2009 Xbox LIVE Update Preview
by Scott Reeser ~ July 29th, 2009. Filed under: Games, Movies, Opinion, Tech.
It’s an odd thing to be excited for a patch to firmware, but Microsoft’s updates to Xbox LIVE garner plenty of attention. The preview of this fall’s update has dropped on those of us lucky enough to receive it prematurely, and the ‘Funk has some early impressions.
Netflix integration goes deeper as viewers can now watch instant films with “Friends.” The draw of this feature was lost on me until I thought about having cross-country movie nights. Also added is browsing through Instant Watch films on the console, which is a welcome addition to those of us with desktop PCs in the other room (I can’t be bothered with such inconvenience).
Another major feature rolling out is the avatar marketplace, already filled with Halo shirts, Monkey Island outfits, and steampunk goggles. One of the new “Lifestyle Collections” is called “Recessionista,” fashioned after clothes commonly seen during the Great Depression; it seems apt to be paying for such superfluous couture during our own recession. And though no space bucks have yet been spent on the new props available, for 320 MS points your Avatar can drive around a remote-controlled warthog vehicle.
Other features include full 360 games available for download (though only Xbox Originals are seen at the moment), user ratings on all games and downloadable content (already Battlefield 1943 has 1,026 ratings for a near-perfect 5 stars), and other minor improvements making the dashboard and guide function better (and thankfully faster). A personal favorite tweak: we can now remotely eject the DVD tray!
July 30th, 2009 at 12:18 pm
I think avatar clothes and accessories you can unlock by playing games is a really cool idea. Buying stuff… not so much.