Why We Like the XBOX ONE in Our Home!

Growing up, I loved playing games, including both board games and video games. We had Nintendo (of which I loved to play Super Mario Bros and Duck Hunt), as well as the Game Boy (Paperboy was a favorite)! Recently, we bought our family an XBOX One and by next year, I anticipate we’ll have another system, which almost seems necessary for a family of 8 and lots of games to review and share about. You can find the XBOX One system at a variety of places, but some of the places we found the best deals were at Costco (yep! they sell it there along with games), Best Buy (you get discounts on video games and such with a gamer membership, plus they’ll match any lower price you find other than personal sellers at Amazon and ebay), Gamestop (you also get discounts with a gamer membership), and Amazon (love their prices and free shipping).

The first XBOX ONE we bought was a 500GB, but we have added hard drives to give them more storage for games.  However, they also have the XBOX ONE with 1TB available at a variety of stores. Not only have we added hard drives for storage, but we’ve also upgraded to include headsets that include microphones, as they like to talk to their friends when playing with them online. These are about $60.00 each, so take good care of them. We purchased our headsets at Best Buy and got a great deal on them!

In addition to headsets, we also have game rockers – chairs the kids can sit in while playing video games that rock back and forth. I like these because they are budget-friendly, comfortable and can stack on top of one another – making for easy clean-up when we have company come over. We purchased the game rockers at Walmart for $29.00 with FREE shipping to Walmart.

For the Racing Sim, Frank ordered a variety of parts from Best Buy, GameStop, Omynex Ecommerce, Logitech, Radioshack and Amazon. When you sit it, it literally feels like you’re sitting in a race car seat. Included in the Racing Sim is a steering wheel, gear shifter, brake and gas pedals, and drink holder. Plus, the race car seat vibrates, just like it would if you in a real race car. We found the Racing Steering Wheel Stand on Amazon, the Driving Force Shifter from Logitech, Rear Seat Frame for Simulator Stand on Amazon, the Driving Force Race Wheel from Best Buy, and Logitech Driving Force Shifter from Best Buy.

With 6 kids, we decided to purchase multiple remote controllers. Not only do we have 4 remote controllers, but we also have remote control charging stations. This is way better than constantly replacing the batteries when they die in the remotes. You can also use rechargeable batteries, but I prefer the charging stations.

XBOX ONE Games We Love

Our family loves that we can play a variety of games on the XBOX One. You can either buy the discs that come with the cases or buy digital versions through Microsoft. Charges will show up on your credit card or bank statement as Microsoft Purchase Confirmation from billing@microsoft.com.

XBOX Lego Dimensions Starter Pack (retails for $89.99) – LEGO characters from a mix of some of the best brands in the universe join forces and battle in worlds outside of their own. A Dark Knight, a Wizard, and a LEGO Master Builder traveling together down the Yellow Brick Road is just the beginning. By purchasing additional expansion packs, players can grow their collection with a variety of their favorite brands to create even more crazy combinations.

Bring up to seven , vehicles and/or gadgets into the game all at once by dropping them on the LEGO Toy Pad for the most exciting and action-filled game around. Players can let imagination guide their solo journey or have a friend join the adventure with co-operative, drop-in/drop-out play. LEGO Dimensions is a system of play that offers continued compatibility – everything bought today or expanded with tomorrow will continue to work.

You can add in a variety of team packs, which our kids love! Not only do they get put together the LEGO packs, but then they get to play them in the video game. You can find these for a great deal on Amazon.com or at Best Buy (again price matching rocks) or Toys”R”Us. The ones we have include the DC Comics Team Pack, Scooby Doo Team Pack, Dr. Who Level Pack, Ninjago Team Pack, Ghostbusters Team Pack, Back to the Future Level Pack, Jurassic World Team Pack, Ghostbusters Slimer Fun Pack, DC Superman Fun Pack,

There are a lot of different games we can play on our XBOX One – both digitally and on disc.  Here are a few we enjoy playing in our home:

Forza Motorsport 6 – we all love playing this game, which includes picking the kind of car you want to race and then racing around racetracks and different setups. It’s even more fun with the Racing Sim my husband put together. He rocked it!

Oxenfree – Oxenfree is a supernatural thriller about a group of friends who unwittingly open a ghostly rift. Play as Alex, a bright, rebellious teenager who brings her new stepbrother Jonas to an overnight party on an old military island. The night takes a terrifying turn when you unwittingly open a ghostly gate spawned from the island’s cryptic past. How you deal with these events, your peers, and the ominous creatures you’ve unleashed is up to you. YOU determine every aspect of Alex’s story while exploring Edwards Island, uncovering the base’s dark past, and changing the course of your friends’ lives. The older kids like playing Oxenfree more than the younger kids. This game is rated T.

Zuma’s Revenge – Experience new levels of ball-blasting action!Leap in and conquer 69 levels of Adventure mode. Discover four new Spirit Animals (at least one of them is a monkey!) and harness their abilities to power up your game. Dive in to the high-stakes Iron Frog mode: 10 levels, one frog. Can you make it out alive? Battle all 8 tiki bosses in the fast-paced Boss Rush. Enter the Weekly Challenge and compete for high score on a new level every week. I love this game, but find it tiresome holding the remote sometimes. It is very easy to play this for a long time as you try to get to the next level. This game is rated E.

Dirt Showdown – This is another race car game that everyone in the family enjoys playing. Again, you can really get the overall effect of this game if you play it in the racing sim. This game is rated E.

Dirt Rally – DiRT Rally is the most authentic and thrilling rally game ever made, road-tested over 80 million miles by the DiRT community. It perfectly captures that white knuckle feeling of racing on the edge as you hurtle along dangerous roads at breakneck speed, knowing that one crash could irreparably harm your stage time. Every stage tests you differently, as you race on the edge of control across snow, ice, tarmac and dirt and tackle a variety of weather types. As the car suffers attrition and stages string together, your dedicated rally team tries to keep you competitive and each rally becomes a marathon-like test of concentration and skill. DiRT Rally also includes officially licensed World Rallycross content, allowing you to experience the breathless, high-speed thrills of some of the world’s fastest off-road cars as you trade paint with other drivers at some of the series’ best-loved circuits, in both single player and high-intensity multiplayer races. This is another racing game that we all enjoy playing. Again, it’s a completely different experience in the Racing Sim, but also fun using the remote control. This game is rated E.

Assetto Corsa – Burn rubber on legendary motorsport circuits behind the wheel of some of the world’s most exclusive cars in this next-generation racing simulator. This is another racing game that is a lot of fun to play in the racing sim. This game is rated E.

Goat Simulator – Goat Simulator is the latest in goat simulation technology, bringing next-gen goat simulation to YOU. You no longer have to fantasize about being a goat, your dreams have finally come true! Gameplay-wise, Goat Simulator is all about causing as much destruction as you possibly can as a goat. It has been compared to an old-school skating game, except instead of being a skater, you’re a goat, and instead of doing tricks, you wreck stuff. Destroy things with style, such as doing a backflip while headbutting a bucket through a window, and you’ll earn even more points! When it comes to goats, not even the sky is the limit, as you can probably just bug through it and crash the game. This game wasn’t necessarily one of our kids’ favorites, but when they play, they laugh a lot! This game is rated T.

Fruit Ninja for Kinect – The blades are drawn. The Dojo is silent. The juicer is plugged in. Join an all-new cast of awesome Fruit Ninja characters in the sequel to one of the biggest Kinect games of all time! FNK2 features all the content of the original hit game, plus five brand new modes to experience – all taking advantage of the next-gen precision of the Xbox One. The whole family can explore the Blueberry Moon festival, taking part in colorful challenges from the new Fruit Ninja team – Katsuro, Mari, Han and Nobu. Each character hosts a unique game at the festival, where players can dodge speedy shurikens, hack through a forest of bamboo and become a stealth master – all while slicing fruit! Online leaderboards track the greatest players among your friends, and classic characters Sensei, Gutsu and Truffles will grant you awesome new upgrades as you continue your journey at the festival. The brand new multiplayer modes allow four players to jump in on the action with exclusive Battle and Party game types, featuring unique mini-games for intense competition! This is the most satisfying and accessible party game ever created for all ages, shapes and sizes! The Fruit Ninja phenomenon continues into the next generation, and the Dojo is ready. You are the ninja! This game is like playing Fruit Ninja on your phone, but you use your body motions to slice the fruit. It’s a lot of fun and a good workout too! This game is rated E.

Kung Fu for Kinect – Punching air has never felt this good! Step inside the game and turn yourself into a kung-fu hero! Use your own moves to punch and kick your way through comic-book villains, leap through the air, conjure lightning and shoot flaming arrows! This game is suitable for all ages, shapes and sizes, and may result in getting seriously fit. Kung-Fu for Kinect allows you to star in your own comic book, and features super-powered moves based on your motions. The game includes a story mode with 22 levels, 9 replayable challenges for daily fun and a special mode for staging your own finishing moves. This is another one of those games that had our kids laughing out loud when they played it together. This game is rated E.

Astroneer Game – This game is a work in progress. It may or may not change over time or release as a final product. Purchase only if you are comfortable with the current state of the unfinished game. Explore and reshape distant worlds! Astroneer is set during a 25th century gold rush where players must explore the frontiers of outer space, risking their lives and resources in harsh environments for the chance of striking it rich. On this adventure, a player’s most useful tool is their ability to shape their world, altering the terrain and extracting valuable resources from planets, and moons. Resources can be traded or crafted into new tools, vehicles, and modules to create everything from massive industrial bases to mobile rover bases. (1) Reshape and shape terrain as though it were made of Play-Doh. (2) Explore procedurally generated planets that can be entirely deformed and traversed. (3) Build a spaceship and travel to new planets and moons. (4) Snap together components and objects to create custom vehicles and modules. (5) 4 player online drop-in/drop-out co-op. Our kids played this game, but it didn’t last very long in terms of them wanting to play it all the time. The game is rated E.

Subnautica – This game is a work in progress. It may or may not change over time or release as a final product. Purchase only if you are comfortable with the current state of the unfinished game. Descend into the depths of an alien underwater world filled with resources, creatures, wonder and threats. Craft equipment and submarines to explore lush coral reefs, volcanoes, cave systems, and more – all while trying to survive.

Create the Ultimate Gaming Experience

Playing video games is fun, but it can get better! In our home, we purchased

The XBOX One is More Than Playing Games!

Not only do we enjoy playing games on our XBOX One, but we can also use it to stream television shows and movies. We use it in the place of a Roku and stream Hulu, Netflix, Amazon Video and more on our XBOX One. We’ve also enjoyed renting and purchasing movies through the store. Movies we purchased this year include Hotel Transylvania 2, Wolverine, Superstore: Season 1, Empire Records, The Other Side of the Door, National Lampoon’s Vacation – 4 pack, Jingle All the Way, and Santa Clause.

I definitely recommend the XBOX One for families and love that it has games for everyone! Keep in mind that there is an Annual Membership Fee of $59.99, but I think it’s worth it for the number of things you can play and watch on the XBOX One.

Do you own an XBOX One? What do you like about it?

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