Microsoft has announced a new bundle for the Xbox 360 in India, just in time for the festive season. The bundle includes the Xbox 360 Core console, which only seems to still be available in India (doesn’t that make you feel special?), a 20GB hard drive, a wireless controller, and two games – Forza Motorsport 2 and Viva Pinata.
The bundle, which actually makes the Xbox 360 Pro console, still priced at Rs 27,750, pretty much irrelevant, is available for an attractive Rs 14,990. The bundled accessories and games are together worth Rs 12,885, and the wireless controller is in addition to the wired one that is a standard inclusion in the Core package.
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While the price is great and its wonderful news for those who have been waiting for the Xbox 360 price drop that never seemed to come, this could also be another attempt from Microsoft India to get rid of its old Xbox 360 Core stock. The consoles, which form the core of this bundle, were most probably manufactured in 2006 or even 2005, long before Microsoft owned up to and started fixing the infamous RROD hardware issue. Then again, you’re covered with three years of RROD warranty, which pretty much takes care of that.
I’ve always felt that the lack of a hard drive was the deal-breaker when it came to the Core console. With this bundle taking care of that, hopefully Microsoft can get more and more people to Jump In to current-gen gaming. Let’s just hope they do an equally good job of getting this news to the masses.
In other Xbox 360 news, I was just sent a press release debunking speculation of a slim Xbox 360 being announced in the near future. Personally, I didn’t want to touch the topic with a ten-foot pole without an official statement. But if the rumours had you excited, here’s some clarification from Microsoft India:
We would not like to comment on any market speculation or rumour. In India, we have the Xbox 360 core and the Xbox 360 Pro console currently available in the market. There are exciting new game titles like Gears of War 2, Fable 2 and FallOut 3 in the pipeline for the holiday season along with special promotions and festival offers.
And in case you’re still wondering, this bundle is the festival offer the press statement refers to.
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