Need some advice / help please.

PAC757

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OK so I'm probably one of the older people on all the Mobile Nations sites so I need some advice from some experienced gamers please. My wife was bugging me to buy a new game system which we haven't owned since the original Atari back in 1981-82 (its OK go ahead and laugh now :) we do own a Wii but it got boring fast. I was about to buy an Xbox One X or S until I realized that game systems are totally not what they use to be, playing games on the consoles with 2 or more controllers and playing with people in the same room has seem to become a thing of the past. After spending hours and hours online reading it appears that a used xbox 360 may actually be able to do what I'm looking for, just play games with the person sitting next to me not online. I really didn't realize there are hardly any systems or games that you can just pop in a disk and play. So my question is, am I correct on the 360 systems, are they capable of just playing with the people in the same room without looking for people online to play with? Thanks in advance for any help or insight you can give me.
 

greedo_greedy

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Welcome to the age of the 50gb modern blockbuster games.

When I acquired an Xbox One S console last year. That was my first statement, gone are the days when you simply just bought a game popped it in and started playing.

Nowadays before you can play you'll have to download an update first. Usually these games are 50gb on average.
You'll also have to consider the fact that the console themselves need an update.

Modern game consoles are more like computers now.

Yes, if you're looking for "simplicity" the Xbox 360 fits the bill.
 

DOGC_Kyle

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Local multiplayer depends on the game. There are many games that have it still, but usually not in every mode (there's often a mix of single-player, local co-op, and online multiplayer).

Any sort of open-world game will usually not have local multiplayer on either system. No system is nearly powerful enough for that.
Remember you're basically running the game twice on the same system - normally the system only needs to run a single copy of the game, so that's why you don't see it for a lot of games.

Here's a complete list of every Xbox One game that support local multiplayer: https://forums.windowscentral.com/e...yers%252C%252Clocalmultiplayer&token=1Xq0S7r-
I can't find a similar list for 360 games, you'll have to look up the games you're interested in.

Many games do have online co-op. For these games, you only need a single digital copy of the game (or two disc copies), but you need two Xbox systems and screens. This isn't really a solution if you want to be in the same room (unless you've got two TVs and/or computers), but it does let you play together from the same house. This usually does require internet, but does not require you to play with other people - it can be a private game.


As for which system - remember that the Xbox One can play a lot of Xbox 360 games - so unless you want 360 games and NEED offline (because you don't have internet to download games), I would say go with the One.
There aren't really any advantages that the 360 has over the One, and neither is really any simpler than the other.

The One does need to download all games onto local storage, they don't play off the disc (although it will copy files from the disc for non-360 games if you're offline), whereas the 360 can play games directly off the disc (but will still need to download updates if you play online).
 

PAC757

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Local multiplayer depends on the game. There are many games that have it still, but usually not in every mode (there's often a mix of single-player, local co-op, and online multiplayer).

Any sort of open-world game will usually not have local multiplayer on either system. No system is nearly powerful enough for that.
Remember you're basically running the game twice on the same system - normally the system only needs to run a single copy of the game, so that's why you don't see it for a lot of games.

Here's a complete list of every Xbox One game that support local multiplayer: https://forums.windowscentral.com/e...yers%252C%252Clocalmultiplayer&token=E-WeTWyM
I can't find a similar list for 360 games, you'll have to look up the games you're interested in.

Many games do have online co-op. For these games, you only need a single digital copy of the game (or two disc copies), but you need two Xbox systems and screens. This isn't really a solution if you want to be in the same room (unless you've got two TVs and/or computers), but it does let you play together from the same house. This usually does require internet, but does not require you to play with other people - it can be a private game.


As for which system - remember that the Xbox One can play a lot of Xbox 360 games - so unless you want 360 games and NEED offline (because you don't have internet to download games), I would say go with the One.
There aren't really any advantages that the 360 has over the One, and neither is really any simpler than the other.

The One does need to download all games onto local storage, they don't play off the disc (although it will copy files from the disc for non-360 games if you're offline), whereas the 360 can play games directly off the disc (but will still need to download updates if you play online).

Thank you for your information and time. That is the conclusion I came up with on the xbox one series, that you would most likely need 2 consoles on 2 separate monitors or TV sets, I guess Microsoft and Sony have figured out a way to maximize profits by going this route. It appears the PS4 is the same way, very few, if any local co op games. The whole concept seems strange to me, either your playing alone with people online, playing totally alone / solo, or need to be in separate rooms. Kind of takes the fun out of playing with people, seems kind of isolating. Maybe it's just what I was use to in the past, a group of people playing some games together hanging out.
 

tigerinexile

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That being said, if you want to play something like soccer or hockey locally against a friend, best bet is an Xbox One S and EA Access.

Forza 7 allows split screen local racing, too.
 

jeffchapik

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I haven't played the newest titles, but all of the Lego games I've played had split screen multiplayer (Star Wars, Jurassic Park, Indiana Jones, Batman). Don't be fooled into thinking these are simply games for young kids -- they are quite fun and humorous for adults too (I'm 53 -- I got Pong for my 13th birthday!).
 

DOGC_Kyle

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The link I included was for games that do have split-screen or shared-screen local multiplayer, so definitely check that list for games you can play together on a single screen.

The only ones that really require you to be on seperate screens are the open-world games like Forza Horizon (not motorsport, which has split-screen), Destiny, PUBG.

I also just came across this list of suggestions, maybe check it out too: https://www.reddit.com/r/xboxone/comments/7mmthg/games_to_play_with_my_wife_couch_coop/

One other thing I forgot to mention, you can play any game with multiple controllers. Its called copilot. All controller inputs will essentially be combined into one, so the game only "sees" one controller/player but multiple people could be holding it at the same time.
Not really optimal for all games, but could work if you want to share a single-player game, or split up controls (each one of you operating half the controls, something like that).
 

jeffchapik

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All of the various music/rhythm games like Guitar Hero, Rock Band, Karaoke Revolution are multiplayer on a single screen. Rocksmith is great as well, if you want to play real guitars.
 

Guest_aotf

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Thank you for your information and time. That is the conclusion I came up with on the xbox one series, that you would most likely need 2 consoles on 2 separate monitors or TV sets, I guess Microsoft and Sony have figured out a way to maximize profits by going this route. It appears the PS4 is the same way, very few, if any local co op games. The whole concept seems strange to me, either your playing alone with people online, playing totally alone / solo, or need to be in separate rooms. Kind of takes the fun out of playing with people, seems kind of isolating. Maybe it's just what I was use to in the past, a group of people playing some games together hanging out.

I think you got it right. I think MS are moving away from that split screen or local multiplayer mode. It was obvious when their latest Halo (a franchise that was known for it's local multiplayer) didn't have split screen. ofc a LOT of noise was made by gamers and even though some "fans" defended the decisions.. Even their latest game Sea of thieves which is supposed to be all about co-operative social play doesn't have it.

I think the idea is simple, they don't want friends to play at each other's houses. They want each player to have 1) their XB1, 2) their copy of the game, and 3) their own subscription to play online.
Think about it that's a whole lot more money they can make of gamers instead of just buying another controller...

I think Sony hasn't really changed it's policies has they focus mainly on single player games.
Having said that I think the PS4 has more co op/split screen/local multiplayers than the XB1.
Someone posted the list of local multiplayer games on XB1 but most of those are multiplats and available on PC/PS4...

Here is a list of games that are on PS4 but not on XB1:
Knack
Little big planet 3
Broforce
Alienation
Knack 2
Pix The Cat
Resogun
Tales of Zestiria
Super Stardust Ultra
Mercenary Kings
Mother Russia Bleeds
Nom Nom Galaxy
Helldivers
Beyond: Two Souls
Push Me Pull You
Risk of Rain
Amplitude
Magicka 2
MotoGP 14
Double dragon 4
Dead Nation
Samurai Warriors 4
Blazerush
Chambara
Jamestown +
Gauntlet
Tales of Berseria
Nidhogg
Knack 2
Trine
Trine 2
Trine 3
Fat Princess Adventures
Brawl
Gang Beasts
Zen Pinball 2
Gran turismo sport
Wild Guns: Reloaded
Salt And Sanctuary
Pixeljunk Shooter
Sportsfriends
One Piece: Pirate Warriors 3
Lego Harry Potter games
All MLB The Show games

Ok I might have missed few but that should give you an idea...
For me, if you have to choose between the XB1 and PS4, you'll probably be better off with a PS4.

ofc many of these are on PC. So if you have a PC, you could just buy a steam link and 2 controller of your choice. It works great in a home network. It would be a lot cheaper plus you wouldn't need to pay any subscription fee to play online.

Nintendo is really the one who are focussing on couch multiplayer. So you might consider their new console. The Switch is selling very well at the moment and you know with Nintendo you'll keep getting loacl multiplayer games.

Finally buying an old 360 or PS3? Why not if you can get really cheap ones. It's still risky buying used systems. Plus there is always the questions of when MS/Sony will stop supporting them... You won't get many new games... It could be a problem if you want to try the latest games...

Oh and a final thing. You should try to also look into good single player story driven games. You'll be surprised to see how even non gamers gets attached to the stories like Life is Strange, Beyond Two Souls or the last of us...
 

PAC757

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Thanks for all the information everyone. Have been looking around on ebay and the prices are all over the place anywhere from around $70 through $299. I do know I don't want a 360 model any older than an 360 S or Slim, I'm assuming the S and Slim are the same model. I have been buying and selling on ebay for 14 years and I can tell by the way these people make their ads that they are very inexperienced at using eBay, hard to find a really good 360 S that doesn't look beat and when you find one that looks good was not an early edition model and comes with everything it should the prices are up there, equal to or more than a brand new One S. The best deals seem to be on the last model 360, the 360 E. Don't know why because from what I read the internals of the 360 E are the same as the 360 S just a different looking case. Well I will continue my search on eBay. Was thinking of a Game Stop pre owned thinking you can actually see what your buying before you buy one but it looks like you buy it online and pick it up at the store. Only plus side I see buying at Game Stop is you can return it within 30 days if there's a problem with the system. But again I think they still charge a restock fee.
 

greedo_greedy

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Getting an Xbox 360 or Ps3 is not a bad idea.

While yeah they're old and will probably be phased out anytime soon.

They both feature a library of games worth over 10 years old which should keep you gaming for a very long time.
Especially if you do not care about playing the latest games.
 

Whodaboss

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OK so I'm probably one of the older people on all the Mobile Nations sites so I need some advice from some experienced gamers please. My wife was bugging me to buy a new game system which we haven't owned since the original Atari back in 1981-82 (its OK go ahead and laugh now :) we do own a Wii but it got boring fast. I was about to buy an Xbox One X or S until I realized that game systems are totally not what they use to be, playing games on the consoles with 2 or more controllers and playing with people in the same room has seem to become a thing of the past. After spending hours and hours online reading it appears that a used xbox 360 may actually be able to do what I'm looking for, just play games with the person sitting next to me not online. I really didn't realize there are hardly any systems or games that you can just pop in a disk and play. So my question is, am I correct on the 360 systems, are they capable of just playing with the people in the same room without looking for people online to play with? Thanks in advance for any help or insight you can give me.

I'm like you. I still own an Atari 5200 (original from the 80s), I own Turbo GFX system + the hand held. Gave away my original NES years ago with all the games. I still own my SEGA original unit. Also I still have 2 SEGA Nomads. Still own an original Xbox and an Xbox 360, to go along with 2 Xbox Ones. And still prefer my older games units. I love my cartridge games and the small cards for Turbo GFX. But what I miss most is the simplicity of the games. I get frustrated with today's games. I only want to play a game with 3 buttons 4 tops! Now you've got to be able to use 8 buttons. Argh, drives my crazy. I wish there was a way to configure my controller to only use 4 buttons tops to play games. Good luck on your quest.

When my son visits he always wanting to play an challenge me, but it's no longer fun because of those zillion controller buttons. He has no issues with them, but I'm just an older game player. I much prefer the older units. And like you, it's a pain to be able just to sit down an play a multi person game. That drives me crazy too.
 

Barcham

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I feel the same as you do. I'm also older than the average member here, I'm 60, and have little interest in the new consoles. To be honest, I miss my old Sega Genesis and playing head to head with my buddies on EA Sports NHL Hockey series or Madden Football or one of the various MLB titles. One of the things I miss the most is my old arcade style controllers I used to have with a short joystick on the left side and three fire buttons on the right. I guess my old hands just can't handle the small controllers used today with their multitude of buttons... 15 minutes and my thumbs are killing me.

I do have a 360 and about a dozen games or so but never really played any of them due to really hating the controller so I used it more as a media extender to play movies with than for any games. Unfortunately, the power supply seems to have more or less died and I can't be bothered to replace it.

If you really aren't a huge gamer, I'd go for a 360 or one of the new SNES or NES throwback consoles that have come out. You would probably enjoy those more than the newer consoles and save a ton of money to boot.
 
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OK so I'm probably one of the older people on all the Mobile Nations sites so I need some advice from some experienced gamers please. My wife was bugging me to buy a new game system which we haven't owned since the original Atari back in 1981-82 (its OK go ahead and laugh now :) we do own a Wii but it got boring fast. I was about to buy an Xbox One X or S until I realized that game systems are totally not what they use to be, playing games on the consoles with 2 or more controllers and playing with people in the same room has seem to become a thing of the past. After spending hours and hours online reading it appears that a used xbox 360 may actually be able to do what I'm looking for, just play games with the person sitting next to me not online. I really didn't realize there are hardly any systems or games that you can just pop in a disk and play. So my question is, am I correct on the 360 systems, are they capable of just playing with the people in the same room without looking for people online to play with? Thanks in advance for any help or insight you can give me.

XBox 360 suits me fine for these purposes. I bought it years ago and still serves the family fun, especially with Kinect.
 

estidi

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Console games are getting more sophisticated and, as a side effect, getting more complicated to setup. Of course there are some exceptions, but it's still the trend now.

Nowadays, if you want simple, go with mobile games. You can always play them on the big screen with airplay or similar display streaming solution. The games are also getting more advanced to the point where they can be similar in graphics and gameplay with console games 2-3 generations ago.
 

AndyCalling

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The simple days... I remember those. I remember each game loading from cassette tape and the constant fiddling with the head alignment screw to get it to load. The games took forever to load in to the computer, and they were so much harder to master than today's games as well. I mean, the only people who ever completed a game back then spent unholy amounts of time to do so and even then most never made it.

These days we just launch our library of games in an instant, and expect to complete a new one first run through. With videos if we get stuck. The simple days are happening now.
 

BritDad

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A used Xbox 360 would be a good choice, as it has a huge catalogue of games including many with local co-op play such as Lego or Rayman. Thanks to backwards compatability, you will be able to keep many games if you ever buy an xbox one. Regarding the disc drive, I recommend always taking the time to install the game from disc to the hard drive, as the noise from the disc drive can be quite distracting. Also take care to ensure the console has enough space around for proper ventilation, since the 360 generates more heat than the Xbox one. Try this website to find local 2 player games http://www.co-optimus.com/system/1/xbox-360.html However if you want to be able to play current games, then the Xbox one S is a great buy, with very reasonable prices these days.
 
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gold-stars

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Local co-op games are still around just not always front and center on Xbox.

If you want a classic gaming feeling stick to Nintendo consoles were local co-op is more common & is advertised on the Switch, Xbox is really just an extension of PC gaming, Playstation has also gone in this direction too.

Local co-op is possible with Xbox even if a game doesn't support it via Xbox Play Anywhere however MS has not been very good in getting this adopted, only a handful of games support it and of course you'd need a laptop with someone playing Xbox PC games.
 

mullen

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If you are looking for lots of games with local multiplayer, check Switch. I hope Xbox games could also have similar extend of local multiplayer support as Nintendo games (especially that with 4k which usually means 60"+ TV, it should feel great for many players play together, compared to that 6" Switch screen in table top mode), but apparently that's not high priority.
Btw, on Switch, you can just insert the game card and start playing (actually you can't install the physical game at all, and you can just ignore any updates / dlc if you just want to play immediately); Switch is not an always online system as well (as in Handheld mode it's possible that there's no WiFi).
 

Richard Toft

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There is a lot of choice the xbox 360 has a huge back catalogue of games and a good reputation, the xbox on s wi better if you want to be able to watch blue ray dvd's and other media (also ms is porting a lot of 360 games to xbox one) both are able to give you online and off line, for the price xbox one s is probably a better choice here, the Nintendo switch seems to be last gen tablet hardware and you lose the blue ray / media, sorry for the price I cant recommend this to you. I've not idea on play station but they are very popular (not sure why).
 

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