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I'll come right out and say it: when the new Xbox 360 dashboard was unveiled during Microsoft's press conference yesterday, I wasn't really feeling the drastic change in design.
Yes, it's much prettier, more user-friendly, and contains some sweet new community features and Netflix integration, but it's so radically different from the current dashboard which I've grown to love over the years.
That (and the silly avatars) was my biggest concern about the upcoming update, until I saw the walkthrough video above.
Anyone who currently owns an Xbox 360 should be happy to know that the brand new Xbox guide looks almost exactly like today's dash, so you shouldn't have any navigation problems come this fall.
Latest comment by Arttemis |view all 68 comments As long as I can disable the avatars (I hate them in every incarnation of console UIs), I'll be with this update.
The current Dashboard is a cluttered wreck.
Considering how we (which we s......
I also just thought, they're going to need to make a whole section for the marketplace which I do not see and I won't be buying themes or gamerpics from now on.
Christ, I haven't seen it but I guarantee someone's made a comment along those lines somewhere on GameFAQs.
Genuinely excited about the whole Primetime idea, that could be the crippling part of it though as I'm unsure whether they could make that work worldwide or even outside America.
Looking kinda Apple there Microsoft.
The dashboard looks a little too clean to me, which feels really weird to say.
Maybe when I play with it myself I will like it.
I really don't like the new avatars.
They seem to clash with the whole 360 look.
I can't imagine playing something like COD 4 and seeing smiling goofy avatars attached to everyones gamertag.
Felt right with the Wii, just feels weird with the 360.
change is good in this case. i hate the looking kinda apple bs. It's fucking shit. Why can't Microsoft make something that looks good? And how is it a knock at all that it looks good?
Who cares about the avatars...so you would rather have no avatars...i thought more was always better in american culture.
What MS should do is copy sony and let people crate thier own, completely new themes,or download different ones for free. Thats one of the things that makes this look worse than it should be. It must have cost a lot to develop the new dashboard.
It looks fine, better than the one now minus the fucking stupid avatars, but I wonder why MS have never allowed user created themes, it's a shame really. But I do look forward to using this on my best buddy's 360, he'll be happy he does'nt to piss around with blades anymore.
"Who cares about the avatars...so you would rather have no avatars...i thought more was always better in american culture."
What does that have to do with anything?
Anyway, I'm still a little skeptical. Theme compatibility is a big deal for a lot of people and MS hasn't said anything about themes yet, so I guess we'll have to wait and see. I am definitely not digging the avatars and the new friends system.
Looks a lot better in motion. I daresay I may even be coming around to it now. But, uh, what happens to all of us who bought custom dashboard themes? Fucked, much?
Minus the avatars, I like the new dashboard ok, but the guide button makes me feel all warm and familiar... like jerking off to an old porn that you haven't watched in years.
Looks good. It's nice that they are taking it further. However, the menu could use some sort of cool acronym to sell it... Xtreme Media Browser? hmmm no. Xenu Magic Bullet? Nah, forget it.
too much wasted space. i like the current one how things fit together to fill the screen. granted i hate the advertisements since i'm paying monthly for LIVE. i don't see gamerpics or wallpapers so i feel i wasted some of my moniez...
That's dissapointing, it seems atleast 80% of their design choices here are inspired by Apple. I was really hoping for something really innovative, but instead, it just looks all web 2.0.
Still, the prime time games seem like they'll be a good addition to the service.
What the fuck is everyone's problem? E3 has turned everyone into raving idiots. God forbid that you might not be able to use your 2 dollar theme with the new setup.
Also, everyone is constantly bitching about no new innovations or features on their consoles. Now when someone like MS actually tries something new, people get critical and make comments that are really just profanely stupid.
ZOMG!! FUCKING STUPID AVATARS! SHOVE THEM UP YOUR ASS!!! GO BACK TO YOUR WII WITH YOUR FAGGOT AVATARS! WTF AVATARS MAKE ME WANT TO HAVE MAN SEX!!!?? :| wut....? You really hate the avatars that much?
I'm sure you will get to use your themes somehow and I'm pretty sure you won't HAVE to make an avatar. Who the fuck cares either way? At least someone is doing something, because if they weren't trying anything new, the comments would be, "ZOMG WTF M$!!?? DO SOMETHING NEW FOR A CHANGE, HOME IS GOING TO OWN YOU!!! MAKE SOME PARTY SYSTEMS WITH AVATARS OR SOEMTHING!!!"
" God forbid that you might not be able to use your 2 dollar theme with the new setup. "
I don't know about you, but I don't like it when people stop me from using content I HAVE PAID FOR.
"You really hate the avatars that much?"
Again, I have PAID for gamerpics, they have literally taken my money for something they KNEW they would be discontinuing and I wouldn't be able to use. That sounds a lot like robbery to me.
"I'm sure you will get to use your themes somehow and I'm pretty sure you won't HAVE to make an avatar."
Really? I didn't know you were on the Xbox dev team. How is the good Major Nelson byu nthe way? If they were going to let you continue with the old dashboard they would have mentioned the option SOMEWHERE by now.
i pray that the guide is more responsive and snappy than it is currently. its nice that there are actually features in the guide now though... since it was basically only friends and messaging before (and was slow and clunky).
i also hope you can still view your friends as a list.
Really? The number of times that you've paid anywhere from 50 cents to a dollar on some gamer pictures packs and themes adds up to so much money that it will affect you for the rest of your life and ruin your gaming experience on the 360 from here on out? I am sorry that you have spent that much on gamer pictures.
My point is, in the grand scheme of things, a few bucks lost to some shitty pictures of games and movies that you use to represent your "individuality" or "coolness" is pretty insignificant when compared to what features you will be gaining by the updated dashboard.
Plus you should just chill out anyway, you don't know whether or not the themes or gamerpics can still be used. Whatever though, it honestly doesn't bother me considering what features we will be given.
Can I only use the guide? Ugh. Why MS why? You know what would get me to get another 360? those smaller CPUs and GPUs to help that RRoD problem. Enough of this Mii fashion and fun at the movies.
I think what would be better is if they allow users to choose this setup vs. the old dashboard. Kind of like how in Windows XP you could make your desktop look all Windows 95.
It's not that this doesn't look like it has potential, I just don't understand the need for it. I agree that the avatars seem a bit goofy looking for a system that really caters more to a "hardcore" crowd.
As a girl gamer, I think I worry that avatars will cause increased harassment. I've had people curse me out in CoD4 already (I'm not terribly good at FPSs but I enjoy them anyway) I don't want people leaving the game as soon as they see I'm a girl.
Again, it's not that I think these changes are bad or good. I just find them kind of unnecessary. If this is what it's going to be then I'll probably accept it with minimal complaint (once I use it and see how user-friendly it actually is).
Because really, as long as the system can still play my games I don't really care what the menu is like.
@nintendoll
I'd assume the opposite would be true considering most of the people on live are guys from like 14-35. Seeing the ever so rare female gamer on live might be refreshing. Although it might just be the girls don't use the mic. Who knows?
Also this looks cool and how Microsoft handles these new features will determine whether I get a 360 or PS3. Hopefully they let you use themes and such otherwise my friend will be sad all his Penny Arcade stuff is useless now.
I'm missing something here because I've never really read that much into Netflix or whatever it is before. I cant make it out; do we, as Xbox Live gold subscribers, get all the Netflix movies included or do we also have to pay for Netflix as well as Xbox Live gold to be able to watch them?
@MondaySan - If you get a Netflix account then you can stream movies from their Watch Now library which is actually pretty big. It's also awesome because they have full seasons of TV shows for Watch Now, so it will save you money in the end to just get a Netflix account probably.
Let's be honest about themes. They are pointless and silly. They exist to make a quick buck on the marketplace and appease kids who drink too much mountain dew. I bought a theme once and I switched it back to the default because it bugged me. The end.
About the gamerpics, I think I read somewhere that you can decide between the icon or the avatar. I'm sure they will give you options.
Seriously, at least this new design has less ad space.
"It looks like Apple." - Oh, so it looks clean and somewhat intuitive to use? Wow, didn't realize that sucked ass.
"Avatars are dumb." - So I guess you hated on Miis and Home then, too, huh? yeah, that's what I thought, prolly not.
I think it looks amazing. I can already tell it's more intuitive to use and will be a smoother experience for all. The new guide looking like the current dashboard is key, too. That's a great idea.
Also, I am officially subscribing to Netflix come this fall. This has decided for me.
"It looks like Apple." - Oh, so it looks clean and somewhat intuitive to use? Wow, didn't realize that sucked ass.
"Avatars are dumb." - So I guess you hated on Miis and Home then, too, huh? yeah, that's what I thought, prolly not.
I think it looks amazing. I can already tell it's more intuitive to use and will be a smoother experience for all. The new guide looking like the current dashboard is key, too. That's a great idea.
Also, I am officially subscribing to Netflix come this fall. This has decided for me.
I like it, i was growing tired of the blades anyway. I really like the Primetime idea. I have actually wanted some kinda system like this since the 360 came out.
I'm glad theme's are going away. I downloaded a few free ones and I've never found them to be anything but annoying or barely noticeable.
I like the new look. The only way the MeeToos will be any fun is if someone makes a first person shooter and you can use them in it. I'd love to be able to see which friends I'm playing with. Nintendo could have done that but they're too anal with their IP.
I think it's a nice change from the old dashboard. I like the new guide, and is that an open try function?! Even though there's a game already in it? Awesome! I'm not to keen on those Miis though. I wonder how the custom wallpaper will work now.
I like all of it and being a fan of Mii's i will definitly being using the avatars, I mean why not? It's justa bit of fun and more personal than a Halo helmet or picture of sonic.
I've always found the music player a little clunky in the current dashboard so i'd like to see that addressed also.
I think they should refund ALL of the themes, and give us customization a la PS3's dashboard.
LET ME RAEP UR INTARFAIC, PLZ!
The New Interface: Great functionality, but a little bland by design.
The Avatars: Cheap rip-offs of Miis, and not as cute as Miis.
New Xbox features: Awesome.
Mini-blade interface replacement for "Xbox Guide": FAILFAILFAIL
That thing is the opposite of pretty. They should just blur whatever you're playing, darken it, and put the new regular xbox interface in white on-screen.
This is hot shit and all but what about the blade backgrounds people downloaded along with Pics? Is that meaning official refund for all that stuff so we can buy avatar clothes and junk?
also, we all know it's a blantant rip off of Miis, but I give moneysoft credit for adding customization. Something Miis lack.
along with this, lets fix that Music player please? Can we get it as organized as the Zune player is? I want album covers and all that good info just like Itunes/Zune players.
I better see some a refund in themes or a choices of better theme options ala PS3. Seriously. I like adding pics of my own on the current blades, but I'd like to set a pic for each blade instead of the same ole pic. XMB or GTFO. Or at least add some color. It's rather bland.
am I the only one that thinks that MS's fascination with the "vista aero" page look is incredibly boring- at least it looks less confusing than the previous tabbed interface- and less boring than the wii channels, but I think i prefer the sony customizable xmb at this point
Im still 50-50 about the new dashboard. I kinda like the old one a little better though. So whats gonna happen to all the themes and gamer pics I have? Will they still work?
I agree with Nintendoll. Having the chance to choose which style of dashboard you want would be for the best. I can't see it being overly difficult to impliment (seeing as they're both already made...), and it would definitely help to keep everyone happy.
I can't believe this hasn't been brought up but its going to be a pain in the ass to scroll through a hundred games waiting for pictures to load just so you know which one you are looking at. Right now you can see how fast the dashboard loads pictures if you try and browse any category, so making those pictures bigger, possibly animated and necessary to find what you are looking for seems risky at best.
I thought the blades were a great idea i'll be sad to see them go but mostly i'm just concerned that this will be slow.
There's still all that wasted space at the top and bottom. And I don't like how it doesn't loop at the end back to the beginning. But mostly, it's whatever.
Jesus micro$oft, i actually respected you a little bit when you stayed the same and didnt follow with the Miis and Home, but i feel violated now. As was mentioned somewhere above, the avatars look way too happy and goofy, which is exactly why i didnt and will never buy a wii. I like serious gaming, not kiddy cartoony shit. Hate it, hopefully theres some option to stay as the "classic" theme so i can keep my sonic gamerpic. / END RANT
As long as I can disable the avatars (I hate them in every incarnation of console UIs), I'll be greatly pleased with this update.
The current Dashboard is a cluttered wreck.
Considering how we will be able to use our old themes and gamerpics (which we should since most fucking cost money) and they look pretty sleek, and how the new guide is supposed to load more quickly, I could *possibly* deal with having to look at avatars.
My tolerance of avatars is pretty iffy, though.
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personally I think the new dashboard looks awesome
As long as I can drop my avatar in an officially licensed sports jersey of my choice, I'll be happy.
I also just thought, they're going to need to make a whole section for the marketplace which I do not see and I won't be buying themes or gamerpics from now on.
So if I don't want to roll with that gay avatar can I use my Venture Bros. Pic I bought from the marketplace??
I want to know how my current dashboard wallpapers will work with the new dashboard. If they are unusable I'll shit brix.
I have to admit, I'm actually curious to play around with the new Dashboard now.
OMFG ITZ CASUAL!!!!1
Christ, I haven't seen it but I guarantee someone's made a comment along those lines somewhere on GameFAQs.
Genuinely excited about the whole Primetime idea, that could be the crippling part of it though as I'm unsure whether they could make that work worldwide or even outside America.
Still not digging it. Dashboard looks like iTunes coverflow and it still just feels really disjointed.
Looks like one of the XBMC skins. Still can't fathom why they didn't buy the XBMC team to make a super media player for the 360...
Aw. Nope. Still not a fan.
@Pew
Thats pretty much what I said in my blog... its like they just stole the XBMC idea, and added some apple tv to it.
As an Xbox 360 dashboard theme, I'm getting a kick out of these replies!
Looking kinda Apple there Microsoft.
The dashboard looks a little too clean to me, which feels really weird to say.
Maybe when I play with it myself I will like it.
I really don't like the new avatars.
They seem to clash with the whole 360 look.
I can't imagine playing something like COD 4 and seeing smiling goofy avatars attached to everyones gamertag.
Felt right with the Wii, just feels weird with the 360.
What happens to those themes I may have purchased?
change is good in this case. i hate the looking kinda apple bs. It's fucking shit. Why can't Microsoft make something that looks good? And how is it a knock at all that it looks good?
Who cares about the avatars...so you would rather have no avatars...i thought more was always better in american culture.
I still don't like it. I think it's ugly and the avatars are a dumb idea.
I like it but it looks unfinished... the media blade doesn't even have the select music option.
What MS should do is copy sony and let people crate thier own, completely new themes,or download different ones for free. Thats one of the things that makes this look worse than it should be. It must have cost a lot to develop the new dashboard.
It looks fine, better than the one now minus the fucking stupid avatars, but I wonder why MS have never allowed user created themes, it's a shame really. But I do look forward to using this on my best buddy's 360, he'll be happy he does'nt to piss around with blades anymore.
Know what would be funny? If some of the features people have actually been asking for got included. Ha. Shove those avatars up your ass MS.
I like it so far, I'm more excited about the Netflix stuff than anything though. Good stuff.
"Who cares about the avatars...so you would rather have no avatars...i thought more was always better in american culture."
What does that have to do with anything?
Anyway, I'm still a little skeptical. Theme compatibility is a big deal for a lot of people and MS hasn't said anything about themes yet, so I guess we'll have to wait and see. I am definitely not digging the avatars and the new friends system.
Overall, everything looks pretty...plain.
Looks a lot better in motion. I daresay I may even be coming around to it now. But, uh, what happens to all of us who bought custom dashboard themes? Fucked, much?
Minus the avatars, I like the new dashboard ok, but the guide button makes me feel all warm and familiar... like jerking off to an old porn that you haven't watched in years.
Looks good. It's nice that they are taking it further. However, the menu could use some sort of cool acronym to sell it... Xtreme Media Browser? hmmm no. Xenu Magic Bullet? Nah, forget it.
MUSTACHE!
too much wasted space. i like the current one how things fit together to fill the screen. granted i hate the advertisements since i'm paying monthly for LIVE. i don't see gamerpics or wallpapers so i feel i wasted some of my moniez...
That's dissapointing, it seems atleast 80% of their design choices here are inspired by Apple. I was really hoping for something really innovative, but instead, it just looks all web 2.0.
Still, the prime time games seem like they'll be a good addition to the service.
What the fuck is everyone's problem? E3 has turned everyone into raving idiots. God forbid that you might not be able to use your 2 dollar theme with the new setup.
Also, everyone is constantly bitching about no new innovations or features on their consoles. Now when someone like MS actually tries something new, people get critical and make comments that are really just profanely stupid.
ZOMG!! FUCKING STUPID AVATARS! SHOVE THEM UP YOUR ASS!!! GO BACK TO YOUR WII WITH YOUR FAGGOT AVATARS! WTF AVATARS MAKE ME WANT TO HAVE MAN SEX!!!?? :| wut....? You really hate the avatars that much?
I'm sure you will get to use your themes somehow and I'm pretty sure you won't HAVE to make an avatar. Who the fuck cares either way? At least someone is doing something, because if they weren't trying anything new, the comments would be, "ZOMG WTF M$!!?? DO SOMETHING NEW FOR A CHANGE, HOME IS GOING TO OWN YOU!!! MAKE SOME PARTY SYSTEMS WITH AVATARS OR SOEMTHING!!!"
" God forbid that you might not be able to use your 2 dollar theme with the new setup. "
I don't know about you, but I don't like it when people stop me from using content I HAVE PAID FOR.
"You really hate the avatars that much?"
Again, I have PAID for gamerpics, they have literally taken my money for something they KNEW they would be discontinuing and I wouldn't be able to use. That sounds a lot like robbery to me.
"I'm sure you will get to use your themes somehow and I'm pretty sure you won't HAVE to make an avatar."
Really? I didn't know you were on the Xbox dev team. How is the good Major Nelson byu nthe way? If they were going to let you continue with the old dashboard they would have mentioned the option SOMEWHERE by now.
i pray that the guide is more responsive and snappy than it is currently. its nice that there are actually features in the guide now though... since it was basically only friends and messaging before (and was slow and clunky).
i also hope you can still view your friends as a list.
Really? The number of times that you've paid anywhere from 50 cents to a dollar on some gamer pictures packs and themes adds up to so much money that it will affect you for the rest of your life and ruin your gaming experience on the 360 from here on out? I am sorry that you have spent that much on gamer pictures.
My point is, in the grand scheme of things, a few bucks lost to some shitty pictures of games and movies that you use to represent your "individuality" or "coolness" is pretty insignificant when compared to what features you will be gaining by the updated dashboard.
Plus you should just chill out anyway, you don't know whether or not the themes or gamerpics can still be used. Whatever though, it honestly doesn't bother me considering what features we will be given.
Can I only use the guide? Ugh. Why MS why? You know what would get me to get another 360? those smaller CPUs and GPUs to help that RRoD problem. Enough of this Mii fashion and fun at the movies.
I think what would be better is if they allow users to choose this setup vs. the old dashboard. Kind of like how in Windows XP you could make your desktop look all Windows 95.
It's not that this doesn't look like it has potential, I just don't understand the need for it. I agree that the avatars seem a bit goofy looking for a system that really caters more to a "hardcore" crowd.
As a girl gamer, I think I worry that avatars will cause increased harassment. I've had people curse me out in CoD4 already (I'm not terribly good at FPSs but I enjoy them anyway) I don't want people leaving the game as soon as they see I'm a girl.
Again, it's not that I think these changes are bad or good. I just find them kind of unnecessary. If this is what it's going to be then I'll probably accept it with minimal complaint (once I use it and see how user-friendly it actually is).
Because really, as long as the system can still play my games I don't really care what the menu is like.
This is miles better than the last. It fits the era we're in right now too. Looks like it's way easier to navigate through.
@nintendoll
I'd assume the opposite would be true considering most of the people on live are guys from like 14-35. Seeing the ever so rare female gamer on live might be refreshing. Although it might just be the girls don't use the mic. Who knows?
Also this looks cool and how Microsoft handles these new features will determine whether I get a 360 or PS3. Hopefully they let you use themes and such otherwise my friend will be sad all his Penny Arcade stuff is useless now.
I'm missing something here because I've never really read that much into Netflix or whatever it is before. I cant make it out; do we, as Xbox Live gold subscribers, get all the Netflix movies included or do we also have to pay for Netflix as well as Xbox Live gold to be able to watch them?
@MondaySan - If you get a Netflix account then you can stream movies from their Watch Now library which is actually pretty big. It's also awesome because they have full seasons of TV shows for Watch Now, so it will save you money in the end to just get a Netflix account probably.
I LOVE THE NEW GUIDE.
That is all.
Let's be honest about themes. They are pointless and silly. They exist to make a quick buck on the marketplace and appease kids who drink too much mountain dew. I bought a theme once and I switched it back to the default because it bugged me. The end.
About the gamerpics, I think I read somewhere that you can decide between the icon or the avatar. I'm sure they will give you options.
Seriously, at least this new design has less ad space.
"It looks like Apple." - Oh, so it looks clean and somewhat intuitive to use? Wow, didn't realize that sucked ass.
"Avatars are dumb." - So I guess you hated on Miis and Home then, too, huh? yeah, that's what I thought, prolly not.
I think it looks amazing. I can already tell it's more intuitive to use and will be a smoother experience for all. The new guide looking like the current dashboard is key, too. That's a great idea.
Also, I am officially subscribing to Netflix come this fall. This has decided for me.
"It looks like Apple." - Oh, so it looks clean and somewhat intuitive to use? Wow, didn't realize that sucked ass.
"Avatars are dumb." - So I guess you hated on Miis and Home then, too, huh? yeah, that's what I thought, prolly not.
I think it looks amazing. I can already tell it's more intuitive to use and will be a smoother experience for all. The new guide looking like the current dashboard is key, too. That's a great idea.
Also, I am officially subscribing to Netflix come this fall. This has decided for me.
I like it, i was growing tired of the blades anyway. I really like the Primetime idea. I have actually wanted some kinda system like this since the 360 came out.
Anyone who paid for wallpapers and user pictures on Live is a fool anyway.
Except for the Dtoid icon of course.
I'm glad theme's are going away. I downloaded a few free ones and I've never found them to be anything but annoying or barely noticeable.
I like the new look. The only way the MeeToos will be any fun is if someone makes a first person shooter and you can use them in it. I'd love to be able to see which friends I'm playing with. Nintendo could have done that but they're too anal with their IP.
I think it's a nice change from the old dashboard. I like the new guide, and is that an open try function?! Even though there's a game already in it? Awesome! I'm not to keen on those Miis though. I wonder how the custom wallpaper will work now.
I like all of it and being a fan of Mii's i will definitly being using the avatars, I mean why not? It's justa bit of fun and more personal than a Halo helmet or picture of sonic.
I've always found the music player a little clunky in the current dashboard so i'd like to see that addressed also.
You will all be lovin it when it arrives.
I still don't like this. The avatars are ridiculous, and the layout just doesn't seem as nice as the one we currently have.
Oh well, I guess.
I think they should refund ALL of the themes, and give us customization a la PS3's dashboard.
LET ME RAEP UR INTARFAIC, PLZ!
The New Interface: Great functionality, but a little bland by design.
The Avatars: Cheap rip-offs of Miis, and not as cute as Miis.
New Xbox features: Awesome.
Oh, another thing;
Mini-blade interface replacement for "Xbox Guide": FAILFAILFAIL
That thing is the opposite of pretty. They should just blur whatever you're playing, darken it, and put the new regular xbox interface in white on-screen.
This is hot shit and all but what about the blade backgrounds people downloaded along with Pics? Is that meaning official refund for all that stuff so we can buy avatar clothes and junk?
I so hope so. Or something down that line.
also, we all know it's a blantant rip off of Miis, but I give moneysoft credit for adding customization. Something Miis lack.
along with this, lets fix that Music player please? Can we get it as organized as the Zune player is? I want album covers and all that good info just like Itunes/Zune players.
I better see some a refund in themes or a choices of better theme options ala PS3. Seriously. I like adding pics of my own on the current blades, but I'd like to set a pic for each blade instead of the same ole pic. XMB or GTFO. Or at least add some color. It's rather bland.
Okay, you have me, a little...
I still hate the avatars.
am I the only one that thinks that MS's fascination with the "vista aero" page look is incredibly boring- at least it looks less confusing than the previous tabbed interface- and less boring than the wii channels, but I think i prefer the sony customizable xmb at this point
Im still 50-50 about the new dashboard. I kinda like the old one a little better though. So whats gonna happen to all the themes and gamer pics I have? Will they still work?
Still don't like it.
This shit netter be optional.
better
I agree with Nintendoll. Having the chance to choose which style of dashboard you want would be for the best. I can't see it being overly difficult to impliment (seeing as they're both already made...), and it would definitely help to keep everyone happy.
It looks cleaner, if not a little half-baked. Step in the right direction though.
I can't believe this hasn't been brought up but its going to be a pain in the ass to scroll through a hundred games waiting for pictures to load just so you know which one you are looking at. Right now you can see how fast the dashboard loads pictures if you try and browse any category, so making those pictures bigger, possibly animated and necessary to find what you are looking for seems risky at best.
I thought the blades were a great idea i'll be sad to see them go but mostly i'm just concerned that this will be slow.
There's still all that wasted space at the top and bottom. And I don't like how it doesn't loop at the end back to the beginning. But mostly, it's whatever.
I HATE the avatars greatly.
I HATE them when they're called the Miis.
I HATE them in that thing called HOME.
I HATE them not just on the Wii,
I HATE them on the 360,
I HATE them on the PS3.
I HATE them...HATE them...yes siree!
Jesus micro$oft, i actually respected you a little bit when you stayed the same and didnt follow with the Miis and Home, but i feel violated now. As was mentioned somewhere above, the avatars look way too happy and goofy, which is exactly why i didnt and will never buy a wii. I like serious gaming, not kiddy cartoony shit. Hate it, hopefully theres some option to stay as the "classic" theme so i can keep my sonic gamerpic. / END RANT
FUCK THIS SHIT. I say don't fix what isn't broken, damn casual market.
Please tell me I can look through the interface without having to see a gay little caricature.
As long as I can disable the avatars (I hate them in every incarnation of console UIs), I'll be greatly pleased with this update.
The current Dashboard is a cluttered wreck.
Considering how we will be able to use our old themes and gamerpics (which we should since most fucking cost money) and they look pretty sleek, and how the new guide is supposed to load more quickly, I could *possibly* deal with having to look at avatars.
My tolerance of avatars is pretty iffy, though.