Xbox 360 installs: Install takes 10 minutes, 30 percent load time improvements

According to GameSpot, Microsoft has told reporters that a Devil May Cry 4 hard disk installation will take around 10 minutes on the Xbox 360 and will result in around a 30 percent improvement in load times. Reduced noise is also another benefit of the new option. Although you will STILL need to have the disc in your drive!

[Wildarmsjecht]

So um...will this be an end to the useless banter of morons always nit picking the install of some ps3 games regardless of its benefits?

Probably not.

[Captain Tuttle]

So it's not even in the same league as the PS3's mandatory installs. The bigger issue is the small size of the 360's hard drive and the outrageous cost to upgrade.

[crck]

Mostly just some kids like Bladestar trying to make noise. I still love his argument that the 360 hard drive is proprietary technology and is more secure then a PS3 hard drive that's why it costs so much more. But a "ps3" 250 gb hard drive can be had for $75 now. A 320 gb hard drive for $100 shipped at Newegg. Its really a non-issue for most.

[Wildarmsjecht]

Yes, its optional, but if this is a way for MS to allow bigger games to fit on their DVD, then some might actually have to be mandatory, in which case the point I brought up at first applies. It's all speculative however, and only time will tell.

@Crck

Yes, Very few PS3 owners had an issue with it is what Im assuming as well.

[gaffyh]

At the moment MS is saying these installs are optional, but if they become mandatory I will not be happy cos I've only got ~7gb left on my 360s HDD.

On my PS3 though I actually don't mind installs, cos I've got a lot of space available on my 60gb (I think about 20gb left).

[CaptainHowdy]

Dynasty Warriors 6
Folklore
Genji: Days of Blade
Ninja Gaiden Sigma
Ridge Racer 7
Time Crisis 4

for the exception of NG they're all crap, but still...not ALL are mandatory. But you wait, their will be be hypocrisy

[Ghoul]

well said, i for myself never minded the installs. i just cant take it how every game got basehd for a bloody 10-20 minute install (mostly under 10) but now its a smart move by ms to do the same.

sure it was a smart move i totally agree on that, installs forloadtimes horray, but it wasnt bad on the ps3 before either, installs for load times horray.

[KRUSSIDULL]

Install is pointless who cares about load times it only takes up alot of space keep instals for the PC.

[JustinSaneV2]

@CaptainHowdy

And how old are those games?

[StayHigh]

Of course its optional because Microsoft cant make it mandatory since they will screw the core owners..

[whoelse]

Does this mean then its not so much a problem to have multiple DVDs because you can instal the whole game anyway...

[twininfinitysol]

If you're installing the whole game...and it has multiple dvds...that's a LOT of hard drive space.

[SeNiLe911]

is less time then a PS3 to copy only part of a game. It's mandatory for the PS3 on some games but not on the Xbox 360. The benefit for installing the game on the HDD for the 360 is no disk spin making it a whole lot quieter while playing a game (most of the time I don't here the drive anyway with bullets fling past my head) and less wear and tear on the drive with the many hours of playing a game. For the PS3, the Blu-Ray drive still spins durn a game since not all the info is on the drive.

[Homicide]

Oh great. If I want to play a game on the 360 and make it silent, I have to install the game. I'll run out of space quick and need to waste money on an overpriced hard drive. Thanks MS.

[xhairs9]

What's your point? So the disc spins in the PS3, #1 it doesn't make noise such as a jet engine. #2 I've yet to hear of someones Blu-Ray drive falling apart due to too much disc spinning. #3 it DOESN'T take less time. In fact it's most likely the same. DMC = 10 mins ps3/360, what's your point? I'll tell you my point flat out -- your post is a joke.

[AAACE5]

I don't think I complained on here, but yeah! I guess it's enevitable. The main reason I don't like the Idea of installs, is because it feels like dealing with computer games. When I did try playing computer games I would install them, and by the time they were done... I didn't want to play it anymore!

I know right now it's optional, but if developers start focusing on that, we may all end up waiting 30 minutes for a game to load. Or maybe i'm just paranoid?

[BardockS30Z]

Don't forget Unreal Tourney 3 for ps3

[Super-Brad]

the only reason xbox installs faster because it reads dvds faster whereas ps3 has only 2x read speed therefore ps3's needs to install to speed up but not all the time, while xbox don't but to install a whole game will be quicker by near double the speed simple math really.

END off.

[jlemdon]

yeah just like how ps3 fanboys talk about how noisy the Hard drive is huh?

[xhairs9]

Well it is, what do you want them to say? No, it's so silent you can hear a pin drop? That, would be lying.

[ry-guy]

If all it takes is a disc in the drive to reduce load times and fan sounds, I am all for it. I don't know why people are complaining about still requiring to put the disc in for authentication.

[Tempist]

It's the fact that many people had heavily criticized the PS3 for requiring some games to install on the drive to... alleviate load times (unfortunately inherent in the Blu-ray drive given it's first gen and there's a HUGE amount of data to be read.)

As well there were many naysayers about the 360 requiring installation ever.

[ThaGeNeCySt]

But you're missing your own point... it's still not required on the 360 nor is it mandatory. Much like some PS3 games, 360 installs will be completely optional. I won't waste my time doing it but I know others will

[GarandShooter]

The 'option' to install to HDD may be in the hands of the developers, not the gamers.

[xhairs9]

You're missing his point, it's the fact that it's not a waste of time at all. Many 360 owners claimed it was, and now that it's stated to be beneficial all these 360 owners are now claiming this a gift from the Game God. Optional or not it's beneficial and not a waste of time and you only have to do it once.

[ThaGeNeCySt]

it's a waste of my time, I only have a 20gb hard drive... no way am I going to play musical chairs to pick one game to put on that LOL

[xhairs9]

You shouldn't have bought a 360 then. 120gb is more than enough room for me to just download/install anything I see.

[ThaGeNeCySt]

I shouldn't have bought a 360? lol because I don't want to put full installs on a 20gb harddrive? That's hilarious...

[Aquanox]

Considering we won't need to use it in 95% of the games, it will still be a welcome option (key word: OPTION) for games that do require it. For what I've seen, the first candidates could be Fallout 3 and the sequel of Mass Effect. No more long loading times for heavily loaded games. Texture pop-up will be dramatically improved too.

[Aquanox]

Devil May Cry, which installation takes 10 minutes on the Xbox 360 beta tests, takes around 22 minutes on the Playstation 3 according to this article (among others)

http://kotaku.com/353612/de...

[Bill Gates]

Great now the BABOONS are also starting to COPY another one of sony's strategies by having game installs to improve the gameplay by having LESS load times.....AHHAHHAHHAHA

Before they were all like " installs are lame", and now it's "awesome"......POOR hypocrite BABOONS.....AHHAHAHHAHHHA

[power of Green]

The PS3 fans are not comprehending what is being offered they are confusing MSFT's optional installs for reducing noise and increasing load times with the PS3 having to use the HDD to allow the games to run on par with the 360 also increasing PS3 load times where they are acceptable for a console.

The difference is the 360 will allow installs as a universal system software option and the PS3 forces you to install parts of some games so it runs properly and in a timely fashion.

360 games are going to even run better than they already do compared to the PS3.

People making fun of PS3 having to install or else the game can not run or will be so slow it will piss gamers off is no excuse to bash this new system feature. lol

[themyk]

b b b b but i thought game installs were gay. and the great thing about consoles is how you can just put the game in and play.

nnnnnnn no installs aren't the thing of the future.

b b b b but home sucks.

b b b b but trophies are so stupid.

360 = installs, home lite, and metals, not to mention mii's.

super lame.
you have no shame.

in one week the 360 went from the "hardcore" system, to the system that was soooo dated that it had to copy everything good about the other two systems.

pathetic. unimaginative.

[Pain]

Install games to keep parts and what not from Over heating so CrapBox 2 might not RROD.

with this said.. Please stop saying teh Xbox 2 is Not a PC since its Installs = PC and not the same as the Held back cuz of Xbox 2 dvd Install for PS3's...

oh and @ the Moron Xbots below taking about FF...u Brain Dead Hypocrite crack babies are way funny with FF...
.....Firsts Its FF is JPRPG it BLOWS WRPG>>>JP Anyday ...sound familer???
...oh...but its on teh~xbox 2 its KOOLZ againz..... u xbot kids are funny and i mean that in the Special ed way.

[why do droids cry]

' b b b but'

stop stuttering droid. these are optional not mandatory like the ps3

[zapass]

so HDD installs are kewl now?
xbots = shameless FLIP FLOPPERS
AquaBOLLOX = the most hypocritical hippo of N4G

[why do droids cry]

that a very good self portrait their. trophy unlocked= sad little boy

[zapass]

did you mean 'there' kiddy kiddy?
lol@fail

trophies, medals and all that blingbling are for you under-confident over-achievers. gamers like me play for something called fun.

since you failed to achieve this time, you will not have any candy :(

[hay]

Soooo.... Where's the topic with "What can you do during DMC4 install" like it was with certain other titles?

[CyberSentinel]

....This is step towards solving the "Multi-Disc" issue.

FFXIII should be no problem with this update, among OTHER massive data titles.

@those that disagree, denial is NOT prevention against the inevitable.

@2.2: Your point being?

@5: So true. Bubbles my friend.

@2.3: Exactly My friend. Bubbles for you, as always.

@17: How would you know what single life is like for a ps3 owner, your married, are you not? - you do win the funniest post award though. Lol.

[InfamouspS3]

FUNNY THAT NOW THAT FFXIII IS COMING OUT FOR THE 360 ALSO YOU SH*TBOX FANBOYS ALL OF A SUDDEN CARE FOR IT.AND NOW INSTALLS ARE A GOOD THING? LMFAO YOU XBOX FANBOYS ARE A JOKE!

[Harry190]

We don't know anything about how the game will be yet. Have you even read what they said about installs?

[Bladestar]

who said xbox fans didn't care about final fantasy? ohh and installs... there is a big difference between PS3 installs and xbox 360... first they are not installs... they are rips... moving DVD files from the disc to a hard drive and playing it from there.... PS3 installs the game... and partially play some of the files from the hard drive and most of it from the blu-ray disc... on the PS3 this ability must be implemented by the developer and i a) not optional or b) non existent.

on the xbox 360 you can do this with your old games... ALL GAMES ARE SUPPORTED AND OPTIONAL.... also, on the PS3 this is a workaround to make the games playable do to blu-ray reading speed... so developer use different technique to match the loading to the xbox 360 versions... which is why games like DMC, GTA4 require installs on the pS3 and not on the xbox 360 though they have similar loading... now add the 30% the xbox rip introduce and you have multiplayer games running 30% faster than the PS3 games... even with PS3 installs... now that's a good thing... I do not want installs if they will not do $h!t... why do you think they are mandatory on the PS3? because the game without them would not be playable... that's why xbox 360 gamers are ok with this new OPTIONAL FEATURE...

[themyk]

hey bladestar so what your saying is they finally didn't copy EVERY thing from sony.

would you like to explain the difference between metals and trophies.

or home and home lite

or the new dashboard and the xmb

or lips

or anything else they have been releasing the last week.

it must be nice to be completely brainwashed.

[ravinshield]

first of all FONY copied the trophies from microsoft cuz before you unlock an achievement their is a little picture of a trophy with a lock.

next is the avatars, only cuz FONY announced it first doesnt mean they invented it. Maybe microsoft had it in development way back but they dont like to announce things that will never come out like HOME. anyways the fall update will come out way before the DELAYED home.

the in-game xmb was in the 360 since launch unlike the ps3 which FONY ripped off.

and LIPS is way better than that singstar crap. and its not copying anyways cuz only because their is one singing game ur saying no one else can make more singing games.HERE is an example for u. 2K makes basketball games and so does FONY so u see.

[power of Green]

Talking about *JOKE *I find it funny PS3 fanboys are trolling 360 news like their lives depend on it, go check out PS3 news there doesn't seem to be anybody interested in it.

[BoneMagnus]

I did upgrade to a 120G HD, but I doubt I could have my entire game collection on my HD. I'd probably keep the LIVE games I frequently play on the HD, and delete SP games once I've beaten them(I could always just play it unloaded again if I wanted).

The other thing, and this is only a question, so please don't flame, could this move make MGS4 possible on the 360?

[fresco]

it would be alot more convenient for multi disk titles as well

[Dark vader]

yea its possible, If you want a mandatory installation of 50 gb on your hard drive lol.

[ry-guy]

I also wonder how large these installs are. It may be worthwhile just to keep 1 or 2 most played games installed and just let those infrequently played games spin.

[mistertwoturbo]

I only have a 20gb 360 and only 11.5gb of space left. So you're telling me I can only install 1 game?

And no, I'm not forking out $149.99 for the 120gb HDD.

[Dark vader]

Wow is it really like that for such a small harddrive. I payed $150 for a 250 gb harddrive for my ps3. Microsoft never stops nickle and diming their consumer. people have to realize that yes the ps3 does cost more, but it also is the better value.

[Nevers]

they're talking bout uploading the WHOLE game.. just a coupla gigs to smooth load-times. But that still sux for those who only have the inadequate 20gig HDD... I just upgraded to the 120gig and luckily caught a sale on Amazon so it was $140. That's still too much for 120gigs and I hope Microsoft decreases the price on HDD's because of this aspect but that doesn't really fit their MO....

[xhairs9]

Strictly because of the amount of man-power it would take to re-do basically the entire game. There are so many references to the PS3 in the game they'd pretty much be making a brand new game. It's not fanboy talk it's simply put -- no. If you've played the game you'd realize why it's not going to happen.

[celticlonewolf]

The install is a choice you dont have to if you dont want to. When you get the game if you want to jump on right in and play you can and then wait till the time is better for you before you install.

[TheColbertinator]

I approve of installations in 360.Less loading equals better better experience and games like Oblivion could feel more immersive.360 installations are a good idea

[themyk]

thats funny. that's the same thing you 360 fans were bashing us for saying.

so on the ps3 installs means the ps3 must suck

on the 360 it means the 360 is the sh1t

wow thats good logic.

[power091999]

I really feel this is one of the coolest additions MS added to the Xbox.

I am all for HD installs, and honestly feel this does nothing but add to games. 10 mins of installs for quicker load times is fine by me.

Although I never minded it on the PS3, I defiantly like the fact that it's optional on the 360. More so since I only have the 20GB drive in mine.

Great idea MS! <golf clap>

[kingme71]

This just null and voids all those absurd arguments from the last 6 months about PS3 installs.

[Petitionstation 3]

No it doesn't. 360 installs full games in 10 minutes. It takes 20 minutes to install half of devil may cry on ps3. So not only is it quicker on the 360 but load times completely obliterate the PS3.

there is also another significant difference. 360 installs are OPTIONAL OPTIONAL OPTIONAL OPTIONAL OPTIONAL OPTIONAL OPTIONAL OPTIONAL OPTIONAL OPTIONAL OPTIONAL OPTIONAL OPTIONAL OPTIONAL OPTIONAL OPTIONAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!

[LoVeRSaMa]

@Petitionstation 3

Shut up you fool.

[strotee]

I love how people scream "choice" when talking about the 360. What "choice" does a person have when upgrading or adding a new hard drive?

Western Digital? No
Seagate? No
Maxtor? No
Hitachi? No

Wait, what's that? A person has but 1 "choice"..... an expensive, proprietary drive from Microsoft? Talk about looking out for your customers.

[Infernus]

That was quite funny. Wrong, but funny.

It takes just under 10 mins to completely install DMC4 on the PS3. Then we have the MGS4 arguments, if MGS4 came to 360 (Which it won't, the many mentions of 'superior Blu-Ray technology' and the references to the PS3 in the game points to PS3 exclusivity forever) then it'd require mandatory installs just like the PS3 version (Which take about 5 mins, at the start of each chapter, they're reduced the next time you play anyway to about a minute.) I don't recommend anyone play through the whole of MGS4 without getting up, moving about and taking a break, it's a long game and sitting there that long is bad for you :P

Personally, I have no issues with mandatory installs at all, I don't mind a one-off 10min install, I don't live sitting in front of my TV every minute of the day so I find it ridiculous how people say mandatory installs are bad based on the length of time they take. Don't you have anything else to do?!

I've upgraded to a 250GB HDD for just over £40 ($80), you can't do that with a 360 there's no way you'd get it that cheap, so I don't have to worry about installs, DLC, game saves, pics, music, videos etc etc filling up the PS3 because I have plenty of space.

Installs for the 360 will become mandatory because the devs will build the games around the fact that players can install now. Don't get sucked in to this 'optional' crap, the last time I heard that MS was pushing HD-DVD drives...

[Bladestar]

what are people talking about? what the big deal with swapping discs... this is to improve loading...beyond what other consoles can do... multi-platform games that require installs on the PS3 currently have similar loading.... the xbox 360 version when using this method will load 30% faster... simple as that...

if you are trying to prevent disc swapping... and you are ok with 10 minutes installs... you have some serious problems since swapping a disc takes only 30 seconds... if this ability wouldn't increase loading speed by 30% I would not bother... I would take 30 seconds disc swapping over 10 minutes installs any day of the week...

don't I have to swap disc anyways to play other games... PS3 or not?

while I was playing Lost Odyssey by the time it asked me for the 2nd disc I already swapt the disc to play other games like 20 times... most people don't own 1 game you know.

[Ghoul]

Multiplayer games that require installs on the PS3 currently have similar loading.... the xbox 360 version when using this method will load 30% faster... simply as that...

ah the futureorb again, you read something on the internet and allready are good damn professional about facts... p

[Bladestar]

@Ghoul - not stating the facts... stating the obvious... are you still trying to figure out how to spin this negatively?

[Ghoul]

what are you taking i want some too man,

what negativ spin ?

[TheColbertinator]

Well Bladestar,it is choice that allows the consumer to decide what they like.Frankly I dont mind installations or disc swapping or both.Its because I am also a PC gamer and some of the best games require both procedures.

I have enough memory on my 360,PC and PS3 to not have to worry about installations or disc swapping.

[Zulwarn]

the best part is "this is a choice" unlike a certain console in which you have to install game in order to play it

and even with installs it has long ass loading time

[Ghoul]

ps3 installs bad
xbox360 awesome

.... and dont gimme the mandatory sh...t

its allways the same with you folks, you bash the oposiong faction to the ground on EVERYTHING but if your precisous one gets the same option you like it suddenly. btw i give a crap about installs on the 360 as long as i need the disc couse the noise is the same. i want to disable the damn drive alltogether.

p.s.you consider this as a service but in reality its only the pre phase for mandatory 360 installs as ms realised they cant stick to the disc streamed games in the future to compete.

[mistertwoturbo]

This whole install thing "could" be a the prelude to mandatory installs on certain games. Likeeeeeee FFXIII???

[Xi]

home copies second life... awesome
MS copies mii's... bad

Trophies copy achievements... awesome
installs on xbox... bad

it's always the same with you folk too. You people think Sony invented the console, and everything they do is perfect. Xbox fanboys do the same thing. Hypocracy to a fanboy is like white on rice.

Get the F**K over it and play games not consoles.

[Ghoul]

ncie try xi

but i meant boths sides this time taking the sony side for this example. i meant EVERY part whoever takes its allways the same.

"you bash the oposiong faction to the ground on EVERYTHING but if your precisous one gets the same option you like it suddenly. "

can you read ? i didnt put any side into it because i take no sides.

i never said home is bad, i never said xbox miis are bad ( i dont like em stylewise thats something diferent) dont try the fanboy crap on me.

[mistertwoturbo]

Whoa Xi, take a chill pill dude.

First of all think about your comment.
Who said Home copied Second Life? The press. Who said MS copied the Mii's? The press.

Who said trophies copied achievements? OK The 360 fanboys.
Who said installs on xbox was bad? So far I only see people pointing out the hypocracy.

And I'm not sure who you're referring to by saying "you people." Because Sony didn't invent the console. Of course not. But they revolutionized it with the Playstation 1. And took it further with the PS2. Of course which inspired Microsoft to release the xbox and thus leading to the xbox 360.

So you're saying play games, not consoles. That's good. But how about play games instead of going on n4g to complain about complainers who complain about the console?

Better.

[Petitionstation 3]

Devil May Cry PS3 MANDATORY install = 5GB in 22 minutes.
Devil May Cry 360 OPTIONAL install = 7GB in 10 minutes.

Winner = Xbox 360
Loser = Ghoul

[Xi]

I also activley go to websites to gather news and information on those games I enjoy, and this site has become such a wasteland of flamebait threads and bashing that it's gotten to a point why I bother coming here anymore.

So, of course I'm going to complain about those people that make the things I enjoy less enjoyable, and I think I have absolutely should. It's like complaining about the guy with the cellphone in the theater.

Why even bring it up at all ghoul? If you weren't a fanboy you wouldn't.

[Ghoul]

for that you get a bubble mistertwoturbo.

xi really the one taking sides here was you, im just moaning about this whole hypocracy all the time.

[agentace]

why do you keep posting that,what proof do you have that it takes 10mins "M$ told you lol" also it will probaly take longer than the ps3 because the installs are alot bigger on 360

[mesh1]

haha i find it funny that microsfot used dmc4 as an exmaple as we all know it takes 20 minutes to install dmc4 on the ps3 i think they just took a job at sony.

[Linzoid]

Only 10 minutes and an increase of 30% is quality!

I wonder how it will deal with multi-disk titles? Will you still have to change the disk or will be able to install all of the disks and only need to enter disk 1 to verify that you own the game?

[ud]

Hey guys i just bought a 20 GB 360 and i noticed there was already some stuff on it. but after deleting most of it, (i have 5gb taken for demos and that's pretty much it) I only have like 9 gb left, do i have to format it or anything? or did i get screwed?

[DJ]

Out of 20GB, you only get 13GB allocated to you, the user.

[ThaGeNeCySt]

which sucks, i've been trying to look on ebay and craigslist and buy.com for the larger 120gb HDD but they are all superly overly priced... I wonder if I can buy any laptop HDD and put it in the 360 HDD casing without gettin banned for modding =/

[ud]

arggg 13 gb really isnt a lot, oh well thanks for the info!

[Truplaya]

i doubt ill ever install a game on my 360, i only have the 20GB hard drive. I might have the one game i am playing the most installed and thats it.
Does anyone know if games can be installed on a USB hard drive? I use one for my music, pictures and videos.

[BoneMagnus]

game content cannot be install on a separate HD like on the PS3. MS makes you buy THEIR HD for game content. I applaud Sony's move to allow separate HDs.

I had a knot in my stomach as I purchased the 120G HD for the 360 even though I got in on the Amazon deal recently - it was still far too expensive compared to external PC HDs that are PS3 compatible.

I guess every console has its benefits and its weaknesses.

[Lumbo]

Gamecontent on the PS3 can NOT be stored on an external HDD, only on the internal HDD, the 2nd part about every industry standard 2.5" HDD fitting is true though.

[Topshelfcheese]

It can be stored on an external HDD, it just wont read from it until you copy it back onto your internal HDD, but there was talk of Sony creating an external HDD drive, which would allow the machine to read from it through a firmware update.

[BoneMagnus]

I didn't know that about the PS3. I apologize for my error.

These things can be kinda confusing - especially for the average consumer who doesn't read forums and just looks at the packaging to get his/her info!

[Zulwarn]

" The installation took twice as long when we conducted our own installation tests on the PlayStation 3"

ahahahahaha BS3 pwned yet again

like i said whatever BS3 does the 360 can do better!

[PimpHandHappy]

look at the xbots spin this

CLASSIC

Zulwarn i know you just made this name because your other name must have 2 bubbles

haha

Once again Sony shows why they are the leader and why MS and the 360 are playing the "copy Sony game" b4 its 2 late

I love the guy that said DMC4 will now load faster then the PS3 because without the install it was as fast!

SPIN SPIN SPIN

and to think

XBOTS where using this as a bullet point for a year! Well i hope you bots have a harddrive because if not your going to hear a jet take off everytime you start it up

hahahahaha

[Zulwarn]

"Zulwarn i know you just made this name because your other name must have 2 bubbles "
your crystal ball is losing spiritual support just like sony losing 3rd party lol

"the PS3 plays blue ray movies better then the 360 "
that's all bs3 is good for anyway a cheap blueray player

"it also plays MGS4 better then the 360"
well guess what? my 360 plays more exclusives,gets better multiplats while you wait for it..........beyond

my 360 also plays music ingame while your bs3 still cant with 2.40
even with in game music option you droids are waiting....... beyond

keep waiting........beyond while we steal more exclusives
and make you cry droids

[jack who]

10 min to install the full game on to the hdd....ps3 cant even do that with just 5GB...the cell has been owned....flame on

[DreDawgg06]

Im sure the installation will be only core files, I highly doubt it took 10 minutes to install a 7GB game onto a harddrive. That seems way to fast. I imagine it being around half the size for every game which isn't bad.

[PimpHandHappy]

the PS3 plays blueray movies better then the 360

it also plays MGS4 better then the 360

hahahahaha

10MIN install

i love the spin guys

keep it up

[TrenchaunT]

I'm fine not installing games on the 360. Most games don't have a long load time anyway. The only game off the top of my head that was annoying in that way was ET: Quake Wars. I'm really glad that installs aren't mandatory, too, because I enjoy the freedom to switch between games without thinking, is this one of my installed games? If I want to play a game that I was unlikely to choose, I don't want to grunt at every load screen that I wish I had installed it.

[digger18]

SO, how many Xbox 360 owners have got a 120gig HDD? Because your gonna need it.

All my 360's have only got the 20gig (13gig) HDD and thats not even enough for FF to be installed.

I guess Microsoft can see everybody rushing out to buy the bigger HDD. More win for the money grabbers.

[brothersimon]

Sounds good

Only game I can think of using this on is GTAIV.

[rawd]

hahaha

I love watching Xbots backpedal like a bunch of weenie tots.

Whats the next defense when the first 360 game comes out requiring mandatory install?

[brothersimon]

Wouldnt happen.

This isnt the ps3.

[jack who]

thats what the sony lover said about GATIV whatever happend to that? ay? uh? hmmmm

[rawd]

haha
I'll remember to PM you when it happens

[Topshelfcheese]

Ya mandatory installs matter not to me on my PS3, i put a 320gb drive in there, but i only have 11gb avaliable on my 360, so if they ever go mandatory, i could see Microsoft raising the price on the already crazy 120gb drive from 179.99 to 299.99.

Ya spend 300 hundred more just so you can play games on our machine. Hopefully they don't go down that road and leave it optional.(crosses fingers).

Anyway I love all 3 of my consoles even that damn Wii which I wont turn on for another 12-15months since thats when we can expect the next Zelda.

[Funky Town_TX]

It better stay that way to. I can't name one game that I would like to have load faster.

[immarriedtoafatchick]

this proves the 360 has been last gen for awhile now ps3 is the real next gen go back to the cave times 3shities

[Wraith001]

Actually i think the whole gen has gone backwards, the only one that has actually gone forwards is the Wii now i come to look at it.

One time of day the console was the magic box that played games out the Box. Made the PC look lumbering and cumbersome with .bat and.sys file manipulation, upgrading memory, hdds, graphics cards ect just so you could run a game.

But now? PS3 mandatory installs, possible memory upgrade? 360 optional installs, oh but sorry if you only have a 20gig HDD? Wii, hey, it still plays straight out the box and you wont need a bigger HDD to enjoy a game 30% more, hey and guess what, we wont force you to install one either.

So 360 PS3 brought flashy graphics and PC headaches while the Wii brought last gen graphics and originality and playability through control without the worry that you will need to upgrade the hardware in the box. Well get this, I refuse to upgrade either of my consoles.

Tell ya what MS, Sony, next gen ill save my grand in money and ill buy a top end base unit, graphics card and Wii2.

[PimpHandHappy]

FF will need a install i bet

better start saving for that 180 dollar 120GB harddrive

i might upgrade my 60GB to 120GB for around 80bucks!!!1

hahahahahaha

OMG MS hasnt had one orginal idea since XBL launched!

ADD PIMPSLAP: Jack WHo
The PS1 was a origanl idea! No one else was using a disk as a storage device..speaking of storage devices i would have to say using Blueray over the outdated DVD was indeed orginal! The Cell! Yea origanl

[jack who]

sony hasnt had one orginal idea since the ps1 launched!
your point?

[GameDev]

I put a 250GB HDD in my PS3 for $50 less than it costs to buy the xbot120HDD. Dumb bots and MS = PWNED.

[immarriedtoafatchick]

oh yeh ps3 owners don't know what disc swapping is but you guys will know that all your lives rofl in America you get what you paid for 200$ for sh!t or 400$ for perfection hmm tough choice!

[Ali_The_Brit]

haha so your screwed if you dont have a HDD, ah i love my PS3, you can get a 250GB hardrive now for the price of a game, and lets not forget all PS3's come with a hardrive

[rawd]

Exactly thats the funny part.

360 owners have the option of installing or not. bla bla bla

What if you own the Arcade. Where's your option now, hoe's

[Ali_The_Brit]

ironic isnt it? whats the main gain of instaling them games on the hardrive, for them to run smoother and better.

What do mandatory instals do? the exact same thing, but with xbox they go ahead and install the ENTIRE GAME.

Lol idiots.

[Wraith001]

Those who are happy to install and upgrade are killing the console. If it gets to popular the next consoles will ship with upgradeable hardware in mind, then we will get screwed every 6 months instead of every 5-7 yrs.

[The Wood]

1)pwned its own fanboys

2)helped its fans (non fanboy + realistic ones) get a more efficient experience on their console of choice

3)B*tch slapped the core owners. (i feel for them)

side note FF was never gunna work without an install

[immarriedtoafatchick]

xbots really need to get laid and stop spending so much money on games the ps3 owners dont have such a high attachment rate because we just dont spwend money on games, we like to go out have fun and screw our girlfriends or girls that are just sluts here ill define an xbot and a ps3 owner

Xbot owner - OMG A GAME WITH SH!TTY GRAPHICS AND THE NAME IS TUNA PUNA I WANNA BUY IT 60$ YAY OMG!@!!!!!!! IMMA BUY 10 COPIES FOR NO REASON!

PS3 owner - that game looks cool i guess ill get it babe what do you think
ps3 owner gf, it looks diesel baby i say get it ill pay half for you
PS3 owner - sweet
ps3 owner gf - baby you havent gotten a game in awhile why not?
ps3 owner - cuz of you <3
ps3 owner gf - my home girl wants to have a 3sum wana go at it
ps3 owner - holds down ps button, shut down console

[Zulwarn]

PS3 owner - that game looks cool i guess ill get it babe what do you think

PS3 owner - sweet

360 owner - will you STFU with your imaginary GF already?!?

PS3 owner - waaaaaaa! :(

[GameDev]

he's right every xbot I have seen in a gamestop looks like Frodo Baggin's fat brother. Xbots dont get laid much less know what poosee is.

[Says you]

And trophies are not numbers and plus you can level up like an RPG so how can that be a copy? and since when did you XBox 360 fans think you like installs considering how many times I've seen you XBox 360 fans criticize it and miis since when did you XBox 360 fans like miis??.

[t-0_ot-]

what's the point in leveling up..?

[immarriedtoafatchick]

my comment wins =]

[TheWiseguy]

I'll be doing this....with my 360 Elite 120GB! :]

[squablo]

Everyone always says that about metal gear. Oh its 50GB it cant be done on xbox 360. Well kiddies, its 50GB when being played on a blu-ray disk. You see, blu-ray can only read at one speed. Most data has to be uncompressed for the blu, and that is also why alot of ps3 games have required install. Another example would be Oblivion, and how the devs duplicated data all over that disk to make up for slow read times on a 50GB blu-ray disk. Now, on a dvd 9, which reads at multiple speeds, you can COMPRESS files and not compromise the gameplay. Microsoft could get MGS4 on 2 DVDs, count on it!!!!!

[themyk]

yeah but just think. if they (microsoft) really gave 2 sh1ts about the 360 they wouldn't have used last gen crap in their system. and we wouldn't even be having this conversation.

there is no way your going to win an argument when your trying to tell us that a dvd9 is better than a blu ray.

why because you have to COMPRESS.

i'll take my mgs4 completely uncompressed thank you. and on one disc thank you.

[crank]

Well, KIDDIES?

FU*KING DOOSH!

As if you know what any of the actual data is, mr kojima LOL

SHUT the F*** UP

Most of that data is high res sound and cutscenes FYI

At 2x bluray is already at the minimum of a 12x dvd drive

dvd 12x only sees its maximum on the outside of the disc and you can bet they would be filled

[Omega4]

Wow the optional install is faster than the PS3 and improves install times a lot more too

And the all important word OPTIONAL, might just have to upgrade to an elite

Also no disks spinning might reduce the heat and the chance of rrod, this option is a definate win

[ActionBastard]

Are avatars optional? LOL. It's an important word right?

[Strife Lives]

LOWER SOUND ! ! ! Oh yeah ! Looks like I'll be playing Mass Effect through for the 7th time! Sometimes the BZZzZZZ. . .ZzZZZZZ. . .zzzzzZZ GETS annoying.

[tudors]

I have used PC's for years, installs do not really bother me, my mate has a PS3 so I took the micky when he was installing MGS4 but really if it makes the game better I am all for it, now that MS has announced this they need to lower the HDD prices.

[dkgshiz]

So your going to be able to install 1 game on your entire hdd. Way to go microcrap what a great idea. This is just a scam in case you really want to install a game, to make you go and buy that crappy 120gb rip off.

[Varsarus]

The problem with PS3 install's is because the seek times are worse on blu-ray, developers opt to use the hard drive since it's seek times are lower, but you need to run the game from it (which is tricky), but with it being worse on blu-ray, it's an advantage, because blu-ray reads the same data across the entire disk, unlike the DVD drive. Developers are just finding ways to take advantage of how blu-ray transfers data...and then the install's will be a thing of the past...

[dkgshiz]

Is because their tired of their faulty dvd drives breaking and scratching disks.

[zozol]

nooooooooooooooooooo

[fadeawayjae]

i wonder how they would install lost Odyssey?

[kewlkat007]

I never really had an issue with the PS3 installs, though some are mandatory, while some you CANNOT install if you want to but MS installs are optional and it's whatever game you want.

I think that works better than the PS3 model.IMO

No more (Dreaded DVD sound) and faster Loading...just Sweeeta!!
The Xbox 360 just got better.

Now if MS can somehow stop raping gamers for a 120 gig HDD, then it would be better. I have the Elite with 99 Gigs left so it does not effect me, but I can understand those effected.

You know I've always had an issue with MS and it's prices...it's murder, something needs to be done.

Yup thanks I forgot DVD..

[LoVeRSaMa]

@kewlkat007

Its DVD, not CD =]

And you will still hear it sometimes, as it will need to check for the disc, BZZZ BZZZ.

[themyk]

only reason it's optional is because of no hdd.

you can bet the 720 will be mandatory.

[ActionBastard]

Xbox 360 installs: Install takes 10 minutes, 30 percent load time improvements, and $100-150 less money in your pocket because 20GB (13 usable) won't cut it.

[JEDI WOLVERINE]

"The PS1 was a origanl idea! No one else was using a disk as a storage device.."

Thats really funny cause im sure Sega would contest that - the Saturn was using discs before the PS1 - sorry to correct you but the Saturn was something special *wipes tears away*

[Nykamari]

WAS MY BABY!!!! Why did you have to bring her up when I just got over her WWWHHHHHYYYYYYY! And my friend you are 100% CORRECT! Now I'm going to go play StreetFighter Alpha on my SATURN.

[Wraith001]

I think you'll find the Mega CD was out first.

[Si-Pie]

At least one thing this will fix is the stupid dirty disc read error I keep getting on a few games!

[tk]

XB360 drive is noisy, BR in PS3 is not
BR disks don't scratch like DVD's do (altough the PS3 does not scratch the DVD's

So all in all - it makes more sense for XB360 to have installs
* Longer disk life
* More content
* Less noisy
* Faster load times

PS3 can only gain speed

[pricklypete]

Just use the installation time to make yourself a delicious Sandwich!

I love the first person who used that statement and for so long it has been wafting around.

I don't own a 360, but i sure's hell they implement mandatory installations it's holding back the ps3 tech which is stronger and very under utilized.

[themyk]

it must be nice to be microsoft.

just let sony do all the future planning for them.

next xbox to include game installs, mandatory hdd, blu ray, free online, some sort of home experience, and maybe just maybe games on the market place that are actually worth spending money on.

[pricklypete]

Sony needs to learn the power of the buck (for the right reasons)

And MS needs to take example from sony invest time in research and Dev.

[FPS nut]

I don't like this trend, If I wan't to install games I'll use my PC and plug in a controller, hell my PC is more powerfull than my PS3 and 360 combined. Never in console gaming history have we ever had to "install" games on a "home console" till now. This is cheap and lazy developing and should go the way of the dodo bird.

[themyk]

yeah and games didn't always come on discs either. whats your point.

as consoles evolve so does everything else.

[FPS nut]

People have been installing games on PC's for 30yrs, how is that evolving?

[n00bzRtehgey]

So, 360 installs take less then HALF the time, and will make the already faster than PS3 load times even FASTER? Damn.

PS3 is F*CKED.

[power of Green]

they're going g to look better than they already do too.

Pop-ins will almost vanish. I remember some media saying if you could install GTA4 on the 360 the 360 version would have scored higher than the PS3 version, they would not have gave the game even scores.

ME2 will be great...

[Whoooop]

Funny to see the same people who critized PS3 install's, now saying how good it is, because they are "optional". They really are priceless.

Installs WILL become mandatory for some games. Remember it.

[shysun]

Grabs POPCORN..........I'm just going to see this through. ;)

[Charlie2688]

But my question is how big are the installs? I have a 20GB like the majority of the 360 users...a 20GB that its now left with 7GB...and hell I don't even have a lot of stuff -_-

[Wii60Fan]

Buy a larger hard drive me thinks.

[Tunerboy8732]

I have a 20GB 360 with 13.0GB left so I wont be installing every single game I buy but I heard its not an install it just temporaly copies the game so the HDD space is only used while playing the game.

[uckitsayitchbay]

This is so awesome i can not wait until this gets hacked.. (and you know it will) and the piracy becomes so bad for microdick that they just pack up and leave the console business i mean c'mon 2 flopped systems how many do they need to flop before they just leave us alone finally

[IaMs12]

Its true not many PS3 owners complained all that much yet, but as PS3 grows and more and more games like this come out, we will see complaining... no doubt... i personally dont like the fact that you HAVE to install on the PS3 it is required but the 360 is offering the option to do it or not to, which is great for people who can install their games they play the most (Oblivion would be nice)
The main set back is small HardDrives thats a killer... im sure here soon the price will fall as a bigger one comes out

[aiphanes]

Everybody will have to go out and by at least a 60 drive...but more likey a 120GB xbox 360 hard disc drive.

That is at least $100 to $175!!!!!

Most games on the Xbox 360 are less than 8 Gb of space on the DVD9. Final Fantasy 13 is gonna required about 30 Gb of harddisc space to run right...

$100 on the PS3 is gonna net you a 320GB drive.

[DG]

Ur all trolls (EDIT: most of you are anyway). Its a good thing get over it. Dont like dont install it. Sheeessshhhh!

[Rob0g0rilla]

The rest is so garbage. I'll go right back to the old dashboard so fast.

[CrizzleC24]

Only game I'd put on my HD is Command and Conquer, but 30 percent faster load times isnt good enough for a game that already loads fast(unless it keeps the frame rate going strong).

Optional is definitely the word of the day. I have to agree with "Petitionstation 3" with the extreme irony that Ps3 takes 30 mins to install and 10 mins for the "slow,weak non raytracing 4d" 360'.

I would probably kill the 360 with a sledge hammer if it was manditory, after all I bought a console so I WOULDNT have to install games.

[1stKnighT]

The load times and noise never bothered me so I'm happy that these installs are optional because I don't want them.

[BURLY]

Microsoft learned many very valuable lessons about the console wars during their first attempt with the original Xbox. One of the biggest was the concept of re-engineering components of a console in order to reduce costs during its life cycle. You see, Microsoft did not own the intellectual rights to most of the components in the original Xbox and was therefore relegated to tedious negotiations with its hardware vendors in an attempt to reduce costs and compete with the PS2. Of course most of these hardware “partners” recognized that Microsoft was not going to walk away from its massive investment regardless of the situation and were fairly unwilling to compromise in the areas of royalty reductions in association with hardware re-engineering.

Microsoft now not only owns the intellectual rights to almost every piece of hardware in the 360 but this time around they also integrated their business model into the design process and self designed most of the components themselves. Good examples of this is the direction given to ATI by its Windows Graphics Foundation Team (i.e. responsible for the Direct X standards) to create a GPU with unified shader architecture long before Vista had even launched, or the research and development of a new wireless protocol that was far superior (for videogame purposes) than Bluetooth, ...etc, etc. One fundamental design note however was the mention that they were not going to include a hard drive as standard because (compared to most of the other components in a console) you simply cannot reduce the costs of a hard disk drive in relatively similar terms over its life cycle. In fact this was in part directly attributed to the PS2’s ability to reach ridiculously low mass market prices and no doubt Microsoft wanted to emulate that model – if for nothing else but to reach the billions of people in the new emerging markets of India, etc towards the end of the 360’s life cycle.

Of course the very fast read speeds of the 360’s DVD disk drive would no doubt ensure that this would remain a sound strategy and from a technical standpoint; I see no reason why 99% of all games will still not require a hard drive and remain very playable directly from the disk. I would be somewhat remiss however to not take note that this announcement was delivered during the same E3 as that blockbuster announcement that Final Fantasy was going to be released on the 360 in North America and Europe. I say this because although DVD-9’s hold more than enough space for this generation of video game consoles (which can only really access a maximum of 256mb of TEXTURE MEMORY in the case of the PS3 and 512mb in the case of the 360 at any given time); games like final fantasy that will not use in-game assets during their cut-scenes and instead opt to utilize very long CGI videos – will indeed fill up a DVD-9 disk very quickly! Thus, if Microsoft was going attempt to steal traditional Playstation exclusives that tend to have very long video sequences (i.e. like Final Fantasy and Metal Gear) then an sound strategy would be to allow the games to be shipped on multiple disks and have some of the assets downloaded to the hard drive such that when you finally do start the game you will not be required to swap disks and the CGI videos can then be played in the same high definition glory as on the PS3.

Now I know that they have not yet made any direct reference to this developing scenario and whether or not hard drives will be required to play an increasing number of high profile games but an elementary bout of Game Theory would suggest that they probably would not for the time being anyways. However, perhaps we are just seeing the refinement of the Xbox dashboard in preparation to Microsoft’s big supposed Digital download strategy with the next Xbox and the current option to download the games to the hard drive is just a perk. Nonetheless, it is very interesting to think about whether or not Microsoft is potentially abandoning its low cost strategy of not requiring a hard drive in an attempt to accommodate some very high profile former Playstation exclusives (like Final Fantasy) in the same way that Sony also had to abandon its low cost strategy of not having a hard drive as standard in its PS3 console as a means to accommodate the tremendously slow read speeds of the initial batch of Bluray disk drives. In the end it may be said that the Hard Drive was the great equalizer between the two formats and heck this option will also allow Microsoft to release a Blu-ray equipped 360 without worry that it won’t be able to read game data on DVD-9’s fast enough for the 360’s existing library of games and also as to not handicap future development / optimization of 360 games – which will no doubt only be released on DVD-9’s and with the incredibly fast read speeds of the original 360 in mind.

[Massive-Delusion]

Longest comment ever? Impressive nonetheless...

[lagoonalight]

So let us get the propaganda out of the way.

A 2x bluray drive is equivalent to the the minimum disc read on a 12x dvd drive.

Tremendously is a hefty word there.

A 4x drive already is surpassing it in many respects even at the maximum.

Don't act like that completely a** end dvd drive is anything but a low budget piece of sh** compared to the very nice midline Bluray drive.

There is no comparison though many would like to be the apologist for M$

People with your tone that waste your time (as if you are bringing any of us news) and act like you develop games for the PS3 or in the least like you know the system inside and out....

Hint: just don't mention memory or anything like that because you obviously don't understand the cell processor in any way whatsoever.

There. You go.

[rob6021]

It will be hard to gauge whether 30% less on load times is really worth it, Its definitely a far cry from last gen with HDLoader on PS2, and Xbox chipped Where the DVD disk spin speed was a lot slower and you'd see drastic improvement. When they first announced this I was excited *considering i have an elite* But reality has hit home and improvements arn't really that much, considering HDD's are the same speed or less and DVD drives are much faster now. (Well duh maybe this is why 360 developers haven't been implementing optional installs in games)

I don't think its going to tip multi-plats to Xbox360 favor considering PS3 is using installs almost mandatory now, though i do admit the option is nice - so i dont have to install, but can still play the cruddy games. *probably going to have to increase my PS3 to 250 or 320 GB soon-mainly cause of installs - good thing its inexpensive*.

I'm assuming a PS3 install will beat out a 360 install because Developers can utilize the space much more efficiently and only put on there what would work best, and probably use half the space a 360 install would require - with similar results on both 'installs'.

And its sad they're really bragging about 'reducing noise', because the 360 is already louder than my pc when it doesn't run off the disk, (sigh) Noise is the number one reason i like my ps3 over my 360, really bugs me when you're in the middle of a game, and you hear that thing churning out noise, when i can't help but think *if this was on PS3 i wouldn't have that problem* Sad you have to install just to reduce the noise to where its still far louder than what PS3 offers.

[FKN Unbelievable]

It seems like everytime you tell the Cackling Sony fanboys that something is optional they seem to ignore that word? I'm not a fanboy but enough is enough already. You don't need it but it can help you enjoy the game even more.MS never said its Mandatory so any argument is moot. I alread Finished DMC4 and its load times was'nt even bad to warrant a install. Yes i'd hate the fact that if i owned a ps3 i had to mandatory install a fuking game for 20 minutes when i could already have been imerged in game. Once again Ladies the Keyword is optoinal along with upgrading your HDD. When that times comes then i upgrade it. Stop fuking trying to find fault for everything and worry about your own systems problems.

[pete2711]

Wasn't the only reason the installs optional because not all XBOX's come with a HDD so it would be unfair on alot of people. Also thats how XBOX is stumping the growth of games, Constantly having to waste all tht blu ray space and HDD space coz it has to fit on a XBOX! Everytime a multi-platform game comes out i wonder how good it could of been only on ps3.

[jlemdon]

I meant to say it's exactly like how u guys said u could do with out rumble but soon as sony announce u guys go bonkers.

also with the trophies & movie as well.

[PirateThom]

Lots of games can be installed to 20GB..

Thanks Microsoft for this useless feature.

[SoonThai]

the reason why its optional for the X360 is probably because not all X360 Consoles come with HDD. If it was mandatory then those people get screwed, then more flaming. so stop using the optional card because its impossible for MS to implement mandatory cause it would anger lots of Core console gamers.