Back to previous page

  Moxie’s Coffee Break

March 23, 2006

It’s Xbox 360 Week!

Well… no, it’s not like a national holiday or anything, but the Xbox 360 I preordered has arrived, and that definitely feels like a holiday to me! Of course I’ve indulged in a few Xbox games here at work, but it’s a whole other ballgame (or, in my case, card game… see below!) to have my own gamertag, my own gamer score, and my own Friends list.

Now, I know that most of the big videogame magazines are talking about the action, racing, and sports games available for the 360, but in my humble (and admittedly biased) opinion, that’s far from the coolest thing the Xbox has to offer. So today, I’m planning to rant and ramble about… (insert drumroll here) … Live Arcade!

What is Xbox Live Arcade? Well, imagine playing wide-screen, broadband-speed multiplayer Hardwood Hearts, with a headset on so you can chat in real-time with your opponents. Imagine grabbing some of your old arcade favorites, like Joust and Gauntlet, and playing them cooperatively with other game-nostalgia fans. Imagine kicking back in your favorite chair and playing a fierce multiplayer game of Backgammon on your living room TV.

Live Arcade is casual gaming in overdrive. For a handful of Xbox Live Marketplace points, you can download one of the best casual games out there, and play it with all the advantages of the Xbox 360. We’re talking much-beloved casual standards like Bejeweled 2, Jewel Quest, and Zuma, classic arcade and computer hits like Smash TV and Crystal Quest, and all-new goodies such as Outpost Kaloki, Geometry Wars Evolved, and Wik: Fable of Souls.

I am the happiest little game geek in the world right now. Whoever invented this Live thing needs a medal. Or a raise. Or a medal and a raise.

X Marks the Spot

Of course, I was hardly the first person around here to score a 360; some of these folks pre-ordered the first day they could, and had their Xboxes weeks ago. So I thought it would be fun to ask around and see what everyone else was playing, and whether they might have some good tips for new players.

Sounds like two of the local favorites are Hardwood Hearts and Hardwood Backgammon. Not a big surprise, since everyone around here by definition is a card game addict. But apparently the sheer variety of backgrounds and environments makes these games particularly appealing. And since Hearts and Backgammon are popular around the world, it’s always easy to find people willing to play!

Another game with major kudos is Geometry Wars Evolved. As one of our testers put it, “This is the essence of Arcade. It’s extremely simple to learn and always quick to get to the action. It’s pure, distilled arcade action that never lets up. You cannot defy this game. No matter how good you are, it will slam you up against the wall and show you who’s Boss. It’s just a matter of time. And yet, once you pick yourself up off the floor, you still end up with bragging rights because your score is just that much better than your buddy’s.”

Also high on the list were Hexic HD, Wik: Fable of Souls, Joust, Mutant Storm, Astropop, and Marble Blast Ultra. And of course, Zuma is popular no matter what platform it’s on. Our art director introduced her 67-year-old mom to it a couple of weekends ago. She says, “At first (Mom) was afraid of the controller but within 15 minutes she was yelling at us as our chatting was distracting her game.” Go Mom!

Now personally, my favorite Live Arcade game is Outpost Kaloki. I’ve always had a soft spot for strategy games, and building games particularly. This game strips out all the tedious management aspects of that type of game, and just concentrates on the basics. Build a space lemonade stand, and you’ll attract thirsty aliens. Build a little garden, and you get nature-lovers. Build a science lab, and you can research new improvements. It’s like one of those city-building games, but with only the most fun bits, and set in outer space with silly plots and cute alien ships. What’s not to love?

Let’s see… a good tip for Outpost Kaloki… oh, yes. Power plants don’t generate any income (pun not intended), but they do require upkeep and maintenance, so don’t build them unless you need them!

Tech Time

With the Xbox 360 in mind, I thought this would be a good time to dig up a Live Arcade issue, just in case anyone here encounters it while playing. There’s no letter to go with this, of course, since I don’t handle Xbox support, but one of the testers clued me in on a possible problem for European players.

The Xbox Live Arcade versions of Feeding Frenzy and Astropop won’t play on some PAL-50 televisions.

Turns out that these games can’t play in PAL-50 format, but can play fine in PAL-60. So here’s the trick:

·          Turn off your Xbox.

·          Where the video cable connects to the Xbox, there should be a switch. Move this from the HD to the SD position, so the Xbox will output a standard definition signal.

·          Turn on your Xbox and navigate to the System menu in the dashboard.

·          Go to Video settings, and change the output to PAL-60.

·          Turn off the Xbox.

·          Set the switch back to HD.

·          Turn the Xbox back on again, and enjoy your game.

See you next week!