Here's why I'm glad I got it.
1) The unit looks awesome, and it is a Star Wars fan's dream come true. The R2D2 exterior is well crafted and looks/feels very nice.
2) I love how the Xbox makes those beeping/booping/squealing R2 sounds when you open/close the tray and power on/off the system. The only drawback is you have to physically press the buttons, you won't get the sounds if you use a remote or the controller.
3) The gold C3P0 controller is GREAT! It has a nice finish, great feel, the D-pad is nice and it just really makes you feel special for buying the bundle.
4) The white kinect is nice, and it is the only one of its kind (so far), with everything else being black. It's a minor thing, but it does make you feel better about paying for the bundle. As for performance, mine was fine out of the box though as with all Kinects you do get the occasional and annoying "player input lost" messages that kind of interrupt the action.
Now should you buy it?
Well here's who I think should get it.
1) Die hard Star Wars fans who need a new Xbox or just have money to burn
2) Someone (like me) who had an old Elite clunker and want to upgrade to the new 360 design before the 720 (allegedly) comes out at the end of 2013. At least if you buy this now you'll still get at least a year and a half with it, assuming R2's circuits don't get fried by the Jawas.
3) Someone who doesn't have a Kinect and needs an excuse to get one by buying a cool, limited edition bundle
4) Someone who needs a 320 GB hard drive and wants a cool Star Wars motif to boot
So who should NOT buy this?
1) Don't buy it if you're tight on cash, and especially if you already have an Xbox that would be just foolish, and you'll just end up being bantha fodder down the road if you're in debt. This bundle is cool, but it's not "I'm willing to go broke for it" cool.
2) Don't buy it because you think it's a cool way to play Star Wars Kinect. It's not. (I'll explain more later)
3) Don't buy it if you think this performance is superior to any other 360. It's not.
**Important Note**
4) Don't buy this if you only have a 5.0 GHZ N connection in your home not unless you have a spare Microsoft Xbox 360 wireless adapter hanging around. The reason?
The Xbox included in this bundle only works on a 2.4 GHZ connection. For people like me who have a dual band router, I assigned the 2.4 GHZ to my G connection (for my G-only devices) and the 5 GHZ to my N connection (to take advantage of the high speed for my other useful gadgets like the new iPad, etc).
FORTUNATELY for me, I was able to unplug my old wireless adapter on my old Xbox and plug it into my new Xbox thru the USB port (thankfully there are 3 ports on this new Xbox too), and voila I was able to pick up my wireless 5.0 N connection again (it wasn't able to do it beforehand). So just keep this in mind, if your wireless connection is only 5.0 GHZ N band at home, you'll need to have the extra adapter around to take full advantage of the higher speed.
I don't think this should affect a lot of people, but just keep this in mind when you are upgrading or buying it for the first time.
As for the extras ... well
1) It looks like Star Wars, but on your Xbox yay!
2) You get 2 games!
3) You get a poster of R2 & C3P0 (eeh)
4) Kinect Adventures is fun, and a nice demo of what the Kinect can do, but other games do it better.
As for Star Wars Kinect (which is also included)
This game is fun, initially
You feel kind of cool when you are training and realizing you can whip out a lightsaber and kill stuff ... until you realize ... a lot of the duels are done in a rock/paper/scissors way. Meaning, when you "duel" you get in a screen where you have to time your blocks, then you get a narrow window of time to attack your opponent. That is REALLY lame.
It's fun to use force powers with your other hand, while you slash with one hand, but after awhile all the slashing gets a bit repetitive and a lot of times I just ended up using my force powers for most enemies by flinging them around. It saves me the trouble of slashing the 1000th stupid droid with my tired arms.
The driving/flying missions/controls are okay, but it's nothing we haven't seen before.
The dance mini game is okay, but the rancor rampage thing is fun. It's basically the old Midway RAMPAGE game, but with a kinect.
The duel mode stinks, for the reason I listed above.
BUT you DO get an extra C3P0 thing for the dance mini game!
So is it worth buying the bundle just for this game? Hell no! But I'm sure most people are buying it because of the eye candy, and for that I gotta say it is really worth it. The unit looks special, I love the beeping R2 sounds and most importantly, it's a great upgrade for people who love Star Wars and Xbox at the same time. You just feel happy looking at it when it's in your living room or den or man cave.
Just keep in mind the Star Wars game itself isn't that great.
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Never had interest in buying an xbox 360 before (I have multiple PS3s and a gaming PC), but when I saw the video of this thing coming out, combined with my son's interest in Kinect, I knew I would purchase it. The system itself has a really cool look to it and the controller is great as well. Not entirely thrilled with a white Kinect, but that's a matter of taste and no reflection on the device itself. We've played the game a little and thus far it's been fun. Using voice commands for Netflix and downloading games has been very easy. I'd say this is a purchase for someone who doesn't own an xbox 360 or doesn't have a slim model or of course the die hard fan.A couple things to take note of, the R2 noises only happen when you use the physical eject or power button on the machine itself. Using the controller or voice command on the kinect does not trigger the R2 noises. Not a big deal to me, but wanted to pass that on. The controller comes with AA batteries, so a recharge kit would also be a good purchase to combine with this if you don't have one already.
Best Deals for Xbox 360 Limited Edition Kinect Star Wars Bundle
I purchased this unit for my girlfriend a few weeks ago. She was without a proper console until then. She thinks R2D2 is cute, wanted an XBox badly and hasn't really had much for birthdays.She cried when she opened it.
The console itself is exactly as advertised. I don't know what some people were expecting. Why is it a big deal that you have to physically approach the system and actually press the buttons to get a fun sound or two? The blue light and the R2D2 noises are awesome and add a lighthearted aesthetic to the experience. The C3PO controller is pretty cool looking and I'd purchase it alone, even if I didn't know what it was supposed to resemble. The games were the only part I wasn't stoked about but they were far from central to the general coolness of this package. She traded 'em in @ CEX in Boston and got Mass Effect 1, Fable 2 and Assassin's Creed. That's a win.
I am a fan of the Kinect, whatever the color. Some people want to hate on it and complain. It's not supposed to be the Pre-Crime Video Display from Minority Report. It's a kitschy effort to make gaming interactive and get your ass out of a chair. Vocally commanding your XBox to do stuff is awesome, especially when alcohol is involved. It bestows a fleeting yet satisfying sense of power.
If you like Star Wars, you'll be pleased. If you don't, why are you even reading this? This XBox is a killer deal and sports a fun design.
Honest reviews on Xbox 360 Limited Edition Kinect Star Wars Bundle
The Xbox, Controller, and Kinect all work great, but I wanted to mention a couple of nits for potential buyers who might be on the fence for making a purchase:There is only one C3PO controller included. This is clearly noted, but seems a bit chincy when the Halo Xbox included two silver Halo Reach controllers. The controller does look great though.
The Xbox only makes R2D2 noises when you push the buttons on the Xbox. The controller and Kinnect voice command makes the normal Xbox noises.
Speaking of R2D2, the paint job on the fron of the Xbox feels backwards to me. If you stand the Xbox up on end, the blue lght and R2D2 dome are below the disc drive and not near the top like they would be on a "real" R2.
I never stood my other Xbox up on end, so maybe this is normal, but the drive sounds really loud when it is accessed with the Xbox standing up on end.
I would have thought Microsoft could have included some more Star Wars items with the "Star Wars" Xbox. A custom Star Wars theme or the C3PO/R2D2 avatar items would have been nice extras.
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