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The Xbox 360 went down a storm when it came out in 2006 and gained a large amount of fans. But the console has had anything but a smooth ride. This article attempts to answer the question “What problems can I expect with my Xbox 360?”

There have been a number of issues with the Xbox 360 since it’s release, some more problematic than others. Perhaps seen as the most troubling was the fact that Xbox 360’s used to, and occasionally still do, simply give up the ghost. They work one minute and the next, nothing. This seems to have happened to a number of customers and was heavily reported, especially in 2007. Many complained that Microsoft put little or no effort into fixing the issue and left customers with the bills. This problem does appear to have cleared up, though there are still the odd case of it happening, especially with the older consoles.

Another problem highlighted early on was that the Xbox seemed to be very noisy. If you played games at a low volume, it was almost impossible to hear over the console noise. Again, there does seem to have been a bit of progress with this, with fans now probably on average 50% quieter than before. You hardly notice it in a large room, however in a smaller room you will find that it can be noticeable, though if you have the game music / sounds on, you soon don’t notice the sound.

A problem I’ve definitely noticed is that games do sometimes crash when initially loading. I’ve occasionally had to start the same game up two or three times before it will actually run. While this doesn’t cause any real issues, it is very frustrating, especially if you just have the time for a quick game.

A last problem, recently highlighted by UK Watchdog, was that discs can be easily scratched in the Xbox. I had a problem with a new game that I bought at Christmas, when it was put in the console and there was movement near the console, the game was scratched to hell and just wouldn’t work at all afterwards. It’s definitely worth looking at where you put your console and how you place it. If you place it on a table, basically anywhere but the floor, and on its side (not upright) you should find you have no problems at all. It only seems to becoming problematic when it is disturbed by heavy movement.

Microsoft do seem to have fixed some of these problems to an extent, though some of the more minor issues do remain. Maybe they will fix them on a newer model and make us fork out more to get one. I do love the Xbox 360 and prefer it to the PS3, so I’ll probably be one of those who gets roped in by this. This is a largely negative article but it’s more so people know what to expect if something does go wrong, rather than put you off the console, which really, on the whole, is excellent.

A new Wii channel is also in the scope for the machine. Using it will allow users to vote for their favorite Miis. It’s nice to see that Nintendo is thinking of improvements for their machine but as time passes, the Wii seems to become more of a 7-year-old kid’s toy. The truth is it does anything but serious gaming activity. Sure the upcoming features sound impressive but shouldn’t there be some new titles to go with them? And maybe not so childish ones this time.

Nintendo’s motion-sensitive controller made the Wii a total winner and for this feature, innocent titles are pretty much everything the console needs, but it doesn’t mean that it should go on forever. The new “intelligent” Wii should get some serious titles along with these impressive features that people will surely want to make good use of. Wouldn’t you like to actually talk to the machine? You did when you were watching Star Trek, don’t deny it. So here’s your chance, Nintendo, to make people feel like they’re the superior talking-to-the-machines-human-race, that don’t have time to actually press buttons for a reaction.
Source: softpedia.com

While Sony said it would have 400,000 PlayStation 3 systems ready for its North American launch, Nintendo consistently refused to put a comparable figure on its own efforts with the Wii launch. Instead it would say only that it would ship 4 million systems worldwide by the end of the year.

Now that the launch has come and gone, Nintendo has finally tallied up the number of Wiis it has sold. Today the company said that more than 600,000 Wiis were sold in the Americas in the console’s first eight days of release.

“We’ve shipped retailers several times the amount of hardware the other company was able to deliver for its launch around the same time–and we still sold out,” Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime said in a statement. Leading up to the PS3 launch, one analyst predicted that Sony would fall well short of its shipment goal, suggesting that fewer than 200,000 PS3s would be available on day one.

First-party software and accessory sales brought in more than $190 million on their own. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess in particular rang up strong sales of more than 454,000, or three games for every four consoles. Nintendo said the system’s downloadable game service, the Virtual Console, was also a hit, though it gave no figures to describe how big a hit it was.
Source: gamespot.com

The London Games Festival, the week long cultural and business celebration of computer and video games that will take place throughout London from Monday 2nd October, has recently unveiled the panelists for the inaugural “Lizards’ Lair” pitching event. The confirmed “lizards” are Peter Molyneux, head of Lionhead Studios, Miles Jacobson, studio director at Sports Interactive and Ian Livingstone, creative director of Eidos.

Held on October 3rd, the “Lizard’s Lair” will see would-be developers pitch
their game concepts to the “lizards” for a chance to win great prizes, including one week’s work experience and possibly, the chance to see their gaming ideas come to life. The event will be held at Visit London’s headquarters and it will be presided by Paul Durrant, director of Dare to be Digital, the premier games creation competition in the UK.

The London Games Festival is the brainchild of publishers association ELSPA and independent developers association TIGA, and is created in partnership with LDA (London Development Agency) and BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts).

“London Games Festival will be an exciting week of activity that will become a focus for the International reputation of the UK. The alliance between ELSPA, TIGA, the LDA and BAFTA provides the games industry with a perfect opportunity to build substantial trade and consumer activity that will firmly establish games as the entertainment phenomenon of the 21st century,” said Roger Bennett, director general of ELSPA.
Source: softpedia.com

TOKYO–Mobile game publisher G-Mode has acquired the rights to over one hundred game titles owned by Data East. This includes classic games like Burger Time and more recent releases such as Magical Drop. G-Mode aims to release a select number of the Data East titles on mobile phones starting this summer. “We hope to expand our business and meet the demands of new customers,” the company said in a statement.
Data East has released a number of popular games on platforms ranging from arcade to console. Some of its best known franchises are Bad Dudes, Karnov, Metal Max, and the Fighter’s History series. In 1999, Data East sought protection in Japan’s bankruptcy court and started on the road to reorganizing its 3.3 billion yen ($31.2 million) debt. Ultimately, Data East closed its doors in July, 2003.
G-Mode is a game publisher that releases Java-based game applications for mobile phone. The company publishes mobile games in 17 countries worldwide, and has distributed over 450 titles in Japan. Established in 2000, the main shareholders of G-Mode include CSK Network Systems, Atlus, and Qualcomm.