Wake me up when a compelling game comes out. I've heard decent things about Heavenly Sword, but it isn't my cup of tea. Everything else _so far_ has been a disappointment, delayed until 2008, or I can play it on another system.
When you talk about the Nintendo generation, I guess you are referring to the release of the NES. I would say that the videogame generation is a good bit older than their 20s or 30s - maybe 40's or possibly early 50s now. I'm talking about arcades and the first home systems. Anyway, they are old enough to be taken seriously for the US presidency or Supreme Court. So, where are they? Fighting other battles?
He's just trolling, for the most part, but you are not replying to his point. He is trying to say that Sony used to have a good name for quality, but not any more. And even though he is trolling, I would have to agree. I would be reluctant to buy any Sony product unless it was priced as a disposable item. Everything I've purchased from them since the 1980's has died within a couple years except for my PS2. That was one reason I bought a Dreamcast before I eventually gave in and bought a PS2.
Your point in reply was that certain Sony products were priced competitively and had good specs. The Bravias may be fine TVs, but I would be afraid to invest that much money in a Sony product when you can get a Samsung for a similar price or a Vizio at a lower price.
Is it a fun game, or not? Debate that question if you must, but skip the minor technical details. It reminds me of the original Xbox's CPU -- some people swore it was a Celeron, some said a P3. I say what ends up being played on the screen is all that really matters.
I have been a hands-on techie since the days of the 386. That means I am overdue for a severe case of Alzheimer's and a possible touch of Delusional Managementitis. After those two factors, Intel's stupid naming schemes are confusing enough that I don't bother trying to remember the differences between their processor families. It's definitely easier to buy AMD. But I know I would spend the extra time to work out the differences if I wanted to build a new box. That can't be what Intel's marketing people are hoping for -- "Buy Intel, if you really want to" just isn't a very appealing line.
Apple took a risk with the iphone by releasing an expensive device with extra features that not everyone would consider essential. By taking the deal with AT&T, they probably reduced some of their financial risk. They also reduced their available market share since people may not be able or willing to switch to AT&T. I don't necessarily like their decision, but I don't think it was motivated entirely by corporate greed.
As for the ipod, we all know the argument about controlling the end-user's experience in order to guarantee that everything works well together. Apple is extending that formula to the iphone. Like the ipod, there will be more and more ways to get around the limitations as time passes.
It's cool to continue to call for the opening up of these devices because the payoff for a techie is huge, but it will take time. I don't think it will speed things along to resort to conspiracy theories or dismissal of Apple's motives in this case.
Modding ObiWan's comment as flamebait smacks of another type of flamebait. I agree with him -- the Wii hasn't even been turned on for a few weeks in my household, despite having a Zeldafan wife and 3 game-playing kids. At the same time, the friendly UPS guy is delivering my second 360 tomorrow so I can play co-op Halo3 with the family. I could have probably done this pretty easily in split screen, but it is such a big deal for my kids that I wanted to do it right.
Yeah, we played Wii Sports for a couple weeks and Rayvin Rabbids for a while, but we've logged countless hours in Oblivion, Halo 2, Call of Duty 3, and a few others. I took 9/25 off from work to play Halo 3, but I can't even name the next big Wii release because I've stopped caring. When my wife finally gets back to Zelda and finishes it, maybe I can talk her into selling the whole rig...
Now I can get a second 360 and let the kids take over the first one. All I have to do is to verify somehow that I will get one of the 65nm designs. My wife forced me into doing this when she got suckered into pre-ordering Halo 3. For some reason, she ordered two copies...
After all this time, it is surprising to me that the PS3 sales are only a little more than double the 360 sales. Yes, the 360 had a jump on the market but it is still a lot closer than I would have expected. People say that M$ should give up on that market -- maybe Sony should think along the same lines?
Halo 2 is derivative of many other FPS titles and lags behind PC gameplay in many ways. It also sets the standard for console-based FPS games. That's really all there is to say....
If you want to buy a console to play Blu-Ray movies, then your argument holds water. If you wanted it to play games, you'd happily buy a 360 and some games or extra controllers instead of the PS3. On top of that, expect lower prices for the 360 soon, and an improved manufacturing process that will help lower the defect rate.
I am interested in adding a PS3 to my 360, Wii and older consoles but I honestly can't think of a single PS3 exclusive that I want to play. I will probably wait for the next price cut, in the hopes that some AAA titles will come out between now and then.
The more recently manufactured models have relatively quiet DVD drives. I can't even hear mine over normal game audio and it is barely noticeable when the TV is silent.
Seriously, I would take one if they gave it away for free... But I can't even think of one game I really want to play on it, and I am not planning to buy any bluray movies. I wouldn't even unbox it.
I have a 360 and a Wii. It's too late to care about the PS3.
Why aren't the shareholders of the major labels pitching a fit and demanding that things change? Surely some of them must realize that suing everyone will only hasten the end of their market!
I know that sounds naive, but this has gone so far that you'd have to be blind to ignore the impact of their actions. If the labels are public, there should be a shareholder revolt and management MUST be thrown out or else the company will be worth less and less with each passing day.
That was revealed at WWDC. But that info could be US-centric since that is the only market currently set to get the iPhone. Maybe the details would be different in other areas.
I don't think I could bring myself to buy the iPhone with a 2 year deal, assuming that also means we need to choose an expensive data plan and deal with other restrictions. I'd be happy to spend almost as much as an iPhone for a nice PDA/Phone combo, and I may still get it. But I don't think I can drop an additional $100/month for a fully loaded phone plan. At this point, I can only hope to import and unlocked phone somehow... or hope that AT&T offers a much better than anticipated price on the plan.
Allow me to elaborate -- the wife plays Zelda and the kids play party games while we all sit around together. You could say that we all play the Wii, but really the parents just encourage the kids and the kids do all the playing. I actually do have a job, but I work a rotating shift that leaves me wide awake at home while everyone else is either at school/work or dead asleep, so I play shooters online.
I agree that if I simply came home from work and started playing games by myself then your point might have been completely valid. I'm just not on the same schedule as everyone else more than 5 days out of the month. I mentioned the 20-30 hours simply to point out that I could have been playing the Wii at that time but I chose the 360 instead. I also could have used that time to learn a foreign language, study romantic literature or enhance my professional skills.... but that doesn't happen as often.
I vaguely recall that Nintendo screwed over some 3rd party developers, and I am not happy with some of the ways they tightly and smugly manage their image (although they are well within their rights there). I guess it is the latter that gets to me. Let's face it, they don't compare to MS or Sony on evil deeds, but I think there's enough there to fuel a bit of mistrust. Hey, I still have a Wii and a Cube, so it's not like I hate them!
Sony, M$ and Nintendo have all done "evil" things in the games/entertainment biz. Sure, you can pick out certain bad deeds and say they are the worst. For me, I am still boycotting Sony because if their rootkit and entertainment mafia connections, combined with a personal history of being burned by poor quality Sony home electronics that underperform early and die too soon. But I digress -- for most people, it is probably best to buy the consoles that work the best for your life today and not worry too much about the supposedly AAA titles that may be around the corner. That's why my wife and kids play the Wii and I log about 20-30 hours per week on my 360.
You are absolutely correct. I had been thinking about it myself, but I was unable to justify the extra cost. I just skimmed over a review of one of the first Dell machines shipping with Vista Home Premium, and lo and behold it costs just about as much as a new iMac. This was one of the value-oriented Dells, too. Granted, the PC would have 2x more memory but apparently Vista just sucks that into a black hole anyway. In all other ways, the configurations were very similar, and this was considered the minimum spec to run Vista with all of the features turned on (not the MS-specified minimum, but more of a practical minimum).
So my new debate is whether to accept Vista and simply work around its limitations and restrictions, or to welcome our Jobsian overlords with all of their strange ways. For instance, iTunes is considered an essential part of the iPod "experience", but I will never use it again on my iPod. How many times will my vision diverge from Steve's, and will I always be able to work around it as easily as I have with my music?
If I try Vista I won't just accept it, I would happily fight it to bend it to my will. And I am sure I would be able to beat it, but I don't know if I care enough to bother trying.
The first several months of the 360's introduction were pretty rough for potential buyers. As bad as the PS3 shortages were, I can walk into a store right now and pick one up after just two months on the market. The 360 trickled out until it was already 4-6 months old (which was when I could finally find one to buy without putting any effort into the search). It was more or less sold out until then.
Agreed -- I would consider getting an iPod but I will not be switching back to iTunes again. I used it for several months and I uninstalled it. Right now, I prefer Media Monkey. Any mp3 player that I buy will have to be seen as a storage device by the OS. I understand that there are ways to use an iPod that way, or at least without using iTunes but that still makes it a lot less likely that I would ever purchase an iPod.
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Wake me up when a compelling game comes out. I've heard decent things about Heavenly Sword, but it isn't my cup of tea. Everything else _so far_ has been a disappointment, delayed until 2008, or I can play it on another system.
When you talk about the Nintendo generation, I guess you are referring to the release of the NES. I would say that the videogame generation is a good bit older than their 20s or 30s - maybe 40's or possibly early 50s now. I'm talking about arcades and the first home systems. Anyway, they are old enough to be taken seriously for the US presidency or Supreme Court. So, where are they? Fighting other battles?
He's just trolling, for the most part, but you are not replying to his point. He is trying to say that Sony used to have a good name for quality, but not any more. And even though he is trolling, I would have to agree. I would be reluctant to buy any Sony product unless it was priced as a disposable item. Everything I've purchased from them since the 1980's has died within a couple years except for my PS2. That was one reason I bought a Dreamcast before I eventually gave in and bought a PS2. Your point in reply was that certain Sony products were priced competitively and had good specs. The Bravias may be fine TVs, but I would be afraid to invest that much money in a Sony product when you can get a Samsung for a similar price or a Vizio at a lower price.
I'm not sure that you and I share the same definition of the word "good".
Is it a fun game, or not? Debate that question if you must, but skip the minor technical details. It reminds me of the original Xbox's CPU -- some people swore it was a Celeron, some said a P3. I say what ends up being played on the screen is all that really matters.
I have been a hands-on techie since the days of the 386. That means I am overdue for a severe case of Alzheimer's and a possible touch of Delusional Managementitis. After those two factors, Intel's stupid naming schemes are confusing enough that I don't bother trying to remember the differences between their processor families. It's definitely easier to buy AMD. But I know I would spend the extra time to work out the differences if I wanted to build a new box. That can't be what Intel's marketing people are hoping for -- "Buy Intel, if you really want to" just isn't a very appealing line.
The PS3 holds down loose papers like an F-in' CHAMP!
Apple took a risk with the iphone by releasing an expensive device with extra features that not everyone would consider essential. By taking the deal with AT&T, they probably reduced some of their financial risk. They also reduced their available market share since people may not be able or willing to switch to AT&T. I don't necessarily like their decision, but I don't think it was motivated entirely by corporate greed. As for the ipod, we all know the argument about controlling the end-user's experience in order to guarantee that everything works well together. Apple is extending that formula to the iphone. Like the ipod, there will be more and more ways to get around the limitations as time passes. It's cool to continue to call for the opening up of these devices because the payoff for a techie is huge, but it will take time. I don't think it will speed things along to resort to conspiracy theories or dismissal of Apple's motives in this case.
Modding ObiWan's comment as flamebait smacks of another type of flamebait. I agree with him -- the Wii hasn't even been turned on for a few weeks in my household, despite having a Zeldafan wife and 3 game-playing kids. At the same time, the friendly UPS guy is delivering my second 360 tomorrow so I can play co-op Halo3 with the family. I could have probably done this pretty easily in split screen, but it is such a big deal for my kids that I wanted to do it right. Yeah, we played Wii Sports for a couple weeks and Rayvin Rabbids for a while, but we've logged countless hours in Oblivion, Halo 2, Call of Duty 3, and a few others. I took 9/25 off from work to play Halo 3, but I can't even name the next big Wii release because I've stopped caring. When my wife finally gets back to Zelda and finishes it, maybe I can talk her into selling the whole rig...
Now I can get a second 360 and let the kids take over the first one. All I have to do is to verify somehow that I will get one of the 65nm designs. My wife forced me into doing this when she got suckered into pre-ordering Halo 3. For some reason, she ordered two copies...
After all this time, it is surprising to me that the PS3 sales are only a little more than double the 360 sales. Yes, the 360 had a jump on the market but it is still a lot closer than I would have expected. People say that M$ should give up on that market -- maybe Sony should think along the same lines?
Halo 2 is derivative of many other FPS titles and lags behind PC gameplay in many ways. It also sets the standard for console-based FPS games. That's really all there is to say....
If you want to buy a console to play Blu-Ray movies, then your argument holds water. If you wanted it to play games, you'd happily buy a 360 and some games or extra controllers instead of the PS3. On top of that, expect lower prices for the 360 soon, and an improved manufacturing process that will help lower the defect rate. I am interested in adding a PS3 to my 360, Wii and older consoles but I honestly can't think of a single PS3 exclusive that I want to play. I will probably wait for the next price cut, in the hopes that some AAA titles will come out between now and then.
The more recently manufactured models have relatively quiet DVD drives. I can't even hear mine over normal game audio and it is barely noticeable when the TV is silent.
Seriously, I would take one if they gave it away for free... But I can't even think of one game I really want to play on it, and I am not planning to buy any bluray movies. I wouldn't even unbox it. I have a 360 and a Wii. It's too late to care about the PS3.
Why aren't the shareholders of the major labels pitching a fit and demanding that things change? Surely some of them must realize that suing everyone will only hasten the end of their market! I know that sounds naive, but this has gone so far that you'd have to be blind to ignore the impact of their actions. If the labels are public, there should be a shareholder revolt and management MUST be thrown out or else the company will be worth less and less with each passing day.
That was revealed at WWDC. But that info could be US-centric since that is the only market currently set to get the iPhone. Maybe the details would be different in other areas.
I don't think I could bring myself to buy the iPhone with a 2 year deal, assuming that also means we need to choose an expensive data plan and deal with other restrictions. I'd be happy to spend almost as much as an iPhone for a nice PDA/Phone combo, and I may still get it. But I don't think I can drop an additional $100/month for a fully loaded phone plan. At this point, I can only hope to import and unlocked phone somehow... or hope that AT&T offers a much better than anticipated price on the plan.
Allow me to elaborate -- the wife plays Zelda and the kids play party games while we all sit around together. You could say that we all play the Wii, but really the parents just encourage the kids and the kids do all the playing. I actually do have a job, but I work a rotating shift that leaves me wide awake at home while everyone else is either at school/work or dead asleep, so I play shooters online. I agree that if I simply came home from work and started playing games by myself then your point might have been completely valid. I'm just not on the same schedule as everyone else more than 5 days out of the month. I mentioned the 20-30 hours simply to point out that I could have been playing the Wii at that time but I chose the 360 instead. I also could have used that time to learn a foreign language, study romantic literature or enhance my professional skills.... but that doesn't happen as often.
I vaguely recall that Nintendo screwed over some 3rd party developers, and I am not happy with some of the ways they tightly and smugly manage their image (although they are well within their rights there). I guess it is the latter that gets to me. Let's face it, they don't compare to MS or Sony on evil deeds, but I think there's enough there to fuel a bit of mistrust. Hey, I still have a Wii and a Cube, so it's not like I hate them!
Sony, M$ and Nintendo have all done "evil" things in the games/entertainment biz. Sure, you can pick out certain bad deeds and say they are the worst. For me, I am still boycotting Sony because if their rootkit and entertainment mafia connections, combined with a personal history of being burned by poor quality Sony home electronics that underperform early and die too soon. But I digress -- for most people, it is probably best to buy the consoles that work the best for your life today and not worry too much about the supposedly AAA titles that may be around the corner. That's why my wife and kids play the Wii and I log about 20-30 hours per week on my 360.
You are absolutely correct. I had been thinking about it myself, but I was unable to justify the extra cost. I just skimmed over a review of one of the first Dell machines shipping with Vista Home Premium, and lo and behold it costs just about as much as a new iMac. This was one of the value-oriented Dells, too. Granted, the PC would have 2x more memory but apparently Vista just sucks that into a black hole anyway. In all other ways, the configurations were very similar, and this was considered the minimum spec to run Vista with all of the features turned on (not the MS-specified minimum, but more of a practical minimum).
So my new debate is whether to accept Vista and simply work around its limitations and restrictions, or to welcome our Jobsian overlords with all of their strange ways. For instance, iTunes is considered an essential part of the iPod "experience", but I will never use it again on my iPod. How many times will my vision diverge from Steve's, and will I always be able to work around it as easily as I have with my music?
If I try Vista I won't just accept it, I would happily fight it to bend it to my will. And I am sure I would be able to beat it, but I don't know if I care enough to bother trying.
The first several months of the 360's introduction were pretty rough for potential buyers. As bad as the PS3 shortages were, I can walk into a store right now and pick one up after just two months on the market. The 360 trickled out until it was already 4-6 months old (which was when I could finally find one to buy without putting any effort into the search). It was more or less sold out until then.
Agreed -- I would consider getting an iPod but I will not be switching back to iTunes again. I used it for several months and I uninstalled it. Right now, I prefer Media Monkey. Any mp3 player that I buy will have to be seen as a storage device by the OS. I understand that there are ways to use an iPod that way, or at least without using iTunes but that still makes it a lot less likely that I would ever purchase an iPod.
Hell yeah! I bought my 360 in June and picked up 5 games within the first week. But they were all used games, so I didn't help the numbers at all.
Your point is probably valid though, because I had no luck finding a 360 for list price until this month.
EC