Yes, it’s true. I was one of the lucky beta testers for the new Xbox experience update. The update promises expanded avatar options, full downloads of retail 360 games, an updated Netflix experience and several other nifty features. After spending a week checking out most of the options, I must say I’m happy overall with most of the upgrades.

Avatar Marketplace and unlockable bonuses:

I spent a little bit of time browsing through the Avatar Marketplace and I must admit that if you enjoy playing dress up with your avatar, there is indeed some spiffy gear for sale. Whether it’s Spartan battle armor or steam punk themed clothing, there’s a little bit of something for everyone with prices ranging from 80 MS points ($1) to 400 MS points ($5.) Personally, I’d never pony up the money for virtual clothing for my avatar, but I am eager to see what sort of bonus unlockables developers will be making available as time goes on. I would love to get me some free Dead Space armor and would totally play the game again, if I thought it I could unlock Isaac’s engineer’s suit.

Full downloads of retail games:

I’m still scratching my head over this one. Although it seems like a good idea in theory, there’s a whole segment of the Xbox population that either doesn’t have a hard drive or has one of those tiny 20 gig deals (which usually only have about 12 gigs free for storage). Since most 360 games are quite a bit larger than that, I can’t see how this will work out for anyone who doesn’t have an Elite or is willing to pony up the $100 bucks for a sixty gig drive. Also, why would a buy a virtual copy of a game I want for a higher price when I could have just gone bargain bin shopping at my local GameStop and get a used copy for a cheaper price?

Netflix Instant Queue gets some love:

Of all the new features added so far, the upgrades made to the Netflix Instant Queue program are my favorite. With this update, users have FINALLY been given the ability to browse titles and update their queue directly from their 360 rather than having to run to computer all the every time they want to add something new to their list. I can’t tell you how much more convenient this is, especially when you watch as much stuff as Mrs. Otakugaijin and I do. Supposedly, the new update also includes a new party up system but functionality seems to be limited at this time due to issues with certain content holders not taking kindly to a bunch of people wanting to watch a movie together online.

Other stuff on the way:

After getting in on the beta, I must admit that one of the features I was most interested in won’t be implemented until a later date. As someone who loves listening to internet radio and the broad selection of genres that it brings with it, I was really looking forward to being able to try out the Last.fm application. Unfortunately, this feature, as well as streaming HD movies with 5.1 sound and access to internet sites like Facebook or Twitter, will not be available until sometime in the fall (Boo!)

Bottom Line:

Overall, the new update has some nice features that I really like, but I’m concerned about how the pricing of the new Marketplace items will play out in the long run. I’m a cheap bastard and there’s very little here that I’m going to pony up my money for. I’m really hoping that XBL users don’t end up getting completely screwed when comes to the free unlockable items for avatars in future games. I can see this feature being a huge disappointment with nothing but crap unlockables and all the good stuff ending up in the Marketplace at an overinflated price.

All griping aside though, I must say that Microsoft seems to finally be close to fulfilling the dream that console manufacturers have been promising for years. With this latest update, the groundwork is firmly laid for the Xbox console to become the center of any home setup by providing music, games, movies and social interaction on an unprecedented scale. Best of all, it does all this via a clean, easy to navigate setup without trying to foist a boring, seemingly pointless MMO style setup on it’s users like the Sony has tried to do with it’s Home application.

Despite not having all its new features ready to go right away when it officially becomes available to everyone this week, the groundwork is solid and I’m eager to see what the final product will offer.

Reviewer: LC1
Review Format: Xbox Live