CPU Reference Series: Xbox 360

164 Pages·2006·7.714 MB·English

XXbbooxx 336600:: Take It To The Xtreme
TTAABBLLEE OOFF CCOONNTTEENNTTSS
REFERENCE SERIES VOLUME 10, ISSUE 3
T
he next generation of gaming consoles from
Microsoft has arrived, and gamers everywhere are
finding plenty to like in their powerful new boxes. 39 The World Is Your Playground
Xbox 360 not only offers stunning new graphics and audio Take Your Gaming Global With Xbox Live
capabilities, but also enhanced wireless and online gaming
43 Get Your Game Face On
support. In this issue we cover every aspect of the Xbox 360
Send A Message With Your Gamer Profile
universe: setting up the system, tweaking for optimal single
and multiuser game play, adding accessories, and trou-
45 In The Zone
bleshooting. We throw in a few dozen reviews of new and
Gamer Zones Connect Like-Minded Players
upcoming 360 games just for fun. Whether you’re a grizzled
Xbox veteran or a gaming n00b, you’ll find all the info you 47 Forum Free-For-All
need to make the most of the 360 on these pages. Game on! Find Friendship & Flames In The Xbox Community
48 Communicate & Annihilate
Chat With Your Friends While You Blast Them
XXbbooxx 336600 AArrrriivveess
50 The More The Merrier
4 Meet The New Xbox Xbox 360 Multiplayer Gaming
The Mighty Console, Inside & Out
53 A Match Made Online
8 Two Ways To Play Find A Comparable Opponent
Xbox 360 Core vs.Xbox 360
54 It’s Tournament Time
12 Console Me,Please Defeat Online Foes For Fame & Glory
A Brief History Of Console Video Games
55 Xbox 360 Player Feedback
SSeettttiinngg UUpp
Rate Your Xbox Mates
15 Set Up Your Xbox 56 The Xbox Marketplace
Unpack, Connect, Kick Derrière Welcome To The World Of The Bazaar
21 Resolution Evolution 58 Microsoft Co-Opts The Coin-Ops
The Xbox 360 Unleashes High-Definition Gaming The Xbox 360’s Live Arcade
23 More Than A Gaming Console 60 Microsoft Points
Use The Xbox 360 To Extend Your Media To The Living Room The Currency Of The Xbox Live Marketplace
26 Play Online Without Cables 61 Xbox Live Diamond Card
Connect Your Xbox 360 To A Wireless Network Discounts In The Rough
TTrroouubblleesshhoooottiinngg
28 Xbox Tunes
Turn Your Xbox 360 Into A Music Hub
62 Xbox 360 Technical Support
30 The Photo Game Troubleshoot Your Xbox 360
Connect Your Digital Camera & Display Photos
For Everyone To See 70 Lost Your Handle?
How To Use The Xbox 360 Gamertag Recovery Tool
32 The Ultimate Setup
Connect & Share With The Xbox 360 72 Make Your Media Work
Your Guide To Pictures, Music & Movies On The Xbox 360
XXbbooxx OOnnlliinnee
GGaammeess
35 Xbox Central
Explore Xbox.com 76 Game Reviews
37 Signing Bonus 77 Give The Gift Of Gaming
Take Advantage Of My Xbox Game Suggestions For The Gamer In Your Life
79 Amped 3
Very Strange Tales (& Trails) From The Slopes 98 NHL 2K6
It’s Time To Hit The Ice
80 Burnout Revenge 99 Perfect Dark Zero
Crash & Smash Your Way To Succes Perfect Pedigree
81 Call of Duty 2 100 Peter Jackson’s King Kong
History Channeling Here’s Your Chance To Fight (Or Play) The Big Ape
82 College Hoops 2K6 101 Project Gotham Racing 3
Not Quite “Super Scintillating Sensational,”But Close Kudos To You & Bizarre Creations
83 Condemned:Criminal Origins 102 Quake 4
Embrace The Horror Eerily Familiar Territory
84 Dead Or Alive 4 103 Ridge Racer 6
Harajuku Smackdown Fun In The Fast Lane
85 Dead Rising 104 Test Drive Unlimited
Shop ‘Til You Drop (Dead) Life Is A Highway & Life Is Good
86 The Elder Scrolls IV:Oblivion 105 The Outfit
The Gates of Oblivion Await Fight Your Way Across France In This WWII Combat Epic
87 FIFA 06:Road To FIFA World Cup 106 Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06
Bent, But Not Like Beckham Bogey Golf Has Never Looked Better
88 Fight Night Round 3 107 Tony Hawk’s American Wasteland
Get Set To Enter The Ring Grind Hard In The Darkness
89 Final Fantasy XI Online 108 Top Spin 2
The Xbox 360’s First MMORPG 2K Sports Serves Up A Solid Game For Tennis Fans
90 Full Auto 109 Playing Original Xbox Games
Go Ahead, Drive Angry Don’t Let Old Games Go To Waste
AAcccceessssoorriieess
91 Gears Of War
Horror & Guns & Baddies, Oh My!
113 You’re In Control
92 Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon:Advanced Warfighter We Check Out The Xbox 360 Controllers
Save The President, Soldier!
117 Play & Charge Kit Offers Advantages
93 GUN Play Constantly, No Down Time
Hot Lead & Sore Thumbs
119 The Xbox 360’s Handiest Accessory
94 Kameo:Elements Of Power Rechargeable Battery Pack Saves Time & Money
More Than Meets The Eye
121 Headsets For Xbox 360
95 Madden NFL 06 The Stylish Way To Chat It Up
Fancy Graphics On The Gridiron
123 Xbox Wireless Network Adapters
96 NBA 2K6 Play Online Without The Wires
Not A Slam Dunk, But Still Decent
125 Remote Control
97 Need For Speed:Most Wanted Microsoft’s Universal Remote
Fight The Po-Po & Be Very, Very Fast Makes Life Easier For 360 Users
Editorial Staff: Ronald D. Kobler /
Christopher Trumble / Michael Sweet /
Corey Russman / Rod Scher / Calvin
Clinchard / Katie Sommer / Kimberly Fitzke /
Katie Dolan / Blaine Flamig / Raejean Brooks /
Sally Curran / Nate Hoppe / Trista Kunce /
Sheila Allen / Linné Ourada / Joy Martin /
127 Xbox 360 Hard Drive Addition
Ashley Finter / Brian Weed / Holly Zach /
More Storage For Your Gems Marty Sems / Chad Denton / Nathan Chandler
/ Kylee Dickey / Josh Gulick / Andrew
Leibman / Vince Cogley / Sam Evans/
129 Memory Units Jennifer Johnson
Keep Track Of Your Gaming Web Staff: Laura Curry / Brandie Humphrey
Customer Service: Becky Rezabek /
Lana Matic / Lindsay Albers
131 A/V Cables Subscription Renewals: Connie Beatty / Matt
Ties That Bind Bolling / Patrick Kean / Charmaine Vondra /
Miden Ebert / Kathy DeCoito / Stephanie
Contreras / Nicole Buckendahl
133 Faceplates Art & Design: Lesa Call / Fred Schneider /
Put On A Happy Face Carrie Benes / Ginger Falldorf / Sonja Warner /
Aaron Weston / Aaron D. Clark / Lori Garris /
Jason Codr / Andria Schultz / Erin Rodriguez /
135 Aftermarket Accessories Lindsay Anker
Newsstand: Garth Lienemann / Kelly
Get Your Game On, Third-Party Style
Richardson / Jeff Schnittker
EEssppeecciiaallllyy FFoorr TTeecchhiieess Advertising Sales: Grant Ossenkop /
Cindy Pieper / Brooke Wolzen / Eric Cobb
Marketing: Mark Peery / Liz Kohout / Marcy
Gunn / Jen Clausen / Scot Banks / Ashley
137 Fire In The Belly Hannant / Luke Vavricek / Travis Brock
The Xenon Delivers Speed & Multithreading
140 It Takes Guts
We Peel Back The Cover To See What’s Inside Copyright 2006 by Sandhills Publishing Company. All rights
reserved. Reproduction of material appearing in CPU REFER-
ENCE SERIES: Xbox360: Take It To The Xtreme is strictly prohibited
142 The Xbox 360 GPU without written permission. Printed in the U.S.A. GST #
The 42-Billion-Pound Gorilla Of A GPU Is Here 123482788RT0001. Smart Computingis published monthly by
Sandhills Publishing Company. 131 West Grand Drive, P.O. Box
85380, Lincoln, NE 68501. POSTMASTER: Send address changes
144 A Few Homebrew Apps to Smart Computing, P.O. Box 85380, Lincoln, NE 68501.
Expand Your 360’s Horizons
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X B OX 3 6 0 A R R I V E S
Meet The New Xbox
The Mighty Console, Inside & Out
OO
n Nov. 22, 2005, Microsoft introduced the
Xbox 360 with great fanfare and loud trum-
pets—well at least with a raucous MTV
special. The Xbox 360, the company’s
second-generation gaming console, picked up
right where its powerful Xbox left off. The holiday launch was
troubled by hardware shortages, but demand for the Xbox 360
was at incredible levels—scalpers were selling their consoles for
upwards of $1,000 on eBay at the height of the frenzy.
After the holiday season, Microsoft started getting the
supply lines back on track and is on pace to sell 4.5 to 5.5
million Xbox 360s worldwide by mid-year. We’ll take a look
at the hardware inside the
new Xbox 360, what it can
do for you game-wise and
otherwise, and what’s next
for the world’s biggest soft-
ware company that aims to
be the world’s biggest gam-
ing company.
Core Or
Hardcore?
Microsoft surprised
a lot of folks by re-
leasing the Xbox 360 in
two flavors at launch:
the standard Xbox 360
for $400 and the Xbox The new Xbox 360 can sit
360 Core for $300. The vertically and horizontally
central hardware isn’t any and sports a svelter look
different between the two than the original Xbox.
packages, but the premium
system comes with a lot of ex-
tras that make it well worth the additional $100.
For starters, the Core system ships without the 20GB hard
drive, and the drive alone will cost you $100 if you opt for
one later. Sans hard drive, you miss out on a lot of the Xbox
360’s features such as downloaded demos and other files from
Xbox Live and the ability to play original Xbox games. The
Core system also ships with a wired controller instead of a
4 www.computerpoweruser.com / Xbox360
XBOX 360 ARRIVES
wireless one and a standard A/V cable
LLaauunncchhiinngg TToo AA LLeeaadd
instead of an HDTV cable. The Core
system is also missing the headset and
Ethernet cable that Microsoft includes MMicrosoft first en- puts Microsoft in a great next generation]. By the
with the premium package. Suffice to tered the gaming position to build up next- time Sony launches, it’s
say, it’s a better deal to go with the stan- market with the original generation market share not inconceivable that
dard $400 Xbox 360. Xbox in the holiday season versus its major video Microsoft will be in 7 or 8
The central hardware includes three of 2001. Sony and game console rival Sony. million homes. We antici-
3.2GHz core processors, making the Nintendo had clear com- “Microsoft clearly had pate that Sony will catch
Xbox 360 more powerful than all but mand of the console game some supply issues up and overtake Microsoft,
the most cutting-edge desktop PCs. (See market, and Microsoft— coming out of the box— but they’re going to have
sidebar “Old X vs. New X” for a com- although a software demand clearly exceeded to work to do it.”
parison of the original Xbox and the giant—was considered an supply by a significant Right now, Microsoft
Xbox 360.) There’s also 512MB of upstart. Over the past four margin,” said Michael can focus on trying to
GDDR3 memory that is shared between and a half years, Microsoft Goodman, senior analyst keep up with the current
the main system and the graphics, al- has carved out a solid at the technology research demand for the Xbox 360,
though Microsoft embedded 10MB of second place in the con- firm Yankee Group delivering great first-party
DRAM for the frame buffer to speed up sole market with the suc- (www.yankeegroup.com). games for the console,
graphics performance. cess of the Xbox and the “They didn’t gain as much and developing its Xbox
As we mentioned, the Xbox 360 sup- immensely popular Halo traction in the holiday Live online community.
ports wireless controllers, so you don’t series. Now, Microsoft’s season ’05 as they might Goodman believes that
need to worry about tripping over cords trying to expand that share have otherwise.” Microsoft will continue to
when you’re gaming. Up to four wireless of the market with its pow- Even so, Goodman feels increase its share of the
controllers can be used at once, and there erful second-generation that Microsoft will have market with the Xbox 360.
are two USB ports up front (with an- Xbox 360. ample opportunity to build “When this is all said and
other one around back) for hooking up Last year’s Xbox 360 up a large lead on Sony done in 2008 or 2009,
wired controllers. The headset plugs di- launch didn’t go as and Nintendo before their Sony will have about 50%
rectly into the controller, so you’re not smoothly as Microsoft launches slated for later of the market down from
tethered to the console with a headset/ would probably have liked, this year. “They’re the only 60% today. And Microsoft
wireless controller combo like you were but the Xbox 360 is the one in the marketplace,” will be in the 35 to 40%
with the original Xbox. first of the next-generation he said. “The question is if range, up from 23% now.
The Xbox 360 supports HDTV reso- consoles to make it onto and when Sony will over- The remainder will be
lution formats up to 720p and 1080i, store shelves. This lead take Microsoft [for the Nintendo,” he said. ▲
and every game will ship with at least
720p resolution. What do these num-
bers and letters mean? They mean that
Xbox 360 games on an HD screen look
simply amazing. There’s hardware sup-
port for Dolby Digital 5.1, so games
and movies take advantage of your sur-
round sound setup as well.
The 360 can sit horizontally or verti-
cally, and the faceplate snaps off, letting
you customize the front of your Xbox
360 with optional faceplates in a range of
colors and styles.
What Can It Do?
OK, so you can get some great gaming
in on the Xbox 360, but what else can it With the premium Xbox 360 package,
do for you? Well, there’s Xbox Live— you get a wireless controller that lets you
head-to-head gaming, demo downloads, game sans cord. The Xbox 360 Core ships
multimedia content, and an entire online with a wired controller.
ReferenceSeries / Xbox360 5
XBOX 360 ARRIVES
community of users. But you can
also hook up the Xbox 360 to your
home PC. If you’re running Win-
dows XP Media Center Edition (or
even normal XP with a software
upgrade), you can play music files
and view photos stored on your PC
via the Xbox 360 and your living
room TV.
The USB ports on the 360 aren’t
just for wired controllers, either.
You can plug in a USB keyboard for
entering information in forms and
attach your MP3 player to transfer
songs to the 360 and then play them
during your favorite games.
Speaking of games, the Xbox
360 can play almost all of the orig-
inal Xbox games. You’ll have to
download a game emulator update
(which requires the hard drive), Mr. Gates enjoying the Xbox 360 at launch.
but the games run as well (if not
better) on the Xbox 360 than on
the original Xbox. working on some new content for the really exciting to be at the forefront of
The hard drive and the online connec- game in the near future. that,” he said.
tion mean that you’re also able to expand “Xbox Live, and particularly the
games with new content just as you could Marketplace, is a fantastic advantage that
Next For Xbox
with the original Xbox. Kieran Connel, Xbox has over its competitors. The on-
the lead software engineer for Perfect line experience is going to grow and Looking ahead for the Xbox 360, one
Dark Zero, said that his team has been grow over the next few years, and it’s of the biggest questions is when will Halo
AAnn EExxeeccuuttiivvee PPeerrssppeeccttiivvee
console. Every game is more coming to gamers
plugged in to the service in through the end of the year.
WW e chatted with Scott Henson, some way. Most games
director of Microsoft’s have multiplayer support. What are the three coolest
Advanced Technology Group, which is All of this was incredibly things that the Xbox 360 lets
responsible for making the develop- ambitious, but then we you do?
ment of games for the Xbox 360 a added in the extra challenge SH:Number one is that the
smooth and enjoyable process, about of launching in three major Xbox 360 lets you play the best
how the 360 launch went, what he likes territories before the end of next-gen games on the planet.
best about the 360, and where the holiday. I think what we All games are in high definition,
Microsoft gaming is headed next. just pulled off with Xbox have the ability for you to listen
360 is the most aggressive to your own music while you
How would you compare the essentially off-the-shelf com- consumer product launch ever. play, and are all Live-enabled in
launch of the Xbox 360 to the ponents, no online service, in We would love to have had some way. No matter what
launch of the original Xbox? the U.S. only, and games that been able to fully meet the un- game you are into, it’s going to
SH: As ambitious as were offline only. With Xbox precedented demand of have the best experience on
launching the original Xbox 360, we had a brand-new, launch. Still, we sold 2.5 mil- Xbox 360.
was for the company, Xbox next-generation multiprocessor lion units within the first 90 Number two would have to
360 was more complex in architecture and a vastly up- days and are well on track to be one of the things I spent
every way. With the original dated Xbox Live service, which hit 4.5 to 5.5 million units by some time on in the early days
Xbox, we launched with is an integral part of the the end of June with millions of Xbox 360 which is a concept
6 www.computerpoweruser.com / Xbox360
XBOX 360 ARRIVES
3 come out and what will the game OOlldd XX vvss.. NNeeww XX
be like. Rumors are flying around
the Web about details such as a The original Xbox was the most powerful video game console on the market until the new
possible name change for the series, Xbox 360 came out. Here’s how the two compare side by side:
and Microsoft has hinted that the
third title in the series might be re- Xbox Xbox 360
leased concurrently with Sony’s
Processor: 733MHz Intel CPU 3.2GHz PowerPC processor with 3 cores
PlayStation 3.
Memory: 64MB DDR 512MB GDDR3
That would be a mistake, said
Hard drive: 8GB 20GB
Michael Goodman, a senior analyst
with the research firm Yankee Display: 1,920x1,080 resolution 720p and 1080i
Group (www.yankeegroup.com). Controllers: 4 controller ports 2.4GHz wireless, plus two USB ports
“Somewhere out there, Halo 3 is Ethernet: Yes Yes
hanging. But it would be a waste to
launch at the same time as the
PS3,” he said. “Microsoft could
launch it early next year or even as grow over time along with games and better in the future. “You’re absolutely
a holiday ’07 title to really con- gamers. “We design[ed] it to be future going to see more coming out of
tinue to drive the hardware.” proof such that we can continue to add games,” said Goodman. “Games will
Microsoft is now being elusive new capabilities over time—both hard- look better; their graphics and physics
about the Halo 3 ship date. “There ware and software,” Henson said. will be more realistic; and they’ll have
is nothing to announce regarding “There are so many exciting scenarios smarter AI. You will see continuously
any future titles from [Halo maker] we are kicking around—like the integra- better games as developers learn to
Bungie at this time,” said Scott Henson, tion of a camera, the ability for gamers create for this platform. And this holds
director of Microsoft’s Advanced to be able to build, auction, and trade true for all video games.”
Technology Group. “That said, we be- content online, and some new music Sounds like we’ve got a lot of fun to
lieve the winner of the next-generation and video scenarios that complement look forward to.
console share battle is up for grabs.” the gameplay experience even more.”
Microsoft has designed the Xbox 360 But what it comes down to is the by Joel Strauch
to be malleable enough to change and games. And they’re only going to get
of digital identity. Think of this Live Arcade titles, themes, time playing Kameo (I have a you have seen with spectator
as your digital persona—who Gamer pictures, levels, daughter who is obsessed with mode in Project Gotham
you are, what you play, who you weapons, maps, cars, songs, this game), Call of Duty 2, NBA Racing 3 and Save and share
are connected to—on Xbox etc.—is just an incredible ex- 2K6, and most recently in Burnout Revenge.
Live. What the team had done perience. And with the addition Burnout Revenge. The content pipeline for
with this concept—with the of the Silver tier (our free tier Xbox 360 is insane. We are
Gamer card, Reputation, of service), all of this is avail- What’s the next year looking looking at roughly 50 retail
achievements, Gamer score, able to anyone with a broad- like for the Xbox 360 and for titles and 30 Xbox Live Arcade
Gamer zone, customization, on band connection. Xbox Live? titles by summer. There are
the console and on Xbox.com is SH: In short, you are going more than 200 Xbox 360 titles
amazing. The ability to see what What’s your favorite title for to see an explosion of games in active development. That
people are playing on the service the 360? and content in the Xbox Live does not even capture all the
no matter what the game is, SH:Put me on the spot! Marketplace. With even more new demos, trailers, and
compare how you are doing to Come on now . . . all of our time with our hardware and every other bit of goodness
other folks, is just an incredible children are beautiful! the service, the games are that will be coming to the
experience as a gamer. My taste in games is pretty going to continue to look Xbox Live Marketplace.
Number three for me would varied—I like all genres. I have better and better as well as There is going to be a strong
have to be Xbox Live and the played every title that has come push Xbox Live in some new demand for the ability to warp
Xbox Live Marketplace. The out on Xbox 360 to date and and innovative ways. You are space and time, so gamers can
ability to download add-on enjoyed them all. That said, I also going to see more online take it all in. ▲
content—demos, trailers, Xbox have spent the majority of my game innovations like what
ReferenceSeries / Xbox360 7
X B OX 3 6 0 A R R I V E S
by Andrew Leibman
Two Ways To Play
Xbox 360 Core vs. Xbox 360
GG amers aren’t who they used to be. The gamer demo- supply, and the obligatory instruction manual. The Core System
graphic has exploded over the past decade to include also comes with a free Xbox Live Silver account.
men and women of all ages, economic means, and enter- With the Core System, you can play Xbox 360 games, watch
tainment preferences. Microsoft caught on to the trend and has DVD movies, play CDs, play music from USB-enabled MP3
created two versions of the Xbox 360 to satisfy this diverse gaming players, and display photos from your USB-enabled digital
audience. Microsoft offers the Xbox 360 Core System ($299) for camera. You can connect up to four wireless controllers (sold sep-
users who want the most powerful gaming console currently avail- arately) using the Xbox 360 Core console’s wireless capabilities.
able but don’t necessarily need all the extras right away. You can also connect your Xbox 360 Core System to your
The most striking difference you’ll notice between the Xbox Windows XP computer via a wireless hub, router, or wired
360 Core System and Xbox 360 (besides the price tag) is the color Ethernet to view photos and listen to music from your TV and
of the retail package. The Core unit comes in a lime green box. As audio equipment. Windows Media Center Edition users can
the name suggests, the Core System comes with all the basics stream videos in addition to music and photos. Xbox 360 Core
you’ll need to get your game on, including the Xbox 360 console, owners can also adjust the console’s Family Settings to restrict ac-
a wired controller, composite A/V cables, power cord, power cess to games, DVD movies, and various aspects of Xbox Live.
CCoonnttrroolllleerr AA//VV CCaabblleess
The wired controller included in the Core System The Core System is ideal for gamers with
package features the Xbox Guide button for ac- standard definition TVs. The Composite A/V
cessing the Xbox 360’s main menu. The controller Cable included with the Core is 6 feet long and
also includes an expansion port for an Xbox 360 consists of a composite plug for sending the
Headset (not included). The wired controller’s cable console’s video to your TV and left and right
has the inline release safety feature, which reduces audio plugs for sending the console’s sound to
the chance that the console will fall if the controller your TV or stereo audio system.
cable is pulled from the unit.
8 www.computerpoweruser.com / Xbox360