Xbox 360 pricing announced

[kingnebwsu]

My "excuse" for holding out on the 360 is to wait for the 2nd gen. I'm on my 3rd or 4th Xbox and it's fritzing on me. Hell if I wanna do that again.

[sterlingice]

Not to be obtuse, but if you're on your 3rd or 4th and it's screwing up yet you still want a 360... isn't that "doing it again"?

SI

[SackAttack]

Originally Posted by kingnebwsu

My "excuse" for holding out on the 360 is to wait for the 2nd gen. I'm on my 3rd or 4th Xbox and it's fritzing on me. Hell if I wanna do that again.

If you're holding out, there's a better excuse than being on your 3rd or 4th Xbox, IMO.

2nd or 3rd gen is when they make the switch from DVD drives to HD-DVD drives.

[dervack]

Originally Posted by SackAttack

2nd or 3rd gen is when they make the switch from DVD drives to HD-DVD drives.

Allegedly. That's just rumor and innuendo.

[Vince]

Ok, I'm sure I'll slog through this thread in a little while anyways, but just in case anyone wants to help me out quicker...

I've been recruited by my mom (who has no idea what she is doing) to help her find an X-Box 360 for my dad for christmas. Outside of continually searching local stores (Gamestop, Best Buy, Circuit City, Wal-Mart, Toys R Us), does anyone have any tips for acquiring one, outside of paying an arm and a leg on E-Bay?

[SackAttack]

Originally Posted by dervack

Allegedly. That's just rumor and innuendo.

Gates' quote.

Not rumor, so much. Innuendo, possibly. I have to think that if the PS3 uses Blu-Ray drives at launch - which it's supposed to - that Xbox 360 will almost certainly incorporate HD-DVD somewhere down the road.

Vince - you have a PM.

[dervack]

Should I point out the Quote where Gates said Halo would be out when the PS3 launch, to which one of his own officers shot that down. I hope that they don't end up doing the HD-DVD thing otherwise I have no idea what I would do with my console. That being said, I have no doubt that they will. Bastards.

[dubb93]

Originally Posted by dervack

I hope that they don't end up doing the HD-DVD thing otherwise I have no idea what I would do with my console. That being said, I have no doubt that they will. Bastards.

What I would do is wait for the class action law suit along with the announcement that they will put in HD-DVD drives in all 360's free of charge.

[Airhog]

This is why PS3 will reatain top-dog status. I doubt that they would switch disc formats in the middle of the life of the machine. Doesnt make any sense, and they would be better off just introducing a new machine...

[dervack]

Originally Posted by Airhog

This is why PS3 will reatain top-dog status. I doubt that they would switch disc formats in the middle of the life of the machine. Doesnt make any sense, and they would be better off just introducing a new machine...

I don't think there was really any doubt about PS3 still being number 1, but I think this time around, the margin of Victory will be much, much less.

[sterlingice]

What? It worked well for the Sega CD

SI

[Philliesfan980]

Anyone interested in an xbox 360 before it hits e-bay? Nothing wrong with it at all, just don't have the time right now to play it. Will almost certainly buy again when NCAA rolls around next year:

XBOX 360 Core
HD Cables
20 GIG HDD (so its basically a premium, just bought the stuff seperately)
Madden 360
Call of Duty 2
DVD remote
extra wireless controller

edit: to include extra wireless controller.

[Eaglesfan27]

I almost accidently overwrote my test league tonight with my real league. So, I'm going to finish my testing of progression tonight. In the interest of speed, and since I'm already satisifed that the simulated stats are quite good, I'm not going to post those any more except for those that I find really interesting. I'm just going to focus on progression for those guys I've been following until their careers wind down:

Ok, I just got offered a very interesting trade. A 35 year old Tim Duncan who is clearly declining for the last few years for my 30 year old Dalembert who is also starting to decline. Duncan is rated 82 (after steadily declining since age 31) while Dalembert is rated 79. I decide to do this as Duncan adds another nice scorer to the squad.

A few other minor trades happen, but none of great interest.

Despite Duncan missing 26 games with injuries, and Iverson missing 17 more, we win 56 games and cruise into the top seed in the playoffs.



Lebron wins yet another MVP averging 30.6 ppg, 12.3 rpg, 7.7 apg, 2.3 spg, and 1.3 bpg.

Dwight Howard wins another Defensive Player of the Year with 26.3 ppg, 17.7 rpg, 2.6 apg, 1.8 spg, and 2.6 bpg.

The All NBA First Team:

PG: Arenas
SG: Wade
SF: LeBron
PF: Howard
C: Bogut

Maurice Cheeks wins Coach of the Year for guiding us to 56 wins.

Marc Phillips of the Spurs wins Executive of the Year helping them get 52 wins.

Despite Iverson missing the series, we beat the Knicks in 5 in the 1st round. However, we lose our starting PF Jameson for the next series.

In the 2nd game of the second round against the Bulls, Iverson breaks his ankle and we are eliminated in 6.

The Bobcats end up beating the Spurs in 5 in the Finals. The Bobcats have a potent trio with SG Lynn Knox, Okafor, and Hinrich. Sean May and Felton have both become very good players for them as well.

Lynn Knox, the former #2 pick wins the MVP of the Finals.

Duncan averaged 14.3 ppg and only 4.6 rpg at the Center Position. Not as good as I was hoping.

Iverson had his worst season averaging 18.1 ppg, 4.6 apg. His game is clearly declining as he enters into his late 30's.

I had my first true bust pick this year with the 28th pick as I ended up getting a Center who is only rated a 60 coming into the league.



Now onto progression:


After Pre-Season in the 8th season:

Iverson has dropped another point to 88 at the age of 37. Clearly, he isn't declining as fast as Shaq, Duncan, or any of the other big men I've seen.

Iguodala appears to have topped out at 92. He is averaging about 16 ppg, 8.5 rpg, and 4.7 apg as well as 2.5 spg for the last two seasons.

Duncan dropped down to a 79, while Dalembert dropped down to a 77.

Todd Jameson, my 2nd year 1st round pick has shown a clear drop in the last year losing 3 points and going down to a 78.

However, Kent Milton, my first 1st round pick from the 1st year has suddenly progressed to a 81 and has taken over the starter role after pre-season.

Despite not getting too much playing time, Chavez went up another point to 75 at the age of 27.

My 27th pick 2 years ago, SF Tayfur Akyel went up to a 70 (up 2 points.)

My 28th pick last year Nelson Schneider stayed at 73.



A. Kolomak, Raptors, is now rated 97 (up 1 more point from last year.)

G. Kelly is now rated 98 (up 2 points.) He and Stoudemire are a fearsome frontcourt.

Morris is now clearly looking like a bust. He dropped down to 76 despite being the 3rd overall pick.

Gooding, now with the Nets, is rated 83 (up 2 points)

Jacobsen, Hawks, is rated 91 (up 1 point.) The Hawks have a great trio with him, Joe Johnson, and Marvin Williams. Nene at PF is no slouch either.

Stafford, Blazers, is rated 81 (no change)

Bajza, Wash, is rated 84 (up 1 point.)

Cowens, Nets, is rated 86 (up 1 points.)

Milton, 76ers, is 81 (up 1 point.)

Griffin, Bulls now, is up to 85 (up 1 point.)



The 2nd draft class:

Santiago, Raptors, went up to 82 (up 2 points.) Again, he improves statistically and averaged 15.2 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 0.6 bpg. He still is a relative bust for a #1 pick.

Knox, Bobcats, is rated 94 (up 2 points from last year. The 2 time MVP of the Finals continues to perfect his midrange jumper.) Looks like the Raptors made a huge mistake passing him up. He averaged 21.0 ppg, 9.3 rpg, 5.4 apg, 1.1 spg, and 1.2 bpg last year.


McLeod, Lakers, dropped a point down to 85.

Posey, Hornets, is up to 84 (up 1 points.)

Faulk, T'Wolves, is up to 83 (1 point gain.)


Entering his 8th year at age 28, Bogut gains one point to go up to 97 rating.

Another notable rookie from that class, Marvin Williams stayed at a 94 rating.


I hope to get through a few more seasons this weekend. So far, I see no signs of precipitious drops in the generated or non-generated rookies. They seem to be progressing well.

[Eaglesfan27]

One odd trade this year as the Knicks traded a young SF, Bob Dame, who was rated 82 for Nick Collison who is rated 75 at PF. I guess they needed a PF badly, but still a bit odd. If the SF wants to test the market, the trade will make more sense.


During the regular season, Duncan missed over half of the season with a severely broken ankle. Fortunately, we signed Joel Prybilla who played ok for us at the center spot. Iverson also missed a good chunk of the season, but we still manage to win 47.


Dwight Howard wins his First MVP Award. He averages 24.7 ppg, 16.9 rpg, 3.3 apg, 1.8 spg, and 2.7 bpg.

He also wins the Defensive Player of the Year Award.


All NBA First Team:

PG: Arenas
SG: Lester Mullin One of my recent generated rookies who ended up with the Spurs and has developed quickly.
SF: Lebron
PF: Howard
C: Bogut

Mike D'Antoni guides the Suns to 62 wins and gets Coach of the Year.

Marc Phillips get Executive of the Year again as the Spurs get 52 wins.

We lose Iverson for the playoffs in the 1st game, and the Hawks beat us in 6.

The Suns win the Finals in 7 over the Bobcats.

Garrett Kelly, the former #2 pick, wins Finals MVP averaging 14.7 ppg, 14.8 rpg, 3.5 apg, and 1.8 bpg for the Suns.


Jason Kidd is the oldest retiree at 40. Marko Jaric is the youngest at 35.

Scott Skiles retires from the Bulls and Rick Adelman retires from the Kings.


Iguodala's contract is up and my top rated player wants a 6 year deal worth 110 million. I don't hesitate to give it to him.

I also re-sign Kent Milton who has clearly been my best starting PF this year to a new 4 year deal worth 24 million.


That is my only real gripe with the franchise mode. You can't wait to re-sign these guys until FA, if you do, you lose their Bird Rights. I don't think that is the way it works IRL.


Bob Dame did end up going into FA which makes that trade make more sense. Marshall Warner, a very talented SF who is a generated rookie is the top rated player to make it to FA with a rating of 90.

Warner ends up getting a 5 year 70 million dollar deal from the Sonics.


Now onto progression:


After Pre-Season in the 9th season:

Iverson has dropped another point to 87 at the age of 38. Clearly, he isn't declining as fast as most of the big men.

Iguodala again remains at 92. However, as Iverson's scoring dropped another 2 points, he picked up 2 ppg for an 18.1 average now. He also had his best season on the boards with 10.1 rpg and his best season stealing with 2.7 spg.

Duncan remained at a 79, while Dalembert dropped down to a 76.

Todd Jameson, my 2nd year 1st round pick lost another point and is down to 77.

Kent Milton gained a point and is up to 82. The late 1st round pick is quite solid.

Chavez is topped off at 75.

My 27th pick 3 years ago, SF Tayfur Akyel went up to a 73 (up 3 points.)

My 28th pick 2 years ago, Nelson Schneider wenr up a point to 74.



A. Kolomak, Raptors, is now rated 98 (up 1 more point from last year.)

G. Kelly is still rated 98.

Morris, Heat, is now rated 74 (loss of 2 points) and is clearly a big time bust.

Gooding, now with the Nets, dropped a point down to 82.

Jacobsen, Hawks, is rated 92 (up 1 point.)

Stafford, Blazers, is rated 80 (down 1 point) at the age of 29.

Bajza, Wash, is rated 83 (down 1 point.)

Cowens, Nets, is rated 86 (no change)

Milton, 76ers, is 82 (up 1 point.)

Griffin, Bulls now, is up to 86 (up 1 point.)



The 2nd draft class:

Santiago, Raptors, stayed at 82. He almost duplicates last year's numbers, but has a slight decline for the first time in his stats. 15 ppg 7bpg is not what the Raptors were expecting from the #1 pick.

Knox, Bobcats, is rated 97 (up 3 points from last year. The 2 time MVP of the Finals continues to perfect his midrange jumper and is now deadly from medium to long range.) Looks like the Raptors made a huge mistake passing him up. He averaged 21.4 ppg, 10.1 rpg, 5.6 apg, 1.3 spg, and 1.3 bpg last year.


McLeod, Lakers, stayed at 85.

Posey, Hornets, is up to 85 (up 1 points.)

Faulk, T'Wolves, is up to 84 (1 point gain.)


Entering his 9th year at age 29, Bogut loses 4 points to go down to 93. It will be interesting to follow Kolomak, but it seems that big guys tend to start declining around 29 or 30 in this game's algorithm. That doesn't concern me too much.

Another notable rookie from that class, Marvin Williams gained a point to go up to 95.

[Eaglesfan27]

One thing that I like is that the AI really tries to take advantage of you at times. I just lost Duncan for most of the season, and Pryzilla is looking bad. They offered me a decent C, but wanted to take my starting PF who is rated 5 points higher than the guy they were offering.

The Hornets traded a veteran PF (rated 80) for a young SF who is only rated 70 on the Nuggets squad.



Dwight Howard wins MVP again. He averaged 27.7 ppg, 17.2 rpg, 2.9 apg, 1.7 spg, and 2.9 bpg (the highest I've seen in a season in this game.)

He also wins Defensive Player of the Year. He is 29, it will be interesting to see if he starts declining like Bogut.

All NBA First Team:

PG: Arenas
SG: Mullin
SF: Lebron
PF: Howard
C: Bogut

D'Antoni wins Coach of the Year Again with 59 wins. Kelly and Stoudemire are dominating up front.

Brent Harrison of the Cavs wins Executive of the Year as they also had 59 wins.

We managed to get 51 wins despite Iverson's continued decline.

The Bulls took us out in 7 in the 1st round.

The Bulls beat the Jazz in 6 in the Finals.


Carmelo Anthony (who went to the Bulls as a free agent a few years ago) wins MVP of the Finals. He averaged 23.4 ppg, 7.5 bpg, 4.3 apg, and 1.2 spg.

Kevin Garnett retired at the age of 38.

Mike Montgomery of the Warriors retired.


Iverson is 39, but he wants a new 3 year deal as his deal has expired. Since, he only wants 4 million per year, I give it to him.


Marvin Williams is the big FA, but I don't have the cap room to sign him.

Gooding is also a FA this year.

The Mavericks stock up and get Everett Gooding for a 5 year 50 million dollar deal.

They also get Danny Grancer, a very talented SF for 5 years and 70 million.

Interestingly, the Celtics signed Marvin Williams. I just looked at them, and didn't think they had much cap room, but I guess I was wrong. They gave Williams 84 million over 5 years. I just looked again, and the Celtics are WAY over the cap now. I'm not sure how they signed him. Was there a sign and trade that I missed? I don't think so. Might be the first real bug I've seen in this game.





Now onto progression:


After Pre-Season in the 10th season:

Iverson has dropped another point to 86 at the age of 39. Clearly, he isn't declining as fast as most of the big men. Iverson's scoring has dropped to 14.4 ppg.

Iguodala again remains at 92. He dropped down to 17 ppg after peaking at 18 ppg last year.

Duncan dropped down to 75 at the age of 38, while Dalembert dropped down to a 75 despite being 33.

Todd Jameson, my 2nd year 1st round pick lost another point and is down to 76.

Kent Milton stayed at 82.

Chavez dropped a point down to 74. I'm going to finally give him some PT, and hope he can blossom a bit more at 29.


My 27th pick 3 years ago, SF Tayfur Akyel went up to a 74 (up 1 points.)

My 28th pick 2 years ago, Nelson Schneider went up a point to 75.



A. Kolomak, Raptors, is now rated 97 (down 1 point at the age of 29.)

G. Kelly is now rated 99. Up 1 point. He is also 29.

Stoudemire dropped 4 points and is now down to 90 at the age of 32.

Morris, now a FA, is now rated 72 (loss of 2 points) and is clearly a big time bust.

Gooding, stayed at 82. He is now 30.

Jacobsen, Hawks, is rated 93 (up 1 point.) He is only 28 as he entered the draft early.

Stafford, Blazers, is rated 78 (down 2 points) at the age of 30.

Bajza, Wash, is rated 82 (down 1 point.) He is 30.

Cowens, Nets, is rated 86 (no change)

Milton, 76ers, is 82 (up 1 point.)

Griffin, Bulls now, is steady at 86. He is 29.



The 2nd draft class:

Santiago, Raptors, gained a point and is now rated 83. He is 28. He had his best year statistically averaging 16.1 ppg, 8.0 rpg, and 0.8 bpg.

Knox, Bobcats, is rated 98 (up 1 points from last year.) He is 28. He had his best statistical season last year: 23.8 ppg, 11.4 bpg, 6.1 apg, 1.4 spg, and 1.5 bpg for the 6'7" 235 pound SG.

McLeod, Lakers, stayed at 85. He was old when he entered the draft and is now 31.

Posey, Hornets, stayed at 85. He is 28.

Faulk, T'Wolves, is up to 85 (1 point gain.) He is 27.


Entering his 10th year at age 30, Bogut loses 2 points to go down to 91. It will be interesting to follow Kolomak, but it seems that big guys tend to start declining around 29 or 30 in this game's algorithm. That doesn't concern me too much.

Another notable rookie from that class, Marvin Williams stayed at 95 and is only 28.

[TroyF]

Dwight Howard went off in the test league I had. He won his first MVP and DOP at the age of 23 and went on to win 5 in a row before I stopped.

[Eaglesfan27]

I got a bit tired of running this test league in depth, but did do a few very fast seasons today. Basically, I've determined that big men peak between 29 and 31, they generally decline into relative obscurity by 36 or so. Of course, the more talented the player is, the less true this is. Duncan was still decent at 36. Bogut still put up 16 ppg at 36. Guards on the other hand peak 29-30 but don't seem to start declining in earnest until 33-35. Iverson was still fairly productive at 38 and McGrady still put up over 18 ppg at 38. Overall, I'm reasonably happy with the career paths and the simulated stats. My only gripe with the franchise mode is that you lose Bird rights if you don't sign guys before FA starts (you have to re-sign them in the re-signing period before FA.) I believe this is incorrectly implemented, but it doesn't bother me that much.

As far as the gameplay, I can't say enough good things about it. Today, I was off from work and while Mrs. Eaglesfan was at work, I played 4 games in a row. I can't remember the last time I was having so much fun that I played 4 long games of a sports console game in a row. Each game had a different feel to it as well. Iverson torched Toronto in one game for 48 points (16 of 26 shooting 12 of 16 FT's) in which we won 104-88. Another game, I was really careless and tried to fastbreak too much. Stupid move against the Mavericks as they beat me 116-106. Iverson had 39 in that game. Then, the Cavs shut him down. They had size on Iverson all the time, and he only put up 7 points on 2 of 16 shooting. The Cavs won 97-80. I don't remember the score on the 4th game, but Iverson had 24 points of 10 of 28 shooting and 4 of 5 FT's. The gameplay is really excellent. I love how they handle fatigue and shooting percentages and fouls seem more realistic than any console basketball game I've ever played.



Edited to add: I'm surprised at nice little touches of realism. I just sent my scout to look at a player in Germany. Usually, they scout players in 5 to 7 days, but this trip is going to take 10 days. It seems to take longer for the further away a player is.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

I got a bit tired of running this test league in depth, but did do a few very fast seasons today. Basically, I've determined that big men peak between 29 and 31, they generally decline into relative obscurity by 36 or so. Of course, the more talented the player is, the less true this is. Duncan was still decent at 36. Bogut still put up 16 ppg at 36. Guards on the other hand peak 29-30 but don't seem to start declining in earnest until 33-35. Iverson was still fairly productive at 38 and McGrady still put up over 18 ppg at 38. Overall, I'm reasonably happy with the career paths and the simulated stats. My only gripe with the franchise mode is that you lose Bird rights if you don't sign guys before FA starts (you have to re-sign them in the re-signing period before FA.) I believe this is incorrectly implemented, but it doesn't bother me that much.

As far as the gameplay, I can't say enough good things about it. Today, I was off from work and while Mrs. Eaglesfan was at work, I played 4 games in a row. I can't remember the last time I was having so much fun that I played 4 long games of a sports console game in a row. Each game had a different feel to it as well. Iverson torched Toronto in one game for 48 points (16 of 26 shooting 12 of 16 FT's) in which we won 104-88. Another game, I was really careless and tried to fastbreak too much. Stupid move against the Mavericks as they beat me 116-106. Iverson had 39 in that game. Then, the Cavs shut him down. They had size on Iverson all the time, and he only put up 7 points on 2 of 16 shooting. The Cavs won 97-80. I don't remember the score on the 4th game, but Iverson had 24 points of 10 of 28 shooting and 4 of 5 FT's. The gameplay is really excellent. I love how they handle fatigue and shooting percentages and fouls seem more realistic than any console basketball game I've ever played.

Agreed on all fronts. I reviewed both Madden and NBA2K6, 2K6 got a 9, Madden a 7. Part of how I review a game is determined by how much I continue to play it up to the review point. Well, I love Madden and I enjoy playing it online. But NBA is the game I keep coming back to over and over and over again.

Some thoughts on other games:

Perfect Dark Zero - I've pretty much given up on the single player games. It's fun, but not great. Multiplayer? Terrific. I still play it a time or two a week in multiplayer over LIVE.

Call of Duty2 - Great game. Working my way through the single player campaign. Laggy servers, not nearly as fun multiplayer as PDZ

Project Gotham Racing - Not a big racing game fan, but I'm still playing this one both in solo and online modes. Great game, beautiful to look at and nice control scheme.

Madden - Love the game, but there just isn't any depth. How could they take away practice mode? Just amazes me.

NBA2K6 - I play this more per week than all of the other games combined. I haven't even started a serious franchise on it yet. Just playing exhibition games and going through the drills has been a blast. If the college game comes anywhere near this, I'm not sure I'll sleep for months. This is, without a doubt, the best of the launch titles as far as I'm concerned and has already moved its way up to one of the top three or four console titles I have ever played.

If you like basketball and you own a 360, you simply owe it to yourself to get this game.

What camera do you use Eagles? I've found I like the drive cam the best. Broadcast is just beautiful to look at though.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by TroyF

What camera do you use Eagles? I've found I like the drive cam the best. Broadcast is just beautiful to look at though.

I'm using the default camera, and haven't even messed with any of the others, but I might check that out now that you mention it. It sometimes is tough to run the break with it, depending upon where I'm coming from, but otherwise it generally serves me well. Although, it should be noted that I generally control perimeter guys (usually Iverson) on defense, and it doesn't work as well for interior defense. Fortunately, Dalembert does well with the CPU controlling him.

A few other quick thoughts:

- I love how the AI subs in their scrubs with blowouts and milks the clock much more. Very smart (although I would quibble that they should bring them in a bit sooner than they do. They just waited until 4 minutes left despite having a 22 point lead.)

- Injuries are really well done. Korver has a twisted ankle and Iguodala has a sprained wrist. The ankle actually affects his speed, and made him useless on defense and getting torched. Sure, he could stand and shoot, but he gave up more points than he scored (which is part of why I was blown out. I've learned my lesson.) Iguodala on the other hand, was still his usual fast self, but his shooting was definitely off. Add to that fact, that Iverson had a subpar shooting day, and it was a very long day.

I didn't mention this, but in that Cavs game, LeBron put up 42 on me. The AI generally does a very nice job of feeding their ball to their best players. James was practically impossible to stop as he hit some 3's, drove well, and passed well. I had to start double teaming him, and he picked me apart with great passes. Also, the Mavericks really got the ball to Nowitzki in my loss to them.

I haven't tried too many of the other launch games, although I see a commerical for Perfect Dark at the movies tonight, and it made me want to go out and rent that sometime. However, NBA is making me very glad that I have the system. I'm looking forward to trying DOA4 this week or next week as well. I can't wait to get College Hoops in January. I agree with you Troy, if it is even nearly as good as the NBA game, I'm going to be losing some sleep. Heck, I'm thinking about playing another NBA game now (and thereby losing a bit of sleep.)

Edited to add: The best part is that I'm playing on the 3rd of 5 difficulty levels, with no sliders. It is playing very well right out of the box which is a nice change

[sterlingice]

Well, Ebay is still flooded with X360's and idiots are still paying $200-$300 extra for them.

Meanwhile:
http://www.gamespot.com/news/6141064.html
Japanese Xbox 360 sales off to slow start




I just love the expression on the guy's face.

SI

[Raiders Army]

Went to the Palisades Mall today and Best Buy will be selling them tomorrow. There were three people waiting in line, but I wasn't about to wait 24 hours to buy one. Besides, I've already spent the money I was going to spend on it on a digital camera and the complete series of Friends. Ugh. I'll probably pick up the PS3 instead.

[sterlingice]

They had 6 or 7 already camping out in the snow and cold at about 6pm in Lawrence, KS. It was sad.

SI

[Raiders Army]

At least the guys at the Palisades Mall are waiting inside for Best Buy.

BTW, this is the only mall that I've been to that has a Best Buy, Circuit City, and Comp USA inside the mall. Probably the Mall of Americas has them...

[dervack]

Nope. They only have a Circuit City Express that is attached to the mall.

Hey Eaglesfan, if you want an easy win in 2K6, shoot me a PM sometime with a time you might be online, and we'll try and work something out. Same goes for anyone that has 2K6 also.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by dervack

Nope. They only have a Circuit City Express that is attached to the mall.

Hey Eaglesfan, if you want an easy win in 2K6, shoot me a PM sometime with a time you might be online, and we'll try and work something out. Same goes for anyone that has 2K6 also.

Since, Mrs. Eaglesfan isn't working nights anymore, it would probably have to be on the weekend, maybe tomorrow early afternoon if you wanted. I'm not sure that it would be an easy win for me, since I'm not that good at the game yet. I'm about .500 with my Sixers on the 3rd difficulty level (default settings.)

[Pumpy Tudors]

I'm thinking about stopping at the Greensburg Best Buy tomorrow morning to see if they have any XBox 360's left, but I'm not expecting any. I don't know if anyone's camping out, but I would imagine so. I'll post what happens.

[SackAttack]

Originally Posted by Pumpy Tudors

I'm thinking about stopping at the Greensburg Best Buy tomorrow morning to see if they have any XBox 360's left, but I'm not expecting any. I don't know if anyone's camping out, but I would imagine so. I'll post what happens.

There were about 75 people in line at the one in Santa Clarita (we had about 40 in stock, FWIW).

So, uhhh...I'd imagine your oil company of choice thanks you for your trip, as they'll be the only ones to benefit.

Good luck, though!

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

They had 6 or 7 already camping out in the snow and cold at about 6pm in Lawrence, KS. It was sad.

SI

Why?

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by TroyF

Why?

What's not to understand?

Is an extra month of lead time and bragging rights on your friends on a new gaming system worth 18 hours in below freezing temps and snow? These weren't even parents- they were college kids so it was almost certainly for personal use. But even if it was parents- I just don't think my kid is going to get whatever the hot toy is if it means doing really illogical things like waiting in line for 6 hours.

If it saves me 6 hours or more worth of money to wait in line for 6 hours, then great. If not, like in this case, why? Then again, I suppose if you "have to have it" and you don't want to spend the extra $200 on ebay, it's worth the $10 an hour to stand in line, I suppose.

I'm sorry, I've just never understood the release-date phenomenon. I went to one release movie. Once. The company was good as was the weather but it wasn't worth waiting in a line for 4 hours and some of the people had been waiting even longer.

Will I pick up a game when it comes out? Sure, there are some I want to play as soon as they come out. But a lot I'll wait the few months until they drop the price $20 or $30. That way I can buy twice as many games and play twice as many games. For instance, I held of on PoP: Sands of Time a couple of years ago until after Christmas and Ubi dropped the price so I got to pick up Beyond Good and Evil, too, which they also dropped the price on.

SI

[Raiders Army]

I did the cost/benefit analysis yesterday, and it wasn't worth waiting in line for 24 hours to save $200. A day off is worth more than that to me.

[Pumpy Tudors]

I didn't wake up until late (11:30am), and then I had to rush out of the house to drive into Pittsburgh for a concert, so I didn't even get to drive out to Best Buy. I didn't get home until 8pm, and I just made a halfhearted phone call to find out if they had any XBox 360's here in Greensburg. Well, of course they didn't. They probably didn't have any this morning either.

I guess it's hard for me to imagine that they were going to sell all 24 of them as soon as they opened. I say that because Greensburg isn't a big city. That's just the city boy in me talking. I know that there are lots of people here who want these systems because there are about 30 people ahead of me at the GameStop where I have a system reserved. Still, anything I see an event that involves a lot of people up here, I find it strange because I moved from a city with half a million people to a city with about 30,000.

My wife was kind enough to get me another present for Christmas so I can have a nice present under the tree, so it's OK that I won't get my 360 before then. Even better is that she's still buying me the 360, so I actually get two nice presents thanks to this XBox 360 waiting list deal.

[dubb93]

I believe I'm one of those idiots who waited outside a store for 12 hours to get one for personal use. I was willing to wait, but if I had any chance at all of getting one b/f christmas I was going to go for it. I can't wait to take it to mom and dad's for Christmas and plug it into the 52 inch HDTV and play some madden with the family(the main reason I wanted it b/f christmas at any cost).

It wasn't as bad as it would have seemed. Some other guy waiting brought a full size RV pulling a full size trailer. It was pretty much women and kids getting warm inside the trailer while the guys drank his beer and played texas holdem. In the morning the guy made all of us breakfast. We thanked him and he made it seem like it was no big deal.

I'd say out of the 12 hours total, I spent about an hour outside in the freezing weather, and by then I had enough beer in me to keep me warm.

[sterlingice]

Actually, if you have that kind of time with a guy with a full sized trailer, playing poker and getting breakfast, then that'd be pretty cool. Here it was just idiots sitting outside, trying to keep warm.

SI

[SackAttack]

Originally Posted by Pumpy Tudors

I didn't wake up until late (11:30am), and then I had to rush out of the house to drive into Pittsburgh for a concert, so I didn't even get to drive out to Best Buy. I didn't get home until 8pm, and I just made a halfhearted phone call to find out if they had any XBox 360's here in Greensburg. Well, of course they didn't. They probably didn't have any this morning either.

I guess it's hard for me to imagine that they were going to sell all 24 of them as soon as they opened. I say that because Greensburg isn't a big city. That's just the city boy in me talking. I know that there are lots of people here who want these systems because there are about 30 people ahead of me at the GameStop where I have a system reserved. Still, anything I see an event that involves a lot of people up here, I find it strange because I moved from a city with half a million people to a city with about 30,000.

My wife was kind enough to get me another present for Christmas so I can have a nice present under the tree, so it's OK that I won't get my 360 before then. Even better is that she's still buying me the 360, so I actually get two nice presents thanks to this XBox 360 waiting list deal.

All but around a dozen Best Buys had a minimum of 20. That said...24 isn't a lot. And even if there aren't 24 people out of 30k who want the system...there's likely four or five knuckleheads who want to make money off eBay on 'em.

[SackAttack]

Originally Posted by dubb93

I believe I'm one of those idiots who waited outside a store for 12 hours to get one for personal use. I was willing to wait, but if I had any chance at all of getting one b/f christmas I was going to go for it. I can't wait to take it to mom and dad's for Christmas and plug it into the 52 inch HDTV and play some madden with the family(the main reason I wanted it b/f christmas at any cost).

It wasn't as bad as it would have seemed. Some other guy waiting brought a full size RV pulling a full size trailer. It was pretty much women and kids getting warm inside the trailer while the guys drank his beer and played texas holdem. In the morning the guy made all of us breakfast. We thanked him and he made it seem like it was no big deal.

I'd say out of the 12 hours total, I spent about an hour outside in the freezing weather, and by then I had enough beer in me to keep me warm.

If there is such a thing as good karma, this guy laid in quite a store.

[INDalltheway]

OK, which headset would you guys recomend? Basically are there any better ones than the one that comes from the bundle?

[Pumpy Tudors]

No comment on the headset (sorry, INDalltheway, I just use the one that came with the system), but I got NBA 2K6 today. I only played half a game, but this is awesome. When College Hoops comes out in a couple of months, I'll get that too. I can see myself spending a TON of time on NBA 2K6, though. Thanks for the recommendations, guys, because now I see what I've been missing. It looks great on this 19" monitor that I'm playing on. The $40 VGA adapter for the XBox 360 has been well worth it.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Pumpy Tudors

No comment on the headset (sorry, INDalltheway, I just use the one that came with the system), but I got NBA 2K6 today. I only played half a game, but this is awesome. When College Hoops comes out in a couple of months, I'll get that too. I can see myself spending a TON of time on NBA 2K6, though. Thanks for the recommendations, guys, because now I see what I've been missing. It looks great on this 19" monitor that I'm playing on. The $40 VGA adapter for the XBox 360 has been well worth it.

I still play NBA 2k6 at least 3 or 4 games per week, and I'm into my second season. This is by far my favorite 360 game.

[Terps]

Final Fantasy XI beta disc is included in the new issue of OXM, which is out today.

Edit - http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/9992/U...-XI-Beta-Disc/

[Raiders Army]

I've been playing Madden every day, NBA 2k6 about every other day and PGR 3 the days I don't play NBA.

[dervack]

I wish I could get into Madden more. I've been playing Need for Speed lately, and have tried to get into PGR3 and NBA 2K6. Meanwhile, PDZ just sits there. I like the game, but hardly play it. Now with NCAA 2K6 coming next week, I may trade it in because the amount of time going to be spent on PDZ will be less and less. Grrr

[sooner333]

Any news on how to actually get one of these yet??? I've been waiting since release day (without a res. because I failed to get pumped for it in time). If it gets too much longer, I might have to just wait for PS3

[sterlingice]

Gamespot announced yesterday that they would have all their pre-orders filled by February. That's just sad.

SI

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by dervack

I wish I could get into Madden more. I've been playing Need for Speed lately, and have tried to get into PGR3 and NBA 2K6. Meanwhile, PDZ just sits there. I like the game, but hardly play it. Now with NCAA 2K6 coming next week, I may trade it in because the amount of time going to be spent on PDZ will be less and less. Grrr

I too, have PDZ sitting on the shelf collecting a lot of dust. I like the game, but mainly for multiplayer. The single player experience just isn't all that great for me.

I played a ton of NFS, then got to #1 on the black list and have shelved that one for a bit. I rarely play Madden.

The two games I've played by far and away the most are PGR and NBA2K6.

NBA2K6 is approaching legendary status with me. The game is just terrific to play. Call of Duty 2 takes care of my "killing" needs.

Really a drought going on now though. I love the 360 and most of the launch titles were fairly solid, but it's been a month+ with just a single new game coming out. I'm ready for the next wave.

[sabotai]

IF I can find one, I'll probably pick this up soon (if I can find one, doubt I'll go out of my way though). You guys keep hyping NBA 2K6 and Fight Night Round 3 comes out in a month and that looks incredible.

[Desnudo]

So how much of an upgrade is this over the previous generation? I played CoD 2 in the store and the graphics looked tight, but is it really that much better than the old systems?

[Desnudo]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

Well, Ebay is still flooded with X360's and idiots are still paying $200-$300 extra for them.

Meanwhile:
http://www.gamespot.com/news/6141064.html
Japanese Xbox 360 sales off to slow start




I just love the expression on the guy's face.

SI

Why is the gaijin taking a photo of that cash register?

[SackAttack]

Originally Posted by sabotai

IF I can find one, I'll probably pick this up soon (if I can find one, doubt I'll go out of my way though). You guys keep hyping NBA 2K6 and Fight Night Round 3 comes out in a month and that looks incredible.

FNR3 demo is already on Live Marketplace. Full Auto gets the same treatment in a week. I'm really encouraged by that, and I hope game developers maintain the practice. The ability to freely try stuff out early like that can only help sales, if the game is worth playing.

[Philliesfan980]

If anyone is interested in getting a 360 without using the Ebay method, try this little program.

hxxp://untitlednet.com/

It works great, I fired it up the other day, and two days later, one of my local stores had the 360, premimum nonetheless. I was a little bit skeptical at first, but I called before I left, and my local best buy worker said "Yeah, we have them, we just got them this morning, nobody knows about it though".

[Pumpy Tudors]

Originally Posted by dervack

Now with NCAA 2K6 coming next week, I may trade it in because the amount of time going to be spent on PDZ will be less and less. Grrr

College Hoops 2K6 has been pushed back to February, or has it moved from February back to January?