Xbox Live has seen tremendous activity recently. 'Games on Demand' popped through yesterday, folks can now pay for these games via Paypal and there was of course the Summer of Arcade release – Trials HD.

'Games on Demand'

There was the much hyped about addition called 'Games on Demand'. This basically meant you could now download popular games where were previously available in disc format. I must admit, there was a certain allure to downloading the full BioShock for the console. Other titles that were bundled in this section of downloadable content included The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion and Assassin's Creed.

Am I excited about this new development? Far from it. For one thing, there weren't that many interesting titles offered in this initial launch. The ones I listed above are the only ones I would bother checking out. And while I can understand the need to reach out to a wider audience, I really cannot comprehend the logic for including these others. For instance, there was “Meet the Robinsons” and “Viva Pinata”. Seriously?

Another annoying aspect of 'Games on Demand' was their hefty prices. A lot of these games were marked at $30! I don't know about you but I am sure folks like Amazon must have laughed gleefully and then flailed their arms towards the online sales pages. After all, BioShock and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion are available for around $20 or less on these sites. In fact, I ignored the heart-attack inducing prices on Xbox Live and opted for an online package that bundled these two games for just under $30. Does MS seriously expect people to pay Xbox Live's inflated prices?

By the way, judging from discussions on various forums, a lot of people are disillusioned with these prices. It is strange to see that the guys behind Xbox are not learning some important lessons from Valve. They are an excellent example of a successful online business model for downloadable content. Prices are affordable and you can find classics that tickle your fancy as well as interesting new games.

For now, I am calling this one an epic fail.

Paypal is here

It is a bit of an anti-climax to talk about Paypal after that little chat about 'Games on Demand'. After all, it doesn't look like I am buying anything from Games on Demand anytime soon. Apparently, users can now pay for these games using their Paypal accounts. By the way, you can only access your Paypal account via the official site.

It all sounds good and well. For those of you who are eager to dish out 30+ dollars/Euros for the games will probably welcome this change. No sorry, scratch that. It seems like the service is only available to US customers for now. That will upset a number of European gamers.

Trials HD

Trails HD is the most recent release for XBLA. It is a rather popular racing game that has won a number of fans. Well, you get to race around on a motorcycle and try your skills on different tracks. Some of the perks of the game include up to 50 different tracks and obstacle courses as well as the ability to unlock different vehicles.

I am not a racing fan myself but I suppose this game will appeal to hardcore gamers who throng to this genre. The game was developed by RedLynx and published by Microsoft. It is available for 1200 MS points.