Rookie goes XBL

Type A · 12-07-2006, 08:33 PM

Comcast cable dsl will be hooked up at my house Saturday. It will be the first time in a couple of years that Ive used anything other than my cell phone as an IP. Obviously I have been missing out on recent XBL services and features, and I have never had XBL. I will be signing up for XBL gold.

I do want to download a HD movie, just to check it out. What movie(s) do you recommend I try first? Best pq?

I have COD2, Splinter Cell DA, GOW, and RSV that I will want to try for the first time ever online. I know GOW has now taken over the top spot as the most played XBL title, but what would be a good starting point for such a rookie XBL guy like myself? Should I start with a Halo 2 fight first?

What other XBL content should this rookie check out first as a brand new XBL gold member? Any new game demos I should make sure and catch? Critical game patches for my titles? Additional maps?

Finially, is there a good how-to reference for XBL newbies, maybe something I can read online before saturday?

Thanks guys

Razor05 · 12-07-2006, 08:48 PM

First, what game do you feel most comfortable with? In regards to Halo2, there are too many 12 year olds that would kick your butt (mine included, lol). So I would recommend COD2 as a start. It's actually alot of fun, with good graphics, and the patch has cleaned things up quite abit. BTW, let us know what your gamertag is when you get hooked up.

Type A · 12-08-2006, 12:39 AM

Thanks. Yeah, dont think Id appriciate getting beat by a kid with a controller...its just a pride thing...lol. I stand a better chance with newer titles, is that what you are saying? Cleaned things up on COD2, you are not talking graphics cleaned up, right?

Wow, I figured with a brand new ability to download full movies in hd via the 360, I would have been swamped with movie suggestions from all the gamers who, at least, tried one for pq evaluations. Has anybody even tried it, excessive download times just too much? Also thought someone would pipe right up about suggested game demos to try 'first thing, at-all-costs' type thing

Razor05 · 12-08-2006, 01:33 AM

There were some issues with multiplayer and lag, that's what they fixed with the patch. We don't have the downloadable movie stuff yet (soon I hope), so I can't comment on that. GOW and RS:Vegas seem to be pretty hot for multiplayer. COD3 also is popular. You should give them a rent. I would definately add Gears to my library though.

godson · 12-08-2006, 03:10 AM

The movies are very nice looking. Audio they paled in comparison the HD DVD but not all that bad,nothing worse than cable HD. Also the DL times are kinda slow although you will notice at a certain point it will say X movie is ready to begin viewing,like once its DL'd enough to start watching you can begin before the DL is finished,but still takes some time. You can DL trailers for movies in HD,similiar to how you usually have the option to DL game trailers and the like in either 480i or 720p,same deal. Your gonna love XBL,I remember my first time and so will you

Type A · 12-09-2006, 05:56 PM

Wow...nice to have a fat pipe again, its been a long time. According to http://www.bandwidthplace.com/speedtest/results.php my desktop is downloading at 3.6, and thats wired from a new linksys wireless router. Had the laptop working wirelessly for a little while, but now is not connecting to the router....its going to have to wait, think I hear XBL registration calling my name

Type A · 12-09-2006, 07:24 PM

GamerTag is OldGuy035....hope to see you guys there

mshulman · 12-09-2006, 08:00 PM

As far as games, I've been having the most fun with Rainbow Six Vegas. Its just plain fun. Head shots really make a big difference too, so if you have any ability to get a headshot in, you'll get a lot of kills. I'm not usually great at these games, but its one of the few games where I've had great moments!

For movies, I've downloaded an episode of Jackass (SD) just cause I wanted to check something out and I like Jackass

I also downloaded an episode of Star Trek in HD. I like Star trek and wanted to see how it looked in HD. It looked really good, but its not widescreen. I imagine its got 720 lines still, but not 1280 rows.

I haven't tried the movies yet - The ones that interested me will be available on HD-DVD, so I am waiting for that.

See on Xbox Live - My gamertag is Maytrix.

Type A · 12-10-2006, 01:12 PM

Added as many friends as I could find on this forum....sorry if I missed anyones gamertag. Razor joined me last night for my first experiences with XBL....got my clock cleaned all night long. The few that were in the co-op were better than me, as well as probably most of the friends I added from this forum last night. Was playing RSV, the ai numbers were high and very tough (and we were in normal mode), but then Razor also mentioned joining group on group of gamers...havent tried it yet. Noticed steeb online this morning, and tried to join him in gow....but couldnt find a selection to just join him. All I saw was that I could send him an invite. So, still trying to learn my way around the gaming: joining my friends who are already online and gaming is still a mystery thus far.

Did download v for vendetta in hd. Impressed with pq and sq...but I think they may be just a little shy of what my 360 add on can give for pq. But then i dont own the disk of v for vendetta...so Im just guessing on that one. NOT impressed with the download time for the movie though.

Not impressed that the opening sequence for star trek original series in hd is actually wide screen full hd, but then the program itself is 4x3

It looks good even in 4x3, but I would be willing to wait longer and get a widescreen version. Its nice that the 43minute program only took about 20 minutes to download, but I sure hope ms decides to offer the ws version if they expect me to pay for any more in the future. For all I know that was how they were remastered for hd, but I doubt it.

mshulman · 12-10-2006, 01:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Type A

Not impressed that the opening sequence for star trek original series in hd is actually wide screen full hd, but then the program itself is 4x3

It looks good even in 4x3, but I would be willing to wait longer and get a widescreen version. Its nice that the 43minute program only took about 20 minutes to download, but I sure hope ms decides to offer the ws version if they expect me to pay for any more in the future. For all I know that was how they were remastered for hd, but I doubt it.

How was the original series recorded? Maybe its not in widescreen because it was for TV an no widescreen was ever recorded?

Type A · 12-10-2006, 01:19 PM

That would certainly explain it.

Type A · 12-10-2006, 05:29 PM

Wow, I cant get over how solid the 360 and xbl is. Aside from frame rate issues while observing gamers that are still alive (which Im doing ALOT after getting my ass handed to me), Im really surprised how quickly you can access and surf through the media you have downloaded, find who's online, and what they are doing, download all kinds of media, easily establish or join a game, ect.... I see myself getting a bigger harddrive for the 360 when they come available. HTPC...whats that????

mshulman · 12-10-2006, 07:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Type A

Wow, I cant get over how solid the 360 and xbl is. Aside from frame rate issues while observing gamers that are still alive (which Im doing ALOT after getting my ass handed to me), Im really surprised how quickly you can access and surf through the media you have downloaded, find who's online, and what they are doing, download all kinds of media, easily establish or join a game, ect.... I see myself getting a bigger harddrive for the 360 when they come available. HTPC...whats that????

And how cool is it that I can tell at 8:41et right now that you are playing PGR3

I can't wait for Forza2 - I want to get it and the wireless wheel

We'll have to play some rainbow six one of these days... I was away this weekend and haven't been on.

Razor05 · 12-10-2006, 09:13 PM

Plus, no matter which game each of you are in, you can always chat.

Razor05 · 12-10-2006, 09:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Type A

Wow, I cant get over how solid the 360 and xbl is. Aside from frame rate issues while observing gamers that are still alive (which Im doing ALOT after getting my ass handed to me

You mean like when we all we getting owned by those terrorists in Rainbow? lol

12-07-2006, 08:33 PM	#1
Type A 1080 Optical Supporter Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Panama City, Fl Age: 37 Posts: 2,724	Rookie goes XBL Comcast cable dsl will be hooked up at my house Saturday. It will be the first time in a couple of years that Ive used anything other than my cell phone as an IP. Obviously I have been missing out on recent XBL services and features, and I have never had XBL. I will be signing up for XBL gold. I do want to download a HD movie, just to check it out. What movie(s) do you recommend I try first? Best pq? I have COD2, Splinter Cell DA, GOW, and RSV that I will want to try for the first time ever online. I know GOW has now taken over the top spot as the most played XBL title, but what would be a good starting point for such a rookie XBL guy like myself? Should I start with a Halo 2 fight first? What other XBL content should this rookie check out first as a brand new XBL gold member? Any new game demos I should make sure and catch? Critical game patches for my titles? Additional maps? Finially, is there a good how-to reference for XBL newbies, maybe something I can read online before saturday? Thanks guys __________________ Mitsubishi HC3000U HD projector Dual Optoma 106" screens Harman Kardon AVR-7000 receiver Bose 901 VI, 301 IV, VCS 10 Bose AM-6 Series III Sony STR-DG600 receiver JVC GR-HD1 HD camcorder Xbox 360 Pro / PS3 40 Gig HD DVD 0 / Blu Ray 15 Games 18 / Games 2 Gateway 901x HTPC (modified) Sling Box Pro w/HD Connect Cable Dish 211 receiver w/Absolute HD pack HP Pavilion dv-6000 laptop (HTPC2GO) Link-Theater Gallery - 100,000+ views Link-55 Restoration Updated 6/21/08

12-07-2006, 08:48 PM	#2
Razor05 HD = 65 beautiful inches Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Canada Posts: 2,816	First, what game do you feel most comfortable with? In regards to Halo2, there are too many 12 year olds that would kick your butt (mine included, lol). So I would recommend COD2 as a start. It's actually alot of fun, with good graphics, and the patch has cleaned things up quite abit. BTW, let us know what your gamertag is when you get hooked up. __________________ Panasonic TH-65PZ850U Sony KDL37XBR6 Panasonic TH-37PX50U Cambridge Audio Azur 640R & 740C Paradigm Studio 60's, 20's, CC-590 & Seismic 12 Toshiba HD-XA2 & A35 Motorola VIP1200 Monster HTFS1000, PB2100 AA 1154a Xbox360 Prem & Halo3 LE + HD-DVD GT: Razor59 Sony PSP HD-DVDs = 51 PC - NEC MultiSync FE991SB ThermalTake Bach Vx Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Gigabyte MoBo w 4GB OCZ 6400 Gigabyte 8800GTX 768MB Creative SB X-Fi, Klipsch 2.1 WD Raptor 150GB 10k Vista Home Premium

12-08-2006, 12:39 AM	#3
Type A 1080 Optical Supporter Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Panama City, Fl Age: 37 Posts: 2,724	Thanks. Yeah, dont think Id appriciate getting beat by a kid with a controller...its just a pride thing...lol. I stand a better chance with newer titles, is that what you are saying? Cleaned things up on COD2, you are not talking graphics cleaned up, right? Wow, I figured with a brand new ability to download full movies in hd via the 360, I would have been swamped with movie suggestions from all the gamers who, at least, tried one for pq evaluations. Has anybody even tried it, excessive download times just too much? Also thought someone would pipe right up about suggested game demos to try 'first thing, at-all-costs' type thing __________________ Mitsubishi HC3000U HD projector Dual Optoma 106" screens Harman Kardon AVR-7000 receiver Bose 901 VI, 301 IV, VCS 10 Bose AM-6 Series III Sony STR-DG600 receiver JVC GR-HD1 HD camcorder Xbox 360 Pro / PS3 40 Gig HD DVD 0 / Blu Ray 15 Games 18 / Games 2 Gateway 901x HTPC (modified) Sling Box Pro w/HD Connect Cable Dish 211 receiver w/Absolute HD pack HP Pavilion dv-6000 laptop (HTPC2GO) Link-Theater Gallery - 100,000+ views Link-55 Restoration Updated 6/21/08

12-08-2006, 01:33 AM	#4
Razor05 HD = 65 beautiful inches Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Canada Posts: 2,816	There were some issues with multiplayer and lag, that's what they fixed with the patch. We don't have the downloadable movie stuff yet (soon I hope), so I can't comment on that. GOW and RS:Vegas seem to be pretty hot for multiplayer. COD3 also is popular. You should give them a rent. I would definately add Gears to my library though. __________________ Panasonic TH-65PZ850U Sony KDL37XBR6 Panasonic TH-37PX50U Cambridge Audio Azur 640R & 740C Paradigm Studio 60's, 20's, CC-590 & Seismic 12 Toshiba HD-XA2 & A35 Motorola VIP1200 Monster HTFS1000, PB2100 AA 1154a Xbox360 Prem & Halo3 LE + HD-DVD GT: Razor59 Sony PSP HD-DVDs = 51 PC - NEC MultiSync FE991SB ThermalTake Bach Vx Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Gigabyte MoBo w 4GB OCZ 6400 Gigabyte 8800GTX 768MB Creative SB X-Fi, Klipsch 2.1 WD Raptor 150GB 10k Vista Home Premium

12-08-2006, 03:10 AM	#5
godson Mr. Bill Belecheeeeek. Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: philadelphia Posts: 2,592	The movies are very nice looking. Audio they paled in comparison the HD DVD but not all that bad,nothing worse than cable HD. Also the DL times are kinda slow although you will notice at a certain point it will say X movie is ready to begin viewing,like once its DL'd enough to start watching you can begin before the DL is finished,but still takes some time. You can DL trailers for movies in HD,similiar to how you usually have the option to DL game trailers and the like in either 480i or 720p,same deal. Your gonna love XBL,I remember my first time and so will you __________________ Breakfast, shmreakfast. Look at the score, for Christ's sake. It's only the second period and I'm up 12 to 2. Breakfasts come and go, Renee, but Hartford, "the Whale," they only beat Vancouver once, maybe twice in a lifetime.

12-09-2006, 05:56 PM	#6
Type A 1080 Optical Supporter Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Panama City, Fl Age: 37 Posts: 2,724	Wow...nice to have a fat pipe again, its been a long time. According to http://www.bandwidthplace.com/speedtest/results.php my desktop is downloading at 3.6, and thats wired from a new linksys wireless router. Had the laptop working wirelessly for a little while, but now is not connecting to the router....its going to have to wait, think I hear XBL registration calling my name __________________ Mitsubishi HC3000U HD projector Dual Optoma 106" screens Harman Kardon AVR-7000 receiver Bose 901 VI, 301 IV, VCS 10 Bose AM-6 Series III Sony STR-DG600 receiver JVC GR-HD1 HD camcorder Xbox 360 Pro / PS3 40 Gig HD DVD 0 / Blu Ray 15 Games 18 / Games 2 Gateway 901x HTPC (modified) Sling Box Pro w/HD Connect Cable Dish 211 receiver w/Absolute HD pack HP Pavilion dv-6000 laptop (HTPC2GO) Link-Theater Gallery - 100,000+ views Link-55 Restoration Updated 6/21/08

12-09-2006, 07:24 PM	#7
Type A 1080 Optical Supporter Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Panama City, Fl Age: 37 Posts: 2,724	GamerTag is OldGuy035....hope to see you guys there __________________ Mitsubishi HC3000U HD projector Dual Optoma 106" screens Harman Kardon AVR-7000 receiver Bose 901 VI, 301 IV, VCS 10 Bose AM-6 Series III Sony STR-DG600 receiver JVC GR-HD1 HD camcorder Xbox 360 Pro / PS3 40 Gig HD DVD 0 / Blu Ray 15 Games 18 / Games 2 Gateway 901x HTPC (modified) Sling Box Pro w/HD Connect Cable Dish 211 receiver w/Absolute HD pack HP Pavilion dv-6000 laptop (HTPC2GO) Link-Theater Gallery - 100,000+ views Link-55 Restoration Updated 6/21/08

12-09-2006, 08:00 PM	#8
mshulman My Projector is High Def. Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Marlborough, MA Age: 34 Posts: 5,924	As far as games, I've been having the most fun with Rainbow Six Vegas. Its just plain fun. Head shots really make a big difference too, so if you have any ability to get a headshot in, you'll get a lot of kills. I'm not usually great at these games, but its one of the few games where I've had great moments! For movies, I've downloaded an episode of Jackass (SD) just cause I wanted to check something out and I like Jackass I also downloaded an episode of Star Trek in HD. I like Star trek and wanted to see how it looked in HD. It looked really good, but its not widescreen. I imagine its got 720 lines still, but not 1280 rows. I haven't tried the movies yet - The ones that interested me will be available on HD-DVD, so I am waiting for that. See on Xbox Live - My gamertag is Maytrix.

12-10-2006, 01:12 PM	#9
Type A 1080 Optical Supporter Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Panama City, Fl Age: 37 Posts: 2,724	Added as many friends as I could find on this forum....sorry if I missed anyones gamertag. Razor joined me last night for my first experiences with XBL....got my clock cleaned all night long. The few that were in the co-op were better than me, as well as probably most of the friends I added from this forum last night. Was playing RSV, the ai numbers were high and very tough (and we were in normal mode), but then Razor also mentioned joining group on group of gamers...havent tried it yet. Noticed steeb online this morning, and tried to join him in gow....but couldnt find a selection to just join him. All I saw was that I could send him an invite. So, still trying to learn my way around the gaming: joining my friends who are already online and gaming is still a mystery thus far. Did download v for vendetta in hd. Impressed with pq and sq...but I think they may be just a little shy of what my 360 add on can give for pq. But then i dont own the disk of v for vendetta...so Im just guessing on that one. NOT impressed with the download time for the movie though. Not impressed that the opening sequence for star trek original series in hd is actually wide screen full hd, but then the program itself is 4x3 It looks good even in 4x3, but I would be willing to wait longer and get a widescreen version. Its nice that the 43minute program only took about 20 minutes to download, but I sure hope ms decides to offer the ws version if they expect me to pay for any more in the future. For all I know that was how they were remastered for hd, but I doubt it. __________________ Mitsubishi HC3000U HD projector Dual Optoma 106" screens Harman Kardon AVR-7000 receiver Bose 901 VI, 301 IV, VCS 10 Bose AM-6 Series III Sony STR-DG600 receiver JVC GR-HD1 HD camcorder Xbox 360 Pro / PS3 40 Gig HD DVD 0 / Blu Ray 15 Games 18 / Games 2 Gateway 901x HTPC (modified) Sling Box Pro w/HD Connect Cable Dish 211 receiver w/Absolute HD pack HP Pavilion dv-6000 laptop (HTPC2GO) Link-Theater Gallery - 100,000+ views Link-55 Restoration Updated 6/21/08 Last edited by Type A; 12-10-2006 at 01:15 PM.

12-10-2006, 01:19 PM	#11
Type A 1080 Optical Supporter Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Panama City, Fl Age: 37 Posts: 2,724	That would certainly explain it. __________________ Mitsubishi HC3000U HD projector Dual Optoma 106" screens Harman Kardon AVR-7000 receiver Bose 901 VI, 301 IV, VCS 10 Bose AM-6 Series III Sony STR-DG600 receiver JVC GR-HD1 HD camcorder Xbox 360 Pro / PS3 40 Gig HD DVD 0 / Blu Ray 15 Games 18 / Games 2 Gateway 901x HTPC (modified) Sling Box Pro w/HD Connect Cable Dish 211 receiver w/Absolute HD pack HP Pavilion dv-6000 laptop (HTPC2GO) Link-Theater Gallery - 100,000+ views Link-55 Restoration Updated 6/21/08

12-10-2006, 05:29 PM	#12
Type A 1080 Optical Supporter Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Panama City, Fl Age: 37 Posts: 2,724	Wow, I cant get over how solid the 360 and xbl is. Aside from frame rate issues while observing gamers that are still alive (which Im doing ALOT after getting my ass handed to me), Im really surprised how quickly you can access and surf through the media you have downloaded, find who's online, and what they are doing, download all kinds of media, easily establish or join a game, ect.... I see myself getting a bigger harddrive for the 360 when they come available. HTPC...whats that???? __________________ Mitsubishi HC3000U HD projector Dual Optoma 106" screens Harman Kardon AVR-7000 receiver Bose 901 VI, 301 IV, VCS 10 Bose AM-6 Series III Sony STR-DG600 receiver JVC GR-HD1 HD camcorder Xbox 360 Pro / PS3 40 Gig HD DVD 0 / Blu Ray 15 Games 18 / Games 2 Gateway 901x HTPC (modified) Sling Box Pro w/HD Connect Cable Dish 211 receiver w/Absolute HD pack HP Pavilion dv-6000 laptop (HTPC2GO) Link-Theater Gallery - 100,000+ views Link-55 Restoration Updated 6/21/08

12-10-2006, 09:13 PM	#14
Razor05 HD = 65 beautiful inches Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Canada Posts: 2,816	Plus, no matter which game each of you are in, you can always chat. __________________ Panasonic TH-65PZ850U Sony KDL37XBR6 Panasonic TH-37PX50U Cambridge Audio Azur 640R & 740C Paradigm Studio 60's, 20's, CC-590 & Seismic 12 Toshiba HD-XA2 & A35 Motorola VIP1200 Monster HTFS1000, PB2100 AA 1154a Xbox360 Prem & Halo3 LE + HD-DVD GT: Razor59 Sony PSP HD-DVDs = 51 PC - NEC MultiSync FE991SB ThermalTake Bach Vx Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Gigabyte MoBo w 4GB OCZ 6400 Gigabyte 8800GTX 768MB Creative SB X-Fi, Klipsch 2.1 WD Raptor 150GB 10k Vista Home Premium

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