What an underwhelming update.

They need to release an update that supports 6 channel x264, as this flaky 2 channel support sucks.

8/31/2007 12:58:59 PM

oblivion is finally 30 dollars. took long enough.

8/31/2007 1:04:13 PM

oh because paltry old 2 channel digital sounds terrible out to dolby digital ex through a soundsystem. Terrible.

Dude which thread do you not troll in? I'd like to know?

8/31/2007 1:30:01 PM

Ok, that's not really trolling. 5.1 downsampled to 2 channel stereo and then demuxed to 5.1 through your receiver does sound pretty terrible. The PS3 has the same problem and it would be awesome if they fixed it.

[Edited on August 31, 2007 at 1:45 PM. Reason : :]

8/31/2007 1:36:25 PM

Quote :

"oh because paltry old 2 channel digital sounds terrible out to dolby digital ex through a soundsystem. Terrible. Dude which thread do you not troll in? I'd like to know?"

Uh... I'm not trolling. Generally x264 files are HD video content and generally have better than two channel sound, yet for some reason the 360 only "supports" (term used loosely) 2 channel x264, which means in order to watch a 6ch x264 file, the audio would have to go 6ch -> 2ch -> 6ch. It's silly and needs to be corrected.

The playback of x264 files on it is solely lacking to the point where I'd barely even consider it working. It plays WMV-HDs like a champ though, which is why the x264 issue is so frustrating.

8/31/2007 1:50:29 PM

Quote :

"You do realize that since Halo 3 has a hard street date that every store will have it in before September 25? With that in mind, I doubt Best Buy will do a midnight launch like Gamestop (who has owned EB Games for over a year)."

EBgames is the worst when it comes to pre-orders. The last time i pre-ordered, i come in the day of the release and they say 'oh sorry, shipping issues, we'll have it hopefully tomorrow' So i canceled my order and picked it up instantly from best buy. It was a big release game too as i had picked up the last two copies from Best Buy before it was sold out and it wasn't even lunch time yet. I think it was gears of war....Azaka was with me.

8/31/2007 1:53:18 PM

^^ ok, my bad then. I'm not that big on audio formats..there's so many and its so damn confusing.

Honestly I don't know how the current setup (optical 2 digital channels to d.digital ex) sounds terrible. I've got an Onkyo 7.1 and it sounds bloody brilliant, but then again, you guys must have the lexus of all sound setups.

8/31/2007 2:23:58 PM

It really has nothing to do with the quality of our sound systems. The problem is that it completely nullifies the 5.1 sound track that originally came with the movie. Instead of having all the neat channel separation, it's just regular old 2.0 stereo sound, but output from 5 speakers instead of 2. It doesn't sound awful but it doesn't preserve the original intent of the soundtrack either.

8/31/2007 2:43:03 PM

Quote :

"EBgames is the worst when it comes to pre-orders. The last time i pre-ordered, i come in the day of the release and they say 'oh sorry, shipping issues, we'll have it hopefully tomorrow' So i canceled my order and picked it up instantly from best buy. It was a big release game too as i had picked up the last two copies from Best Buy before it was sold out and it wasn't even lunch time yet. I think it was gears of war....Azaka was with me."

Gears got shipped differently than most of the games Gamestop gets (I get it mixed up whether they sent them through UPS or FedEx). It also wasn't a set hard street date. It got shipped on Monday and got screwed up in TN. NCAA Football, Madden, Halo 2, Halo 3, etc. have "hard street" dates where the games are shipped in the previous week and held in the back room until the day they're allowed to sell.

As for the Gamestop in Greensboro that I work at vs. the Best Buy that I used to work at, the Gamestop gets their shipment in at least 30 minutes before Best Buy (which is less than a mile down the road).

Also, Best Buy doesn't always pull their alloted pre-orders from their shipment before they put them on the shelves.

However, with all that said, I don't trust every Gamestop or Best Buy to hold their pre-orders correctly.

8/31/2007 2:51:16 PM

Well Gamestop are the only ones doing a Halo3 midnight release.... or they are the only ones who know. The people working the videogame sections at Circuit City and Best Buy said they were not sure, but they did not think so. Know your role!!!!

8/31/2007 3:25:14 PM

From what i've heard, best buy is not doing a midnight release

8/31/2007 4:10:07 PM

Best Buy won't do a midnight release for a system (outside of NY, LA, etc.), so I doubt any around here will have one for Halo 3. While I was there I tried to get them to open the Greensboro store for the 360 launch, but was told it was too complicated for security & attachment reasons (grab console, pay, leave).

8/31/2007 4:23:25 PM

Start checking the newsgroups.

[Edited on August 31, 2007 at 4:51 PM. Reason : :]

8/31/2007 4:51:19 PM

::drool::

lol

8/31/2007 4:56:11 PM

best buy in crossroads has done several midnight releases.

8/31/2007 5:14:47 PM

Quote :

"Instead of having all the neat channel separation, it's just regular old 2.0 stereo sound, but output from 5 speakers instead of 2."

I'm confused then, why does for instance in bioshock i can hear shit out of my back speaker that is truly behind me or the back left or back right speakers that pan? obviously those are individually meant for those speakers. Is that some kind of mixed out shortcut?

8/31/2007 5:50:30 PM

^same here. My surround sound is uber with the xbox360. hell even watching HDDVD's on the xbox has me constantly turning around to see who's behind me lol. Also my receiver shows the sound input as 5.1 and then outputs it to 7.1

8/31/2007 5:52:04 PM

Quote :

"I'm confused then, why does for instance in bioshock i can hear shit out of my back speaker that is truly behind me or the back left or back right speakers that pan? obviously those are individually meant for those speakers. Is that some kind of mixed out shortcut?"

Because Bioshock supports 5.1 sound.

Lets try this again. The issue is that if a 5.1 (6 channel) x264 file could be played through a network share on the 360 right now, those 6 channels would have to be mixed down to two channels, so all the information for Center, Front Left, Front Right, Back Left, Back Right would become just Left and Right. However, when the XBox goes to output that signal to your receiver (assuming you have your XBox to output 5.1) it takes those 2 channels and splits them to 6 channels again. The issue is that the original 6 channels and the new 6 channels aren't the same. This is an issue, since talking (especially) will come out of five speakers, rather than the center channel which is intended to handle it.

8/31/2007 6:00:13 PM

so you are just talking about video files streamed to the xbox using things like transcode 360?

8/31/2007 6:01:48 PM

No, I'm talking about files streamed to the 360 when using it as a media extender with WMP11 or Windows Media Connect.

8/31/2007 6:03:42 PM

I'm using mine as a windows media extender through Vista. Only reason i use transcode is because media center on both the PC and the xbox don't recognize xvid and such.

8/31/2007 7:35:14 PM

^did you use media center on xp before? if so did you notice any differences/upgrades?

8/31/2007 7:41:51 PM

I've had MCE since 2004. Been using it in the past with a xbox + xbox media center extender. And before that with the linksys extender which i have setup for my parents at their house. There is a performance difference between the two but a slight visual difference. Vista is so much better over all then XP IMO when it comes to media

8/31/2007 8:00:39 PM

Quote :

"I'm using mine as a windows media extender through Vista. Only reason i use transcode is because media center on both the PC and the xbox don't recognize xvid and such."

Yeah, I don't want to transcode anything though. That's exactly what I'm trying to avoid.

8/31/2007 8:18:00 PM

well you have to if you want to play xvid and not go through the trouble of converting all your videos to WMV

8/31/2007 9:48:09 PM

IGN gave Stranglehold a 8.1...the demo was dope as fuck, especially the slow motion bullets to the dome

6-8 hour game, will be a good rental

9/3/2007 11:49:10 AM

Stranglehold is pretty fun. You can't really jump though, which sucks.

9/3/2007 2:31:19 PM

im pretty sure being required to use Dan for an achievement in Super Puzzle Fighter 2 classifies as tortue in at least 30 countries.

drop, drop, drop, ah sweet i got rid of some.....(from all speakers) kashushsushushushushsush.... DEAD.

9/3/2007 7:10:07 PM

stranglehold is $47 at CC this week only

9/3/2007 7:58:50 PM

stranglehold is $47 $37 at CC this week only when you use this

http://img458.imageshack.us/my.php?image=shchj0.jpg

9/3/2007 11:10:10 PM

http://www.joystiq.com/2007/09/03/marvel-vs-capcom-for-digital-download-hopes-marvel-exec/

Marvel VP says he'd like to see Marvel Vs. Capcom available for download. That would be sooooo sweet (assuming it had online play and all that). *sigh*

So I got wireless adapter, xbox live headset, and $40 worth of marketplace points. I guess now I just need the system

9/4/2007 9:45:35 AM

Word! Welcome to the party!

9/4/2007 10:32:24 AM

^^Damn, I would love that. I'd never get rid of my 360 if I got MvC. I already have MvC2 for the PS2. That'll never leave. EA, let Capcom put that game on XBLA.

9/4/2007 10:53:15 AM

After buying a Wii a few months ago, I have craved more for graphics. Just purchased the XBox Elite yesterday... Was going to buy the PS3, but programmers just arent doing their jobs getting good quality games out, and most of the games are looking and performing better on the X-Box for this reason. Just what large online multiplayer games are out there that are worth a damn (no, I am not talking about role playing like WoW and such).

9/4/2007 11:52:45 AM

^all the recent sports games like Madden have tons of people online

9/4/2007 12:27:35 PM

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=187121

9/4/2007 12:43:31 PM

^^^ Rainbow 6 is still big on live.

9/4/2007 1:03:45 PM

1 week til nhl08, wooooo

9/4/2007 1:05:54 PM

Im pretty impressed with some of the downloadable games. I downloaded Worms last night. I use to LOVE that game. It looks awesome in HD format

9/4/2007 1:54:33 PM

and you can download demos for a ton of retail / DVD games as well...definitely helps decide what games are worth owning before you accidentally waste your money on something you don't like

9/4/2007 2:00:27 PM

God, this game is so awesome. Not sure why I waited to so long to get it. It's just quality quality quality. I know you are thinking - well it's pacman, how much can you play this? This is like the definitive geometry wars -esque addictive pac man. I suggest for 800 points this one is a great pick up.

9/4/2007 2:19:17 PM

I know I am late to the BioShock party, but I picked it up this weekend and all I can say is WOW. I have been extremely impressed every step of the way and probably have put 10 hours into it already... I don't want to spoil it for anyone so I'll just say that I just finished getting the distilled waters and enzymes to create that plant/spore thing.

I highly recommend this game... I was kind of on the fence about it but now I am sold. And I will definately play through it a 2nd time on the harder difficulty.

9/4/2007 2:25:24 PM

^more bioshock stuff if interested...not that you cant post that kind of stuff in this thread, but you'll certainly get more feedback and info here \message_topic.aspx?topic=490069

9/4/2007 3:06:56 PM

Quote :

"Master P, Seth Green developing hip-hop RPG Curious pairing of rapper-turned-real estate mogul and Robot Chicken star are aiming to release a music-industry-themed game in 2009. By Tor Thorsen, GameSpot Posted Sep 4, 2007 11:50 am PT No, that headline is not a misprint. Today's Hollywood Reporter contains a story about one of the oddest projects in show business history. The trade reports that onetime music mogul Master P, who has recently focused on real estate, and actor Seth Green, costar of the Austin Powers films and cocreator of TV show Robot Chicken, are codeveloping a game. Titled Play the Industry, the game is being developed by Stoopid Monkey Productions and ShadowMachine Films, the TV production companies behind the Cartoon Network series Robot Chicken and Moral Orel. The two will partner with P Miller Enterprises, the investment company Master P set up to fund his various nonmusic ventures, which include real estate holdings, a fast food franchise, a sports management firm, and a phone sex line. Master P--real name Percy Miller--has also been giving wealth creation seminars at the Learning Annex. As for the game itself, Play the Industry will be a hip-hop-themed role-playing game that will see players earn fame and fortune as a musician, professional athlete, or "power broker." "You can play agent, you can play mogul, you play all sorts of different characters," Stoopid Monkey head Matthew Seinrech told the Reporter. Currently, the three companies are pitching Play the Industry to developers. The aim is for it to be on as many platforms as possible, with a release target of 2009. Seinrech said that the far-off release date is a reflection of the three companies' desire to make a quality game. "We really want to take the time and make sure we do this right," Senreich said. "But the good thing we have going into this is we are developing the creative ahead of time, and we're very close to having that up and running." If the Play the Industry is successful, its creators plan to develop a motion picture, reality show, and clothing line based on the game. "

damn i have been sleeping on p this whole while - he is still out here making millions on the low low

9/4/2007 4:30:02 PM

man am i gonna be pissed if they release mvc2 to xbla. i paid decent bit of change (high forties) for that bitch. I guess I could still probably resell it, but damn it. That and I already unlocked a ton of guys. Shit takes FOREVER to unlock everything.

[Edited on September 4, 2007 at 4:42 PM. Reason : play 1-2 through to unlock another person and theres about 35 to unlock]

9/4/2007 4:41:52 PM

Hopefully they'll have everyone unlocked from day one. IIRC Sentinel is one of the last characters to unlock and he's considered 'top tier' by the hardcore crowd.

9/4/2007 6:55:17 PM

since we were previously discussing it

i took my 360 back today after calling to confirm that they had the new premium models, and using the service plan and "red light" excuse was able to get one of the new premium models no questions asked.

so much quieter + hdmi

what MS should have made from the get go.

9/5/2007 11:18:22 PM

i'm still pissed I didn't get one of the updated ones

i'm almost positive mine will red ring again within a year or so

9/5/2007 11:21:01 PM

i didnt actually have a red light

i just told the best buy customer service kid that so i could exchange it

9/5/2007 11:30:48 PM

anyone pick up medal of honor airborne today? The demo was uber! Best moh to date as far as gameplay and open envioement etc... And the obvious graphic improvement

9/6/2007 12:46:51 AM