Is there any performance difference at all between the new Xbox 360 Slim and the original Xbox 360?

No game performance differences. It plays the same games and acts the same way as any Xbox 360.

How about backwards compatibility with all my Xbox 360 games and Original Xbox games?

No changes at all! All your current Xbox 360 and Orginal Xbox games (on the backwards compatibility list) will still work as they do today.

Is the fan quiet?

Yes, in fact the entire console is whisper quiet.

The photos show fan slots on the right side of the console. Does it vent to the back still, or the side?

The side (or top of you have it resting horizontally.)

What ports have changed?

Removed: The front Memory Unit slots were removed, but the front 2 USB slots are still there for controllers, USB storage, music game hubs, etc.. (Remember, since the 2010 Spring dashboard update, you can use any USB port on the console with a USB thumb drive as an Xbox 360 storage device)

Removed: The small cutout that the external wireless adapters connect to on the back of the console. Since the console now has internal wireless N connectivity, you may not want to use the external wireless adapter. If you find that the external adapter works best for you, that device has feet that swing out to allow it to sit on top of the console.

Added: An optical audio out (a.k.a. TOSlink, S/PDIF). It’s on the back of the 360 S now instead of on the AV cables.

Added: A port for the Kinect sensor that is a hybrid data and power port. Kinect works with all Xbox 360 consoles, but on the new Xbox 360, you don’t need a separate power adapter for the Kinect sensor because this port will provide the power.

Added: 2 more USB ports on the back, bringing the total to three on the rear of the console in addition to the 2 on the front of the new Xbox360.

Does the new Xbox 360 use removable faceplates?

The new Xbox 360 does not have removable faceplates.

Where is the wireless controller bind button, I don’t see it in any of the pictures?

It’s in the front. It was combined with the IR receiver on the front, so that’s why you don’t notice it!

Does that mean that I can use my old wireless controllers with the New Xbox 360?

Yup, all official controllers will work with the New Xbox 360

Does it stand vertically and horizontal and do I need an adapter or a stand?

The Xbox 360 console is designed to stand vertically or horizontally. Unlike other consoles, it does not require a stand to sit upright and with the new sleek design it looks and fits great in your living room entertainment center. However, no matter how you position the console, you should not move the console during game or media play, or at any other time when the disc is spinning.

What band does the internal wireless N use?

It’s 2.4GHz.

Do the external wireless adapters work with new Xbox 360 ?

Yes. And if you connect one to the new Xbox 360 will sense this and disable the internal wireless.

I don’t have wireless, will I still be able to connect to LIVE using the New Xbox 360?

Yes! In addition to the built in wireless card, there is a standard Ethernet port on the back as well.

Is the power supply the same?

No. It’s a bit smaller and it’s now 135 watt. The connecter type is different too because it’s not meant for use in original Xbox 360 consoles.

Is the hard drive removable?

Yes, just like on the original 360 console, the hard drive is removable.

What is included with the console?

You can find information about the retail package here.

How can I move data from my current Xbox 360 to the new Xbox 360?

Its super easy – check out Xbox.com/transfer for more details. One important note is that your current Xbox 360 hard drive will not attach to the new Xbox 360. You will need to use either a transfer cable or USB memory to transfer your content.

Source

So, we gladly welcome freebies! Xbox avatar items should all be free unlockables really, and it is great to see more games offering the chance to do this. I’ve compiled a list of all the current games that offer avatar unlockables, which are as follows:

• ‘Splosion Man
• Alan Wake
• Blur
• Darwinia+
• Dead to Rights: Retribution
• Doom II (2)
• Earthworm Jim HD
• Halo 3: ODST
• Halo Waypoint
• Lazy Raiders
• Left 4 Dead 2
• Lips
• Magic the Gathering: Duels of the Planeswalkers
• Major League Baseball 2K10
• Perfect Dark
• Red Dead Redemption
• Scrap Metal
• Snoopy Flying Ace
• South Park: Let’s Go Tower Defence Play!
• Toy Soldiers

This list was last updated on the 12th June 2010.

Red Dead Redemption has an addictive (yet slightly buggy at the moment) multiplayer mode which allows you to from gangs/posses with friends, ride the open plains, and take down enemy hideouts. It is so much fun, that it has been hard to take the time away to write this article.

As you kill stuff and complete certain tasks you gain experience (XP), which in turn levels up your character unlocking new titles, mounts and weapons. There are 50 ranks in total, as well as a Prestige-style “Legendary” mode which allows players to revert back to Rank 1 once they hit 50, but with the added benefit of even fancier new unlockables.

Here is a list of all currently available unlockable weapons and mounts in Red Dead Redemption:

Rank 1 – Cattleman Revolver, El Senor Mount
Rank 2 – Repeater Carbine
Rank 3 – Throwing Knives
Rank 4 – Lusitano Nag Mount
Rank 5 – Volcanic Pistol
Rank 6
Rank 7
Rank 8 – Winchester Repeater, Turkmen Mount
Rank 9 – Schofield Revolver
Rank 10
Rank 11 – Pump Action Shotgun
Rank 12
Rank 13 – Springfield Rifle
Rank 14
Rank 15 – Dynamite
Rank 16
Rank 17 – Double-Action Revolver
Rank 18 – Sawed Off Shotgun
Rank 19
Rank 20 – Rolling Block Sniper Rifle
Rank 21
Rank 22 – Fire Bottle, Cleveland Bay Mount
Rank 23
Rank 24 – Semi-Automatic Pistol
Rank 25
Rank 26 – Semi-Automatic Shotgun
Rank 27
Rank 28 – Carcano Sniper Rifle
Rank 29
Rank 30
Rank 31
Rank 32 – Henry Repeater
Rank 33 – Hungarian Half-Bred Mount
Rank 34
Rank 35 – High Power Pistol
Rank 36
Rank 37 – Double-Barrel Shotgun
Rank 38
Rank 39
Rank 40 – Bolt-Action Rifle, American Standardbred Mount
Rank 41
Rank 42
Rank 43 – Evans Repeater
Rank 44
Rank 45
Rank 46 – LeMat Revolver
Rank 47
Rank 48
Rank 49 – Mauser Pistol
Rank 50 – Buffalo Rifle, Bonzo Mount (Bull)

Legendary 1, Rank 50 – Buffalo Mount
Legendary 2, Rank 50 – Albino Buffalo Mount
Legendary 3, Rank 50 – Super Bull Mount
Legendary 4, Rank 50 – Zebra Donkey Mount

As a list of character names is not very useful, please check out this You Tube video to see each character unlockable:

With the news of some exciting new DLC coming out soon for Red Dead Redemption, this list is likely to change in the near future. Please bookmark and check back often for updates to the list.

Since it’s release on the 21st of May I have been playing an awful lot of Red Dead Redemption. Whilst progressing through the game I managed to unlock a new avatar item. At the moment, unlocking most of these items remains unknown, but as I find new ones I will update this article.

Here is a list of Red Dead Redemption Avatar Rewards I have found out how to unlock so far:

1. Sombrero: Shoot someones hat off
2. Red Dead Redemption shirt (red): Found in a trunk in Riley’s Charge cabin
3. Rockstar shirt (black): Found in trunk in attic of your final safehouse
4. Posse shirt: Rumoured to be unlocked via an upcoming Social Club challenge called “Strike It Rich”
5. Gentleman’s Attire: Rumoured to be unlocked via upcoming Social Club challenge “Skin It to Win It”

If you have found any new Xbox 360 unlockable Avatar rewards in this game, please leave a comment below and I will update the list.

Unfortunately the last boss Seth is a bit of a nightmare and uses loads of cheap moves which can suck you into his powerful combos no matter where you are on screen (well, almost). So, here are a few useful videos to help you beat Seth with any character (and also one on how to unlock Akuma).

How to beat Seth – Street Fighter IV

Another way to beat Seth easily

How to unlock Akuma the easy way in Street Fighter IV

I hope these videos help some of you who are having trouble beating Seth. The tactics may take some time to practice, but once you’ve mastered the timing you should be able to unlock all of the Street Fighter IV characters.

Please note that whilst these tactics will work against the computer controlled opponents, you will need to master the proper techniques if you are to do well online.

Good Luck

Whilst I’m far from being the top player in the UK, I understand what is required to at least get through the game on medium, and give online players a tough battle. Hopefully by the time you finish reading this post, you will understand some of the basic foundations to really get good at Street Fighter IV.

Tired of losing? Then check out these tips on how to beat Street Fighter IV (4)

1. Learn to Block
Blocking sounds like the most boring tactic in the world. However, learning to hold back at the right time will really help you keep at high health. It is probably the most important technique to master in the games.

Be aware that blocking whilst standing is different to crouching. Standing up will help block against many aerial attacks, whilst obviously crouching will prevent a lot of low blows and sweeps. Be careful not to “over block” though, as your character will eventually tire out and leave you open. Just block a hit and quickly counter with a fast, light move to give you an opening.

2. Pick a Character
This second Street Fighter IV tip is also fairly simple. Spend some time playing as each of the initially unlocked characters until you find one you are comfortable with. Once you feel you have settled on a particular character, try pulling off some of their special moves. I highly recommend Ryu, Ken, Blanka, or E.Honda for starting out with. Ken and Ryu more so as they have a greater variety of moves. The other two characters have simpler moves which can really help a defensive beginner (if it is too hard to pull off Ryu or Ken’s moves).

Mastering one or two characters is a lot more effective than trying to learn them all. I remember my martial arts teacher explaining to me that trying to learn 1000 moves is not as effective as learning 10 and practicing them 100 times. It’s a bit like the saying “a jack of all trades, is a master of none”. Which brings me onto my third Street Fighter IV tip…

3. Training Mode
Training mode is one of your best friends. Trust me! Here you can practice all of your chosen character’s moves and combos without fear of being beaten to death before you can throw your first Hadouken. Spend some time just memorising moves and experimenting. Much like the blocking tip this may sound a little boring, but it can really help you in the long run. Many of the best players (including the top Street Fighter UK Champion of over 80 consecutive ranked wins) have stated that this mode is an extremely important step.

4. Invite Some Friends Over!
A fun way to build up some great skills is to play against friends. Try hosting a gaming night with your mates and challenge them to a game of Street Fighter IV. Many of your friends may already be aware of the previous games and be pretty skilled already. One great benefit is that if they are pretty good, you can get them to show you tricks and techniques to help you improve. You can also try and experiment different tactics against their chosen characters.

5. Learn From Your Mistakes
Try not to get too upset if you get beaten. Instead, try working out how you got beaten. On the single player mode this can sometimes be a little tricky as the computer controlled opponent can sometimes take what are called “cheap shots”. Try a few unranked matches online and get feedback from your opponents. You may find some fairly decent players who are kind enough to help you out with a few pointers.

“You’ve always got to be aware of why you don’t win, otherwise you’ll keep losing. Every mistake is a learning experience and, hopefully, you won’t make the same mistake again.” – Layne Beachley

Summary
Street Fighter IV is quite a difficult game that requires practice in order to get good at it. There is no such thing as natural talent with a game such as this. You just need to train, experiment, and be prepared to lose a few matches along the way.

Don’t be afraid of starting small. If you are a true beginner, try playing through the game on the “Very Easy” setting. Everyone has to start somewhere. Once you beat the game on that setting, gradually work your way through the other difficulties.

I hope these Street Fighter IV tips will give many of you the foundation skills required to become a great player. If you feel this post has helped you, or if you have any of your own tips to share, please leave a comment.

There are some Xbox 360 achievements that really make you wonder how on earth you will be able to unlock them. I’m not on about daunting achievements like the Gears of War “Seriously?” task, but more the ones that tease you with little information.

Thanks to the great site x360a.org, I was finally able to find out how to unlock the Maw “Six Meals a Day” achievement.

You can mess around with the time zone setting on the 360, load up a level and then quit out so it saves. Keep changing time zones and doing this until the achievement unlocks. You can stay connected to Live while you change time zones. Alternatively, you can keep playing the game at various times of the day until it unlocks.

TIMES: Try 8am, 10am, 12pm, 4pm, 6pm, 12am.

As an added tip, I have heard that this “cheat” only works offline, as the clock can automatically correct itself using the Xbox Live timing.

I hope this helps a lot of you in obtaining the final achievement of this awesome game!

On this level you need to collect 1 million Lego Studs. It appears I’m not the only one who got stuck as many of my friends have also told me how they have spent over 45 minutes trying to get the last few studs.

The place where I found the last remaining Lego Studs on the Wayne Manor level was on the part with the 5 blocks above the orange moving ones. The 4th block would not break, no matter how much I tried. After some mind-numbingly frustrating experimentation I found out you need to jump towards the screen to break it. Glitchy or what?

I used Clayface to double jump, and for invisible bricks I recommend Joker as being the best. His gun fires a lot faster, taking up a lot less time to complete the level.

I hope this helps a few people

Avatar: The Legend Of Aang – The Burning Earth

This is probably the easiest game to earn a full 1000 achievement points. I managed to do it within about 5 minutes (including time taken to put the game in the xbox 360 and load it up).

Peter Jackson’s King Kong: The Official Game of the Movie

The achievements in this game are fairly straightforward. You earn them simply by playing through the game. It’s hard to estimate the time taken as it was so long ago. I’d say it takes about 8 hours to get the full 1000. The game isn’t too hard and is quite enjoyable in certain parts.

TMNT: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

This game is a bit of a no-brainer. I earned the full 1000 achievements in under 4 hours. This game was also quite fun which made the task not as painful as some games can be when trying to max out your gamerscore.

Bionicle Heroes

Easy 1000 achievement points, although it may take some time to get the full 100%. The game can be quite fun for kids that like blowing stuff up and looking for hidden collectibles. I found it a bit boring though.

Open Season

As odd as it may sound I thoroughly enjoyed this game and was actually a little disappointed when I completed it. I wanted more! The game is fun and great for kids. The 1000 achievements are fairly easy although there are two levels that are a bit of a b*tch to get 100%.

Surf’s Up

Yet another kids film made into a kids game. This isn’t too bad though. The game is simple and enjoyable enough. To 100% it can be a bit of a challenge, but not too hard. You can easily get 950 achievement points if you are not patient enough to collect everything. To get the full 1000 will probably only take you a couple of days in total.

Viva Pinata

This game is a bit weird but quite addictive. If you have the patience it is fairly easy to get the full 1000 gamerscore. I used a guide to help me get some of the hidden achievements. I didn’t quite have the time to get all 1000, but I racked up about 920 points pretty easily.

Spider-Man: Friend or Foe

It is easy but enjoyable with a nice graphical style. You can get the full 1000 just by playing through the game, finding some collectibles, and upgrading your characters. Pretty straightforward, but might take you a few evenings to 100% each level.

Fight Night Round 3

This game is really easy to get 1000 achievements. A word of warning though, set the saving to manual so you can retry any fights you lose (i missed out on a chance to get 100 points because I lost an important fight and it auto-saved). Also turn on “illegal blows” to make the fights a lot easier to win.

Halo 3

Chances are you probably own this game already. Still, it belongs in here. It was really easy to get over 800 achievement points. I was a bit disappointed actually how easy it was to complete the game on legendary with a few friends online. To get the full 1000 relies a bit on chance and playing online continuously.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

I’m not a huge fan of Harry Potter. My girlfriend forced me to watch it! The game itself also isn’t too bad. It’s a fairly easy getting the full 1000, but I didn’t really have the patience to play through it again on a harder setting. Do it on easy to get 900, then try it on hard to get the last 100 if you have time. I will probably return to this game one day 100% it.

Bioshock

I’m not good at games, but I managed to get 780 achievement points just playing through this. Tip: save all the “little sisters” to get an extra 100 gamerscore when you complete the game. If you kill/sacrifice one you will be kicking yourself as you get nothing for being evil (gamerscore wise).

2006 FIFA World Cup

Rubbish game. You can get 500 achievement points in one afternoon’s play. The other 500 take some time to get. Personally, I don’t have the patience for it.

Crackdown

This game is great fun! The achievements are easy and fun to get. I haven’t got them all myself, but I plan to come back to this game later in the future. I got 650 points (before the expansion came out) without trying particularly hard.

Viva Pinata – Party Animals

A fairly average party game but incredibly easy to get achievement points. So far I’ve only played it twice and got almost 400 achievement points. Have a few friends over to help make the time pass by a little quicker.