The Bloomberg article shows the game being off it's launch peak by 20-25% or so, with a spike in engagement that it doesn't explain a few weeks ago.
This is normal for this kind of game- and mobile games tend to make their profit on a small percentage of users that spend a TON on microtransactions (more pokeballs, lures, etc), not in raw user count.
The game is likely still wildly overperforming what Niantic expected it to- and there are plenty of features (direct trainer battles, more pokemon) for Niantic to implement to extend the game's lifespan.
Small hit? Pennsylvania has 12 million people in it. If 15% of them are Netflix subscribers (this would be in line with the national average though it's probably higher- The Philadelphia metro region is along the dense NE corridor) Netflix would be letting about 20 million dollars a month or 240 million a year in cash roll out of the door.
Re:Did Zuckerberg ever have to get past HR?
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Just Say No To College
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· Score: 5, Insightful
Exactly.
Let's be honest, the skyrocketing cost of college and debt are very real issues, but a $200,000 bill for a bachelor's degree is extremely rare. Your average state university might be a quarter of that, and the cost can go even lower if one starts at a community or junior college and transfers in.
Now, if you're talking $200,000 for a BA plus the cost of a graduate degree like an MS, M.D, PHD, or JD- that's a completely separate issue as those fields are entirely off limits to those without advanced degrees. "good skills" without the degree won't allow you to practice law, medicine, or teach at a university level.
The article summary also concentrates on the argument that "learning to code" doesn't take a four year degree, and perhaps it doesn't- but the american workforce consists of far more than just coders, and its very likely that if said coders want to advance up the corporate ladder later in their careers, the lack of a degree is going to stop them dead in their tracks. The article fails to note that the unemployment rate for those with just a high school degree is three times higher than those with a bachelor's degree- 12% vs 4% or so. You can't ignore a statistic like that, and a large part of the reason why is that HR departments and Recruiters are in the habit of asking for a BA by default and will automatically trash a resume that lacks it, despite how good one's skills may be.
The "skip college' argument is extremely short sighted here, ignores the realities of the hiring landscape, and is really only useful advice for a very, very small percentage of those looking to start businesses.
The difference between PC software and console software is that console software is tailored EXTREMELY closely to the hardware. Just getting another machine to run the same OS won't cut it. Even changing the speed at which the discs load can completely break a game and render it unplayable.
Using the Playstation as an example, Even the PS2 couldn't run all Ps1 games 100% and that had Ps1 hardware IN it, and was (roughly) 10x more powerful. Original PS3's couldn't run all PS2 games 100% either, and they had copies of the PS2 CPU and GPU inside them. Current PS3's cut the parts for cost reasons, and can't run PS2 software at all. And this is SONY trying to get their own software working on vastly more powerful machines.
And emulators? Forget about it. PCSX2 is the best PS2 emulator available, and you need at least dual core processor running at 3.0+ ghz to attempt to run anything at a decent speed, and it STILL chokes on games like Shadow of the Colossus and MGS3. Keep in mind the PS2 is a ten year old console with a 300mhz processor.
So as you can see, Current PCs don't have a prayer of running current console software for a billion reasons, some of which are technical but not all of them.
What I don't understand is why many people like the idea of plans instead of prepaid phones.
Simple. It's the phone itself. The average phone is given away "free" and higher end phones are substantially discounted when you sign up for a plan at X dollars a month.
You want to buy that new Iphone/Blackberry/Next Big Thing outside of a contract? Good luck. IF it's available at all, it can easily run $600 or more up front.
In contrast, prepaid phones are typically stripped down budget models. They'll make calls, send text messages, and some will surf the web, but in the era of "phone as fashion accessory/status symbol" they're really for those that have no other options, or simply don't care.
Yes, SNES and N64 carts cost more to manufacture than Disc based games do. It wasn't just this though- nintendo had some pretty draconian royalty policies in place as well. New games could and did cost up to $30 more than comparable PS1 games back in the day, and you can't tell me that was all just the cost of the cart itself.
But that's besides the point. What the OP was trying to point out is that since the advent of disc based games (say, 1995 or so) the cost of a AAA game has only risen 20%, from about $49.99 to $59.99.
I'll say that again. that's TWENTY PERCENT in about 12 years. Less than two percent a year- it's barely tracking the rate of inflation. Hell, it's probably LESS than the rate of inflation. Up until "next gen" the cost of gaming hadn't budged at all, and if you're still gaming on a PS2, GC, or Xbox1 it STILL hasn't.
People, the dollar is tanking. It's currently worth less than Canadian money. Imported goods are skyrocketing in cost, and even basic staples such as gas and food have doubled in cost or more. There's almost no other product you can point at that hasn't had a substantial price increase in the past twelve years, and yet somehow gamers expect the price of games to not move at all in twelve years? Seriously?
Keep in mind though that Euro prices have VAT (that's sales tax for those unfamiliar with it) built IN to the price, and VAT can easily be 20% of the game's price or more.
US prices are all quoted without tax. Some states add 5% to what you see, some add 7%, and some add zero.
The PSP uses memory stick Duo's. The "playstation memory card" is pretty much dead.
This is kind of a moot point as the PSP doesn't need to use the card to transfer files. It will act as a USB storage device OR link to the PS3 via Wi-Fi.
Also: the PS3 and the 360 both have the same amount of RAM at 512Megs each.
I'm not sure if you know this already or not, but Xenogears and Xenosaga are two VERY different games. There are one or two cutscenes in Xenogears (and a LOT of in-game dialogue) but nowhere near the half hour long cutscenes xenosaga has.
actually, no..it can't. this feature was taken out shortly before release. the Wii is also incapable of any high def output at all which is kind of bizarre considering the Xbox1 has no problem doing so.
I have nothing against GoW in particular, but _any_ series will get stagnant after a finite number of outings.
it's not the numbers, it's what you DO with the franchise.
not counting remakes, Metal Gear has had 6 Sequels in it's main series. (counting portable ops but not Snakes revenge or ACID) Final Fantasy has had 11. Dragon Quest has 7. Gran Turismo has 4 (counting HD.) Winning Eleven (Pro evolution Soccer) has about 9. Virtua fighter has had 4 highly rated sequels. Tekken's had around 5. Mario has had 6 or 7, and I've lost track of how many pokemon and shin megami tensei games there are.
All of these series have done something to keep them fresh with each iteration and remain both consistently high selling AND critically acclaimed. In contrast there are other games like Deus Ex, Tenchu, or Syphon filter that tank after their first outing, or Megaman which seems to get new sequels every 8 months regardless of how good it is.
Sequels in games aren't always a bad thing as long as the team geniunely seems interested in making a good gameplay experience, and not simply milking the franchise.
I went out of my way to do this in the original SMB on NES. Why? Because hitting bowser's head AND the axe that cuts the bridge simultaneously while "super" triggers the bug that allows the "small mario with fireballs" trick.
you stay "super" when this happens but from then on, Mushrooms shrink you, getting hit by enemies enlarges you, and "tiny" mario can cast fireballs. A great way to get some more mileage out of an old game.
After that it went completely downhill. All the extra characters, the new insane moves, and then there was the attempt at 3D. It killed what SF2 originally was and Capcom just DROVE THAT FRANCHISE INTO THE FRIGGIN GROUND!
to be fair, street fighter 3 is a VERY good game, and SFIII: third strike is considered to be one of the best 2D fighters ever made. problem is by the time it was released, it was overshadowed by flashier 3D fighters like Virtua Fighter and Tekken, and overlooked by a lot of gamers.
Enjoyed 1 through 3, but something happened in 4. They did something to the control scheme that made it very frustrating.
there's a reason for this. Silent hill 4 was originally another game that was rebranded at the last minute as a silent hill title, with some references to earlier titles sprinkled in. On it's own, it's a good game, but seems oddly out of place after playing silent hill 1-3.
Just because the new sets and devices (like the PS3) are higher definition doesn't mean that plugging the damn things in should be so complicated. Why do I need 6 ways to connect a TV to a signal (coax cable, RCA plugs, S-video, HDMI, DVI, optical, etc.)? It makes me realize that I'm happy with my regular tube TV. It's cheap, it's simple, it looks good, and you don't have to go through 12 pages of directions to plug it in.
Owners of black and white TV's thought their sets "looked good" too until they saw one in color. The difference between an old tube with just "RCA" (composite) plugs and a high definition using HDMI is night and day in terms of both video and audio quality. but just to clear a few things up:
Nothing uses Coax anymore outside of your cable connection or the odd VCR. It's really only there for legacy purposes, as just about everything supports higher level connections by now. The last time I remember a videogame system using one was the SNES, back in 1992. Avoid it whenever possible.
"RCA" and "S-video" accomplish pretty much the same thing, only S-video is better at it by far. S-video also needs but doesn't always come with audio (the white and red cables) so watch out for that.
Component (which you didn't list), HDMI, and DVI are required to pass a high definition signal. Outside of sets that have built in HD-Tuners for OTA signals, If you have a high definition tv and aren't using one of these you can't actually view anything over 480i.
Optical, odd as it sounds is an audio cable and has nothing to do with high definition or your television.
none of these are really all that hard to connect- component is color coded and impossible to mess up, and HDMI and DVI are simpler than "Rca" jacks due to only having one plug to deal with. it doesn't take a 12 page manual to determine how to plug things in, just a willingness to learn.
Leave it to internet fanboys to rush to the defense of their favorite system without actually reading comments. No one is disputing the Wii is outselling everything at this point. The Wii and DS are selling at outstanding rates at the moment. The QUESTION is does launch software determine the popularity of a system. Looking at the success of the DS, the Wii (so far) and the PS2, the answer is clearly No.
Regarding Japan- the Ps3 isn't competing against the 360 at all. It's essentially dead there. did you miss my comment concerning how the 360 is performing worse than the original Xbox there, and THAT console was considered a massive failure?
The Ps3 is competing against the Wii, and to a lesser extent, the DS which is a runaway success and may very well outsell all other platforms there.
Both the Ps3 and the Wii have anemic launch software IN JAPAN. There are no clear system sellers, and both are selling on potential. Hell, even in the US the only games anyone is talking about are Zelda (which again, is a gamecube port) and Wii sports, which comes free with the system.
to be fair, the 360 didn't really have much to write home about 3 months after launch and is still performing worse than the original Xbox in japan. IIRC a good chunk of the launch games were derided for looking exactly like Xbox games.
Even the titles you listed for the Wii aren't really that impressive- Zelda is a gamecube port of a series that doesn't sell very well in japan (it's currently sold only about 300k copies), metal slug is a collection of older games ported from the Neo Geo, Super Monkey ball is available for almost every system out there, and Elebits has been reviewed pretty poorly across the board. the only really original standout game for the system is Wario Ware.
Launch titles are overrated in terms of importance. the DC had without a doubt the best titles available at launch but performed the poorest last gen, while the Ps2's anemic launch led it to market dominance.
And, it never happened. The promise of excellent technology, never delivered. And (I've posted on this before), the notion of track info associated with CD technology didn't emerge until we, the people, did it ourselves! with CDDB!
Have to correct you here. This technology showed up with CD-Text in 1996. I have a disc that supports it (On the floor at the boutique, Lo Fi Allstars if you're wondering) and it will display track info on certain players (my sony car cd deck from circa 2000 supported it) but the format just never really caught on.
According to this unofficial CD-text Faq here http://web.ncf.ca/aa571/cdtext.htm/ Nearly every Sony CD released since 1997 supports it, but it's not advertised and few CD decks bother supporting the format.
SPIDERMAN 2 -HD-DVD Rip (Xvid)
HDTV
1280x720 (16:9), 25fps, XviD MPEG-4 Codec, 4009 kbps
AC-3, 6 Channels, 448 kbps, 48KHz
Size: 4420 Mb
Hmm, sure looks like it, but I'll admit I haven't got any of these two for example to check.
Not sure about the first one chief, but the second movie is DEFINITELY fictional. Spiderman is a Sony property, and will NEVER be coming to HD-DVD.
LCD tv's can be easily mounted on a wall out of the reach of a typical child, and set to the proper angle if you REALLY want one, but are worried about the kids damaging it.
Well, I dunno. Yes, the sets ARE getting cheaper, trouble is, the majority of people out there are NOT in a rush to replace their televisons.
I'd agree that simple image quality upgrades are not compelling a lot of consumers to throw out existing sets, but you're overlooking the fact that FORM FACTOR is a big selling point. A lot of people (women especially) are falling all over themselves to replace the huge, unsightly, difficult to move 36 inch with a slimmer model that can be hung on a wall.
Most people get a set, and keep it till it conks out. An HDTV set that is of any decent size..is well over $1K...
"decent size" varies by consumer. there is such a thing as "too big for the room" and 32 inches and up can be had for $700 or less now. I saw an advertisement for a 36 inch flat panel for $500 over the holidays, but that was almost certainly an off brand.
Heck, just recently it was announced that DVD players have just now overtaken VCR's in the US households...this after now many years of DVD's out there?
DVD players have been OUTSELLING VCR's for the past 4 or 5 years now. It's just now that the installed base has overtaken VCRs, and considering VCR's have been on the market for 25 years or so now, the fact that DVD has done it in maybe a third of the time is a big deal.
Slashdot Mirror
The Bloomberg article shows the game being off it's launch peak by 20-25% or so, with a spike in engagement that it doesn't explain a few weeks ago. This is normal for this kind of game- and mobile games tend to make their profit on a small percentage of users that spend a TON on microtransactions (more pokeballs, lures, etc), not in raw user count. The game is likely still wildly overperforming what Niantic expected it to- and there are plenty of features (direct trainer battles, more pokemon) for Niantic to implement to extend the game's lifespan.
Small hit? Pennsylvania has 12 million people in it. If 15% of them are Netflix subscribers (this would be in line with the national average though it's probably higher- The Philadelphia metro region is along the dense NE corridor) Netflix would be letting about 20 million dollars a month or 240 million a year in cash roll out of the door.
Let's be honest, the skyrocketing cost of college and debt are very real issues, but a $200,000 bill for a bachelor's degree is extremely rare. Your average state university might be a quarter of that, and the cost can go even lower if one starts at a community or junior college and transfers in.
Now, if you're talking $200,000 for a BA plus the cost of a graduate degree like an MS, M.D, PHD, or JD- that's a completely separate issue as those fields are entirely off limits to those without advanced degrees. "good skills" without the degree won't allow you to practice law, medicine, or teach at a university level.
The article summary also concentrates on the argument that "learning to code" doesn't take a four year degree, and perhaps it doesn't- but the american workforce consists of far more than just coders, and its very likely that if said coders want to advance up the corporate ladder later in their careers, the lack of a degree is going to stop them dead in their tracks. The article fails to note that the unemployment rate for those with just a high school degree is three times higher than those with a bachelor's degree- 12% vs 4% or so. You can't ignore a statistic like that, and a large part of the reason why is that HR departments and Recruiters are in the habit of asking for a BA by default and will automatically trash a resume that lacks it, despite how good one's skills may be.
The "skip college' argument is extremely short sighted here, ignores the realities of the hiring landscape, and is really only useful advice for a very, very small percentage of those looking to start businesses.
This is the Internet! Where the men are men, The women are also men, and the children are FBI Agents
The difference between PC software and console software is that console software is tailored EXTREMELY closely to the hardware. Just getting another machine to run the same OS won't cut it. Even changing the speed at which the discs load can completely break a game and render it unplayable.
Using the Playstation as an example, Even the PS2 couldn't run all Ps1 games 100% and that had Ps1 hardware IN it, and was (roughly) 10x more powerful. Original PS3's couldn't run all PS2 games 100% either, and they had copies of the PS2 CPU and GPU inside them. Current PS3's cut the parts for cost reasons, and can't run PS2 software at all. And this is SONY trying to get their own software working on vastly more powerful machines.
And emulators? Forget about it. PCSX2 is the best PS2 emulator available, and you need at least dual core processor running at 3.0+ ghz to attempt to run anything at a decent speed, and it STILL chokes on games like Shadow of the Colossus and MGS3. Keep in mind the PS2 is a ten year old console with a 300mhz processor.
So as you can see, Current PCs don't have a prayer of running current console software for a billion reasons, some of which are technical but not all of them.
What I don't understand is why many people like the idea of plans instead of prepaid phones.
Simple. It's the phone itself. The average phone is given away "free" and higher end phones are substantially discounted when you sign up for a plan at X dollars a month.
You want to buy that new Iphone/Blackberry/Next Big Thing outside of a contract? Good luck. IF it's available at all, it can easily run $600 or more up front.
In contrast, prepaid phones are typically stripped down budget models. They'll make calls, send text messages, and some will surf the web, but in the era of "phone as fashion accessory/status symbol" they're really for those that have no other options, or simply don't care.
Yes, SNES and N64 carts cost more to manufacture than Disc based games do. It wasn't just this though- nintendo had some pretty draconian royalty policies in place as well. New games could and did cost up to $30 more than comparable PS1 games back in the day, and you can't tell me that was all just the cost of the cart itself.
But that's besides the point. What the OP was trying to point out is that since the advent of disc based games (say, 1995 or so) the cost of a AAA game has only risen 20%, from about $49.99 to $59.99.
I'll say that again. that's TWENTY PERCENT in about 12 years. Less than two percent a year- it's barely tracking the rate of inflation. Hell, it's probably LESS than the rate of inflation. Up until "next gen" the cost of gaming hadn't budged at all, and if you're still gaming on a PS2, GC, or Xbox1 it STILL hasn't.
People, the dollar is tanking. It's currently worth less than Canadian money. Imported goods are skyrocketing in cost, and even basic staples such as gas and food have doubled in cost or more. There's almost no other product you can point at that hasn't had a substantial price increase in the past twelve years, and yet somehow gamers expect the price of games to not move at all in twelve years? Seriously?
Keep in mind though that Euro prices have VAT (that's sales tax for those unfamiliar with it) built IN to the price, and VAT can easily be 20% of the game's price or more. US prices are all quoted without tax. Some states add 5% to what you see, some add 7%, and some add zero.
The PSP uses memory stick Duo's. The "playstation memory card" is pretty much dead. This is kind of a moot point as the PSP doesn't need to use the card to transfer files. It will act as a USB storage device OR link to the PS3 via Wi-Fi. Also: the PS3 and the 360 both have the same amount of RAM at 512Megs each.
I'm not sure if you know this already or not, but Xenogears and Xenosaga are two VERY different games. There are one or two cutscenes in Xenogears (and a LOT of in-game dialogue) but nowhere near the half hour long cutscenes xenosaga has.
it's not the numbers, it's what you DO with the franchise.
not counting remakes, Metal Gear has had 6 Sequels in it's main series. (counting portable ops but not Snakes revenge or ACID) Final Fantasy has had 11. Dragon Quest has 7. Gran Turismo has 4 (counting HD.) Winning Eleven (Pro evolution Soccer) has about 9. Virtua fighter has had 4 highly rated sequels. Tekken's had around 5. Mario has had 6 or 7, and I've lost track of how many pokemon and shin megami tensei games there are.
All of these series have done something to keep them fresh with each iteration and remain both consistently high selling AND critically acclaimed. In contrast there are other games like Deus Ex, Tenchu, or Syphon filter that tank after their first outing, or Megaman which seems to get new sequels every 8 months regardless of how good it is.
Sequels in games aren't always a bad thing as long as the team geniunely seems interested in making a good gameplay experience, and not simply milking the franchise.
offtopic, but I think it's worth the karma burn.
I went out of my way to do this in the original SMB on NES. Why? Because hitting bowser's head AND the axe that cuts the bridge simultaneously while "super" triggers the bug that allows the "small mario with fireballs" trick.
you stay "super" when this happens but from then on, Mushrooms shrink you, getting hit by enemies enlarges you, and "tiny" mario can cast fireballs. A great way to get some more mileage out of an old game.
even more fun than the "minus world" bugs, IMHO
I asked jeeves about altavista, and all I got was a box asking me what it's like to still be stuck in 1997
Owners of black and white TV's thought their sets "looked good" too until they saw one in color. The difference between an old tube with just "RCA" (composite) plugs and a high definition using HDMI is night and day in terms of both video and audio quality. but just to clear a few things up:
Nothing uses Coax anymore outside of your cable connection or the odd VCR. It's really only there for legacy purposes, as just about everything supports higher level connections by now. The last time I remember a videogame system using one was the SNES, back in 1992. Avoid it whenever possible.
"RCA" and "S-video" accomplish pretty much the same thing, only S-video is better at it by far. S-video also needs but doesn't always come with audio (the white and red cables) so watch out for that.
Component (which you didn't list), HDMI, and DVI are required to pass a high definition signal. Outside of sets that have built in HD-Tuners for OTA signals, If you have a high definition tv and aren't using one of these you can't actually view anything over 480i.
Optical, odd as it sounds is an audio cable and has nothing to do with high definition or your television.
none of these are really all that hard to connect- component is color coded and impossible to mess up, and HDMI and DVI are simpler than "Rca" jacks due to only having one plug to deal with. it doesn't take a 12 page manual to determine how to plug things in, just a willingness to learn.
Regarding Japan- the Ps3 isn't competing against the 360 at all. It's essentially dead there. did you miss my comment concerning how the 360 is performing worse than the original Xbox there, and THAT console was considered a massive failure?
The Ps3 is competing against the Wii, and to a lesser extent, the DS which is a runaway success and may very well outsell all other platforms there.
Both the Ps3 and the Wii have anemic launch software IN JAPAN. There are no clear system sellers, and both are selling on potential. Hell, even in the US the only games anyone is talking about are Zelda (which again, is a gamecube port) and Wii sports, which comes free with the system.
to be fair, the 360 didn't really have much to write home about 3 months after launch and is still performing worse than the original Xbox in japan. IIRC a good chunk of the launch games were derided for looking exactly like Xbox games.
Even the titles you listed for the Wii aren't really that impressive- Zelda is a gamecube port of a series that doesn't sell very well in japan (it's currently sold only about 300k copies), metal slug is a collection of older games ported from the Neo Geo, Super Monkey ball is available for almost every system out there, and Elebits has been reviewed pretty poorly across the board. the only really original standout game for the system is Wario Ware.
Launch titles are overrated in terms of importance. the DC had without a doubt the best titles available at launch but performed the poorest last gen, while the Ps2's anemic launch led it to market dominance.
What next? Forty Years of Darkness? Earthquakes? Volcanoes? The dead, rising from the grave? Dogs and Cats, living together?
Not sure about the first one chief, but the second movie is DEFINITELY fictional. Spiderman is a Sony property, and will NEVER be coming to HD-DVD.
LCD tv's can be easily mounted on a wall out of the reach of a typical child, and set to the proper angle if you REALLY want one, but are worried about the kids damaging it.
I'd agree that simple image quality upgrades are not compelling a lot of consumers to throw out existing sets, but you're overlooking the fact that FORM FACTOR is a big selling point. A lot of people (women especially) are falling all over themselves to replace the huge, unsightly, difficult to move 36 inch with a slimmer model that can be hung on a wall.
"decent size" varies by consumer. there is such a thing as "too big for the room" and 32 inches and up can be had for $700 or less now. I saw an advertisement for a 36 inch flat panel for $500 over the holidays, but that was almost certainly an off brand.
DVD players have been OUTSELLING VCR's for the past 4 or 5 years now. It's just now that the installed base has overtaken VCRs, and considering VCR's have been on the market for 25 years or so now, the fact that DVD has done it in maybe a third of the time is a big deal.