TheMacJedi

Nelson and Natalie are an awesome team. They’re very entertaining and worth your time if you crave Xbox news.

Check them out here http://achievementjunkie.com/ and the forums here http://achievementjunkie.com/forums/

You can also subscribe to their iTunes podcast here.

Look for themacjedi in the forums, I’m there regularly.

Xbox Live Arcade will be one of it’s big selling points.

I believe that a handheld Xbox will incorporate the exact same XLA (Xbox Live Arcade) games that you can currently get through your 360. What’s cooler is that you will probably be able to browse and download demos directly to the handheld. These will be the exact same games and since the handheld will probably be wide screen you will get the benefit of the wider games.

Think about this, Geometry Wars Retro Evolved in your hand. Sounds damn sweet.

They will release a handheld with the benefit of dozens of games that it can already play. If you bought it on your 360 you can play it on either system because it will log into the internet to confirm your account. You should also be able to buy from the handheld and then play it on your 360.

XLA is an awesome platform that they are going to take advantage of, think of the fighting game about to come to XLA.

Like the 360 the handheld will probably also include a similar blade like interface and yearly updates. I think it’s safe to assume it will play music but if they tout it as an iPod killer it will die.

Will it play movies? Yes, but what kind? Definitely MOVs, WMVs and those types but what about Hollywood Movies? Probably but don’t expect another proprietary format like the UMD (bad move Sony). They may be working on a downloadable format similar to what Apple is rumored to be doing right now.

What’s in a name? I’ve said in the past (and I was correct) that the Xbox name would be like Nintendo in the fact that it precede the device name (ei. Nintendo DS, Xbox 360).
With that kind of logic we can assume that it will start with Xbox and end with it’s own name. Examples, Xbox Orbit, Xbox Orbiter, Xbox Satellite, Xbox Comet, Xbox Radar, Xbox Nucleus (my favorite), Xbox Portable, Xbox OTG (on the go), Xbox TriPod (just kidding), Xbox Hero, Xbox Gauntlet, Xbox Matrix, Xbox Hugo (handheld unlimited gaming online), Xbox UHGO (pronounced “you go” (unlimited handheld gaming online), Xbox Punch, Xbox Sandbox, Xbox Icon, Xbox Thunderbird, Xbox Caffeine, Xbox Micro, Xbox Jammer, Xbox Carbon, OK that’s enough.

Robby Bach, if you pick one of my names I get a free handheld, only fair.

Will it browse the web and check your email, probably. Will it have a touch screen, probably not but I think it would be cool if it did or at least a keyboard or virtual keyboard. Anyone who has used the PSP to browse the internet knows what a pain it is without a keyboard.

Will it survive with Arcade games only, not a change. So what else will this thing do? They will give it an awesome gaming engine but i imagine they will through every other feature possible at it to make it compete with the DS, PSP and iPod.

How big will it be? I think it will have a very similar looking screen to the PSP but the device will not be as tall or wide. Mostly due to the lack of a disk drive like the UMD. It could have a removable hard drive though.

If I’m only a little close to some of the specs it will rock. Handheld Halo anyone.

Here are my thoughts and a few questions I recently posed to Major Nelson and Ross Erickson.

Now that Xbox Live has been fleshed out into something that can evolve and grow I think we (the Xbox Live gamers) should get some notion that our purchases are not tied to the Xbox 360. I completely understand why games purchased for the original Xbox Live Arcade did not transfer over. From this point forward please allow me to play all purchased games in the Arcade on future versions of the Xbox. If I buy Bejeweled today on the Xbox 360 Arcade I want to be able to play it on all future Xbox consoles. This also promotes the backward compatible model.

I would like to be able to play the arcade games that I’ve bought for the 360 on the 720 when it comes out. I’m hesitant to spend too much money on Arcade games if I’m really only getting a few years of play out of them. Because we all know that what rocks about the Arcade games is that it’s mostly time wasters and simple gameplay fun. These are the type of games that people play forever. They are simple, pretty and accomplish nothing. I think I’ve spent about $80 so on arcade games. These are the kind of games I want to keep, not upgrade every year.

Now that Arcade is all online (no disk required) and all arcades (future Xbox) from this point forward will follow a similar model I don’t think it’s to much to ask especially since a lot of these games can be played for free (PC) online.

Answers provided by Ross Erickson, Games Portfolio Manager (Xbox Live Arcade/MSN Games.com).

Q 1. Will I be able to play Xbox Live Arcade games I buy now on future Xbox consoles?

A 1. Given that we just barely shipped the 360 into the marketplace just 5 months ago, and that traditional console lifecycles are 5+ years, it’s a bit premature to start planning and making guarantees about any future console so far in advance, especially in light of the fact that digital distribution of entertainment content is still in its infancy. Our intention is to always provide customers value and new entertainment experiences on any platform like Xbox 360

Q 2. Will I be able to play Xbox Live Arcade games I buy now on future Xbox consoles for free or will I have to pay for an upgrade?

A 2. We haven’t announced (nor would we even discuss for many years) any new console beyond the 360 so this is entirely premature.

Q 3. Will I have to transfer them from my 360 or will I be able to download them?

A 3. Again, you’re getting way ahead of yourself on this. Enjoy the games you bought today for what their worth (mostly $5 and $10).

I know my questions are a bit premature, but they will come up again in the future so I want to thank Ross for taking the time to answer them now.

MY GAMERTAG THEMACJEDI