Star Wars fans – especially those of a certain vintage – will have been grinning like a Cheshire cat when they saw these pictures coming out of Comic-Con 2011, and the June 1, 2012 release date for the Star Wars Xbox 360 console.

In my opinion, this looks like the coolest limited edition console ever conceived, period. And especially for gamers who are nostalgic about the golden age of Star Wars in the late 70′s and early 80′s, this is a dream come true.

The console itself is modelled on the bumbling, but heroic droids R2D2 and CP3O, who gave so much comedy to the original Star Wars movie trilogy.

The spirit of those happy-go-lucky robots lives on in the impressive design “livery” of this limited edition console. The blue and white panelling of R2 is instantly recognisable. And when you press the power-on button or eject the disc tray, the emotive, robotic chirps of the little droid are emitted. Insider reports say that the disc tray may even contain a secret message from a certain princess. If I know my die-hard Star Wars fans, that one might just seal the deal!

Not to be left out, CP3O is emodied by the shiny, dazzling gold of the bundled, wireless controller. Don’t expect your controller to speak 6 million interstellar languages just yet – that’s for a future update! However the base of the contoller has been made to look like the loose wires of a hapless droid, after getting into one of those scrapes with the Empire – very nice touch.

The overall droidy feel of the bundle is completed by the stormtrooper-white, Kinect motion-sensing device, which allows you to play the role of a  Jedi in the comfort of your front room.

If I had my way, the bundle would include one of those brown, hooded Jedi robes. Ah well, you can’t have everything!

Another good reason to pre-order this limited edition is the whopping, 320GB hard drive – the largest hard drive available to date. The small hard drive on my current Xbox is a pet peev of mine, cause you have to delete old games or demos to make room for new stuff. It would be cool to have 320GB to play with. I could even install games on it, instead of listening to that dreadful noise of a disc being read. In fact, I would buy this console just for the big hard drive.

The bundle also includes a headset for talking over Xbox Live, and a special token for downloading extra, exclusive Star Wars content. The exact details of this content haven’t been revealed yet, but I imagine it will be extra games or levels for Star Wars Kinect.

The eagerly-anticipated Star Wars Kinect game will be included in the bundle, when released. The game promises lots of fun for the holiday season – use the Force, become a champion pod racer, pilot classic ships from the movies and more. Search Google or Youtube for videos of the Star Wars Kinect game, to whet your appetite.

Now I can’t remember how much young Luke paid to get possession of his trusty metal sidekicks, but It can’t have been more than the $449.99 asking price for this shiny new piece of kit. The price has gone to the Dark Side, I can hear Obi-Wan saying…

But not so fast – $449.99 is no more expensive than buying a standard 250GB Kinect bundle and a copy of the Kinect Star Wars game. Plus you get an extra 70GB to play with. So, all things considered, the Star Wars Xbox 360 console is not a bad deal at all. It’s certainly top of my Christmas list! Hint, hint…

Microsoft say this is a limited edition bundle, so if you don’t want to miss out, I would head on over to Amazon.com and their “Pre-order Price Guarantee”, plus “FREE Super Saver Shipping”. It’s the perfect Xmas gift for Star Wars fans. Amazon will even gift-wrap it for you.