Microsoft Xbox needs to die.

[Westaway]

I'm happy with the way they've treated me. They gave me two free boxes, the second one being a slim. I'm also fine paying $60 for better service.

 

[Iron Criterion]

What I hate about these threads is there is always one person who types this line. "This has not been a problem for me and my Xbox works just fine."

So I can't contribute to this discussion if my Xbox hasn't broken in the five years I've owned it?

Like how mine broke as well and is sitting in my closet never to be played again.

Oh so I'm only allowed to quote my personal experiences if they support the "we hate Microsoft" argument.

 

[Baby Tea]

What I hate about these threads is there is always one person who types this line. "This has not been a problem for me and my Xbox works just fine." Just fine and dandy random person on the internet who thinks that everybody else must treat their stuff like crap. Like how mine broke as well and is sitting in my closet never to be played again.

Well there are two sides to that:

There are always people who said "I've been through 8 Xboxes!!!"
And those who said "I've had mine since launch day and it's fine!" (I know a guy who can say that).
I, personally, am on my 2nd Xbox since launch day. I will absolutely be buying a new 360 if this one were to break, and will buy the next generation of Xbox console.

Who is right or wrong? All of these threads are anecdotal evidence at best.

Bottom line is that the OP saying that Microsoft needs to die because he's had a bad experience is foolishness. Because of my experiences I'll never eat at East Side Mario's again, or buy a Mazda vehicle. But I'm not about to wish they all go out of business. That's stupid. I just won't give them a cent of my money. As a consumer, that's my power: To close my wallet.

Trying to rally back-pats while soap-boxing on the internet isn't a solution. It's silly.
Stop it.

 

[MiloP]

so yeah, everything would have been solved in the first place if we didnt degenerate our gamin back to consoles. we were free of them for a short while, and hopefully we are going to be free off them once again.

Loving the use of the word "degenerate" here. Makes it sound like us console gamers are only just discovering the secret of fire while the mighty PC gamers have been using their microwave ovens for some time now

It isnt that extreme but yeah, thats the point i was making. we had consoles. then we had gaming computers computers (working ones, not the ones that tried to sell themselves as computers at first). they worked better than consoles. however somehow console manufacturers managed to push back thier product into the market and made many people buy worse product for, often, more money.
Then again, consoles arent the only ones doing this sort of marketing stunts, so raised eyebrows here.

It can surely never be said that consoles are cheaper than PCs. You buy an Xbox, what were they, 200 quid when they first came out? (Don't quote me on that figure.) That machine can play seven years worth of games. Could a top-end PC seven years ago run top-end games now? No damn way. Unless you future-proofed like hell, which would cost a lot of money anyway, you'd have to keep upgrading the parts of your PC, which is not only expensive, but a real chore to do, in my opinion. Sure, PC games generally RRP at a bit less than consoles but that will never make back the money you spent on your shiny computer bits. Even with the 40quid a year Xbox Live subscription, probably still cheaper, and that only applies to Xbox.

The best you can get here is that if someone buys all the consoles, plays games on them regularly, and does any subscriptions they have to do, they might just about tie with the amount it costs to keep a PC up to snuff. And even that's assuming all the PC parts you buy function properly forever, AND the money one would waste buying games that don't work BECAUSE DRIVERS or something stupid.

EDIT -- AND that's assuming you don't play any subscription based games on the PC, as MMO fans might do.

 

[IckleMissMayhem]

Trollin', Trollin', Trollin'
Though the threads are swollen
Keep them fanboys trolling
Flamethreeeeeeeaaaad

Ha! Fabuleux!

Chalk another "I've had my 360 since '05 and never had a problem with it" up on the board. Although I'm thinking I might need to replace the controller batteries again soon. That, naturally, is MS fault too, for releasing shoddy products. Damn them.

 

[Z of the Na'vi]

Well, have you tried not treating your Xbox's and/or controllers like shit?

They might last longer.

 

[wooty]

I have to admit that I've been through three of them fuckers over the years. Its still weird to think that a games system dies.because you play games on them.......yeah. That was when I switched to the PS3.

If it wasnt for a few of the earlier exclusives then I wouldnt of cared for the 360.

 

[viranimus]

So dont like a console that has the perception of breaking at the drop of a hat? Whats the alternative? Hop on board with a console where the manufacturer will intentionally rip features away instead?

Dont like having to pay for online play? Whats the alternative? Hop on board with a company that will prevent you from accessing your library of purchased software unless you agree to their terms and conditions no matter how illogically or illegally they word them?

Do not like a console that is not entirely favorable to the developers? What is the alternative? Jump on board with one that Indie presence is either non existent or viewed as competition to be crushed?

Sorry your not fond of your xbox, but really jumping ship is just exchanging one set of problems for a different set. So lets not call for the death of a console because really if we did that for all of our minor bitches there would be no such thing as a console.

Oddly though one thing I do want to point out. The argument

Will microsoft ever have gems like Cave Story,

So odd to pick this one out given the fact that it was made by essentially a pirate programmer who it gained its popularity from the freeware/pirates utilizing linux based PMDs used for EMUs such as the
GPx32, Wiz,Dingoo, Cannoo, Pandora, etc. Yet, its first initial legitimate offering was put up on a microsoft platform by way of Windows.

GARBAGE hardware so you have to re-buy the console and controller over and over and they actually have the guts to charge you almost 100$ a year to play games online.

A: Again sorry about your luck with the system. B: I call bullshit on the controller because the 360 branded controller is arguably the best video game controller ever created. Also just because your console fails does NOT mean you cant still use already purchased controllers, thus not buying new ones. C:If your paying microsoft 100$ a year to pay online, and realistically anything greater than 40$ for a years worth of service, YOUR doing something wrong, because it is never difficult to get a years worth of XBL for right at or under 50$

http://deals.woot.com/deals/details/14126165-533d-4fb7-89b4-5c411bdf6f52/12-month-xbox-live-gold-400-ms-points-and-more#5 (this deal is already likely dead, but still this was posted yesterday. At the beginning of the month it was possible via the MS store even to get 1 year of XBL for 35$.)

What is there to defend about the 360 other then brand loyalty?

There are plenty of reasons to defend the 360. The consoles have their strengths and weaknesses. Hell if they didnt, you would never see console flame wars.

 

[Flailing Escapist]

To be honest the only reason I bought a 360 over a PS3 was the exclusives... I'm so dirty. But I wanted my Halo, Mass Effect, Fable (which I DON'T want anymore), Alan Wake, etc. Its probably worth it only because my 360 has yet to explode but once the next console rolls around I'll probably get a PS3. If only for the Ico, SotC remakes and the Last Guardian.

 

[BlumiereBleck]

-Red Ring of Microsoft-

That's not fair to the church. Because, as you can see, THEY got better. Microsoft will continue to be a business, the business that decided to make consoles after they say how well Sony was cleaning up. You know how it is.

I see why you did there and loved it.

 

[Something Amyss]

.........Okay where are you buying your xboxes? And how do you treat them? Because my mother bought me one for christmas off of Ebay a while back and it's worked fine for years, a few hiccups, but it is getting old after all.

Okay, don't do this. That's blame shifting. The XBox 360 was so notorious for RROD that it spent an estimated billion dollars covering the console with extended warranties. Red Ring of Death is pretty common and has little to do with care of the console. They were poorly made and the company that made it admitted fault. Don't blame the user.

And "it's never happened to me" is never a defense of a product.

I also saw no price hike on xbox live...maybe you're not in the US so we're in different situations, but I don't know what raising in price you're talking about.

The price in America was raised from 50 dollars US to 60 dollars US.

 

[Wintermoot]

the wired controller I sometimes use for PC gaming works great.
just switch to PC gaming yes you still support MS but at least you got rid of the xbox.

 

[luckshot]

I might be in the minority but the PC gamers can keep their mods. There is a reason game developers generate content for their own games; it's because they're good at it. I haven't seen a mod yet that isn't in some way half-arsed or stands out from the original content like dog's balls.

BTW I'm sorry to hear about the issues you've had with your 360's. I've got three in the house (2 Pros and a 360S) and none of them have had any problems.

and community mods dont stop developers from making their own additional content, but yes there is a lot of junk mods out there but some also a neat/fun/fix broken things

the op definitely seems to have had a very negative series of encounters with xbox support, they really should have gotten some of this fixed by now

 

[Something Amyss]

So I can't contribute to this discussion if my Xbox hasn't broken in the five years I've owned it?

You can, but your console working really doesn't mean much.

Oh so I'm only allowed to quote my personal experiences if they support the "we hate Microsoft" argument.

Quote mining for the win. I mean, his statement was only three sentences long, surely the middle one wasn't so confusing that you couldn't grasp it, or see the continuity involved.

Further, I always have to posit: So what if your system works? What does that mean to this thread?

 

[Savryc]

Because all the other companies are shining beacons of hope and glory in a dark world right? Yes, that is sarcasm for the terminally dense out there. I've never understood why the whole console wars thing actually exists, unless there are a hell of a lot more insecure man-children viciously defending their chosen replacement for the emotional/physical hole in their life out there than I thought.

Here's the thing. Microsoft. Sony. Nintendo. The big three. Not a single one of them cares about you, they care about your wallet. They don't NEED defending, they have cash and armies of lawyers. They don't NEED praising either. They already have your cash (are you spotting a theme yet?) since you no doubt bought their particular version of the "put disk in, play game" device.

As long as there's money Sony will keep snipping features left right and centre, Microsoft will keep charging through the wazoo wherever they can, Nintendo will dole out the shovel ware and waggle sticks and the PC gamer folk will still have to put up with whatever it is they complain about (no one listening about their mouse complex and DRM as far as I can see)

So yeah, I guess grow the fuck up and treat your kit better would be the summary here.

 

[Epona]

What I hate about these threads is there is always one person who types this line. "This has not been a problem for me and my Xbox works just fine." Just fine and dandy random person on the internet who thinks that everybody else must treat their stuff like crap. Like how mine broke as well and is sitting in my closet never to be played again.

I know it's like those people forget that the RROD was a very real, very big problem until the 360 Slim.

I have had a 360 Pro for 3 years and it hasn't given me any trouble. I am lucky because the 360 has a bad reputation. I keep a fan on mine which may be helping but I don't feel the need to do that with any other console, including the PS3.

Yes, Live is too expensive since it's a peer to peer service and yes, needing a Gold account for Netflix is stupid.

 

[GigaHz]

snip

I must admit, the only reason why my 360 still works is because I barely use it to begin with. I've only had one RROD and this was a few months before I purchased my PS3. I gravitated towards it ever since, despite doing the bulk of my gaming on PC.

Many of the reasons you mentioned represents why I gravitated to the PS3. Firstly, the controller itself. I was a bit upset after first purchasing a 360 when I noticed that the wireless controllers were not rechargeable. You'd think this would have been something they would have corrected after the release of the PS3 (which does have rechargeable controllers) but no. If you want to use the controller, you either need to be prepared to eat through cases of batteries or invest in rechargeable ones yourself.

Live itself is an incredible pain to deal with. I have had to call to cancel my XBL Gold Membership more than once, despite my outdated card being tied to the account. The first time I cancelled, I went through all the procedures and was sent an email verifying that my XBL account was cancelled. A year passes (I had an annual subscription) and somehow my outdated card was charged $50. I called to complain about this faulty cancellation and they wouldn't even give me a full refund. They would only refund the subscription amount minus a monthly sub because I wasn't aware of the charge until the end of January. Great business practice guys!

This wouldn't be so bad if they allowed you to unsubscribe through the Xbox 360 itself. Nope, you have to entrust that responsibility to a representative.

Why? If you could set up an account for a subscription through the Xbox, why can't you cancel there as well? Did they really need to resort to potentially reselling their service when people have legitimate reasons for cancelling? That just comes off as harassment.

Then again, what is the incentive to subscribe to Live? I don't have an answer for this, this is a legitimate question.

With a menu that is plastered with ads, with DLC that is not even slightly reduced, what is that $50 going towards? You'd think that a Gold subscription would remove at least a fair portion of the ads but it doesn't. Why is it that I have to pay $50 to use basic community features offered for free on PC or PS3? Perhaps I just love throwing away money needlessly.

I'm not going to praise the PS3 fully as it has it's fair share of problems but at least they don't gouge you at every step. The menu is nice and clean, short of maybe a text blurb to the top right advertising a game or service. It's nice when your menu actually looks like a menu and not a Geocities website.

I'm not sure if Microsoft's new console will change their practices at all, considering that there seems to be a sizeable chunk of supporters. Who knows? Taking into account the downward financial spiral of pricing trends, we might even look fondly at the pricing of Xbox Live in 30 years from now.

The moment that happens, I just might abandon gaming forever.

 

[Agow95]

Your problem with the consoles is just pure bad luck if I'm honest, I'm still on my first xbox, and I got it when they still had the first dashboard, and I've never replaced my controllers either, and yeah, microsoft are money-grabbing bastards, I agree, but I don't mind paying if I think it's still worth it, and why does everyone use Skyrim when complaning about something? The mods can't be done on the PS3 and I'm not really jealous of the PC gamers, if I wanted to play skyrim on the PC I'd have to buy a new laptop, and I only got this one in december, and if I did, I wouldn't mod it, rendering the whole process pointless.

 

[suitepee7]

It just proves the ol' saying true: If something doesn't break, Microsoft didn't make it

I always preferred:
"The day Microsoft makes a product that doesn't suck is the day they start manufacturing vacuum cleaners."[footnote]And before the Elite Xbox Defense Brigade bears down on me, that predates even the original Xbox by a good decade or so. Stand down![/footnote]

ha! lol'd quite hard there, good job.


OT: sorry to hear you have had bad luck, but these things happen. although i would have drawn the line at 3. just try a different console or PC gaming, otherwise you are technically still supporting Microsoft. i have never had an xbox, never really cared for them, but therefore have never had any problems with them, but just switch to a different company if you've had that bad of an experience with them.

 

[Zydrate]

I RROD'd once, sent it in, got repaired for free.

It's 3-4 years old, that's multiple times its usual survival rate. I got it back in the day where every source I had, theirs only worked for about a year before breaking down.

Quite happy with mine, will be sad when it does die.

Tech fails sometimes. Don't blame the Xbox. Get it fixed, or get a better system, stop bitching.