Chat with Xbox 360

Both private chat and in-game voice communication require the Xbox 360™ Headset.

Private Chat

Xbox 360 private chat lets you send and accept invitations to chat right from the Xbox Dashboard, much as you'd send or accept a game invite.

Unlike general in-game voice communication, a chat is a closed conversation between you and one other person. Your partners in chat can be playing the same game you are, but they can also be playing a different game—or watching a DVD movie, or listening to music. Both of you could, in fact, be just be sitting around wondering what to do next.

The Xbox 360 console can accommodate up to four separate but simultaneous one-on-one chats across four chat channels, in addition to "public" in-game communication for an Xbox Live–enabled multiplayer game. Use the Private Chat screen to switch between chat participants,orPage (Y) someone you're chatting with to get them to switch back to you. (Paging works only after a chat is in progress.)

To initiate a private chat fromyour Xbox 360 console:

1. Make sure voice communication is allowed in:
   • Privacy Settings, under your gamer profile (Edit Gamer Profile, Privacy Settings, Communications).
   • Family Settings (applicable only if there is a child profile on your console), under Xbox Live Controls, Communications.
2. Plug in your Xbox 360 headset.
   
   
3. Press the Xbox Guide button and select Private Chat.
4. Select an available Chat Channel, select Enter Gamertag, and enter the gamertag of the person you'd like to chat with. Or select a gamertag from your friends list.

   Tip

   You can enter a gamertag using either a USB PC keyboard plugged into a controller port or your Xbox 360 controller and the on-screen virtual keyboard.

5. Select Send Invite. Your invitee will have five minutes in which to accept your invitation, after which the system assumes the other party is unavailable and cancels the invite. You can always send another invitation later!
   
   If you or another recipient declines a chat invitation, the cancellation is invisible to the sender. That is, the sender isn't told whether the invitation was declined or expired.

In-Game Voice Communication

Every Xbox Live–enabled game that supports multiplayer gaming also supports in-game voice communication. There's nothing to switch on or activate beyond setting up your Xbox 360 console and plugging in your headset.

This means you can taunt opponents, strategize with teammates, groan in despair, and exult with a war cry—all in real time! And if other players get obnoxious—whether with over-the-top trash talk or just heavy breathing—simply mute them and continue gaming.

To enable in-game voice communication on your Xbox 360 console:

1. Make sure voice communication is allowed in:
   • Family Settings (Xbox Live Controls; only applicable if there is a child profile on your console)
   • Privacy Settings (Edit Gamer Profile - Privacy Settings - Communications). (If you are a minor, talk this over with your parent or adult guardian.
2. Plug in your headset.
   
3. Fire up an Xbox Live–enabled game.
   
   For a list of all Xbox Live multiplayer-enabled games for Xbox 360, see our catalog of Xbox Live games. (Check the boxes for Xbox 360 and Xbox Live Multiplayer Enabled, then click Search.)