XBox 360 Rally

Ah, the digital age. Soon, I won’t even have to stop playing games in order to go out to my mailbox for a new arrival from Gamefly. No, seriously, I don’t play games that much — I have a life, thank you — but Xbox Live is going to make it easier for us lazy gamers to get our crack, I mean, video game experiences.

Microsoft is slowly letting the cat out the bag about the upcoming Games on Demand service through Xbox Live. I try Microsoft’s press archive and nada. I guess the announcement came after the E3 all-press conference at a lunch for VIPs and the elite press corps. But I ran across an interview on Eurogamer with John Schappert, who is the exec in charge of Live, and he gives us a bit more detail as to what this whole on-demand service will be.

Shappert: “Right now the plan is to have classic titles. We’re talking about 30 titles at launch - I think we mentioned BioShock, Mass Effect, Sonic, Civilization Revolution. Some of these titles are great titles, but retail shelf space is at a premium, and not everything manages to stay at retail for as long as consumers would still like to buy it, and we generally think there’s a lot of legs left on the 360 - we think we’re only halfway through our cycle - so we want to pick up some of these older, great games you can’t buy at retail.” –Eurogamer

So, part of me is happy about this new service. It may be a nice way of picking up older titles (if you have yet to play them or don’t already own them). But my big question is how will the Xbox’s hard drive handle more than a few games? Maybe Microsoft could also offer some additional storage space, maybe on Xbox Live with some extra server space? I’m sure they will charge us for the off-site storage, but would it be cheaper than buying additional hard drive space? Maybe. I mean, I hope I don’t have to buy a new Xbox in order to accommodate full games on the darn thing.

And even though I am interested in the Games on Demand Xbox Live Service, I am really not sure how practical or useful it will be over time. Especially if I am strapped for memory, I may be inclined to delete a game or two, and if that were to be the case, perhaps I would be better off buying the disk for easy removal and easy “come back to later”.

Furthermore, this whole attitude that older games are not available to buy through retailers and thus that is the reason that the service will be offering only the older games is a little out of whack. There are plenty of copies of anything you would want out there, and I can guess those copies would be cheaper than a Microsoft product (call me crazy). But if you don’t like hunting down an older game, then perhaps the GOD (ha ha ha) service would be good for you. However, then there is the whole “how many older games and which ones would be offered” problem.

So, I guess, in conclusion (as if this were a coherent essay), the announced GOD for Xbox Live may be a good thing, or may be like the Netflix thing and rather redundant. We shall see…

Xbox, Microsoft, Xbox Live, Xbox 360, E3, games on demand, video games

Aw, too bad that PS3 users will have to wait until next week (February 5th, I believe) to get a taste of the highly-anticipated and long-awaited (RE5’s maker, Capcom, announced the game back in 2005) Resident Evil 5. But starting today, Xbox Live Gold Members can download the demo. Xbox Silver members can start downloading it Thursday.

Ah, Resident Evil, a pinnacle in survival-horror. Here’s the pretty sweet trailer to the fifth installment in the series.

Purportedly, there are three levels in the demo, and for Gold members, there is also a 2 person co-op option. New characters, new weapons, new environments, but it is a sequel that takes place ten years after the first Resident Evil.

The biohazard threat has not ended. Just when it seemed that the menace of Resident Evil had been destroyed, along comes a new terror to send shivers down players’ spines. Returning hero Chris Redfield heads to Africa where the latest bioterrorism threat is literally transforming the people and animals of the city into mindless, maddened creatures. Take on the challenge of discovering the truth behind this evil plot. In Resident Evil 5, you will learn to fear the daylight as much as you have feared the shadows before. –Xbox website

I am not a gold member, even though I do have a free month or three months that I got in return for experiencing the heartbreak and boredom of the Red Ring of Death, but still, I don’t feel like upgrading my membership just for a demo that I can get in three days. Besides, I’m deep in the bowels of the USG Ishimura in Dead Space right now.

Resident Evil 5 is so highly-anticipated and such a big deal that a Resident Evil bundle for the Xbox 360 is being packaged for our consumptive pleasure.

Does that mean I have to trade in my Simpsons Xbox 360?

Resident Evil is set to hit stores in the US March 13. Japan gets it first.

Resident Evil 5, Resident Evil, video game, survival horror, Capcom, Xbox 360, Xbox Live, Gold, Silver, PS3, demo, downloads

The Def Leppard Track Pack for Guitar Hero III is now LIVE, ladies and gentlemen. In addition to live recordings of both “Nine Lives” and “Photograph”, you’ll get the studio recording of “Rock of Ages”, all of which are performed by Def Leppard… well… a cover band. They’re respectable covers, but if this is the actual Leppard, then I’m ashamed by just how far they’ve fallen. It sounds almost nothing like classic Leppard.

So how much will these tracks set you back? About 500 MS Points.

[Major Nelson]

I just wanted an excuse to use the above picture. XKCD is the best. Still, there is new songs to download for you, not my particular taste, but maybe something for you:

“Attack” - 30 Seconds To Mars (from 2005’s A Beautiful Lie)
“The Kill” - 30 Seconds To Mars (from 2005’s A Beautiful Lie)
“Dirty Little Secret” - All-American Rejects (from 2005’s Move Along)
“Move Along” - All-American Rejects (from 2005’s Move Along)
“Song With A Mission” - The Sounds (from 2006’s Dying To Say This To
You)

See after the break for the full break down from MajorNelson with cost and legal info:

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Hey folks, figured I would pop my head in to share something as a new writer for the site here is being figured out (Applications still being accepted!). I love how to this day, KoToR 3 talk still persists and some peoples Xbox 360’s are being wrapped in towels, awesome.

Onto the news, the Halo 3 map pack is out. With it came the news that it will be free at some point. Awesome. Unlike Lost Planet, they never tell you that the things you buy would eventually be free!!! Ahem..apologies for that outburst, that is buyers remorse talking. Well if you want to buy now, it actually seems like a pretty decent set of maps. Want a little preview of them before buying ? Of course you do, so here is the great guys at Red vs Blue showing off the new DLC:

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If you live in the United Kingdom, you have reason to rejoice as Microsoft has announced that the Xbox LIVE Video Marketplace, which has allowed manu of us stateside to download some of our favorite films for God only knows how long, will finally be available to UK 360 owners on December 11th. Standard Definition films will run UK owners roughly 250 points, and 380 points for High Definition.

The list of films (which you can see in full after the break) includes the likes of 300, Training Day, and Oceans Eleven. Unfortunately, along with the good you have to take the bad, such as Swordfish and Superman III. But hey, you’re finally getting the Video Marketplace so be happy.

…does England love George Clooney or something? Ocean’s Eleven, The Perfect Storm, Three Kings? Good Lord…

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Microsoft is fighting fire with fire it seems, as the Official Xbox Magazine is reporting that Xbox 360 owners will be able to download original Xbox titles come December 2nd. The service will be part of the Fall Dashboard Update, and will feature six titles available from the start, each on sale for 1200 MS Points ($15 USD). What games are for grabs, you ask?

Halo

Fable

Burnout 3

Fahrenieit

Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge

Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex

To say this is awesome is a slight understatement. With a service like this, Microsoft could very well rival Nintendo’s Virtual Console service.

[Eurogamer]

Microsoft, Xbox 360, Halo, Fable, Burnout, Crash Bandicoot, Fahrenheit

Hi, boys and girls. It’s just me, your friendly neighborhood JW, here to remind you all that we’re currently looking for people to replace us here at Xbox 360 Rally. All you have to do is go HERE, fill out the form, and wait to hear back. It’s really not that hard.

So, get to it already — so Paco and I can get to the NEW site!

Unlike the very terrible terrible (terrible) demo of Crash Bandicoot’s “Crash of the Titans” (that was released on the holy Halo 3’s day of birth), two very good demo’s have hit the marketplace today, both hitting opposite sides of the gaming spectrum so you will probably be at least downloading one of the two. Let me once again let you know, Crash of the Titans is horrible, the graphics, the game play (still staying away from true 3D gaming, fools!), just don’t waste your time at all unless you have a child under the age of 10 or so (seriously).

A game I have been waiting for, Jericho however, is going to be making me turn on my 360 in literally a few minutes so I can try any part of this (click for some video goodness). The demo for this game weighs in at 885.17mb.

NHL2K8 demo is out, I am still on my ban of 2KSports games (link), however, so you know, the demo is here and is just over a gig. Be happy 2K isn’t charging for this demo (those bastards).
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Clive Barker, Jericho, NHL 2K8, 2KSports, Demo, Crash Bandicoot, Codemasters, Xbox Live Marketplace, Xbox 360

Wow, I Could have about a million things to say on this, or I could just let the image to the right do the talking by just throwing a big “Stupid” stamp on Crash Bandicoot’s forehead. I will try and meet somewhere in between. Crash Bandicoot, what I remember as the mascot of sorts back when it was Nintendo (N64 with Mario of course) vs Sega (Saturn with Sonic) vs Sony (PS1 with Crash), it was a mildly fun platform type game. Though it was 3D, it was no true Mario 64 3D game.. but I digress, I am not here to crash the Titan’s party, so I won’t insult Crash himself. Just the fact that whoever at *quickly Googles whoever publishes Crash*… whoever at Sierra Entertainment, must not keep up to date with what is going on in the video game world. Halo 3 just got released today! C’mon, is this really the time to release a demo!?! I mean, I wish the best for the game, but in a couple of months when that new Halo smell wears off, will the Crash demo still be listed on the Live Marketplace in the “New Demo” section, where I assure you that will be the only place people will even have heard that this game is coming out, let alone they have a chance to play some of it (other than us gamers who keep up with this sort of thing, but even us will easily forget about it, who out there is a true Crash fan?! Exactly!).

Sorry, anyways, I will stop short on a rant, I need sleep, you see, I have been playing Halo 3 for a little over 10 hours (with one food break). Haven’t even touched the campaign, all multiplayer for me baby! But hey, that will be coming up in my next post, where I will bring you a great picture of the midnight madness that occurred when I had to secure not one, but two copies of Halo 3, without pre-orders (my little brother calls me and said he needed a copy too, he had school today, ma won’t let him stay up so I have to be the good big brother and help, again though, I digress, I am tired). What were we talking about again? Oh yeah, this is Crash of the Titans time to shine, demo out, download it, only 530.76MB so you shouldn’t have to delete anything off your hard drive if you want to try it out.
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Crash Bandicoot, Sierra Entertainment, Radical Entertainment, Xbox 360, Demo, Mascot, Crash of the Titans, Halo 3 Halo 3 Halo 3

As the time of Halo 3 draws near and there is some sort of news about the game every.. eh.. 20 minutes or so, comes the biggest news of them all…. Halo 3 will have DLC!! This comes from a recent sit down with Next-Gen, having Jonty Barnes and Jay Weinland representing Bungie. When asked about what will happen after Halo 3 is actually released, their reply was:

JW: Although we haven’t announced details, we have talked about downloadable content at some point.

JB: Yeah, I think that’s inevitable. We have released DLC in spring this year for Halo 2, a game that is two-and-a-half years old. We’ve still got 300,000 players of Halo 2 still playing the game. The last DLC was purely to support the call-outs from the community. I imagine seeing more of that in DLC for Halo 3.

I’m really excited by the Forge [Halo 3's map editing feature], and we don’t really think we understand what the people are going to create.

Being a huge Time Splitters fan, I can’t lie, I am very excited about the map editing feature myself more so than having to pay for levels. All I can do is remember the days when they were free, hopefully Bungie will do the honorable thing and stick with what they did with Halo 2 and have a certain time frame for people to buy the levels or whatever else they offer, then give it for free 3 months later or something).

Another note from Barnes sitting down with GameSpot was a quick quote about the Beta and preparing their servers for the horde that will be playing very soon, “The amount of polish feedback was especially helpful, and we also found we had to triple our server capacity.”

[Source 1Pstart.com | Header image stolen from JW because it was too damn funny I had to steal it]
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Halo, Halo 3, Next-Gen, Microsoft, DLC, Downloadable Content, Map Editing, Jonty Barnes, Bungie, Duh, Jay Weinland, Too Much Halo 3 News Daily, Xbox 360

For just the cost of under one gig of your hard drive, you can be the proud owner of a demo for Viva Pinata Party Animals. This complete Mario Party rip off game looks pretty damn good (Overlord ripped off Pikmin and that was fine and dandy by me). To see what you are getting yourself into, check a little video of some game play below:

Also note, when you did fire up your ol Xbox, there was a system update. Keep in mind, this is not the huge system update we are all waiting on, this is all about that big-button controller preparation, in fact, Major Nelson makes sure to point out “no new features beyond this big button pad support are included in this update and, once again, this is not the ‘fall dashboard upgrade.’ When I have firm details on the next major update, I will share them”
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Viva Pinata, Party Animals, Rare, Rareware, Microsoft, Demo, Update, Xbox 360

Ok, people, here’s the deal — Paco and I are on our way out. We’re taking over at 1PStart.com in an effort to restore it to it’s former glory. …that, and I just plain want to write about another game every once in a while, is that so wrong?!

Anyways, here is what we’re looking for: A competent, capable writer with a love for all things Xbox. Now, by competent writer, we mean someone who spells “you” correctly, and knows when to capitalize. If you can do that, you’re a shoe-in. So, CLICK THIS DAMN LINK, do the required stuff, then get paid to play video games and write about stuff.

…hell, Mike and I did the hard stuff already, and YES, the GTA4 Banner contest will continue, and I will still give you a copy of GTA IV… or something. So, hop to it.

Xbox 360 Rally, JW, Stuff, Job Openings

I have been keeping up with this game since I first heard the announcement. Well it was written it was coming mid-September, and now the time is nigh!

Coming in at just 700mb, its time to see, is this the game that will kill Forza and at the same time put to rest Project Gotham Racing (note: I think people have already forgotten about Gran Turismo). I am about to boot up my 360 to find out if my comparisons to this game and Beetle Adventure Racing are true, check it out yourself!
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I can’t say I am excited about all three, but, hey, I never say no to demo’s, I download all, no joke. Juiced is coming in with an 8 player online demo, so that should be fun, I am particular on racing games, but I am willing to give them a shot (even though I haven’t found the time to play the one player demo which I have sitting on my hard drive). This is running 1.37GB.

Spider-Man Friend or Foe had me turned off from the first screens and demos. The concept of the co-op with villians is so so, but, again, I will download anything, plus this is running in at only 431mb)

Though I am no ‘futball’ fan, EA just released some FIFA screens, and they are HUGE, but you can see such awesome detail, that even if it isn’t a game you are into, you can appreciate the eye candy of it all. (Demo runs in at 702mb btw) Check the screen below, I left them original size, EA hooked it up with these pics, I must remind you again, they are HUGE (4856×2731 resolution):

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Xbox 360, Spider-Man, Juiced, FIFA, Soccer, Screenshots, Demos, Xbox Live Marketplace