Just got XBox Live - What to play?

[LaoJim]

I've had my XBox for three years now, but because I've been living in China for that time there was no point paying for Xbox Live when it was very nearly impossible to get a game lag-free enough to be worth playing (a few free month-long trials confirmed this). I'm back in the UK for a year while I do my MA now, so I decided to sign up and see what I'm missing. I pulled out a few of my games last night and had a go (Soul Calibur V, Modern Warfare 3 and a few others), but I'm not really sure where to start, so I'm looking for some Escapists recommendations. Here's what I'm after...

I don't want to spend 30-40 pounds on a game as I'm back to being a student again and don't have the money for that. I'd like to avoid paying for on-line passes where possible or at least get new game or pre-owned + pass (if necessary) for less that 20 pounds. So something that's a bit older but has a community that has stuck around. I'm looking for something with a fairly relaxed and friendly community. I'd ideally recommendations for a racing game, a shooter (first or third person) and a fighting (i.e. Street Fightereque) game, plus anything else that people want to recommend that's a bit different.

I'm interested to know what you guys suggest...

 

[GoaThief]

The only choice for racing on XBL is Forza, SSFV:AE and Soul Calibur V are good choices for fighters and as for multiplayer FPS... I am not a big fan of them on consoles but I'd go with Halo as it's a good balance of competitive arena style meets console.

Don't forget XBLA though, Uno and Trials Evolution are great addictive multiplayer games. Just remember to keep your clothes on in the former.

 

[LaoJim]

The only choice for racing on XBL is Forza, SSFV:AE and Soul Calibur V are good choices for fighters and as for multiplayer FPS... I am not a big fan of them on consoles but I'd go with Halo as it's a good balance of competitive arena style meets console.

OK thanks for your suggestions. I already have Forza 4 so I'll hop on line with it tonight. I'm a bit worried about about the Arcade Edition of SF since there's supposedly some sort of Ultimate Edition coming out soon and I don't want to buy it, only to find everyone's migrated a few weeks later. Halo 4 is pretty cheap these days so I'll pick it up the next time I have a chance.

Just remember to keep your clothes on in the former.

What a bizarre thing to say...but if I check out Trials perhaps it will all makes sense.

 

[JustPhil]

You should be able to download Halo 3 for free before the end of the month, I'm not sure how active the multiplayer is but it's free stuff.
As for racing I'd recommend one of the F1 games, F1 2013 came out a week ago so F1 2012 should be reasonably priced if you find a pre-owned copy.

 

[GoaThief]

The only choice for racing on XBL is Forza, SSFV:AE and Soul Calibur V are good choices for fighters and as for multiplayer FPS... I am not a big fan of them on consoles but I'd go with Halo as it's a good balance of competitive arena style meets console.

OK thanks for your suggestions. I already have Forza 4 so I'll hop on line with it tonight. I'm a bit worried about about the Arcade Edition of SF since there's supposedly some sort of Ultimate Edition coming out soon and I don't want to buy it, only to find everyone's migrated a few weeks later. Halo 4 is pretty cheap these days so I'll pick it up the next time I have a chance.

Just remember to keep your clothes on in the former.

What a bizarre thing to say...but if I check out Trials perhaps it will all makes sense.

About that clothes thing;

Spoiler

Legendary XBL, "Why was I banned?" post.

 

[LaoJim]

You should be able to download Halo 3 for free before the end of the month, I'm not sure how active the multiplayer is but it's free stuff.
As for racing I'd recommend one of the F1 games, F1 2013 came out a week ago so F1 2012 should be reasonably priced if you find a pre-owned copy.

Ok thanks for that, I did have F1 2010 and to be honest I kind of suck at it. There's something about the speed and braking power of the F1 cars that I never get used to and I end up spinning off the track three or four times a lap.

About that clothes thing;

Classic. Think I might give Uno a miss if there's a risk of being exposed to male nudity.

 

[ShinyCharizard]

Battlefield Bad Company 2 and Gears of War 3 are the best first and third person shooters available on the Xbox 360 respectively. Both have a fairly small but dedicated playerbase.

Also both are quite cheap at this point in time.

 

[Battenberg]

I was going to suggest Gears of War but it looks like I've been beaten to it, playing Gears 3 on a friend's console is probably the only Xbox 360 game that made me even consider getting a 360 (as opposed to just sticking with my trusty PS3). Also the Gears storyline is pretty heavy on action and light on plot so you aren't really missing anything by jumping straight into the third game. Also (assuming you're not just after 360 exclusives) Battlefield 3 is suprisingly good, I'm not usually into realistic military fps games (i.e. CoD) but Battlefield 3 is actually great fun although it does take a while to get used to, especially learning to use vehicles. Also I haven't played it (only watched it) but people go nuts for Left 4 Dead (1 + 2) and it looks pretty good plus it's dirt cheap these days.

Sorry these are only shooter games but these are the only 360 games I have any experience with the multiplayer for and I expect suggestuions of Tekken and Gran Turismo aren't much help to you.

 

[SKBPinkie]

You know that topic that comes up on every forum every once in a while - the "which game would you choose to take with you on a desert island?"

Gears 3 horde mode comes to mind.