Isn't this similar to the solutions we've used to "fix" education up to this point?
... we seem to simply lower the educational standards until the crappy education system looks good, we don't actually do anything to foster change. People don't like change, but they do like thinking they're right, this idea is perfect.
In all seriousness, proper grammar and spelling might not be important in terms of people understanding your message, but it goes a long way towards professionalism and people actually giving your message any merit.
He looks like the poster boy for all those cheap Sunbeam brand computer "modding" equipment... I certainly wouldn't strap that to my head consider how frequently I've seen that crap catch fire.
I don't know about you but the electric car I build will get it's power from a solar panel on the roof of my garage.
I think more most people it's not about being "green" so much as the low price of running the vehicle... with the cost of electricity compared to gas EVs get the equivalent of 200MPG. Not to mention the other benifits such as smooth and quiet operation, no nasty oils, coolants, or other crap to keep up with, and of course a "full tank" every time you leave your garage.
Sega has produced a few good games this generation, true that none of the Sonic games are among them but Sega is hardly failing. They might not garner the hype of a Halo or GTA but most of their current generation titles have solid sales with a decent following.
Game like Condemned, and The Club are good, I just wish they'd do MORE games like that, most of their releases in the last year have been movie tie ins which isn't all that great for the one noble Sega.
At least their modern versions of Sega Rally, Virtua Fighter, and Virtua Tennis have done those franchises proud.
I highly doubt that Miyamoto minds... I'm sure he understands that the ban is for the benefit of the company.
I work for a Japanese owned company.. it's quite different from an American company. You don't just leave because of some stupid politics, the company wants you to respect your co-workers like an extension of your family. It's a long term relationship. The company doesn't treat you like a disposable commodity (lay offs and firings are extremely rare) and in return most of the employees respect the wishes of their employer and do things "for the good of the company" rather than just walking away for greener pastures.
This is very much true of my own company which while in the US the Japanese corporate mentality is a big part of everything we do. Even though we're in aerospace manufacturing, with the horrible economy and every other company in our industrial park laying people off and going under, my company hasn't laid off or fired a single employee in my entire career here. the company is saving money buy dropping 3rd shift and moving those employees to 1st and 2nd, we're on a hiring freeze, we had a shut down (week of mandatory vacation), and hourly employees must reduce their over time.
Yes some of that stuff sucks, but in the good times the company does us right so in the bad times people are willing to make some personal sacrifices knowing that it will help the company
overall.
While not a good times/bad time scenario Miyamoto is a very big part of the Nintendo family, he's not just some super star that is only interested in money... I wouldn't be half surprised if he was in agreement with the "no hobby discussion" rule or if it was even partly his idea.
I realize this is the games section, but my point was more along the lines of the fact that this article is nearly devoid of worthwhile information.
Someone left a company because they were unhappy... Really? I'm shocked.
It's analogous to an article stating that a lot of game developers use cars to drive to work, eat food for energy, and laugh at funny jokes.
Maybe if there was some more interesting details as to the specific situation, or some kind of examples of the corporate politics that lead to game design elements that we the gamers could see in the end result it would be worth reading but, c'mon...
It's no different than anyone else who leaves a company to start their own business. Lets play Mad-libs.
Version 1:
"I really wanted to work on Performance Parts, and Auto Parts Company X only made roof-racks and cargo-nets," he says. "There were some annoying politics going on that was really frustrating, I disagreed with the direction the company was taking, I was really tired of pushy investors and I just wanted to do my own thing."
Version 2:
"I really wanted to work on graphics apps, and Software Company Y only made custom data management software," he says. "There were some annoying politics going on that was really frustrating, I disagreed with the direction the company was taking, I was really tired of pushy clients and I just wanted to do my own thing."
Why should we care just because they're a game developer?
I'm gonna go out on a limb here, and guess this 'new' more 'secure' internet will not allow for any type of anonymity, and more ease of tracking who says what and when in a more easily searched and archived format...both for government AND corporations.
That's a very good point, and I agree that is a danger of a clean slate internet to some degree.
I think that if personal accountability is done RIGHT to some degree it will dramatically improve security for users at the same time and maybe REDUCE the amount of monitoring and ip to individual associations we have today.
Consider this... if it's setup such that a server can be 100% sure about who it's communicating with, then we could probably come close to eradicating spam and malware... or at very least catch a whole lot more of the people behind it. Not only that but it would be a whole lot harder for the government to justify widespread tapping and recording because tracking down illegal activity can be more directed to the persons behind it, rather than just wide spread searching of everyone.
It's all in how it gets handled... I just hope the people behind it are in good moral standing and have not only the know how to fix the internet's "problems" but protect the things that make it great.
I agree that Killer Bunnies isn't the most mentally challenging game in the world but it certainly requires a whole lot more than throwing your Wii-mote at the TV.
Every Friday I get together with a half dozen or so friends and we play card games board games or whatever. If you're playing with more than one other person the fun level of video games drops dramatically since a majority of the players become spectators. Most video games these days don't even offer very good multiplayer modes unless you're playing online, which is useless for local play. There are obvious exceptions but rock band and wii sports don't offer very high levels of intellect, where many board games do.
The most common game played on "Game night" is Killer Bunnies, not a "board game" exactly, but the same spirit.
You mean a mandated tool. As in, parents don't simply exercise good parenting and choose a console model with the ability to lock out games (or actually monitor their kids, but we don't talk about that now do we?). Every console will be required to have the functionality to lock-out content at the consumer's cost.
I realize that there is no direct contradiction to freedom of speech/expression, but two problems arise. First, by including this backdoor all the pieces are in place for an immediately enforceable ban. Second, the law is done in the "think of the children" vein, which seems to validate poor parenting skills by making it society's fault. And that makes it a silly law.
I agree on some level... but not completely
The first thing you need to realize is that this law is requiring game companies to do something that they're already doing... every console released since the PS2 (with the exception of the Gamecube, though arguably it didn't need it) has included a parental lockout feature, the PS2 had it, the Xbox 1 had it, the 360 has it, the Wii has it, and the PS3 has it... Also all violent games already have an ESRB rating and the back of the box will mark why the rating was received, violence being one of the reasons.
With that said it seems to me like law makers want to take credit for something that they had no part in creating...
The REAL problem I see with this though is the fact that Gaming consoles are little more than a computer... and honestly the functionality of the software that runs on that computer should not be legally dictated... Just because someone stuck a PC in a fancy case and labeled it a gaming console shouldn't make it ok for lawmakers to dictate the function of the software that runs on it. Nor should I have to go through some sort of approval/rating process if I want to create software that runs on purpose build hardware.
For most people programming is a long road of breaking your head against a problem until it gets solved. Long hours spent tapping away at the keyboard and honestly "normal" people think we're all out of our minds.
So no, if he doesn't have the drive to learn and problem solve he's better off outside playing with a ball...
I know at least for me the DRIVE comes from the desired destination... My advice for the fellow in TFA is to have his son pick a project. Start with something simple.. maybe it's just a slideshow or a tick-tak-toe game. Then start building it. Guide him a bit in the basics but encourage him to learn how to search for solutions that are beyond his knowledge. Once you have a basic program built start adding features.
Maybe it's just because I'm partial to this but consider getting a few microcontrollers and teaching him to program on that platform. Writing something that interacts with a mouse keyboard and monitor on a computer is one thing... making something where you physically assemble the hardware as well is something else altogether. This will also test the waters in other tech areas... maybe he decides that he doesn't like programming but loves electronics, or maybe he like them both and wants to get into computer system or robotics.
But seriously... just pick a goal, and work towards it... the best way to learn is though experience.
Re:What no discussion of the Bambi movie?
on
Batman Discussion
·
· Score: 2, Insightful
Maybe you should pick and choose the filmmakers you support instead of just generalizing that Hollywood = bad
There are still quite a few US filmmakers who hold the integrity of their vision above that of the studio's greed for profit.
Re:"disappering pencil"
on
Batman Discussion
·
· Score: 4, Interesting
Never has a simple writing implement, been used to set the tone of a movie so effectively.
Too True...
I think it really serves as a metaphor for the way the joker thinks through the rest of the film: Do something that will illicit a reaction... use that reaction to your advantage... shock and awe everyone with the outcome.
I've build about a dozen computers over the last 4 months and the only driver I've ever seen cause conflicts or have trouble installing is Realtek HD Audio drivers (though it's my understanding that the root cause of the problem has a lot to do with the generic windows HD audio drivers).
I've never installed or even used Vista but XP (even the Media center and x64 flavors) have never given me any real grief. I run Linux on my laptop but until I can use Solidworks on another OS I'm stuck with XP on my desktop.
Probably because a major part of the core Final Fantasy lineage is eye candy... and the Wii doesn't have adequate hardware to provide said eye candy for their flagship title. Sure it does. Developing a game that is pleasing to the eye doesn't require top-of-the-line hardware.
It does when you're trying to adapt complex graphics originally designed to push the limits of the PS3. "Pleasing" and "Jaw Dropping" are two different things, and FF typically goes after the latter. Adapting the game to the 360 is a matter of tweaking the engine a bit. Adapting the game for the Wii is a matter of completely overhauling the graphics and engine to run on slower hardware.
That and the fact that FF is really not a franchise for casual gamers...
Yeah, Final Fantasy is for hardcore gamers.
Probably because a major part of the core Final Fantasy lineage is eye candy...
Because hardcore gamers care about eye candy first, and gameplay second.
Since when is everything black and white? Just because you're not a "casual gamer" doesn't automatically make you a hardcore gamer. and just because you care a lot about graphics doesn't mean you don't care about gameplay.
Final Fantasy fans (however you'd like to define them) like ridiculously detailed cut-scenes, complex character configurations and long drawn out storylines that last upwards of 100 hours. In general the action is turn based and fairly slow moving and more of a test of stamina over dexterity or complex controller movements.
Wii gamers (however you'd like to define them) like to pickup a game and play for a few minutes to an hour when they're bored, they don't like to play for more than a few hours a week and they're mostly interested in quick activity that they can get into right away and then put away for days/weeks and pick it up again. They don't care about graphics, they like to move around and they hate complex interfaces.
Those sound like two COMPLETELY different types of gamers to me. hocking FF to the Wii crowd would be like trying to sell copies of War and Peace to families at a water-park.
then why arent they releasing it for the wii which has a larger install base world wide then both the ps3 and xbox360 combined?
Probably because a major part of the core Final Fantasy lineage is eye candy... and the Wii doesn't have adequate hardware to provide said eye candy for their flagship title.
That and the fact that FF is really not a franchise for casual gamers... it doesn't really cater to the Wii audience regardless of how large that audience is.
the basic laws of thermodynamics suggest that internal combustion engines are about as efficient as they are going to get.
BS... just last week I was reading an analysis on new tech being developed by Nissan along with Ford and a few others, a Variable Compression Ratio (VCR) system.
This tech would would dramatically improve the performance of turbo charged engines not just in terms of power output but also in terms of fuel effective, and it would make the engine run much much smoother.
I guess I don't understand how combustion engines are supposedly tapped out. Keep in mind that most of the engine's performance characteristics are still very much mechanical and are basically "hard coded" for a good median of power output and fuel economy since they don't have the technology to dynamically change the characteristics when one is needed over the other.
Even Variable Valve Timing is in it's infancy and the current methods for that are crude at best, there are alternative methods under development that could theoretically give you a Corvette when you stuff your foot into it and a Prius when you're just cruising on the highway or around town.
Even the engineering techniques are just starting to get interesting... engines developed completely new in the last decade mark the first engines completely prototyped in a virtual environment as opposed to the old method of just building something similar to what's been done before and making slight improvements through real world testing. Chevy's LS series motor (found in the late 90s Camaro, Firebird, and Corvettes) marks one of the first of such motors and with a 6-speed sees an impressive 31MPG with 330HP. And even over the last decade they've been able to make small tweaks to that power plant in terms of both power output and fuel economy. And there's still a world of possibilities that can be done to improve things still.
In short... If you're just looking at the explosion in the chamber and the resulting torque then yes, combustion engines are already "pretty good" in terms of effency. However that neglects the fact that conditions change mili-second to mili-second in terms of air-pressure, air-temperature, load on the engine, and numerous other things. Engines aren't dynamic enough to work as good as they could in every possible scenario so they're built for a best average across the board.
That's garbage, if you have a hard drive the game will cache to it. The only thing that no always having a hard drive does is make it so that they have to program the game to work without caching available.
I've got an acquaintance who was an engine developer for Neversoft (he works for EA now) He explained it to me like this: If(hard drive attached) { cache } else { don't cache }
Though you don't need a devleoper to explain these concepts.. just time how long it takes for a game to load with the hard drive attached, then time it again with the hard drive removed... I'm sure you'll find that the load screens are usually 3 to 4 times longer without the hard drive.
Which is why i think game developers like consoles so much more than PCs. It's much easier to ensure everyone has a good experience when everybody is running the exact same hardware.
Forget DEVELOPERS... it's why _I_ like consoles more than PCs for gaming. I stopped gaming on my PC back in 2002 and I couldn't be happier with the decision. Last time I upgraded my PC in 2003 and I'm still happy with the performance for everything else I use it for which includes audio and photo editing with the occasional CAD work on top of other day-to-day tasks...
I know most/. gamers have some sort of distaste for console gamers but hey when I get home from the cube farm I can crash on the couch and start playing that new game I picked up from the store as soon as I put the disc in the console... no configuration garbage to play with, no headaches of installing or downloading all of the patches, or worrying if it's going to crash on level 2.
Slashdot Mirror
Isn't this similar to the solutions we've used to "fix" education up to this point?
... we seem to simply lower the educational standards until the crappy education system looks good, we don't actually do anything to foster change. People don't like change, but they do like thinking they're right, this idea is perfect.
In all seriousness, proper grammar and spelling might not be important in terms of people understanding your message, but it goes a long way towards professionalism and people actually giving your message any merit.
He looks like the poster boy for all those cheap Sunbeam brand computer "modding" equipment... I certainly wouldn't strap that to my head consider how frequently I've seen that crap catch fire.
I don't know about you but the electric car I build will get it's power from a solar panel on the roof of my garage.
I think more most people it's not about being "green" so much as the low price of running the vehicle... with the cost of electricity compared to gas EVs get the equivalent of 200MPG. Not to mention the other benifits such as smooth and quiet operation, no nasty oils, coolants, or other crap to keep up with, and of course a "full tank" every time you leave your garage.
Sega has produced a few good games this generation, true that none of the Sonic games are among them but Sega is hardly failing. They might not garner the hype of a Halo or GTA but most of their current generation titles have solid sales with a decent following.
Game like Condemned, and The Club are good, I just wish they'd do MORE games like that, most of their releases in the last year have been movie tie ins which isn't all that great for the one noble Sega.
At least their modern versions of Sega Rally, Virtua Fighter, and Virtua Tennis have done those franchises proud.
I highly doubt that Miyamoto minds... I'm sure he understands that the ban is for the benefit of the company.
I work for a Japanese owned company.. it's quite different from an American company. You don't just leave because of some stupid politics, the company wants you to respect your co-workers like an extension of your family. It's a long term relationship. The company doesn't treat you like a disposable commodity (lay offs and firings are extremely rare) and in return most of the employees respect the wishes of their employer and do things "for the good of the company" rather than just walking away for greener pastures.
This is very much true of my own company which while in the US the Japanese corporate mentality is a big part of everything we do. Even though we're in aerospace manufacturing, with the horrible economy and every other company in our industrial park laying people off and going under, my company hasn't laid off or fired a single employee in my entire career here. the company is saving money buy dropping 3rd shift and moving those employees to 1st and 2nd, we're on a hiring freeze, we had a shut down (week of mandatory vacation), and hourly employees must reduce their over time.
Yes some of that stuff sucks, but in the good times the company does us right so in the bad times people are willing to make some personal sacrifices knowing that it will help the company overall.
While not a good times/bad time scenario Miyamoto is a very big part of the Nintendo family, he's not just some super star that is only interested in money... I wouldn't be half surprised if he was in agreement with the "no hobby discussion" rule or if it was even partly his idea.
yes yes, and don't forget...
1. Soviet Russia the Memes timeline you.
2. ???
3. Profit
I realize this is the games section, but my point was more along the lines of the fact that this article is nearly devoid of worthwhile information.
Someone left a company because they were unhappy... Really? I'm shocked.
It's analogous to an article stating that a lot of game developers use cars to drive to work, eat food for energy, and laugh at funny jokes.
Maybe if there was some more interesting details as to the specific situation, or some kind of examples of the corporate politics that lead to game design elements that we the gamers could see in the end result it would be worth reading but, c'mon...
It's no different than anyone else who leaves a company to start their own business. Lets play Mad-libs.
Version 1:
"I really wanted to work on Performance Parts, and Auto Parts Company X only made roof-racks and cargo-nets," he says. "There were some annoying politics going on that was really frustrating, I disagreed with the direction the company was taking, I was really tired of pushy investors and I just wanted to do my own thing."
Version 2:
"I really wanted to work on graphics apps, and Software Company Y only made custom data management software," he says. "There were some annoying politics going on that was really frustrating, I disagreed with the direction the company was taking, I was really tired of pushy clients and I just wanted to do my own thing."
Why should we care just because they're a game developer?
I know... just like teenagers acting stupid... so rare
That's a very good point, and I agree that is a danger of a clean slate internet to some degree.
I think that if personal accountability is done RIGHT to some degree it will dramatically improve security for users at the same time and maybe REDUCE the amount of monitoring and ip to individual associations we have today.
Consider this... if it's setup such that a server can be 100% sure about who it's communicating with, then we could probably come close to eradicating spam and malware... or at very least catch a whole lot more of the people behind it. Not only that but it would be a whole lot harder for the government to justify widespread tapping and recording because tracking down illegal activity can be more directed to the persons behind it, rather than just wide spread searching of everyone.
It's all in how it gets handled... I just hope the people behind it are in good moral standing and have not only the know how to fix the internet's "problems" but protect the things that make it great.
s/high/higher
I agree that Killer Bunnies isn't the most mentally challenging game in the world but it certainly requires a whole lot more than throwing your Wii-mote at the TV.
board games are still quite relevant.
Every Friday I get together with a half dozen or so friends and we play card games board games or whatever. If you're playing with more than one other person the fun level of video games drops dramatically since a majority of the players become spectators. Most video games these days don't even offer very good multiplayer modes unless you're playing online, which is useless for local play. There are obvious exceptions but rock band and wii sports don't offer very high levels of intellect, where many board games do.
The most common game played on "Game night" is Killer Bunnies, not a "board game" exactly, but the same spirit.
I agree on some level... but not completely
The first thing you need to realize is that this law is requiring game companies to do something that they're already doing... every console released since the PS2 (with the exception of the Gamecube, though arguably it didn't need it) has included a parental lockout feature, the PS2 had it, the Xbox 1 had it, the 360 has it, the Wii has it, and the PS3 has it... Also all violent games already have an ESRB rating and the back of the box will mark why the rating was received, violence being one of the reasons.
With that said it seems to me like law makers want to take credit for something that they had no part in creating...
The REAL problem I see with this though is the fact that Gaming consoles are little more than a computer... and honestly the functionality of the software that runs on that computer should not be legally dictated... Just because someone stuck a PC in a fancy case and labeled it a gaming console shouldn't make it ok for lawmakers to dictate the function of the software that runs on it. Nor should I have to go through some sort of approval/rating process if I want to create software that runs on purpose build hardware.
I know at least for me the DRIVE comes from the desired destination... My advice for the fellow in TFA is to have his son pick a project. Start with something simple.. maybe it's just a slideshow or a tick-tak-toe game. Then start building it. Guide him a bit in the basics but encourage him to learn how to search for solutions that are beyond his knowledge. Once you have a basic program built start adding features.
Maybe it's just because I'm partial to this but consider getting a few microcontrollers and teaching him to program on that platform. Writing something that interacts with a mouse keyboard and monitor on a computer is one thing... making something where you physically assemble the hardware as well is something else altogether. This will also test the waters in other tech areas... maybe he decides that he doesn't like programming but loves electronics, or maybe he like them both and wants to get into computer system or robotics.
But seriously... just pick a goal, and work towards it... the best way to learn is though experience.
Maybe you should pick and choose the filmmakers you support instead of just generalizing that Hollywood = bad
There are still quite a few US filmmakers who hold the integrity of their vision above that of the studio's greed for profit.
They showed Harvey Dent's funeral... not Two-Face's... there's a difference. They never qualified Two-Face's death.
you didn't mishear anything... the Joker LIED.
Too True... I think it really serves as a metaphor for the way the joker thinks through the rest of the film: Do something that will illicit a reaction... use that reaction to your advantage... shock and awe everyone with the outcome.
I've build about a dozen computers over the last 4 months and the only driver I've ever seen cause conflicts or have trouble installing is Realtek HD Audio drivers (though it's my understanding that the root cause of the problem has a lot to do with the generic windows HD audio drivers).
I've never installed or even used Vista but XP (even the Media center and x64 flavors) have never given me any real grief. I run Linux on my laptop but until I can use Solidworks on another OS I'm stuck with XP on my desktop.
It does when you're trying to adapt complex graphics originally designed to push the limits of the PS3. "Pleasing" and "Jaw Dropping" are two different things, and FF typically goes after the latter. Adapting the game to the 360 is a matter of tweaking the engine a bit. Adapting the game for the Wii is a matter of completely overhauling the graphics and engine to run on slower hardware.
Since when is everything black and white? Just because you're not a "casual gamer" doesn't automatically make you a hardcore gamer. and just because you care a lot about graphics doesn't mean you don't care about gameplay.
Final Fantasy fans (however you'd like to define them) like ridiculously detailed cut-scenes, complex character configurations and long drawn out storylines that last upwards of 100 hours. In general the action is turn based and fairly slow moving and more of a test of stamina over dexterity or complex controller movements.
Wii gamers (however you'd like to define them) like to pickup a game and play for a few minutes to an hour when they're bored, they don't like to play for more than a few hours a week and they're mostly interested in quick activity that they can get into right away and then put away for days/weeks and pick it up again. They don't care about graphics, they like to move around and they hate complex interfaces.
Those sound like two COMPLETELY different types of gamers to me. hocking FF to the Wii crowd would be like trying to sell copies of War and Peace to families at a water-park.
Probably because a major part of the core Final Fantasy lineage is eye candy... and the Wii doesn't have adequate hardware to provide said eye candy for their flagship title.
That and the fact that FF is really not a franchise for casual gamers... it doesn't really cater to the Wii audience regardless of how large that audience is.
BS... just last week I was reading an analysis on new tech being developed by Nissan along with Ford and a few others, a Variable Compression Ratio (VCR) system.
This tech would would dramatically improve the performance of turbo charged engines not just in terms of power output but also in terms of fuel effective, and it would make the engine run much much smoother.
I guess I don't understand how combustion engines are supposedly tapped out. Keep in mind that most of the engine's performance characteristics are still very much mechanical and are basically "hard coded" for a good median of power output and fuel economy since they don't have the technology to dynamically change the characteristics when one is needed over the other.
Even Variable Valve Timing is in it's infancy and the current methods for that are crude at best, there are alternative methods under development that could theoretically give you a Corvette when you stuff your foot into it and a Prius when you're just cruising on the highway or around town.
Even the engineering techniques are just starting to get interesting... engines developed completely new in the last decade mark the first engines completely prototyped in a virtual environment as opposed to the old method of just building something similar to what's been done before and making slight improvements through real world testing. Chevy's LS series motor (found in the late 90s Camaro, Firebird, and Corvettes) marks one of the first of such motors and with a 6-speed sees an impressive 31MPG with 330HP. And even over the last decade they've been able to make small tweaks to that power plant in terms of both power output and fuel economy. And there's still a world of possibilities that can be done to improve things still.
In short... If you're just looking at the explosion in the chamber and the resulting torque then yes, combustion engines are already "pretty good" in terms of effency. However that neglects the fact that conditions change mili-second to mili-second in terms of air-pressure, air-temperature, load on the engine, and numerous other things. Engines aren't dynamic enough to work as good as they could in every possible scenario so they're built for a best average across the board.
That's garbage, if you have a hard drive the game will cache to it. The only thing that no always having a hard drive does is make it so that they have to program the game to work without caching available.
I've got an acquaintance who was an engine developer for Neversoft (he works for EA now) He explained it to me like this: If(hard drive attached) { cache } else { don't cache }
Though you don't need a devleoper to explain these concepts.. just time how long it takes for a game to load with the hard drive attached, then time it again with the hard drive removed... I'm sure you'll find that the load screens are usually 3 to 4 times longer without the hard drive.
Forget DEVELOPERS... it's why _I_ like consoles more than PCs for gaming. I stopped gaming on my PC back in 2002 and I couldn't be happier with the decision. Last time I upgraded my PC in 2003 and I'm still happy with the performance for everything else I use it for which includes audio and photo editing with the occasional CAD work on top of other day-to-day tasks...
/. gamers have some sort of distaste for console gamers but hey when I get home from the cube farm I can crash on the couch and start playing that new game I picked up from the store as soon as I put the disc in the console... no configuration garbage to play with, no headaches of installing or downloading all of the patches, or worrying if it's going to crash on level 2.
I know most