*UPDATE* New Xbox Experience: 30 percent less load times with hard drive installs, medal implementation for achievements
GameSpot has some new information for all of you folks wondering about the upcoming fall update. According to Microsoft, the use of hard drive installation should improve load times by 30 percent. Learn more about this after the jump.
GameSpot has some worthwhile information for all of you folks looking at the incoming fall update. According to Microsoft, the use of hard drive installation should improve load times by 30 percent.
That tidbit of information showed up near the end of a GameSpot primer on the new Xbox Experience. Here’s the quote direct from GameSpot:
One of the not-so-cosmetic changes in the fall update will be the ability to let you play your games directly from the hard disk. The new feature will let users install all of the game content directly onto the hard drive to improve game load times. Microsoft reports that it has seen a 30 percent improvement in load times in internal testing…. Another side benefit of having games installed on the hard disk is reduced noise, since the optical disc no longer needs to spin up. However, you will still need to have the game disc in your optical drive while you’re playing it, presumably as a piracy check.
As a bit of added information, Microsoft also appeared to go out of its way to tell reportes that the full Devil May Cry 4 hard disk install was 10 minutes. Comparatively speaking, GameSpot reports that the installation took twice as long when GameSpot did its own installation tests on the PS3.
All in all, the upcoming fall update looks like something very worthwhile for Xbox users, both in terms of a new presentation and in terms of overall functionality. Keep checking QJ for more updates on the new Xbox Live Experience as it becomes available.
UPDATE:
Also available on the GameSpot primer on the upcoming Xbox Live Experience is some information on the implementation of a medal system to Xbox Live. Here’s the description GameSpot gives regarding medals:
The MyXbox section will give you a central location to edit personal items. From here you’ll be able to add pictures, edit your profile, and view your achievements. Microsoft will also institute a new medal system so you can show off your most recent achievements. Medals are basically graphical representations of achievements, kind of like graphical badges or trophies.
It’s not exactly a big addition to the user interface experience, but it should be a welcome addition to achievement fans out there.
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