Being included among the 12 million Xbox Live members and counting, I can attest to the frustrations that come with Xbox Live every so often. With that said, let’s jump right into a few areas where Microsoft should focus their time on improving. Here are eight steps to help elevate Xbox Live to a place that Sony or Nintendo will find it hard to reach.
1. Clan Blade:
First off, let’s begin with what a lot of fans of the first-person shooter genre have been begging for: A clan blade. The simple introduction of a clan blade that allows players to have a message board, a friend list, stats and updates on recent activity (matches played) would be simple enough to appease those who are dying for the clan blade. Gamers want to have clan battles through their favorite titles and this makes the navigation that much easier for them.
2. Internet Browser:
This is another ‘gimme’ as Sony and Nintendo already offer the ability for their gamers to search the internet via a browser. Granted, neither browser works well enough to my satisfaction, but with Microsoft already have a browser in their back pocket – the infamous Internet Explorer – what better to incorporate another Microsoft service into Xbox Live (Windows Live Messenger being an example).
Already having seen the arguments against the addition of a browser (too slow, no one wants to search the web on their television, etc.), it’s easy to see why people wouldn’t want one. But we must stop there and realize that there are a small percentage of Xbox Live members who may want to view their favorite social networking site and Microsoft should cater to that group even if it is niche.
3. Channels:
If Microsoft doesn’t want to take their time in developing a way for Internet Explorer to work with Xbox Live on the 360, then maybe Microsoft should invest in the luxury of offering corporations that ability to have their own channel on the Xbox Live service. What are the benefits of channels as such? Well first off, Microsoft could gain money for licensing out the ‘channel space’ to companies such as: ESPN for their sports coverage, the Weather Channel for their up-to-date weather advisories, and others. Microsoft already has a news channel in the books with MSNBC, so its inclusion could be relatively easy.
4. Xbox Live Anywhere:
Next up is Microsoft’s fabled Xbox Live Anywhere initiative. Having sat in a meeting at E3 2006 regarding Microsoft’s plans for Xbox Live Anywhere, I was quite eager to see how the platform would work out. But now, two years later, Microsoft still hasn’t released or revealed too much more on this huge project and I am left scratching my head when it’ll go into full effect.
Surely, Microsoft can see that with Nintendo’s introduction of the balance board that developers like to have new technology (or peripherals for that matter) to incorporate into their video games. With Xbox Live Anywhere, Microsoft has a goldmine they could potentially dig. But at this current time, they aren’t sharing the details on the status of Xbox Live Anywhere. While there are gamers already experiencing the connectivity between Windows PCs and the Xbox 360, Microsoft still has the to bring Windows Mobile into the fold. Outside of that, the Zune needs to be taken full advantage of and that leads to the next step Microsoft should take.
