Thinking about getting an original X-Box..worth it?

[Satan]

Stranger's Wrath

[apatheticTurd]

(helpful for Panzer Dragoon Orta, which has some really odd difficulty, in the U.S. version).

Hmmm, could you elaborate? Google isn't giving any relevant results.

[Ed Oscuro]

Stranger's Wrath

Along with the Visions HQ, the shop interior is one of the most impressive areas on the Xbox in my memory. I'd probably get this for PC nowadays, though.

Man, Metal Wolf Chaos...still climbing in value, I really missed the boat on this one!

[evil_ash_xero]

(helpful for Panzer Dragoon Orta, which has some really odd difficulty, in the U.S. version).

Hmmm, could you elaborate? Google isn't giving any relevant results.

Normal, for the U.S. version, is way harder than Normal for the JP version. The boss on the first stage takes forever in the U.S. version. I think it kind of makes things drag a bit.

But I don't think it's the U.S.'s "Easy". I think it's a different difficulty. I could be high, and play the U.S. "Easy", and it be it. But I recall the U.S. "Easy" being easier than the JP "Normal". I could make sure though.

But it's definitely easier than the U.S. version, on Normal. I checked it last night, to make sure I wasn't remembering things wrong.
And yeah, there seems to be nothing about this on the internet, that I have seen.

Man, Metal Wolf Chaos...still climbing in value, I really missed the boat on this one!

Yeah, I about choked when I saw the Ebay prices. It will be a while before I actually buy a legit copy. But so far, it's a lot of fun. And it's totally ridiculous.

When the President jumps out of the White House, in a mech suit, and goes "Let's party!", you know you're in for some silly stuff.

[evil_ash_xero]

How in the hell did Smilebit make JSRF, PDO, and Gunvalkyrie in the same year?!

[evil_ash_xero]

JSRF is pretty awesome. Funny how you can take out a tank with spray paint.

[Immryr]

they had probably been working on those games for the dreamcast for a while.

[okerlo]

I found a X-Box retrospective on youtube. Quite interesting and you'll probably find one or two games you didn't know about.

[Satan]

Kung Fu Chaos

[zinger]

I quite recently got an Xbox to play most of the games mentioned here, and I'm having a blast! I'm thinking of picking up GTAIII later on because I've actually never played it, and the XB port is supposed to be the best looking version. Anyone knows how it holds up to the PS2 version graphics aside? Any notable differences?

[Ed Oscuro]

Metal Wolf Chaos recently went for $200+ on eBay - less than the asking prices, but still damn high. For that kind of price range I'd be looking at Steel Battalion instead.

[Strider77]

Metal Wolf Chaos is alot more fun though.

[evil_ash_xero]

I was thinking about getting Soul Calibur 2, for the Xbox, since I love the game and got rid of it a long time ago.

However, is there any kind of adapter or fighting pad for the XBox? I can't seem to find an adapter, from the usual sources. I'd like to use a PS2 pad, if possible.

[dan76]

I've got one of these -

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Magic-Box-Joypa ... B000LB4HKM

PS2, Dreamcast and Saturn pad compatible. Might be tough to find one though.

[zinger]

http://www.tototek.com/store/index.php? ... cts_id=191

[evil_ash_xero]

THANKS!

[evil_ash_xero]

Metal Wolf Chaos recently went for $200+ on eBay - less than the asking prices, but still damn high. For that kind of price range I'd be looking at Steel Battalion instead.

I was able to get a brand new copy of MWC for about 260.

I was looking at Steel Battalion, but that controller is absurd.

How is Shikigami no Shiro II, on the XBox? I only have access to 480i, so any pluses that Progressive Scan would bring, are useless to me.

[Obiwanshinobi]

The PC port of Shiki2 outputs fairly high resolutions (just saying). Only 1 on PC is 640x480 at best (I read it's a port of the Xbox port); 2&3 on PC are where it's at on LCDs.

[D]

The original XBOX is great for the compilations alone. The Midway

I read that the GC got the best Midway compilation versions 1-2-3.
Can't confirm, just something to keep in mind for the fans.

[Obiwanshinobi]

Midway Arcade Treasures Deluxe Edition on PC runs in 640x480 - hardly better than console versions in this regard, then - but nothing seemed wrong with the games I've played on it (bought for Hydro Thunder and San Francisco Rush 2049).

[Austin]

The original XBOX is great for the compilations alone. The Midway

I read that the GC got the best Midway compilation versions 1-2-3.
Can't confirm, just something to keep in mind for the fans.

That's interesting to hear. Do you know what the differences are? I know the XBOX versions are noticeably improved over the PS2 ones, but I haven't known anyone with the GC versions so I haven't heard much about them. I'd wager the controls are an issue for the fighters off the bat, but I am curious how those versions fare otherwise.

[BPzeBanshee]

Best way to get an XBOX and make it value for money:
- make sure the ethernet port and power buttons are working BEFORE you buy (ethernet for FTP purposes, if it's not softmodded a simple connection test should show signs of life even though there's no more Live for it)
- get yourself a screwdriver kit that has Torx 10, 15 and 20 screw bits on them
- remove the clock capacitor (and replace it IF the motherboard revision is <1.6), chances are it's already leaked and fucked your Real Time Clock circuit anyway but better to be safe than sorry
- softmod it, set it up for FTP and get the console firmware keys dumped
- upgrade the hard drive on it

Boom, emulator/media player/disc ripper/region-free/backup/FTP box all in one.

I pulled out my old XBOX from the cupboard and started to do all this, but the ethernet port on the back is broken and isn't making any outbound traffic at all. Upgrading my internal hard drive is impossible since you can't get the firmware keys for your console copied out unless you do the IDE hotswap method I used to access the XBOX hard drive, which costs nothing if you already have an old enough PC but is a pain in the ass to get right. Learning soldering with it the hard way at the moment since mine had an additional three blown capacitors.

[BrianC]

That's interesting to hear. Do you know what the differences are? I know the XBOX versions are noticeably improved over the PS2 ones, but I haven't known anyone with the GC versions so I haven't heard much about them. I'd wager the controls are an issue for the fighters off the bat, but I am curious how those versions fare otherwise.

I have the GC versions of 1 and 2, as well as the Xbox version of 2. Xbox and GC versions of 2 seem similar, but only the Xbox has 480p. I only played a little bit, so I need to compare more. The GC version of 1 has the sound out of sync for a lot of the games. I'm not sure if Xbox has the same issue.

[Ed Oscuro]

- remove the clock capacitor (and replace it IF the motherboard revision is <1.6), chances are it's already leaked and fucked your Real Time Clock circuit anyway but better to be safe than sorry

I've seen a later Xbox motherboard with a Rubycon (or something) cap instead of the shitty early one they used. I'm not sure it's holding a charge, but it's also not leaking.

Also, on the Xbox todo front, I'd look into getting 40-conductor IDE cables. While they have to be the right length and design to work, the original Xbox cables have a fair amount of crosstalk and excess length, and generally don't help out airflow greatly (that said, I think the round cables some people have put in their Xbox, with all the wires bunched up at the middle, would also be troublesome for airflow). The 40-conductor cables can help out loading a bit in some cases. I'm not sure they'd help reduce the number of reads/writes on drives and therefore wear - I'd guess that failed transmissions due to crosstalk are just sent from the origin device - but it seems possible.

For me, the #1 problem with old Xboxes has proven to be the drives. I need to desolder a couple more supercaps, though, I bet.

[BPzeBanshee]

I've seen a later Xbox motherboard with a Rubycon (or something) cap instead of the shitty early one they used. I'm not sure it's holding a charge, but it's also not leaking..

Sounds like a 1.6 board from what I've looked up. Those ones are still prone to failure thought not as bad as the older ones. From memory with those you DO need to replace it with something though, I've seen someone do a setup with a coin battery + holder and just solder the wires in which seemed to work but then again that might just be YouTube magic.

But yeah, definitely the older DVD drives go first. That's how I ended up having to get rid of my original Xbox. The hard drives I thought were reliable but it seems to be the capacitors and DVD drives that seem to be the common parts that give up first.

[apatheticTurd]

The original XBOX is great for the compilations alone. The Midway

I read that the GC got the best Midway compilation versions 1-2-3.
Can't confirm, just something to keep in mind for the fans.

That's interesting to hear. Do you know what the differences are? I know the XBOX versions are noticeably improved over the PS2 ones, but I haven't known anyone with the GC versions so I haven't heard much about them. I'd wager the controls are an issue for the fighters off the bat, but I am curious how those versions fare otherwise.

The Gamecube version of MAT3 apparently doesn't have the save corruption bug of the other versions. I've never heard the GC version of 1 and 2 being better.

[Ed Oscuro]

Sounds like a 1.6 board from what I've looked up.

Yes, generally the 2004 revisions are pretty good. I forget what the cooling is like in comparison to other revisions, though - noise is always at issue with the Xbox, though some revs are notably better than others.

On Midway Arcade Treasures, I've also read that the GC version is the one to get. The GC is such a nice quiet little machine, it's a shame not to use it.

[BrianC]

I noticed Wizard of Wor in MAT2 runs fast on both Xbox and GCN versions. I need to compare MAT2 more, but they seemed very similar and if one is better it's probably by a marginal amount. I'm leaning towards the Xbox since it looks better due to 480p support (from what I remember).

[kitkit.com]

Original X-box is definitely worth picking up and it cost as little as $10 at a Goodwill store. There are many good games such as House of the Dead 3, Silent Scoop, Silent Hill 2 Restless Dreams, Fatal Frame 1 & 2 etc. I used to spend many hours on Winning Eleven 9 soccer.

Make sure you get the original XBox High Definition AV Pack