Xbox 360

[HaRuMaN]

Well my brother (who's in Iraq) just sent me one as a late Christmas present.  It's the version that comes with the hard drive.  He also sent me a game, F.E.A.R. that's pretty damn cool...

My question is, what are some other good games for the Xbox 360, and is Xbox Live Arcade worth getting a subscription to Xbox Live?

[somunny]

My question is, what are some other good games for the Xbox 360, and is Xbox Live Arcade worth getting a subscription to Xbox Live?

Last question first:  IMO, yes, it's completely worth it.  I think XBLA has a lot to offer both in classic re-releases and original content.  Not to mention that having an XBL subscription allows easy access to current demos (and online gaming, natch). 

Good games?  Naturally this is all my personal opinion but Gears of War and Oblivion swallowed a lot of my time and are well worth the cash.  COD2 & 3 are fun too if you like FPS's   I'm playing Tiger Woods '07, but sports games may not be your thing.

One question for you?  What kind of display will you have it connected to?

[More Cowbell]

I can't stop playing Gears of War long enough to really give another game a try for very long. I have played Tiger Woods 07 and it is pretty good (I actually like the PS2 version better) and Dead Rising is pretty cool. My kids love Tony Hawk Project 8.

[somunny]

Yeah, I missed the boat on Dead Rising.  I'd like to pick it up but, like you said Cowbell, you have to put down one game long enough to start another. 

[HaRuMaN]

Unfortunately, I only have it hooked to a regular TV...  a high def TV is not in my future until maybe July.  Some of the text on F.E.A.R. was kinda small and hard to read for me.  The game looks good on the regular TV but I know I am missing the full potential right now.

Lets see... games I like...  FPS, RPG, racing games, and fighters.

[ChadTower]

Dude, your brother in Iraq sent you a 360? 

Send that thing to him!

[HaRuMaN]

He's there as a civilian making A LOT of money, tax free no less.  Also, he already has a 2 modded Xboxes there with him, among other things.

[ChadTower]

Ah, yes, then nevermind if he's a contractor.

[pointdablame]

Gears of war is fantastic... you must get it now.  I'll also second Call of Duty 2 and 3.  I really enjoy 99 Nights as well for a few minutes of mindless destruction.  If you've ever played Dynasty Warriors, 99 Nights is essentially DW with more ppl on screen.

Blazing Angels is also pretty fun.  I hear that new game Crackdown is very good as well, but I haven't had a chance to play it yet.

[SirPoonga]

You do not need a live subscription to get the demos and XBLA titles.  You only need a live subscription to play multiplayer and get things earlier than silver accounts.  There's a bunch of demos for you to try out.

I am currently playing Rainbow Six Vegas and Battlestations Midway.  I also regularly play NHL 07 and Tiger Woods.  I am looking forward to Guitar Hero 2, Forza2, Ghost Recon 2, and possible Crackdown.

There's a couple of good titles that are cheap(er) now like Burnout Revenge.

As for XBLA I like Assault Heros, Geometry Wars, and Heavy Weapon.  There's a bunch of good games coming for XBLA including Worms

[somunny]

You do not need a live subscription to get the demos and XBLA titles.  You only need a live subscription to play multiplayer and get things earlier than silver accounts. 

I did not know that. 

[SirPoonga]

You do not need a live subscription to get the demos and XBLA titles.  You only need a live subscription to play multiplayer and get things earlier than silver accounts. 

I did not know that. 

Anything that you can pay for (like XBLA, themes, pics) you do not need the gold service.

Though Live is worth it as most game's replay value is in multiplayer.

There are some demos no longer available, like Table Tennis   I think they realized people were keeping the demo and not getting the full game as it wasn't that much different than the full game.  You just could choose your character.

[dudebozo]

i recently got my 360 after the christmas rush.  i'm pretty dang impressed with it.  like people have said, gears of war is pretty awesome.  it's very pretty in HD.  i kind of like getting my 360 right now cause you can pick up some great deals on games that were released a little while ago.  i think someone mentioned about gh 2 coming out soon.  it should be interesting how they do that game, if they'll do songs that you can buy online and stuff.  but then again,  the word on the street is that's when gh 80's edition is coming out for the ps2.  decisions decisions decisions.

while we are on this 360 talk, can the 360 run in 1080p?  i'm kind of a bozo about this, but is it a hardware thing for them to go to 1080p, or could ms release a patch to upgrade the system to 1080p?

[boykster]

You mean you can use an xbox360 for something OTHER than Gears of War online multiplayer!?

MARKRVP LIED TO ME!!! 

Seriously, if you enjoy online squad based combat games, GoW multiplayer is very addicting.  I finished act1 of the single player campaign, then started playing online and I haven't even fired up the single player mode since. 

I do have a few other titles, but non have really gotten much play, but I secretly find that Rockstar Table Tennis is a pretty cool game....as is Burnout Revenge.....

[SirPoonga]

while we are on this 360 talk, can the 360 run in 1080p?  i'm kind of a bozo about this, but is it a hardware thing for them to go to 1080p, or could ms release a patch to upgrade the system to 1080p?

Yes.  I heard it can do 1080p over component, but I am not sure about that.  Otherwise with what I know you can only do 1080p with a vga cable.  Also you need the latest dashboard update (from fall).  Also many tv's 1080p decoder is only on the circuit with the hdmi port.

However, it isn't worth it.  Most developers, even for the PS3, are focused on 720p.  1080p takes alot of power so intensive games might not have the power for anything else.  Battlestations is the only game I have that supports 1080p on the 360.

[HaRuMaN]

Is there a way to connect the 360 to a LCD computer monitor?  I have a 19 inch one with DVI imputs, I'm assuming games would look better on it than on my standard TV.

[Zeosstud]

If you have a woman in your life, get Zuma.  Its the game they seem to latch onto the easiest.  Problems arise however when they start to get good and a game lasts like 2 freaking hours +  My wife got 470,000 or so yesterday and took over the tv and the 360 for way to long :-)  I enjoyed playing Robotron, Galaga and Ms Pac man on the wireless arcade controller I built for my 360 last night.  Gotta love the classics.

Zeosstud