Xbox 360 launch -- Midtown style
by James Ransom-Wiley 
{ Nov 22nd 2005 at 11:00AM }
Gaming Steve didn't let cold rains prevent him from saddling up
and heading to Midtown Manhattan to witness what was sure to be one of the most chaotic launch sites not taking place
in a desert. The local Best Buy closed its doors at 6:00pm yesterday to prepare for its midnight opening, but the
crowds starting gathering well before. Peter Gonzalez, first in line, snagged his spot early Sunday afternoon—he hadn't
slept in over 36 hours. That's heart.
Don't forget to check out Gaming Steve's podcast of the event!
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
xbox360-forums.com @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Poor guy. All that time spent queuing only to spend the next 24 hours sleeping.
Mike @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
lol @ campers
I stopped by the best buy in my city last night comming home from a friends house. There were 100 people there already in the rain and cold. Kinda silly just for a console.
Mike @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
lol @ campers
I stopped by the best buy in my city last night comming home from a friends house. There were 100 people there already in the rain and cold. Kinda silly just for a console.
Bo @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Before heading to work, I went to Walmart, Best Buy, Fry's Electronics, Target, Toys 'R Us, Circuit city, even Costco (within Burbank, CA) and it seems the hype is working, there were long lines at all the stores and all Xbox 360 are sold out. Maybe all these campers are 'scalpers' for eBay, or maybe Xbox 360 will be a force to wreckon with in the upcoming Next-Gen gaming...
John @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Passed by a Best Buy in the Chealsea Area of Manhattan and it had about 20 to 30 people online. The GameStop in Hoboken had no one around 8pm last night.
StalkerSteve @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
At my local Walmart (in Tempe, AZ), there were 3 guys that had been there since Saturday afternoon. Some of these people need to get lives and realize that a console isn't gonna be much good to you on launch day if you can't keep your eyes open.
As a side note, I've seen at least one auction on ebay go for over $3000 this morning.
http://cgi.ebay.com/Microsoft-Xbox-360-PREMIUM-CONSOLE-SHIP-NOV-22-23_W0QQitemZ8235989226QQcategoryZ62054QQtcZphotoQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
Seth @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
I weep for the future
badbob @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Am I correct to I assume these stores with lines have no pre-orders to fullfill so there will definitely be stock available? Would be kind of silly to wait in line when the console is already sold out. The store should know how much inventory they have and pass out the same number of tickets to the people on line. I would hate to wait on line for days to find out that it the person in front of me got the last one.
Bo @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Simon, just curious...what is your TV/Audio setup? My experience is totally different than yours. I have connected the X360 to my 60" HDTV and 37" Flat-Panel LCD HDTV and 7.1 receiver. The experience is mind boggling. I really dig the streaming video feature since I can watch my DVD collection that I had archived to my Media Center server. 1.5TB worth of video at a push of a button is definitely worth $400. I'm a total Audio/Videophile and the quality of the video/audio to the TV is beyond words can comprehend.
I think you really need to be techie to understand how to fully enjoy the X360. Not to mention Perfect Dark is a very fun game. The graphic and audio really complement it to the next level.
e2 @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
I've purchased every console on launch day until the 360. It just wasn't possible to get one. I'm in Northern California. This morning I got up at 6am, headed to Best Buy, where the line was around the corner. I estimated 100 people in line. From an earlier report I knew they had 60 units, so I moved on. Ended up at Circuit City, where I waited until 7:30am, as they handed out vouchers. I was 4 people away from getting a unit before being turned away. So I headed to Toys R Us. They were sold out. Same with Target. Ended up at Game Spot by 8am, where I waited until 9am and was obnoxiously told by an employee there, we don't have any available beyond pre-sold, try back in March!! (Not a single unit available for sale to walk up traffic??) Tried Frys Electronics and even Comp USA, and they were all sold out. This is all before 9:30am, before most of these stores opened. I never had a chance!
Meanwhile, I did come across a guy that somehow bought 3 and way selling them in the parking lot of Toys R Us for $700!!! and then later $900.
Crazy.
Radiant Silvergun @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
I bet that $3050 final bid will not be honored. Get ready to file an non paying bidder report seller LOL
JollyGreenGiant @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
I can guarantee you that #5 does not own a 360 and is an immature little punk who thought'd be so cool to make up some story about the 360. I bet he's giggling to himself right now, like a little school-girl. Pretty lame dude.
Jago @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
"I have connected the X360 to my 60" HDTV and 37" Flat-Panel LCD HDTV and 7.1 receiver."
Thats the BIGGEST problem with the Xbox 360. If you want to get the best experience possible you HAVE TO spend THOUSANDS of dollars in order to fully experience it. Your setup is in the minority compared to what people actually have.
...oh and I knew that MS was gonna screw up on something...this this Microsoft ya know.
Hushed Casket @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
"If you want to get the best experience possible you HAVE TO spend THOUSANDS of dollars in order to fully experience it."
Uh. Bad logic. The same can be said for PC gaming or watching the Super Bowl. Don't hate because people can afford hi tech and expensive A/V equipment. You should be evaluating how this system plays on terrible gaming setups - not how people are able to play this on extravagant setups.
BTW: A friend says this thing even looks great on a 19" CRT.
Bo @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
14 Jago - You bring up a very good point. There are those that still have standard TV and no Surround sound setup. Unfortunately, they will be better off with the PS2 or Xbox since they will not see any benefits. That does not mean the Xbox 360 is a flop, far from it.
However, you do realize the PS3's requirement is much more steep if you want to fully utilize all it's features -- such as 1080p and HDMI/HDCP... I don't currently have 1080p TV's but I will definitely upgrade just for the Blu-ray.
I may be bias because I can afford such luxuries to fully utilize the X360, but I'm stating my actual experience, unlike fanboys that complain about stuff they don't have experience of or expose to.
Believe the hype, Xbox 360 is real and if you can afford all the necessities to make it scream you're going to be delightfully entertain.
Bust @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
there was no line at my local walmart or eb. those who really wanted an x-box 360 pre-ordered months ago
Jago @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
(#15) Unfortunately, the MAJORITY of people in this country (especially gamers) can't afford to have a big screen HDTV with all the bells and whistles. The fact that people would need a high end TV and sound system in order to fully enjoy the games in abusrd. Whatever happened to the GAMEPLAY being the reason why people played games? Hooking up a system to a HDTV is not going to make a game more fun. Sure it will make it look a hell of a lot prettier but thats about it.
If Microsoft is trying to appeal to the "average (non-hardcore) gamer" then saying that you would need a HDTV and nice surround sound setup is not gonna help.
All the average gamer wants to know is "How much are accessories?" and "Will it play ALL the games I already purchased for the original Xbox?" The accessories btw are absurdly expensive.
- $100 for a 20GB laptop hard drive
- $100 for a USB wifi adapter
- $50 for a wireless controller
- $20 for the charge n play addon for the wireless controller (which makes that whole setup $70 for each wireless setup if you don't use batteries)
- $40 for the non-wireless controller
- $20 for the headset
...etc...etc...
I'm sorry but that is A LOT of money...
Kai Curtis @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
I believe that the Longest Wait award goes to the guy at the front of the line (and his intrepid girlfriend) at the Best Buy in Bellevue, WA. From what I heard, he arrived at around 6 PM on Friday evening, giving him a nice 78 hour wait before he could strut out of the front doors for his 15 minutes.
Others at the same location didn't fare so well: one man's quest for a 360 looked like it ended last night with police intervention. The guy claimed that he had been in line for something like 12 hours, but that when he stepped out of line to serve some basic human need, he missed out on the distribution of the item tickets. I'm not sure if he tried the measured negotiation tactic first, but by the time I saw him, he was going for full-blown ruckus.
In the meantime, I have a 360 frisbee and my girlfriend got a cute schwag shirt from the party crew. Unfortunately, I don't have a hi-def set, so I don't know whether we'll be able to enjoy either fully.
Kai Curtis @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
As a followup on the first person in line that I mentioned:
http://www.myxbox360.com/news/news/Xbox_360_queue_begins_385
Donkey Konga @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
>
I really hate pre-ordering anything. Why should I give them my money MONTHS in advance?
Even those that did pre-order were necessarily satisified. My local Gamestop said they were filling only 10 of the pre-orders out of more than 100!
And am I the only one that does not live near a WalMart? Anyone know how many they had?
Adam - Who has one :-) @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
@20 - Wal-Marts are definitely distributing them according to how big the market it is around each store. I live in an 80K+ town that has 2 Wal-Marts and I hear that each got around 15 or so. A friend I have in a neighboring city of about 120K said the Wal-Mart by him got 40 in.
He said he waited 8 hours in line at Wal-Mart to get his at midnight. I woke up early the next morning and got to Best Buy at around 7:30 (opened at 9) and was the second to last person in line to get one :-D. My Best Buy had around 30 or so, I believe.