My first experience of an actual Xbox 360 was a good one. I was annoyed at the demo software on the machine, but that’s not the Xbox 360’s fault. All in all I thought it was a great machine. And who are we kidding? $400 isn’t such an unreasonable price when you consider the history of console release prices, no matter what the current media is saying.

So it comes as somewhat of a surprise that the Xbox 360 is receiving a so-so rating from several media outlets. “Good, but not great,” says CNN. “Don’t buy the Xbox” writes The New York Post. Mostly they complain about the price. Personally, I think the Xbox Live price is the kicker, not the price of the console. And upgrading to HDTV? You should be doing that anyway.

They do have a point about must-have games for the system. There’s nothing jaw-dropping. Well, unless you’re a huge fan of one of the franchises. Personally, I’m a PGR2 fan, so I look forward to playing PGR3. Too bad it’s only two player.

So what do you think? Boom or bust? How’s the Xbox 360 now that it’s actually playable, and you can see the launch titles? Come Tuesday, you’ll be able to play it, too.

CNET – Early Xbox reviews: so-so