Xbox 360 Budget Gaming

DChaps · Post by **DChaps** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 9:02 am

With the most recent price drops I finally became an Xbox 360 owner and I am eagerly awaiting the red ring of death. My first purchase was RB2 and I am enjoying it immensely. One thing that kept me from the next gen consoles for so long was I did not want to go back to paying $60 for games. I have not played any console sports games since the last decent wave for Xbox in 2005. So, considering I am late to the table and not playing that much online, I realized there are pretty good deals for the previous years versions of sports games, as well as Action/RPG. I am looking to see if roster/season updates are available for some of these older titles.

Here is what I have found so far:

Football:
Madden NFL 08 - $14.99
NCAA Football 08 - $14.99

Hockey:
NHL 08 - $24.99
NHL 2K8 - $19.99

Soccer:
FIFA Soccer 08 - $17.99
Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 - $17.99

Basketball:
NBA 2K8 - $16.99
NBA Live 08 - $17.99
College Hoops 2K8 - $14.99
NCAA March Madness 2008 - $17.99

Baseball:
Major League Baseball 2K8 - $24.99

Golf:
Tiger Woods PGA Tour Golf 08 - $17.99

Other Sports:
Amped 3 - $14.99
Fight Night: Round 3 - $17.99
Rockstar Games Table Tennis - $9.99
Skate - $29.99

Racing:
Forza Motorsport 2 - $19.99
DiRT - $24.99
Project Gotham Racing 4 - $24.99
Moto GP 2007 - $14.99
Burnout: Paradise - $26.99

Action:
Gears of War - $29.99
Call of Duty 2 - $24.99
Ghost Recon: Advanced War Fighter 2 - $17.99
Battlestations Midway - $19.99
Rainbow Six : Vegas 2 - $34.99
Prey - $7.99
(Already have The Orange Box and Bioshock for PC, otherwise, they would be listed here as well as they can both be found for under $30)

RPG:
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - $26.99
Mass Effect - $29.99

Other:
LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga - $17.99

Any in this list that are so bad that they would not even be worth their budget price? Any cheap gems I am missing? Also, is EA sports OTP feature in any of their 2008 games?

seanmac31 · Post by **seanmac31** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 9:25 am

You can get All Pro Football for about three dollars, which has to be the best deal of all time. It's still the best football game on the market.

Halo 3 you can pull in for about $15. Bioshock will run you around $20. MLB 2K7 has to be very cheap, and it stands as the best baseball game on the 360. Call of Duty 2 is probably dirt cheap and is still worth playing through the single player campaign.

matthewk · Post by **matthewk** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 10:17 am

My sole "next gen"console is the Wii.

I refuse to spend $60 on games. In fact, the way the economy/my job is going, I've been tightening the screws even more lately. PK would be so proud

.

Here's a list of what I have spent since about the beginning of the year:
PS2
Madden 08 - $5
Here Comes the Pain - $7
GH 1 & 2 - $20

Wii
GHWT, Pokemon (for my son), and DeBlob - $35 each
Lego Batman - $40
Spider-Man: Friend or Foe - $10
Monster Jam - $20
Lego Star Wars - $20

Xbox
Oddworld Strangers Wrath - $10
NBA Live 06 - $4
NBA 2k7 - $6
Arena Football - $5
NCAA football 08 - $12
Star Wars Jedi Academy 2- $10

Even without the most recent sports titles, I can still play current seasons thanks to rosters for NFL 2k5, NBA 2k7, and MVP 2005.

Anyways, back to the 360 bargains.

pk500 · Post by **pk500** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 11:17 am

matthewk wrote:My sole "next gen"console is the Wii.

I refuse to spend $60 on games. In fact, the way the economy/my job is going, I've been tightening the screws even more lately. PK would be so proud .

You're getting there, man! You'll share the pinnacle of Mount Cheaperest with me when your only gaming tool is a PC provided by your employer, and your primary source of games -- all older titles -- is "alternative methods."

P.S. to Don: Welcome to 360 world, man. Enjoy your new box! I would imagine that GRID and DIRT must be pretty cheap by now. I remember Test Drive Unlimited was well liked around here, too.

Take care,
PK

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 12:29 pm

Yeah PK...TDU was awesome. The best part was the huge community of people playing at once. A lot of that luster may be gone these days since I doubt the online community is that big two years after release.

However, DIRT is ridiculously good. GRID, ehhh...wasn't a big fan. Way too arcady for me.

JackB1 · Post by **JackB1** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 12:47 pm

dbdynsty25 wrote:Yeah PK...TDU was awesome. The best part was the huge community of people playing at once. A lot of that luster may be gone these days since I doubt the online community is that big two years after release.

However, DIRT is ridiculously good. GRID, ehhh...wasn't a big fan. Way too arcady for me.

I agree. DiRT and TDU are great racing games you will enjoy Don. You can probably snag both for under $20 ea.

webdanzer · Post by **webdanzer** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 12:52 pm

I don't know how you are feeling these days about the more arcadey car games, Don, but I always thought Flatout: Ultimate Carnage was a much better game than it got credit for being. (Some really fun Destruction Derbies!)

I also had a lot of fun running through Stuntman.

Danimal · Post by **Danimal** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 1:02 pm

I'll try and respond to your question unlike other people

Football:
Madden NFL 08 - $14.99 - NOT WORTH IT, WAIT 3 MONTHS AND GET THIS YEAR ON THE CHEAP
NCAA Football 08 - $14.99 - WORTH IT
APF2K8 - Only worth it if you're playing online, game is way too easy shallow single player, that is a reason it went in the tank so fast.

Hockey:
NHL 08 - $24.99 - WORTH IT BUT IF YOU'RE INTO ONLINE BETTER OFF GETTING THIS YEAR

NHL 2K8 - $19.99 - NOT IF YOU GET THE OTHER ONE

Soccer:
FIFA Soccer 08 - $17.99 - YES
Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 - $17.99 - YES

Basketball:
NBA 2K8 - $16.99 - YES, BETTER THEN THIS YEAR
NBA Live 08 - $17.99 - HELL NO
College Hoops 2K8 - $14.99 - YES LAST ONE EVERY
NCAA March Madness 2008 - $17.99 - HELL NO, HELL NO

Baseball:
Major League Baseball 2K8 - $24.99 - JUST THREW UP IN MY MOUTH

Golf:
Tiger Woods PGA Tour Golf 08 - $17.99 - MEH

Other Sports:
Amped 3 - $14.99 - IFFY
Fight Night: Round 3 - $17.99 - IFFY
Rockstar Games Table Tennis - $9.99 - NOT IMO
Skate - $29.99 - YES

Racing:
Forza Motorsport 2 - $19.99 - YES
DiRT - $24.99 - NOT IMO
Project Gotham Racing 4 - $24.99 - YES
Moto GP 2007 - $14.99 - AGAIN MORE MP TITLE
Burnout: Paradise - $26.99 - NO IDEA

Action:
Gears of War - $29.99 - YES
Call of Duty 2 - $24.99 - NO
Ghost Recon: Advanced War Fighter 2 - $17.99 - HELL YES
Battlestations Midway - $19.99 - LOVE THIS GAME GOT NOT LOVE
Rainbow Six : Vegas 2 - $34.99 - HELL YES
Prey - $7.99 - BLEH

RPG:
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - $26.99 FOR THAT PRICE I WOULD GET FALLOUT 3
Mass Effect - $29.99 - BIG BIOWARE FAN AND MY IMPRESSION OF THIS GAME IS MEH!

Other:
LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga - $17.99 - YES LOTS OF FUN

I would suggest Marvel Ultimate Alliance and Dead Rising as must plays as well.

skinsfan · Post by **skinsfan** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 1:46 pm

Choops 2K8 can be had for 10 bucks pretty much anywhere.There are rosters for download on 2KShare for the upcoming season already.
Forza2 used for 12.99 or 19.99 for Platinum Hits version which includes all DLC released for the game.
APF2K8 can be had for 10 bucks or less,COD2 as well.COD3 for 13 bucks,also.
PGR3 is 8 bucks used-may be better value than 4.
Check CAG for scans of GS coupons and save even more.360 game prices drop like a stone quickly,save for a select few with online "legs".
Brothers in Arms for example has already dropped to 30 bucks.

Leebo33 · Post by **Leebo33** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 2:34 pm

Don, are those prices for new, unopened games? You could save a substantial amount off the prices listed by buying on ebay. I usually use Half.com and buy games that are "Like New" from sellers with perfect or near perfect ratings. The worst that's ever happened to me is I once bought a "like new" disk that was scratched pretty bad. Otherwise, I've purchased dozens of games without a problem.

WillHunting · Post by **WillHunting** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 2:55 pm

Some other suggestions:

Overlord ($20 or under) - good game where you play an evil dude controlling minions/dungeon romp.

Stunt Driver ($15 or under) - great little game where you are the driver and attempt to pull off stunts. Pretty nice physics engine.

Ace Combat 6 ($30 or under) - this one just had a price drop to $30, I picked up a used copy for under $25. Good game if you like arcadey flight shooters.

Gears of War 1 ($30 or under) - now that GoW2 is out, most people are dumping their copies and you should be able to find a used one for under $20. Still a great game.

Need For Speed Most Wanted, Carbon, Pro Street - all under $20, MW is a must play, I like PS more than Carbon but all pretty mindless driving.

Brando70 · Post by **Brando70** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 4:06 pm

To chime in:

I agree with Danimal on waiting for this year's football game prices to drop, or consider picking up Head Coach 09, which I believe has hit the bargain bin.

NBA 2k8 and College Hoops 2k8 are both excellent titles.

For baseball, definitely stick with MLB 2k7. I don't know if patches still work this long after games are released, but that game after it was patched was almost as good as The Show on the PS3.

I also really liked Project Gotham 4. Great graphics, and a nice selection of cars and tracks.

Non-sports games that rocked my world on the 360:
Bioshock -- creepy atmosphere, engaging story, and terrific art direction, with some nice twists on the FPS genre.

Mass Effect -- a terrific combination of FPS and RPG, with a deep and engaging story. The sidequests get redundant, but there's enough here to keep you entertained for 20-30 hours

Oblivion -- a great game hindered for me by having enemies level up with your character. I just couldn't get over that wolves were suddenly super powerful because I was a 10th level character. The world, though, is very large and engaging.

Call of Duty 4 -- the most intense shooter on the 360. Short but feels like it takes longer because you have no time to breathe!

Dead Rising -- Not sure if you're into survival horror/zombie games, but this is a terrific take on the Evil Dead/Dawn of the Dead style of horror movie. I never thought braining a zombie with a flat screen TV or running over one with a lawnmower could be so satisfying.

Gears of War -- Like CoD4, very short, but so good you won't care.

pk500 · Post by **pk500** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 4:08 pm

Don:

I second Brando's recommendation of Call of Duty 4. I played the PC version, and it was the most engrossing single-player experience of my life.

Intense and immersive.

Take care,
PK

Post by **ScoopBrady** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 4:19 pm

Don, if you don't care about it being new you should check out the Forza 2/Marvel Ultimate Alliance bundle. You can get it for $17.99 at Gamestop but I've seen it as cheap as $10 in used stores.

Oh, and to add a recommendation I'd like to suggest Crackdown. It's a sandbox game and very good.

JRod · Post by **JRod** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 4:22 pm

Skip all sports games except CH. NBA 2k8 is a good game however. Don't get FIFA 08 or PES 08. Wait until the price drops on FIFA 09. PES 08 is just a crap game.

Bioshock was a good game and probably the best storyline in a game ever. Sometimes I think Fallout 3 is a poor man's Bioshock.

Why don't you look in a gamefly account. It's like 34.99 a month for 4 games. You can play them as long as you like and you don't need to pay for a game. I did this with all new games. I would play them, then when DSP online nights died down I sent them back.

I liked DiRT. I think it had a great sense of speed.

DChaps · Post by **DChaps** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 4:50 pm

Thanks for all the great feedback!

The prices I listed were either the "used" price from Gamestop or the highest on ebay/half.com, so they should all be at the most that much, most likely cheaper. I was going for anything under $30.

One of the reasons I was looking at the older sports titles is since I have not played any sports title for over 3 years, and none on next gen, I figured that they would all seem "pretty good" to me. Was Madden 08 really that bad? I seriously avoided all threads and reviews on next gen sports games, guess I should do a better job of reviewing the old DSP threads. Sounds like I should definitely stay away from MLB2K8 as well.

Is OTP not in NHL 08 and FIFA 08?

Are any of you using the MS Wireless Wheel for racing, and if so, is it worth it? Thanks again!

seanmac31 · Post by **seanmac31** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 5:05 pm

In terms of best bang for your buck for next gen sports, I would recommend MLB 2K7, NBA 2K7 (the best b-ball game this generation, and dirt cheap), APF 2K8 or even NFL 2K5, and NHL 08.

JackB1 · Post by **JackB1** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 5:09 pm

pk500 wrote:Don:

I second Brando's recommendation of Call of Duty 4. I played the PC version, and it was the most engrossing single-player experience of my life.

Intense and immersive.

Take care,
PK

Get outta here!!!!!
This is for 360 owners!!!

JackB1 · Post by **JackB1** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 5:11 pm

Don, you can have my NBA2K8 for $10. Just pm me. I have some other good "budget" titles if you are interested.

Leebo33 · Post by **Leebo33** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 5:21 pm

DChaps wrote:Was Madden 08 really that bad?

Madden 08 was a turnover fest with an average of 1 or 2 "pick 6" per game. Out-of-box it wouldn't be too uncommon to fumble and then have the person returning it fumble again. IIRC, the turnover issue along with some other issues (lack of fatigue?) were so bad that a patch was promised *before* the release of the game. The patch, which was finally released in late November last year (I believe), addressed a few issues with the passing game and reduced fumbles a bit but not nearly enough IMO.

Brando70 · Post by **Brando70** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 5:37 pm

Leebo33 wrote:
DChaps wrote:Was Madden 08 really that bad?
Madden 08 was a turnover fest with an average of 1 or 2 "pick 6" per game. Out-of-box it wouldn't be too uncommon to fumble and then have the person returning it fumble again. IIRC, the turnover issue along with some other issues (lack of fatigue?) were so bad that a patch was promised *before* the release of the game. The patch, which was finally released in late November last year (I believe), addressed a few issues with the passing game and reduced fumbles a bit but not nearly enough IMO.

06, 07, and 08 were all pretty bad, with issues along the lines of what Leebo listed for 08. I like 09, but that's partly because it's the first Madden on the next generation that I don't think sucks outright. It does a lot of nice things but still has issues, most especially some really high CPU completion percentages.

I really like NFL Head Coach 09. It's very deep and immersive, although it shares some on-field quirks since it's built on the Madden engine. It's a GM/coach sim, so no joystick jockeying, but I found it a refreshing change of pace.

Rodster · Post by **Rodster** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 5:53 pm

The 2nd best and most inexpensive gaming right now besides the PC which PK said has got to be the PSP especially when you discover homebrew.

JRod · Post by **JRod** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 6:32 pm

Madden 08 was pretty bad. Madden 09 is better but nothing to talk about.

If you can find ESPN NFL 2k5, that plays on the 360.

DChaps · Post by **DChaps** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 6:45 pm

JRod wrote:Madden 08 was pretty bad. Madden 09 is better but nothing to talk about.

If you can find ESPN NFL 2k5, that plays on the 360.

Heh, I actually still have my original NFL 2K5. Loved that game. Actually, that was the last NFL game I bought for any console. I think I had one more NCAA and I did have a more recent Madden on PC.

ToriSpellingsOldNose · Mon Dec 01, 2008 6:10 pm

Thank you for the tip. I picked up CH 2K8 at my local Walmart brand new for $9.99. Not as polished as NBA 2K9, but very fun to play.