We often get carried away when covering the launch of new consoles.  It’s an exciting time, as gamers line city streets, flooding the local Best Buy or EB Games parking lot in the cold, dark, morning air.  I was one of those brave souls, desperately holding my arms to my chest in order to keep what little body heat I possessed.  It felt like hours before those Future Shop employees opened the sliding front doors, their amusement with our masochistic torture an annoyance only raw gaming excitement could overcome.

Finally, like the gates of Troy gracefully spreading to greet a giant wooden horse, those sliding doors crept apart.  A host of nerds and I (if I can possibly separate myself from their geekdom) poured into the store, streaming into aisles looking for our systems and the games that will keep us from any unforced social contact for the next six to eight weeks.

That was the morning of my Xbox 360 purchase, nearly a year ago.  It wasn’t a smooth transaction for most gamers.  Many never even got their consoles, despite the fact that some clung to preorder papers like a bum grasps a bottle of cherry whiskey in the cold night air. 

For others, the frustration came shortly after.  In the weeks and months following the release, gamers began to complain of the “Red Circle of Death”, a malady that strikes at the heart of the 360.  The dreaded Circle, like a demon peering into a gamer’s soul, indicates a fried Xbox.  It isn’t good.

Last night my Xbox 360 contracted this disease.  A friend tried to boot up some NHL 07, and was given only a few locked loading screens.  Eventually the system seized up completely, and the Red Circle, like the four horsemen of the apocalypse, appeared in my living room in a flash of brilliant and terrifying crimson light.

There is hope.  Microsoft recently announced that it would be replacing all launch systems for no charge.  So, that’s comforting.  In addition, I purchased the extended warranty from Future Shop, meaning they’ll also take care of the problem, if need be.

Still, the whole situation is a serious pain in the bum.  The “Red Circle of Death” is entirely familiar to even the casual Xbox 360 gamer, and the problem indeed infected Gizmo Guy Wayde’s own Microsoft console.  Worse yet, this is the second early-departed console from the Redmond-based company that I’ve personally owned.  My original Xbox system, also a launch edition, lost a battle with “Godknowswhat” six months after it was bought.

The lesson for many gamers is that launch systems are about as safe a buy as stock in the producer of hamburger earmuffs.  It doesn’t make much business sense, and I’m beginning to realize that waiting (although it's the hardest part) is a smart decision.

If only someone had told me on that bitterly cold November morning that this would be the reward for my determination.  I’d have slept in.

For the conclusion to this story, click here.