I think a lot of it may have to do with PS2 market saturation. There are so many PS2s in living rooms around the world that even if the next must-have game comes out for PS2, there aren't that many people who want one and don't already have one.
GC and XBox could see a spike, but it would probably get swallowed up by the overall decline in PS2 sales. This is talking about the market, after all. Nintendo and MS could easily have a banner year in 2004 while the total consoles sold goes down.
I'm pretty sure "market share" in this context refers to percentage of total consoles sold that month, rather than percentage of total consoles sold ever. I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure PS2 still holds a huge lead in total sales this generation (not counting the GBA).
It's mildly interesting to see that there may be an anti-GameCube bias in some reviews. However, what I would much rather see is the same methodology applied to other factors, like who the publisher is and who is advertising with a specific site. I'd never heard anything about specific-console bias, but I've darn well heard an earful about EA getting a free-ride on steaming piles like Earth & Beyond. I'd like to see whether the numbers back that up.
I'm a big PC gamer, and up till I got a GBA hadn't owned a console since the Genesis. When I look at what's currently out there, GameCube is the obvious choice. Sure PS2 has an assload of games, but most of them suck. GameCube on the other hand costs next to nothing ($99? That's like $20 more than a game!) and has a bunch of really good looking titles. Plus, with the GameBoy Player I'll be able to play all the GBA games I already have on the TV, or even multi with my GBA.
XBox's big selling point is Live, but since I almost never play PC games on public servers that doesn't mean much to me. I would rather have a 'Cube and a dozen really good games than either of the other systems with their hundreds of mediocre clones and sequels.
I disagree. I had mine professionally installed, so that wasn't an issue. I also got a digital dimmer, which means instead of just off and on like the SP, my light can be adjusted by holding down select and hitting A or B.
Compared to my friend's SP, I would say they're about equal. The main difference (other than the headphone jack, which I almost never use) is that you can get an SP right now, whereas getting an original GBA modded takes some time and may end up costing more. But to say the Afterburner "pales in comparison" is disingenuous. The actual screen quality is virtually identical.
Illuminati is a special case. Some people love it, some people find it involves too much backstabbing and mistrust. My girlfriend refused to play it again after I screwed her and my dad over in a game.
It's actually kind of funny that the head of XBox development would be complaining about a lack of original content. Everyone else has original content, even the PS2 has some compelling exclusives. XBox has Halo and a whole lot of filler. Whose fault is that?
I saw a copy in EB before I had my GBA (it was on order from a place that sold them with the Afterburner preinstalled). I decided to buy MarioKart as my first game instead, and I've never seen it in a store since.
I'm just glad they came out with a sequel that is as good as the first. I didn't really want to have to buy a copy of the first game off Ebay, and the chances of finding it in a physical store were arbitrarily close to zero.
Now, if only I could convince my girlfriend to get over her irrational fear of the tiny screen, we could play multiplayer on our train trip across Canada.
Scott McCloud is an idiot whose main premise is that it doesn't matter that consumers don't want micropayments, they're good for content suppliers and that ought to be enough. All evidence to the contrary be damned.
I think you hit the nail on the head. I read a study recently that said that regardless of what percentage of the overall market the GameCube holds, almost all 'Cube owners are also PS2 owners.
I think telling football players they are better than other people, and covering up their academic shortcomings and legal misconduct, does more to damage the players than the game itself does. Sure it's aggressive, but so what? When a football player gets pulled over for dangerous driving, it isn't the sport that makes them say "do you know who I am!".
They didn't have anything showing for the GBA other than a slot car track? I want to hear how the new Advance Wars looks, and get somebody's take on the Wario Minigame-game.
All the positive reviews I've read say the same thing: you don't enjoy the game for the first 10-20 hours. At some point a light goes on in your head and it all starts to make sense. Up to that point it is very much like work. And remember, these are the positive reviews.
Tycho (at Penny Arcade) said he had to buy the strategy guide and it still took a couple days before he really felt like he was playing the game, rather than fighting with it. So keep that in mind. If you can put in the time, you may find you like it. Personally, I don't think I have that kind of time any more. When I was in highschool, sure. But nowadays I generally only play games for a few hours at a time, and sometimes don't play at all for a week. This just doesn't sound like the right game for me. Maybe I'll give Space Empires IV a go, it's been sitting there on my shelf for close to a year.
I think you have the right idea, but I also think you summed it up wrong. The problem isn't momentum, it's that micropayments are always applied to things people used to get for free. Therefor, they think they ought to still be able to get them for free (and probably they can, somewhere else), and refuse to pay.
I see no reason this go-round will be any different. No amount of encryption or probability math will make me want to pay $0.50 for an mp3 I can get free off Kazaa(lite). Until someone comes up with a use for micropayments that isn't just selling pine cones in the forest, every implimentation will fail.
And what's the one thing that makes money on the internet? Porn. If their business plan was to implement per-download fees on hot girl-on-girl videos, I'd try to get in on the Peppercoin IPO.
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I think a lot of it may have to do with PS2 market saturation. There are so many PS2s in living rooms around the world that even if the next must-have game comes out for PS2, there aren't that many people who want one and don't already have one.
GC and XBox could see a spike, but it would probably get swallowed up by the overall decline in PS2 sales. This is talking about the market, after all. Nintendo and MS could easily have a banner year in 2004 while the total consoles sold goes down.
I'm pretty sure "market share" in this context refers to percentage of total consoles sold that month, rather than percentage of total consoles sold ever. I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure PS2 still holds a huge lead in total sales this generation (not counting the GBA).
It's mildly interesting to see that there may be an anti-GameCube bias in some reviews. However, what I would much rather see is the same methodology applied to other factors, like who the publisher is and who is advertising with a specific site. I'd never heard anything about specific-console bias, but I've darn well heard an earful about EA getting a free-ride on steaming piles like Earth & Beyond. I'd like to see whether the numbers back that up.
They want you to buy Link To The Past for GBA, and play it on your Gameboy Player. Total cost about $80 instead of free.
I'm a big PC gamer, and up till I got a GBA hadn't owned a console since the Genesis. When I look at what's currently out there, GameCube is the obvious choice. Sure PS2 has an assload of games, but most of them suck. GameCube on the other hand costs next to nothing ($99? That's like $20 more than a game!) and has a bunch of really good looking titles. Plus, with the GameBoy Player I'll be able to play all the GBA games I already have on the TV, or even multi with my GBA. XBox's big selling point is Live, but since I almost never play PC games on public servers that doesn't mean much to me. I would rather have a 'Cube and a dozen really good games than either of the other systems with their hundreds of mediocre clones and sequels.
Or, y'know, rechargeable AA batteries. They've only had those for what, 20 years?
I disagree. I had mine professionally installed, so that wasn't an issue. I also got a digital dimmer, which means instead of just off and on like the SP, my light can be adjusted by holding down select and hitting A or B. Compared to my friend's SP, I would say they're about equal. The main difference (other than the headphone jack, which I almost never use) is that you can get an SP right now, whereas getting an original GBA modded takes some time and may end up costing more. But to say the Afterburner "pales in comparison" is disingenuous. The actual screen quality is virtually identical.
Illuminati is a special case. Some people love it, some people find it involves too much backstabbing and mistrust. My girlfriend refused to play it again after I screwed her and my dad over in a game.
It's actually kind of funny that the head of XBox development would be complaining about a lack of original content. Everyone else has original content, even the PS2 has some compelling exclusives. XBox has Halo and a whole lot of filler. Whose fault is that?
I do most of that too (except I have an efficient, Japanese car). But I have free energy already, because it's included in my rent.
Where I went to school, the lights were hooked up to motion detectors. If nothing moved for 15 minutes or so, the lights would go off automatically.
I saw a copy in EB before I had my GBA (it was on order from a place that sold them with the Afterburner preinstalled). I decided to buy MarioKart as my first game instead, and I've never seen it in a store since.
This is the main way of funnelling profits from your company account to your personal account in Railroad Tycoon.
I'm just glad they came out with a sequel that is as good as the first. I didn't really want to have to buy a copy of the first game off Ebay, and the chances of finding it in a physical store were arbitrarily close to zero. Now, if only I could convince my girlfriend to get over her irrational fear of the tiny screen, we could play multiplayer on our train trip across Canada.
Scott McCloud is an idiot whose main premise is that it doesn't matter that consumers don't want micropayments, they're good for content suppliers and that ought to be enough. All evidence to the contrary be damned.
I think you hit the nail on the head. I read a study recently that said that regardless of what percentage of the overall market the GameCube holds, almost all 'Cube owners are also PS2 owners.
I can't speak for anyone else, but my cordless phone and GBA (with AfterBurner) both run on NiMH AA batteries. Nothing compares.
I think telling football players they are better than other people, and covering up their academic shortcomings and legal misconduct, does more to damage the players than the game itself does. Sure it's aggressive, but so what? When a football player gets pulled over for dangerous driving, it isn't the sport that makes them say "do you know who I am!".
I want a RTK port (in English) for the GBA. I don't care what version.
They didn't have anything showing for the GBA other than a slot car track? I want to hear how the new Advance Wars looks, and get somebody's take on the Wario Minigame-game.
They could probably sell two shit-tons if they marketted the PA version.
All the positive reviews I've read say the same thing: you don't enjoy the game for the first 10-20 hours. At some point a light goes on in your head and it all starts to make sense. Up to that point it is very much like work. And remember, these are the positive reviews.
Tycho (at Penny Arcade) said he had to buy the strategy guide and it still took a couple days before he really felt like he was playing the game, rather than fighting with it. So keep that in mind. If you can put in the time, you may find you like it. Personally, I don't think I have that kind of time any more. When I was in highschool, sure. But nowadays I generally only play games for a few hours at a time, and sometimes don't play at all for a week. This just doesn't sound like the right game for me. Maybe I'll give Space Empires IV a go, it's been sitting there on my shelf for close to a year.
I think you have the right idea, but I also think you summed it up wrong. The problem isn't momentum, it's that micropayments are always applied to things people used to get for free. Therefor, they think they ought to still be able to get them for free (and probably they can, somewhere else), and refuse to pay. I see no reason this go-round will be any different. No amount of encryption or probability math will make me want to pay $0.50 for an mp3 I can get free off Kazaa(lite). Until someone comes up with a use for micropayments that isn't just selling pine cones in the forest, every implimentation will fail. And what's the one thing that makes money on the internet? Porn. If their business plan was to implement per-download fees on hot girl-on-girl videos, I'd try to get in on the Peppercoin IPO.
Why is this modded funny? It made me f'ing cry.