Alright, maybe not we. I don’t consider myself an early adopter. I did buy a SNES and N64 at launch but that wasn’t with my money. I didn’t, however, get a Gamecube or DS when they launched. I kept an eye on them and eventually indulged myself with the purchase. That said, I am a sucker for shiny new gadgets. As it stands right now, the Xbox 360 is the shiniest gadget out there. But I feel no compulsion to purchase one. Reasons why abound, but right now I’m just not ready to dive into the Next Generation.
The biggest reason is my current home theater situation. It’s been said in a couple places (most notably here (lame-o registration required)) that to get the full Xbox 360 effect, you’ll need an HD-capable TV. I predict a lot of disappointed kids christmas morning when they hook up up their new 360 to their non-HDTV and Call of Duty 2, which was glorious to behold at the Xbox 360 kiosk (HDTV), looks like total trash. Sure, there will be a lot of people who will upgrade their TV to an HDTV to enjoy the graphical goodness of the 360, but right now I’m not ready to invest that kind of money. I certainly want to watch TV in High Definiton. I want to watch Monday Night Football and 24 in HD. I want to watch the Discovery channel in HD. I’m not ready to make that plunge just yet. So why buy a console that I can’t even enjoy to the fullest? Especially when I have a stack of games I haven’t finished yet?
The second reason are the games. Forget for a second about backwards compatibility. How many Xbox games will actually be played on the 360? Halo 2? Sure. Anything else? Probably not. So let’s consider the 360 launch titles. I’ve had my chances to give the 360 a test drive a couple of times. The games look fabulous. Those Samsung monitors make Call of Duty look disgustingly good, I suggest to inform yourself about the top 10 gaming monitors right now so you get to have the best one. I just can’t get excited about the launch lineup. Kameo doesn’t do it for me. Neither does Perfect Dark. Project Gotham Racing looks slick but that’s about it. From the looks of it, EA’s offerings look to be craptacular. Let’s not even mention the sixty dollar price tag.
I’m also getting a little tired of all the games Microsoft may (or may not) be playing. Toying with the supply to create artificial shortages doesn’t seem like the best strategy to me. Their 360 TV commercials are meaningless and lame. All the hype they’ll be pumping through MTV and Spike TV irritate me. Maybe I’m just bitter.
Xbox Live looks like it will continue to lead the way online, but the whole micro-transactions thing doesn’t excite me. Everyone is getting excited about downloading games like Joust and Smash TV from Live Arcade. Woo! If I’m not mistaken, I can already get those (at a comparable price) to play on my current Xbox. Midway Arcade Treasures, anyone? Paint me unimpressed. (I’ll take all that back if I can play Smash TV or Off-Road multiplayer on Live. That would probably make my head explode)
But what difference does it make what I say? In the end, the Xbox 360 will sell out world-wide. Scammers will be selling empty 360 boxes on eBay for thousands of dollars. Men, young and old, will weep when EB Games doesn’t honor their pre-order. People will brawl and little children will be trampled underfoot at Wal-Mart, all for that Shiny (Green!) Gadget. What a great hobby this is!
Will I ever get a 360? Yes. If Santa comes through, I’m not kicking it out for eating crackers, if you know what I mean. Just don’t look for me waiting outside Best Buy for a 360 next Tuesday. I’ll be too busy playing Mario Kart online.