New Xbox Is More Than Games

Nov. 22, 2005 — -- The Xbox 360 may be the newest and most powerful video game system on the market, but it's also a weapon in Microsoft's arsenal of home networking tools.

The new game console went on sale today, and despite its $400 price tag, retailers such as Amazon.com and the Web sites for Best Buy and Wal-Mart said they were sold out within hours.

The 360's primary attraction is its ability to play cutting-edge video games, but by connecting other Windows-based products, you can also stream music, video, photographs and more through the new Xbox and view it on your television.

In addition, Xbox Live -- an online community where gamers can meet and compete -- has been updated, tweaked and reimagined in an effort to make Xbox 360 the centerpiece in the digital home of the very near future.

"I think that with the original Xbox launch, if you wanted to point to one thing as being a clear success, it was Xbox Live," said Rob Smith, editor-in-chief of Official Xbox Magazine. "With Xbox 360, they're really building on that."

Smith says that the improvements to the Xbox Live service, which now costs $49.99 a year for the full-featured "Gold" version, will help get players online and help them to have a better experience when they get there.

The ability to connect to and play games online through a video game console, was first introduced to players with the Playstation 2 and the original Xbox consoles.

If you had the right games, both allowed you to connect to and compete online against other players.

But it was hard to connect with friends and with the sheer number of players online, you never knew who you'd end up playing with.

"It's great to be able to say, 'We've got tons of players available and you play against people anytime day or night,'" Smith said. "But the problem is you might not know those people -- they might be idiots."

So, with the launch of Xbox 360, Xbox Live now includes a way for like-minded players to find each other in the virtual world by letting players choose a "zone" where they can hook up and play.

"With the 'zones' that you play in," Smith said, "the algorithms in the background are sort of matching you with people that are much more attuned to the sort of set interest you are."

That means that a casual player is not going to end up facing off against a tournament champion -- unless they want to.

"Nobody wants to just jump in and get schooled and then get yelled at by the twelve year old that did it," said Smith. "That's not the definition of fun for most people."

Ricardo Torres, a senior editor for Gamespot.com, says Xbox Live brings together players in a way that's totally unique.

They've gone ahead and they've included all the features you coudl want," he said. "You can shop, play or just hang out."

Each player has his or her own profile, nickname or "tag," picture, and other personal information. In addition, Xbox Live tracks not only a player's stats so they can compare themselves to other gamers, but also their style of play and what reputation they have amongst the people they've played with.

According to the new Xbox Live Web site, "By playing fairly and treating your fellow gamers with respect, you earn a better reputation as players send in complimentary feedback. Play like a jerk, and you're more likely to get complaints instead, sinking your reputation."

"It also makes tournaments a lot easier to set up," said Torres. "Xbox Live gives players a much more robust tool set to put them together than with the original."

In addition, Xbox Arcade -- another service offered by Xbox Live -- lets owners download vintage video games like "Smash TV" and "Paperboy" directly to their Xbox 360.

Classic arcade games are just one of the many pay offerings from Xbox Live. In addition, Microsoft hopes to get players to buy virtual items for their games through its Microsoft Points service, though details on how it will work are not yet clear.

The Xbox 360 is first and foremost a video game console. It plays the newest games in the glory of high-definition and does so with some of the latest and greatest technology available.

But on top of that, if you have a Windows Media Center PC, you can stream photographs, video, even music directly to your Xbox 360 and view it on your television.

It also allows owners the ability to watch DVDs, listen to CDs, and hook up MP3 players.

Bill Gates said Monday that Xbox Live and the Xbox 360 will eventually work with a Microsoft instant messenger service and Windows Live, which they hope will make it easier to connect with people and find the things you want on the World Wide Web.