Team Fremont.com-The Truth Behind the 360 Review

The Truth Behind the 360

E3 2005 has come and gone, MTV sucked balls and Microsoft finally blew the lid off their upcoming next generation console, Xbox 360. Whilst Microsoft didn’t reveal a solid release date or pricing structure for the console or Live services, we now know a little more about Microsoft’s aims and aspirations this fall and they finally began to talk a little about their little Trojan horse they call a games console. Now that the smoke and mirrors of E3 are gone, what exactly do we know about the console and what does this mean for us as gamers? Strangely, Microsoft decided to show off the console first to a list of B-List celebrities and Frodo at the Xbox 360 launch party on MTV a week prior to the E3 show. Obviously a move to try and promote more awareness from the casual “mass market” folk who watch MTV religiously and also to one-up Sony who had just rescheduled their E3 Pre Show conference to start before Microsoft’s own. Anyway, both consoles have had the lid pretty much blown off and we’re finally starting to see the concrete details from Microsoft emerge in spades.

So let’s take a look at where the Xbox leaves us right now, which of course is where the 360 has to pick up from. First and foremost, Microsoft has been able to establish Xbox as a serious contender in the Western World. The proving ground is over and the Xbox has a decent enough user base in both Europe and North America. Whilst it hasn’t overtaken PS2, Xbox has become a household name and very much associated with gaming. Japan however is a very different story altogether with absolutely dismal sales and a very poor line-up. Xbox in the East is pretty much a joke and Microsoft haven’t made any headway in resolving their issues over there. There is a distinct lack of Japanese developers on board for Xbox and to top it off, Japan simply doesn’t give a damn about Halo, the game pretty much responsible for the Xbox’s success elsewhere in the world.

Where does Microsoft go from here? J Allard believes the only way is up, and he feels that by “using the power of human energy” to develop games, Microsoft will be able to sell “1 Billion” 360 consoles in the next generation. Hmm a dubious figure to be sure and I’d have to ask the question of whose ass he pulled that one from. Anyway, on a more serious note, Microsoft obviously mean business with the 360 and the only way they even come close to seeing 100 million units let alone 1Billion) will be to seriously take over the Eastern market that they don’t even yet have a foothold of. I’ll come back to this stuff a little later on though as I’m getting way ahead of myself here.

I think it is probably a good idea to take a look at the solid details of the 360 starting with its initial design brief. The Xbox Team had a vision, that vision includes the following mantras:

Always connected
Always personalized
Always in high definition

This design philosophy is an interesting one for sure. The Xbox 360 will be able to connect to the Live service wirelessly, thanks to the built in WiFi functions out of the box or will it? The retailer guide states:
“Membership on the Xbox Live community by just plugging in an Ethernet cord.”

Microsoft are hoping that every gamer will be using this thing online using their Premium online services, you see to play online you’ll need to pay for the premium stuff and let’s face it, Microsoft still aren’t sharing the pricing details just yet and if Nintendo are offering free online gaming then this could be a very bad move. As the Xbox 360 retailer guide so nicely puts it,

”Express your digital identity through your Gamertag and gamer card, talk with others using voice chat, and access Xbox Live Marketplace.”

Essentially, you’ll be able to have a Gamertag and voice chat for free. Let’s not forget the all important Xbox Marketplace where you’ll be able to purchase premium content downloads. The guide then goes on to say;

“Upgrade your customers from the basic, out-of-box access and they enter the exciting world of multiplayer online gaming.”

Which basically says that out of the box, you’ll get a nice Gamertag which is great, just don’t expect to be playing any games until you cough up the dough. And also be prepared for some serious retailer pushing of the online stuff because (and I quote):

”Now, if they want to enjoy full-time, full-access multiplayer gaming action this will require a paid subscription just like today. Consider that Xbox 360 owners can get online at the standard level described above. There will be many who will want to upgrade. This presents a tremendous opportunity for our retail partners to drive more Xbox Live subscription sales.”

Great, so I’ll be having every single damned store shoving this crap down my throat every single time I want to buy a game along with asking if I want a guide and if I want to preorder every single release in the next quarter. Wow, I’m overjoyed. Well if Microsoft’s way of getting everyone online is what is described above then I think they may just be in for a little shock. In a nutshell; I’m not convinced. Oh and hey, does this thing have WiFi or require an Ethernet cable… at this point I have no idea either way thanks to the conflicting info.

So maybe let’s take a look at the second development principle; “Always Personalized”. I think the first thing that comes to mind is the interchangeable faceplates for the console. You’ll be able to easily swap the front of the console for a designer fascia of your choosing apparently. This will most likely appeal to some of the market but I doubt it is a major selling point for the console so I’m surprised there is such a huge push on this feature. Of course the other aspect is the ability to customise the 360 online dash board although the degree to which we’ll be able to do this has not yet been revealed. Again cool, but not a system selling feature.

Then there is my favourite design point, “Always High Definition”. This is kind of a mute point to most of Europe now and I imagine most gamers as well. Hands up who has their own High Def TV right now? Hmm not so many. Ok then, hands up who is planning on spending a few thousand on one of these just so you can play games through them…? Hmm, even less. Oh wait in Europe hardly anyone even has a Plasma screen yet due to the insanely high prices and let’s face it, if the majority of the gaming population could afford a HD TV right now, we’d never complain about console or games prices would we. For now I don’t see HD as a huge selling point, and I think Microsoft are going too far with this whole HD Era bollocks. I’m sorry but touting HD is not going to sell that magical 1Billion figure is it? For a console that is supposedly all-access to everyone easily it sure has some expensive hurdles.

Now let’s take a look at some more interesting points that I’ve dug up from the Retail guide. So you think you are getting WiFi out of the box? Maybe you think you’ll be getting wireless controllers as standard? Well guess again folks, these are all extras and add-ons. Take a quick read of this:

• The headset plugs directly into either the Xbox 360 Controller or Xbox Wireless Controller for easy use.

XBOX 360 WIRELESS NETWORK ADAPTER

Designed for versatility and ease, the Xbox 360 Wireless Network Adapter enhances the Xbox 360 experience in the digital home, seamlessly synchronizing with the Xbox 360 system. Customers can easily transfer videos and music to their Xbox 360 system from their Media Center PC, chat with friends, play games via Xbox Live, and more—all without the clutter of wires.

• The Xbox 360 Wireless Network Adapter is highly versatile and supports 802.11b, 802.11g, and 802.11a.

• The Xbox 360 Wireless Network Adapter is powered seamlessly by your Xbox 360 gaming console, so there's no external power adapter to plug in.

It seems to me that Microsoft is really not telling us the whole truth about this console and its features out of the box just yet. Given that all these features are supposed to be easily accessible they are making it incredibly difficult and let’s not forget that the HDD is an optional peripheral also. I just think that really Xbox 360 is a Trojan horse so to speak, a way for Microsoft to charge us all for other services and features rather than concentrating on what a games console is actually there for – to play incredible games. Sure the games are going to look a little nicer but I think that there is very little improvement for the next generation of gaming. I really want to like this console but I just don’t buy into the whole media center in the living room thing and I wonder who actually will? Are they going to sell 1 Billion units? I seriously doubt it. Will they make headway into the Japanese market? Sure, but I don’t think there will be anywhere near as big an impact as they would like to believe. If we take a look behind J Allard’s touchy – feely bullshit, we have a console that will play games that look a little nicer than on your current Xbox. Many of its features will come at an extra cost and again, we still have no idea how expensive this thing will be in the first place.

Article By: Phil Haymes