 Good magazine, but get the demo discs., 2004-03-11
I subcribed to the magazinge, and it is filled with information that any Xbox gamer would want. It is worth it to get the game demo discs, they have some great games that you will want to play.
1 of 3 customers found the following review helpful:
 Lame Magazine without the Disc, 2004-02-25
I can't say I really like OXM or look forward to it's arrival every month. The writing is rather bland and boring, despite their attempts at humor. (Editor-in-Chief is Mike Salmon, former editor of the late great PCXL magazine, but his insanity has been tamed for this mass-marget publication.) I like reading trying to pick out the actual facts from the fluff in their previews - it's pretty thin! You'll find juicy info on Microsoft games and close allies like Ubisoft, but otherwise there's not much goodness here. The screenshots are usually so-so and low in number, and the copy is printed in such large size I feel like I'm reading a kid's book. The magazine is thin enough as it is. The demo disk is the main draw of the magazine, and since the Xbox still isn't as big as PS2, there are a few months when the demos are rather sparce. To be fair, though, sometimes the offical PS magazine has a lame demo disk, too. They make good use of the Xbox hard drive, though, with plenty of great downloads each month - maps, missions, uber-saves, cheats, etc. One major rip-off is that they don't give subscribers the plastic thinpack DVD covers, but instead a boring old cardboard cover. You have to pay $20 extra to get the plastic covers, driving the cost to almost $40! Don't get this mag without the demo disk. Check out XBox Nation instead.
20 of 28 customers found the following review helpful:
 What You Get is What You Get, 2004-02-10
The Xbox world continues to perplex me. While it is clearly the best game console from the viewpoint of its capabilities, only a small group of developers really push the envelope and produce truly memorable graphics. Several genre of games, such as RPGs, are rarities on this platform. Other genre, such as sports, are almost over represented. Part of this is due to the newness of the Xbox, which is only now entering into general acceptance. But most of the blame for this quirkiness is due to Microsoft's lack of a pervasive vision. Compare instead Sony's commitment to the PS2.In a way the Official Xbox Magazine is representative of this confusion. While the coverage is good, writing tends to be lackluster. The layout is just busy enough to be distracting. And it's a tad on the thin side. Yet this is just about the only production Xbox magazine except for those that cover multiple platforms. One would think that the publishers would take advantage of this position, but they do not. In direct contrast to this 'just enough' style of print publication, the accompanying DVD is the best I've seen. It has a few articles, downloads, saved games, trailers, and several playable demos on each DVD. This may sound trivial, but it is all so nicely packaged with a plastic case that was made for passing around or reuse. Unfortunately for magazine circulation, I can see a group of players getting together to buy the magazine and passing the DVD around. Hopefully, this is the intent. In any case, to get full value, you must by this with the demo disc. Anything else will be disappointing. Frankly, you don't have much choice. As I've said, the effort is acceptable, just not brilliant. If you want a journal dedicated to developments for Xbox then this is what you get. If you are interested in a better grade of articles (and no DVD) then there are several multi-platform publications that I think you will find more useful.
1 of 1 customers found the following review helpful:
No demo disc?, 2004-01-24
I wouldent reccomend buying this off Amazon because there is no demo disc. The deom disc is one of the best parts of the magazine and its not included here. There are new playable demos of the hottest new Xbox games on the disc, downloadable content and other cool stuff, yet you dont get it here. Anyway, the actual magazine info is good too. This is the offical source. The editors don't have really anything to do with Microsoft though. The features in this mag are the cover feature, reviews, previews,letters, Q&A, Xbox rumors, and maybe some other stuff too. The demo disc isnt the full part of the mag, and actual magazine is good. But you would want the demo. Who doesent want to play the games?
2 of 2 customers found the following review helpful:
Great Magazine, but get the Disc Version, 2003-10-24
Hey, this magazine is a must have if you own Xbox. I have read every magazine out there and this is hands down the best. Very well organized and it doesn't hurt to get inside tips from MS (being the "Official Xbox Magazine" and all). The magazine alone is worth the price, but the demo disc is why this is a MUST BUY. It is like getting 4-8 free rentals every month!! So BUY THE MAGAZINE WITH DEMO DISC!!
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![The Official Xbox Magazine [1-year]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/610pyUFQJwL._SL160_.jpg)