While I was browsing through the rest of the comments, I decided to not be so lazy and look up the date of the SA article on this topic. It was in the 01/01/05 issue and you can download it [for a price] here if that's your "thang."
Actually, it's just that the research has been going on for quite a while. I read a cover story on the subject in Scientific American quite a while ago - late last year IIRC.
As an eagle-eyed moderator correctly noticed, that list seemed intended to be ironic. I would note, though, to both yourself and the grandparent, that Mortal Kombat was actually not terrible. While it wasn't anything like high art (nor should it have been considering the source material), the plot worked and the fighting was pretty cool. That movie I actually WOULD recommend checking out, either via cable or a cheap rental. Christopher Lambert as Rayden - oh yeah!:)
You probably should have headed over to the actual "Walk of Game" website. if you had, you (and the others who jumped on it) would have found out that Master Chief was not inducted. Halo was. I'm sure the logic of the voters who gave it some thought was that Halo was the biggest thing on the Xbox, that it was the first big LAN-type console experience, and that its sequel was making people slobber with anticipation (assuming the voting was done at about the same time last year). Of course, since it's an award that is voted on by "gamers worldwide" the thing doesn't have to have any logic besides being a popularity contest.
Whatever one might think of Halo's worthiness (I'm not a fan myself), the bottom line is that they didn't put Master Chief up with those three iconic characters. They honored the game and not the character, despite the sloppy work of the "journalist" who wrote the Gamasutra story.
Granted it was better then the other two but i left wondering why i spent almost $20 between soda, munchies and the price of admission.
I don't wonder at all: It's because you're apparently so used to having something crammed in your mouth that you can't wait until after the movie to get something to eat and drink.
As for the "had no interest in paying" crowd, that is, traditionally, the lamest excuse to pirate copyrighted material ever constructed.
I would reject the premise that the Revolution isn't intended for the "hardcore" gaming audience. This is the audience (at least based on the self-described hardcore on the Interweb) that goes on and on about how nobody has innovative gameplay and all the companies are churning out sequel after sequel with no changes in between. So, the Revolution is aimed at that audience.
The people kvetching about the Revolution controller and how it will discourage third-party development and reduce the number of games ported to the Revolution are people who complain because they feel the need to complain about anything. They're the sort of people who will complain loudly one day about how buggy their latest console game purchase is, then the next day complain about how the Xbox allows games to be patched. They're the kind of people who will complain about how they hate sequels and use their next breath (or finger movement) to say how excited they are about a sequel to Katamari Damacy or the next Zelda game.
In short, the people who complain about the design of the Revolution controller are whiny dolts and will remain so until there is actual evidence that the system has bad games that are hard to control.
Sony would be stupid to not include a cheap little $10 remote control with the PS3. If they were to include one, WHY would anybody buy another player? They wouldn't.
They would if Sony once again gimps the movie playback of their game console in order to encourage people to buy standalone players in addition. The out-of-the-box DVD playback of the PS2 sucked...hard. It was improved somewhat with a firmware upgrade (via the remote control kit) but still doesn't match up to the quality of a standalone.
I would also note that game consoles aren't always attached to the "primary" television in a house - for example, any house with parents who prefer watching their TV instead of watching their kids play videogames. Those households - assuming they want to play optical discs with HD content - will definitely buy a standalone player. And the type of standalone player will be determined by the availability of desired content (which format has the "best" movies) and the price of the hardware.
What wait? Samsung has already announced that they plan to produce combo HD-DVD/Blu-Ray players. And, knowing Samsung's record of being very competitive in terms of pricing (most evident in their HDTV selection), I wouldn't be surprised if their combo players launched at around the same price as single-format devices.
I think that combo players are going to end up being the standard and that the only "wars" are going to be fought a) trying to get content producers on board with a particular format (for the licensing fees) and b) in the recordable market (both PC and standalone).
Heya Sid: With your recent update of Pirates! for Firaxis (nice job, by the way), I am made to wonder if you would consider doing a similar update for the game Covert Action. I remember enjoying greatly the open-ended nature of the original, particularly when compared with other, more linear "secret agent" type games.
I'm just looking for a few small inexpensive TV's to replace my analog stuff for the local news. Don't try to sell me components. I just want a TV for after analog does dark.
There's no need to replace analog TVs with digital versions. All you'll need are DTV receivers (often called "set-top boxes") to hook up to your old NTSC sets. That's been part of the grand plan from the beginning. Such boxes are already available under $200 (which, of course, is much cheaper than the cheapest DTVs) and will likely break the $100 barrier by the time analog goes away. Obviously, you won't be looking at HDTV resolutions but you'll probably (assuming halfway decent reception) still get a better NTSC picture than you can get via rabbit ears right now.
Fortunately, ABC won't be carrying MNF after this year and you'll be able to watch the Monday night game on ESPNHD. Of course, you may end up having the same trouble with NBC's Sunday night game, but I don't know the details of your reception difficulties.
Where are the Editor's Choice CRTs??
on
CNET's HDTV World
·
· Score: 4, Interesting
I won't argue with the picks themselves except for one, and that's their description of the 34" Sony direct-view tube being a "good value." $1,900 for a 34" screen is NOT a good value. For $1,900 you can have your choice of 50+-inch CRT rear-projection sets. If you have to go CRT direct view (because of size concerns - too big for a room) you can get 30-34" 16:9 HD CRTs for well under $1,200. A $700 premium for whatever Sony's sticking into their XBR unit just can't be called a "value."
If we're talking about value, why couldn't they take a look at some of the 30" CRTs that are out there from Samsung, Toshiba, Panasonic, etc.? They manage to get sets out there for well under $1,000. And, again, the complete omission of CRT RPTVs from their Editor's Choice list leaves out a lot of VERY good-looking sets (my parents' 57" Hitachi puts on a NICE show) that give more screen size bang for the buck.
I know flat-panel sets are cool, much easier to move around, and much easier to locate within a room, but it seems like a lot of folks have blinders on and assume that these are the only HDTV-ready sets on the market. This contributes to the notion that HDTV is still super-expensive. When you can get a Samsung 26" 16:9 CRT with HDMI input and an integrated HDTV receiver for $600 at retail, that's just not the case...
Perhaps. Kari Wuhrer is lovely but completely useless as an actor. I mean, really. This is a woman who is now BACK on a daytime soap - most actors start there and leave it behind...
The chick in it was really hot, too (don't remember her name).
That "chick" would be Sabrina Lloyd. If you'd like to see another fantastic (cancelled too soon) show she was on, pick up "Sports Night: The Complete Series" on DVD.
Well, I barely consider PC games in a discussion like this because they're such a tiny part of a used game store's business, and because CD-keys make buying PC games too risky.
As for scratched discs, both EB and Gamestop (the two biggies, soon to be one biggie) offer replacement for used games that don't work. I've never had a problem with that, and if I did I'd just bring it back.
I don't know if you're talking about PC games when it comes to getting prices because it's VERY rare for console games to get any discount at all, anywhere (usually only the very biggest games at the very biggest retailers). Again, the profit margin on them is too low. PC games usually have higher margins if for no other reason than hardware manufacturers aren't taking a cut.
You're right. Somehow I was counting the initial purchase of the new game, forgetting that the $5 already takes into consideration buying the initial game. Math is hard, especially that pesky addition and subraction.:)
As far as I know, THX is still just a[n expensive] A/V certification standard and there's no such thing as "enabling" THX. Creative pays the premium to stick "THX" on their cards because some people think it makes a difference and will pay extra, NOT because THX somehow enhances the sound.
And how many stories in the games section would I get then? 2-3 a week? It is a fairly facile argument to say 'if you don't like it, leave.' I used to like it, and I want to stay.
How long have you been coming here? You just described exactly what the games section here used to be: Two or three stories a week, usually about how a game is finally coming to Linux, a company is thinking about including a Linux version in an upcoming game, or yet another rant about how gaming was so much better 15 years ago and that's why we should all be using emulators and by the way check out the cool new Linux NES emulator. Oh yeah, and least a story a month about how cool Kali is...okay, maybe I've just been here too long.
The vast majority of "fresh" videogame material on Ye Olden Interweb consists of advertisements and fluff. That's just the way it is. If you have BETTER stories, then submit them - that is, after all, how this site works. If those great stories are rejected, include them in your anti-editor rants. Then, perhaps, someone on high will care what you think.
Perhaps they could make the margin proposition more attractive for retailers, encouraging them to slow down or eliminate their used game sales.
You can say that a few times. The way things work right now (at least in the console area), EB, Gamestop and others couldn't even exist as "game-only" or "game-primary" retailers if they didn't deal in used games. Their profits couldn't possibly cover their overhead, especially when a game just doesn't sell.
The other thing that tends to be glossed over in the "anti-used" argument is that Steam (the current big online developer->customer online distribution system) wasn't created necessarily to cut out retailers. It was far more important to Valve to cut out the publisher which takes virtually no risk on a guaranteed hit like Half-Life 2 but sucks up a huge chunk of the profit.
Speaking of big money for no risk, Epic and other companies are taking no risk on the used games that EB/Gamestop/etc. sell yet Mr. Rein wants some money for it, anyway. If Epic, EA, etc. want to make money on used game sales, all they have to do is invest in the companies doing that business. Every time a retailer buys a used game from somebody, they're taking a chance that they'll be able to sell it for a profit down the line. If they don't, they have to eat the loss later, usually in the form of "bargain bins."
I suspect Mr. Rein is just jumping on the gamer bandwagon of hating stores like EB and Gamestop and figures there's no PR downside to doing so. He's probably right given the semi-retarded, anti-business viewpoint of some people that these stores somehow "cheat" customers by not paying them more for the used games and not giving a big enough discount when they sell them.
Annoyingly enough, you have to pre-order anything you want at EB: They never get more than one or two per store. It's like they have no idea what a demand curve looks like. That's why I stopped shopping there.
It's not that they can't predict demand, and certainly they can get more as demand rises. The issue for EB and Gamestop (though I've found my local version of the latter to be well-stocked on the rare occasions I want a game on the release date) is that their business model precludes overstocking new games and relying on the $5/unit profit margin there. Those stores are trying to stock as few new games as they can - just barely enough, especially in the first month of release, to hopefully satisfy "early" customers - and then buy back the games from customers at $5-20 a pop to sell used for $25-45.
It's a pretty simple equation if you look at a single game. The customer comes in, spends $50 on the game, then comes back in a month or two later and sells the game back to the store for, say, $20. They then turn the game back around by putting it back on the shelf for $45 ($5 off new prices, and a $5 discount in a market where nearly everyone sells at MSRP is a good deal). So, instead of making just $5 on that game, they've managed to make $10. And that profit goes up even higher if the person selling back the game was willing to take less money ($10-15 for a recent game, $5-10 for something older) or if that copy can be recycled yet again when the second customer tires of it.
Short version? Selling new games isn't a very good deal unless you're into other business. That other business for EB, Gamestop and other used game resellers is selling used games.
Somehow, I don't think he was referring to the decals when he was referring to an upgrade. I suspect he was referring to the SP compared to the [awfully painful pre-Afterburner] GBA.
Got to agree with the Final Fantasy X reference, and, sure, I got misty when Aeris (or whatever I named her - I'm more invested in the story when I get to do that myself) bit it. BUT, I don't consider these exceptionally emotional games. The cutscenes are what establish the emotional connections, and you have no control over them at all. So, when Aeris and Tidus die it has nothing at all to do with anything the player has done, apart from playing through the required sections of the game. Now, games like KOTOR and Jade Empire, on the other hand, have more potential for emotional investment. In those kinds of games, you're making choices that actually impact not only the development of your character but the relationships with other characters in the game. The branching still doesn't go far enough, though, since you still end up having virtually the same gameplay experiences whatever decisions you make.
I guess what I'm saying is that I think some games are, right now, on a par with movies in terms of inducing emotional reactions, but games have the potential to go a lot further. I'm still waiting for the technology to stabilize enough that more resources can be shifted away from graphics and sound toward making better, more varied characters and stories.
Slashdot Mirror
While I was browsing through the rest of the comments, I decided to not be so lazy and look up the date of the SA article on this topic. It was in the 01/01/05 issue and you can download it [for a price] here if that's your "thang."
Actually, it's just that the research has been going on for quite a while. I read a cover story on the subject in Scientific American quite a while ago - late last year IIRC.
As an eagle-eyed moderator correctly noticed, that list seemed intended to be ironic. I would note, though, to both yourself and the grandparent, that Mortal Kombat was actually not terrible. While it wasn't anything like high art (nor should it have been considering the source material), the plot worked and the fighting was pretty cool. That movie I actually WOULD recommend checking out, either via cable or a cheap rental. Christopher Lambert as Rayden - oh yeah! :)
Whatever one might think of Halo's worthiness (I'm not a fan myself), the bottom line is that they didn't put Master Chief up with those three iconic characters. They honored the game and not the character, despite the sloppy work of the "journalist" who wrote the Gamasutra story.
I don't wonder at all: It's because you're apparently so used to having something crammed in your mouth that you can't wait until after the movie to get something to eat and drink.
As for the "had no interest in paying" crowd, that is, traditionally, the lamest excuse to pirate copyrighted material ever constructed.
The people kvetching about the Revolution controller and how it will discourage third-party development and reduce the number of games ported to the Revolution are people who complain because they feel the need to complain about anything. They're the sort of people who will complain loudly one day about how buggy their latest console game purchase is, then the next day complain about how the Xbox allows games to be patched. They're the kind of people who will complain about how they hate sequels and use their next breath (or finger movement) to say how excited they are about a sequel to Katamari Damacy or the next Zelda game.
In short, the people who complain about the design of the Revolution controller are whiny dolts and will remain so until there is actual evidence that the system has bad games that are hard to control.
Sony would be stupid to not include a cheap little $10 remote control with the PS3. If they were to include one, WHY would anybody buy another player? They wouldn't.
They would if Sony once again gimps the movie playback of their game console in order to encourage people to buy standalone players in addition. The out-of-the-box DVD playback of the PS2 sucked...hard. It was improved somewhat with a firmware upgrade (via the remote control kit) but still doesn't match up to the quality of a standalone.
I would also note that game consoles aren't always attached to the "primary" television in a house - for example, any house with parents who prefer watching their TV instead of watching their kids play videogames. Those households - assuming they want to play optical discs with HD content - will definitely buy a standalone player. And the type of standalone player will be determined by the availability of desired content (which format has the "best" movies) and the price of the hardware.
What wait? Samsung has already announced that they plan to produce combo HD-DVD/Blu-Ray players. And, knowing Samsung's record of being very competitive in terms of pricing (most evident in their HDTV selection), I wouldn't be surprised if their combo players launched at around the same price as single-format devices.
I think that combo players are going to end up being the standard and that the only "wars" are going to be fought a) trying to get content producers on board with a particular format (for the licensing fees) and b) in the recordable market (both PC and standalone).
Heya Sid: With your recent update of Pirates! for Firaxis (nice job, by the way), I am made to wonder if you would consider doing a similar update for the game Covert Action. I remember enjoying greatly the open-ended nature of the original, particularly when compared with other, more linear "secret agent" type games.
I'm just looking for a few small inexpensive TV's to replace my analog stuff for the local news. Don't try to sell me components. I just want a TV for after analog does dark.
There's no need to replace analog TVs with digital versions. All you'll need are DTV receivers (often called "set-top boxes") to hook up to your old NTSC sets. That's been part of the grand plan from the beginning. Such boxes are already available under $200 (which, of course, is much cheaper than the cheapest DTVs) and will likely break the $100 barrier by the time analog goes away. Obviously, you won't be looking at HDTV resolutions but you'll probably (assuming halfway decent reception) still get a better NTSC picture than you can get via rabbit ears right now.
Fortunately, ABC won't be carrying MNF after this year and you'll be able to watch the Monday night game on ESPNHD. Of course, you may end up having the same trouble with NBC's Sunday night game, but I don't know the details of your reception difficulties.
If we're talking about value, why couldn't they take a look at some of the 30" CRTs that are out there from Samsung, Toshiba, Panasonic, etc.? They manage to get sets out there for well under $1,000. And, again, the complete omission of CRT RPTVs from their Editor's Choice list leaves out a lot of VERY good-looking sets (my parents' 57" Hitachi puts on a NICE show) that give more screen size bang for the buck.
I know flat-panel sets are cool, much easier to move around, and much easier to locate within a room, but it seems like a lot of folks have blinders on and assume that these are the only HDTV-ready sets on the market. This contributes to the notion that HDTV is still super-expensive. When you can get a Samsung 26" 16:9 CRT with HDMI input and an integrated HDTV receiver for $600 at retail, that's just not the case...
Perhaps. Kari Wuhrer is lovely but completely useless as an actor. I mean, really. This is a woman who is now BACK on a daytime soap - most actors start there and leave it behind...
That "chick" would be Sabrina Lloyd. If you'd like to see another fantastic (cancelled too soon) show she was on, pick up "Sports Night: The Complete Series" on DVD.
As for scratched discs, both EB and Gamestop (the two biggies, soon to be one biggie) offer replacement for used games that don't work. I've never had a problem with that, and if I did I'd just bring it back.
I don't know if you're talking about PC games when it comes to getting prices because it's VERY rare for console games to get any discount at all, anywhere (usually only the very biggest games at the very biggest retailers). Again, the profit margin on them is too low. PC games usually have higher margins if for no other reason than hardware manufacturers aren't taking a cut.
You're right. Somehow I was counting the initial purchase of the new game, forgetting that the $5 already takes into consideration buying the initial game. Math is hard, especially that pesky addition and subraction. :)
I had long answers for you, but they just seemed unwieldy and unnecessary. Short answer: That's what warehouses are for. :)
As far as I know, THX is still just a[n expensive] A/V certification standard and there's no such thing as "enabling" THX. Creative pays the premium to stick "THX" on their cards because some people think it makes a difference and will pay extra, NOT because THX somehow enhances the sound.
And how many stories in the games section would I get then? 2-3 a week? It is a fairly facile argument to say 'if you don't like it, leave.' I used to like it, and I want to stay.
How long have you been coming here? You just described exactly what the games section here used to be: Two or three stories a week, usually about how a game is finally coming to Linux, a company is thinking about including a Linux version in an upcoming game, or yet another rant about how gaming was so much better 15 years ago and that's why we should all be using emulators and by the way check out the cool new Linux NES emulator. Oh yeah, and least a story a month about how cool Kali is...okay, maybe I've just been here too long.
The vast majority of "fresh" videogame material on Ye Olden Interweb consists of advertisements and fluff. That's just the way it is. If you have BETTER stories, then submit them - that is, after all, how this site works. If those great stories are rejected, include them in your anti-editor rants. Then, perhaps, someone on high will care what you think.
You can say that a few times. The way things work right now (at least in the console area), EB, Gamestop and others couldn't even exist as "game-only" or "game-primary" retailers if they didn't deal in used games. Their profits couldn't possibly cover their overhead, especially when a game just doesn't sell.
The other thing that tends to be glossed over in the "anti-used" argument is that Steam (the current big online developer->customer online distribution system) wasn't created necessarily to cut out retailers. It was far more important to Valve to cut out the publisher which takes virtually no risk on a guaranteed hit like Half-Life 2 but sucks up a huge chunk of the profit.
Speaking of big money for no risk, Epic and other companies are taking no risk on the used games that EB/Gamestop/etc. sell yet Mr. Rein wants some money for it, anyway. If Epic, EA, etc. want to make money on used game sales, all they have to do is invest in the companies doing that business. Every time a retailer buys a used game from somebody, they're taking a chance that they'll be able to sell it for a profit down the line. If they don't, they have to eat the loss later, usually in the form of "bargain bins."
I suspect Mr. Rein is just jumping on the gamer bandwagon of hating stores like EB and Gamestop and figures there's no PR downside to doing so. He's probably right given the semi-retarded, anti-business viewpoint of some people that these stores somehow "cheat" customers by not paying them more for the used games and not giving a big enough discount when they sell them.
I think it depends on what your definition of "head" is...
It's not that they can't predict demand, and certainly they can get more as demand rises. The issue for EB and Gamestop (though I've found my local version of the latter to be well-stocked on the rare occasions I want a game on the release date) is that their business model precludes overstocking new games and relying on the $5/unit profit margin there. Those stores are trying to stock as few new games as they can - just barely enough, especially in the first month of release, to hopefully satisfy "early" customers - and then buy back the games from customers at $5-20 a pop to sell used for $25-45.
It's a pretty simple equation if you look at a single game. The customer comes in, spends $50 on the game, then comes back in a month or two later and sells the game back to the store for, say, $20. They then turn the game back around by putting it back on the shelf for $45 ($5 off new prices, and a $5 discount in a market where nearly everyone sells at MSRP is a good deal). So, instead of making just $5 on that game, they've managed to make $10. And that profit goes up even higher if the person selling back the game was willing to take less money ($10-15 for a recent game, $5-10 for something older) or if that copy can be recycled yet again when the second customer tires of it.
Short version? Selling new games isn't a very good deal unless you're into other business. That other business for EB, Gamestop and other used game resellers is selling used games.
Somehow, I don't think he was referring to the decals when he was referring to an upgrade. I suspect he was referring to the SP compared to the [awfully painful pre-Afterburner] GBA.
I guess what I'm saying is that I think some games are, right now, on a par with movies in terms of inducing emotional reactions, but games have the potential to go a lot further. I'm still waiting for the technology to stabilize enough that more resources can be shifted away from graphics and sound toward making better, more varied characters and stories.
PS - Take a deep breath, count to 10, then hit your screen with a hammer.