I know a lot of people are frustrated with not being able to get in last night. But honestly, wouldn't it make sense for them to put a cap on the first show so that it didn't crash the server completely? Not to pour salt in any wounds, but I was able to get in with some friends no problem (but I did also have friends not able to get in).
They had 50,000 people playing last night. If they would have allowed 100,000 in, only for it to crash and burn, and waste everybody's time, it would have been a disaster. Obviously, let's all hope that the service improves, but for the people who did get to play last night, it was a great time.
This is the kind of thing that could sell a system for Microsoft (and like Matt Young mentioned to me last night, it actually creates another good use for the Scene-It buzzers). Yeah, their motion capture camera looks great (if it will even be able to do half of what they claim it can), but MMO gameshows would destroy Nintendo's hold on the casual gaming market. Yeah, soccer mom's and girlfriends love playing Wii bowling, but if they could play their favorite reality/gameshows from the comfort of their own living room...with a live host...AND win real prizes, IT'S OVER!
Seeing it in action was really impressive. Everything ran smooth, and even when a person who was just chosen to be "the one" disconnected, the game didn't miss a beat, and acted as though the person had lost, and selected the next contestant. By the end of the night, everybody was so caught up in answering the questions the fastest, like 80% missed a really easy one, haha.
The question was "At what temperature does water freeze?" With the answers being revealed one at a time, the first thing you saw was 32*...C. Almost everyone had already buzzed in by the time they noticed it said Celsius. It eliminated at least 70% of the mob, the one, and most of the crowd. I'm sure most people got a good laugh out of it, and it ended up being the last question of the night. Overall, I'd say the launch was a huge success.