A Chicago man filed a proposed class-action lawsuit against Microsoft that alleges the Redmond, Wash.-based company's new Xbox 360 has a design flaw that causes it to overheat, then crash.

Robert Byers filed the suit in federal court on Friday, and seeks unspecified damages and court expenses, as well as the replacement or recall of the Xbox 360.

Complaints began circulating on gaming message boards soon after the Nov. 22 launch of the new game system, with buyers trading stories of intermittent crashes. Some diagnosed the problems as caused by overheating, and advised owners to, among other things, dangle the power supply with string so that air could circulate around it.

Microsoft has denied a systemic problem, but has said it would repair or replace defective units. The official support site lists 10 items in the Xbox 360 FAQ, but none relate to overheating issues.

Microsoft faced power supply problems with the 360's predecessor, the Xbox, in February, when it recalled the power cords of more than 14 million consoles because they posed a fire hazard. Prior to that, 30 Xbox-caused fires resulted in either minor injuries or property damage.

A lawsuit related to that defect was recently filed by a Texas couple, who claimed that their Xbox's faulty power supply started a fire that burned down their house in January, 2005.