Pre-Holiday Setup (360)

[Qildail]

Hello, CAGs... (long time lurker, first time poster and all that)

After dabbling in the handheld world only for the sake of my kids, I'm finally (!) making the jump into console gaming this year. I matched a BF deal on a 360 holiday bundle with some credit card rewards and was able to snag a system and a handful of games for a good price (particularly AC3 which my wife is chomping at the thumbstick to play after seeing it in a store demo).

I've tried to read and research to make sure I have all my ducks in order with this thing before the holiday. I created an XBL account (but I haven't tagged the Gold codes or the console to it yet) as well as plenty of batteries for the wireless controllers, HDMI cable for the TV, carry the one, take the square root, etc.

My question is: What else could/should I get done, ahead of time, so we can be ready to "plug in and go" on the holiday or, alternatively, to avoid any "gotchas" that will prevent us from getting things up and running without another trip to a store?

Any counsel would be most appreciated.

 

[Qontrol]

You might want to start up any games you know your family will want to play. Sometimes you need to patch before playing the first time and sitting watching a game update can seem like an eternity.

Have fun and enjoy!

 

[stuntman21]

Well I'm assuming all those items are/going to be wrapped up until the chaotic ripping of papers right? If so then there's really nothing you need to do that you haven't already, but I would suggest using the batteries for something else and go buy a play and charge kit.

If by chance you already have the console open and are going to be using wifi, I would make sure you are able to have an open NAT type when you connect, or if you have to wait and get either moderate or strict then I would suggest calling xbox and having them help you with the setup. Although there are tons of tutorials out there it's hard to find one for a particular setup, and they have all the information you need plus if you're unable to set it up correctly they can remote in and do it for you.

 

[Qildail]

Thanks for the suggestions. I was able to get the console opened, connected, updated to the latest firmware, and everyone's XBL accounts recovered to it. We should be good to go on the 25th!