There was a lot of hub-bub over at Evil Avatar today when word of Xbox 360 pricing hit the net. Over four hundred comments that span 3 different topics was pretty impressive. A lot of people were proclaiming the downfall of the 360 and bemoaning the fact that there were two different Xbox 360 setups. 300 bucks for the barebones system and 400 for the deluxe model. There was much wailing and gnashing of teeth.
I personally didn’t think much of the announcement. My next generation plans are to wait for the price drop of the 360 (rumored to occur when the PS3 hits the market). I’ll probably pick up a Revolution at launch but I definitely will be waiting on the 360. Especially if there will be another model that sports a HD DVD drive.
I agree with most of the EA posters. I really do think Microsoft is fracturing their audience and playing fast and loose with people’s expectations. Not being straightforward about their plans for a HD DVD drive (or Blu-Ray, as if that were gonna happen) is another big mistake. And the prices on the peripherals? Sheesh, if the Revolution sports wi-fi out of the box and Microsoft wants to charge me 100$ for a wi-fi adapter? Goodnight! It will definitely be Revolution and PS3 for teh win.
A lot of things still have to happen before any of this is set in stone, but the path Microsoft has chosen definitely looks iffy at the moment. Things just got a lot more interesting.