“Last one to 10 million units eats a rotten egg!” It looks like there will be no rotten eggs for Microsoft as they proudly announced that the Xbox 360 has topped the 10 million units sold mark in the United States. It’s also worth mentioning that this brings the worldwide total to more than 19 million.
“History has shown us that the first company to reach ten million in console sales wins the generation battle. We are uniquely positioned to set a new benchmark for the industry,” said Don Mattrick, senior Vice President of the Interactive Entertainment Business in the Entertainment and Devices Division at Microsoft.
I never knew that the first to reach 10 million usually identified the console battle winner but I’ll take Don’s word for it. They also went on to say that they own the most platinum titles besting both the PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Wii when it comes to million unit sellers.
Congratulations Xbox 360! Now can I get a check for all the attention I’ve helped gather? (pretty please)
While the supposed shortages continue, the Xbox 360 still manages to perform well in any other area beyond hardware. For the second consecutive month, the Xbox 360 remained last in consoles sold with 255,000 in February. However, that didn’t stop the software machine from dominating another Top 10 in software sales.
Microsoft also shared their take on February’s sales below which includes an impressive 9.6 million installed base here in North America that outshines the competition by a good margin. Check out the numbers and then read up on a few more tidbits concerning the Xbox 360.
February 2008 Hardware Sales
Nintendo DS- 587,600
Nintendo Wii- 432,000
PS2- 351,800
PS3- 280,800
Xbox 360- 254,600
PSP- 243,100
Beginning this Friday, a price drop will go in effect for the Xbox 360 in Europe. (hopefully in the US soon as well)
“We continue to offer intense, immersive gaming experiences for gamers – but now we’re priced in a way that will allow new consumers to find out for themselves why Xbox 360 is the ultimate in high-definition entertainment.” said Chris Lewis, Vice President, Microsoft Interactive Entertainment Business Europe.
Price Drop Adjustments Europe
Xbox 360 Arcade - €199.99 / £159.99
Xbox 360 Pro - €269.99 / £199.99
Xbox 360 Elite - €369.99 / £259.99
To all my fellow Canadians who haven’t jumped on board the Xbox 360 train, you can now do so at a cheaper price than those before you. Microsoft announced that it’s dropping the price of its console in Canada again 6 months after the previous price drop. Unfortunately for the rest of North America it doesn’t seem likely that a price cut for the US will follow. (at least not yet)
Price Drop Adjustments Canada
Xbox 360 Core - $279
Xbox 360 Pro - $349
Xbox 360 Elite - $449
Some interesting news comes out of Microsoft and Xbox today concerning the new features on the Xbox 360. You can now edit your new personal profile information online at Xbox.com. This includes the Bio, Name and Location fields that were implemented in the last dashboard update.
Just simply log on to Xbox.com and click on Manage Profile > Edit Personal Profile. This adds some convenience I’m sure to all the Bio changing fiends out there. You can also view the personal profiles of users now online as well. Simply click a Gamercard and read up on the juicy details of your favorite gamers and friends.
It’s no secret that Digital Rights Management (DRM) has presented a few issues to Xbox 360 gamers. I posted a Truth Serum article recently about it and had a very interesting show last Saturday about it. It was a shocker to hear some of the cases and how long some of them have gone on. However, I did find out some things invovlving the issue that I wanted to share. This may not be the case for many of you but hopefully for a few, it will help.
During the repair process, a technician or representative or whomever is supposed to update your console’s serial number with that of the new one. This would prevent any licensing issues with content and would stop you from having to authenticate via Xbox Live. I’ve verified that this is supposed to happen but unfortunately it sometimes doesn’t. It’s also unfortunate that no notification of this is given. You could be free of any potential DRM issues but you’d never know it because there’s no notification currently being sent.
This tip will help those of you who don’t know that you’ve been updated. For those still in a DRM punked status, I’ll keep investigating to see if something more can be done. Now let’s get on to the tip shall we.
DRM Tip (for those trying to access Arcade titles offline and can’t)
-Log on to Xbox Live with the same Gamertag you initially downloaded the content to
- Go to your Systems Blade > Memory > Games
- Locate the Arcade games you can not access offline and delete them including saves
- Go to your Marketplace Blade > Account Management > Download History
- Search for the same content in your history and download it again
This may not work for those who a) have not had your console serial # properly updated or b) if the content is no longer in your Download History. I know a few users who tried this after last weekend’s show (including myself) and it took care of the problem. So give it a shot.
To help me with further investigating and hopefully finding a solution to being punked by DRM, I’m encouraging those who have been punked to email me your situation. I’ll get a list together and try to present it to the proper people.
It’s time for an injection of that special serum into a subject that I’m sure is a personal one for many of you. You don’t read very much about it but it affects everyone who owns an Xbox 360. DRM, as most of you will recognize it, stands for Digital Rights Management. It is a technology used by many publishers and copyright holders to limit the use of digital content/devices and in some cases restrict use altogether. I’m here to say that it sucks especially when talking about how it affects some Xbox 360 owners.
Do you really own the things that you download from the Xbox Live Marketplace? Is that really your copy of Rez HD that you purchased from the Xbox Live Arcade? The short answer should be yes after you’ve obviously spent your Microsoft Points to obtain them. However, the long answer is that instead you’ve been punked by the DRM system currently in place on the Xbox 360.
No, you don’t own that content or rather you do until you have to replace your console through the repair process or some other reason. Repairs, new purchase Elite data transfers…whatever the reason you’ve ended up with a new console, it results in being punked by DRM.
Truth Serum is when I give you the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help my Xbox 360 controllers. I’ll inject truth serum into a variety of topics I come across to hopefully help you make sound decisions in your gaming world. The first topic to be injected is one concerning the new Xbox 360 Pro console equipped with HDMI and just how you may not have a true digital experience out of the box.
It turns out that the AV cable/adapter that comes packaged with the Pro restricts you from connecting the HDMI cable. Bottom line is that the component cable included with the Pro has a connecting end that’s just too big and it covers the HDMI port making it impossible to connect the HDMI cable when you want to use your optical cable for 5.1 Dolby. So it’s either utilize the HDMI or 5.1 Dolby but not both.
This applies to those of you who have A/V receivers without an HDMI connection like myself. I only have a receiver with optical ports for 5.1 Dolby so this would definitely bite the big one. The solution is to purchase the $49.99 HDMI cable with the smaller end. If you add that up though, an Xbox 360 Pro is now $400 when purchasing the HDMI cable thus making it only $50 cheaper than the Elite.
It makes sense then to simply spring for the Xbox 360 Elite no? Fifty extra dollars would get you 100 more gigs of hard drive space and the cables necessary right out of the box. Is this a Microsoft treat or trick? It’s Halloween today so you decide.
I’ve received quite a few emails and messages throughout the existence of Xbox Live and the introduction of gamer cards concerning inappropriate mottos as well as inappropriate gamertags. I’ve had a few shows in fact with many of you voicing your concerns about using the report system and how effective it really is.
Well the system has been updated to deal with these complaints a lot faster. So if you come across a disturbing motto or an offensive gamertag, use the in-console complaint system. I expect everyone to help police Xbox Live so that we can all enjoy a better online environment.
Here’s what you do for those unaware:
- go to your recent players list (previous players)
- select the gamer card you wish to file a complaint on
- go to File Complaint > File Complaint > Profile & Content > Gamertag or Motto > File Complaint
- when you see the little gavel icon, you’re finished
As you’ve all no doubt read around the interweb, NPD Group numbers for September have the Xbox 360 pushing the most hardware with a little over 527,000 consoles sold. I suppose having a game that sells over 3 million units helps.
“Halo 3 had a very big and significant impact on 360 hardware sales. Consumers always tell us that the availability of the games they want to play is the #1 reason why they purchase any given hardware system, and when you have a game of this magnitude, the effect of compelling content on driving hardware acquisition is evident,” says NPD industry analyst, Anita Frazier.
Ok, so I was wrong about the Halo effect. Halo 3 did appear to have helped just a tiny bit in hardware sales. I think it’s safe to assume that at some point Halo 4 will be made.
