The Official "Console War" and Video Game Thread

[Raining Light]

For those of you who have a 360 and its been getting an E74 error, MS has now given that the same policy as the RROD (3 years)



Its actually the RROD but given under a new error message, if you had to pay for the repairs you can now call MS and get a refund on those charges

A little late. I just sent mine off.
I had a 2yr warrenty from where I purchased it.
I think I would haver rather sent it to MS.

[PJMania]

So M$ fixed the RRoD problem by making an error message come up instead of have the lights flash? Typical Microsoft.

[markatisu]

So M$ fixed the RRoD problem by making an error message come up instead of have the lights flash? Typical Microsoft.

Yup and then charging people to fix it till people figured out it was the same thing

[PJMania]

Yup and then charging people to fix it till people figured out it was the same thing

Grrreat...nickel and dime the customer by changing the error message the customer gets so that you can call the problem something different and therefore charge a repair fee.

You would think that M$ would be embarrassed that acronyms like BSoD and RRoD are actual terms used by the electronics industry. You would think they would fix the problems that cause these, but nope. They just keep putting out 3rd rate products.

I guess if you're lucky enough to get a console that works though, then you have every reason to be happy. A friend of mine has had 4 RRoD systems. After 2 RRoDs I would've said forget it, just like having to fix friends' PCs every other week convinced me to get a Mac.

[Dynamo of Eternia]

So does this mean that the newer "Jasper" models of Xbox 360 are actually just as problematic as the older ones (or at least a lot more so than they should be)? And the problem is just now coded differently?


If so, then wow. I remember one time joking around saying that they would fix the RROD issue by changing the red lights to blue. This isn't far off from that.

[markatisu]

So does this mean that the newer "Jasper" models of Xbox 360 are actually just as problematic as the older ones (or at least a lot more so than they should be)? And the problem is just now coded differently?

If so, then wow. I remember one time joking around saying that they would fix the RROD issue by changing the red lights to blue. This isn't far off from that.

Yes, they have just been programmed to give the E74 error instead of the RROD.

However, the Jasper model did make some significant modifications to curb these errors. They will never fully get RROD/E74 solved until they redesign the case and add more fans so things stop overheating.

In other news...US Video Game Sales for March, RE5 did one heck of a job selling almost 1.5m in one month across the 360/PS3, I still hate the game with a passion but congrats to Capcom!

NPD Hardware March 2009

Nintendo Wii 601K
Nintendo DS 563K
Xbox 360 330K
PlayStation 3 218K
PSP 168K
PlayStation 2 112K

Top 10 Software March 2009

1. RESIDENT EVIL 5* (360) 938K
2. POKEMON PLATINUM VERSION (NDS) 805K
3. HALO WARS* (360) 639K
4. RESIDENT EVIL 5* (PS3) 585K
5. WII FIT W/BALANCE BOARD (WII) 541K
6. MLB '09: THE SHOW (PS3) 305K
7. KILLZONE 2 (PS3) 296K
8. WII PLAY W/REMOTE (WII) 281K
9. MARIO KART W/WHEEL (WII) 278K
10. MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL 2K9 (360) 205K

[wolf-manj]

Yes, they have just been programmed to give the E74 error instead of the RROD.

However, the Jasper model did make some significant modifications to curb these errors. They will never fully get RROD/E74 solved until they redesign the case and add more fans so things stop overheating.

if its an overheating/fan issue then why does it only affect some that have the same parts inside? Two of my friends bought an xbox 360 the day it came out and have had no problems at all. Late last year one of those friends won another one at work and as soon as he brought it home and opened it up he got RROD.

[markatisu]

if its an overheating/fan issue then why does it only affect some that have the same parts inside? Two of my friends bought an xbox 360 the day it came out and have had no problems at all. Late last year one of those friends won another one at work and as soon as he brought it home and opened it up he got RROD.

Its not always a sure thing, but it is solely an overheating issue. Extensive tests have been done to prove that (it was one of the ways MS was forced to begin the 3 year extended warranty program after almost 2 years of denying it existed)

My best friend has a launch 360 that has never had an error but my other friend is on his 6th, I know some board members here are in similar situations.

The fail rate is extremely low now since the Jasper came out so some things MS did have worked, but its sad to see that it should have been completely fixed by now.

[wolf-manj]

but its sad to see that it should have been completely fixed by now.

you are definately right about that. It's pretty much the only thing keeping me from getting one.

[markatisu]

you are definately right about that. It's pretty much the only thing keeping me from getting one.

I am in the same boat, its the only system I do not own and had been waiting on Jasper to finally get it (especially since a bunch of awesome games just hit the Platinum line of $19-29)

But I waited it out and now find out not much has changed

[Fendi]

Anyone excited for the new Starcraft game called Starcraft II? If you're a Real Time Strategy/RTS gamer you will love this. I joined the biggest unofficial forum just to entitle my opinion and waiting for updates Enough of me does anyone excited for this one?

[TheDeviot]

Anyone excited for the new Starcraft game called Starcraft II? If you're a Real Time Strategy/RTS gamer you will love this. I joined the biggest unofficial forum just to entitle my opinion and waiting for updates Enough of me does anyone excited for this one?

Well Blizzard's games will always impress even those who aren't in the stereotypical cliche'd "Fan of the genre" clique

But if you want a cool game to hold you over until SCII, and DiabloIII you should really check out Demigod. It's part RTS, part RPG, and part Dungeon Crawling clickathon. It's got some really snazzy character design too.

[markatisu]

Enough of me does anyone excited for this one?

I cannot wait till Starcraft II comes out, me and my brother have been waiting far too long for that

I got Excitebots Trick Racing for Wii today and if you liked Excite Truck at launch this sequel has better graphics, even tighter controls, and 6 player online play, its also $10 cheaper ($39).

If anyone gets it and wants to play me my code is 1118-6622-8508

Also for the PC gamers out there, Street Fighter IV PC release date is going to be announced next week (5/1) and Walmart already has it up for preorder with a tentative date of 6/30 and a price of $36

[Raining Light]

Well-
I got my xbox back from being fixed!!!
Yea.

They recieved it on the 15th and it returned today, and that includes atleast 3 days shipping back-pretty good time. And it wasnt even MS fixing it.
To bad all my games, controller and cords are at another castle--I mean house, so I'll have to wait til the ex gets home to play it.

But hey its back.

[Dynamo of Eternia]

It looks like today and tomorrow (April 26 and 27, 2009), Dell.com is selling the PS3 for $300.

I saw this on slickdeals.net this morning.

That's a really good deal for anyone who doesn't already have the system.

[Galmorzu]

I finally got the RRoD on my launch console last week and had it sent in. I did the support thing online that gave me a free shipping label, and it said my warranty was expired, but I'm really hoping the RRoD extended warranty still works...does anyone know what the actual specifics are on that program now? Are they still the same as before?

[PJMania]

It looks like today and tomorrow (April 26 and 27, 2009), Dell.com is selling the PS3 for $300.

Why is Dell selling PS3s? How would they profit in any major way?

Also, has anyone here put Linux on their PS3? I think I might try it just for ****s, but I wanna know if it's even worth it first.

[markatisu]

Why is Dell selling PS3s? How would they profit in any major way?

DELL sells most game systems and has for some time. They also sell video games and accessories.

I finally got the RRoD on my launch console last week and had it sent in. I did the support thing online that gave me a free shipping label, and it said my warranty was expired, but I'm really hoping the RRoD extended warranty still works...does anyone know what the actual specifics are on that program now? Are they still the same as before?

They will still fix it, the RROD expansion to the warranty basically added 3-4 years from the time of purchase. Even if its past that I think they will still fix it

[Dynamo of Eternia]

It looks like Dell sold out of PS3's. I wonder if that is it for tomorrow as well, or if they will have more for sale then.

It is part of a larger promotion of many sale items that goes for today and tomorrow, so I'm not sure if they would have more or not.



As for the 360 RROD, I'm not sure how they are handling systems that are out of warranty. Since the launch of the system was in November of 2005 (putting the 3 year mark at this past November for any systems bought at launch), people even hitting that full 3 year mark is a pretty recent event. That combined with the fact that the early systems were more likely to get the RROD and many probably already have before the warranty, I'm not sure what the situation is for systems that fall just outside of the time frame.

Given that this is a known problem with the design of the system, I would think they'd be careful about giving you too much crap about a free repair.

[Galmorzu]

Thanks for the replies, guys.

I just had a friend earlier tell me that he had his system fixed for free after the 3 year program on his expired, so they're not giving people too much grief over the details, it seems.

[markatisu]

I just had a friend earlier tell me that he had his system fixed for free after the 3 year program on his expired, so they're not giving people too much grief over the details, it seems.

Yeah pretty much if you have the RROD or the E74 error they will fix it for free, there is a pending class action lawsuit against MS so I doubt they would be declining people out of the launch machine being "technically" past the 3 years

Similar to how Nintendo will fix out of warranty Wii's that have the GPU issue or the bad DVD drive (which stutters trying to play SSBB) and Sony will fix PS3's that end up with bad Blu-Ray drives (they usually die when applying firmware 2.41-2.43)

[Dynamo of Eternia]

I find it amazing that Microsoft hasn't done more to really eliminate this problem.

If it is a problem with the physical design of the case, then just make a new case. Possibly one that is bigger or at least shaped in such a way that it allows for better cooling, etc.

As wide-spread and terrible as this problem has been, it seems like one that could be easily fixed if they just did this fairly simple solution. And it shouldn't be too hard to make a new design that still works with the majority of the accessories out there for the thing (very few accessories attach to the system based on it's shape, and most of the ones that do are 3rd party ones anyway that MS wouldn't care about).


Many systems tend to get a redesign part way into their life cycle anyway. Granted, usually it is to make the system smaller, which would likely not be the case here, but I'd rather have a bigger sized system that will actually work in the long run than to have to keep putting up with this.

[markatisu]

I find it amazing that Microsoft hasn't done more to really eliminate this problem.

If it is a problem with the physical design of the case, then just make a new case. Possibly one that is bigger or at least shaped in such a way that it allows for better cooling, etc.

As wide-spread and terrible as this problem has been, it seems like one that could be easily fixed if they just did this fairly simple solution. And it shouldn't be too hard to make a new design that still works with the majority of the accessories out there for the thing (very few accessories attach to the system based on it's shape, and most of the ones that do are 3rd party ones anyway that MS wouldn't care about).

Many systems tend to get a redesign part way into their life cycle anyway. Granted, usually it is to make the system smaller, which would likely not be the case here, but I'd rather have a bigger sized system that will actually work in the long run than to have to keep putting up with this.

Probably they figure it would cost too much and since the changes to the fans and the smaller processors they have implemented since it launched are enough till the next console comes out.

[Skullface]

It's finally official:

http://xboxlive.ign.com/articles/976/976793p1.html

Demo goes up this week!

[Razor]

Hi,

It's finally official:

http://xboxlive.ign.com/articles/976/976793p1.html

Demo goes up this week!

AWESOME NEWS!!! I´m going to have to get some points to buy this game, I haven´t play it since I had the Dreamcast years ago.

Thanks for the news!!!

Later...