Microsoft promises to keep Xbox Live up through the holidays

It looks like Microsoft doesn't want a repeat of last year's post-holiday Xbox Live outages, when the service was basically unusable for two weeks -- according to 360 product manager Aaron Greenberg, MS is "well prepared for the type of growth we expect this holiday," and that more Live staffers than ever before will be on hand to fix things if things do go bonkers. From what we've heard Live is more robust than ever now that the NXE and the associated backend changes have been rolled out, so we're hoping things go well -- but we wouldn't necessarily say no to another free Arcade game.

[Via Xbox 360 Fanboy]

[)ROFL( @ Dec 11th 2008 7:25PM]

Good job Microsoft, looking forward to continue gaming with my friends online this holiday.

[Dave Chappelle @ Dec 11th 2008 9:26PM]

"'Good job Microsoft,"

Dude do you think now because they 'promise' it definitely will not happen again? Why are you commending them on promising something you have paid for? We should be standing there with whips slashing the shit out of them when something goes wrong. Home has screwed around PSN but at least it's not god damn Christmas yet and I am not sitting their with my family thinking... ok this is gay did not get Movies, board games are for pussies and now I have to sit there and 'talk' which is something I could do while playing games.

[Christian Walters @ Dec 11th 2008 9:39PM]

@Dave Chappelle, you sir, are a total jackass, and I look forward to your death!

[James @ Dec 11th 2008 9:50PM]

What can you say Microsoft learns from their mistakes and isn't afraid to admit them. When their hardware has problems not only do they fix it free of charge but they extended the warranty by a year. And last year when the outage occurred people got a free month of xbox live. Say what you want about them but Microsoft is one of the better companies out there.

[why not the LS2LS7? @ Dec 11th 2008 10:06PM]

MS extended their warranty on the RROD a lot more than a year.

But still, how about they just get it right in the first place? That's a good solution to the problem, instead of making crap, denying it, then saying you have it, but it's fixed now (and extending warranty to a year), then when it's clear you don't have it fixed now, saying you got it for real this time and extending the warranty to 3 years (on the RROD)?

MS lied and said they had the problem fixed when they didn't. They wouldn't let something like the truth get in the way, the key was to make sure people bought a 360 and not a PS3 (which came out right around the time lied and said they had it licked).

[Kris120890 @ Dec 11th 2008 7:27PM]

Hopefully I get my 360 back after this weekend. One week without Live is hard. More and I'll be annoyed.

[gjp303 @ Dec 11th 2008 7:30PM]

I feel your pain. I spent a month without my console from a grounding when I burnt the school's microwave. It hurts like hell.

[Ignatius @ Dec 11th 2008 7:54PM]

I hope you don't have a microphone.

[ItsTheOMGShow @ Dec 11th 2008 7:28PM]

I don't trust anything Live after the Black Friday HP 40% cashback disaster

"A crush of traffic led to a glitch" .. sound familiar? This was two weeks ago!

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-10112023-56.html

[jared @ Dec 11th 2008 7:31PM]

Not live.com, Xbox Live online service.

[grull27 @ Dec 11th 2008 7:30PM]

It better not happen again, but I'm afraid it will. When the NXE came out, it went down. For some people it went down for hours, for others it went down for 2 days, I was one of those people who had to be without it for 2 days. Not the best thing ever. Last year, I was outraged when I couldn't play on Xbox Live for the whole Christmas Break. I could play in the morning when barely anyone was on but then as people got on it went down. I'm pretty sure the same will happen this Christmas, especially with the price cuts.

You can't escape the inevitable.

[Ike Turner @ Dec 11th 2008 7:35PM]

Get some pussy.

[grull27 @ Dec 11th 2008 7:41PM]

I do. The problem is, I'm just addicted to my 360 as I am my girlfriend.

[nohone @ Dec 11th 2008 7:42PM]

They announced they were taking it down so they could upload the NXE software. If Apple has to take down the entire store to upload a new color of iPod, you can understand taking down LIVE to put entirely new software on the servers. Hell, even Sony screwed up launching Home. PSN has been up and down all day and still cannot sign into home because it locks up on the "Signing in..." screen or times out messages on the Java pages:
/HUBPS3_SVML/unity/start.jsp
/HUBPS3_SVML/unity/eulaCheck.jsp
/HUBPS3_SVML/unity/eulaConfirm.jsp
/HUBPS3_SVML/account/SP_Login_Submit.jsp

or gives Read errors on /HUBPS3_SVML/announcement/Medius_Announcement_Read.jsp

[why not the LS2LS7? @ Dec 11th 2008 8:14PM]

and then it went down for a day again a week later.

[Kinger @ Dec 11th 2008 8:33PM]

Hey Ike,

Go beat your wife!

[dvsbstrd @ Dec 11th 2008 8:45PM]

"I do. The problem is, I'm just addicted to my 360 as I am my girlfriend."

Loser.

[grull27 @ Dec 11th 2008 8:47PM]

Ok I'm a loser now. I hope calling me a loser makes you feel better about yourself. What guy doesn't love video games and girls?

[telepheedian @ Dec 11th 2008 9:14PM]

What guy doesn't love girls more than video games?

[grull27 @ Dec 11th 2008 9:16PM]

It's not my fault they're equally as awesome for me. :(

[kal326 @ Dec 12th 2008 9:21AM]

@Ike Turner

I did, but it seems to have even worse reliability then Xbox Live. Seems every month it has a multiday service outage and customer service is a real pain in the ass to work worth.

[Adam @ Dec 11th 2008 7:39PM]

I would make a joke about the 360's servers, but then I realized that I've been trying to log onto the Home server since 4. See, both systems suck!!

[Ignatius @ Dec 11th 2008 8:03PM]

Eh, there's a major difference in all this.

Money, it entitles you to complain.

[BJ is Gooder @ Dec 11th 2008 7:40PM]

I'm hoping (but not expecting) that we won't have a repeat of last year. With 360 sales up as much as has been reported, there is a chance for another record breaking year of new xbox live subscriptions.

Hopefully they won't try to buy back their customers loyalty with a silly free game (Undertow). That did not make up for it. The only way they can make up for last year is by actually navigating a smooth transition through this holiday season. Best of luck to MS, I'm sure it's not easy...

[BlurMagic @ Dec 11th 2008 7:59PM]

If that ish happens again, im getting on a bus and riding straight to down Redmond to bash some nerdy little tech heads.

Just kidding. Honestly, Xbox live is fun and all, but the mountains are calling... it's time to snowboard biaaatches. Well, as soon as we get some snow here in Washington...

[Ian @ Dec 11th 2008 8:39PM]

HELL YEA!!! o wait its 50 degrees on the mountains in Tahoe..

[Mobius_1 @ Dec 11th 2008 8:33PM]

Good, hopefully we won't have to petition Engadget to change name to Xboxlivestatus

[holycow @ Dec 11th 2008 8:41PM]

I remember last year Ryan had promised to send some kid an xbox 360. Did it ever happen? Just curious.

[Alexei @ Dec 11th 2008 8:48PM]

God forbid another crash.

[Oxzide @ Dec 11th 2008 9:16PM]

Good Luck and God Speed Xbox Live!

[SOOPERGOOMAN @ Dec 11th 2008 9:51PM]

Home's up and running fine with about 15 million users. Xbux live will be down again. it always happens, its like tradition now.

[holycow @ Dec 11th 2008 10:11PM]

well I can't seem to get into PlayStation Home, and I've been trying since noon... so 10 hours now!

[nohone @ Dec 11th 2008 10:26PM]

Like holycow, I still can't get in - been trying for hours. Finally got past the EULA, but keep getting errors D35, -603,

But since you can get in, maybe you can answer a question. I have a 52" 1080p LCD. Blu-ray, the XMB, and everything else fills the screen, but the main login screen only fills about 2/3 of the screen. Is all of home like this?

[krische @ Dec 12th 2008 12:11AM]

I was able to sign into home a few hours ago and played around in it for quite a while. It took me maybe like half an hour to get in, but just kept trying like every 5-10 minutes.

[mike @ Dec 11th 2008 11:35PM]

Xbox will be up and running this season?

Isn't that like Coca Cola promising its drinks won't taste like shit and give you the shits, then kill you?

[Blackjack @ Dec 12th 2008 12:20AM]

Xbox business unit continues to lose money. It is a matter of time before Ballmer pulls the plug.

[David @ Dec 12th 2008 12:41AM]

I never got the free arcade game or any message from Microsoft about it last year.

[HunterXI @ Dec 12th 2008 1:11AM]

That's because you never went and downloaded it. Cause and effect.

[Raheem @ Dec 12th 2008 3:38AM]

I'm taking bets!

[rita hainsworth @ Dec 12th 2008 5:17AM]

My boyfriend promises to keep it up during the holidays.

[Jon Graft @ Dec 12th 2008 3:29PM]

Well that is awful nice of Microsoft to promise you that the service you are paying for will actually work. :-| I guess Sony should step up their game and make their network crash every now and then, charge us, and then promise us it will work...and Sony thought a free working service would get buyers?! HAHA!!

[CHris @ Dec 12th 2008 8:10PM]

DId anyone get the free game from the first outage??? Because I sure don't remember getting one and I'm a gold member???

[vudean @ Dec 13th 2008 10:32AM]

I never got mine either! Stupid MS

[CDN Crockett @ Dec 12th 2008 8:50PM]

It's Xbox LIVE
and not Xbox Live in lower case.

[tiuk @ Dec 13th 2008 12:52PM]

@kal326

So glad I looked up to see who you were replying to.