On August 11^th, Microsoft released a brand new dashboard update. This dashboard update contained many new features for Netflix, added games on demand, and the Avatar Marketplace. Is the Avatar Marketplace worth it, or is it just a way for Microsoft to make more money?

With the Avatar Marketplace, users are now able to download new clothes for their avatar by using their own marketplace points. These clothes include outfits from games (Halo, BioShock, etc) and props too. But each item costs at least $1. I think that paying for clothes for a Virtual Character may be worthless but at the same time good.

If you are a gamer who purchases content on the Xbox Live Marketplace, you may have noticed that by now you can only buy 500, 1000, 2000, and 5000 points. Buying 1000 points for an item that is worth 800 points is like giving money away to Microsoft. With these left over 200 points there is rarely anything good to download. Sure you can download gamer pictures but mostly everyone now uses their avatar as their gamer picture so there is no point in that. You can also buy a theme, but they are all usually over 200 points. So what do you buy? You buy that Gears of War Hoodie on the Avatar Marketplace. The Avatar Marketplace is a good way to use up unused points quick and easy.

But here is where it becomes bad. With the Avatar Marketplace, Microsoft is charging 480 points just to buy full COG or Locust armor for your avatar. The same goes for Clone Trooper Armor which is 400 points without the clone trooper helmet. And you may still want the Lightsaber where it is another 400 points. If you wanted to be a full clone trooper with a light saber it would cost you 960 points. That is more than an average download content for any game on the marketplace.

I think that Microsoft is starting to get very greedy with their choices on prices on the marketplace. I know people are buying this but I do not see the point in spending $10-$20 worth of virtual clothing. I do see the Avatar Marketplace as being successful for the Xbox Live Community but it does need some price adjustments.

What Microsoft should and hopefully will be doing, is allowing users to buy any item on the marketplace for their price, or allow users to unlock it In-Game using the Avatar Award system. That way users have two different ways on getting a cool Lightsaber or RC-Warthog for their avatar.