Well the whole selling point of these Rental by mail services is the low cost and no late fees... You pay a flat $20 or so a month and if you watch and return a movie as soon as you get it you can easily watch 16 movies (two out at a time cycling twice a week)a month and not worry about getting any late fees on top of your rental charge.
If you actually rent and watch that many movies it works out great for you as a customer. The problem comes when you DON'T watch that many movies. You sign up for the service and then end up not having the time to watch the movie... then you're paying a hefty price for the movies to just sit and collect dust... two months go by and you could have bought the movies for the rental price you're paying. This obviously works in the favor of Net flix who collect your $20 monthly whether you're actively using their service or not.
I personally don't subscribe to one of these movie rental places but I DO subscribe to a Game rental service; Gamerang (I tried GameFly and GameLender but their mailing times were way too long). Seeing as games these days are getting shorter and shorter, though still not short enough to complete in a rental period, and The prices are getting higher, it seems ridiculous to pay $60 for only 6 to 8 hours of videogame entertainment. Gamerang works out great because I can enjoy all those short games for what they are without complaining about price and I'd have to sit on a game six months before I'm actually loosing money by renting the game with the service instead of buying (as opposed to the 2 month it would take for a movie rental to reach that point of diminishing returns).
Even still I fall into the same trap as described in TFA. I'll get the game in and I either end up not having the time or don't feel like playing videogames and they just sit there collecting dust. Though I'm spending a whole lot les then I would have if I bought the games I still feel like I'm wasting money on the service buy not playing them as soon as they come in. Essentially I'm getting TOO MUCH content such that I don't have the time to use the service economically.
It's true that there are many more people who buy games and DON'T finish them then there are gamers who buy them and DO. But I would hardly call the number of gamers who finish games "few". Then you also have to ask why the person did or didn't finish the game. Did they get bored with it or just get to a point that was too difficult to pass and gave up? Was their driving force to see how the story turned out or just because they were having so much fun... either way with some creative achievement searching you can see that there are more then a few.
That's not a UrQuattro coupe is it?
If so I'm going to your house and stealing it and the M3:P
two of the cars on my "I'd love to own and could potentially financially do so" list... if only I could find them for sale... can't even find junkers around here.
2) Why are there four dissenting votes? More to the point, what's tacked onto this that would make a congressmen go on record as appearing to vote against energy efficiency.
2) Those four are obviously the ones in the pocket of Big Energy.
Read what your peer had to say:
The four who voted against this bill were right, this "study" is a waste of money.
I'd tend to agree... It's not so bad that they wasted time voting to approve a study to waste money measuring server room temperature that they actually voted to waste more money doing it. Then again I'd also agree with summary:
Well, at least if they're doing this they're not passing 'real' laws, right?
The PS2 has Jak, though it's not as promoted as say Mario
Microsoft initially Intended for Blinx to be it's mascot but that didn't work out and the MasterChief ended up being more of a mascot then Blinx was, even still he's not really much of a mascot as an Icon as others and TFA pointed out.
yeah, I agree... I wouldn't want help in an FPS, the mechanics of an FPS are pretty much the same you've either got it or you don't, past that it just comes down to level and weapon familiarity which can't easily be passed on by a "coach" without holding your hand.
Fighting games rely heavily on your familiarity with the different moves the characters perform, they typically offer a sparing mode which is far more beneficial then a "coach" would be. BOTH of those game types are too fast for decent live coaching anyway.
Strategy games makes sense, If I'm playing hexic it might be nice to have a coach make move suggestions and tell me why. Similarly I think SPORTS games could best benefit from virtual coaches. I know in Fight Night your coach actually talks to you, tells you need to block more or be more aggressive. You usually only get 1 or 2 tidbits of advice per round but it is often useful for determining where your weak points are and how to do better in the next round. I'd love to have a coach in Rockstar's New Table Tennis game, something that would give me shot by shot suggestions for a couple of games. They give you "tips" whenever your opponent scores but they're pretty useless, if you were caught at the wrong side of the table it will say something stupid like "be closer to the ball when you swing" Well no crap but how do I play so that I don't get myself into that situation in the first place.
Also wouldn't it be cool if you could enable an option in something like Madden where the voice of the actual coach for your team made play suggestions into your headset. Where he would make the calls the real coach would make if the team were in that situation. you could turn it off or just ignore him if you wanted but you'd still have to execute his suggestions.
I think it just makes sense to have coaches for games that have coaches in real life.
That's because the best strategy in DOA4 (as with all DOA fighting games) is to vary your attacks. The game plays like a complex version of rock paper scissors and if your strategy is to always pick scissors... well even the most retarded AI could pick up on that.
I thought of the same thing after reading the article. Living in a vacation area I've built several websites for local businesses (mostly restaurants). The idea is to get people who are looking to vacation in the area to find these places online and decide to stop in for dinner when the make their trip. There's no online purchase. The whole idea is for them to click the ad look at the site (most often just a simple 1 to 3 page deal) and write down the name as some place to check out next month while on vacation.
I have other clients too like local plumbers, drywall hangers, HVAC installers. Actually I think I only have 1 client who offers items for sale thought their website; a local artist and her items are just links to eBay auctions. Heck even my web design service doesn't actually SELL anything but it's sure nice to get those clicks.
I can totally understand trying to squash click-fraud. If some schmuck put Google ads on his home page and the wrote a script to keep clicking whatever comes up... I get worthless clicks that I paid for, as do all of my clients as does whoever else that is advertising. I don't really have a solution to the problem but I can certainly say the one being proposed wouldn't be the best.
So Sega could have rolled out a CD-based system as powerful as the N64, and also been first to market. Too bad about those childish execs at Sega Japan.
Yup, not only that they could have had Sony's backing them up as well... Taking half the burden of the development costs and helping out with the disc media tech, sound processing, and games.
I think the N64 processor with Sony supported CD based media even if Sega messed up the launch they would have annihilated Nintendo that round... the gaming would would be a very different place today...
Completely agree about Dreamcast innovation the VMU was one of the best controller innovations in recent memory and I really wish one of the other console makers would bring it back.
So many great and innovative games for that console too: Chu Chu Rocket, Space Channel 5, Jet Grind Radio, Resident Evil Code Veronica, Sonic Adventure, (and all the ones you mentioned). Some of those were re-released on other consoles, others just disappeared.
I think the Dreamcast showed us that you don't need new and innovative hardware to make new and innovative games. But, if it acts as the catalyst (as in the Wiimote) to get developers thinking again then I'm all for it.
If you RTFA you wouldn't have to guess...
you only got half of them right:
The Godfather
Harry Potter
Madden NFL
Need for Speed
SSX
Tiger Woods PGA TOUR
well I own a 360 and I've been pretty damn happy with it. As an owner of all 4 last gen consoles I think I was the happiest with the Dreamcast and once that died an early death my opinion of the games available on the other consoles was overly apathetic with the exception of the occasional game here or there. The 360 got me excited about gaming again. It's hard to describe how amazing the Live integration really is. The Wiimote looks to do to controllers what the new Xbox Live has done to online services. It's not just multiplayer and it's nothing like Steam. Every new little feature has you going "damn thats great, why didn't game companies do this decades ago?!"
The only "NEW" thing the PS3 seems to be bringing to the table is Blu-Ray. And where I don't have any interest in that the console isn't worth the $600 price tag. I'll pick one up when it has a list of features or games I want for the price I feel they're worth. I've owned a PS1 and PS2 but I was least impressed with the PS2 last generation and Sony's arrogance, lack of innovation (unless you count shoving their other products down your throat as innovation), all for an overwhelming price has turned me off for the time being.
The wii on the other hand I'm really excited about. The controller looks to really shake up how we think about games and I really can't wait to see the kind of innovative titles that are bound to pop up on that console. The 360 had just enough good launch titles to get me to buy one and I was overwhelming surprised by the innovation offered in new Live service/dashboard so it's easy to say my impression improved after getting one and exploring all the features. The Wii has me just as excited and it hasn't even launched yet... and for the price you'd be a fool not to pick one up.
One last thing, I wonder how this would affect me, being as I am Canadian; or even anyone else in the world.
If it doesn't effect your ability to connect to site that have to pass through throttled US pipelines to get to you then I'm sure good 'ol Canada will adopt similar policies and follow in the USs footsteps eventually.
Bell South would simply charge West Coast Foo Bell more for their bits sent AND/OR charge their customers more for their bits received.
The fact that it's Google who's sending out more bits shouldn't have anything to do with it. If your network is "overtaxed" then you raise your prices to those who connect to it until either A. enough people find alternatives and it's no longer over taxed, or B. you make enough money from the elevated rates to upgrade your system so it's no longer burdened.
Trying to find a scapegoat to either throttle or bill will only piss people off and make the internet a much less happy place.
To swing this thread back on-topic, Sega made the same mistake. Nintendo distinguished itself from Atari before it by redesigning even the look and feel of the console's hardware, never even acknowledging Atari's existence. Had Sega marketed the Genesis on its own merits without mentioning Nintendo, perhaps they could have gained more traction and goodwill.
Did you RTFA? According to the interview the negative marketing WORKED and made Sega the #1 hardware in the console business. It was the stubborn japanese management that killed them At the end of the 16 bit era.
It's true I've had luck getting damaged DVDs replaced in the past (hard to find Animes no less).
I imagine if Sony's Anti-Used game methods really took off thought the content wouldn't be locked to your console but a profile, much like an Xbox Live Gamertag that you could migrate to a new console and take all your "licenses" with you.
But if you're really buying a license they should be willing to replace your destroyed content for a nominal "replacement fee" after all you still OWN the license.
I'm curious how this would effect those of us with multiple consoles or when you upgrade to the next generation. For instance the PS2 plays PS1 games, the PS3 will play PS2 and PS1 games... will the PS4 play PS3 games if all the licenses are stored on the PS3?
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Well the whole selling point of these Rental by mail services is the low cost and no late fees... You pay a flat $20 or so a month and if you watch and return a movie as soon as you get it you can easily watch 16 movies (two out at a time cycling twice a week)a month and not worry about getting any late fees on top of your rental charge.
If you actually rent and watch that many movies it works out great for you as a customer. The problem comes when you DON'T watch that many movies. You sign up for the service and then end up not having the time to watch the movie... then you're paying a hefty price for the movies to just sit and collect dust... two months go by and you could have bought the movies for the rental price you're paying. This obviously works in the favor of Net flix who collect your $20 monthly whether you're actively using their service or not.
I personally don't subscribe to one of these movie rental places but I DO subscribe to a Game rental service; Gamerang (I tried GameFly and GameLender but their mailing times were way too long). Seeing as games these days are getting shorter and shorter, though still not short enough to complete in a rental period, and The prices are getting higher, it seems ridiculous to pay $60 for only 6 to 8 hours of videogame entertainment. Gamerang works out great because I can enjoy all those short games for what they are without complaining about price and I'd have to sit on a game six months before I'm actually loosing money by renting the game with the service instead of buying (as opposed to the 2 month it would take for a movie rental to reach that point of diminishing returns).
Even still I fall into the same trap as described in TFA. I'll get the game in and I either end up not having the time or don't feel like playing videogames and they just sit there collecting dust. Though I'm spending a whole lot les then I would have if I bought the games I still feel like I'm wasting money on the service buy not playing them as soon as they come in. Essentially I'm getting TOO MUCH content such that I don't have the time to use the service economically.
It's true that there are many more people who buy games and DON'T finish them then there are gamers who buy them and DO. But I would hardly call the number of gamers who finish games "few". Then you also have to ask why the person did or didn't finish the game. Did they get bored with it or just get to a point that was too difficult to pass and gave up? Was their driving force to see how the story turned out or just because they were having so much fun... either way with some creative achievement searching you can see that there are more then a few.
Physical contact?
Pff... your hardware is obviously obsolete.
That's not a UrQuattro coupe is it? :P
If so I'm going to your house and stealing it and the M3
two of the cars on my "I'd love to own and could potentially financially do so" list... if only I could find them for sale... can't even find junkers around here.
you're assuming I'm using an ineffective self-control method... there are many other ways to make one's self stop breathing successfully
I always thought that not breathing (AKA suicide) was against the law in the states...
well maybe not Ford or Viagra but what about mascots like Joe Camel, the Marlboro man, Smilin' Bob, Jarred, etc.
The PS2 has Jak, though it's not as promoted as say Mario
Microsoft initially Intended for Blinx to be it's mascot but that didn't work out and the MasterChief ended up being more of a mascot then Blinx was, even still he's not really much of a mascot as an Icon as others and TFA pointed out.
yeah, I agree... I wouldn't want help in an FPS, the mechanics of an FPS are pretty much the same you've either got it or you don't, past that it just comes down to level and weapon familiarity which can't easily be passed on by a "coach" without holding your hand.
Fighting games rely heavily on your familiarity with the different moves the characters perform, they typically offer a sparing mode which is far more beneficial then a "coach" would be. BOTH of those game types are too fast for decent live coaching anyway.
Strategy games makes sense, If I'm playing hexic it might be nice to have a coach make move suggestions and tell me why. Similarly I think SPORTS games could best benefit from virtual coaches. I know in Fight Night your coach actually talks to you, tells you need to block more or be more aggressive. You usually only get 1 or 2 tidbits of advice per round but it is often useful for determining where your weak points are and how to do better in the next round. I'd love to have a coach in Rockstar's New Table Tennis game, something that would give me shot by shot suggestions for a couple of games. They give you "tips" whenever your opponent scores but they're pretty useless, if you were caught at the wrong side of the table it will say something stupid like "be closer to the ball when you swing" Well no crap but how do I play so that I don't get myself into that situation in the first place.
Also wouldn't it be cool if you could enable an option in something like Madden where the voice of the actual coach for your team made play suggestions into your headset. Where he would make the calls the real coach would make if the team were in that situation. you could turn it off or just ignore him if you wanted but you'd still have to execute his suggestions.
I think it just makes sense to have coaches for games that have coaches in real life.
That's because the best strategy in DOA4 (as with all DOA fighting games) is to vary your attacks. The game plays like a complex version of rock paper scissors and if your strategy is to always pick scissors... well even the most retarded AI could pick up on that.
I thought of the same thing after reading the article. Living in a vacation area I've built several websites for local businesses (mostly restaurants). The idea is to get people who are looking to vacation in the area to find these places online and decide to stop in for dinner when the make their trip. There's no online purchase. The whole idea is for them to click the ad look at the site (most often just a simple 1 to 3 page deal) and write down the name as some place to check out next month while on vacation.
I have other clients too like local plumbers, drywall hangers, HVAC installers. Actually I think I only have 1 client who offers items for sale thought their website; a local artist and her items are just links to eBay auctions. Heck even my web design service doesn't actually SELL anything but it's sure nice to get those clicks.
I can totally understand trying to squash click-fraud. If some schmuck put Google ads on his home page and the wrote a script to keep clicking whatever comes up... I get worthless clicks that I paid for, as do all of my clients as does whoever else that is advertising. I don't really have a solution to the problem but I can certainly say the one being proposed wouldn't be the best.
I think the N64 processor with Sony supported CD based media even if Sega messed up the launch they would have annihilated Nintendo that round... the gaming would would be a very different place today...
Completely agree about Dreamcast innovation the VMU was one of the best controller innovations in recent memory and I really wish one of the other console makers would bring it back.
So many great and innovative games for that console too: Chu Chu Rocket, Space Channel 5, Jet Grind Radio, Resident Evil Code Veronica, Sonic Adventure, (and all the ones you mentioned). Some of those were re-released on other consoles, others just disappeared.
I think the Dreamcast showed us that you don't need new and innovative hardware to make new and innovative games. But, if it acts as the catalyst (as in the Wiimote) to get developers thinking again then I'm all for it.
I thought they renamed it the Pii?
If they do that... I'll do the same...
If you RTFA you wouldn't have to guess...
you only got half of them right:
The Godfather
Harry Potter
Madden NFL
Need for Speed
SSX
Tiger Woods PGA TOUR
well I own a 360 and I've been pretty damn happy with it. As an owner of all 4 last gen consoles I think I was the happiest with the Dreamcast and once that died an early death my opinion of the games available on the other consoles was overly apathetic with the exception of the occasional game here or there. The 360 got me excited about gaming again. It's hard to describe how amazing the Live integration really is. The Wiimote looks to do to controllers what the new Xbox Live has done to online services. It's not just multiplayer and it's nothing like Steam. Every new little feature has you going "damn thats great, why didn't game companies do this decades ago?!"
The only "NEW" thing the PS3 seems to be bringing to the table is Blu-Ray. And where I don't have any interest in that the console isn't worth the $600 price tag. I'll pick one up when it has a list of features or games I want for the price I feel they're worth. I've owned a PS1 and PS2 but I was least impressed with the PS2 last generation and Sony's arrogance, lack of innovation (unless you count shoving their other products down your throat as innovation), all for an overwhelming price has turned me off for the time being.
The wii on the other hand I'm really excited about. The controller looks to really shake up how we think about games and I really can't wait to see the kind of innovative titles that are bound to pop up on that console. The 360 had just enough good launch titles to get me to buy one and I was overwhelming surprised by the innovation offered in new Live service/dashboard so it's easy to say my impression improved after getting one and exploring all the features. The Wii has me just as excited and it hasn't even launched yet... and for the price you'd be a fool not to pick one up.
Wii60 FTW
Bell South would simply charge West Coast Foo Bell more for their bits sent AND/OR charge their customers more for their bits received.
The fact that it's Google who's sending out more bits shouldn't have anything to do with it. If your network is "overtaxed" then you raise your prices to those who connect to it until either A. enough people find alternatives and it's no longer over taxed, or B. you make enough money from the elevated rates to upgrade your system so it's no longer burdened.
Trying to find a scapegoat to either throttle or bill will only piss people off and make the internet a much less happy place.
Something tells me he'd be more confused by computer sitting in front of him then the text on it's screen.
It's true I've had luck getting damaged DVDs replaced in the past (hard to find Animes no less).
I imagine if Sony's Anti-Used game methods really took off thought the content wouldn't be locked to your console but a profile, much like an Xbox Live Gamertag that you could migrate to a new console and take all your "licenses" with you.
Agreed.
Becides, even if you're buying a "license" to use the media as opposed to the media itself, why shouldn't that license be transferable?
But if you're really buying a license they should be willing to replace your destroyed content for a nominal "replacement fee" after all you still OWN the license.
I'm curious how this would effect those of us with multiple consoles or when you upgrade to the next generation. For instance the PS2 plays PS1 games, the PS3 will play PS2 and PS1 games... will the PS4 play PS3 games if all the licenses are stored on the PS3?