Microsoft’s Xbox is an impressive gaming system. It packs quite the punch in terms of hardware power, and provides players with an incredible amount of games to choose from. But simply owning the system and several games alone is not all that you need to get the most out of your Xbox 360. Here are a few useful tricks that we found for players to try out.
Your Game, Your Music
Now this is actually a documented feature: you can play MP3 files on your HDD through the console menu from within any game. Of course, you would have to check if your game allows you to turn off the music (usually found in a game’s sound/audio settings page). This is a pretty neat trick for games which do not rely so much on the in-game music to deliver a story (racing games, sports titles, etc). But do remember to use it with a little moderation, it would be odd playing Alan Wake to a Lady Gaga song.
It Also Plays the iPod
If you own an Apple iPod, you can hook it up to your Xbox 360 and play the track straight from the iPod itself. This may seem a little strange; after all, Apple is one of Microsoft’s biggest competitors (basically, they are industry rivals). But yes, the option is available on the Marketplace. Once loaded on your console, you will be able to browse your media easily. This will also allow you to charge the device while plugged in.
Create a Special Name
Is the alphabet too limited for your Gamercard? Then fear not. While Microsoft has not allowed the use of special Ascii characters, they did actually use support for eastern languages. Simply switch over your input settings and you can choose from a wide range of unique characters.
Remove Excess Data
Much like the PC, the Xbox 360 is prone to storing random stuff in its memory. Indeed, there will come a time when your system will start slowing down a bit. If you think your 360 is being encumbered by a load of unneeded files, you might want to try this out. Select your HD from the user interface and press Y. From there, press X, X, L Bumper, R Bumper, X, X. This will allow you to clear the memory as well as some of the game system data just be warned that you might need to re-download any important DLC content you lose in the process.
Go Blogging
Tired of telling your friends what you have been playing or not have been playing? Then get a blog that will instantly update them on your gaming habits. Of course, it would be such a hassle to manually create blog posts each day, so the best thing to do is to have your Xbox 360 console do it for you. Sign up for an account at 360 Voice, and you will have access to a special service run by the folks at Gamer DNA. 360 Voice will create an automated blog for you that is updated by your 360. It will list down the stuff that your Xbox publishes on your Gamercard and post it online for you to share. Of course, you should set your Gamercard info to “public” instead of “private” for this service to work.