I really do enjoy the xbox 360. To be honest, it’s one of the better things to come out of Redmond, Washington. When given the choice, it’s my console of choice when it comes to titles that appear on more than one console. Mainly for multiplayer, but sometimes because I am an achievement whore seeker.
It does online gameplay correctly. (I’m pointing at you, Sony.)
Netflix is “in the box.” It’s how I watched, Lust, Caution.
What they did not do well was the actual physical hardware. You may recall I had the infamous Red Rings of Death failure on my xbox 360 last year. This year, it’s a different failure.
The console at this point is refusing to read discs. This is even including discs that are fresh out of the package, and going straight into the drive. It’s rather maddening.
I can’t even install them to the hard drive, because about eighty percent of the way through the process, the console will claim that the disc is dirty or scratched. At this point, the console will suggest that I clean the disc with a soft cloth.
I’ve even run a lens cleaner, just in case, but to no avail. The drive is just plain refusing to read discs correctly. Thankfully, I did manage to install a couple of games to the hard drive. So far, the disc can be read enough to prove that I own the game. However, a brand new game out of the package (Banjo Kazooie Nuts & Bolts, for those of you playing the home game) will not install, and fail at approximately eighty five percent.
Every time.
It’s rather maddening.
Thankfully, I was a late adopter to the 360, so I did purchase an extended warranty from the retailer. It’s coming into play now because while Microsoft did extend the warranty in cases of the RRoD, this drive issue is not covered by them.
I guess I can finally start playing some games on that other console, maybe I can get hit on by some more guys.