Destructoid: How Microsoft ruined fun for everybody

Destructoid writes: "I love my Xbox 360 just as much as I love my PlayStation 3. It's got a great library of games that I've invested a considerable amount of time and money into over the past few years, and it's a system that will likely still be serving me for some time to come.

That said, in a significant parallel to the PS3, my love for the system seems to come at an inverse proportion to my love for the company behind it. I am of course talking about Microsoft, otherwise known as the poster boy for corporate greed and everything that is wrong with America. Not my words, the words of other people ... probably.

Despite bringing out a good console that many true gamers have flocked to, Microsoft has also helped to ruin fun for everybody. Perhaps you don't believe me, and are preparing to call me a "bias troll that's trying to get fired" already, but please read the article before making your accusations".

[JaggedSac]

LOL. Looks like it must be the emotional time of the month for this blogger. Take some Midal before posting please.

[gamesR4fun]

but theres nothing wrong with ms getting into the console game and i dont think they did more harm than good. Fact is they put the stakes up with their online services. Sure ps3 is almost as good and free but its ms that pioneered it imo.
I suspect if they had made a more reliable machine and curbed their greed a bit they would b #1. Lucky for Sony and Nintendo they fell short.

[Rock Bottom]

N4G should have a separate section for "emotional" bloggers.

[Maddens Raiders]

"I am of course talking about Microsoft, otherwise known as the poster boy for corporate greed and everything that is wrong with America."

"One feeling a console should never, ever evoke, however, is fear. People should not be afraid to turn their Xbox 360s on, faced with a grim inevitability that one day it just won't work anymore. However, this is the prevailing emotion that Microsoft has given to gamers. A dread feeling every time they turn on a 360 and feel that it's taking longer to switch on than usual. That timid wait for the blessed arrival of lights that flicker green instead of red. That horrible moment when a game just crashes while trying to load, and the scramble to reset the Xbox in the hopes that it switches on again."

I expect we'll see more and more of these "sudden conversion" articles as the train pulls further and further away from 2005. Oh, the humanity!

lmfao

[phosphor112]

So expect a one for Nintendo soon as well.

[Immortal Kaim]

I think it's hilarious, you know why, cause most of it is true. The 360 is the most dodgy piece of hardware I have ever owned (PS2 is second), if they didn't have the strong games and community like they do, I wouldn't touch it.

[Elven6]

"Microsoft, otherwise known as the poster boy for corporate greed and everything that is wrong with America. Not my words, the words of other people ... probably"

LOL! This guy has obviously never heard of companies like IBM, GM, Enron, etc! Microsoft has done a few shady things in the past but they have many redeeming qualities about them, just look at the huge amounts of cash they donate to various charities on a yearly basis.

The article itself is ridiculous, comparing 360 themes to PS3 themes? Probably because it takes more work to create a 360 theme then it does a PS3 theme, plus Sony gives the tools to make said PS3 themes at home. Microsoft isn't very "bullying" when it comes to charging for small stuff, when it comes to other items such as DLC, map packs, etc they may be a bit more aggressive.

Hardware issues are a problem yes but Microsoft has done much to rectify this to the best of their abilities. The problems have severely decreased over the past few months.

The days of companies on the scale of Microsoft, Sony, Activision, EA, etc being able to make money using low price models like Mr. Sterling suggests if impossible.

This is a stupid ass rant, why is Jim Sterling still writing for Destructoid anyway?

[Tony P]

By the same guy who wrote "Sony needs to STFU"? 'Nuff said.

[IdleLeeSiuLung]

I'm of the belief that the market will correct itself. Screw over your customer and they will eventually revolt.

From all I have seen most of the customers seem to be happy and the most unhappy onces seems to always complain about 2-3 things:

a) RROD which is justifiable, but now a days is a non-issue.

b) Pricing on various item, most notably DLC and Xbox Live Gold. Well if you don't like it, don't buy it. There are perfectly other great alternatives so bugger off!

c) Advertisement on NXE. This to me is a great thing, because all this advertisement is so far relevant. Do you complain about Google showing you relevant ads at the top? What about if Google showed you irrelevant ads?

I think it is fair that MS tries to profit from their business and that is an important factor. If Sony had come out with subscription based PSN and more agressive pricing, they might have afforded to get a price cut sooner.

If consumer don't like it they will avoid it and the company is forced to change their business or suffer!

[heroprotagonist]

The things I don't like about the Xbox 360 are:

1. RROD, E74, and just crappy reliability all around
2. Expensive proprietary accessories. The hard drives cost a ridiculous sum of money and I don't like that I can't use Bluetooth or regular USB headsets like you can on the PS3.
3. Paying extra for Wi-fi
4. The feeling that most Xbox 360 "exclusives" are not going to stay exclusive and will be available on another console eventually.
5. Paying for Xbox Live. It just isn't worth it to me. PSN does what I need and is free.

So I agree with a lot of the points in this article even though it is basically a crappy article just like the one he wrote attacking Sony.

[Pika-pie]

240 Points to down load a theme... After paying an annual subscription to Xbox Live....!!!

And people moan about Sonys pricing policies... Whatever

[willie6289]

"just look at the huge amounts of cash they donate to various charities on a yearly basis. "

you do know that this is done for the huge tax write offs they get right? every large company does donations. check out phillip morris for a good example. does that make them a good company? no.

[Corepred4]

if you believe that microsoft is giving money to charities because it wants to. ever heard of taxes? and you know that they use these charities just to get tax breaks. if it weren't for taxes you know they would't be giving out a dime!

[JD_Shadow]

"c) Advertisement on NXE. This to me is a great thing, because all this advertisement is so far relevant. Do you complain about Google showing you relevant ads at the top? What about if Google showed you irrelevant ads?"

The issue, though, is that they show these ads even AFTER they get your money for the year long Gold membership to XBL, which is inexcusable. If you're not paying for the service (like, if they were only showing them on accounts from the Silver memberships), then that would be understandable. But not AFTER you've paid for the service (where most other services would have those ads removed once payment was received).

And with those Google ads, they're not as "in your face" as the XBL ads are being.

[jden28]

First of all Gamers have had one fear or another for almost every game system ever created. Example; nes & snes blowing on carts to get it to play, ps1 had to turn it upside down to prevent over heating cause air vents were on the bottom, ps2 had 3 first one scratched a ring on my disc 2nd disc read errors wouldn't read the blue disc, jaguar no support, saturn killed early, dreamcast killed early, n64 weak 3rd party support stupid cartriges costed 60 bucks back 13 yrs ago.

So rather it's a hardware problem most notorious are ps1,ps2, & xbox 360 or a software shortage or the whole platform dying a early death there has always been fear.

Second all of these companys are out to make money and they should. but your right I don't like shady tacktics. For instance nintedo in the early nes & snes days used it's market dominance 95% to prevent sega and other from getting a foothole and had publishers sign contracts and prevented developers from making games on any consoles but thiers. Sony used it's market dominance 70 % in it's ps1 and ps2 days to secure exclusives even though it didn't have the best hardware that generation,(xbox), imagine ffx built from the ground up to use xbox specs...mmmmm..sweet...

Third yup your right paying too much for too little sucks... I'm talking about all the crappy 1200 point games that have and will follow braid. However is something has value or is exceptional then I'm willing to pay, and xbl is!! better than psn thats why I pay and they're looking to add more things to it and give more to gold members who pay for it . Oh xbl is better bcause downloads are faster, we get more content than psn, not because msoft pays for it but because msoft doesn't charge developers per mb for comsumers to download it. So we'll get more and get it first.

Last didn't sony get in the market to stick it to nintendo not because sony was making magnificent games at that time.

So I say you're a jaded gamer with a short memory, but thats ok we all have short memories or should, because don't we play games to get away and some fun.. I'm forgetting this already it's time to play something.....

[callahan09]

1) Most PS3 themes are free, and there are literally hundreds of free themes available, not to mention that themes on the PS3 are fully customizable and you can make your own themes.

2) There is no advertisement on PSN except within the store itself. Even there, there are no advertisements for anything other than games. On the XMB, there is not a single ad.

3) Most PSN games are 10 dollars, or less. A lot of them are priced at 3, 5, 6, 7, or 8 dollars. Not to mention that they often give away games for free (I've gotten about a half dozen PSN games for free in the past year)

4) OK.

[IdleLeeSiuLung]

I guess I can see that people have commonly associated paid for service means no advertisement, but the advertisement is relevant. If they started showing irrelevant ads, then I would complain, but I personally prefer the ads. They show me what is upcoming and almost could be considered relevant information rather than ads.

For instance I didn't realize that The Secret of Monkey Island came out without the ads.

Perhaps a solution to it is the ability to turn it off, but the way I see it is MS now has much more financial power to benefit the consumer i.e. the lower console cost among other things.

If you don't like it, don't use it.

[All-3]

1)Most PS3 themes are free, and there are literally hundreds of free themes available, not to mention that themes on the PS3 are fully customizable and you can make your own themes.

> Are there 'premium' themes for the PS3 - yes or no?

2) There is no advertisement on PSN except within the store itself. Even there, there are no advertisements for anything other than games. On the XMB, there is not a single ad.

> Are there ads in the PSN store - yes or no?

> Are there ads in Qore - yes or no?

3) Most PSN games are 10 dollars, or less. A lot of them are priced at 3, 5, 6, 7, or 8 dollars. Not to mention that they often give away games for free (I've gotten about a half dozen PSN games for free in the past year)

> Are there $15 dollar PSN games - yes or no?

> Are there $15+ dollar PSN games - yes or no?

The answers to ALL of the above BTW - is YES.

[thewhoopimen]

To throw a wrench into your lame slippery slope argument All-3, lets put some clear unmistakable arguments up for consideration:

- Do your paid-for premium themese for pre-NXE still work post NXE
Y or N?
- Did you pay $20 (1200 pts) for Battlefield on XBL when everyone paid $14.99 on the Ps3?
Y or N?
- Did you tack on that $49.95/ year cost on top of all XBLA purchases?
Y or N?
- Do you happen to forget "premium" themes on Live cost about $3.00 (250 pts) when it all PSN "premium" themes have cost less than $1.99
Y or N?
- Do you think we're all so stupid that you can just cover glaring price differences with your candy nail polish arguments?
Y or N?

I rest my case.

I think reading through these posts and how many "anonymous" posters give carte-blanche to MS's charging tactics. It's clearly more cost-effective for Microsoft to hire a bunch of PR bu11shitters who 'smooth' over details with their lame straw-man arguments then it is to simply cut prices overall. Pay 3 guys? lose $105,000 to salary cost. Cut a game's price by $2.00-3.00? Lose meellions.

[jarhead906]

This is just an example of criticism for a company's actions. A similar article could be brought up for both Sony and Nintendo or even any large developer like EA or Activision.

While the tone of the article probably won't resonate well with Xbox 360 fans and put others off completely, the author merely pointed out the pitfalls of MS's business strategies that are usually overlooked.

The primary bullet-points in the article are quite simply true. From the theme pricing to the 'test' of how much gamers are willing to pay for XBLA games such as Braid are a testament to that.

This article will probably get bad rep because it doesn't fall in line with being the most popular opinion; and we all know that the most popular opinion is the correct one.

[Mo0eY]

Now that this has hit the front page, I hope more Xbox fanboys come here to read all of these bullet points that Destructoid pointed out. Maybe it'll open their eyes about how they are getting shafted by a greedy monopoly.

[FragMnTagM]

Last time I checked Sony charges for avatar clothes and loads more crap also like apartments and clubs and the like... so your point is....?

I'll give anyone the RROD argument, but it is nowhere near like it was. My launch console died on me last year and this one I have now seems ok.

[Harry_Manback]

"My launch console died on me last year and this one I have now seems ok."

What are you trying to say? That your launch console DIDN'T seem ok prior to its premature death? I highly doubt it. Thats just the thing too, you really don't know when the damn things are going to die. They don't show any warning signs that a problem may be on the horizon, they just straight up kick the bucket!

[willie6289]

"Last time I checked Sony charges for avatar clothes and loads more crap also like apartments and clubs and the like... so your point is....?"

the difference is there is no monthly fee on psn.

[jessupj]

I mostly agree with the article as well. He's basically saying he loves his 360 and the fun he's had over the years with it, but he hates MS. Frankly, I hate MS as well. Yes they have created a good gaming experience for 360 owners, but they have taken a lot from the industry instead of conbributing. I won't go into all the specifics, but if it wasn't for MS my PS3 experience would probably be a lot better.

It's not all MS though, of course sony is to blame as well. The issue here I'm talking about is 3rd party support. MS rushed out with a defective console, instead of taking pride in their work and making sure they have a quality product. Because of this they procured quite a big lead, so of course devs will give more support for the bigger install base. Of course the PS3's high price and complicated hardware are factors as well, but none so great then MSs 1 year head start.

I'm not annoyed that MS released their console when they did. If I was in charge I'd do the exact same thing. What I'm annoyed at is MS, knowing they had a defective console, still released it before it was ready. The motivation there was purely greed. Let me say that again....purely greed. Yes sony wants to make money as well, but they also have a passion for their product and games. You can see many examples of this.

That's why I choose the PS3. Because Sony has a passion for it's games as well. It's pretty darn obvious MS only cares about 2 things; money and bragings rights to show down sony's throat. And it's games and products clearly show this selfishness and lack of passion.

[XLiveGamer]

You the consumer is the one who decide what to buy and what not to buy.

Is not Microsoft the one to blame about price content on Xbox Live and nobody from there have a shotgun in my forehead forcing me to buy their stuff. People who spend money on digital useless stuff are the ones to blame but ones again NOBODY have a shotgun in their foreheads.

FEAR? Not for me. Of course there have been many RROD and some E74 but some of those "RROD News" have been exaggeration on the internet.
Do i have fear? NO my xbox360 have been running smoothly since 1st day, NO disc scratch, NO RROD, NO E74 and NO noise.

But hey some people forgot about this and other similar complains about PS2: http://www.consumeraffairs.... <<< Now that is a stupid mistake coming from a HARDWARE company. Dont forget that the people behind the Xbox360 CPU are: Sony & IBM.

Is your mind trapped on this Xbox360 vs PS3 vs Wii vs PC?
Here a solution: GROW the Fnck Up!

[topdawg122]

No noise? now i know you're lying

[Gue1]

Do not try to compare a 30-33 percent failure rate to the mere 5 to 10 percent on the PS2. I have friends with almost 5 broken Xbox's for god sake! That's just gross and shows that you really like to get ripped-off by MS.

MS says that they want to give you a choice but when the choices are as expensive as they are, I don't want any choices then... Expensive HDD, Wi-Fi card, pay to play online and for everything that it is in it, very unreliable console, etc. It is really a miracle that people are still supporting the brand. Figure it out.

-But but btu the X360 is the PS2 of this Gen!

The X360 doesn't have as many games releases as it used to and the sales aren't that far from the PS3 either. No quality, no consistency. That's what happen when you don't have a great first party support and only depend of third party's for great tittles on your console. =D

[thedukeofkna]

stay away from this one folks, just more fuel for the never ending console wars.

is it me, or is this all destructoid is good for?

[whateva]

both articles are dumb and just used to get hits on the website by mad fanboys.

[shocky16]

Everyone on N4G loves MS. :)

Things I'm annoyed at MS for this gen

-unreliable hardware
-lame paid DLC

apart from that it's been pretty super for me.

[Anon1974]

but I think it's a poor writer who falls back on profanity to make his point. He had a couple of good points, but ultimately this article fails for me when it starts to sound like it was written by a drunken frat boy.

And Destructoid continues it's descent from mediocrity to oblivion.

[cyborg6971]

Your right how can anyone want to be taken as a mature adult and on top of that a journalist when they are effing this and sh!t that sterling is a hack trying to prove that he has no bias.

[Typical-Guy]

Every company has good and bad actions , no one is complete .

[FragMnTagM]

Bubble sir.

[Traveler]

At the same time, let's not pretend that all companies are exactly the same. Some companies are more ethical than others.

[tehReaper]

Ohh and I suppose Sony is ethical and Microsoft isn't? Don't pretend Sony is innocent.

Want ethical? Look at how much Microsoft donates to fundraisers and charities.

[willie6289]

again with the donations argument, people do some research into WHY these big companies like microsoft donate so much money to charity. Ill give you a hint, its not because they are just being nice.

[tehReaper]

What? For taxes?

That would make sense, if they donated under the maximum charity tax credit limit.

Why would they donate more, then? I'll give you a hint, it's not because they are just being greedy.

[willie6289]

your right i'm sure the millions they donate to political figures and spend on their army of lobbyist in the name of charity is all just because they want to do the right thing and are such a wonderful honest company.

[jessupj]

Sony definately arn't perfect, but as far as greedy backhanded business tactics go MS are a lot lot worse.

[tehReaper]

Wow, you really hate Microsoft, Willie. No matter what anyone says or proves to you, you'll spin it to make Microsoft look evil.

I never said Microsoft was an honest company, but you're convinced every single thing they do has some evil master plan behind it. I've heard it over and over again how Microsoft pays off reviewers and websites by fanboys. I've never witnessed any proof to it, but you guys swear up and down they pay off people.

Me? I really don't care what Microsoft does as long as they keep providing a great online service, but shoddy journalism like this is exactly why you're all brainwashed to hate Microsoft.

[willie6289]

no, i never claimed that microsoft was completely evil or that any other company was not. All i said is that the excuse of "but look at all the money microsoft gives out!" argument is naive and does not prove that they are a good or just company.
i for sure never mentioned paying off a company or any other of that fanboy crap. I didn't even mention the 360. I think the 360 is a fine console but i think microsoft is one of the worst when it comes to corporate ethics.

[HuGi]

Microsoft ruined the fun ?? Oh shame on them...

Now im going to paly on my 360 Halo 3 , GoW2 or Cod4 in a party with my friends or just battelfield or Splosion Man with my friends or other XBLA Games or Xbox 360 Games...

Shame on you Microsoft , damn i love u Microsoft so shame on u for making me love u !

Shame!!!

AHAH

[Mo0eY]

You go do that. Make sure to send that $50 to M$ in the meantime.

[CrazyOrange]

as i said before i never loved video games beofre xbox360, achievements and xboxlive is perfect and enough to make any core gamer happy.

a part from the crappy hardware, xbox360 is the best console ever to date for me.

console i owned:

-PS3,PS2,PS1,PSP
-Wii
-XBOX,XBOX360

[Traveler]

You have low standards.

You never loved videogames before the 360? How old are you?...12? Are you really even a gamer?

[4pocalyps3]

the hell?! 360 best console ever?! this must be your first gen of gaming then. the snes EASILY beats 360 in terms of gaming experience.

[ShabzS]

no need to attack the dude just coz he likes the 360 ...

[hulud86]

You don't have to be a child to not like video games that much. Children are probably the biggest fans of video games. Traveler, if you are the definition of a gamer i hope im not a gamer.

[ultimolu]

Not with that dreaded RROD it ain't. Software wise it's impressive, Hardware wise...no.

You can't be serious.

[Guitarded]

He's been gaming since the PS1 at least. He also states that "apart from the crappy hardware, xbox360 is the best console to date for me." So yes juultimolu he's serious. Are you? Reading comprehension seems to be a lost skill here on N4G.

[lloyd_sr1]

The PS2 was the only perfect system, ever.

The good 'ol days... Every single great game at the tip of my fingers.

[shocky16]

Reliable - OH HELL NO

I must of gone through about 3 PS2's with the DRE's >_<

[Oner]

And I still have 2 launch day PS2's that are working PERFECTLY. Whereas my launch day 360 has failed on me 4 damned times....But either way I can easily say that there WERE **some** problems with **some** models of PS2's but absolutely no where near the cluster F the 360 continues to be.

[Traveler]

I think it is funny the way some fanboys try to equate the few problems the PS2 had with the RROD and other problems that have afflicted the 360. The DRE issue was nowhere near to being on the same level as the 360's RROD and E74 issues, and everybody knows it. The original Xbox also had some problems with disc read errors.

My PS2 was bought in October of 2001 and still works to this day.

[tehReaper]

Traveler, just because you have never had problems doesn't mean others didn't. I had two PS2s go out, and my third one makes a weird noise(still works great, though).

Same goes with the 360. I myself have had no problems with any of my three 360s(*knock on wood*). I have a launch model, an elite, and a jasper(main).

Truth is, both systems had problems. We don't know the actual failure rate of either, so it's a dead argument. And don't go quoting me that 33% failure rate that came from some dude that works at Gamestop. Why would anyone trust Gamestop, anyway?

[willie6289]

the nice thing about the ps2 was that if you got a DRE (i did) you were able to fix it yourself. just pop the cover make some height adjustments on the laser and viola, good as new. with the current gen though, if you get any hardware error, its game over.

[tehReaper]

You can fix RROD too, man. Youtube it.

Or, you can send it in to get fixed for free if it's younger than 3 years.

[Oner]

I've fixed mine 4 times so far and it will continue to fail, plain & simple. A DRE is a simple fix ~ swap laser and done. The 360's "fix" is MAJOR work, a MAJOR flaw and once an Xclamp is done, it's still NOT guaranteed to work for the life of the gen of the console. And if you think the 33% estimate is coming from a Gamestop Employee then you need to read this ~ http://www.8bitjoystick.com...

[JonnyBigBoss]

I kind of understand his point. If the Xbox 360 wasn't out, then the Playstation 3 would stand alone for hardcore gaming, and there would not only be a much larger install base, but there would be more games for it, and more people online. Kind of a ridiculous thought but it's true.

[Pandamobile]

But without the 360's competition to the PS3, Sony would have no reason to price the PS3 competitively and the PS3 would probably cost like $600 today.

[The Xbox Empire]

Yea and you'd still only have text chat instead of voicechat features without XBL..... Errr......well I just found out PSN still only has text chat anyways right now, but although PSN is extremely mediocore, it would be much worse without Xbox Live. Trophies, In-Game XMB and the new look of the PS Store happened because XBL, though they still suck and are half-assed wannabe functions.

[ShabzS]

well thats just ignorant... microsoft has helped sony as much as sony has helped the industry as a whole ... theres no denying that the standard was set by sony with the psx and the ps2 .... microsoft added things like online gaming for consoles since the first xbox and now achievements/ trophies and live arcade with the 360

[Jmlopezbr]

Competition allows improvement. If you didn't have an opponent who was trying to do better than you, then why would you change something that was already working, except to please the consumers, but that would make the improvements not as necessary for people buy the thing anyway.

[rob6021]

I'd have to say Sony wouldn't have sold many PS3s had Sony kept the price at $600 with or without Microsoft in the market - they had to lower the cost. They make money off the software not the hardware so getting it out to consumers was important. Trophys you can probably give ms credit for, but in game xmb and the new store you're reaching.

Say Sony backs out next gen, well all be paying for online, watching ads on our interfaces and playing on rushed-untested cheap, noisy hardware with a get you in cheap, then gouge you with monthly fee's and overpriced peripherals model (boy don't we all love the cellphone model). And you can thank MS for it all. God help us all if MS gets a monopoly on Hardcore gaming.

[Mo0eY]

Pretty much this article states the facts of sheeple:

Xbox 360 has RRoD and E74 which causes fear; PS3/Wii you can just turn on and enjoy
M$ uses ads that you pay to see; PS3 does not.
Xbox Live you pay for; PSN you don't (in his example, he uses a BioShock theme - LOL I GET THAT FOR FREE ON PSN)
M$ trying to copy the Wii with avatars (which you pay money to buy new clothes).

I'll add the ludicrous accessories (wireless adapter and proprietary HDD) you have to get which will end up costing you more than the PS3.

Milkcrosoft.

[JonnyBadfinger]

Trust you of all people to jump on this wackos bandwagon.

how can the xbox ruin gaming??? if you look it this article from this guys point of view, your basically saying that Sony ruined gaming by jumping in the market and taking Nintendo's lime light. Because its true.

Microsoft have just done the same thing as Sony, and are succeeding too. Whats wrong with another console on the market if it doesnt affect your personal preference??

[The-Director]

I hear the drums of war.

[The Xbox Empire]

lol change the title to "Microsoft is kickin' ass and I feel like crying"

[heroprotagonist]

You mean Microsoft getting their ass kicked by the Wii and barely doing better than the PS3. You 360 fanatics are so delusional.

[vShinobi]

I agree with most of what he said but some things he needs to learn more about do some research before going on a rant, MS is not as evil as you think they just love money too much to admit they made a faulty console instead they released upates and patches which fixed some of them and gave us a 3 year warranty for the RROD problem not really a solution but atleast it saved them millions instead of making a brand new console.

IMO both MS, Sony and nintendo have there good and bad things not every company is going to be a halo wearring angel, but i do agree MS is the only one out of the 4 charging for P2P which is stealing from us, we payed for the console so why should we have to pay more to play online.

[hulud86]

Most gamers seem happy with Xbox Live and i've rarely heard someone compliment PSN. So MS charges for a better service.

The more you invest in something, the more you get in return right? There's more luxury in a Mercedes than a Honda right? So, you invest $50 a year for a better experience than a free service. Like most companies, Microsoft will focus on what makes money.

[rob6021]

Can you imagine the scale of the CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT that would have been filed against Microsoft had they not introduced the three year RROD specific warranty? yea Microsoft wouldn't be making consoles ever again that's for sure.

@hulud86
With xbox live As long as you keep believing you're getting something for what you pay for, Microsoft will keep charging you it. You see you lose by defending their decision to charge you, heck we all lose because we're all forced to pay to play 360 online.

If the features that xbox live provides over PSN are so valuable why can't Microsoft just let people play online free without them?? (hint: because MS and everyone else knows people only pay the $40-50 because they're forced to to play online.)

[heroprotagonist]

It's a bunch of baloney. A couple of nonessential features doesn't make it worth paying for Xbox Live. I have both consoles and I never use cross game chat, that's right, never. I know some people use it, but I bet you nearly every one of them, if given a choice to play for free or pay for those few extra features, would not pay the subscription. The only reason I pay is because I have to in order to even play my games online. That's it.

[Double Toasted]

whats the point of the PS3? Discuss....

[heroprotagonist]

You got it backwards. It should be "With the PS3 out...
whats the point of the 360"?

But other than that I agree with you. Everybody makes small mistakes from time to time.

[HuGi]

i have already send over 1000$ for games , Xbox , Live and MS Points.

Thanks for remeber me!

[darkequitus]

I have bought over 70 360 Games. So Can Sony, for Their PS3 (mear day one)
+ 30 game, PSP (HK import because I could not wait), their over-priced Vaio laptop. And don't forget my over-priced Macs. You see, I do it willingly for both consoles. No gun to my head.

"You go do that. Make sure to send that $50 to M$ in the meantime."

P.S. Who asked Sony to get into the gaming business? Silly argument.

[thebudgetgamer]

Then they stabbed them in the back. thus now we have Playstation.

:)

[RealityCheck]

@6.2 Your actually right. It's ironic that Nintendo contracted Sony to do hardware for their gaming console and after cancelling the contract that Sony decided not to let their work go to waste and entered the gaming console market.

It's also ironic that Sega (and Peter Moore) had Microsoft do the OS on the Dreamcast only for the Dreamcast to fold and Microsoft (and Peter Moore) to launch the Xbox.

[i3eyond the Circle]

MSFT have turned the 360 into an online community hub.

They're people on Xbox Live that spend more time on it then they do in the real streets.

You don't just automatically get the best and most active online community by charging 50$.

Support, features, content and presentation is what MSFT constantly devoted there time to for XBL users.

If the other competitors gave that to there online services you would see a fee somewhere down the line.

But since there is none....that's why you see half assed incomplete betas of an app that was suppose to be console changing on that other console.

By 2012 XBL will be a damn economy.

[JackBNimble]

I'm getting tierd of seeing someones personal opinion (blog) getting approved on this web site.
This sh!t is nothing but Flamebait and it has no place on this web site.

This is NOT news and there for this B.S.story should be reported.

[FragMnTagM]

Bubble.

[adsaidler]

i'm a xbox360 fan, and agree 100% with him
i always feared turning my 360 on, and never played for more than 2 hours straight, due to the overheating problem. it really sucks.
after 2 years my xbox broke and i bought a high end PC, that i can play for endless hours without worries that it may explode

[nightelfmohawk]

Everyone knows M$ is in it for the money, not for the gamers, which is why I refuse to buy a Xbox 360. (that and the fact that the 360 is the most defective piece of **** to come out of the console industry to date).

[TheMART]

Yesss..... $ony isn't in for the money. Neither is Nintendo. They're in it just for you and want to loose money to give you the best games.

[-MD-]

"Everyone knows M$ is in it for the money"

So is Sony... Sony would probably slaughter people if there was profit in it.

[Mo0eY]

@Murderdolls

The difference between Sony and Microsoft would be that Microsoft would charge for every bullet fired, what kind of people you killed, what weapon you used, and there would be a time limit.

Sony would just ask for a fee and let you be on your way with it.

That's the difference.

[-MD-]

Keep in mind Sony would probably use bullets made out of cardboard and Microsoft's would be store bought.

[Traveler]

The difference is, Sony never had a federal anti-trust case brought against them that they lost.

Seriously, not all companies are the same. The common internet meme that all companies are after money and therefor all the same is pure bullsh*t.

[Etseix]

i think its... for a vengance.
well u know, back on the day, Sony was about to build something for Nintendo so they can make games now on cds, still, they refuse that idea and went with philips not SONY,

later, SONY didnt delete theyr idea of the CD based console (a console more easy to make games for because the CD base obviusly),so they made the playstation wich we all know was a success so the ykeep it up with the PS brand. still,

i dont think they did that for the money, remember? back on 1996 the videogames market wasnt so huge, the *world* sarted to see this market until the PS2 wich was selling like hot cakes. it was right THEN when MS made *xbox*

and.. yeah i agree with the article, the *xbox's hardware is a piece of trash* yes, not the games, the hardware.... thats the bad side of it.

[Sk8boyP]

If Sony isn't in it for the money, then why do they charge money for the PS3? Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo are ALL in it for money. Their BUSINESSES! Not charities, ALL of them want money.

[Etseix]

im saying WHY they started with the game industry not WHY theyr THERE rightr now

nintendo started with just trying to do games, not all was about money. right now theyr for money. and *revolutionizing* the industry (or its supossed theyr doing that)

Sony started like i say i dunno of it was for vengance of, hell i dunno, it wasnt for money, game industry wasnt *known* so much when they made Playstation, right now, yea theyr for money still, doing great games (1 party)

Microsoft, started when game industry was known and wanted to take down Sony, (i think?) anyway, for them is more *real* the fact that they started(and are right now) for the money.

im discussing why they started (in this reply section started by nightel*) not the article.

[ShabzS]

i suppose a way the fun is restricted coz of the hardware issues .... thats the one thing that really bothers me even with the free repairs....

you never have that feeling of letting lose and gaming care free for a period of 17 or 18 hrs with you freinds on live the way you do on pc's with games like counter stike or unreal... i really hope the get it right the next time...

[bunfighterii]

its probably a good thing they're keeping you away from your tv for 17-18 hour stints on your tv.

Get out and play some basketball or something.

[ShabzS]

lol... 17 - 18 hrs is a rare example ... i've done that only twice... but okay i'll go play outside more often from now on mom

[Myth-Psn]

Although this article might seem a bit harsh om ms's behalf,Its definately what needs to be said,weather people are listening or not, this is how microsoft "role",and only a taste of how a xbox dominated generation would bring,i can see it now, new 'premium' xbox gold,You now get unlimited use of online games, whereas in xbox gold, you are limited to one hour.Of coure,Premium gold will cost somewhere up into 90 dollars for half a year :P

[VforVideogames]

Doesn't ps3 charge for avatar close? furniture? all that nonsense shiznit? remember all this big company's are after one thing only:::::::: MONEY!!!!! and they will get it some way or another. and dont worry about the rrod's, microsoft will fix them for free.

[ActionBastard]

MS "ruined fun" as much as Nintendo or Sony...ridiculous suggestion. Owners of the 360 certainly have, however.

[lloyd_wonder]

I respect MS...

Nah. I don't.... :)

[TRIPLEPLAY]

R. E. S. P. E. C. T. M$ cant get none from me......
i know its an A.F song not S.W but still lol

[iChaos Amongus]

He says this one second: "I love my Xbox 360 just as much as I love my PlayStation 3."

And then: "Nobody ever asked Microsoft to get into the console gaming market."

No one asked Sony to join either lol, it was in their interest to join...that was okay though huh?...I bet this guy was plenty fine with Sony's monopoly in Gaming a few years ago too.

Biased author fails

[ActionBastard]

Actually, Nintendo asked them in a partnership on a CD-rom based console, that would ultimately evolve into the PSOne after Nintendo screwed them over.

[iChaos Amongus]

So Sony didn't join the gaming industry for the money, you believe their here today becuase they were asked? lol Was Nintendo or Sega asked? Its ridiculous, this is a crybaby, emotional article not in touch with reality. Anyone who wants to compete and has the money can compete.

[ActionBastard]

I'm not saying money wasn't a motivator, it was certainly was, but they WERE asked.

Now, the article is nothing more than fanboy-fodder for Sunday hits. The guy writes bashing Sony one week, now Microsoft. It's what this generation of "gaming" become.

[TRIPLEPLAY]

[SLLCKGT]

I will never buy an Xbox, not because its an xbox, far from it, but because I don't trust MS. They rushed out a brick box that scratches games and melts on you. They want to charge you $150 for a 120 GB HD, where with the PS3 you can get 500 GB for that, I got 320 for $65. They want you to use a special xbox headset, cause they were too cheap to add bluetooth technology, with the PS3 I used any bluetooth I had in the house. MS wants you to go dino and use double A batteries in their controllers, cause they know you have no choice but to buy one of their or an associated company's recharging kits. They want you to pay $400 for the Elite, which is the same price as a 40 GB PS3, but still no wifi! u STILL have to pay $100 for that. And considering Im writing this from my PS3 with my wireless keyboard, why couldn't MS, out of all companies, be able to install a web browser on the xbox. This til this day I can't figure out.

My biggest hatred for MS is the fact they charge you to play online. I wouldn't care if it was $5 for the whole year! Fact is MS is saying you can buy Modern Warfare for $60, but you cant play the multiplayer portion of this game until you pay us too. I don't care what kind of bells and whistles Xbox Live has to offer, bottom line is gamers wanna play games, other crap like texting or chatting is just extra nonsense.

This just shows how easily us Americans can be fooled with the right marketing and hype. Xbox is the most faulty electronical device I can think of in history, yet 13-18 year olds are still buying them cause lets face it, a father who doesn't know anything about games is gonna look at the $200 xbox and $400 ps3 and think its the same thing and buy the xbox. He'll think he did the smart thing, until his son asks for his credit card so he can play online, and then 2 weeks later standing in line at the store he bought it from to exchange his RROD xbox

[bunfighterii]

too right.

MS fiscally rapes you to use features that Sony provide free of charge.

[tehReaper]

You've been listening to fanboy rants for too long, bud.

2005, the year the Xbox 360 released. 2006, the year the PS3 and Wii released.

See the gap? Obviously bluetooth and wifi were NOT as viable as they are now. Sony and Nintendo had an entire year to add on to what Microsoft already released. Wifi has been since added in form of an accessory. Wifi is slow and in my mind should be used for wireless electronics(like DS, PSP, Ipod). Bluetooth is nice though, and that's one of the reasons I have a PS3. My question to you, since you brought up controller batteries, where was rumble at the PS3's launch?

"And considering Im writing this from my PS3 with my wireless keyboard, why couldn't MS, out of all companies, be able to install a web browser on the xbox. This til this day I can't figure out. "

Wow, fanboy much? You go on to say...

"I don't care what kind of bells and whistles Xbox Live has to offer, bottom line is gamers wanna play games, other crap like texting or chatting is just extra nonsense."

Since when did a web browser have ANYTHING to do with gaming?

I'm done, I've wasted enough time on your contradicting comment.

[ActionBastard]

Bluetooth and WiFi NOT viable in 2005/2006? Why? Because every Blackberry, Palm, PSP, and DS had either BT or WiFi and 360 made it a $100 add-on? Saying wireless is slow means either you have a sh1tty internet pipe, a sh1tty wifi router, both or don't understand bandwidth.

[tehReaper]

Bluetooth was used mainly for phones back then and wifi, as I stated, is used more on wireless electronics(handhelds). The reason why Sony and Nintendo added it in their consoles is because they looked at their handhelds and thought, hey, we can use them together and Wifi would be a great way to get them connected to the same network. They did a smart thing.

And son, don't tell me I have a slow connection because I don't. You're the one who doesn't understand that wifi is unstable whereas ethernet isn't.

Odds are, people who use wifi also have different devices connecting to the same connection. Ethernet uses only two hosts connected by a cable. Wifi is constantly changing and spans beyond two hosts. Not to mention all the things that can interfere with wifi: Microwaves, baby monitors, cordless phones, etc.

Not trying to be mean, just showing you I know "a little" about bandwidth.

[ActionBastard]

Sony nor Nintendo were thinking about using wifi to connect their devices on the same LAN. At 11MB a sec (at the time)? Hell, the current PSP is still 802.11b. Is that why there is soooo much wireless transfer chatter from Nintendo or Sony? Doh! That's right, they don't. The PSP can only remote play (remote desktop so to speak) to the PS3. Tranfers, etc are done via USB.

Regarding Ethernet vs wifi, the amount of hosts has nothing to do with it. NOTHING. Even saying it shows me all I need to know regarding your tech savy. With QoS, you can guarantee bandwidth to a specific IP or mac address. With this nifty thing wireless routers use called "channels", you can avoid interference all together. How? CHANGE THE CHANNEL. And nothing you said even correlates to bandwidth, so I guess you did show you know "little". Not trying to be mean of course.

[SLLCKGT]

Im not a fanboy, Ive been gaming a long time and I know quality and value when I see it, and Xbox isn't one of them. I should've probably mentioned I dont only use my PS3 for gaming but I have over 800 songs and a 1000 pics not to mention movies and tv shows. A bigger HD, Blutooth and wifi were something they could've easily added later on on the Elite but chose not to, and still charge $400. Ya the 120 is more then 40 GB you get with the PS3, but like i said you can get 500GB for the PS3 unlike the maxed out 120. Rumble thing is a good point but kinda lame. Ya rumble might be cool but its not a deal breaker, I actually turn off my rumble but it might be a big deal to others

"I don't care what kind of bells and whistles Xbox Live has to offer" Web browser on the PS3 you dont have to pay monthly or yearly for, texting or even chatting with friends on xbox you do. Web browser and Blu ray is a nice feature for $400, what you gotta say about the elite? I call that bells and whistles, you can say a web browser on the PS3 is something you pay for when you buy it. The Elite is too much for a low tech machine that gives you nothing.

[TABSF]

I have said it before and i will say it again Microsoft did not enter the console industry to be world leaders but the stop the developments of other companies becoming powerful in IT like them.

But if i was Microsoft even with a decline in profits (they still made more money than any other IT company,) i would not be worried.

[ActionBastard]

Not more profitable than Google. They made more in search ad revenue than MS grossed as profit the entire quarter. $22 billion vs $9. Why else do you think Bing exists?

[HDgamer]

Why is this section filled with a flame war and yet the open zone isn't? I'm serious, this article is clearly flamebait but the fanboys are in the gamer zone.

[Sir Ken_Kutaragi]

...Devil??? Is it him??? ;-D

[-MD-]

No It's Bill Gates ;-D

[ZOMBIEMAN1]

your such an idiot Bill Gates = Satan for PS3 fanboys just like Bill is Jesus for 360 fanboys

[-MD-]

You're such an idiot*

[ZOMBIEMAN1]

i see your missing a sense of humar

[Arnon]

humor*

XD

[-MD-]

You're missing a sense of humor*

[Etseix]

lol Jesus Gates? lmao

[Pootangpie]

if anything sony is ruining the gameing industry way more then even nintendo MS is no saint either but MS isn't the only one waveing cash around for exclusives in fact if anything sony has gone out of there way to make idiots actually believe the PS3 is more powerful then the 360 even though there pretty much equalivent in terms of visuals maybe if they used games that you know were not exclusive and had a big fat sony label on them people might be suckered in unfortunatly Sony Americans aren't as stupid as you think so go shove those god damn POS animes up your ass

[Traveler]

You sound like an idiot. What "animes" are you talking about?

I agree the article is flamebait, but where were you when the anti-Sony article from Destructoid was posted? ... That's what I thought.

I don't listen to what Sony or Microsoft tell me about their consoles, I go by my own first hand experience. The PS3 has the best-looking games out of all the consoles, and it also has the best technical specs on paper, so when you put those two facts together the only sensible conclusion is that the PS3 IS the most powerful console.

[keysy420]

the thing is M$ is in it for the moeny but arent getting any sony has the stratgey down and m$ is still learning. the xbox is about dead natal isnt going to keep it going. 360 has reached it potential, and now they are trying to target the wii audience of casual gamer. Ms hello people arent pplaying the wii because it's easy to us they are playing it because its fun and different i dont see busting a sweat to a workout tape fun. no matter how you spin it. the wii still has great games that accent their controller and it backward compat they shouuldnt even be trying the market sony got it right target hardcore with nintendo moves

[keysy420]

just which one rips you off

ding ding ding m$!!

[AngelorD]

I agree completely.
So far the 360 has distinguished itself as the wannabe console.
Microsoft sits and waits 'till another company comes up with something successful and rip it off.
i.e - Avatars - Mii rip off
NXE - vertical XMB with preety shadows and icons
Stole FFXIII and Metal Gear
And they do the same not only with the 360.

[GiantEnemyCrab]

Is that you Jim Sterling? You sound just as STUPID as this article.

Trophies = Achievements
Video Marketplace = XBLVM
Home = Second Life
PSN = XBL
XMB = Windows Media Center interface
Stealing Bioshock and Dead Rising!

See look I can be a dumbass too!

[ShabzS]

lol ... best encounter on n4g ........ yet

[GiantEnemyCrab]

Speak for yourself Jim Sterling you hack!

I guess when you are just a little kid who wasn't around in the early days of consoles and having to blow in the cartridges to get them to work is foreign to you. Or you must of not been around in the PS2 days when DRE errors were rampant.

You can have FUN on the 360 without having to pay for Live and I have no idea how charging for themes, which is funny because you compare the PSN yet ignore the fact they have a whole section called PREMIUM THEMES, has to do with having FUN.

You think MS has a corner on the market for charging for stupid things? WTF? Tell that to the idiots paying $5 for a pair of virtual pants in Home you hack!

I am not saying MS doesn't deserve a lashing for the poor hardware and poor decisions and yes they aren't an angel of a company. Despite the millions and millions given away to fight disease in Africa and many other worthy causes.(www.gatesfoundation.or g). And just what have YOU done or Destructiod for that matter when it comes to things other than sitting on your ass playing video games?

I wouldn't expect this type of hack to even consider any of this stuff when lambasting MS as a poster child of evil. However, they are not alone and if you think any of these companies aren't motivated more by money and control then making people "happy" you need to get out from under neath the rock you live under hack!

I get frustrated with the tactics and some of the decisions but there is one thing I can say they haven't done and that is ruin FUN. To say they ruin fun for everybody is slander and why don't you just blame them for AIDS while you're at it hack?!

I feel ashamed to even click on the article to read it and it will be the LAST click Destructoid get's from me. Not just because of this article, there is a consistent flow of garbage from this once decent site.

[cyborg6971]

Don't forget that giving money to charity is a right off. It's something big companies have to do. Don't think for one second that it's for the children.

[RockmanII7]

Par. 1 - 360 = PS3
Par. 2 - Microsoft is evil... probably
Par. 3 - 360 ruined gaming for you
Par. 4 - 360 is stealing PS3 sales
Par. 5 - You should be afraid of your 360
Par. 6 - Video games are no longer fun
Par. 7 - MS sux
Par. 8 - Xbox Live isn't free
Par. 9 - MS makes a lot of money
Par. 10-14 Things are to expensive on XBL
Par. 15 - Wii > Natal + Avatars
Par. 16 - 360 is the drunk driver of this generation
Par. 17 - 360 owners are afraid and disappointed
Par. 18 - the 360 is successful

WOW... someone just got pwnd in Halo

[tehReaper]

One of the most biased articles I've read in a while.

[DelbertGrady]

When an article begins with "I love my Xbox 360 just as much as I love my PlayStation 3." you can pretty easily figure out what the writer is up to.

[commodore64]

The author of this article is probably going to get fired.

*Thanks baby jesus*

[ZOMBIEMAN1]

this has to be the most fickle site last week was we hate Sony for being arrogant and now they hate MS for talking fun out of games which both articles are total bullsh!t yeah MS released a faulty system and been doing deals under the table but after being beaten by Sony's PS2 can you blame em , i personally have no respect for them for getting exclusive DLC but i will admit they got kick ass games and a great fall line up but does that mean there talking the fun out of games ? no there not

[Etseix]

is teh same autor of all those PS3 bashing articles? o_O'

[Stryfeno2]

Wow it must of be that time of the month...Or this dude must of got banned on XBL.

[hulud86]

Wow. Over react much Destructoid?

I disagree. I bought a PS3 and a Wii, they were both borefest 2009.

[heroprotagonist]

I do not have a Wii but I do have a PS3 and a 360 and I can tell you that I spend a lot less time on my 360 than my PS3. The 360 hasn't had a decent exclusive in over half a year and even going back 8 months Gears 2 and Fable 2 were both let downs.

[cyborg6971]

Same here I have all systems and the 360 hasn't been on for over a year cause there is nothing for me there.

[Dead_Cell]

Nobody ever asked for your opinion on Microsoft. shut up.

Microsoft provided a good share of the good stuff this and last gen.
Halo - Most popular FPS.
Gears of war series
Forza
Mass effect
Kickstarted the online portion of consoles.

The Xbox isn't to my tastes admittedly,but it doesn't mean I'm blinded to all the good work Microsoft and the developers they work closely with done for the gaming industry and what has been born because of it.

Edit : Oh and the constant slurry of swear words in a supposedly profession gaming sites article is incredibly amatueristic.
Hire new writers.

[bunfighterii]

I agree. Microsoft is a company, like any other, whos bottom line is making a buck. They got into the console gaming industry cos they wanted a share of the huge profits being made. Nothing wrong with that.

[xcox]

http://www.astroglide.com/p...

hope it helps
XD

[AngryTypingGuy]

Thanks man, this helps a lot! The last time I was doing your mom up the you-know-where, she was complaining of soreness since that area isn't naturally lubricated. But thanks to you, that will no longer be a problem. Since you were so thoughtful, I'll tell her to raise your allowance.

[bluhefner]

I am not gonna lie I am Playstation biased, but am not a naive enough to unwelcome competition. To me honestly M$ aren't ruining the gaming industry but I will say they aren't pushing it forward either, and I can see why people think they are ruining gaming.

If M$ was in this industry to use their money to profit from innovative new ideas to evolve gaming world, then nobody really would have issue with them. But judging their actions from the past few years I believe it's clear as day they're trying using all their money to emulate the success of the Playstation brand by any means necessary. All the money spent on exclusive DLC, timed exclusives, ridiculous patents, advertising multiplatform games as exclusives. All that money spent on and they have little to no in-house devs for legit exclusives and a shoddy console that has a last gen format. U called that pushing the industry forward? All that money spent trying to be the me-too brand might be smart business for some but I just call it focking stoopid and its not helping the gaming industry.

M$ doesn't even have a legit gimmick to differentiate themselves from the other consoles? Nintendo has the we're family friendly controller gimmick, Sony has the we're technical blu ray gimmick. What gimmick does MS honestly have paying for online? uhhhh.........uhhhh... wait for it oh the we're cheaper than a PS3 me-too gimmick, oh and it haz deh Haloz n Gearz. You call that moving the industry forward? What happens when Sony drops the price of the PS3?

Sony gets a lot of flak but atleast their using their money to i dunno fund innovative games to push the gaming forward, making it more fun. While M$ funds ads and other childish viral bullsh1t for sorry @ss UE3 games that people are tired of seeing. Like I said before I wouldn't say they're ruining fun for everyone but they aren't doing anything to move forward and if they leave they won't be missed.

[frailjackfave]

I agree with you, but Microsoft has done great things to innovate online console gaming. I mean, without Live, I don't think PSN would be the same. Live really pushed PSN into territory it probably would have never ventured without the competition. But now it's time for MS to innovate somewhere else, and I don't think Natal is the answer.

[bunfighterii]

Paul Peirce!

[frailjackfave]

i own a 360, and i think it's great, but i totally agree with the article. sucks.

[bunfighterii]

We're overcharged for everything this generation and its all cos of MS. My worst gripe is the cost of DLC on both systems.Shambolic. Extra content my bollocks, put it in the original game.

[JD_Shadow]

I'm mostly annoyed by:

- The "me too" ware. Natal MIGHT be a step in the right direction, but MS really needs to do a HELL of a lot more of something original for the 360. Enough with the Mii and Home ripoffs. Not only are they pretty obvious of what they are, but we haven't seen much (if anything) done with said "ripoffs" yet, and it's been closing on a full year since they first launched the NXE.
- The "Playstation 2.5" mentality that tells them that, in order to beat Sony, they have to pick off all of Sony's old third party exclusives. If they really want to develop for your system, then fine, but don't wave money in their faces just because you know you can. Let your system do the talking, not your pocketbook.
- The hardware issues. This made me put off purchasing the 360 for the longest time.
- The lengths some people will go to defend the 360. You think it's better? Fine, but don't act like the world is going to end if someone says that they don't like the 360 for X or Y reason, or if anyone does so much as QUESTION anything MS does or says. I know Sony fanboys seem to do the same with their system, but I haven't seem them act like Sgt. Crowley arresting Gates like MS fanboys do. Oh, and if you're GLADLY buying a FIFTH 360 because the other four RRODed on you, then you should REALLY be questioning yourself WHY you're putting up with doing such a thing, or why you're even falling into the same hole again and again.

[DevastationEve]

You're suggesting that everyone who's owned an Xbox 360 has encountered the 3 red lights error, and that they've had to buy new consoles each time? Microsoft will repair or replace any console that has been diagnosed with that problem, free of charge.

Also RRoD is seriously overdone. Fanboys needed RRoD to fuel the constant rivalry, but the truth is that both sides want the same thing in the end: games. If gamers could just get over their superiority complexes and their slavish devotions to the fanboy war maybe people would start seeing it that way.

[Saaking]

Microsoft didn't ruin the fun at all. With competition from MS Sony was forced to lower the price of the PS3 and include lots of new features. With competition from Sony MS was forced to get better games, more features etc. Competition is good for us gamers and I think that 3 consoles is just right.

[OGharryjoysticks]

The 360 using DVD and not having a standard HDD. Everybody (360 gamers and PS3 gamers) should resent that because as gamers it holds the industry back. Microsoft knew before the 360 released that the HD-DVD disc was not only HD but it had a larger capacity so why didn't they use it. Don't you want the best games on your 360? Had Halo 3 been on 3 DVD's or one HD-DVD disc would you have not liked that? Had they sold it as 2 different versions (one being the single DVD and another expanded version on 3 discs) I guarantee you would prefer the bigger game. That's getting more for your money and allowing the industry to create better games. Maybe you might say you don't care and think games like Fallout 3 couldn't be bigger and better, but if that's how you think please keep in mind that there are millions of gamers out there who would like more for the money they spend. These are the gaming days where the special edition costs more, has an extra disc with the soundtrack or some video interviews, and even that should have been included on the disc all along. Granted they made DLC the escape route for developers who made their game with a vision, but out of space issues could only fit what you buy on the disc. Now I don't know about you, but I could have done without that. You've been ripped off all along this generation as we all have.

[danielle007]

This is ridic, homies.

Go M$ though, I'm truly happy they came into the console world. PS probably wouldn't have such a polished online if it weren't for M$ doing it firster.

Also, WHO'S imitating Nintendo, pal? At least Natal is different than a Wiimote. PS3's wiimote .. er .. yeah, no, it's basically a wiimote. Sure, it might be a little fancier, but it's the same type thing.

I call shenanigans. But either way, I think this generation is swell, and so is M$, so poo.

[DevastationEve]

I think there's just a lot of resentment over how successful Microsoft put their image on this gen with Xbox Live. The soul of community oriented online gaming that became such an unstoppable force...even Sony had to wake and smell the the smoke that XBL was cooking.

And the resentment comes from the fact that PS3 was supposed to be Sony TD all the way, like something out of a playbook. Microsoft was able to intercept the ball and run with it this gen for a 100 yard return :)

[paul0388]

Straight from our friends at Destructoid.

"Please remember, this is not an indictment of the Xbox 360. I love the system. However, the Xbox 360 is kind of like a drunk driver getting into a horrible car crash, then pulling his passengers free of the wreckage and heroically saving their lives. Sure, they're incredibly grateful for the brave thing he did, but he shouldn't have been f*cking drunk driving in the first place."

This encapsulates the feelings I have always had about the Xbox 360. Enough said. LOL

[Cajun Chicken]

They were much better last gen, really. Far more reasonable.

[DevastationEve]

Back then either you had Xbox Live or you didn't, no Gold and Silver accounts. And the system wasn't as configurable. They ARE pretty reasonable this gen, you can buy the console as cheap or as well configured as you want it be.

XBL Silver Account: $0
Xbox 360 Arcade: $199 (256MB MU, composite SD)

Versus

XBL Gold Account: $49/year
Xbox 360 Pro: $299 (60GB HDD, wired headset, ethernet cable, component HD)

Versus

XBL Gold Account: $49/year
Xbox 360 Elite: $399 (120GB HDD, wired headset, ethernet cable, HDMI cable)

Options include:

Wi-fi Network: $89
Wi-fi Headset: $49
XBL Vision Camera: $39
XBL Chatpad: $29
Faceplates: $19 (anybody buy these anymore?)

To conclude, sure it can add up but only if that's what you want.

[SpinalRemains138]

Seriously, free is better. I didn't know that Microsoft charged for WiFi. That's as ghetto as it gets. They nickle and dime the customer to death I guess. That's dispicable lol

[AngryTypingGuy]

"In fact, the company's motivation for doing so wasn't even out of demand, or necessity, or consideration for the market, but simply to try and stick it to Sony. The Xbox exists to stop the PlayStation brand from succeeding,"

-- This is bullcrap. MS is in the business the same reason Sony is, because they want their own products to be the center of your living room. And that my friends, is it. MS and Sony are both in it for the money, because they're both CORPORATIONS!

[Sackdude]

I totally agree with the article.