The next (first?) great X360 game

[Gary Whitta]

So, after the initial burst (well, I suppose it was more like a barely-audible pop) of launch-title activity, the X360 release scene looks a bit quiet right now. I wandered into an EB the other day and DOA4 was still the newest title on the shelf.

So, what's the next big X360 title that people are looking forward to? For me it's Burnout Revenge, which hopefully is still on target for March, and Dead Rising, which is still WAY out. What else am I missing?

PS: Yes, I know about Oblivion, I just don't care. Well, I do. But not that much.

[AMUSIX]

WHY ARE YOU ASKING ABOUT UPCOMING GAMES?!?!? GO PLAY GEOMETRY WARS 2!!!!


At least, I think that's what IGN was trying to say in a recent three page "feature".

As for upcoming games...well, Burnout, Oblivion, and..umm...Rumble Roses...in a month and a half.

-AM

[Jason Cross]

Feburary's bigger 360 games:

Full Auto
Fight Night Round 3
Burnout Revenge
Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter

March's big games:

The Outfit
Battlefield 2: Modern Combat
Oblivion
Rumble Roses XX

Then the next big one is probably Tomb Raider.

Of those, I think I'm most interested in GRAW and The Outfit. I likes me some Burnout and I skipped the Xbox version so I could pick up the 360 one. The girlfriend is a big Burnout fan too, so it's one we can have fun passing the controller back and forth to do the crash events and stuff.

BF2 is a pretty good upgrade over the current-gen versions, and visually looks even nicer than the PC. I just don't really care now.

I was looking forward to Full Auto, but after the demo I think I'll just see what the reviews say. If they're uniformly really super positive, I'm down. Otherwise I'll get it used in a few months.

Still don't know what to make of The Outfit. Sounds good in theory, and some of the videos showcase some nice "blowing up everything." I'm just not sure how it all ties together. It could potentially be the next Mercenaries.

[tim edwards]

The office next door has been playing the Outfit almost continually for the past week. It looks great - very Mercenaries. The surprise seems to be the multiplayer - it's third person RTS. Win.

[Theodore Rex DX]

What's the XBLA lineup looking like? I rate the current and future retail list a negatve eleventy-billion out of ten, and declare the 360 to have had the least interesting and imaginative launch of all time, but I think Arcade makes up for it with its greatness.

[E-phonk]

I hope EA fixed Fight Night Round 3, because the last screens I saw looked terrible with a lot of technical mistakes (http://img142.imageshack.us/my.php?image=80700035mj.jpg).

[quatoria]

Why is the girl so crisp while everything else is blurry as fuck?

[Theodore Rex DX]

It looks like she's been photoshopped on. Those knees are very well done.

http://img.gamespot.com/gamespot/images/2006/038/reviews/930863_20060208_screen003.jpg

He looks shopped in too, but he's not!

[curst]

99 Nights! (http://www.gamespot.com/xbox360/action/ninetyninenights/index.html?q=99%20nights)

But sadly, I don't know if it's even due to see a USA release (I believe the Japanese release date is 4/20/06). I fervently hope it makes its way here because right now it looks like a system-seller to me.

[Kevin Grey]

Feburary's bigger 360 games:

Full Auto
Fight Night Round 3
Burnout Revenge
Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter


Ghost Recon is March 9th (says so right at the end of the latest trailer) and Burnout Revenge is March also.

[Al]

Feburary's bigger 360 games:

Full Auto
Fight Night Round 3
Burnout Revenge
Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter


Aren't Burnout and Ghost Recon scheduled for March? And according to Gamerankings OXM gave Full Auto a 5.5 and if they can't bring themselves to like it...

[Charles]

No mentions of Lost Planet or Chromehounds? For shame!

[Rorschach]

Oooo, I'll second Chromehounds, especially since my Steel Battalion controller is so much paperweight unless I get out the old Xbox. Also looking forward to GRAW. I didn't get Perfect Dark Zero, so my online experiences have been limited to getting my ass whupped by too many ninjas in DOA4 while I finish PGR3 on Silver.

[Charles]

Oooo, I'll second Chromehounds, especially since my Steel Battalion controller is so much paperweight unless I get out the old Xbox. Also looking forward to GRAW. I didn't get Perfect Dark Zero, so my online experiences have been limited to getting my ass whupped by too many ninjas in DOA4 while I finish PGR3 on Silver.

AFAIK, the steel battalion controller IS just a big paperweight unless you get out your old xbox. Is there some magical plan for new games not made by capcom to use the controller? I've not heard of them.

[TheTrunkDr]

I didn't get Perfect Dark Zero
Consider yourself lucky.

[Wholly Schmidt]

Consider yourself lucky.
I bought Perfect Dark Zero, but I didn't get it either.

[Misguided]

99 Nights! (http://www.gamespot.com/xbox360/action/ninetyninenights/index.html?q=99%20nights)

But sadly, I don't know if it's even due to see a USA release (I believe the Japanese release date is 4/20/06). I fervently hope it makes its way here because right now it looks like a system-seller to me.

I'm with you. I *REALLY* want to see this one.

[quatoria]

....why is Burger King's hideous antichrist in the EA boxing game? Dear sweet merciful lord, don't tell me that he's a ring girl.

[Wholly Schmidt]

Other screenshots show BK sponsorship all over that particular ring, so I sort of understand, but have no clue what it is he actually does in the game. I don't like boxing games at all, but if you can actually play as him, I will buy this.

[Jason Cross]

Ghost Recon is March 9th (says so right at the end of the latest trailer) and Burnout Revenge is March also.

Well serves me right for going by the EBgames listing. Usually when they get this close to release, they're fairly on the ball. Can't trust 'em for way-out dates at all, of course.


No mentions of Lost Planet or Chromehounds? For shame!

I specifically left them off since, as far as I know, they don't even have US release dates yet. And Whitta was specifically asking about the "next big thing," not "big games coming out this Fall" or whatever. :)


What's the XBLA lineup looking like? I rate the current and future retail list a negatve eleventy-billion out of ten, and declare the 360 to have had the least interesting and imaginative launch of all time, but I think Arcade makes up for it with its greatness.

They haven't really named a lot of specific games, but there's lots of stuff coming. I think they're supposed to be up to 20 games by the end of March, Street Fighter 2 is coming with all kinds of great online features, and last time I asked (at CES) they were going to have 50 or more titles by the end of the year. But they've been just totally swamped with requests and ideas and stuff, with even a big publisher or two saying "we're making a devision just to work on Live Arcade titles." (or so they say) So I would say that Live Arcade is going to have tons of stuff - just don't know exactly which titles and when.

[RickH]

Halo 3.

In late 2007.

[Tom Chick]

The office next door has been playing the Outfit almost continually for the past week. It looks great - very Mercenaries. The surprise seems to be the multiplayer - it's third person RTS. Win.

As opposed to first person RTS? :)

This is really the only Next Big Thing I'm looking forward to that's 360 exclusive. Otherwise, I continute to be utterly whelmed by my Xbox 360.

-Tom

[OrfBC]

As opposed to first person RTS? :)

This is really the only Next Big Thing I'm looking forward to that's 360 exclusive. Otherwise, I continute to be utterly whelmed by my Xbox 360.

-Tom

So you're neither underwhelmed nor overwhelmed, and it's juuust right?

[Jason McMaster]

I guess it's just not an XBox 360 thread without people mentioning they just don't like it, don't care or aren't impressed. I swear to Christ I've never seen so many people clamor to not care.

[Theodore Rex DX]

Are you crying? Is that a tear?

[RickH]

I guess it's just not an XBox 360 thread without people mentioning they just don't like it, don't care or aren't impressed. I swear to Christ I've never seen so many people clamor to not care.

It's a sweet piece of hardware with damn little unique software. If it was a valid basis for bitching about the DS and the PSP, it's just as valid here.

[dmiller]

"It's a sweet piece of hardware with damn little unique software. If it was a valid basis for bitching about the DS and the PSP, it's just as valid here."

And every launch systerm since the dawn of time.

[Kool Moe Dee]

As opposed to first person RTS? :)


Never played Battlezone?

[EFlannum]

As opposed to first person RTS? :)

This is really the only Next Big Thing I'm looking forward to that's 360 exclusive. Otherwise, I continute to be utterly whelmed by my Xbox 360.

-Tom

I think he meant third person RTS where the camera is tied to the main character ala a third person action game... or at least that's what I took it to mean... sounds a little like some game that you seemed to like for the pc.

[tim edwards]

I think he meant third person RTS where the camera is tied to the main character ala a third person action game... or at least that's what I took it to mean... sounds a little like some game that you seemed to like for the pc.

Yeah, exactly. You're just looking over your blokes shoulder, while he pumps bazookas into Nazi bases. In multiplayer, you only get the big guns when you hold certain areas; that gives you a credit stream with Allied Inc - then you call down equipment from a circular menu. It lets you pull up defensive stuff, too: turrets and machine gun posts - so you can build quite effective turtle-ish killing zones.

From watching it play, the only criticism I have is that it looks slightly floating. The third-person view really shows up the patent videogame side-strafe space-walk.

[LionelThompson]

....why is Burger King's hideous antichrist in the EA boxing game? Dear sweet merciful lord, don't tell me that he's a ring girl.

Not sure if this is a rhetorical question, but assuming I'm not being whooshed, he's in the game because EA consists of whores who will do anything for a buck. Have they ever turned down a chance to plug in more advertising, well, beyond the whole 'abortion clinic ads in NFS'?

[Theodore Rex DX]

A) Whoring and doing anything for a buck is what boxing is all about.
B) Long live the king.

[Jason McMaster]

Are you crying? Is that a tear?WOOOO THEMS JOKES HAHAA HAAAAAA YALL

Anyway


It's a sweet piece of hardware with damn little unique software. If it was a valid basis for bitching about the DS and the PSP, it's just as valid here.
The point is that there hasn't been a thread where someone hasn't pointed this out. The lineup doesnt appeal to some people but there are things coming out before Halo 3 (I kind of agree on the 2007 now since I doubt we'll see the PS3 this year) that will do well for the system. Chrome Hounds, Lost Planet, Dead Rising, Fight Night Round 3, and so forth. Halo 3 will be good, of course, but it's not the only thing coming.

[Theodore Rex DX]

It has been really weak, though. Nobody will remember any of these games in six months time. Plus, everybody bitches about every weak launch. Time honoured-tradition. PS2 launch was weak. XBox was Halobox for however long until the next good game came out. DS launch was terrible. And so on. You just want special treatment for your guy.

[forgeforsaken]

I think GR:AW is looking like it has some real potential.

[Moore]

I think GR:AW is looking like it has some real potential.

I dunno, I like seeing my guns in FP mode.

[Andrew Mayer]

It has been really weak, though. Nobody will remember any of these games in six months time. Plus, everybody bitches about every weak launch. Time honoured-tradition. PS2 launch was weak. XBox was Halobox for however long until the next good game came out. DS launch was terrible. And so on. You just want special treatment for your guy.

There's just no tug for me to buy right now. I'm sure the moment will come when I'll be looking longingly at the titles on Gamefly and figure it's time to buy. But if MS has an E3 with the 360 like the Sony did with the PSP last year, then it's gonna be a little while...

[RobotPants]

It has been really weak, though. Nobody will remember any of these games in six months time. Plus, everybody bitches about every weak launch. Time honoured-tradition. PS2 launch was weak. XBox was Halobox for however long until the next good game came out. DS launch was terrible. And so on. You just want special treatment for your guy.

I don't think the actual complaints are what Jason has a problem with, though. It's the repetition of said complaints that get a bit irritating. Everyone here with any sort of interest in the Xbox 360 has their own opinion of whether or not the launch line up is good or not. The ones who think it's weak aren't going to convince the ones who feel otherwise to change their minds by saying it over and over. It goes both ways, too. I'm pretty sure we'll never see:

The 360's current assortment of games sucks!

-No, it doesn't. I like Game A, Game B and Game C.

No, those games suck.

-No, they're awesome. I play them a lot.

No, sorry, they suck and this is the worst launch line up ever.

-Oh, wait, you're right.

[Jason McMaster]

Yeah, that's what I meant.

[Dave Long]

McMaster, man, let it go. There are some really sucky things about 360 and the game lineup is pretty much the main one for a lot of people. You telling everyone to shut up in not so many words every time someone gets negative isn't going to make them any more likely to do so.

[Pumpkinhead]

McMaster, man, let it go. There are some really sucky things about 360 and the game lineup is pretty much the main one for a lot of people.

Outside of the game lineup what are some sucky things about the 360? I wonder if we will ever see a console launch that has a universally praised launch lineup. Personally I am glad I bought one. I have enjoyed Kameo, NBA 2K6, and PGR 3 very much. Madden and DOA 4 have been disapointing. I am looking forward to GRAW and Oblivion when they drop. 5 games that I enjoy in 5 months is enough for me, not to mention the greatness that is Xbox arcade.

[quatoria]

McMaster, man, let it go. There are some really sucky things about 360 and the game lineup is pretty much the main one for a lot of people. You telling everyone to shut up in not so many words every time someone gets negative isn't going to make them any more likely to do so.

And you reminding people how much the 360 sucks in any thread that doesn't involve you cheering for your latest arcade high score or accomplishment isn't going to be convincing anybody that they've been insane in liking the 360 all this time, either. And, honestly, it's pretty intellectually dishonest for you to try and shout someone else down when they're defending a console, given your own Italian Plumber predilictions, Dave. You've staked out your position, McMaster has his. If you can keep repeating yours, over, and over, every time somebody mentions Microsoft, why do you think McMaster is somehow out of line in repeating his position?