So buy an Xbox controller for your PC? The simple fact that the PC is the most malleable of the big gaming systems means it can do anything any of the others can, better. The issue is, of course, price.
Note that Godwin's rule is in full effect despite the fact that the reply wasn't even about politics. I fully expect that "Hitler" would've popped up shortly had the discussion continued.
Err, and EQ has more subscribers than EQ2 by a long shot, and around the same amount it has always had. It isn't so much past its prime as eclipsed by the popularity of WoW and the growth of the MMO playerbase.
That is entirely different. I can understand paying out the nose for something in-game. But having a WoW backpack doesn't make you trendy at all unless you take pictures of yourself with it and send it to everyone.
That seems so odd, I've never seen anything of the sort in EQ. Someone truly dedicated to the game would surely funnel extra funds into in-game benefits, either through multiboxing or buying trading cards hoping for in-game items. Another level 70 character is worth more than all the WoW backpacks in the world, e-peen wise.
Dell XPS Laptop I customized to be as close as possible: $3,458.
Differences: 1. XPS has 400 GBs of space because basic is 120, WoW laptop is 160, and there was no middle ground. 2. WoW laptop has a "AGEIA(TM) PhysX(TM) Physics Accelerator", XPS has a "AGEIA PhysX(TM) 100M Processor". 3. XPS has a free recycling kit.
All in all, pretty darn close, specs-wise, considering that everything else is identical. The XPS actually pulls ahead in HD space.
So what do you get for your $1041?
17" HD widescreen notebook complete with World of Warcraft backpack Illuminated speaker grills and faction specific Honor Badges Back-lit keyboard stays awake as long as you can Track your stats with the world's first built-in notebook Logitech® GamePanelTM LCD Enhanced graphics with NVIDIA® SLITM technology and AGEIA PhysXTM Mobile TechnologyTM Pre-loaded with World of Warcraft, World of Warcraft: Burning Crusade and all major game patches Golden Ticket for a custom FigurePrintTM of your actual in-game World of Warcraft character with your actual armor and weapons World of Warcraft Beta Club Key Card with a key to future World of Warcraft beta tests World of Warcraft and The Burning Crusade Collector's Edition Account Upgrade Certificates Exclusive desktop background artwork and screensavers Additional loot like a behind the scenes DVD, soundtrack, Warcraft novels, strategy guides, trading cards, etc Some paint, $50 of software, a "making-of" DVD + a gift package ($50 in books/cards, maybe?), a backpack, no idea what the figureprint is, a beta code, and, ooh, a screensaver!
That better be a damn good backpack.
Notably, you can cut off another ~$500 from the XPS if you don't bother getting adobe and "Ultimate" Vista (Home edition is included in price). There are a whole slew of other options you can cut that a real gaming machine doesn't necessarily need, the option to remove these isn't really available with the WoW laptop.
The thing about PC is that if you really wanted to, you could split-screen it and play it on a controller as well, with enhanced graphics, it is just infinitely more configurable than a console (barring hardcore console modifications).
If lack of a hard drive makes the $280 360 an "unacceptable gaming experience" then lack of backwards compatibility has to put the $400 PS3 on the same level. The PS3 simply does not have a large enough game library to compete without access to the *extremely* extensive PS2 library (not to mention that of the many many great PS2 games, most are now being discounted as "last-gen" games).
Both Halo and Gears of War have gotten PC ports though, there are many rumors floating around about Mass Effect as well.
This is actually a major point for me and one of the reasons the 360 is the "now-gen" console I'm least interested in. Excellent Xbox 360 games will likely be ported over to PC, so I'll just play them there.
They're still banking on the hope that hardware prices will continue to fall, especially the price for Blu-Ray players. If Blu-Ray wins the format war, we might see a $300 PS3.
Slashdot Mirror
So buy an Xbox controller for your PC? The simple fact that the PC is the most malleable of the big gaming systems means it can do anything any of the others can, better. The issue is, of course, price.
Well, it's no Reason, but we're getting there.
Note that Godwin's rule is in full effect despite the fact that the reply wasn't even about politics. I fully expect that "Hitler" would've popped up shortly had the discussion continued.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin's_law has once again proven true.
It wouldn't really be a Fire Emblem game if there wasn't permadeath.
Hellgate: London
Err, and EQ has more subscribers than EQ2 by a long shot, and around the same amount it has always had. It isn't so much past its prime as eclipsed by the popularity of WoW and the growth of the MMO playerbase.
That is entirely different. I can understand paying out the nose for something in-game. But having a WoW backpack doesn't make you trendy at all unless you take pictures of yourself with it and send it to everyone.
That seems so odd, I've never seen anything of the sort in EQ. Someone truly dedicated to the game would surely funnel extra funds into in-game benefits, either through multiboxing or buying trading cards hoping for in-game items. Another level 70 character is worth more than all the WoW backpacks in the world, e-peen wise.
Dell XPS Laptop I customized to be as close as possible: $3,458.
Differences:
1. XPS has 400 GBs of space because basic is 120, WoW laptop is 160, and there was no middle ground.
2. WoW laptop has a "AGEIA(TM) PhysX(TM) Physics Accelerator", XPS has a "AGEIA PhysX(TM) 100M Processor".
3. XPS has a free recycling kit.
All in all, pretty darn close, specs-wise, considering that everything else is identical. The XPS actually pulls ahead in HD space.
So what do you get for your $1041? 17" HD widescreen notebook complete with World of Warcraft backpack
Illuminated speaker grills and faction specific Honor Badges
Back-lit keyboard stays awake as long as you can
Track your stats with the world's first built-in notebook Logitech® GamePanelTM LCD
Enhanced graphics with NVIDIA® SLITM technology and AGEIA PhysXTM Mobile TechnologyTM
Pre-loaded with World of Warcraft, World of Warcraft: Burning Crusade and all major game patches
Golden Ticket for a custom FigurePrintTM of your actual in-game World of Warcraft character with your actual armor and weapons
World of Warcraft Beta Club Key Card with a key to future World of Warcraft beta tests
World of Warcraft and The Burning Crusade Collector's Edition Account Upgrade Certificates
Exclusive desktop background artwork and screensavers
Additional loot like a behind the scenes DVD, soundtrack, Warcraft novels, strategy guides, trading cards, etc Some paint, $50 of software, a "making-of" DVD + a gift package ($50 in books/cards, maybe?), a backpack, no idea what the figureprint is, a beta code, and, ooh, a screensaver!
Notably, you can cut off another ~$500 from the XPS if you don't bother getting adobe and "Ultimate" Vista (Home edition is included in price). There are a whole slew of other options you can cut that a real gaming machine doesn't necessarily need, the option to remove these isn't really available with the WoW laptop.
The thing about PC is that if you really wanted to, you could split-screen it and play it on a controller as well, with enhanced graphics, it is just infinitely more configurable than a console (barring hardcore console modifications).
If lack of a hard drive makes the $280 360 an "unacceptable gaming experience" then lack of backwards compatibility has to put the $400 PS3 on the same level. The PS3 simply does not have a large enough game library to compete without access to the *extremely* extensive PS2 library (not to mention that of the many many great PS2 games, most are now being discounted as "last-gen" games).
Both Halo and Gears of War have gotten PC ports though, there are many rumors floating around about Mass Effect as well. This is actually a major point for me and one of the reasons the 360 is the "now-gen" console I'm least interested in. Excellent Xbox 360 games will likely be ported over to PC, so I'll just play them there.
They're still banking on the hope that hardware prices will continue to fall, especially the price for Blu-Ray players. If Blu-Ray wins the format war, we might see a $300 PS3.