Xbox Live Arcade is very special (Xbox 360 delight #001)
We sometimes forget that when we're updating this site an average of 30 times per day in the middle of the week, it's easy to miss some of the items we post on a given topic. And so when we published a string of issues that annoy us about the Xbox 360 (001, 002, 003, 004, 005, 006, 007, 008) some newer readers to the site who had never seen all of our positive coverage of the system thought that we were being unfair. I was called all manner of names by those who could not stand to see their beloved Xbox 360 bashed in ways that they thought unfair.
Therefore, before we continue tallying our grievances with the 360 (oh yes, reader, there are more), it's only fair to note that the Xbox 360 has delighted us more frequently than it has disappointed us.
The clear standout with the Xbox 360 is the Xbox Live Arcade service. We've spent quite a bit of time waxing enthusiastic about the service and its potential, so we'll pull it all together here.
First, and most excitingly, Live Arcade is a disruptive technology. It has the potential to disintermediate the retail channel that's capturing an increasingly large portion of consumer spending through used game sales. Microsoft says that over half of the money spent to purchase a game on Xbox Live Arcade goes to the developer that made the game. That's a good thing, because some retailers have a nasty habit of ripping gamers off.
Second, the managers of Xbox Live Arcade have so far done a good job of selecting quality titles to bring to the service. Though it's got the most boring name ever, Geometry Wars is a fan-friggin-tastic game (1, 2, 3, 4). We're hearing stories of other gamers getting addicted to Outpost Kaloki, Hexic HD, and Smash TV. There's a little something for everyone, with lots more on the way.
Some "leeter-than-thou" types who still mistakenly think graphics are the most important part of gaming see our love affair with Xbox Live Arcade as bad news for the Xbox 360. They say that the launch titles must be pretty crappy if we're choosing to play Arcade games (except they say it like this: "LoL Xbox suxx0rz!") We encourage these people to grow up. Frankly, no console experience in the last five years has provided me with as much gaming enjoyment as Geometry Wars. Games are about interactivity and game designers who know how to put together a great interactive experience are going to win us over. Nintendo gets it too: that's why they've redesigned the control scheme with the Revolution and that's why they'll be offering Nintendo's 20-year catalog of games, for a fee.
In short, Xbox Live Arcade is a superior experience. Game are inexpensive, easy to try, easy to buy, and most importantly: fun. Isn't that what gaming is about?
