Want to play an Xbox 360 TODAY??

Hetz · Post by **Hetz** » Tue Oct 18, 2005 8:32 pm

Head out to your local Wal-Mart. Reports have been coming in all day that Wal-Mart has set out their XBox 360 demo units!

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Thu Oct 20, 2005 3:26 pm

hello?

anyone home?

(shrugs shoulders and leaves room)

Bullwinkle · Post by **Bullwinkle** » Thu Oct 20, 2005 3:30 pm

I checked my local Wal-Mart yesterday (Norwalk, CT). No joy.

Arkon · Post by **Arkon** » Thu Oct 20, 2005 3:31 pm

Haven't had the chance to check my local Wal-Mart yet, hoping to do so soon.

jblank · Post by **jblank** » Thu Oct 20, 2005 4:10 pm

Whats the point? They will end up being broken in 30 minutes anyway. They would be better served just giving them away for a publicity stunt.

Ralph-Wiggum · Post by **Ralph-Wiggum** » Thu Oct 20, 2005 4:28 pm

Posted by KD over on CG:

http://www.risingconcepts.com/frapper/xbox360kiosks

blkdog7 · Post by **blkdog7** » Sat Oct 22, 2005 5:55 pm

I played the 360 for about 45 minutes at a Wal-Mart kiosk.

I posted my impressions here:

http://zerocommit.com/mb/thread.php?t=4813

SlyFrog · Post by **SlyFrog** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 12:02 pm

A bit of an aside, but I wish they would stop putting these things out in stores. I have never seen one played by someone who looks like they are evaluating an actual purchase. I have seen them played, seemingly for hours on end, by homeless people and street thugs who tend to glower at anyone who comes near the display case looking to buy an actual game while they are playing in front of it.

Sparhawk · Post by **Sparhawk** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 12:37 pm

SlyFrog wrote:A bit of an aside, but I wish they would stop putting these things out in stores. I have never seen one played by someone who looks like they are evaluating an actual purchase. I have seen them played, seemingly for hours on end, by homeless people and street thugs who tend to glower at anyone who comes near the display case looking to buy an actual game while they are playing in front of it.

Where do you live that they allow homeless people into a place of business? In my town you wouldn't make it into the parking lot.

Eel Snave · Post by **Eel Snave** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 2:32 pm

SlyFrog wrote:A bit of an aside, but I wish they would stop putting these things out in stores. I have never seen one played by someone who looks like they are evaluating an actual purchase. I have seen them played, seemingly for hours on end, by homeless people and street thugs who tend to glower at anyone who comes near the display case looking to buy an actual game while they are playing in front of it.

Either that or 8-year-olds who are smacking the controller uncontrollably in an attempt to make the game "do something."

I remember when Donkey Kong Country came out. I played the demo system for about an hour one day. An employee had to tell me to let others play. Good times.

Rincewind · Post by **Rincewind** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 3:02 pm

Eel Snave wrote:
SlyFrog wrote:A bit of an aside, but I wish they would stop putting these things out in stores. I have never seen one played by someone who looks like they are evaluating an actual purchase. I have seen them played, seemingly for hours on end, by homeless people and street thugs who tend to glower at anyone who comes near the display case looking to buy an actual game while they are playing in front of it.
Either that or 8-year-olds who are smacking the controller uncontrollably in an attempt to make the game "do something."

I remember when Donkey Kong Country came out. I played the demo system for about an hour one day. An employee had to tell me to let others play. Good times.

A whole hour??!!! The horrors Lee the horrors!! At the EB my workout partner manages kids come in there and play the display units sometimes for 4-6 hours until they physically make them leave the store. Some days they just turn them all off (which apparently they are not suppsoed to) to keep the crazy people out

Eel Snave · Post by **Eel Snave** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 3:18 pm

Ha! Good to know I'm not alone.

How could you play those for that long? Honestly! The demos aren't even that LONG.

baron calamity · Post by **baron calamity** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 6:34 pm

Just got back from Walmart and had a few minutes to play call of Duty 2 on the 360. The controller is very nice and I can't wait to get one for my pc. Thats my one positive comments. Beyond that... Well I found the graphics to be very underwhelming. Nothing that couldn't be done by a 2 year old pc. (and I mean top of the line 2 years ago, not budget two years ago) So yes, its better than any console now but it doesn't seem a generation above what consoles can do. However I must say the monitor connected to the 360 was pretty bad so it could be hiding some of the graphical wowness. Though the rather low frame rates at times weren't an artifact of the monitor. I couldn't really hear the game because it was rather noisey in the store.

Depward · Post by **Depward** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 8:38 pm

Xbox 360 = next-gen v1.5

Al · Post by Al » Sun Oct 23, 2005 9:32 pm

I thought the problem was that they're not correctly set up?

Rincewind · Post by **Rincewind** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 9:36 pm

Eel Snave wrote:Ha! Good to know I'm not alone.

How could you play those for that long? Honestly! The demos aren't even that LONG.

They foolishly put full games in their sometimes to get people to buy em.

Think Madden 06, etc.

Thin_J · Post by **Thin_J** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 2:35 am

Al wrote:I thought the problem was that they're not correctly set up?

After seeing one in person, it's pretty freakin obvious it's running in 480i mode instead of the 720p it's supposed to run in.

It's a good possibility the monitors they have in the displays don't handle the interlaced signal all that well, and thusly they look like crap.

I mentioned it to the guy behind the Electronics counter, and he said he was pretty sure I was right but that he's not allowed to fiddle with it.

msduncan · Post by **msduncan** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 2:49 pm

I just saw one of these running Call of Duty in my local Walmart last night.

I'm a huge PC gamer...and big fan of military shooters. In other words -- I've played lots of them.

This thing looked better than any PC version of military shooter I have.... And I'm running an Alienware 3.4 ghz with 1 gig ram, and a top-end video card.

No jaggies. No stutter. Everything was bright, extremely detailed, and extremely crisp.

Booner · Post by **Booner** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 3:00 pm

So I'm gathering that unless I'm willing to plop down a chunk 'o' change for an HDTV...my PC will still look better than the XB360.

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 3:03 pm

Rincewind wrote:
Eel Snave wrote:
SlyFrog wrote:A bit of an aside, but I wish they would stop putting these things out in stores. I have never seen one played by someone who looks like they are evaluating an actual purchase. I have seen them played, seemingly for hours on end, by homeless people and street thugs who tend to glower at anyone who comes near the display case looking to buy an actual game while they are playing in front of it.
Either that or 8-year-olds who are smacking the controller uncontrollably in an attempt to make the game "do something."

I remember when Donkey Kong Country came out. I played the demo system for about an hour one day. An employee had to tell me to let others play. Good times.
A whole hour??!!! The horrors Lee the horrors!! At the EB my workout partner manages kids come in there and play the display units sometimes for 4-6 hours until they physically make them leave the store. Some days they just turn them all off (which apparently they are not suppsoed to) to keep the crazy people out

I recall scripture from the Acts of Gord.

Al · Post by Al » Mon Oct 24, 2005 3:59 pm

Booner wrote:So I'm gathering that unless I'm willing to plop down a chunk 'o' change for an HDTV...my PC will still look better than the XB360.

Keep in mind that come 2009 you're going to have to anyway but as long as your PC can do better than interlaced 640x480, yeah.

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 4:02 pm

Al wrote:
Booner wrote:So I'm gathering that unless I'm willing to plop down a chunk 'o' change for an HDTV...my PC will still look better than the XB360.
Keep in mind that come 2009 you're going to have to anyway but as long as your PC can do better than interlaced 640x480, yeah.

Why? Anyone with cable will still be able to use a regular TV and digital receivers will be available that can convert to NTSC. Not that I don't recommend HDTV emphatically, but don't let marketing fool you into dumping your old set if you don't want to.

Booner · Post by **Booner** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 4:50 pm

When there are enough broadcasts in HD, I'll get one. DirecTV (which is already digital

) offers a few, but not nearly enough to justify spending $3000 ducks to upgrade from the set I have now.

Hetz · Post by **Hetz** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 5:21 pm

Booner wrote:When there are enough broadcasts in HD, I'll get one. DirecTV (which is already digital ) offers a few, but not nearly enough to justify spending $3000 ducks to upgrade from the set I have now.

Once you see football in HD, you will never go back...my 56" DP HDTV was one of the best purchases I have ever made.

I can't wait to see the 360 on it!

Kobra · Post by **Kobra** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 1:22 pm

Not so fast.

Wal-Mart pulls plug on 360 kiosks

http://www.gamespot.com/xbox360/action/ ... 36388.html

The Preacher · Post by **The Preacher** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 1:23 pm

Kobra wrote:Not so fast.

Wal-Mart pulls plug on 360 kiosks

http://www.gamespot.com/xbox360/action/ ... 36388.html

Do you ever give up?

Before anyone thinks there is a link between this and Kobra's unfounded belief in Xbox hardware changes, here is the money shot:

The reason, according to Microsoft, is due to the console causing interference with Wal-Mart's wireless "hand scanner" inventory system. Microsoft has acknowledged the problem as being "minor" and says a software solution is in the works to correct it.

So if you have inventory management hand scanners in your home, you are stuck with the PS3!

Kobra · Post by **Kobra** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 1:26 pm

It sounds like I anger you? Please tell me this is true.

The Preacher · Post by **The Preacher** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 1:28 pm

Kobra wrote:It sounds like I anger you? Please tell me this is true.

No, you bore me. Anger is reserved for those who can put together and communicate coherent thoughts.

Freezer-TPF- · Post by **Freezer-TPF-** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 1:29 pm

The interference sounds like a great feature to me. Now my cordless phone won't ring while I play my 360. MS is an innovator.

Kobra · Post by **Kobra** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 1:32 pm

The Preacher wrote:
Kobra wrote:It sounds like I anger you? Please tell me this is true.
No, you bore me. Anger is reserved for those who can put together and communicate coherent thoughts.

Could have fooled me with all of this extra attention. Either way, i'm enamored by it, keep up the good work.

Let us know how your Xbox360 works in conjunction with your wireless devices when it arrives in a few weeks.

The Preacher · Post by **The Preacher** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 1:41 pm

Kobra wrote:
The Preacher wrote:
Kobra wrote:It sounds like I anger you? Please tell me this is true.
No, you bore me. Anger is reserved for those who can put together and communicate coherent thoughts.
Could have fooled me with all of this extra attention. Either way, i'm enamored by it, keep up the good work.

The only thing that is more boring is my job. I work with what I got.

Eel Snave · Post by **Eel Snave** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 1:43 pm

Okay, kids, I'm going to call your parents, and they're not going to be happy. Now behave yourselves or NO ICE CREAM.

Al · Post by Al » Tue Oct 25, 2005 2:22 pm

Freezer-TPF- wrote:The interference sounds like a great feature to me. Now my cordless phone won't ring while I play my 360. MS is an innovator.

The problem is almost undoubtedly Wal-Mart's scanners that didn't have to go through any kind of QA cycle since they're not retail devices. Of course, the fact that the 2.4GHz end of the spectrum is pretty saturated doesn't help either. But that's the fault of the FCC, Congress and the NAB not Microsoft's.

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 2:46 pm

Al wrote:
Freezer-TPF- wrote:The interference sounds like a great feature to me. Now my cordless phone won't ring while I play my 360. MS is an innovator.
The problem is almost undoubtedly Wal-Mart's scanners that didn't have to go through any kind of QA cycle since they're not retail devices. Of course, the fact that the 2.4GHz end of the spectrum is pretty saturated doesn't help either. But that's the fault of the FCC, Congress and the NAB not Microsoft's.

Actually the scanners, since they're not retail, have a different set of FCC regulations they have to adhere to. Surely they go through QA.

This isn't really a big deal except for the deep-end anti-MS conspiracy theorists.

jblank · Post by **jblank** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 2:49 pm

Kobra wrote:
The Preacher wrote:
Kobra wrote:It sounds like I anger you? Please tell me this is true.
No, you bore me. Anger is reserved for those who can put together and communicate coherent thoughts.
Could have fooled me with all of this extra attention. Either way, i'm enamored by it, keep up the good work.

Let us know how your Xbox360 works in conjunction with your wireless devices when it arrives in a few weeks.

Why wouldnt it? I have probably no fewer than 3 wireless devices operating in the 2.4ghz range on the lower level of my house and none interfere with each other. Why on Earth would the 360 be any different?

Ya know, you would get a lot more respect here if you would just admit your bias towards the system and your fanboyness to the Playstation side of things. Making up stories and wildly exagerating news reports only confirms what all of us know about you, so why not just admit it? You hate the XBOX and anything associated with it and thats a fact.

Caine · Post by **Caine** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 6:54 pm

well, not to actually get back on topic or anything, but in the spirit of the earlier posts i once played halo co-op with a stranger for 4 hours in an ebgames. of course, this was before the launch. the clerks were pretty cool about the whole thing though. even giving hints and such. it does get tiring to stand up that long though.

ChrisGwinn · Post by **ChrisGwinn** » Wed Oct 26, 2005 2:30 pm

I walked by an XBox 360 kiosk in a best buy today. Something was clearly wrong with the display - it looked like it was getting interference. Horizotal rainbow lines would occasionally flicker accross and scroll up briefly. I don't have any idea what would have been causing it, but it didn't seem related to the game.

msduncan · Post by **msduncan** » Wed Oct 26, 2005 4:35 pm

Kobra wrote:
The Preacher wrote:
Kobra wrote:It sounds like I anger you? Please tell me this is true.
No, you bore me. Anger is reserved for those who can put together and communicate coherent thoughts.
Could have fooled me with all of this extra attention. Either way, i'm enamored by it, keep up the good work.

Let us know how your Xbox360 works in conjunction with your wireless devices when it arrives in a few weeks.

Alright Kobra.... You really do sound like you are trolling with fanboism now.

Octopus Overlords

Want to play an Xbox 360 TODAY??

Want to play an Xbox 360 TODAY??

As in won't do HD

Re: As in won't do HD

PPUs will be what puts PCs ahead of consoles

Re: PPUs will be what puts PCs ahead of consoles

If MS or Sony wins then the consumer looses

Re: If MS or Sony wins then the consumer looses