I got my Xbox 360 earlier today.
Mine came with a wireless controller, and being the Pro Edition, a 60 gig hard drive. I rented two games beforehand to test out. One was Forza Motorsport 2. The other was Crackdown. Coincidence that they're both 360 exclusives?
I really liked the first Forza for the original 'box. Forza 2 is basically the same, except with Damn Near Photorealistic Graphics(tm). Ladies and Gentleman, the last time I played a game with state-of-the-art graphics that I could actually run on a system I own was Half-Life 2 on my PC. That was 4 years ago. This is now. Microsoft was not fooling around when they were making the 360, and it shows in Forza 2. The lighting and shadowing effects are almost on the level I would expect from a CGI movie, and I haven't encountered any slowdown, which is really impressive. I'm still trying to get used to the 360 controller; it feels weird to have the back triggers and shoulder buttons at the same time, and the thumbsticks are a little harder to use properly. Nonetheless, I've heard it's better than the PS3 controller. And the best part? Mine's wireless! No cord tangling for me!
Crackdown, on the other hand, is an interesting game. One part GTA, one part Halo, and all parts chaotic. This game is great to play when you need to unwind from a stressful day: run around, beat some perps, snipe some dudes, be guided by the voice of Michael McConnohie, do crazy jumps in cars. It lacks the sophistication of GTA, but is much easier to delve into at the same time. I'll have more to report tomorrow.
But what's most impressive about the 360, more than anything else, is the fact that all of its games have support for widescreen high-def TVs. We're running our 360 on our HDTV, and it is beyond anything we've ever seen on a TV game console. This system's visuals makes even the almighty PS2 and original Xbox look like chumps on a technical scale. The jump from PS2 to 360 is like the jump from PS1 to PS2. You would think by now that computer graphics couldn't be further improved upon, but even I am surprised.
360 games also have 5.1 surround sound. Okay, some console games have had this before, but not where every game on the system (as far as I know) supports it. It's crazy; both Forza 2 and Crackdown have incredible bass, like when I play on my 5.1-supported PC, but this is a console, not a computer! Get yourself a good subwoofer if you haven't already.
I don't even have Xbox Live hooked up yet. Thankfully, unlike with the original Xbox, Xbox Live is now free. (I was not aware of that.) Of course, I'd only use it for downloads, but hey, at least I can get games and patches like that now. Or, when we get that set up anyways.
I read a theory somewhere. The PC gaming market is not doing very well, outside of MMORPG's. I think I know why, and it has to do with this theory: for the longest time, the greatest advantage computer games had over console games was online capability. Sure, the Dreamcast, PS2, and Xbox could play online, but not like a PC could. Now, the PS3, Wii, AND Xbox 360 can do online gaming and downloading with broadband. And, if you have a PS3 or 360, you also have a hard drive and HDTV-capable graphics. Many people have put up with the hassles of a gaming PC just to play games on it. Now there are systems that can do all the things a PC could back in the 1990's, except now, you don't have to worry about video card and sound card installations, RAM upgrades, driver updates, OS compatibility issues, and so on. I gotta say, except for those MMORPG's still active, PC gaming is falling by the wayside.
In short: is the Xbox 360 good? Yes. Yes it is.
