Nintendo doesn’t release a Mario or a Zelda every year, and Sony doesn’t release a Metal Gear or God of War every year. Gamers will buy Xboxes for the games, or the superior on-line gaming and support (even if you pay for it). Gamers will buy a PS3 for certain games or the bonus of a blue-ray player. Gamers and non-traditional gamers will buy the Wii if they want a more casual experience (or for Mario / Zelda / Metroid). I think we’re far enough along in the life cycles of these current consoles to see that all three systems have their place and will be supported for a few more years by their respective companies and third-party developers. I don’t think any of the consoles will “fail”.
A good gaming blog should be unbiased and about the games. I obviously don’t look to the Post Dispatch for my latest gaming news- there are plenty of great websites for that. With that said, I think this blog should still be informative and nice to read from time to time. I’ve read enough posts in this blog that I question how much of a gamer you really are. If this was a general electronics and media blog, I’d let it slide- but you call yourself “The Game Guy”. That sounds like someone with authority that’s really into games… and I really doubt that after reading some of your entries. I think the Post Dispatch can find a more credible voice for their videogame posts.
Please stop bashing the Xbox 360 repeatedly, posting “entries” that are just lame internet links to outdated gaming news, and writing shallow game reviews instead of offering some real insight that gamers might enjoy reading. It really deprives this blog of any real gaming credibility. I hope you can use these comments to improve the blog. Thanks.
Lame Guy strikes again with his hit job journalism. This really does get old. Seriously Sheets, go write for a PS3 fanboy site or something. You’ve somehow fooled the Post Dispatch into thinking you’re some expert gamer who can at least pretend to follow the standards of journalism and write well researched, unbiased articles. But time and time again you’ve proved that’s completely false.
For the last year and a half I have played Halo 3 online with about 15 friends. 2 of them in that time have had the red ring of death problem, and both got their Xboxes repaired and back in their hand within 7-10 days with no charge to fix it. Yes, it’s kind of a bummer that it happens at all, but it’s still a great system at a good price and it’s not THAT big of a deal when the RRoD fairy comes knocking on your door.
I must have seen a dozen articles on this site that have said the death of the 360 is coming and yet its sales continue to march upward. And even if they don’t, I don’t care–I love the system and enjoy playing with my friends online and the home media features it brings to my entertainment center.
Personally, Sheets, I hope your 360 does break, you opt not to get the free repair, and you stop writing about the 360 because you don’t have a clue what you’re talking about when you do write on the topic. And I certainly won’t care about that.
Amen, Jeff. Let’s hope the Post actually reads these comments and can find someone more objective to write on gaming. Some people who don’t know better might actually think this is a source of legit news on video games!
I’ll spare the angry-gamer insults which other people are posting, but i must say, factually speaking, that that article is so fundamentally flawed i’m honestly quite surprised it was allowed to be published.
So many comments you make shout out “i have no idea what i’m talking about.” None of the 2009 titles have Halo appeal? There are two Halo games coming out in 2009 for crying out loud.
“…has an extra cooling fan attached”
*facepalm*
You mean the intercoolers PROVEN to damage the console, which in fact void the warranty and CAUSE problems?
“The update promised better graphics…”
No it didnt. How on earth do they magically increase the graphical capabilities of the hardware with a software update?
“Something more robust implied a need for more processing power, more work for Xbox.”
Indeed. I’m quite sure the three-core processor at the heart of the box is going to struggle running the system’s menu.
“The Game Guy” - good grief.
Why does the recession not affect Sony? Since Microsoft’s other product windows, is on almost every PC sold they are guaranteed to make a profit in the software sector, which will most likely out balance any loss they incur from the Xbox. Also, the PS3 is not a casual gaming machine. With its high expense and lack of casual games (LBP is the only one I can think of off hand), the PS3 will undoubtedly fare worse than the 360. And all though it can be argued that the PS3 is a better multimedia device, people who want to play “casual” games will likely use or even be aware of any of these features. Sony who primarily produces hardware will fare much worse than Microsoft, as sales of all their products will decrease and consumers will move to cheaper knock off brands to save money. Although PC users could theoretically switch to Linux as an OS, the complexity of this task as well as lack of public knowledge will keep sales of Windows roughly proportional to the amount of PCs sold. And even if Microsoft does begin losing money on the consoles. Sony loses a bundle on each console sold. Even if you want to argue that the PS3 is superior, the 360 will still do better do to its price. The real winner in a recession will likely be Nintendo though.
What you all need to know is that Mr. Sheets probably hasn’t paid for a XBOX, Wii, or ps3 game or system since he started being a gaming reporter. These guys are like politicians were ever there getting the most pay offs is who they side with, I am thinking Microsoft hasn’t given him anything since they upgraded him to an elite system last year.
Reason why XBOX 360 won’t fail ON-LINE PLAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!More games too.
My roommate and I never had a problem with our xbox 360 in the almost 2 years we have owned it. We specifically purchase the Elite which was supposed to have fewer problems with the ‘Ring of Death’ issue.
1 week after the new dashboard upgrade … Ring of Death.
My roommate called it in and had it RMA’d … He was told by the tech on the phone that they had extra people on the phones and in their repairs working in anticipation of people having exactly this problem after the upgrade.
We really have no complaints. We got a replacement XBox inside of 3 weeks and are happily beating each others butts again.
But even Microsoft knew their upgrade would cause issues, and its really not a stretch that the xbox’s have had their share of major hardware issues. So I can see the authors point … but it does seem more of a rant than an article.
i just love how you throw in the “obama” text fuel your blogspam….this is pure crap and based entirely off of your opinion and NO facts, hopefully everyone realizes this…..someone remind me to avoid st.louis at all costs
btw new hardware is added to electronics to REDUCE price what do you think R&D is for?? to spend money on ways to spend more money gtfo
Couldn’t agree with you more. The 360 has been holding back the PS3 for too long. About bloodey time
You are an idiot.
1.- The NXE is just another GUI, it’s not for better graphics >_>
2.- Microsoft sends you an Elite if you have sent other consoles after the 3rd time (or something in that number)Yes, that means you are not special.
3.- LOL YOU THINK THEY SENT YOU ONE BECAUSE YOU ARE A “GAMING JOURNALIST”??? You are not special, your blog is biased against MS. It’s garbage. All your “MS won’t make it” “Xbox price is up because of internal memory” is BS, no other site posted this. It’s stupid.
4.- Elites are Pros with a 120GB hard drive. They are not different.
And then, your so called points.
“* None of the Xbox titles announced for 2009″
Most people who saw or heard about E3 knows about Halo ODST. Most of the internet know. Also, there are alot more exclusives: Alan Wake, Halo Wars, Mass Effect 2, Rare Project 1, Rare Project 2 (Rare always releases at least 2 games each year)
“* Casual gaming has made a huge leap forward”
Why is the Xbox not a casual console? Also, the PS3, and basically everything now, is trying to be casual.
“* The swooning economy will get worse”
If the $199 Arcade is not that attractive, how will the $250 Wii look? Imagine the $400 Ps3 look!
“Microsoft will get in line to ask Washington for a bailout”
Won’t happen, if a console maker does that, that’s Sony. It has been hurt alot more than Nintendo or MS.
You want to pass as a “Gaming Journalist” but you are completely biased.
Fail.
This was probably the worst article I have ever read.
“Microsoft asking for a bailout” - you sound like a middle school kid on a message board.
There’s 0 need to raise prices on either the console or the games themselves. You think a bad economy wouldn’t hurt Sony or Nintendo either???
So you know nothing about hardware, gaming, or economics. You’re paid to do what, exactly?
how bout those rams…
Hahaha wow.. Look at the MS fanboys coming out in droves with their juvenile and ignorant comments bashing you for speaking the truth about the most poorly built consoles ever. One guy has gone through 5, would go through 5 more and somehow enjoys that? Wow.. Just wow, consumers. You’re really speaking with your dollars there, showing corporations just how much you’ll put up with.
“Give us garbage and we’ll eat it up AND defend you, oh mightyful corporation!”
To the ignorant poster claiming the RROD is a hardware issue and not software.. Software affects hardware, nimrod. In the same fashion a graphically intense game (SOFTWARE) can overwork the hardware and cause it to overheat. Just ignorance.. And it seems infectious to nearly every 360 owner posting here.
Such a hoot! Enjoy 2009-2010 there “Red Ringers”. Not sure what there is to look forward to, but I can’t wait for Twisted Metal, Killzone 2, and God of War.
* Twenty months have passed and … well, so far, so good.
* Of the three that died, the longest surviving one lasted a grand total of nine months.
of the one that survived, it lasted 20 months “so far” but hey, most failures are within the first 12 months, so it looks like that one may last the long haul!
* It’s unnerving to think though that my latest luck could run out anyway, even though the console is dusted regularly and has an extra cooling fan attached, even though as an added precaution the Elite sits in the coolest room of my house — which during winter turns downright cold.
this is actually bad, not good. the problem isn’t the console getting too hot while playing, it’s the way the lead free solder breaks down when it cools, being in a cold room makes it cool down FASTER, which is worse, not better. also, i hope you aren’t using one of those 3rd party fans that plugs into the back of the console via the power port, those things are a fire hazard and also pull power away from the console, which causes it to lock up and have other issues while playing games.
* None of the Xbox titles announced for 2009 has “Halo”-like market appeal.
Halo Wars
Halo: ODST
* The swooning economy will get worse before it gets better.
This would be a concern to everyone, and having the least expensive console would be an advantage.
* Otherwise, it will have to raise prices on Arcades to cover the cost of a recent hardware upgrade.
Jasper costs less to make, due to parts reductions, such as smaller CPU/GPU die and having the 256MB Flashrom on-board instead of bundling a memory card.
Wow, I don’t really know what to say to a “Game Guy” that has a cooling fan on his 360. I thought everyone knew that those things were no good a year ago. New 360’s don’t have the same problems due to their smaller and cooler chipset and better cooling system. The new systems are top of the line. Everyone knows that Microsoft put out a flawed product just to beat Sony out of the gate.
Both systems are great. The Game Guy needs to do research about games and hardware before he writes an article on his blog that makes him sound like Chicken Little…. ha ha.
I really hope you read this, because I think you’re quite moronic. Yes, I consider that civil, but I wouldn’t say it in front of my mother, as she would probably say it herself.
Halo 3: ODST (previously known as Halo 3: Recon) is coming out in 2009. That is your “Halo-esque” title. Halo Wars is a different genre, but is expected to really bring Halo players back for a new experience in the Halo world.
E3 will have hints towards future developments, but could also announce a new game. Gears of War 2 wasn’t announced until E3 2008, and came out in fall 2008. Just because you don’t know about a game doesn’t mean it’s not being made. Good games take time to make, and Microsoft has said in the past that they have a dozen, or so, games in their pipelines.
Xbox 360 has the most social gaming, and with the New Xbox Experience, they have made it easier, much more simple and attractive to a casual crowd, to play online with others. The 360 was already the leader there, but now they have raised the bar, yet again.
You may consider that last statement to not really affect or have anything to do with casual gaming. But this one does. Xbox Live Arcade. Yes, that was an incomplete sentence. That’s all I needed to say. Take that and games like Need for Speed Undercover (which did kind of suck due to bugs and issues) and Prince of Persia, and you’ll see that casual is something that developers are starting to go for.
In the first place, however, you cannot compare the 360 or the PS3 to the Wii for casual gaming, as that was a market machine just for that. It was a gamble, because Nintendo was doing very crappy prior to the Wii (minus their handheld market) and didn’t really wanna make a hardcore machine. They were hoping to pop-in a console that people would eat up due to being half the price of their competitors. Market it as casual and the risk paid off.
Now all you see on their is “casual games” — developers are starting to pick up on this and make great games, with great graphics, and great story, scores and voiceacting, but make them easier to play. Is that not casual? Gears of War 2 and Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 both featured Casual difficulties that had gaming “newbs” running into their enemies and not dying.
What kind of casual are you asking for? You have the puzzles and cutsie games on Arcade. The cheap, crappy Wii-like production value games are available via Community Games. Then you have real games, games that make the industry, which are high-quality games, being made easier for casual gamers, either by no difficulty and just being easy (like Prince of Persia, in which you can’t even die) or by adding a new difficulty setting that makes you jealous of your mom’s headshots.
I’ve got to agree with Jeffs statement. When I was refered to the article title by my fiance I turned to it quickly out of concern for industry news on the level of the death of HD DVD to Blu Ray. What did I get? Some guy complaing still about his RRoD. If that was going to kill the 360 that would have done it by now. Mine died twice but I haven’t had an issue in over a year. I am the casual gamer. I don’t have interests in the Halo’s or Gears of War. I want to sit back and relax and play Madden, NCAA Football, NBA Live, NHL, and MLB 2k. Occasionally I’ll throw in something else. But i haven’t been tempted to by a PS3 yet, and based on your article I’m no closer. Get me some bigger news if you want me to care.
What does this article really have to do with PS3 anyways? I own a PS3, Wii and 360. I own the most games for 360 and consider Fable 2 and Gears 2 among this season’s best. But lets get one thing straight: the 360 has a long and sorted history of hardware problems that no other console in the history of gaming has ever come close to. I work for a major gaming retailer (take a guess which one) and the 360 nearly destroyed our warranty policy, forcing us to change the cost and rules of our warranty unlike any other system before or after it. All consoles break, the 360 just does way more often and for no good reason other than shady manufacturing and Microsoft’s cost cutting greed. I’m on my third 360 console now, and fully expect to have to return mine even though I too now baby it. That just isn’t right, though nor is it ok for 360 fanboys to bash this writer because his opinion is different than your own. I fully agree with this article’s thesis (as a semi-impatrial gamer); the 360 has a weaker lineup for this new year, and with no Fable, Halo or Gears on the horizon (minus the ODST expansion) things are looking scarce in terms of good first party software. And nowhere does this writer say he is wrinting anything but his opinion, he dosent cite anything but his own feelings and experiences. This is essentially an editorial, so chill.
He’s kinda right, I think that Microsoft is running out of ideas for the Xbox and that it wont get much better than it is right now, and I think that Sony has lots of ideas left and I think that the PS3 has a long way to go before it gets maxed out. Also the exclusive lineup for the PS3 in 2009 is incredible i didnt even realize how good it was until about 5 minutes ago when i saw a list, with Killzone 2, Uncharted 2, God of War 3, Gran Touismo 5, Infamous and more. Im sorry to say because I do own an Xbox 360 ,, that it looks alot better than Xbox 360’s Halo 3 Recon, and Halo wars. But also this all depends on how well the PS3 sells and right now it’s not doing to hot compared to the 360 and Wii so idk. Mabe these games and Home will help sell some PS3’s
I think I read this article back 2007. Saying 2008 will be the year of Sony & M$ will be playing catch-up..Hmmm. Ok then, 2009 it is. But when Nov-Dec. 2009 comes I might read this article again saying “Is Xbox Doomed in 2010?”
I think I read this article back in 2007; saying 2008 will be the year of Sony & M$ will be playing catch-up..Hmmm. Ok then, 2009 it is. But when Nov-Dec. 2009 comes I might read this article again saying “Is Xbox Doomed in 2010?”
Apparently David can’t fact check.. heck it’s worse then that.. in his artical above and I quote”it will have to raise prices on Arcades to cover the cost of a recent hardware upgrade. Or raise game prices” First he points to his own poorly written think piece about Microsoft having to raise prices to cover the memory upgrade in the Jasper revision, but then he links to an artical that actually talks about the Jasper revision. That artical actually tells us that the Jasper is cheapear to produce then the previous version. Hmm.. how did David miss that.. I know he, cause he really shouldn’t be writing about these things.
Unfortunatly to often non tech types get these jobs, then pretend they actually know what they are talking about.. I guess david can’t be doing to well since he states he can’t afford another 360 if his current one dies… 199 to expensive?.. mybe he should get a paper route to make ends meet..
MS just needs to quick while they are a head an just join Sony to beat Nintendo, for those who keep saying Halo and GOW are better then most PS3 games. Then you need to get your head out of MS ass an see MGS4, Resistance (Which keeps going strong even if it is really old and no 360 game last that long) as well as 2 is better then Halo, Heavenly Sword is nice (I haven’t played it at all but looks good) and Vista fail an that isn’t going to be helping MS on anything as well as if they are planing on making Windows 7.
Oh don’t say windows has no effect on the 360 because if you do then you are to dumb to even know what “A” does in a GOW, it effects everything and the same is with Sony but the thing is Sony makes alot of things to make money where MS only has Windows a IPOD wannabe an 360.
I think nearly all of the people writing comments on here could write a better gaming blog. Some of these are really great.
@ Dan- I can see your point, and if you were to write an article with your opinion and elaborated on some of the facts you brought up (in a manner similar to your comment), that would be a legitmate editorial. My beef with “The Game Guy” (and I think several other readers) is that the “facts” that Sheets discusses are misleading or just plain wrong. He also has a history of bashing the 360. This may be an editorial, but even if you’re biased against Microsoft, there’s still a lot of aspects to appreciate about the 360 that are never discussed. There are things to like and dislike about all of the major companies and consoles. They all have flaws, but you’ll never pick up on that by reading this blog. Nintendo has alienated a large portion of their fanbase by focusing too much on “casual” games, and Sony has lost most of it’s exclusivity from third-party developers (the PS2’s bread and butter). Those go hand in hand with Microsoft’s quality issues. With 3 competitve systems, there’s something out there for everyone, and “The Game Guy” doesn’t seem to hit upon that concept- and I think that a gaming blog (even if opinionated) should demonstrate that concept. You can write about problems with the 360, but make sure the facts are correct, and write about issues on the other platforms from time to time- becuase none of them are perfect.
what a stupid article.
As pointed out by numerous posters already this is a horrendous, poorly written “article.” I would like to point out that Sony has announced massive layoffs. Guess what division/unit within Sony has been a source of massive losses? That’s right kids, the PS3.
Honestly really??? I didn’t even read this article…just saw the title via my daily xbox 360 google news search…Doomed? Com on man…the 360 is going to move units in 2009…Its the number #1 next gen box (I dont count Wii as next gen) and its blowing off the shelves in europe. Plus it’s going to break 1 million this year in Japan. It will prob make 20,000 million sold in the US in 2009. How is this doomed…its crushing the Playstation 3 and by the time they drop their price…blu ray players will be so cheap that it won’t be such a big deal to buy a ps3 vs. a blu ray player. Digital distribution is the way to go anywah going foward…I like the ps3 as a machine…I do think it is a more complete machine, but to say the 360 is doomed??? Must be a slow news day.
Where to start? This article is just ridiculous. Are you getting paid by the paper to write this baseless crap?? Just look at the sales numbers for the past few months, that will give an indicaion as to whether your prediction will hold true or not. And currently the 360 is still wiping the floor with the PS3.
Supposedly the “Jasper” chipsets are being put into 360’s now to reduce the RROD syndrome, yeah, that’s what they said about the “Falcon” chipset, remember?
The 360’s garbage hardware IS big cause for concern but i think the bigger problem they face next year is that there are hardly ANY exclusive games lined up for the next 12 months. There’s a Halo RTS, a Halo prequel and………Ninja Blade??? If Microsoft are hoping that idiot games like “Lips” and “You’re In The Movies” are gonna prevail over Killzone 2, Uncharted 2, Gran Turismo 5 and God Of War 3 then they’re insane, even with the low price.
It just goes to show that you get what you pay for…….if you pay a cheap £129.99 for a console i suppose you have to expect it to have no games and be absolutely useless…………….
I quite enjoyed the article - utter nonsense, but it made me chucke.
I’m on my second xbox. I got my first one on release night from Asda (they don’t take pre-orders
When it did pack in after about 16 months, they sent me a sticker and i bundled it off to germany, free of charge. And then a new one came back about 6 days later, free of charge. I don’t know of any other warranty system that you get for free that is that good.
My second machine is still going strong.
And before you all start crying 360 “fanboi” then let me just say I owed 5 PS2 though out it’s life cycle. I think 3 had laser issues (i play way too many games) and one just died (the last is still ok though and in a cupboard.) Sony refused to fix the first 2 drives that failed (I was a little nieve about my right and such back then.)
As for games out in 2009, in addition to those mentioned:
APB
Forza 3
Project Gotham 5 (from Turn 10, the forza guys???)
Bio Shock 2 (although like the 1st it’s a time-limited exclusive)
Mass Effect 2
Lionheads new game (the Fable guys - to be annouced at E3, out in 09)
Alan Wake
Tales Of Vesperia
Tekken 6 (probably already been out on the ps? though)
But don’t forget all the cross platform games. If you want to play Resident Evil 5, Ghostbusters or Rage you have a choice of which platform to play them on - and for some who doesn’t already own a console, in this credit-crunch time the cheaper console will most likely win out.
Especially since there usually isn’t much to choose between graphics on cross platform titles, and as sales are going, chances are they will get the same as their friends, more people own a 360 (although even more people own wii’s - you don’t buy a wii to play online, you get one to get your mates round after the pub to act like tits!)