But you're not wrong. If the release version of Vista is only 2 to 3 times as fast as the latest beta, then running any app with less than 3GHz would be a crime.
My view is very limited (I work in the game industry), but do people really buy the latest and greatest hardware just so they can run Thunderbird faster?
I know there are plenty of non-game apps out there that require some serious CPU clocks, but if you need 2+ GHz to view your mail something has gone very wrong...
I wonder why Sony (or Microsoft, or Nintendo) doesn't direct market like Dell. Instead they market their console (which they say is a PC;)) like a toaster oven or toy.
Yeah, I don't know crap about marketing, so the answer is probably obvious. But with all the money spent on advertising by Sony themselves, I don't see why they need a ToysRUs, Amazon, or Wal*Mart. At least not for the first generation of systems.
Sell direct to the user and reduce the preorder headaches by making sure that each unit gets to an end user and not stuck in a warehouse or on the shelf of a store in BFE.
You speak like this is a bad thing. I'm looking forward to the day when almost all of the development time is spent on gameplay and not just trying to squeeze out 10% more polygons than your competitor. Being able to create a game "for the ages", and not one that will be all but forgotten in 3 years because its graphics have become so dated.
Sony's weak end PS3 is only $100 more than Microsoft's high-end XBox360. This would make sense if the low-end PS3 had the same basic features of the high-end XBox360, but it doesn't. It would be just as fair to say that Sony's PS3 costs $300 more than the XBox 360 system (PS3 with harddrive vs. 360 'core').
And is the PS3 delivering free online gameplay? I know the Wii is, but I haven't heard the same from Sony.
If you are in the market for a Blu-Ray player *and* you want to play games, the PS3 may be a great choice. But it isn't cheaper than the XBox360, it isn't even close.
And the guy who's job it is to read these letters added a check mark to "positive comment on preorder policy" and then chuck it into the trash. You may have even got a form letter with a coupon for your next preorder (if the minimum wage employee enjoyed your irony).
It's fun to act witty but, if you really want to do something, make your letters short and serious. "Due to your preorder policy I will no longer purchase software from your store. I will instead take my business to one of your competitors who does not require me to order my software in advance."
Either that, our kidnap their dog and hold it for ransom. That works too.
You got it. You don't want to make it look like you're screwing your clients over, when you are screwing them over.
Plus, you want to keep interest in your game up. When you add new content, your name comes up again. Maybe I missed "WizzO: RPG" when it first got released, or I had other things to buy that month, but now I have some cash and 'Wow!' you can buy an attack slug for this WizzO game for just 900 credits! Maybe I should buy WizzO...
Most companies don't go to E3 to connect to their users. They go to get investers or big-chain stores interested in their products and to get press coverage.
PAX is for gamers, it isn't set up to be a sales event (and, as a gamer, I hope it never will).
Or Crytek is blowing smoke up people's ass. Not saying they are, but PR and reality don't always meet-up in the game industry.;)
The real high-end video cards on the market now can reproduce a lot of the DX10 features, but they are not "true DX10". Crytek may be using a hopped-up gaming rig, like the rest of the DX10 developers I've talked to.
The XBox360 connects with your PC, your phone, your MP3 player, even that new laundry machine.
Handheld games linking with consoles sounds like a great idea but, so far, I haven't seen any killer-app that makes the effort worthwhile. Right now it is a solution in search of a problem.
"might be a one-way street - the hardcore aren't likely to buy these 'ultra casual' titles... some people who would never normally play games now own DSs, and may 'graduate' to more advanced titles over time."
My mom, who bought a DS for Brain Age, is not going to "graduate" to Metroid. I have friends that are addicted to Spider Solitaire, they are not going to "graduate" to Unreal 3.
On the other hand, I've seen plenty of my friends, who use to be hardcore gamers, start playing casual games. When you get girlfriends, jobs, car payments, a wife, kids, etc. suddenly it becomes much harder to justify the time and money needed to be hardcore.
If anything, hardcore gamers graduate to become casual games with lives.
I'm guessing it's mostly a QA thing. Plus the fact that, compared to GTA on consoles, PC sales are probably really small.
Memory management, "smarter" peds, non-static environments on a large scale all take serious work (and money). And, most of the time, it isn't worth it. Buyers are more interested in the graphics...
Has your cabinet seen real arcade use since you've got it, or is it just for your personal use?
Having worked with arcade machines that see real use, you'd be amazed the crap that happens to these machines. The way some people abuse the controls, you'd think Donkey Kong raped their mom.
From most of the soccer games I've seen, if one side has scored 5 points in the first 10 minutes, the other side is either totally out-classed or dead.
No, I have to agree. I just downloaded the latest version of BOINC. The install was easy, and it found some old BOINC projects on my PC (all past due). But now what do I do? No graphics, no "hey you might be interested in starting this project" message, it isn't even obvious if the thing is running or not.
Yes, I can figure this out and maybe it works well when you manage multiple CPUs, but I'm not trying to get the "high score" here, I just want to install something on my personal PC.
The grandparent post's point was that to be really successful, you shouldn't force the users to think at all. This is one of the reasons why SETI@Home worked, it was like plug-and-play science.
Re:Ok, I was interested before but now....
on
Wii-mote In Action
·
· Score: 2, Insightful
My hands on experience with shooters on the Wii is that it's awkward. You want to point the controller at the screen like a gun, but it doesn't work that way. Instead you are moving your cross-hair just like any other console FPS, but now you're doing it with a remote control.
Yes, I only got 5 minutes with the thing, so I'm hoping it will feel a lot better once you get use to it. But it didn't feel like I was shooting from the remote, but from the screen (if that makes any sense).
Oh, and before the Nintendo fanboi rip me a new one, I love the system! I'm just not sold on it be the best FPS system ever.
"require both feet and all ten fingers moving independently."
Already you are making things too hard. You don't need the foot pedals and you can reduce the keyboard down to 8 or 12 keys. The starting games would only use a couple of keys, close together, making it easy to get started. More advanced levels would require you to play with both hands and your nose.;)
I gave up on "mainstream media" a long time ago, but most of the entertainment news I hear is about actor X's marriage to actress Y, which is really a sham, because he loves actress (or actor) Z. Oh, and what are they going to name "the baby".
So, until we get some juicy info on Lara Croft's relationship with Duke Nukem, I don't think the mainstream is going to give us as much love.;)
I never said that people are stupid, they just don't care about tech like you and I do.
I'm no marketing expert, but it appears that people are conditioned to pay that "bit extra" (in this case an additional 1/5 the cost of the base console) to get the "most value" ("real" HD output, bigger drive, memory card reader) even if they don't end up using all of it. There are plenty of examples of this.
"They are not saying this IS a PC, just that it can replace one."
Was that written in some part of the article I missed? Gamasutra only reported on the part of the interview that said "PlayStation 3 is clearly a computer" and "Since PS3 is a computer, there are no "models" but "configurations"". Maybe the part about it replacing PCs was omitted.
"That's what you are many others are not understanding as you sit there playing Armcair CEO."
Welcome to the internet.:) While I've done some marketing, I have no illusions of taking the CEO position at Sony. I just wanted to discuss what I thought about your opinions and let you know my own.
The $500 PS3 is just there so Sony can market the PS3 at "ONLY $499.95!". Few people are going to buy it, but it might get some people into the store. I'm guessing, even if the $600 PS3 is on back order for months, you'll still see the $500 PS3 on store shelves.
Most people outside of Slashdot don't know much, if anything, about the root-kit fiasco. But I'm guessing most of them know what a "PlayStation" is. It's a game console, not a PC.
If Sony wants to build PCs, they should build PCs. Maybe they can call them something silly like...um...VAIOs?
This is just more stupid hype. We've all been on this ride before (PS2, PS, SegaCD, 3DO), and it's getting old...
Doing a web-search, buying a cheat-book, to play a "fun" game. Why?
Yes, us tech-monkeys don't think twice about such things (I use my TabletPC to look up maps and guides while I play games on my desktop PC) but we are not the mass-market. Some people just want to play games for fun.
Parents maybe the 1st line of defense for *kids* (although I would argue that they are the last, and therefor most important, line of defense) but what about the gaming industry? Billy's mom should keep GTA away from her son, but I don't think she's going to protect Rockstar Games from the government.
The game industry needs an organization to protect it from the government, which is why we created the ESRB.
Slashdot Mirror
Score a Slashdot point (bashing Microsoft). :)
But you're not wrong. If the release version of Vista is only 2 to 3 times as fast as the latest beta, then running any app with less than 3GHz would be a crime.
My view is very limited (I work in the game industry), but do people really buy the latest and greatest hardware just so they can run Thunderbird faster?
I know there are plenty of non-game apps out there that require some serious CPU clocks, but if you need 2+ GHz to view your mail something has gone very wrong...
I wonder why Sony (or Microsoft, or Nintendo) doesn't direct market like Dell. Instead they market their console (which they say is a PC ;)) like a toaster oven or toy.
Yeah, I don't know crap about marketing, so the answer is probably obvious. But with all the money spent on advertising by Sony themselves, I don't see why they need a ToysRUs, Amazon, or Wal*Mart. At least not for the first generation of systems.
Sell direct to the user and reduce the preorder headaches by making sure that each unit gets to an end user and not stuck in a warehouse or on the shelf of a store in BFE.
You speak like this is a bad thing. I'm looking forward to the day when almost all of the development time is spent on gameplay and not just trying to squeeze out 10% more polygons than your competitor. Being able to create a game "for the ages", and not one that will be all but forgotten in 3 years because its graphics have become so dated.
Sony's weak end PS3 is only $100 more than Microsoft's high-end XBox360. This would make sense if the low-end PS3 had the same basic features of the high-end XBox360, but it doesn't. It would be just as fair to say that Sony's PS3 costs $300 more than the XBox 360 system (PS3 with harddrive vs. 360 'core').
And is the PS3 delivering free online gameplay? I know the Wii is, but I haven't heard the same from Sony.
If you are in the market for a Blu-Ray player *and* you want to play games, the PS3 may be a great choice. But it isn't cheaper than the XBox360, it isn't even close.
And the guy who's job it is to read these letters added a check mark to "positive comment on preorder policy" and then chuck it into the trash. You may have even got a form letter with a coupon for your next preorder (if the minimum wage employee enjoyed your irony).
It's fun to act witty but, if you really want to do something, make your letters short and serious. "Due to your preorder policy I will no longer purchase software from your store. I will instead take my business to one of your competitors who does not require me to order my software in advance."
Either that, our kidnap their dog and hold it for ransom. That works too.
You got it. You don't want to make it look like you're screwing your clients over, when you are screwing them over.
Plus, you want to keep interest in your game up. When you add new content, your name comes up again. Maybe I missed "WizzO: RPG" when it first got released, or I had other things to buy that month, but now I have some cash and 'Wow!' you can buy an attack slug for this WizzO game for just 900 credits! Maybe I should buy WizzO...
Most companies don't go to E3 to connect to their users. They go to get investers or big-chain stores interested in their products and to get press coverage.
PAX is for gamers, it isn't set up to be a sales event (and, as a gamer, I hope it never will).
Or Crytek is blowing smoke up people's ass. Not saying they are, but PR and reality don't always meet-up in the game industry. ;)
The real high-end video cards on the market now can reproduce a lot of the DX10 features, but they are not "true DX10". Crytek may be using a hopped-up gaming rig, like the rest of the DX10 developers I've talked to.
The XBox360 connects with your PC, your phone, your MP3 player, even that new laundry machine.
Handheld games linking with consoles sounds like a great idea but, so far, I haven't seen any killer-app that makes the effort worthwhile. Right now it is a solution in search of a problem.
"might be a one-way street - the hardcore aren't likely to buy these 'ultra casual' titles ... some people who would never normally play games now own DSs, and may 'graduate' to more advanced titles over time."
My mom, who bought a DS for Brain Age, is not going to "graduate" to Metroid. I have friends that are addicted to Spider Solitaire, they are not going to "graduate" to Unreal 3.
On the other hand, I've seen plenty of my friends, who use to be hardcore gamers, start playing casual games. When you get girlfriends, jobs, car payments, a wife, kids, etc. suddenly it becomes much harder to justify the time and money needed to be hardcore.
If anything, hardcore gamers graduate to become casual games with lives.
I'm guessing it's mostly a QA thing. Plus the fact that, compared to GTA on consoles, PC sales are probably really small.
Memory management, "smarter" peds, non-static environments on a large scale all take serious work (and money). And, most of the time, it isn't worth it. Buyers are more interested in the graphics...
Has your cabinet seen real arcade use since you've got it, or is it just for your personal use?
Having worked with arcade machines that see real use, you'd be amazed the crap that happens to these machines. The way some people abuse the controls, you'd think Donkey Kong raped their mom.
The difference is that Microsoft said that the XBox is a console. Sony says The PS3 is a 'Computer', not a Console
Yes, I can figure this out and maybe it works well when you manage multiple CPUs, but I'm not trying to get the "high score" here, I just want to install something on my personal PC.
The grandparent post's point was that to be really successful, you shouldn't force the users to think at all. This is one of the reasons why SETI@Home worked, it was like plug-and-play science.
Yes, I only got 5 minutes with the thing, so I'm hoping it will feel a lot better once you get use to it. But it didn't feel like I was shooting from the remote, but from the screen (if that makes any sense).
Oh, and before the Nintendo fanboi rip me a new one, I love the system! I'm just not sold on it be the best FPS system ever.
Already you are making things too hard. You don't need the foot pedals and you can reduce the keyboard down to 8 or 12 keys. The starting games would only use a couple of keys, close together, making it easy to get started. More advanced levels would require you to play with both hands and your nose. ;)
And, if Slashdot is anything like GDC06, he'll get his wish and there will be a hundred "No it isn't" posts... *sigh*
So, until we get some juicy info on Lara Croft's relationship with Duke Nukem, I don't think the mainstream is going to give us as much love. ;)
I'm no marketing expert, but it appears that people are conditioned to pay that "bit extra" (in this case an additional 1/5 the cost of the base console) to get the "most value" ("real" HD output, bigger drive, memory card reader) even if they don't end up using all of it. There are plenty of examples of this.
"They are not saying this IS a PC, just that it can replace one."
Was that written in some part of the article I missed? Gamasutra only reported on the part of the interview that said "PlayStation 3 is clearly a computer" and "Since PS3 is a computer, there are no "models" but "configurations"". Maybe the part about it replacing PCs was omitted.
"That's what you are many others are not understanding as you sit there playing Armcair CEO." :) While I've done some marketing, I have no illusions of taking the CEO position at Sony. I just wanted to discuss what I thought about your opinions and let you know my own.
Welcome to the internet.
Most people outside of Slashdot don't know much, if anything, about the root-kit fiasco. But I'm guessing most of them know what a "PlayStation" is. It's a game console, not a PC.
If Sony wants to build PCs, they should build PCs. Maybe they can call them something silly like...um...VAIOs?
This is just more stupid hype. We've all been on this ride before (PS2, PS, SegaCD, 3DO), and it's getting old...
Yes, us tech-monkeys don't think twice about such things (I use my TabletPC to look up maps and guides while I play games on my desktop PC) but we are not the mass-market. Some people just want to play games for fun.
The game industry needs an organization to protect it from the government, which is why we created the ESRB.