Best Xbox Live for online beginner?

Flasshe · 05-19-2003, 12:48 PM

Hi guys,

I just bought an Xbox this weekend and I'm about to purchase the Xbox Live starter kit. I have never done any online gaming before and I was wondering what's a good Xbox Live game to get for a beginner such as myself? Like many on this forum, I'm not a hardcore gamer though I can hold my own from time to time. I'm not into sports or racing games much - just action/adventure. What's the easiest to learn the whole online gaming thing on? MechAssault? RTCW? Ghost Recon? Something else?

(Note: I'm coming from a PS2 world, though I haven't done any PS2 online gaming.)

Thanks! --Rog

Bryan_ZZ · 05-19-2003, 12:56 PM

Roger,

Let me cast my vote for Return to Castle Wolfenstein. It has several fun gameplay modes and a good variety of maps. It makes the best use of the communicator with teammates also (IMO).

I would rank Ghost Recon second and the Sega sports games behind that.

Bryan

Chris Rock · 05-19-2003, 01:25 PM

I'd also cast a vote for Wolfenstein.

I'm a total newb too, but it's still fun. Plus, the HTF crew is loads of fun to play with.

Jerry Gracia · 05-19-2003, 01:43 PM

yeah, the above posters gave good advice.

Mech Assault can also be fun online as well.

Dave Falasco · 05-19-2003, 03:39 PM

Well I would say there's a difference between "Most Fun" and "Easiest for a Beginner". Right now I would agree that Wolfenstein is the most fun game to play online, but it also has the steepest learning curve. I've been playing since it came out and I still don't know what the heck to do on just about half the maps. On some you have to blow up coffins, steal some gold, and return it to a specific place, another you have to steal war documents and make your way to a transmitter room, and still others have you capturing flags all over the map. It can be difficult for a new person to learn where all of the objectives are on each of the maps. For straight-up ease of play, I would say Ghost Recon is a lot less complex. Basically if you see someone and he's not wearing the same uniform as you, shoot him!

Now, having said that I still think that Wolfe is more fun. If you play with decent people who can show you around the maps for the first few times it doesn't take long to come up to speed. The HTF folks are really good at that. I just wanted to caution you that it's a little trickier to pick up for a new person because of the many maps and varied objectives.

MechAssault is also quick to pick up and a lot of fun. You can't really go wrong with any of those three.

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Flasshe · 05-19-2003, 05:17 PM

Thanks for the advice.

I went to my local Toys R Us, and they had a $20 off deal for selected Xbox Live games when you purchase the starter kit. MechAssault and GR were on the list but RTCW wasn't.

I choose MechAssault, since I have a thing for giant robots. I will probably pick up GR eventually too if I get into the online thing. Best Buy has RTCW on sale for $40 this week, so I think I'll head on down there later and pick that up.

Now to see if I can get it all working...

I look forward to seeing you all online!

--Rog

Dave Falasco · 05-19-2003, 06:59 PM

Good luck, Roger, and let us know if you need any help!

David Scott · 05-19-2003, 07:20 PM

I think MechAssault was the right choice. It has the least amount of lag problems and is easy to learn/fun. RTCW and Ghost Recon are great games, but take a lot more time to learn how to play. MechAssault is pretty much run around and shoot and look at the pretty explosions. I should also add if you have a good sound system then Mechassault rocks.

JamesH · 05-19-2003, 09:09 PM

I think RTCW would be a good choice. You may get shot up a bit, but there are also plenty of other noobs since the game just came out. You can also fly around the maps without playing, so it's not as hard to figure out what to do as others make it out to be. Just follow someone who looks like he knows what he's doing, and you'll figure it out within a few minutes.

The main downsides are that it can be tough to find a good game with no lag, and some maps seem played out. Almost every big game is played on Beach Invasion or Depot, whereas other maps like Keep, Castle, Base, Assault, and Village are underused. On the plus side, all of the maps except Sub are incredible and perfectly designed. It seems like a lot of time was spent making sure that all of the prime sniping spots were still vulnerable to attack, so camping is risky as it should be.

Dave Falasco · 05-19-2003, 10:59 PM

Quote:

You can also fly around the maps without playing, so it's not as hard to figure out what to do as others make it out to be.

No, it's not hard to figure out if you invest some time in every single map just looking around or following people who know where they're going. But it's still a lot more complex than the see-shoot-kill gameplay of GR and MA, and he asked for the games that it would be easiest to learn on. I happen to agree (and I stated as such) that Wolfenstein is the most fun online, but it is also the most complex game of the three and it's only fair to mention that as well.