XBOX, less expensive in Germany?

[Wamdue]

How much does an XBOX cost in Germany? I´m very eager to play Halo , and especially Halo online.. along with some mech-games... I thought id wait til the scandinavian price (550usd) dropped.. but I heard its less expensive in Germany, is this true?

[AmigoJack]

i think sth around 339 oys for the "halo" bundle...

(is that really true? i think so - then its really much less expensive...)

[Wamdue]

yeah, I was a bit hostile against the Xbox at first , knowing Microsoft is behind it.. But I found out that cause its based on pc architecture it´ll be very easy for an xbox user to gain access to online play and no monthly fee´s cept your regular broadband/dsl connection, while the PS2 will offer same kind of services, but with an additional monthly fee.. And I just hate paying fees like that, thats why I dont play any massive multiplayer online rpgs.. and of course.. Halo:Combat Evolved is a big factor if I consider buying one, wich I do.. oh, im just going oon and oon ;)

[PLASMA2097]

Xbox costs 479E (EURO) thats ~936.84 DM.
But I dont know if this is the fixed price!
could be that they change it because of the concurents like PS2 and GAMECUBE...

german only text: http://www.pcwelt.de/news/hardware/19493/5.html

[Dastardly]

Wow those lucky Germans get to pay less for a useless white elephant than we do!!

[PLASMA2097]

hehe oh yeah really wow! *pfff*

i am one of those lucky germans (portuguese-living in germany) which even has no money to buy a PS2 incl. WipE'out'' Fusion! :(

damn... *g*

[rhys]

I dont know y r all worried about how much the xbox costs anyway!!

Is anyone realy gong 2 buy it!????? :x

[Wamdue]

yeah, i will probably buy it.

[rhys]

sony's internet will b just as good!!! :x

FF11 is goin 2 b beautiful!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :D

[BurnHead]

The Xbox officially costs 479,- EUR here in germany - which is IMHO very much. But luckily a few shops dropped the price to 399,- EUR the first few days and in some rare places you even could buy a Xbox for 299,- EUR (!!!).

I bought mine for 399,- EUR, which is IMHO a fair price (but still very high) for a new console (the PS2 did also cost something like this at its release).

The reason for this price-drop was very simple: the huge electronic stores here in germany bought that much Xbox consoles that they got scared when they realized they weren't able to sell this much units. So they simply dropped the price the first few days. Now every Xbox you can buy here costs 479,- EUR again (the price recommended by MS). I was one of the lucky ones who got one for 399,- EUR... ;)

But it's really worth the price - the games I own this far were (are) all very good (especially Halo... yummie).
I own:
- Halo
- Dead or Alive 3
- Munch's Oddysee (Ha! spelled it right, eh Lance? :D)
- Rallisport Challenge (great graphics, great handling of the cars, great speed)

Edit: Damn - this board doesn't know the EUR symbol!!

[Wamdue]

yeah, i want it the xbox real bad.. trouble is, i could fork out 399-499 and satisfy my desire for a new console and Halo.. but.. man.. i spend loads of money on games, already spent like 200usd on ps2 games this year.. My parents would like.. heheheh label me like some game-junkie.. wich i kind of am ;)

[Lance]

.
Wam: of course you're a game junkie; this is gOOd! :)

hi Bernhard. um.. no... sorry. it's spelled Oddyssee, 2 ''d''s, 2 's's, 2 'e's. they were trying to be tricky and cute. i would have let your spelling slip through, but no, you had to ask! :D
how is the new Oddworld game, anyway. i think the the earlier ones are amazingly good, especially the second one [Exoddus] because you can save anywhere..
the new one is 3D, isn't? do you find that 3D makes it better, or worse, or equal but different?
.

[Wamdue]

yeah, and hows Halo´s online play? any European servers up yet?

[BurnHead]

IMO Munch's Oddyssee (I spelled it right... right Lance? :D) is very good - better than the previous ones. The story is really good and so is the gameplay. The graphics are good, but compared to other Xbox games (*cough* Halo *cough* :)) not the best out there.

Halo... hmmmmmm...
Halo is surely one of the greatest FPS ever. I know lots of people complained about the later levels and so on - but you need to see it as what it is. It's like with Fusion - everyone hyped it so much, and in the end they were disappointed cause not everything the believed would be in the game was there.
You need to think realistic - that's the point. There's no "ultimate game" out there - and there never will be. And if you think like that, Halo will be one of the greatest experiences ever. The story is great, you really think you're actually in the game. The graphics are superb. Although many people complained about the indoor levels, it's not true what they said. Okay, they are nothing compared to the outdoor areas, that's true. But they still look very good. The AI is really great (way better than the Unreal or Half-Life AI) and you could laugh your ass off on the little aliens' behaviour (If you kill their leader, they scream and run away from you).

I've never played Online, cause it's not officially implemented and you need a tool called "Gamespy Tunnel" along with Gamespy Arcade for it. That wouldn't be the problem (in fact, I like Gamespy Arcade very much) - but as the network code is not optimated, you need a broadband internet connection. And I don't have this.

So all I can say is that the Xbox is really worth its price. And if you take a look on the release lists, you'll realize that there will be more than enough very good games for it in the future (e.g. The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind).

[Wamdue]

cool, good point, same goes for mgs2, although id like to think of it as one of the best gaming experiences Ive ever had..Its not a perfect game. Tried halo some while ago, it sure takes time getting used to aiming with the stick, but other than that, it was pretty much what I expected ( a very good game).

seen that Mech Assault game? looks like a load of fun

[BurnHead]

The one that takes place in the MechWarrior universe? Yup, I've seen it...

But have you seen the first pictures of Strident? That game seems to be veeery promising! It's something like MGS on the XBox - but with cooler game elements. And the graphics look just mindblowing! Now if only the story will be as good as MGS's... ;)

Do you want to know more? :D http://gamespot.com/gamespot/filters/products/0,11114,535087,00.html

Oh - I guess you have a Xbox now?

[Wamdue]

thanks for the link rail ;)

nope, havent bought it yet, im still thinking of a good way to present the idea to my parents, im considering selling all my ps2 titles that I dont play anymore and just keep for sentimental value, like SSX and GTA3 , also.. selling dropship and etc (forgot wich games i own :o ) so, the xbox would then be like.. 3000crowns, ie .. 300usd.. also selling some controllers i dont need for the ps2 (got 4, 2 wich i never use).. 300usd isnt that much of an amount of money for a console.. but, id need a game for it too, preferably Halo..

So, guys.. if you know anyone that bought an xbox but doesnt want anymore.. ;)



Seen Auto Modellista for PS2? looks like a very promising title, and its got online gameplay too.

[infoxicated]

I'd hold off if I was you, Wamdue.

Wait until after E3 at least - that's only a month or so away - before you make any hard and fast decisions on the X-Box. There is nothing on the X-Box at the moment that really warrants owning one. Definately not Halo - I know you're into FPS's and the PC is the only place to play these things. The only decent thing about Halo on X-Box is that you get to pull a trigger to fire. That's it. But for sheer control in an FPS you know that the PC is the only way to go - consoles do not convey the same sense of being there.

So what does that leave us with?

Munch's Oddysey... you've played Jack and Daxter - do you really want a longer, albeit prettier character game? If you do and you think it's worth all that money then go for it.

Gotham Racing... Gran Tourismo without heat haze, basically, except with fewer cars. Admittedly the cars do look cool - you can see right through them. If that gets your heart racing to the tune of over $300 USD, then fair play to you.

I've seen EA's F1 2002 on the X-Box and it is worse than their PS2 version - they use the same textures for large banners that they do for small banners and it just looks awful. The game also frames out - so much in some places that you can seen the stadiums popping in line by line... and that's when there's only one car on the screen!

The thing is short of games at the moment, and those that are out there aren't really fantastic. Do yourself a favour and kerb your enthusiasm - honestly. The technology is there - the console will have great games, whether or not it's a world beater is a different matter, but look at the Dreamcast - it has many great games and if you're a hard core player it's irrelevant that it didn't win over enough of the market.

Pop over to EB and check the release schedule - if you think what's on the way in the summer is up your alley then it might be worth you while to wait until then. As I mentioned at the start of this lengthy post - at least wait until E3 - that's when all the big announcements are made - I suspect there may be a price cut on the horison.

[Wamdue]

youre right, well, ill wait for e3 ;)

btw, whats your oppinion on auto modellista for ps2? i think it looks like real fun, and its got a kick ass graphic style.. the cell shading is excellent.

[infoxicated]

I think it looks quite fun - need to see how it plays, really, but since I try to get a play of virtually every racing game going I will probably seek it out on release.

As a side note, ps2.ign.com have Auto Modellista wallpaper up for grabs today. :)

[rhys]

am looks really fun!! :D

[Dastardly]

QUOTE:
Microsoft faced gloomy reports of slow XBox sales in Europe and Japan by boasting of the success of their console in the U.S. Latest analyst reports however, suggest a U.S. sales
slowdown. The reports are based on an apparent slow-down on the production of the XBox by Flextronics. According to the same analysts, Microsoft could well fail to meet their shipping target of 4.5 - 6 million units worldwide by June 30.

The classic Microsoft approach of hyping a product upon its release may have failed in this case because they do not have the same stranglehold on the market as they do for operating systems.

European sales, according to most retailers and analysts, have been lower than expected largely due to the price. In Japan sales are also low, partly due to the fact that XBox is competing with local products and partly because of certain hardware problems which caused some units to scratch the game discs.

To top it all off, Goldman Sachs claimed last week that retailers in the U.S. prefer the PS2 to the XBox.

[stin]

Its their fault for being too smart!

SH :)

[FoxZero]

hey, wtf, arent we forgetting something? rallisport challenge, on xbox! this game is awesome, i just got it the ther day. me and my friend played for about 4 hours yesterday in it! was so much fun. we got about halfway through. it seems to have a bit of repetition of tracks, but still, the race mechanics are fun and there is a whole slew of cars and a lot of racing ahead of us, juding by the points we need to unlock the next levels. oh yea, and it looks very cool!

i wouldnt buy xbox for this game but it is the first racer that i have really enjoyed on xbox. project gotham is OK im not really a big fan. i personally bought my xbox forr halo, hee he. its nice to have a dvd player too.

[Wamdue]

yes, rallisport looks awesome, havent played it yet. Still, id buy an xbox as soon as I know it wont die. ie.. I will decide after e3.

About the quote, yes, thats a worrying point, xbox/microsoft is having difficulties gaining a strong foothold in the asian market, wich makes the xbox future uncertain, because most skilled developer houses are based in Japan.

[Wamdue]

oh darn, im no good at waiting. I get my ordered xbox and halo 1day from now.. I couldnt resist the price drop :wink:

[Lance]

.
that's the way it should be; get stuff while your enthusiasm level is high
.