how is this insightful. whether it works or not, i cant argue... but the current philosphophy among consoles makers [except nintendo] says: what really matters isnt how much profit you make, what matters is how many systems you sell. if you have a large install base, more developers will want to release more games for your system. the more developers are releasing games equates to the more licensing fees youre going to receive. its not supposed to follow common sense... its marketting!!!
your average joe [about 80% of your console owners] will not be tech savy enough to be able to actually mod their equipment or know where to buy the software/ hardware needed for homebrew or HD loaders, etc... so if you lose 20% of console base to homebrew and piracy, who cares as long as you have more consoles sold? you can turn a profit off the backs of the other 80%.
think about it... nintendo supposedly posted the most profit from the last two generations, but no one would dare say that nintendo is still king of the hill anymore. if nintendo went the way of sega tomorrow, there arent too many developers that will lose more than a nights rest. but if sony went kaput, you would have developers seriously sweating bullets. sony has more pull over the direction of the entire industry right now. a large reason behind that is the size of sonys' install base, and a large reason behind that is that every sony system ever created has allowed for homebrew/ piracy of some form. hell, other than halo, most people mention the ability to mod the xbox as the next highest reason to buy a xbox in the first place. the highest selling nintendo product for now is the GBA, and thats the only nintendo product ever to allow reasonably easy homebrew/ piracy. sure it could all be a coincidence that the highest selling consoles have always been the ones that allow for piracy and homebrew... but this is how marketing works; whatever gets the product out there and creates a buzz.
yeah, but then again the x360 doesnt play all games via backwards compatibility either, so if microsoft is having a hard time emulationg and finding workarounds for hardware that they themseolves created, you can imagine how hard it is for blackbox emulator creators. i think that you should give them credit for getting ANYTHING to work at all, considering...
thank you, but realize that my point still stands. the xbox/should/ be looking for signed code, and/should/ NOT play any code that is NOT signed. so actually now what youre saying is that there are no parts of the threeway check present...?
prob not the case here. chances are that the binaries are in fact signed and the release group jumped the gun; OR they meant that the data itself is unsigned; and the exes are the only thing signed. same as on the original xbox... which is why people were able to import character models from halo, dead or alive etc...
yes the executables were probably signed, but in making copies you still have a copy of the signed exe, what stops media from directly running is the media check. normally, if its not the official format, if the dummy sectors are absent and the filesystem is correct, or if its not the official media of MS, it still doesnt run the code. its traditionally a three way check. thats not the case here though. here two parts of that are missing.
whats really important here, is to know that games can be run from different sources; its not limited to a certain form of media. therefore you can run from a backup copy of your disk, or possibly even a harddrive. microsoft probably enabled the drive to accept any form of media disk [at least for certain titles like this] just in case they DO decide to move ahead with the HD-DVD drive. by the time they started manufacturing x360s the HD-DVD spec wasnt even done; thus they probably enabled this to future-proof the console, if they ever decided to change their minds and release hd-dvd versions of games or interactive media.
microsoft has made absolutely NO attempt to deny how they are closely following their competitions strategies. to that end... if they see potential to copy a concept im sure they will. they are highly aware that the ability to easily use swap methods with the ps1 and ps2, the mod and gamesave exploits for the original xbox, and the homebrew potential of the psp are major reasons for sonys' systems to sell like hotcakes, maybe this could be an underhanded effort to get "the scene" interested in cracking the x360. once they get the scene interested, the word of mouth will further their hype machine.
look at how everyone was abuzz with news of homebrew available for the [v1.0] psp in japan, and everyone was waiting with bated breath for the us version [1.5] to be cracked as well. it could be that MS is trying to follow suit, and look the other way as the pirates offer free advertisement.
yes, but youre also missing the larger point. your average joe blow in hicktown, usa doesnt know what any of that means. he knows that his old tv doesnt work anymore or is about to be obsolete, so he gets in his pickup truck and goes to walmart and asks the saleman what to do. obviously, walmart salemen know EVERYTHING about tvs and will give them the best advice!!!!
do you think said salesman is going to say... "hey, buy this cheap converter that is partially subsidized by the govt"? do you think hes going to say... "this tv is just like yours in terms of quality and price, except it works and yours doesnt"? or is he going to say... "this is the biggest and best. buy the new uber super widescreen flat lcd 1080p HDCP HDMI HDTV with builtin toaster oven and a handy builtin cabinet for your shotgun collection"?
most people dont understand the mid-ground. they dont want to figure out how to hook up new boxes... they dont want to read a manual [isnt there a significant portion of illiterate americans still?!?!?!] they just want it to work. to that end many will gladly buy a new tv instead of spending the four minutes to RTFM or google up some research on how to make the old one work... i mean its the american way!
well, just because developers havent used them properly yet, doesnt mean that a good feature should be totally eradicated in future revisions.
some games make for good use of the pressure, but those are few and far inbetween. and the really good ones do it transparently, so you dont even realize.
i agree with the author. keep pressure sensitivity. its just waiting for its first real killer app. driving games come to mind, where the presure sensitivity translates well into use in racing games. im sure there are other opportunities to take advantage... we just have to wait and see.
look at how well directional sensitivity [analog sticks/ pads] have been adopted as the #1 form of character movement.
its not about design flaws per se... its about launch flaws. i assumed that these gripes were things that he felt microsoft should have fixed or had finished by launch. if you go back and re-read the article, with the exception of the pressure sensitive buttons on the controller and maybe the systemwide video calibration... youll notice that none of the items mentioned could not be fixed in a future upgrade of the console.
i agree with you, and can guarantee you one thing... before the x360 sees the end of its cycle, you will see at least a few of these items addressed. [but then again, this is microsoft... so maybe its just wishful thinking on my part.]
dont forget that your average NON-HARDCORE gamer, many females, and older people dont want to or even simply have the technical knowledge necessary to put together a decent HTPC. thats why there is a market for those windows media, and HTPC packages. some people just want everything working out of the box, and a number they can call or ship the box back if it doesnt work right.
to date, i have not seen a HTPC package that was cheap. the reason so many people went the xbox modding route is so they can have a really, really cheap media box. if youre putting one together yourself... thats a different story, but honestly... how many people do? how many people put together their own pcs? maybe the slashdot crowd, but if we were representative of the american norm, dell would be effectively out of business.
in the next couple of years prices for all HDTVs will fall dramatically as more and more are brought to market.
1) people will start buying HDTVs in the US due to the govt approving the switch to digital TV in three years, so people are going to rush to buy new tvs... regardless of what the govt says about subsidizing convertors for everyone. people [americans esp] wont wait until the last minute to buy a new tv if they think they may miss reruns of sex in the city, survivor and lost.
2) with all of these consoles pushing HD resolutions, most gamers are just now jumping to buy HDTVs to take advantage of the increased graphical quality; if they can afford to. a lot non-hardcore gamers dont even realize you can use the x360 with a SDTV.
3) in time HDTVs are all that will be sold. as manufacturers clear their stock of analog sets, they arent going to keep producing sets that even consumers realize are going to be obsolete faster than they can carry the boxes home.
actually, i know where he is coming from. its basically some marketing FUD that J Allard, majornelson and microsoft PR were spouting off trying to impress people with the power of the x360. it was immediately following launch i think. i cant find the link i read it from so...
basically he was saying that "none of the launch games even use more than one of the cores of the x360, so imagine the power of our box when developers get up to speed with their multithreaded programming". i read it as FUD and kinda ignored it, based upon a) the inquirers' rep and b) microsofts habit of denying rumors that they started or pushing the fallout over to their competitors. apparently its going to bite them in the longrun if they dont ante up to those comments. apparently they were way off the mark as more and more developers can now speak up and reveal details surrounding the games that are no longer top secret.
granted, its a handheld console... but the embedded webbrowser of the PSP v2.0+ have been overly well recieved by PSP owners. popups are a non-issue. given that the x360 is able to display a much larger screen area, supports mouse + keyboard, and actually can hold much more in its memory buffer... i dont see why they wont release a webbrowser.
i guess since its a MS product they would be strongarmed into using internet explorer. that would open the x360 up to spyware and the whole security hole+patch+hole+patch+hole+servicepack+hole+patch cycle they would want to avoid.
the x360 crashes have been covered here, cnn, engadget, joystiq, ign, gamespot and all over the rest of the blogosphere. of course, slashdot has also posted stories about the xbox power cord causing household fires as well. i thought you may have had a point for a second, but then i woke up and realized that they have also posted stories about slimline ps2 power cord issues, the sony rootkit... etc etc etc. slashdot is a news site. if youre reading the games section, youre going to read good and bad news about each and every console. get over it. if you only want to read positive articles about the xbox, head over to the teamxbox forums.
...huh? oh, thats right... they were the FIRST to report that the x360 was prone crashing.
last but not least, correct me if im wrong, but according to microsofts's very own pr machine: 10% of x360s are experiencing problems. only 1% have been returned as of yet. since it came out of their mouth i can see them underestimating, but i doubt they would overestimate numbers that amount to negative pr.
well. in all honesty, have you played any of EA's games for the PSP? with the exception of burnout legends and ssx, most EA games kinda suck. this is the same company that has to issue a recall on its psp version of madden06. keep that in perspective.
sure the system isnt outselling the DS, but who really doesnt think the PSP isnt selling well? theres at least three million PSP owners out there and another seven million PSP units on sale this holiday season. given the fact that this marks the first psp holiday season its on sale to most of the world, those numbers will undoubtedly grow. this is like a company saying that theres only three million xbox live users during its first year, so we wont be making anymore live-aware games.
personally i think its stupid. as most psp owners will tell you, and most ds owners will point out as their main reason for not choosing a psp; its all about the games. owners want more games, and ds owners prefer games that arent available on the psp. ea could stand to make boatloads of money with just the existing psp install-base if they actually created a must own game. instead most of the ea games are sequels and console rehashes that are old hat to most psp owners. psp owners are tired of that. this doesnt sound like good business at all. if they create the games, gamers will follow.look at all the folks that bought a playstation just to play final fantasy vii, or all the people that bought an xbox just to play halo or halo2. software and hardware are always going to be linked. ea has created the most third party psp games [30% of all psp game sales??!?!?!?], but most are lackluster... so obviously psp sales are going to suffer.
i think the point was that, it was speculation from the mouth of a developer.
granted developers are infamous for spilling the beans on new console secrets months ahead of time, but i still find it slightly strange that sony execs have been publicly talking about how they are still working on online plans, yet the general consensus is that based upon the words of one single developer, people are so quick to write off any idea of sony having some form of centralized online support.
however, until an official announcement is made, who knows what will happen? until you see it for yourself, you cant believe anything; good or bad. i guess the AC needs to stop spouting off until we know for sure. im sure he understands that he has to wait and see what the ps3 games look like graphically first, before he just runs off and believes what he say in the killzone trailer, right?...right?
my point is that the original xbox was capable of HD output. there wasnt much in the way of content, but it was possible and was done to some extent during the current generation.
as the other AC pointed out... the ps2 output gran turismo in 720p and 1080i as well. there are several ps2 games that ran in 480p, but considering that 480p doesnt count... ill let that part of the argument rest.
as for my comment about them cutting the generation in half, sega realized they were in a sinking ship and kickstarted the next generation. microsoft saw that they were in a sinking ship and did the same. your years are off for console releases. where are you getting your numbers? europe? australia? im referring to dates of FIRST production in their home region.
as i pointed out, the article isnt about the ps3. its about the fact that sony is the only company able to supply homeowners with media that is available in true HD. true HD meaning able to support ALL standard HDTVs entering the market. [excluding the handful of special purpose HDTVs that run at resolutions higher than 1080p and are not being mass-produced.] remember, you can not go to the movie rental store and buy ANY movies from the major studios that will play in 1080p. when you are able to do that, THEN you will see true HD at home.
and yes, its true that sony hd tvs do not show the "true definition of HD" thats because there isn't any true HD content beyond 1080i to show on them, yet. the guy is like if youve got a 720p/1080i HDTV, youve already got content... and we've got you covered... BUT if you went out and bought the biggest and best right now at 1080p, sony has you covered as well. they have to cover the bases; how would HDTV owners feel if HD media only supported up to 480p? theyd feel like they were cheated and wouldnt buy subpar media. sony has to cover all their bases
thats the point. they want to point out that blu-ray is supposed to be the first reliable source of the highest definition HD home entertainment. the corollary is that the ps3 will be the first major form of viewing blu-ray.
dead or alive 4 will encompass the lead characters for at least 3 of the xbox's exclusive AAA titles. dont forget that ryu from ninja gaiden is already in there too.
PC developers have provided multiple resolutions for years. i dont see why this gen of consoles would be any different.
most likely it will be a developer choice: design a decent framerate game at 1080p and allow users to downgrade to 720p and watch the framerate skyrocket. or they can design for 720p and rely on the console to upconvert to 1080p where it twitches and dies. also, there are very many developers that believe in providing the very best experience for gamers; team ninja would opt for 1080p if they had the choice. i can see the gran turismo team doing the same and the MGS4 team too. there are developers that want to push the envelope, not everyone is an EA that just wants to pump out quantity.
i can see blu-ray taking off simply because it seems to be in the lead in the next gen HD movie format war. people have these HDTVs and they are looking for more content to use when showing it off. they are going to want movies they can use when showcasing their new home theater.
maybe you guys didnt read the same article i read, or maybe EVERYONE is extrapolating based upon their hatred for sony.
what i got from the article is no where near as sinister. they are saying that the true HD era wont begin until the arrival of the ps3. no big deal; its your common sony boastful commentary. however, in this case, he kinda has a slight point.
microsoft has been pushing this hd era deal for the x360, but so what? they are claiming to have started something that EVERY console was capable of last generation. so what? why is HD special now? oh... because MS says so. no big deal, im happy MS is pushing the standard. however, in sonys defense... the hd era begins once we start getting content. according to sony the HD era is defined as display, content and equipment. the display has been there since last generation... no big deal. the equipment was there since last generation as well; almost every gamecube title was capable of running in 480p. whats missing is true HD content. content meaning movies in particular. as of now, the ps3 is the only major component that will be on the market and ready to deliver next-gen HD format movies. upconverted dvds arent the same. they have a point in that regard. sony is the only company that can provide all of the pieces to the HD puzzle. the problem is... people are taking that ONE point that they have and blowing it up out of proportions.
as for their 1080p is "real" HD claim. its BS, anyone with common sense knows to ignore it. however, ask yourself this: in the next say 8-10 years, if you have to buy a new HDTV and you decide to get the best. the best being 1080p. as more tvs enter the market and the price drops, eventually 1080p will become the next standard. wouldnt you be able to appreciate a system that was capable of taking advantage of your console? its futureproofing; as a consumer, i appreciate a company that is thinking about the high end.
he didnt say that 720p was not HD, nor did he say that 1080i wasnt HD. he said that 1080p was the true definition of HD. lets use our brains here... this article isnt about the ps3 really; its about the next generation of HD movies which to my knowledge will be encoded and playable at 1080p on bluray disks. although you could, you dont buy a 1080p tv to watch 480p dvds on it. you dont buy a 1080p HDTV to play 720p games on it. you buy things that take advantage of the added resolution you paid good money for. if your console cant even output the native resolution of the main format next gen movies will be released in, what use would an add on player be? esp, if its already downgrading your movies? anyone would instead opt to buy a standalone player that doesnt need to downgrade the movies; so you can play them at the native resolution. i guess if you only have a 720p/1080i tv, which is mostly the case out here, so i understand why this may not matter to you much, but think about the future... if youre releasing a product that you want to be around for nearly a decade, you want it to be able to take advantage of as many HD formats as possible. the x360 will not be able to take full advantage of certain HDTVs/already/ on the market; 1080p tvs will eventually become pretty standard and the x360 is just now being released unable to take advantage of them at their native resolution.
dont get me wrong, i am going to buy a x360 as well... but with hearing about the various problems that it has, i can see microsoft doing a repeat of their xbox shenanigans and phasing out the x360 in a few years if they dont find themselves in first place. how come no one is upset that thanks to MS the current-gen lifecycle basically got cut in half? last to market and first to abandon? if the ps3 has better specs/AND/ lives up to its hype, i can see microsoft abandoning the x360 and trying to push the xbox720 in four years.
i think during their first go at the console race, MS felt that they would rather try to cultivate smaller studios into the next capcom, namco, or square enix. seems like MS doesnt want to spend the money to steal studios from sony; they would rather make deals with small and mid-range studios that have more incentive to give in MS tactics. the prob with MS's stance is that they dont get very many exclusive titles from any studio.
still, i understand where youre coming from. the x360 could have had a better execution, but MS tried to push this next generation upon us a lil too quick, and the first iteration of the x360 will have to suffer because of it.
who knows, the x360 looks like it may have some promise left in it. if only its AAA titles end up living up to their hype.
just a reference to the commonly held believe that the GC's software library [in US eyes] is inferior in comparison to the xbox and ps2. their firsty party titles are generally excellent, but there were relatively few and far in between. there wasnt as much diversity in their genres and age ranges. there were few third party titles and a large portion of those were not exclusive.
Slashdot Mirror
how is this insightful. whether it works or not, i cant argue... but the current philosphophy among consoles makers [except nintendo] says: what really matters isnt how much profit you make, what matters is how many systems you sell. if you have a large install base, more developers will want to release more games for your system. the more developers are releasing games equates to the more licensing fees youre going to receive. its not supposed to follow common sense... its marketting!!!
your average joe [about 80% of your console owners] will not be tech savy enough to be able to actually mod their equipment or know where to buy the software/ hardware needed for homebrew or HD loaders, etc... so if you lose 20% of console base to homebrew and piracy, who cares as long as you have more consoles sold? you can turn a profit off the backs of the other 80%.
think about it... nintendo supposedly posted the most profit from the last two generations, but no one would dare say that nintendo is still king of the hill anymore. if nintendo went the way of sega tomorrow, there arent too many developers that will lose more than a nights rest. but if sony went kaput, you would have developers seriously sweating bullets. sony has more pull over the direction of the entire industry right now. a large reason behind that is the size of sonys' install base, and a large reason behind that is that every sony system ever created has allowed for homebrew/ piracy of some form. hell, other than halo, most people mention the ability to mod the xbox as the next highest reason to buy a xbox in the first place. the highest selling nintendo product for now is the GBA, and thats the only nintendo product ever to allow reasonably easy homebrew/ piracy. sure it could all be a coincidence that the highest selling consoles have always been the ones that allow for piracy and homebrew... but this is how marketing works; whatever gets the product out there and creates a buzz.
yeah, but then again the x360 doesnt play all games via backwards compatibility either, so if microsoft is having a hard time emulationg and finding workarounds for hardware that they themseolves created, you can imagine how hard it is for blackbox emulator creators. i think that you should give them credit for getting ANYTHING to work at all, considering...
nothings perfect...
thank you, but realize that my point still stands. the xbox /should/ be looking for signed code, and /should/ NOT play any code that is NOT signed. so actually now what youre saying is that there are no parts of the threeway check present...?
prob not the case here. chances are that the binaries are in fact signed and the release group jumped the gun; OR they meant that the data itself is unsigned; and the exes are the only thing signed. same as on the original xbox... which is why people were able to import character models from halo, dead or alive etc...
yes the executables were probably signed, but in making copies you still have a copy of the signed exe, what stops media from directly running is the media check. normally, if its not the official format, if the dummy sectors are absent and the filesystem is correct, or if its not the official media of MS, it still doesnt run the code. its traditionally a three way check. thats not the case here though. here two parts of that are missing.
whats really important here, is to know that games can be run from different sources; its not limited to a certain form of media. therefore you can run from a backup copy of your disk, or possibly even a harddrive. microsoft probably enabled the drive to accept any form of media disk [at least for certain titles like this] just in case they DO decide to move ahead with the HD-DVD drive. by the time they started manufacturing x360s the HD-DVD spec wasnt even done; thus they probably enabled this to future-proof the console, if they ever decided to change their minds and release hd-dvd versions of games or interactive media.
microsoft has made absolutely NO attempt to deny how they are closely following their competitions strategies. to that end... if they see potential to copy a concept im sure they will. they are highly aware that the ability to easily use swap methods with the ps1 and ps2, the mod and gamesave exploits for the original xbox, and the homebrew potential of the psp are major reasons for sonys' systems to sell like hotcakes, maybe this could be an underhanded effort to get "the scene" interested in cracking the x360. once they get the scene interested, the word of mouth will further their hype machine.
look at how everyone was abuzz with news of homebrew available for the [v1.0] psp in japan, and everyone was waiting with bated breath for the us version [1.5] to be cracked as well. it could be that MS is trying to follow suit, and look the other way as the pirates offer free advertisement.
yes, but youre also missing the larger point. your average joe blow in hicktown, usa doesnt know what any of that means. he knows that his old tv doesnt work anymore or is about to be obsolete, so he gets in his pickup truck and goes to walmart and asks the saleman what to do. obviously, walmart salemen know EVERYTHING about tvs and will give them the best advice!!!!
do you think said salesman is going to say... "hey, buy this cheap converter that is partially subsidized by the govt"? do you think hes going to say... "this tv is just like yours in terms of quality and price, except it works and yours doesnt"? or is he going to say... "this is the biggest and best. buy the new uber super widescreen flat lcd 1080p HDCP HDMI HDTV with builtin toaster oven and a handy builtin cabinet for your shotgun collection"?
most people dont understand the mid-ground. they dont want to figure out how to hook up new boxes... they dont want to read a manual [isnt there a significant portion of illiterate americans still?!?!?!] they just want it to work. to that end many will gladly buy a new tv instead of spending the four minutes to RTFM or google up some research on how to make the old one work... i mean its the american way!
well, just because developers havent used them properly yet, doesnt mean that a good feature should be totally eradicated in future revisions.
some games make for good use of the pressure, but those are few and far inbetween. and the really good ones do it transparently, so you dont even realize.
i agree with the author. keep pressure sensitivity. its just waiting for its first real killer app. driving games come to mind, where the presure sensitivity translates well into use in racing games. im sure there are other opportunities to take advantage... we just have to wait and see.
look at how well directional sensitivity [analog sticks/ pads] have been adopted as the #1 form of character movement.
its not about design flaws per se... its about launch flaws. i assumed that these gripes were things that he felt microsoft should have fixed or had finished by launch. if you go back and re-read the article, with the exception of the pressure sensitive buttons on the controller and maybe the systemwide video calibration... youll notice that none of the items mentioned could not be fixed in a future upgrade of the console.
i agree with you, and can guarantee you one thing... before the x360 sees the end of its cycle, you will see at least a few of these items addressed. [but then again, this is microsoft... so maybe its just wishful thinking on my part.]
dont forget that your average NON-HARDCORE gamer, many females, and older people dont want to or even simply have the technical knowledge necessary to put together a decent HTPC. thats why there is a market for those windows media, and HTPC packages. some people just want everything working out of the box, and a number they can call or ship the box back if it doesnt work right.
to date, i have not seen a HTPC package that was cheap. the reason so many people went the xbox modding route is so they can have a really, really cheap media box. if youre putting one together yourself... thats a different story, but honestly... how many people do? how many people put together their own pcs? maybe the slashdot crowd, but if we were representative of the american norm, dell would be effectively out of business.
in the next couple of years prices for all HDTVs will fall dramatically as more and more are brought to market.
1) people will start buying HDTVs in the US due to the govt approving the switch to digital TV in three years, so people are going to rush to buy new tvs... regardless of what the govt says about subsidizing convertors for everyone. people [americans esp] wont wait until the last minute to buy a new tv if they think they may miss reruns of sex in the city, survivor and lost.
2) with all of these consoles pushing HD resolutions, most gamers are just now jumping to buy HDTVs to take advantage of the increased graphical quality; if they can afford to. a lot non-hardcore gamers dont even realize you can use the x360 with a SDTV.
3) in time HDTVs are all that will be sold. as manufacturers clear their stock of analog sets, they arent going to keep producing sets that even consumers realize are going to be obsolete faster than they can carry the boxes home.
actually, i know where he is coming from. its basically some marketing FUD that J Allard, majornelson and microsoft PR were spouting off trying to impress people with the power of the x360. it was immediately following launch i think. i cant find the link i read it from so...
[update! found it]
http://theinquirer.net/?article=27249
basically he was saying that "none of the launch games even use more than one of the cores of the x360, so imagine the power of our box when developers get up to speed with their multithreaded programming". i read it as FUD and kinda ignored it, based upon a) the inquirers' rep and b) microsofts habit of denying rumors that they started or pushing the fallout over to their competitors. apparently its going to bite them in the longrun if they dont ante up to those comments. apparently they were way off the mark as more and more developers can now speak up and reveal details surrounding the games that are no longer top secret.
granted, its a handheld console... but the embedded webbrowser of the PSP v2.0+ have been overly well recieved by PSP owners. popups are a non-issue. given that the x360 is able to display a much larger screen area, supports mouse + keyboard, and actually can hold much more in its memory buffer... i dont see why they wont release a webbrowser.
i guess since its a MS product they would be strongarmed into using internet explorer. that would open the x360 up to spyware and the whole security hole+patch+hole+patch+hole+servicepack+hole+patch cycle they would want to avoid.
the x360 crashes have been covered here, cnn, engadget, joystiq, ign, gamespot and all over the rest of the blogosphere. of course, slashdot has also posted stories about the xbox power cord causing household fires as well. i thought you may have had a point for a second, but then i woke up and realized that they have also posted stories about slimline ps2 power cord issues, the sony rootkit... etc etc etc. slashdot is a news site. if youre reading the games section, youre going to read good and bad news about each and every console. get over it. if you only want to read positive articles about the xbox, head over to the teamxbox forums.
...huh? oh, thats right... they were the FIRST to report that the x360 was prone crashing.
last but not least, correct me if im wrong, but according to microsofts's very own pr machine: 10% of x360s are experiencing problems. only 1% have been returned as of yet. since it came out of their mouth i can see them underestimating, but i doubt they would overestimate numbers that amount to negative pr.
well. in all honesty, have you played any of EA's games for the PSP? with the exception of burnout legends and ssx, most EA games kinda suck. this is the same company that has to issue a recall on its psp version of madden06. keep that in perspective.
sure the system isnt outselling the DS, but who really doesnt think the PSP isnt selling well? theres at least three million PSP owners out there and another seven million PSP units on sale this holiday season. given the fact that this marks the first psp holiday season its on sale to most of the world, those numbers will undoubtedly grow. this is like a company saying that theres only three million xbox live users during its first year, so we wont be making anymore live-aware games.
personally i think its stupid. as most psp owners will tell you, and most ds owners will point out as their main reason for not choosing a psp; its all about the games. owners want more games, and ds owners prefer games that arent available on the psp. ea could stand to make boatloads of money with just the existing psp install-base if they actually created a must own game. instead most of the ea games are sequels and console rehashes that are old hat to most psp owners. psp owners are tired of that. this doesnt sound like good business at all. if they create the games, gamers will follow.look at all the folks that bought a playstation just to play final fantasy vii, or all the people that bought an xbox just to play halo or halo2. software and hardware are always going to be linked. ea has created the most third party psp games [30% of all psp game sales??!?!?!?], but most are lackluster... so obviously psp sales are going to suffer.
i think the point was that, it was speculation from the mouth of a developer.
3 146281
...right?
granted developers are infamous for spilling the beans on new console secrets months ahead of time, but i still find it slightly strange that sony execs have been publicly talking about how they are still working on online plans, yet the general consensus is that based upon the words of one single developer, people are so quick to write off any idea of sony having some form of centralized online support.
they hint that they are working on a solution, see exhibit a:
http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=3&cId=
however, until an official announcement is made, who knows what will happen? until you see it for yourself, you cant believe anything; good or bad. i guess the AC needs to stop spouting off until we know for sure. im sure he understands that he has to wait and see what the ps3 games look like graphically first, before he just runs off and believes what he say in the killzone trailer, right?
here is a list of games that run in 480p and YES 720p and GASP 1080i for xbox.
http://www.hdtvarcade.com/xboxlist.htm
my point is that the original xbox was capable of HD output. there wasnt much in the way of content, but it was possible and was done to some extent during the current generation.
as the other AC pointed out... the ps2 output gran turismo in 720p and 1080i as well. there are several ps2 games that ran in 480p, but considering that 480p doesnt count... ill let that part of the argument rest.
as for my comment about them cutting the generation in half, sega realized they were in a sinking ship and kickstarted the next generation. microsoft saw that they were in a sinking ship and did the same. your years are off for console releases. where are you getting your numbers? europe? australia? im referring to dates of FIRST production in their home region.
as i pointed out, the article isnt about the ps3. its about the fact that sony is the only company able to supply homeowners with media that is available in true HD. true HD meaning able to support ALL standard HDTVs entering the market. [excluding the handful of special purpose HDTVs that run at resolutions higher than 1080p and are not being mass-produced.] remember, you can not go to the movie rental store and buy ANY movies from the major studios that will play in 1080p. when you are able to do that, THEN you will see true HD at home.
and yes, its true that sony hd tvs do not show the "true definition of HD" thats because there isn't any true HD content beyond 1080i to show on them, yet. the guy is like if youve got a 720p/1080i HDTV, youve already got content... and we've got you covered... BUT if you went out and bought the biggest and best right now at 1080p, sony has you covered as well. they have to cover the bases; how would HDTV owners feel if HD media only supported up to 480p? theyd feel like they were cheated and wouldnt buy subpar media. sony has to cover all their bases
pretty much those found in DOA. the first halo is on the PC, but i guess it still counts as an xbox exclusive.
thats the point. they want to point out that blu-ray is supposed to be the first reliable source of the highest definition HD home entertainment. the corollary is that the ps3 will be the first major form of viewing blu-ray.
dead or alive 4 will encompass the lead characters for at least 3 of the xbox's exclusive AAA titles. dont forget that ryu from ninja gaiden is already in there too.
PC developers have provided multiple resolutions for years. i dont see why this gen of consoles would be any different.
most likely it will be a developer choice: design a decent framerate game at 1080p and allow users to downgrade to 720p and watch the framerate skyrocket. or they can design for 720p and rely on the console to upconvert to 1080p where it twitches and dies. also, there are very many developers that believe in providing the very best experience for gamers; team ninja would opt for 1080p if they had the choice. i can see the gran turismo team doing the same and the MGS4 team too. there are developers that want to push the envelope, not everyone is an EA that just wants to pump out quantity.
i can see blu-ray taking off simply because it seems to be in the lead in the next gen HD movie format war. people have these HDTVs and they are looking for more content to use when showing it off. they are going to want movies they can use when showcasing their new home theater.
maybe you guys didnt read the same article i read, or maybe EVERYONE is extrapolating based upon their hatred for sony.
/already/ on the market; 1080p tvs will eventually become pretty standard and the x360 is just now being released unable to take advantage of them at their native resolution.
/AND/ lives up to its hype, i can see microsoft abandoning the x360 and trying to push the xbox720 in four years.
what i got from the article is no where near as sinister. they are saying that the true HD era wont begin until the arrival of the ps3. no big deal; its your common sony boastful commentary. however, in this case, he kinda has a slight point.
microsoft has been pushing this hd era deal for the x360, but so what? they are claiming to have started something that EVERY console was capable of last generation. so what? why is HD special now? oh... because MS says so. no big deal, im happy MS is pushing the standard. however, in sonys defense... the hd era begins once we start getting content. according to sony the HD era is defined as display, content and equipment. the display has been there since last generation... no big deal. the equipment was there since last generation as well; almost every gamecube title was capable of running in 480p. whats missing is true HD content. content meaning movies in particular. as of now, the ps3 is the only major component that will be on the market and ready to deliver next-gen HD format movies. upconverted dvds arent the same. they have a point in that regard. sony is the only company that can provide all of the pieces to the HD puzzle. the problem is... people are taking that ONE point that they have and blowing it up out of proportions.
as for their 1080p is "real" HD claim. its BS, anyone with common sense knows to ignore it. however, ask yourself this: in the next say 8-10 years, if you have to buy a new HDTV and you decide to get the best. the best being 1080p. as more tvs enter the market and the price drops, eventually 1080p will become the next standard. wouldnt you be able to appreciate a system that was capable of taking advantage of your console? its futureproofing; as a consumer, i appreciate a company that is thinking about the high end.
he didnt say that 720p was not HD, nor did he say that 1080i wasnt HD. he said that 1080p was the true definition of HD. lets use our brains here... this article isnt about the ps3 really; its about the next generation of HD movies which to my knowledge will be encoded and playable at 1080p on bluray disks. although you could, you dont buy a 1080p tv to watch 480p dvds on it. you dont buy a 1080p HDTV to play 720p games on it. you buy things that take advantage of the added resolution you paid good money for. if your console cant even output the native resolution of the main format next gen movies will be released in, what use would an add on player be? esp, if its already downgrading your movies? anyone would instead opt to buy a standalone player that doesnt need to downgrade the movies; so you can play them at the native resolution. i guess if you only have a 720p/1080i tv, which is mostly the case out here, so i understand why this may not matter to you much, but think about the future... if youre releasing a product that you want to be around for nearly a decade, you want it to be able to take advantage of as many HD formats as possible. the x360 will not be able to take full advantage of certain HDTVs
dont get me wrong, i am going to buy a x360 as well... but with hearing about the various problems that it has, i can see microsoft doing a repeat of their xbox shenanigans and phasing out the x360 in a few years if they dont find themselves in first place. how come no one is upset that thanks to MS the current-gen lifecycle basically got cut in half? last to market and first to abandon? if the ps3 has better specs
very insightful post.
i think during their first go at the console race, MS felt that they would rather try to cultivate smaller studios into the next capcom, namco, or square enix. seems like MS doesnt want to spend the money to steal studios from sony; they would rather make deals with small and mid-range studios that have more incentive to give in MS tactics. the prob with MS's stance is that they dont get very many exclusive titles from any studio.
i would mod you up, but alas, no mod points.
still, i understand where youre coming from. the x360 could have had a better execution, but MS tried to push this next generation upon us a lil too quick, and the first iteration of the x360 will have to suffer because of it.
who knows, the x360 looks like it may have some promise left in it. if only its AAA titles end up living up to their hype.
just a reference to the commonly held believe that the GC's software library [in US eyes] is inferior in comparison to the xbox and ps2. their firsty party titles are generally excellent, but there were relatively few and far in between. there wasnt as much diversity in their genres and age ranges. there were few third party titles and a large portion of those were not exclusive.
lol @ foreigners always do something evil. that was hilarious...
wait, you mean that wasnt a joke? oh... my bad...