Author Archive | Jared Newman

Oh, Just Tell Us the Xbox 360 Failure Rate Already!

Posted by Jared Newman on September 2, 2009 at 5:11 pm

Another day, another stab at the Xbox 360’s failure rate.

This time, the estimate comes from Square Trade (PDF), a third-party electronics warranty company. Based on customer reports, the company says Microsoft’s game console has a 23.7 percent chance of dying within two years of purchase. Half the errors reported to Square Trade involved the infamous Red Ring of Death.

Overall, the Xbox 360’s one in four chance of failure makes it far and away the most unreliable console on the market. By comparison, 10 percent of Playstation 3s were defective, and 2.7 percent of Wiis needed repair.

SquareTrade is the same company that in February 2008 said the Xbox 360 has a 16.4 percent failure rate, and we’ve seen other estimaes all over the map. In 2007, GamePro talked to some EB Games and Best Buy employees, who generally estimated that a third of all Xbox 360s had to be sent back for repair. More recently, Game Informer conducted a poll of readers, 54.2 percent of whom said they’ve dealt with an Xbox 360 hardware failure.

The funny thing is, you tend to be skeptical of such high estimates until the Red Ring of Death happens to you. My Xbox 360 kicked the bucket a few weeks ago, and suddenly I started realizing how many friends have gone through the same thing. If someone told me that 99 percent of Xbox 360s were bound to die within 10 years of ownership, I’d be skeptical of the claim, but not overly surprised if it turned out to be true.

Which is why I’d like Microsoft to come clean. Let’s clear the air of all these wildly speculative failure rate estimates and get some precise numbers and facts in order. If I treat my console right, can I expect it to last forever? If not, how long is it before every press of the power button is a crapshoot? And what are the odds that the Xbox 360 will outlast the three-year warranty that comes with every new console purchase?

Of course, I’d be foolish to expect such transparency out of the blue, but I doubt the truth could be much worse than third-party guesstimates and anecdotes. Or is it?

10 comments

Why Shadow Complex’s Impressive Sales Matter

Posted by Jared Newman on September 1, 2009 at 7:51 pm

shadow.complex During the first week after Microsoft released Shadow Complex for the Xbox 360, something extraordinary happened: Over 200,000 people plunked down $20 $15 to download the game.

That makes Shadow Complex — an exploration-themed shooter in the same vein as the classic Metroid — the most downloaded single-player Xbox Live Arcade game to date. Compared to boxed retail games, 200,000 sales for a downloadable game isn’t too shabby, either.

There are a few reasons why this is important news. Foremost, at $20 $15, Shadow Complex is expensive for an Xbox Live Arcade game. Prices for these downloadable games have been trending upwards lately, not because Microsoft is gouging its customers, but because the games themselves are becoming more substantial. To put it another way, they’re worth the money you pay for them, and the big numbers for Shadow Complex prove that this trend is worthwhile.

Shadow Complex is also a bigger game, in megabytes, than its peers. For a long time, Microsoft restricted the size of Xbox Live Arcade games to 50 MB. This allowed all games to fit on a memory card so Xbox 360 owners who didn’t buy a hard drive could play along, but it put constraints on game development. Since then, Microsoft has slowly let the size of Xbox Live Arcade games creep upwards. Shadow Complex measures 835 MB, and its strong sales show that Xbox Live Arcade games don’t necessarily need to hold back in file size to be successful.

Finally, Shadow Complex is a good, long-lasting game that returns to the 2-D platforming style of the NES and SNES era. It’s not retro, per se, nor is it a cash-in on an old franchise or a casual game with Wii Sports-like appeal, but it nonetheless caught the interest of Xbox 360 owners. Marketing and hype certainly helped, but so did uniformly positive reviews.

With the cost of big-budget game development spiraling upwards, the games industry is practically killing itself. Smaller, downloadable games could be the way out, provided they’re substantial enough to satisfy hungrier gamers. With all this in mind, we should be expecting and hoping for more games like Shadow Complex.

10 comments

Okay, Sony, Now You’re Definitely Competing With the iPhone

Posted by Jared Newman on August 31, 2009 at 4:40 pm

Remember in March, when Sony Senior Marketing Vice President Peter Dille dismissed the iPhone? “The iPhone games and apps are largely diversionary, whereas we’re a gaming company and we make games for people who want to carry a gaming device and play a game that offers a satisfying 20+ hours of gameplay,” he said in an interview with GameDaily.

I’d love to hear what Dille thinks now that Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars is coming to the iPhone. The game, originally released for Nintendo DS in March, was announced for Sony’s PSP in June and will arrive on October 20. The iPhone version is scheduled for release some time this fall, 1UP reports.

This is the inverse of Sony’s recent announcement of PSP Minis, a set of small-scale, inexpensive games targeted at the upcoming PSP Go. While that move represented an attack on the iPhone’s cheap gaming marketplace (though Sony wouldn’t admit it), GTA’s migration to the iPhone is a counter-assault on the PSP’s 20-hour experience.

The announcement partly suggests that game developers and publishers are getting confident in the iPhone as a serious gaming platform. More importantly, if the iPhone version of GTA proves equal to its PSP and Nintendo DS counterparts, it opens the door for more ports of dedicated handheld console games.

I’m not simply talking about a paring down of big franchise games, such as Assassin’s Creed and Metal Gear Solid, because that’s already happening. What I’m wondering is, how long will it be before the same handheld video game is simultaneously announced and released for Nintendo DS, PSP and iPhone?

And if that happens, how long will it be before Sony finally acknowledges that there’s a third enemy in its midst?

6 comments

RROD Explained: You Play Too Much

Posted by Jared Newman on August 31, 2009 at 2:31 pm

Microsoft’s never been particularly forthcoming about the Xbox 360’s hardware issues. The company said earlier this year that the worst troubles are behind us, only to see new problems spring up. We’ve never heard an official failure rate (estimates vary, wildly), and after all this time, there’s no way to tell whether a working console is destined to get the dreaded Red Ring of Death.

So Eurogamer did the logical thing and asked a third-party console repairman, and learned that a major problem in today’s console failures is “cumulative damage.” In other words, the longer you own and play a console, the more likely it is to die.

Sony fanboys shouldn’t be laughing: Engineer Darren Thickbroom of Colchester Computers told Eurogamer that he’s seeing more and more Playstation 3 consoles come in for the so-called “Yellow Line of Doom.” Sure, Thickbroom is just one engineer, but his analysis does check out with my own Xbox 360 experience. After almost three years of use, my console suddenly and inexplicably stopped working a couple weeks ago, flashing the three red lights I’d heard and written so much about.

Of course, you can’t blame the console owner for playing the console. What’s really problematic, according to Thickbroom, is the general design of the latest machines, which pack powerful hardware into a tiny container. “Everything’s combined into such a small space, the heatsinks on the GPU are relatively small, there’s a lot of heat to dissipate and it can’t do it,” he said. Over time, the trapped heat warps the console’s motherboard, eventually hitting a breaking point.

Maybe instead of wishing for ultrathin consoles, we should by lobbying for the Playstation 3 Big and the Xbox 360 Fat. I’d rather have a fully-functional colossus in my entertainment center than a slim and sexy brick.

4 comments

Facebook and Twitter Will Cost Money on Xbox 360

Posted by Jared Newman on August 28, 2009 at 3:43 pm

One of the nice things about Facebook and Twitter is that they’re free to use, but won’t really be the case on the Xbox 360.

Microsoft confirmed to G4 that an Xbox Live Gold subscription will be required to use either service, at least beyond a “free trial period.” A Gold subscription costs $50 per year, and also includes online play, access to Netflix streaming and other perks.

I understand what Microsoft is trying to do here. Xbox Live, traditionally, has been a venue for fiercely competitive online play. Despite most games’ ability to match players based on skill, it can be difficult for a casual player to find fair competition. I consider myself fairly skilled at video games, but I’ve been beaten down countless times in Street Fighter IV, Gears of War and Fight Night Round 4.

That’s not a bad thing, except it doesn’t appeal to the so-called casual crowd that Microsoft will be trying to attract in the years ahead. Slowly, we see that Microsoft is trying to build a compelling case for Xbox Live Gold even if you’re not an online gamer. Aside from Twitter, Facebook and Netflix, Gold subscribers will soon be able to stream music using Last.fm and play in the 1 vs. 100 online quiz show (currently in open beta).

But unlike those other services, Facebook and Twitter aren’t worth paying for. Microsoft can talk all it wants about how the social networking is “seamlessly integrated” into the console, but I don’t think they’ll gain many converts with a free trial.

A better solution might be to offer “Lite” versions of Facebook and Twitter. We know that the services will include advanced features, such as the ability to upload game screenshots into your Facebook profile, so maybe Microsoft should withhold those features for Xbox Live Silver members. That way, people could slowly become persuaded of Xbox Live’s overall value, instead of being forced to make a decision when their trial period runs out.

11 comments

5 Reasons to Buy the Xbox 360 Pro, Not the Elite

Posted by Jared Newman on August 27, 2009 at 10:30 am

As expected, Microsoft finally revealed that it will cut the price of the Xbox 360 Elite tomorrow from $400 to $300.

And as expected, the mid-range Xbox 360 Pro will be discontinued, but it will be sold for just $250 while supplies last. If you have any desire to buy Microsoft’s game console, you should jump on that deal right now. Don’t even think about buying the Elite instead. Here’s why:

The Pro includes an HD cable: In announcing the Elite’s price cut, Microsoft conveniently forgot to mention that it also scratched high definition cables from the package (you can see the omission in official photos). While the Elite used to include an HDMI cable, and the Pro included Component HD cables, the new Elite comes with AV cables only.

The Pro might score you a free controller: Engadget reportedly spotted a Target ad for Sunday, August 30, that says you get a free Xbox 360 controller when you purchase the Pro model. That’s a $50 value, and you’ll definitely want two controllers unless you only play video games alone. I’d wait for the weekend to see if this get confirmed, though.

You don’t need the Elite’s 120 GB hard drive: The console’s streaming media capabilities (through a networked PC, or through Netflix) practically eliminate the need to store music and movies on the hard drive. That leaves saved game files, which are quite small, and downloaded games. The largest Xbox Live Arcade download to date, Shadow Complex, is 835 MB, so you’re unlikely to fill a 60 GB hard drive any time soon. I have the old 20 GB Xbox 360, and I’ve filled about half of it.

Black is so Sony: Your preference may vary, but I think the Elite’s black casing is a little too hardcore, especially for a console that’ll soon be trying to reach out to the casual crowd. I don’t hear anything about Microsoft offering a white Xbox 360 Elite, which means the white casing is only available in the nearly-useless Xbox 360 Arcade.

You need the extra money for games: If you take the $300 Xbox 360 Elite, throw in a component cable ($40) and a wireless controller ($50), you’re practically back at the Elite’s old price point. Add a game or two and the bill exceeds $500. Save yourself the $140 on the Pro and go buy a few games so you can actually play the console when you get home.

[techno-price id=”746174210″]

16 comments

Keep Your Old PS3, and Best Buy May Reward You

Posted by Jared Newman on August 26, 2009 at 4:06 pm

With every upgraded product launch, this is bound to happen: A few unlucky and ill-informed customers buy the old product, just before the upgrade is revealed and released. They complain, hoping to exchange their outdated product for the latest one.

If this happened to you with the Playstation 3 Slim (unlikely if you’re a regular around here), Best Buy may have an offer for you. A leaked company memo, acquired by Kotaku, says stores can offer a free game and a price match to anyone who takes their beef to customer service.

The games on offer — Infamous, MLB 09: The Show and Killzone 2 — aren’t bad, either. Add in the $100 credit you’d get back to reflect the Slim’s price cut, and you’ve got an enticing reason not to upgrade.

This, of course, isn’t a selfless maneuver by Best Buy. Though there’s no official date, the PS3 Slim’s launch is imminent. Amazon has the console shipping on Friday, and some stores around the United States have started selling it already. With no price difference at all between the old and new models, the original Playstation 3 will begin to look like a paperweight to prospective buyers.

I’ve heard that you can still pick up the old Playstation 3 bundle, with LittleBigPlanet and the film Wall-E on Blu-ray, for the new price of $300, but I don’t expect that deal to last, as Best Buy doesn’t have the bundle on its Web site any more. Even so, Best Buy does not want those old units lingering on store shelves, and it certainly doesn’t want to be restocking old consoles that were already sold.

So if you’re a late buyer of the Playstation 3 Fat, speak up! If not, keep an eye on those old models, just in case any more deals come about.

5 comments

In the Future, Video Games Play Themselves

Posted by Jared Newman on August 25, 2009 at 4:19 pm

Back in the day, video games had God Mode. You’d enter a cheat code, and suddenly your video game avatar was impervious to damage. Suddenly, the most difficult challenges were a walk in the park.

The upcoming button masher Bayonetta is bringing back this cheat in a more sophisticated way. The game’s “Automatic” mode, available to people playing on “Easy” or “Very Easy,” turns most of the controls over to the computer. Players need only tap the punch button to successfully navigate a level, while the computer targets enemies and times the protagonist’s jumps.

I wouldn’t call auto-play a trend yet, but Nintendo confirmed a similar feature in New Super Mario Bros. Wii, due out in November. By selecting “Demo Mode,” players can watch the computer coast to victory when facing a tough spot. Nintendo reportedly plans to use this feature in future games as well.

But Nintendo’s feature is intended, at least partially, for young players. Bayonetta, on the other hand, is rated M for Mature, so the “Automatic” mode is essentially a cop-out for grown-ups who are really, really bad at video games.

My problem with this — as with the God Modes of yesteryear — isn’t simply that it’s tantamount to cheating, but that it robs people of a fundamental gaming experience. No matter your skill level, everyone has moments of frustration in video games, but when the challenge is legitimate, it’s beautiful. Through repeated failure, you begin to see opportunities. Then, it’s a matter of perseverance, correcting your mistakes until you’ve mastered the challenge in its entirety.

The satisfaction that results is not the same as cruising through the game’s easier segments and leaving the tricky stuff up to an auto-pilot.

4 comments

Xbox 360 Slim? How About Xbox 360 Natal?

Posted by Jared Newman on August 24, 2009 at 4:04 pm

xbox360_slim_mockup With the Playstation 3 looking slimmer and cheaper than ever, all eyes are on Microsoft to retaliate. Rather than speculate on its own, IndustryGamers polled some of gaming’s crystal ball-holding analysts to find out what they thought.

The question: Do you think Microsoft will release an Xbox 360 Slim?

The response was mixed, with a few strong “yays” and “nays” on each side. That’s to be expected, but what surprised me was how only one analyst, Broadpoint AmTech’s Ben Schachter, flat-out predicted a redesign to complement the upcoming “Project Natal” motion-sensing camera. I think that’s the most likely scenario of all.

Earlier this year, it was rumored that Microsoft would do this, and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer goofed up and said as much. The PR backlash that followed left a lot of mixed messages — designed, I think, to squash the notion that Natal wouldn’t work on existing Xbox 360s — but ultimately a redesign wasn’t left off the table.

It doesn’t make sense for Microsoft to redesign its console in the near future, because it would smack of copying Sony. But it does make sense for Microsoft to reshape the Xbox 360 into something less hulky when Project Natal comes around. After all, the casual, non-gamer demographic is what Microsoft is going for with Project Natal, and a slimmer console would look less intimidating in the average living room.

I’ll admit that my opinion is tinged by the mock-ups that started floating around the Internet (pictured above) long before this story came to light. Sure, it’s totally fake just a rebranded PS2, but it kind of looks like the Wii, and I wouldn’t be surprised if “Wii-esque” is the strategy Microsoft adopts if it does plan an Xbox 360 Slim.

Then again, I don’t own a crystal ball.

8 comments

World of Warcraft, The Magazine: What an Idea!

Posted by Jared Newman on August 20, 2009 at 6:03 pm

You know a video game is popular when it spawns its own magazine.

Such is the case with World of Warcraft: The Magazine, debuting this weekend at the BlizzCon gaming convention in Anaheim, Calif. The quarterly publication has the blessing of publisher Blizzard, and it’ll be run by former Official Xbox Magazine Senior Editor Dan Amrich. Instead of being ad-supported, the magazine will subsist on straight sales, with $39.95 getting you a yearly subscription.

Ars Technica’s Ben Kuchera has a pretty good rundown of the reasons and roadblocks for the magazine, including the token “print is dead” disclaimer. But I actually think World of Warcraft: The Magazine has a decent chance of surviving.

It’s at least got a better shot than than another upcoming pring gaming mag, Electronic Gaming Monthly. If you missed that news, EGM will relaunch under new ownership after shuttering last January. While both magazines will ride on the strength of their respective brands, World of Warcraft: The Magazine has a distinct, dedicated audience, while the general gaming crowd sought by EGM is pretty fickle. We’re likely to go anywhere for our information, provided that it’s accurate and timely. Print magazines try to argue that they provide deeper commentary and perspective, but there’s plenty of that online as well.

WoW: The Magazine’s strategy is a classic one: Fill the niche market. It’s doing the same thing as platform-specific gaming mags, like Official Xbox Magazine, but it’s even more targeted. If the magazine can nail down the interviews, profiles and insight that’s being promised, it’s got a solid product no one else has.

Indeed, Wow: The Magazine will face the same struggles as other print publications, but WoW fans could use a reason to take their eyes off the screen anyhow, and this way they don’t even have to disengage with the game.

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