The Old XBOX Megathread

[Benji]

Gears around 9?

[Ruki]

I demand you all to buy Small Arms

Give me money.

[King Ellis]

Gears around 9?

That would be agreeable.

[Captain Eo]

I demand you all to buy Small Arms

Give me money.

Give me

[Benji]

Microsoft Points have long been a point of contention for Xbox LIVE gamers, requiring you to buy into the system before you can purchase much of the content available through the service. Users have been critical of the point system, which can be confusing to gamers simply looking to buy their games and content without the rigmarole of purchasing points, and frustrating when unusable points are left over.

Over the years, the use of Microsoft Points has spread beyond Xbox LIVE to other Microsoft services, including Zune Marketplace, Games for Windows, and Windows Phone. The system is engrained in just about every section of Microsoft's online purchasing presence, but that might not be the case for much longer.

It appears that Microsoft might be phasing out the system in favor of straight up money transactions. Inside Mobile Apps is reporting that by the end of 2012, real world money will be used for all transations moving forward. Any outstanding balances will be switched over to the account's local currency. The site cites publishing agreements between mobile developers and Microsoft, warning devs to plan accordingly for the upcoming change.

While this is lodged firmly into the rumor camp (Microsoft has given the standard "we do not comment on rumors or speculation" response), we can't imagine too many Xbox 360 gamers would be bummed out of Microsoft got rid of Microsoft Points. What do you think?

Long rumoured, but I say hallelujah. I hate the vagueness of what things cost with MS Points.

[apsham]

Holy fuck yes. That will make thinking about and portioning out point/cash cards like ten times easier.

I am all for this.

[Your Mom]

Is Dead Island worth $25? It's on sale today

[King Ellis]

Fuck using real money. I certainly don't want to attach my debit card information to my account. Plus, points cards can be had cheaper from 3rd party sellers, thus making the stuff you buy even cheaper. Add points directly from your Xbox and it's like 18 or 19£ for 2000. You can get 2100 for £14 or less from certain places.

[9 to 5]

Gears up tonight? >_>

[King Ellis]

If we can get 3 or more.

[9 to 5]

I will see what can be done.

[Benji]

Sure. What time?

[9 to 5]

Half 7 fine? Can't see me doing a late one tonight just wanna have some fun that's not football related.

[Regia]

Is the gears DLC worth dishing out for?

[9 to 5]

If you play it alot, then yes. If not, probably not.

[RoHitman Reigns]

Benji, Ellis Niner and I are all on, slot for one more if wish for multiplayer.

[apsham]

Is Dead Island worth $25? It's on sale today

25 dollars? I would say so.

[LL!]

I want real money to be implemented just to spite Ellis.

[Maxx]

Some rumors about the next Xbox from Kotaku

Microsoft will upgrade its disc technology for its next Xbox from DVDs to Blu-Ray discs, catching up to rival Sony, games industry sources tell Kotaku.

Sony's PlayStation 3 currently supports Blu-Ray, which can contain 25 or 50GB of data compared to DVD's 9GB.

But that disc detail could be far less impactful to the next generation of game consoles than the assertion I've heard from one reliable industry source that Microsoft intends to incorporate some sort of anti-used game system as part of their so-called Xbox 720. It's not clear if that means that the system wouldn't play used games or how such a set-up would work. Obvious approaches—I'm theorizing here—like linking a copy of a game to a specific Xbox Live account could seemingly be foiled by used-game owners who would keep their system offline. My source wasn't sure how Microsoft intended to implement any anti-used game system in the new machine.

A push in any way by Microsoft against used games would likely be cheered from publishers sick of seeing retailers like GameStop crow about their revenues from the sale of used games. But it could potentially anger consumers who rely on buying cheaply-sold used games or even pass games to relatives or friends.

One source familiar with Microsoft's plans for the new Xbox said Microsoft plans to ship their new Xbox with a new version of its red-hot Kinect hands-free sensor system. The new Kinect would contain an on-board processor, a feature originally intended for the first Kinect. That processor would enable a new Kinect to more effectively detect users' motions.

I'm also hearing that Microsoft is interested in making a smaller controller for its new console.

And what of gaming site IGN's report that the machine could be six times more powerful than the Xbox 360? From some industry sources I'm hearing that that's the right ballpark and that Microsoft is estimating they might even get to 8x the Xbox 360. But another insider clarified that no one in the industry has development kits yet and that any talk about specs right now is still hypothetical.

Microsoft did not respond to a request for comment.

"Xbox 720" is being used as shorthand by reporters like me to refer to the next Xbox. It's not necessarily the name of the next device. Tech sites Semi Accurate and Fudzilla have reported that the first chips for 720 development kits are going into production, leading to a possible late 2013 release despite my earlier reporting which had pointed to 2014 as the year of the next Xbox and PlayStation.

Nintendo's next console, the Wii U, will go on sale later this year.

I'm sure that will go over super well.

[apsham]

There is absolutely no way that this would happen. The backlash would be tremendous.