Chicago man sues Microsoft over Xbox 360 issues

After several reports of overheating issues with the Xbox 360, one consumer has accused Microsoft of releasing the machine with systematic defects in the development and manufacturing process.

In a class action lawsuit filed against the Redmond giant at the Illinois federal court, Robert Buyers of Chicago is seeking undisclosed damages, court costs and a recall of the newly launched console. It is unclear at this stage how many other consumers have joined Byers in the action.

Reports of overheating issues in the power supply and central processor unit began to surface shortly after the console's US launch on November 22nd, and were quickly dismissed at the time by Microsoft. The company stated that the number of complaints related to a "very, very small fraction of the total shipment," adding that Microsoft had received "a few isolated reports of consoles not working as expected."

While the number of incidents relating to overheating and game freezing issues appears to be relatively small, the true cause remains somewhat of a mystery. Microsoft previously declined to comment on whether or not the PSU unit was at fault, telling our sister site Eurogamer: "Because Xbox 360 has three powerful processing cores, customers may notice that it runs a bit warmer than other game consoles, but this heat output is well within the acceptable and safe range for a CE device of this type and has passed all applicable safety certifications."

"There is no systemic issue with Xbox 360. Each incident is unique and these customer enquiries are being handled on a case-by-case basis," Microsoft representatives added.