Information Overload

Xbox 360 System Update 2011

It's not really clear what Microsoft is calling this week's Xbox 360 System Update. Tuesday's enhancements deliver a "new Xbox experience" but they are once again meh in total. The updated Netflix app looks prettier, but feels far slower when navigating through it compared to its predecessor. It remains to be tried, but Xbox LIVE Cloud Profile and Cloud Storage (512 MB free) seem to be the two best new features if they work as advertised...

My Xbox LIVE For iPhone

Was going to write about Tuesday's new Xbox experience, but Xbox LIVE was overloaded. In the meantime, Microsoft has also released My Xbox LIVE for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. The official iOS app brings some of Window Phone's bundled Xbox LIVE functionality to Apple devices. Here's hoping the Borg treat iOS users as equal candidates for assimilation into their Xbox LIVE platform. If MS were quick on their feet, they would release an Xbox LIVE SDK for iOS, and encourage iOS game developers to use Xbox LIVE instead of Game Center, Open Feint, Facebook, etc. Potential upsides would be making inroads with iOS game devs who might consider making WinPho apps, and exposing more end-users to Live. Sony sucks at software.

Xbox LIVE Cloud Profile

2011 is almost over, and the Borg have announced that Xbox users are finally going to get Cloud Profiles! These so-called roaming profiles will enable people to login to their "complete" (impressive if true!) Xbox LIVE profile on any Xbox 360. Game saves, friends lists, Gold membership, and Microsoft Points balances will all be portable. Perhaps the days of being a lowly guest gamer on a friend's or relative's Xbox are over at last!

Modern Warfare 3 Single Player

The ageless Price is back in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3's single player campaign, which picks up shortly after the events of MW2. This gamer made quick work of the fulfilling, yet slightly less epic end to the story. Renagade Russians being able to overrun NATO across multiple continents is still a far-fetched premise, but it makes for more fun settings such as New York City, London, and Paris. Purists may object to the feeling of being on rails yet the guidance makes the game more accessible.

Modern Warfare 3 Today!

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 arrives on Xbox today! Here's hoping the game one-ups MW2 like "The Vet & The n00b" manages to top the TV ad for Black Ops. This football fan thought the Army had conceived the best—and most f'd up—recruitment video evar (sic) starring Sam Worthington, Jonah Hill, and Dwight Howard!  Remember kids, it's just a game. Avoid the real thing if possible.

P.S. Don't forget to vote today if you're registered in San Francisco!

Battlefield 3 Multiplayer

With the arrival of Modern Warfare 3 less than a week away, here's some brief thoughts on Battlefield 3. Having played the campaign up to the point where the "Uprising" level renders the single-player game useless by repeatedly locking up the Xbox, this FPS fan is looking forward to MW3. BF3 Multiplayer mode has satisfyingly large—almost too large for 24 players—maps, but they don't have the replay value of recent CoD multiplayer games. Vehicles get old fast, and BF3 game controls don't feel quite as refined as those of CoD or Halo. The biggest missing piece is that casual Xbox players don't communicate as much perhaps because voluntary squad participation and huge maps lessen the sense of accountability or desire to coordinate.

Battlefield 3 Today

Broke down and bought Battlefield 3 because Amazon is offering a sweet $20 store credit (e.g. to use towards Modern Warfare 3). Xbox gamers should be sure to install the included HD Texture Pack, which looks like it's totally worth the price of a hard drive for those who don't have one:

Battlefield 3 Beta

The Battlefield 3 Beta was melting down on Xbox LIVE last night so took it for an early test drive on the PS3, and was reminded how badly the SIXAXIS controller sucks. BF3 on PS3 is definitely still a beta to the point one wonders how many bugs EA can fix before they've got to press discs to ship by October 25th. Perhaps the beta is better on Xbox...

Sony Bans Suing Sony

Sony continues to string together bad moves most recently by forcing PSN and SEN (i.e. PS3 and PSP) users to waive their rights to be part of future class-action lawsuits in order to continue use of Sony services. Users who actually notice this fine print buried in "Version 12" of their latest Terms of Service and User Agreement (PDF) can opt-out within 30-days of agreeing to them, but they can only do so via snail mail!

Call of Duty: Black Ops Rezurrection: Pack 4

It's fitting that the fourth and final DLC map pack, Rezurrection, for Call of Duty: Black Ops consists of all zombie maps. This "Ground War" gamer is somewhat disappointed, but will take some solace in the fact that Xbox 360 continues to get exclusive early access before PS3 players (as opposed to the other way around). P.S. This is me if anyone wants to play.