Microsoft’s Game Room is out. And while there have been some reports of it not working, it was up and running just fine for me, so hopefully that problem is solved. After mucking about for a bit I can tell you that the service is definitely…okay.

Getting started is a little clunky. In addition to downloading Game Room itself (which includes 15 games you can demo/buy) there are separate “game packs” to download. The two packs that are available now make up 15 additional games, but you don’t know what games are in the packs until you download them, which is a bit annoying. Adding to the annoyance is that when you first get into Game Room, you might not even find the games. Browsing through the Showcase Arcade is a bit of a bother, with some games appearing in multiple arcade “rooms” while others (such as Centipede) seem to be virtually hidden in the corner. The layout may be a bit random though, so you’re results may vary here. You can also browse through games in a sortable menu, but doesn’t that take away from part of the charm that Microsoft is trying to instill here?

The games themselves seem to play great, with near-perfect emulation all around as far as I can tell. The cabinets of the arcade games look stellar, and the faux-cabinets for the Intellivsion and 2600 games are cute. Upon selecting a game for the first time, you access a one-time demo where you can play for ten minutes at no charge. After that it’s 240MS points ($3) to buy or 40MS points (50 cents) for a single play. You can also buy the rights to play it on both your 360 and PC for 400 points ($5).

Buying a game lets you place it in your own arcade, which you can trick out with various themes and decorations. Unfortunately, you have to advance levels (which you do by playing the games) to unlock all the bonuses. Still, even with the default goodies I was able to trick out my Yar’s Revenge room with an awesome keytar and a skateboard. The 1985 me would be so jealous! Hell, the 2010 me is jealous! If you have a lot of friends on XBLA then tricking out your arcade to match your own personality will certainly be a fun feature.

Game Room is fun to goof around with right now, and the novelty/retro factor will certainly be appealing to older games. But its long-term success will entirely depend on the games they get to fill it. Microsoft has promised over 1,000 games within the next three years, so it looks like there will be something for everyone. If nothing else, my Dad will have something to occupy his time the next time he visits, thanks to my purchases of Yar’s Revenge, Centipede and Adventure.

Here’s the complete list of games available to play in Game Room, assuming you download both packs:

Arcade

  • Asteroids Deluxe Battlantis Centipede Crystal Castles Finalizer Gravitar Jungler Lunar Lander Red Baron Road Fighter Scramble Shao-Lin’s Road Super Cobra Tempest Tutankham

Atari 2600

  • Adventure Combat Millipede Outlaw RealSports Tennis Star Raiders Yar’s Revenge

Intellivsion

  • Armor Battle Astrosmash Football Mountain Madness Sea Battle Space Armada Space Hawk Sub Hunt

So, will you be entering the Game Room?  Which games are you interested in?