20gb hard drive was 20 bucks. I've never come close to filling it up. You can get a second controller on amazon.com cheaper, along with a cheap HDMI cable. Live is a bit pricey, and there's nothing that can be done about it, I agree. Ethernet cables are cheap as dirt these days. And as for the messenger pad you can go to xbox.com and do your messages through that. My laptop is near my 360 and I just respond to messages via xbox.com and then I have access to a full keyboard, which is way nicer than a messenger pad.

I think you're 440 is overpriced. I'd say my 360 with HDMI cables, 20gb hard drive, and spare controller, along with a live account, cost me about 330$.

Video games are never a cheap hobby, especially if you're a PC gamer like I used to be. It'll cost you a pretty penny no matter what way you go, but you're exagerrating it.

Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 would be a good choice. Great single-player, co-op, and a strong, quality on-line community. It's my favorite shooter and definitely worth a look.

I will admit 50 dollars for LIVE does seem a bit steep considering other platforms have free online.

However, having an online storage program like that would make LIVE way more expensive.

They're both great games. I'd lean toward Orange Box simply because it has a lot more content. I'd say Assassin's Creed has a slightly better single player game than Orange Box, but the Orange Box has a lot to offer, and is quite a bit lengthier. It also has a fun multiplayer, something Assassin's Creed lacks altogether.

They're both great games, but I'd personally go Orange Box.

Mythic map pack was limited to Halo Wars limited edition game codes. They're now opening it up to the general public for consumption. They're not doing any kind of free multiplayer.

I could be wrong about the specifics, but it has nothing to do with free multiplayer, no.

Fable 2 is ok, not great. The main game is really short, and mediocre, but there's a lot of side stuff that can be entertaining. If you can find a used copy on the cheap it'd be worth picking up, but the game isn't worth more than 25$.

I decline.

I was actually surprised how vaguely close I got my avatar to looking like myself. For a cartoony avatar it looks pretty similar.

Though, I am no rebel and if I see anyone else with an avatar just like mine, then I take comfort in the numbers of not being alone.

It's a low score but in the end it doesn't matter. It's not like gamerscore gets you anything. It'll go up eventually, so don't worry about it.

How is that even a competition? CoD is going to floor MoH in a "what's better" poll.