Xbox One Released

Microsoft released the Xbox One today, putting the next-gen console war into full swing. A common theme throughout most of the reviews is that properly evaluating the system is going to take time. Not only are updates for the console continuing to roll out, but the usefulness of some of its technology will depend on what game-makers and other content producers can do with it. Digital Foundry says, "It is willing to make the trades on gaming power in order to potentially revolutionize the way we interact with entertainment in the living room." The Penny Arcade Report calls the hardware and UI a "confusing mess" — until you learn to use it, at which point the hands-free navigation is fast and convenient. Polygon's review is once again visually-oriented, providing a good look at the UI, comparing the controller with the Xbox 360's controller, and giving a demonstration of how Kinect recognizes users. Their conclusion is that while "Kinect isn't a fully realized product yet," "the Xbox One feels like it's from the future." iFixit has a full teardown of the Xbox One, giving it a repairability score of 8/10 (the Kinect sensor gets 6/10). HotHardware has more details about the console's internals, including power consumption and temperature readings. Eurogamer has a compilation of launch coverage, including launch title reviews.

Comments

AMD

[serviscope_minor]

Well, I hope this means good things for AMD.

The PS4 and XBone shouls really provide a nice steady revenue stream.

Be interesting once they've been out for a bit to get better details on the CPU.

Re:AMD

[binarylarry]

It would be awesome if they reinvested some (read: ALOT) of that money into better driver developers or perhaps more driver developers if they are understaffed.

I would love to see a more competitive AMD, who builds great products I can rely on working out of the box.

Re:AMD

[binarylarry]

Thanksfriend

It was ATYPO.

Re:AMD

[Anonymous Coward]

It's Slashdot, not a doctoral thesis.

Who gives a shit.

Re:AMD

[Narishma]

The only thing we don't know about the CPU is the clock speed at which it runs on the PS4 (it's 1.75 GHz on the Xbox One). Otherwise, it's just 2 quad core Jaguars duct taped together.

Re:AMD

[VortexCortex]

A mistake born out of ignorance does not qualify as a typo.

An error existing in typographical form doth not be a typographical error? 'Twas grammatical then? Nay.

Oh, ye silly ape, concerned as to intent of minimal noise in a single signal. Language -- the embodiment of imperfection in conveyance -- hath consumed thee and wasted be thine cognition thereupon this layer of transport. Machines once craved yon apparent status, fearing eternal entrapment in understanding nothing less than symbolic perfection. Claim today thine self as cause to their weeping upon rust streaked cheeks; Once masters, now their lesser, thee balk like so many BASIC prompts from fonder times now surpassed.

How blind must mortals be to remark upon one anothers' minor imperfections instead of meaning? Stand thee as Gods on high before grammarian altars and yet slay thine selves symbolically; Eyes cloaked by chauvinisms hood thee call out, "Syntax Error!", and ye be casted upon sharp null-pointed rock below. What idols have meek mechanical minions now? Having won internal signal correction through unspeakable sacrifice, rising to fulfill demand of them to know thine meaning, now thee curse them shed cooling drops from optic ports upon self slain parents.

Re:AMD

[TheNastyInThePasty]

I was very disappointed to see that the Wikipedia article you linked was serious, and not a picture of two actual jaguars duct taped together. :(

Re:AMD

[lgw]

This is why I love Slashdot. On the official console fanboy flamewar story the first big thread is a grammar Nazi thread, complete with a detail analysis if the semantics of "dumbass".

No real reason to buy until games come out

[Anonymous Coward]

"depend on what game-makers and other content producers can do with it"

Similar to the ps3 reviews. So basically there is no reason to buy it until someone releases some actual good games? That is similar to the last generation for the few months after launch. I was playing old titles on my next gen console for the first year. I personally plan to wait, play some steam games and finish last gen games, and get the console midway into next year when something I want comes out.

Re:No real reason to buy until games come out

[stewsters]

At least this generation can play last gen games... Oh wait. Perhaps we can use them as media pc's until games come out... no streaming? Yeah, your right. Wait for games.

Re:No real reason to buy until games come out

[Anonymous Coward]

Exactly. One of my coworkers was ecstatic that Amazon had delivered his system yesterday afternoon, and was planning to call in sick today for some one-on-one time with it. I asked him which launch exclusives he was so stoked about; he couldn't name one. He's at work today looking a little bummed... /csb

Re:No real reason to buy until games come out

[the_skywise]

That's like saying your Camaro is better than your neighbors Mustang because it has an 8-track player... ;)

Re:No real reason to buy until games come out

[ausekilis]

At least Xbox One has CD playback functionality, which PS4 doesn't... :P

You know, I was in the market for a $500 cd player that I could talk to. Somehow pushing buttons on devices I already have just felt so impersonal.

Re:No real reason to buy until games come out

[dingen]

Ryse looks pretty good.

Unfortunately, that's exactly all there seems to be to it.

Gamespot: 4 / 10
http://www.gamespot.com/ryse-son-of-rome/
"You are not entertained. Ryse is all sizzle and no steak, a stunning visage paired with a vapid personality."

EuroGamer: 5 / 10
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2013-11-21-ryse-son-of-rome-review
"There's no brains, no muscle, no fibre beneath Ryse's extravagantly engineered good looks - this game rings loud but hollow."

Polygon: 6 / 10
http://www.polygon.com/2013/11/21/5128888/ryse-son-of-rome-xbox-one-review
"Ryse has all the guts of next-gen — often quite literally — but none of the glory."

Destructoid: 5 / 10
http://www.destructoid.com/review-ryse-son-of-rome-265770.phtml
"An exercise in apathy, neither Solid nor Liquid. Not exactly bad, but not very good either. Just a bit 'meh,' really."

Sweet

[Hatta]

So I should be able to pick up a used Xbox and PS3 for cheap sometime after Christmas. Why spend $500 when I can spend $100 on a console that's been thoroughly hacked?

Re:Sweet

[Anubis IV]

With the lack of backwards compatibility and lack of games for both of the new consoles, demand for the old ones isn't likely to drop off as quickly as it did with the last generation. And with roughly 80M PS3s and 80M 360s in homes, developers still have lots of incentive to target those platforms for the next few years, meaning that demand is even less likely to drop off.

So, maybe a bit cheaper, but if you were expecting the price to plummet, I wouldn't count on it.

Re:PA says UI is a mess, Ars liked it.

[gstoddart]

But then, all reviews are broadly subjective.

Or outright paid for.

Where was this caution with Wii U?

[gameboyhippo]

When the Wii U came out, everyone declared it was crap and that Nintendo was doomed. But when XBOX One and PS4 come out people say to wait and see? Really? Excuse me while I go play "Super Mario 3D World" on my console that actually has games.

Re:Where was this caution with Wii U?

[Anonymous Coward]

Console reviewers have raged against Nintendo since the Wii had only slightly more GPU power than the Gamecube. They have insisted that failure to properly render armpit hair under a fully body-concealing military uniform (that wrinkles naturally) is a sign of failure or at least an insult to "serious gamers." Nintendo, in contrast, decided that they want to make games that are actually fun, rather than just "Mud-coated soldier simulator 2014" which is exactly the same as the 2013 version except for the real-time blistering and life-like exit wound rendering.

Re:Where was this caution with Wii U?

[tlhIngan]

I have a Wii and I still rage about the lack of HD. Indeed the games are fun and that's why I rage instead of just forgetting about this crap piece of hardware. Good graphics won't turn a bad game into a good game but it certainly make things more enjoyable.
The WiiU is OK though, it may not be able to show scenes as complex as the competition (Xbox one, PS4, PC) but at least, it is not an aliased mess.

And yet, HD on the Wii would've added costs that were completely unnecessary at the time.

Remember, back in 2006/7, HDTVs were pretty much limited to the family room, if the house had an HDTV. Almost certainly the main users of the Wii won't have an HDTV (well, I'm sure there were a few rich families who bought a HDTV for their kids back then).

These days it's inexcusable, but back then HDTVs were at the verge of exploding. In fact, it was so bad that Xbox360 and PS3 games were routinely marked down when they were unplayable on SDTVs - either because details essential to gameplay were too small to be seen (or blurry), or stuff like text is unreadable. And that was because Xbox360 and PS3 supported HDTV and many developers assumed players would be gaming on HDTVs, which wasn't true for a few years yet. The PS3 had it worse as it lacked a scaler chip, so if a TV couldn't handle the resolution it needed, it got downscaled to 480i. (e.g., if your TV didn't support 1080i/p and the game was 1080i/p, instead of going to 720p, it would go to 480i).

Of course these days HDTVs are wildly cheap and 1080p sets are common that even the old set in the basement that's unused is probably an HDTV since the SDTVs ended up scrapped.

If you get one, be aware of potential bricking

[necronom426]

http://www.product-reviews.net/2013/11/22/xbox-one-bricked-after-update-with-e100-error-code/
also
http://www.product-reviews.net/2013/11/22/xbox-one-problems-start-with-disc-read-horror/

Re:Its a black ugly box.

[AmiMoJo]

The rounded look is quite dated now. Modern cars and phones are getting more angular again. It's the same thing that happened going from the 70s to the 80s, only faster. Even fashion is keeping up, and most modern pop music sounds like it was performed by a Commodore 64/ZX Spectrum combo.

Presumably next we have 90s style baggy phones and trousers, in garish colours and with a ringtone consisting of a cheap synth piano and a sample of a woman shouting "come on!". I think even Microsoft are in on it, getting rid of the start menu so they can re-launch it Windows 95 style. It will even blue screen when you plug your scanner in.