Slashdot Mirror
Inside the Games Machines of the Future
UtahSaint writes "Electronic design, the guys who nicely opened up the
iPod a couple of weeks back take a look into the future of gaming - covering everything from the PC to the Gizmondo to
the upcoming Xbox 2 and Playstation 3 next-generation units. If you want to get more of an understanding as to where we're heading, this is
not a bad place to
start."
I'm more interested in wondering when the new XBox and Playstations will run linux or hacked proggies. */me hugs his xbmc*
It's funny how many people I know don't even think about using XBoxes for actual gaming.
They will...very soon.
Convergence my friend, convergence.
Did anyone get a bingo oof of this one?
My sigs offend the max # of people all over the world, regardless of race, religion, color, sex or creed. It's a gift.
do we get total immersion? I want the total holodeck in my embedded (in my spine) iGamePod, just tap a spot on my chin and I'm deep in the game, who cares if everyone on the bus sees me twitching and drooling as I blow away those monsters...
Ahem. That's why it says "Remember Pong". The word 'remember' means that you've heard of it before. If it expected to be telling people about this cool game a long time ago called Pong it would have said "A long time ago there was this cool game called pong, the first and simplest of video games, which opened up the door to a fascinating new frontier in gaming".
The article doesn't mention a damn thing about the next generation consoles...
Yeah, but they still got you to read the article and post a comment. Mission accomplished.
Help me take back Slashdot. When did 'News for Nerds' become 'FUD and Conspiracy Theories for Extremist Nutjobs'?
So much for the "history," anyway. Going ALLLLL the way back to 1996 with the N64? Wow, talk about oldschool. :rolleyes
Can this be true? This five year old machine has that kind of processing power?
Insert witty sig here.
What would really be neat is if there was a way to let a console and PC communicate via high speed interface.
So for instance you could run your console game within a window on your PC (or full screen). Or take advantage of the PC's network interface or mouse/keyboard.
Not exactly the most factually correct article:
In a flip-flop of sorts, Microsoft recruited ATI Technologies to come up with the graphics processor for its next-generation X-Box. (ATI supplied the graphics for the PS2, while Nvidia provided the graphics for the original X-Box.)
Wait..Didnt you just say ATI supplied the chip for Gamecube?
It also mentions that the ps2 does antialiasing on the gpu. Now I may be mistaken- sure it *CAN* but no one actually does this for performance reasons. Its much more efficient to use a VMU or other hardware tricks to perform something like anti-aliasing on the PS2.
Take this article for what it is- mindless fluff about nothing in particular except the present and future of videogaming - *yawn*
Wake me when the PS3 arrives.
---Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A START
and that is with the current system specifications!
The PS2 lost the Firewire port in an update. The PS2 'mini' has an ethernet port. The XBox still has a hard drive. The XBox processor doesn't give it 6.4GB/s, that is the chipset by having a dual-channel DDR controller.
Dedicated game peripherals, available for either game consoles or PCs from QMotions, replace keyboards and game controllers and let players use real sports equipment for actual full-motion player participation. The Batter-up game combines sensors to replace the keyboard/joystick activation of the swing along with adjustable sleeves packed with additional sensors that can easily accommodate standard wood, metal, or plastic bats. Foot-controlled buttons enable the batter to control head-first or feet-first slides.
Anyone else think it's a bad idea to have this kind of stuff lying around next to your XBox?
Supposidly; PS3 Specs -Cellular Processors - powerPC -8 APUs - Vectorial Processors each with 128K memory -System will run at 4GHZ or 256Gflops -1024 Bit switched front side bus -64MB of switching memory Obviously not pc standard, but pritty darn good!
What's really needed now is a one-hand glove for interacting inside the physics engine. With physics only slightly better than HL2, the mouse-only interface becomes pretty cumbersome. The big revolutions in the near future should be in physics engines, and we're gonna need better interaction.
xkcd.com - a webcomic of mathematics, love, and language.
you will see things that look like this.
I'll turn into a supernova and burn up everything. Well I'll turn into a black little hole and you'll turn into string.
The flying hamster of DOOM rains coconuts on your pitiful city.
I'm sorry but I stopped reading the article there.
And I stopped reading your post here : ) And someone else stopped reading my post here.
Stop trolling! The site focusses allot on devices and I think they are right to. I think the future of gaming may well be wireless handhelds but for the moment I think that's still off in the distance. I think if they did a piece on the future of the home computer in the next 5 years it would have been more interesting. I'm hoping for architectures to be more diverse as we move away from i386 and dual core Intel/AMD to the Cell architecture and others.
The article doesn't mention a damn thing about the next generation consoles...
Yeah, the summary is misleading. The article does a (somewhat) good job of covering how we got to where we are but offers little insight on where we're going. Actually TFA implies (more than once) that a gaming PC is nowadays equivalent to a game console... On paper it may be, but in practice there is no comparison!
Anyway... Nothing to see here, move along... These aren't the news you're looking for.
gcc: no input sig
Also, the DS supports pseudo surround sound as showcased by Mario DS. Before that, a company called Q-sound made it possible to have pseudo surround via the same phase shifting techniques. And there is no guarantee that ANY of the things mentioned get used somewhere down the line (The machines themselves being subject to constant changes in architecture).
Will wank off Linus Torvalds for fame.
The article was nice and all, but it basically summed up everything most gamers already know, those people who have been out of the loop, the article is a good read. As for the future of games and the people that play them...one word...'generic' The average player who been playing games since Idsoftware release of Commander Keen find just about every game that been released in the past 5 years very generic, its always the same formula, if the storyline is different, the plot is the same. Fable for the xbox was suppose to change that, it was said to be the game where you pick either 'good or bad' unfortunately whichever you pick in the game you still get the end result and the ending, nor the game is different from whatever path you choose. Then we had Doom 3 that was released in 2004 by idsoftware, sure it was 'spooky' and 'creepy' some say, I mean the average review in a pc magazine or online boards said its probably the scariest game ever released. The average gamer however found that eyecandy doesn't make the game, and cute little monsters jumping from walls isn't enough to excite a old time gamer. So whats the future of gaming if you ask me? There is no future, eventually we will hit the pinicale where either a game changes its true environment and play style everytime you play or eventually games will die out.
Because the author wanted you to focus on THIS aspect of Pong, instead of the whole "you played it for hours and hours and then got in a fist fight with your best friend 'cos he said you were cheating even though it's fucking pong and how in hell could you cheat at pong?!" (etc, etc, etc)
Like Custer's Revenge?
Slashdot: News for Nerds, Stuff that matters only to them
The article is pure speculation. They have no way of knowing exactly what the future will bring. Will the XBOX have a cell processor, or will it have a standard one? They don't know, neiether do I, but judging from the past, it will probably have a standard one; they chose PIII last time. While I own a XBOX now, my next system will probably be Playstation 3 because Microsoft is too draconian with their hardware, especially with XBOX Live and mod chips. I love XBMC, and I need that chip to run it. I'm aware that you can turn the chip off, but if you forget to turn it off, the XBOX gets banned.
So, in essense, it boils down to the fact that having more hardware capability will not guarantee better games. It will probably guarantee better looking games, but the rest is up to creativity and execution and a good balance between revenue plans and creative risk.
"There are a dozen opinions on a matter until you know the truth. Then there is only one." - CS Lewis (paraprhase)
you're not too attached to your wallet.
Of course not. More processing power=more demanding fans=higher cost of development.
No publisher will now take a risk on innovative games, unless they're self-funded (like Lionhead Studios) or made in developing countries(the Codemasters approach).
Slashdot: News for Nerds, Stuff that matters only to them
if you don't know the tricks, the ball-spin does seem like cheating. i had to teach my friends this damn fact many, many times, and still do every time i have to break the ol' pong out.
.. the building next door, or the neighbors garden, or the street outside, heh heh ... nothing quite like meters-high pong on a saturday night.
...
yes, i've got one of those old pong machines, battery-powered alas, and it still 'rocks' to play, if you've got an LCD projector and put the whole game-field over something nice, like, say
okay, there are a few things like that, but not many
; -- the corruption of government starts with its secrets. a truly free people keep no secrets. --
But come on, PCs don't trail behind consoles. It's the other way around. Resolution for starts, 480p vs 1024x768 (native of my front projector) makes a world of difference. I bought the XBox for HDTV but the hardware can't do it apparently, because there are very few games that will output more than 480p.
Why kind of?
;).
While it is not a console but a handheld it actually sets the bar for such devices a notch higher.
Let me tell you that, in my opinion, Ridge Racer looks, sounds and feels as good as on a PS3. Nintendos equivalent to that would be the DS which would have to sport the same "environment" as the gamecube... which I actually cannot comment on.
I have yet to find a building popping into view from nowhere. I have yet to find lag and I have yet to find something that ought to be reflecting but isn't.
So in my opinion the PSP is just great. If I had a use for a handheld device I'd be impatiently waiting for its release in Europe right now. I just have to find a way to connect my friends PSP to my wireless network and I'll happily declare myself a PSP zealot
Okay now enogh offtopic gibberish...
"Pong"? What is this "Pong" you speak of? ..sorry, couldn't resist.
If i recall, the "Next Generation" console was called LCARS (Library Computer Access and Retrieval System) with the specifications (voyager):
Crew Interface Software: LCARS 2.3
Access Time: 4,600 Kiloquads/Second
Number of dedicated modules: 2,048
Capacity/Module: 630,000 Kiloquads
Simultaneous access to 47 million data channels Transluminal processing at over 8 trillion calculations per nanosecond
Operational temperature margins from 10 degrees Kelvin to 1,790 degrees Kelvin
The article talks about cell computing... that's so 2005.
1) Clever Sig 2) ????? 3) Profit!
What a crappy article. It's riddled with errors - the PS2 has lost harddrive support in it's redesign, not the Xbox, the original gameboy used Z80 not ARM and more.
Best one has to be their claim that Nokia systems run on "Sybian". No. They run on "Symbian". Sybian is something VERY different, as you'll find if you do a google search for it...
Curiosity was framed. Ignorance killed the cat.
Makes me wish slashdot allowed moderation of the article and not just comments. I would rate this one "-1 Lying Bastard".
On paper it may be, but in practice there is no comparison!
You say that like one is obviously better than the other, but you didn't say which one? I have the PS2 and I haven't seen car games on the PC as good as Burn Out. But on the other hand, I haven't seen a FPS on a console that rivals that of Half Life on the PC.
-- Thou hast strayed far from the path of the Avatar.
Perhaps not the big systems, but it does cover some aspects of the portable gaming systems. Apart from the DS and PSP, it also describes:
The TI OMAP2 and Intel 2700G are both MBX-based and pack quite a punch for relatively small amounts of silicon, so you will see decent 3D on standard consumer devices like phones.
You say that like one is obviously better than the other, but you didn't say which one? I have the PS2 and I haven't seen car games on the PC as good as Burn Out. But on the other hand, I haven't seen a FPS on a console that rivals that of Half Life on the PC.
I have no intention of (re)starting the PC vs Console debate, each platform has their ups and downs... Since you asked, for most games I play (racing, action/adventure, shoot-them-ups) the console is obviously a better choice. But as you say, for first-person shooters (HL2, Doom3, etc) the PC is clearly superior, if only because of the dual mouse/keyboard inputs.
I may be biased since most PC ports of console games I've seen completely sucked (*cough* RalliSport Challenge *cough* - it was unplayable on a beefed-up PC but flies at 60fps on a lowly Xbox).
I guess my point is that in general the best way to fully enjoy a game is to play it on its original platform (much like movies are generally better in their native language).
gcc: no input sig
No publisher will now take a risk on innovative games, unless they're self-funded (like Lionhead Studios) or made in developing countries(the Codemasters approach).
...), and now the DS is coming with its share of innovative games (and it is better for some like FF Chronicles).
I strongly disagree with that.
I think most people that say that only play on easily pirated consoles: XBox, PS, PS2 mostly.
Also, I see that all of these talks or articles are targeted to one type of games (processing power and the like, it is all about 3D).
Why I think that you say ?
Because I happen to be a gamer, not hardcore, just a gamer. Guess what ? I see plenty of innovative games, from one company, the one that makes the hardest to pirate home console : Nintendo (and that is because NEC is no more).
But you will not see a lot of people playing these games, because they would actually have to buy them. I bought one GameCube, and now buy everyone of their console for the innovation and quality in their games (not the ports, they are as bad on any console).
Heck, it is the ONLY console manufacturer that do games that EVERYONE in the family (me, wife, child) is actually willing to play (even bug me to play with them !!).
I'm always amazed by their innovation, and by the risk they take. So no, I do not agree with you.
Nintendo take risks too (Pokemon, Zelda, DK series, FF Chronicles,
Consider the MP3 (and Ogg Vorbis, FLAC, etc.). Defining and distributing a way of storing music changed the market. We are no longer as concerned about media formats becoming obsoleted or what's going to replace them in the future (mini-disk anyone?). Heck, now the required media has been reduced to memory (Ipod, etc.)
The thing is, when you buy a console, you're pretty sure that, in a couple of years, it's going to be obsolete. The manufacturers know it too so they sell the consoles at a loss hoping to "make money on the blades" as it were.
So, why not just sell a gaming OS along with a standardized gaming computer specification? That way, you draw in all the hard-core gaming computer cutomizers out there and there some assurance that you can keep your machine up to date. Not only that, but third party guys can "get into it" as well thus helping to insure that your game platform becomes ubiquitous.
What are we really talking about here? We need to access more than one gaming controller (4 seems to be the current standard) and the latest and greatest video/audio hardware, memory, processors, etc.
Seems to me that if you approach it this way you can make money on the "razors" as well as the "blades".
Just my thoughts anyways....
A goal is a dream with a deadline
how in hell could you cheat at pong?!
So I'm the only one who used an aimbot in Pong?
I'm not sure what they are smoking, but the had all sorts of errors in that 'article' (& I use the term loosely here). things like:
"Microsoft has since removed that drive to lower system costs." huh yeah that xbox I bought a few months back doesn't have a HD? I'm pretty darn sure it does...
"ATI supplied the graphics for the PS2, while Nvidia provided the graphics for the original X-Box." Huh when did Ati build a graphics chip for Sony? I'm pretty sure that should be nintendo...
Their are more, but the slashdotting has begun and I can't seem to get back to the second page... But really their were dozens of errors in this thing...
So...
Move along, nothing to see here...
we are all invisible unless we choose otherwise
What a poor article. I'm not sure why this was even posted here. Questionable portions are in quotes followed by commentary: "With CPUs running at several gigahertz plus a high-performance video card or two, PC gaming is now just as lifelike as its console-based competition." This might have read better if the author had declared that such a PC will give a good idea of the power of next-gen consoles (in particular running tech such as the unreleasd Unreal 3.0). "When it first appeared in 1996, the Nintendo 64 console took a technological leap to a MIPS R4300 64-bit microprocessor running at about 93 MHz. A custom coprocessor chip that handled the graphics and audio could deliver 2 million colors, 150k polygons/s, and 64 channels of audio." The custom (graphics) "coprocessor" delivered 64 channels of audio? That's news to me. By the way, I seem to remember a few N64 games featuring 24 bit color (although it was rare... in more ways than one). "...Sony's PlayStation 2, Microsoft's X-Box, and Nintendo's GameCube. They use multihundred-megahertz 32- or 64-bit microprocessors..." Followed later by: "Just four years later, the Sony PlayStation 2 (PS2) thrilled the gaming community with almost cinematic graphics based on a 128-bit custom processor called the Emotion Engine." Oh look, the PS2's CPU went from 64 to 128 bits (as if this matters). "The internal geometry engine performs antialiasing..." *chuckles* "The Sony system was one of the first consoles to include a DVD/CD optical drive..." Nope, it was THE first. When in doubt, use "about". If you're too lazy to look up the correct information anyway. "Nintendo countered the PS2 with the GameCube in 2001. Based on a customized PowerPC CPU dubbed "Gekko" and a graphics engine developed jointly with ATI Technologies [insert useless specs here]" Gekko was developed by ArtX which was acquired by ATi just before GameCube was released (but long after development of the chip was completed). The acquisition eventually leveled the playing field in PC graphics when the ArtX team went on to design the lauded Radeon 9700 and ATi's subsequent GPU's. "...initial versions included an 8-Gbyte hard drive to improve startup time. Microsoft has since removed that drive to lower system costs." Microsoft has removed the harddrive from the original XBox to cut system costs? That's news to me. "(ATI supplied the graphics for the PS2, while Nvidia provided the graphics for the original X-Box.)" Wrong again. ATi did not supply the graphics for the PS2. "But the big question is whether Microsoft will leverage IBM's technology for the Cell processor, or the CPU or CPUs will take more standard approaches." Jesus H. Christ. Microsoft does not have access to the Cell processor. That will be a Sony exclusive for the next-gen console wars. Any idiot can see that. "Though budget-priced, with costs ranging from $60 to $180, they pack a tremendous amount of technology." The PSP will cost 250 in the states. This guy is clearly using the Japanese sale price of the PSP. "The original Game Boy and Game Boy Advance are based around a single 32-bit ARM7 CPU with 128 kbytes of embedded memory and 24 kbytes of off-chip RAM." Wow, the original Game Boy, released in 1989, uses a 32 bit ARM7? I'm not into the cell phone market, so there's no telling how much of that information was false.
"With CPUs running at several gigahertz plus a high-performance video card or two, PC gaming is now just as lifelike as its console-based competition."
This might have read better if the author had declared that such a PC will give a good idea of the power of next-gen consoles (in particular running tech such as the unreleasd Unreal 3.0).
"When it first appeared in 1996, the Nintendo 64 console took a technological leap to a MIPS R4300 64-bit microprocessor running at about 93 MHz. A custom coprocessor chip that handled the graphics and audio could deliver 2 million colors, 150k polygons/s, and 64 channels of audio."
The custom (graphics) "coprocessor" delivered 64 channels of audio? That's news to me. By the way, I seem to remember a few N64 games featuring 24 bit color (although it was rare... in more ways than one).
"...Sony's PlayStation 2, Microsoft's X-Box, and Nintendo's GameCube. They use multihundred-megahertz 32- or 64-bit microprocessors..."
Followed later by: "Just four years later, the Sony PlayStation 2 (PS2) thrilled the gaming community with almost cinematic graphics based on a 128-bit custom processor called the Emotion Engine."
Oh look, the PS2's CPU went from 64 to 128 bits (as if this matters).
"The internal geometry engine performs antialiasing..."
*chuckles*
"The Sony system was one of the first consoles to include a DVD/CD optical drive..."
Nope, it was THE first. When in doubt, use "about". If you're too lazy to look up the correct information anyway.
"Nintendo countered the PS2 with the GameCube in 2001. Based on a customized PowerPC CPU dubbed "Gekko" and a graphics engine developed jointly with ATI Technologies [insert useless specs here]"
Gekko was developed by ArtX which was acquired by ATi just before GameCube was released (but long after development of the chip was completed). The acquisition eventually leveled the playing field in PC graphics when the ArtX team went on to design the lauded Radeon 9700 and ATi's subsequent GPU's.
"...initial versions included an 8-Gbyte hard drive to improve startup time. Microsoft has since removed that drive to lower system costs."
Microsoft has removed the harddrive from the original XBox to cut system costs? That's news to me.
"(ATI supplied the graphics for the PS2, while Nvidia provided the graphics for the original X-Box.)"
Wrong again. ATi did not supply the graphics for the PS2.
"But the big question is whether Microsoft will leverage IBM's technology for the Cell processor, or the CPU or CPUs will take more standard approaches."
Jesus H. Christ. Microsoft does not have access to the Cell processor. That will be a Sony exclusive for the next-gen console wars. Any idiot can see that.
"Though budget-priced, with costs ranging from $60 to $180, they pack a tremendous amount of technology."
The PSP will cost 250 in the states. This guy is clearly using the Japanese sale price of the PSP.
"The original Game Boy and Game Boy Advance are based around a single 32-bit ARM7 CPU with 128 kbytes of embedded memory and 24 kbytes of off-chip RAM."
Wow, the original Game Boy, released in 1989, uses a 32 bit ARM7? I'm not into the cell phone market, so there's no telling how much of that information was false.
See, this is why I don't get my information from "professional" journalists.
Yeah, but considering how many glaring errors were found in the portions pertaining to the history of gaming, do you really trust this guy to tell you about the future? The author thinks the first Game Boy had a 32 bit ARM7.
I think what is missing in that sentence is that current xboxes don't have an 8 GB hard drive. They have a 10 GB hard drive.
This is because nobody makes 8GB hard drives anymore.
If I have nothing to hide, don't search me
"The XaviX cartridge houses the dedicated game functions, and it is inserted into the XaviXPort to play... At the heart of the XaviX system is a custom multiprocessor chip deployed in each game cartridge. Thus, the XaviXPort never has to be upgraded--the game itself is the upgrade."
Forgive me if I'm wrong, but isn't that how cartridge-based systems have worked since the year dot? I certainly remember Nintendo making a fuss about ugrade chips in the first Starfox game, and that came out as far back as the mid-90s...
Games Machines of the Future, eh?
Everything in moderation, including moderation itself
I may be biased since most PC ports of console games I've seen completely sucked (*cough* RalliSport Challenge *cough* - it was unplayable on a beefed-up PC but flies at 60fps on a lowly Xbox).
Compare the PC Doom 3 to the XBox Doom 3. Compare Rainbow 6 on PC as opposed to PS2
There are 'bad ports' but at the same time PC hardware is so much more powerful than current consoles, it's not funny.
standard hardware: PC's ..etc.
standard subhardware: PCI, AGP, USB,
Standard OS software:
Windows
Linux
I think it's amazing that different kinds of PC hardware can run games at all. Yes, alot more can be done; but much more has already been done. I think we need to work on software that runs independent of the OS.
Just as OS should be hardware independent, we need to develop software that is independent of the OS.
--- widget evolution: enhanced, plus, super, ultra, extreme, exxxtreme, ultra-extreme,
Do not read the linked article. It:
1.is full of errors.
2.does not talk about the next gen cosoles.
3.is poorly written, researched and generally a waste of time.
Anyone who even remotely follows gaming will spot the errors on the first pass, there's a ton of them. They guy has absolutely no fucking clue what he is writing about.
Does Taco read the articles he approves? If he did and still thought it was good, HE MUST BE A REAL DUMBASS. Really. Pathetic.
Way to waste people's time slashdot. I'm outta here. Oh how the mighty have fallen.
You've got a PS3 already?
I'm a little leery of buying from gameboyzflashz.ru and the like - do you know of a reputable site for the flash kit?
Linux: Free if your time is worthless.
I'd like to go up against you to see what you're made of. Acknowledge. Flynn: [gesturing at his video game arcade] The kids are putting eight million quarters a week into the paranoid machines. I don't see a dime except for what I can squeeze outta here. Alan: I still don't understand why you want to break into the system. Flynn: Because, man! Somewhere in one of these memories is the evidence! If I got in far enough, I could reconstruct it.
I concur. PC's rock and will always be cutting edge because they're scalable. PCs have the best games at better resolutions with more multiplayer games played online than any console, ever. PC users are probably early-adopters too, more so than console-ites. And yes, the article sucked and is deservedly getting slammed.
How is asking a serious question about the article, the mention of M$ dropping the X-Box hd, overrated? I'm seriously curious if they did drop the hd, because I haven't heard that anywhere else.
rm -rf
Along with a 5× DVD drive for game loading and video playback, initial versions included an 8-Gbyte hard drive to improve startup time. Microsoft has since removed that drive to lower system costs.
MS has removed the harddrive? First, not only were some of the hard drives actually 10 gigs (though software-limited to 8), every Xbox has a hard drive shipped - even the one that I will get when one more person completes the offer in my signature (and I pay you $10 for it).
Hey- Rallisport Challenge brings up a good point...
That is the game that FORCED me to buy an Xbox. Went to a friends house, played Rallisport on his Xbox, loved it.
Went out and bought it for my PC. It crashed...a lot. Bought a new graphics card, still crashed. Bought a new motherboard...still crashed (less).
Eventually I just bought a damn Xbox, and I have stopped playing on my PC completely.
No reason to lie.
"Along with a 5× DVD drive for game loading and video playback, initial versions included an 8-Gbyte hard drive to improve startup time. Microsoft has since removed that drive to lower system costs."
This is undeniably false. All Xboxes have hard drives, and Microsoft did not put it in there to "improve startup time" as the article suggests. It was put in there to store game saves without the need for a memory card (although to transport game saves you need a memory card), store music for the small percentage of games that support custom soundtracks, to store downloadable content for those games that support it and offer it (supporting it and actually offering it are two different things), and supposedly for precaching of data to reduce load times (although this feature is not used very much, even by Microsoft first party games).
The parent's comment is certainly not overrated. If anything, the article linked to is overrated with factual errors such as MS removing the Xbox's hard drive to save money.
The line:
"Microsoft has since removed that drive to lower system costs"
Implies that the Xbox no longer has any hard drive. Which of course is not true, just like a lot of errors in this article.
Sometimes my arms bend back.
In another article, wasnt the new xbox supposed to be called the Xbox 360 because they thought that to the typical consumber, ps3 would sound better then xbox 2 so the name was supposed to be 360?
Your skill in reading has increased by one point!
from the article: "Along with a 5× DVD drive for game loading and video playback, initial versions included an 8-Gbyte hard drive to improve startup time. Microsoft has since removed that drive to lower system costs."
I think they meant to say that Microsoft has stopped using the 5x DVD drives in new Xboxs, not that they have removed the hard disk. Xboxs have shipped with 2x(Thompson,Philips) and 5x(Samsung) DVD ROMs. The Samsung Drives read burned disks while you are lucky if the others read any disks at all. Most XBox hacks require you to be able to read a burned disk, so I imagine that made them change more than the expense of a 5x DVD-ROM. I have a Thompson drive and can't read any burned media(I've tried DVD-R, DVD+RW, CD-R, and CD-RW). Luckily you don't HAVE to be able to read burned disks to install any of the hacks on your Xbox.
Heck, most porno movies have more solid plots than many games, but thats fine games are ment to be FUN who cares why the odd blocks are falling from the sky or why they need or can be manipulated to pile up neatly?.
,blockquote>
:-)
But on the other hand, I haven't seen a FPS on a console that rivals that of Half Life on the PC
What about Half-Life on the Playstation 2?
...totally reminds me of Jackie Harvey on the onion!
WOW they suck at facts.
ATI AFAIK does not make the PS2 vid hardware, they do own the company that designed the Gamecubes video processor.
Well I've wrestled with reality for thirty five years doctor, and I'm happy to say I finally won out over it.