HDMI stands for High Definition Multimedia Interface. HDMI cables have a trapezoid-shaped head, and can (usually) support HD signals up to and including 1080p. It also includes audio signal, so you don't need to run a seperate audio cable. If your Xbox 360 Pro has an HDMI port in the back (and it should), just buy an HDMI cable (don't get ripped off, get a cheap $10 one from Walmart, not those rip-off $100 ones from Radio Shack, they're the same thing, trust me), plug one end in your 360, the other in your TV, and voila! You're using your 360 with HDMI.

You can also get HD signal from the component cables that came with your 360. Frankly, if your TV doesn't support 1080p (which, and please correct me if I'm wrong, the component cables may not allow for certain TVs), HDMI is not a neccessity. Component will give you 720p picture quality just fine, so really the only reason to go HDMI is if you want better (meaning digital uncompressed) sound quality. Component uses standard Red/White analogue sound, so if sound matters to you...

EDIT: I should also mention that you need to set up your 360 (in the System blade) for HD output. Also, if you want to use the component cables, you need to flip the switch so that it's on the "High Definition" setting. The switch is on the end that plugs into the 360, you can't miss it, it's labeled in big letters.

I've never used and Intercooler and my 360 is fine, and like many people I've heard horror stories. I will say this, at my local GameStop I tried to purchase an intercooler. Both the clerk and the manager told me on no uncertain terms that I was making a big mistake. They said they had lost count of the number of times they saw people come in with busted 360's due to the Intercooler overheating and burning the socket. I don't know how reliable that is, but I'll just put that out there.

I just don't think it's really worth the risk. I mean, you've still got that 3 year warranty from Microsoft if something bad happens, and frankly I just don't trust intercoolers. I mean, really, if you're paying money, at LEAST the product shouldn't HURT your 360! I mean, if the Intercooler didn't help, OK that kind of sucks, but if there's even the slightest chance that it might actually do HARM, well ... I just think that's a bad deal. Pay money to brick your 360? What sort've a deal is that?

I don't really know if Ratched was underrated. I'd say it probably deserved it's score (and remember, 7.5 means "Good", not "Horrible"). I liked the game, it was a romp and a lot of fun, but I wouldn't say it really struck me as anything impressive. Put it this way: if I'd never played that game, I wouldn't feel too bad about it. That said, it's still pretty good, so I think it deserves a 7.5 score.

As for Lost Odyssey well, I have to say I'm an old-school JRPG player. Meaning I loved the older FF games, and liked them less and less as time wore on. The last Final Fantasy I at all enjoyed was Final Fantasy X. After that, not so much. And FF12 was really the last straw for me when they got rid of the turn-based combat system. But as I understand it, I'm in the minority here. Fine, I can deal with that. Still, from my perspective, Lost Odyssey was great. It hearkens back to the old days of Final Fantasy, which was exactly what I wanted, so it was a solid 9.0 in my book, even if no-one else happens to agree with me.

The whole LIVE Anywhere thing COULD be good, but only if it's done right. Sadly, so far it hasn't been. Shadowrun was an absolute joke, and that's not a very auspicious beginning. I don't know how this LIVE Anywhere is going to turn out, but I'll say that I've played online games before on both my 360 and my PC, and I've never had a problem with them being seperate. I, for one, am really not interested in hearing 10 year old Halo kiddies screaming at me, thanks very much.

Like I said, done right LIVE Anywhere could work. Like Halo 3 for the PC (we know it'll happen, both Halo 1 and 2 went to PC eventually). That could work, I guess, because Halo is that kind of game, plus it already has an established fanbase. But what Microsoft should definitely NOT do is release another Shadowrun, i.e. another awful multiplayer game designed specifically to showcase LIVE Anywhere, which is an OK service if bundled with a great game, but really starts to show its mediocrity when showcased by a game like Shadowrun.

There are some sad, deranged people on LIVE, we just gotta deal with it I guess. I'd only get worried if the guy sounded serious. Like if he just casually tossed out your IP and your address and your real name or something like that, THEN I'd get really scared. Because if some stranger could actually obtain personal information like that, then yeah, there's a real possibility that he really could come over and kill you.

But don't worry, that's incredibly unlikely. In fact, try asking for that next time someone threatens you like that. If he says, "I hacked you! Hahaha I'm gonna come over to your house and kill you and your family," just ask him, "really. So where do I live then? What's my real name?" I guarantee you, the guy won't know. And like I said, if he DOES know, call the police immediately (and lock your doors).

I don't take any threats seriously, at least not on LIVE. And besides, people who have the neccessary intelligence to hack a 360 are smart enough to know that murder isn't an easy crime to get away with. Not to mention smart people in general don't tend to make statements quite as stupid as those. And when they do, they don't mean it. People who say things like that and actually mean it, on the other hand, are not smart enough to know how to actually do it (thank God).

Gears of War 2: Because one overhyped game wasn't enough!

Gears of War 2: Whack-a-mole with Locusts! (and if you get ten in a row, we give you a fabulous prize of host advantage!)

Gears of War 2: Why Dom REALLY broke Marcus out of jail!

Just because the Wii can use the engine that FFXIII has, doesn't mean that it coming to the Wii.Wanderer5

That's very true, I don't deny it. But I was just wondering why SE would bother porting the engine if it wasn't going to use it. Porting an engine is not easy. It costs time, money, and resources, something a game company, or any company for that matter, can't afford to waste frivolously. If Square Enix is porting the FFXIII engine to the Wii, there's got to be a reason, and isn't the most reasonable possibility that they're going to port FFXIII? What other reason would there be?