Premium Xbox 360 Pack Pre-Orders Soar

It seems that early adopters aren't keen on buying a system that doesn't measure up to the hype Microsoft has created. Who would have guessed?

The best news to come out of Microsoft's announcement last week of the Xbox 360 launch details was the pricing of the two packages for the UK. Anxious Britons eager to get into the next generation have responded in kind, sending the console rocketing up Amazon.co.uk's sales ranking.

The £279 premium bundle, which contains a more-polished version of the console, a hard drive, a wireless controller, a headset, an Ethernet cable and a high-definition cable is currently the second best selling item on the popular online site, just behind Sony's PSP.

Contrastingly, the £209 core system, which crucially lacks the hard drive and replaces the wireless controller with a wired one, is currently the 55th best selling item at the store.

This is not unexpected. Early adopters of new consoles are generally more ardent gamers, meaning that they're more likely to spring for the more expensive bundle.

The premium bundle also represents good value for buyers, launching as it does at £279, which is £20 less than what the Xbox launched for in early 2002. (Microsoft famously dropped the price of the Xbox to £199 soon after launch after sluggish sales of its debut hardware.)

Microsoft has yet to announce a launch date for Xbox 360, but it's generally believed to be arriving in Europe sometime towards the end of November.

Alex Wollenschlaeger
Editor, Kikizo Games