Ninety-nine dollar gadgets that require tons of cables usually don't deliver, at least not without a lot of pain. They all promise something, something sweet, but like a vampire they suck away at your life, stealing countless hours as you try, usually in vain, to make them work. Roxio's Game Capture is different. It promises to help you get a job done - get video from your Xbox 360 to your PC for capture - and it does it simply and efficiently. If you can live with the limitations of the box, accept that it does what it says and not much more, it is a cost effective, efficient device.
Here's how it works
Roxio Game Capture sits between your Xbox 360 (where the video you want to record will be generated) and your pc (where the capture will take place). The connection to the Xbox is via component cables, provided. Video passes through the device and to your tv which also must connect via component cables. A third cable, USB this time, sends the output (audio and video) to your computer for recording.
So here is the first significant limitation. You must hook up the TV and the Xbox using component cables. You may not use HDMI. This is because, no doubt, Roxio is exploiting the "analogue hole", siphoning off the output from the Xbox and bypassing the built-in DRM designed to impede would be video pirates that comes built-in to HDMI.
If you're using component cables now this won't cause you any problems. If you're currently hooked up via HDMI you've got a problem, because this is an all-or-nothing affair. You can't have both hooked up simultaneously.
When you open up the software on your pc you'll see the video output of the Xbox 360 in a smallish window on your screen. Component hardware limits capture to 480P, which for most game capture purposes is probably just fine.
Speaking of limitations, the software is PC only. Also, you're going to want two gig free for the install, plus lots more for capture. A fast processor certainly won't hurt.
The included software gives you editing options (and the ability to dub in a voice-over soundtrack. Roxio has pretty much built their recent history on products that make video editing accessible to non-pros, so as expected the software makes capture and editing very easy. Video can be output in AVI, WMV, and Divx. Of course you can always export to other formats from there using third party solutions.
The folks at Roxio tell me that millions of videos are uploaded of game captured footage. Some are for walk-thrus, demos, and even animated movies. I can't help but think, however, that one of the main (albeit illicit) purposes Roxio's Game Capture might be put to is downloading movies from services like Netflix. Because the box uses the analog hole, recording a movie is no more difficult than starting the film and pressing record. The low-level resolution might not be great for viewing a film on your 65" TV, but on an iPhone or other portable device it might just be perfect.
Whether your goals are licit or less white-hat, the Roxio Game Capture is that rare gadget that does exactly what it promises, and perhaps a little bit more.
