Dumb stuff that happened while I was gone, Episode I

Tuesday, August 23, 2005 » gaming thought

I've decided I don't complain about videogames enough.

Dumb Thing #1 - Xbox 360 to be bundled as "stupid" or "expensive"
A brief recap of the details: Microsoft will be selling the Xbox 360 as two sets: a $300 set that's basically the console, a wire controller, and a composite video cable, and a $400 set which includes the box, a hard drive, a wireless controller, the DVD remote, an Xbox Live headset, and—this actually surprised me the most—a component video cable.

This is actually a weird way to start the list. After writing up those few lines, I had to step back and try to remember what I was going to write about that was so dumb. As it turns out, I actually don't think this is dumb. I think it's great. I would really hate if Microsoft were to come out as the leader in the next generation of consoles, and now it looks like the new Xbox's launch is going to be pretty turbulent. Even a lot of Xbox fanatics have been freaking out about this announcement, and it's not hard to see why.

First, you've got the basic set, which was pretty much immediately disregarded by anyone who's not just a casual gamer. The main appeal is the pricetag, and that's just because the alternative is a large chunk of cash. Even so, you'd have to be a fool not to see that buying the basic set and eventually "upgrading" like Microsoft expects is financial madness. Xbox's most compelling features are Xbox Live support and the hard drive. Adding a drive to your basic set after the fact is already another hundred bucks, so you should just save up for the deluxe set and get the extra stuff that comes with it. Right?

There's also been a lot of discussion about whether or not the driveless model will cause developers to shy away from including a lot of features that require the drive, lest half their audience will be unable to get the full effect from their games. Microsoft claims that won't be an issue, but remember how many developers supported the PS2 hard drive? (And, just to be a real jerk: What about support for that N64 RAM expansion, huuhnh??)

But wait, there's more! There's that cable. Yes, coming back to that component cable: The only (presumably) AV hookup the deluxe set comes with is a component video cable for HD (or at least relatively high-end) televisions. It's very important for getting the highest quality graphics out of this "HD generation" of games; It's easy to see why Microsoft opted to substitute this for a regular cable. The thing is, I suspect it's a comparatively small percentage of gamers who own component-capable TVs, let alone HDTVs. So a lot of people who buy the deluxe set are going to have to shell out for another cable. OK, so tacking on $20-30 isn't quite the same as an extra $100, but it would make a lot more sense to pack in a regular composite cable (I don't even think enough people own S-video sets yet to abandon composite.) and let the HD crowd pay for their upgrade. Besides, there's a high likelihood that if they won't mind paying a few more dollars to get the most out of their expensive TV. Besides, even if you've got a composite cable and an HDTV, you can at least still see the games. Looking at it as harmlessly as possible, it's Microsoft trying to get people to bite and upgrade their home theaters for the HD era. My cynical interpretation, though, is that it's a way to milk a little bit more out of people buying the deluxe bundle.

While none of this is going to kill the Xbox 360, I think it may make people hesitant enough to prevent the runaway launch Microsoft is hoping for.

More dumb stuff later after the jade-o-meter cools back down.

[If you want to continue playing the Add-Up-Peripheral-Prices-in-Dismay game (admittedly, one of my favorites), MC has a good post in which he does just that. And he's probably the biggest Xbox fan I know.]

Update: Holy god! Electronics Boutique just announced that they'll initially only be selling the Xbox 360 included with games in bundles costing $600 and $700. THAT IS A LOT OF MONEY.