So today I stumbled upon this article on yahoo:
Yahoo Finance: Someone Claiming To Be A Microsoft Engineer Posted A Long Rant About Xbox One On 4Chan Last Week
It struck me as an interesting read. I mean, I already bashed the hell out of the Xbox One and I assumed this was Microsoft's way of saving face and not admitting that they made a huge mistake, but hooo boy was I wrong on this. Basically, some dude who may or may not be a Microsoft engineer came out and posted this in what can be described as either a fed up attitude or an incredibly snide one (bordering douche levels of assholetry - work with me here, I know them words is stupid lol). I will say this, though: if REVOLUTIONIZING the whole gaming industry business model to benefit consumers was Microsoft's goal all along, then why in the flipping HELL would you lead your console's introduction with "LOOK LOOK WE CAN SEAMLESSLY TRANSITION BETWEEN A GAME AND YOUR TV HOLY SHIT!!!!!", instead of breaking down and leveling with your die hard fans about your vision? Why the hell would you decide that rather than calling your new product something synonymous with change or a revolution, you call it the "one"? Hell Xbox 360 sounds fucking badass. Playstation 4 makes me think of Megaman. Why? I'm not sure. I guess it has something to do with my childhood, and something about keeping a numeric value just gives the impression of an evolution of a previous iteration of your product. Xbox One sounds like an obvious step back.
What bothered me also was Microsoft's supposed vision for the One. If they want to make DRM more accessible and less douchey, then why restrict us on any other option? As a gamer, I feel I deserve the option of owning my games physically as well as digitally. If you create a product that is too far ahead in any direction, then a lot of progress can be made for your company. Example, when the Playstation 3 came out how many of us honestly had any Blu-Rays to play? Not many of us, so it took YEARS for the technology to catch on, and that attributed to the mistakes and hardships Sony experienced with the Playstion 3. Xbox One just seems to take its fan base for granted and more than that, it seems to take GAMERS for granted with a device that possesses features we do NOT want. Now there was a part in there where the dude said "We want to own your living room"....WHY? This is where they CLEARLY went wrong. When developing a console I believe that you should always have the gamer's best interests at heart. This is where Sony delivered to us in spades. They came out and not only did they learn from their mistakes, but went the extra mile to ensure that they did not alienate developers. How can this be seen as a negative?? It isn't, it's a strong positive. It also shows people that gamers want a gaming device, everything else comes extra. Within the article, they mentioned Steam and compared their DRM stance to Steam. As a Steam user, I can say this: Steam is awesome. Part of what makes it awesome is that it enhances my PC experience. I have access to tons of great games. But the key difference here is that the computer was designed to be online. For as long as it's turned on, it is constantly connected. This, I believe, is what makes Steam such a success. There is no real negative and us, as gamers, have no risk or inconvenience. When it comes to a game console making internet mandatory, however, things get a little shady due to the question of WHAT a game console should be. Should it be more like a computer, or its own standalone device? It's a question that, presently, I do not possess the answer to. However I try to keep an open mind to things that sound intriguing, not intrusive or restrictive.
Now I know I sound like I'm praising Sony to the highest point of existence, and I will admit that I do possess a nostalgic bias and brand loyalty to them. A lot of my childhood gaming memories happened with the Playstation brand right next to Nintendo. Xbox is new to me, it's strange and I see it as Microsoft extending their reach to line their pockets with more money. I never felt that Microsoft gave a shit about gamers, and yet here I stand, owning a 360 and loving it. What I wish to do here is stress 2 things.
1) MICROSOFT HAS THEIR HEADS SO FAR UP THEIR OWN ASSES THAT THEY CANNOT SEE STRAIGHT ANYMORE
Looking beyond the Xbox brand, let's take a look at Microsoft as a whole. Everywhere you look it seems there are reports about how much the company is in trouble. Now I doubt that they will go under or close down or anything like that, but it seems like their newest OS, Windows 8, is fairly despised by people. They don't like it. It's as clean and simple as that. I tried it out on a friend of mine's laptop. He was having trouble with it and I figured that I'm decent at computers and I know Windows pretty well.....I could not do a god damn thing on it. It was baffling. Although Windows 8 is probably not as terrible as the internet would have you believe, I'm sure it still stands that there is a negative connotation associated with it.
2) Microsofts interests have taken the same twists that Nintendo's has.
Remember the Wii? Wasn't it kind of weird to have a gaming device with gimmicky yet simple motion controls? Wasn't it somewhat interesting to see how many non-gamers were buying the device for various reasons? Despite how terrible of a GAME console the wii turned out to be, Nintendo took the fucking living room by storm. It was an insane phenomena that I cannot understand. Yet it worked. Temporarily. Nowadays, Nintendo is paying for that hubris and have finally dedicated the Wii-U to being a game platform, if their E3 Nintendo Direct was any indication. Bravo, Nintendo, I am proud that you too have leanred from your mistakes. Xbox seems to want to do what Nintendo has done and target the non-gamer. Welp, all I can say is that the same trick probably won't work twice. I say this because your competition's console's are 100+ dollars cheaper than your new supposed revolutionary device. You fucked yourself hard. See, when Nintendo released the Wii, it was $250. Pretty cheap for a revolutionary game console, dont you think?
Well I don't know what will happen with Microsoft and Xbox. I can only hope that with time they realize their mistake and create experiences for the often taken for granted gamer. Now after that loooooong rant, I am going to drink a beer and play some games OH YEAH!!
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
E3 Thoughs So Far
Well about 2 or 3 weeks ago, I finished my second to last semester of college. As a result, I have gone into what I can only describe as "Decompression", which pretty much means I have become rather lethargic and am being completely lazy about everything. You wanna know something though, hearing about E3 and being very interested in it allowed me to get out of this total lazy streak of mine and now I believe I have something of substance to write here.
This E3 I found to be quite important for all 3 major companies. Can Sony really deliver on the hype and positive hopes for their Playstation 4? Can Microsoft make their Xbox One seem less.....how should I say, umm...Stupid and evil? Can Nintendo gain some respect in the industry as opposed to constantly being called a failing company that is on its way out? Well I have good news, great news, and a rant. I want to make one thing clear though: I openly admit that I have unbridled love for both Nintendo and Sony. I grew up with them and they gave me my childhood and teenage years. I am less partial to Microsoft. Though I will admit that in this current generation, the Xbox 360 is without a doubt the best console. The controller is great and the online interface is amazing. Hell, I enjoy playing games on it. Let me reiterate that I enjoy playing GAMES on it.
Alright allow me to begin -ahem-
Sony
I watched their conference last night (6-10-13) and for the first hour and 20 minutes, I was pretty damn bored. I was uninterested in a lot of what they were saying because it was not about GAMES. They talked about the Vita a little bit, mentioned the Playstation 3, showed off a couple of trailers here and there, but overall, I was bored out of my damn mind. I wanted to know about the Playstation 4, I NEEDED to know more about it and then it happened. They finally showed the friggen thing and I was so impressed. For one, I love how sleek and thin it is. I hated how in this generation, Sony and Microsoft made these morbidly obese consoles that were bulky and cumbersome. They were way too big in my opinion and I'm glad to see that Sony decided to make their console much smaller.
They showed off a few trailers that got me hyped. Final Fantasy XV seems to be promising though I won't put too much hope into it since XIII is, well, terrible in my opinion. But regardless, the game looks great and I'm glad to see that Square-Enix hasn't abandoned the ideas they had with Final Fantasy Versus XIII and chose to evolve into the next installment in their long running series. Kingdom Hearts 3 was shown, FINALLY!!! That one I'm excited for since the damn storyline has to conclude. It's getting way too ridiculous in my opinion. I enjoy the games but they are getting more and more convoluted. I was really impressed with 2 games in particular, Infamous Second Son and Destiny. The demonstrations that were shown impressed me with how great those games look to be. Not to mention that at the very end of their presentation, they announced a $399 price tag, the console has no restrictions on used games, and it does not need a constant internet connection YEAAAAH EVERYONE GOT HYPE IN THE AUDIENCE..FUCK YEAH SONY!!!
So with Sony, I am incredibly hopeful. They clearly made a gaming device that caters directly to us, the individual gamer. They are not trying to restrict us in any way or give us features that we do not want. Sony has made a next generation console that emphasizes the game and the developer. Things can only get better for Sony in my opinion. I know I'm definitly getting a Playstation 4....probably a few months after it's released....damn me for being broke
Nintendo
As a Wii-U owner myself, I have to say I am pretty dissappointed with the lack of available titles on the console. Sure, it has a robust selection of classics via the E-shop and Netflix is pretty damn awesome on it, but there really isn't much to play. Welp, ALL of that changed with their Nintendo Direct earlier today. A HUUUGE plethora of trailers were shown, all of which can be found on youtube and other sites. I am particularly keen on Bayonetta 2. I have not reviewed Bayonetta 1 yet and I do plan to do so, but until that day comes know this: I FUCKING LOVE BAYONETTA. I love the super fast and slick combat, the sexy protagonist, the humor, the levels, utilizing witch time in order to cripple your foes and the epic-ass boss fights. I LOVE THIS GAME and being able to see a sequel got me so hype that I could not stop screaming about it for like an hour. Of course another game by Monolith Soft is in development and as far as I can tell, it doesn't have a name, so I guess it's to be known as X for the time being. That game looks pretty good too, but I wanna see more before I can pass judgment. Monolith you have my interest, I know damn well you can deliver, so take your time with this baby, ok?
Naturally, since this was a Nintendo press conference, first party Nintendo games were the main focus. I won't go into all of them but I will highlight things that got me super excited. Mega Man in the next Smash Bros game, 'nuff said. Another Donkey Kong Country game (I hope this game has much better controls because I hated the ones in the first game) with Dixie back in it, and Super Mario 3D World. I am somewhat on the fence with this one. While the game looks to be a lot of fun and beautiful, it borrows heavily from the 3DS title, Super Mario 3D Land, a game that I did not enjoy very much due to its laughably easy difficulty. Though I will say that the ideas and levels within the game were some of the coolest I have seen in a Mario game. So hopefully Nintendo makes this one more challenging.
Nintendo definitely brought their A-game and pretty much said "Hey we messed up with the Wii-U launch and we have been real slow to deliver on the great games, but all that will change now" and for that I am happy with Nintendo. Honestly I am probably gonna be flat broke with the release of all the games they are releasing within the next year. I'm gonna need a job....or sell blood or something.
Microsoft
Well ever since they announced the Xbox One, I have been so disgusted at Microsoft. Yeah at their conference, they announced Halo 5 and Forza, and whatever other exclusives out there, but to be honest, I don't care about the games. The console that they spent all this time promoting has been such an insult to gamers. How can you as a company make the greatest gaming machine of this generation and make something so blatantly asinine that essentially boils down to a slap in the face to the gamers that love the Xbox 360? Granted, they have some pretty interesting ideas. A seamless transition from gaming to television is cool but you should NOT make that your console's main strength. What happened to catering to the gamers, you know, the people who MADE YOU A SUCCESS THIS GENERATION?! Why would you build a device that needs a fucking camera hooked up at all times, that needs a constant internet connection (albeit for a check in that is required at least once every 24 hours) and make this fucking shit cost 500 dollars?! (and don't even get me started on the used games bullshit!!) I don't know what Microsoft is thinking. But I do know that their die-hard fans will buy their console but THAT'S IT. Most gamers are gonna shit to the Playstation 4 and be happy. So Microsoft, I hope you enjoy being in last place next generation because your Xbox One just does not have anything remotley interesting to me. In fact as a gamer, it insults me. -Whew- I need a drink after all that.
So yeah those are my thoughts on E3. I know this is a bit long but hey, I enjoyed writing it and I hope you enjoyed reading it. Regardless though, this year we're seeing a lot of great games announced, so no matter what we gamers will be the real winners of this so called Console War right?
This E3 I found to be quite important for all 3 major companies. Can Sony really deliver on the hype and positive hopes for their Playstation 4? Can Microsoft make their Xbox One seem less.....how should I say, umm...Stupid and evil? Can Nintendo gain some respect in the industry as opposed to constantly being called a failing company that is on its way out? Well I have good news, great news, and a rant. I want to make one thing clear though: I openly admit that I have unbridled love for both Nintendo and Sony. I grew up with them and they gave me my childhood and teenage years. I am less partial to Microsoft. Though I will admit that in this current generation, the Xbox 360 is without a doubt the best console. The controller is great and the online interface is amazing. Hell, I enjoy playing games on it. Let me reiterate that I enjoy playing GAMES on it.
Alright allow me to begin -ahem-
Sony
I watched their conference last night (6-10-13) and for the first hour and 20 minutes, I was pretty damn bored. I was uninterested in a lot of what they were saying because it was not about GAMES. They talked about the Vita a little bit, mentioned the Playstation 3, showed off a couple of trailers here and there, but overall, I was bored out of my damn mind. I wanted to know about the Playstation 4, I NEEDED to know more about it and then it happened. They finally showed the friggen thing and I was so impressed. For one, I love how sleek and thin it is. I hated how in this generation, Sony and Microsoft made these morbidly obese consoles that were bulky and cumbersome. They were way too big in my opinion and I'm glad to see that Sony decided to make their console much smaller.
They showed off a few trailers that got me hyped. Final Fantasy XV seems to be promising though I won't put too much hope into it since XIII is, well, terrible in my opinion. But regardless, the game looks great and I'm glad to see that Square-Enix hasn't abandoned the ideas they had with Final Fantasy Versus XIII and chose to evolve into the next installment in their long running series. Kingdom Hearts 3 was shown, FINALLY!!! That one I'm excited for since the damn storyline has to conclude. It's getting way too ridiculous in my opinion. I enjoy the games but they are getting more and more convoluted. I was really impressed with 2 games in particular, Infamous Second Son and Destiny. The demonstrations that were shown impressed me with how great those games look to be. Not to mention that at the very end of their presentation, they announced a $399 price tag, the console has no restrictions on used games, and it does not need a constant internet connection YEAAAAH EVERYONE GOT HYPE IN THE AUDIENCE..FUCK YEAH SONY!!!
So with Sony, I am incredibly hopeful. They clearly made a gaming device that caters directly to us, the individual gamer. They are not trying to restrict us in any way or give us features that we do not want. Sony has made a next generation console that emphasizes the game and the developer. Things can only get better for Sony in my opinion. I know I'm definitly getting a Playstation 4....probably a few months after it's released....damn me for being broke
Nintendo
As a Wii-U owner myself, I have to say I am pretty dissappointed with the lack of available titles on the console. Sure, it has a robust selection of classics via the E-shop and Netflix is pretty damn awesome on it, but there really isn't much to play. Welp, ALL of that changed with their Nintendo Direct earlier today. A HUUUGE plethora of trailers were shown, all of which can be found on youtube and other sites. I am particularly keen on Bayonetta 2. I have not reviewed Bayonetta 1 yet and I do plan to do so, but until that day comes know this: I FUCKING LOVE BAYONETTA. I love the super fast and slick combat, the sexy protagonist, the humor, the levels, utilizing witch time in order to cripple your foes and the epic-ass boss fights. I LOVE THIS GAME and being able to see a sequel got me so hype that I could not stop screaming about it for like an hour. Of course another game by Monolith Soft is in development and as far as I can tell, it doesn't have a name, so I guess it's to be known as X for the time being. That game looks pretty good too, but I wanna see more before I can pass judgment. Monolith you have my interest, I know damn well you can deliver, so take your time with this baby, ok?
Naturally, since this was a Nintendo press conference, first party Nintendo games were the main focus. I won't go into all of them but I will highlight things that got me super excited. Mega Man in the next Smash Bros game, 'nuff said. Another Donkey Kong Country game (I hope this game has much better controls because I hated the ones in the first game) with Dixie back in it, and Super Mario 3D World. I am somewhat on the fence with this one. While the game looks to be a lot of fun and beautiful, it borrows heavily from the 3DS title, Super Mario 3D Land, a game that I did not enjoy very much due to its laughably easy difficulty. Though I will say that the ideas and levels within the game were some of the coolest I have seen in a Mario game. So hopefully Nintendo makes this one more challenging.
Nintendo definitely brought their A-game and pretty much said "Hey we messed up with the Wii-U launch and we have been real slow to deliver on the great games, but all that will change now" and for that I am happy with Nintendo. Honestly I am probably gonna be flat broke with the release of all the games they are releasing within the next year. I'm gonna need a job....or sell blood or something.
Microsoft
Well ever since they announced the Xbox One, I have been so disgusted at Microsoft. Yeah at their conference, they announced Halo 5 and Forza, and whatever other exclusives out there, but to be honest, I don't care about the games. The console that they spent all this time promoting has been such an insult to gamers. How can you as a company make the greatest gaming machine of this generation and make something so blatantly asinine that essentially boils down to a slap in the face to the gamers that love the Xbox 360? Granted, they have some pretty interesting ideas. A seamless transition from gaming to television is cool but you should NOT make that your console's main strength. What happened to catering to the gamers, you know, the people who MADE YOU A SUCCESS THIS GENERATION?! Why would you build a device that needs a fucking camera hooked up at all times, that needs a constant internet connection (albeit for a check in that is required at least once every 24 hours) and make this fucking shit cost 500 dollars?! (and don't even get me started on the used games bullshit!!) I don't know what Microsoft is thinking. But I do know that their die-hard fans will buy their console but THAT'S IT. Most gamers are gonna shit to the Playstation 4 and be happy. So Microsoft, I hope you enjoy being in last place next generation because your Xbox One just does not have anything remotley interesting to me. In fact as a gamer, it insults me. -Whew- I need a drink after all that.
So yeah those are my thoughts on E3. I know this is a bit long but hey, I enjoyed writing it and I hope you enjoyed reading it. Regardless though, this year we're seeing a lot of great games announced, so no matter what we gamers will be the real winners of this so called Console War right?
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