Warm Up With the Xbox 360 Fireplace
Missing that cozy holiday ambiance in your drafty apartment? Drop 400 Microsoft Points, download this virtual fireplace [http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/games/offers/00000001-0000-4000-8000-00005855014c?cid=MajorNelson&partner=MajorNelson]and snuggle up with your loved ones in front of the HDTV.
Boasting "realistic smoldering embers and flickering flames", the virtual fireplace, developed by XNA user SniperED007 [http://live.xbox.com/en-US/profile/profile.aspx?pp=0&GamerTag=SniperED007], even has the soothing crackle-and-pop of a fireplace, all without the hassle of actually having to light a fire or owning a fireplace. "Enjoy the awesome ambiance of a crackling fireplace in your living room...[the fireplace] sets the perfect backdrop for a relaxing evening," Microsoft writes. Since when is "ambiance" something that's described as "awesome?"
The Xbox Live Snow Globe [http://majornelson.com/archive/2008/12/11/the-xbox-live-snow-globe.aspxe] was one thing - it uses Avatars in a cute way, and it's free. This is fairly ridiculous. So, alright. I plop down five bucks (or download the demo) for this and, since my 360 is hooked up to a gigantic TV, I now have a fake fireplace that's five feet across in the middle of my living room. Maybe it'll work as an icebreaker during awkward Christmas party conversations.
"So uh, that's a pretty realistic fireplace."
"Yeah, it's just the demo. I bet the full one is even better, I was just too cheap to spend the money on it."
To be fair, however, plenty of folk spend more than $5 on fake fireplace DVDs and even fake fireplace displays. So embrace the next generation of transparently phony Christmas ambiance and give the Xbox 360 Fireplace a try. Bonus if you've got an older 360, because then it even comes with genuine physical heat: just put your hands or your feet near the console and soak in the warmth generated by that shoddy heatsink!
[Via Major Nelson [http://majornelson.com/archive/2008/12/21/xbox-360-virtual-fireplace.aspx]]
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Missing that cozy holiday ambiance in your drafty apartment? Drop 400 Microsoft Points, download this virtual fireplace [http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/games/offers/00000001-0000-4000-8000-00005855014c?cid=MajorNelson&partner=MajorNelson]and snuggle up with your loved ones in front of the HDTV.
Boasting "realistic smoldering embers and flickering flames", the virtual fireplace, developed by XNA user SniperED007 [http://live.xbox.com/en-US/profile/profile.aspx?pp=0&GamerTag=SniperED007], even has the soothing crackle-and-pop of a fireplace, all without the hassle of actually having to light a fire or owning a fireplace. "Enjoy the awesome ambiance of a crackling fireplace in your living room...[the fireplace] sets the perfect backdrop for a relaxing evening," Microsoft writes. Since when is "ambiance" something that's described as "awesome?"
The Xbox Live Snow Globe [http://majornelson.com/archive/2008/12/11/the-xbox-live-snow-globe.aspxe] was one thing - it uses Avatars in a cute way, and it's free. This is fairly ridiculous. So, alright. I plop down five bucks (or download the demo) for this and, since my 360 is hooked up to a gigantic TV, I now have a fake fireplace that's five feet across in the middle of my living room. Maybe it'll work as an icebreaker during awkward Christmas party conversations.
"So uh, that's a pretty realistic fireplace."
"Yeah, it's just the demo. I bet the full one is even better, I was just too cheap to spend the money on it."
To be fair, however, plenty of folk spend more than $5 on fake fireplace DVDs and even fake fireplace displays. So embrace the next generation of transparently phony Christmas ambiance and give the Xbox 360 Fireplace a try. Bonus if you've got an older 360, because then it even comes with genuine physical heat: just put your hands or your feet near the console and soak in the warmth generated by that shoddy heatsink!
[Via Major Nelson [http://majornelson.com/archive/2008/12/21/xbox-360-virtual-fireplace.aspx]]
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