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Sony's Hardware Prowess - First there was the PSX. No, not the original PlayStation, but the nigh-mythical living room convergence machine every idiot market analyst annualy predicts is right around the corner. It's a PS2, a DVD recorder, a Tivo-style digital video recorder, and a media hub. Except it didn't actually arrive at the market in the form everyone had expected. It wasn't able to play DVD+RW discs, as promised. And it had MP3 functionality removed. The image viewer wouldn't display a GIF. Oh, and it couldn't even read CD-R discs. Well, for only $900, what do you expect, right? After selling out initially, the disenchanted market yawned and Sony had to cut production later this year.
Sony's Deadly Demo Disc - A special Holiday Demo Disc given out to members of the Playstation Underground fan club contained a horrible, horrible surprise. Not only did it inflict a Viewtiful Joe 2 demo on the PS2 fans, but it also erased their memory cards in the process. Sony offered a free game as consolation to anyone bitten by the bug, allowing mourning gamers to choose from several derivative sequels mouldering in an overstock warehouse, including such timeless classics as Hot Shots Golf Fore! and ATV Offroad Fury 3.
Even the Hype was Hyped - The year was filled with big games which failed to live up to their advertising budgets. Notable examples:
* Killzone, PS2 - Did anyone really think that this would turn out to be a Halo-killer? The average score on GameRankings at the moment is 73%, and dropping.
* Fable, Xbox - Look, when Peter Molyneux apologizes because the game didn't live up to the hype, that pretty much speaks for itself, no?
* Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles, GameCube/GameBoy Advance - A Final Fantasy RPG finally comes back to a Nintendo console! Before you get too excited, don't forget the minimum requirements in small print: two people, two GameBoy Advances ($120+), a GameCube ($100), and a few link cables. Oh, and don't forget the game itself, which originally retailed for $50. Of course, you can play through as a singleton and get away with just a GameCube and the game itself, but that's not playing the game the way it was designed, now is it?
Sony's Deadly Demo Disc - A special Holiday Demo Disc given out to members of the Playstation Underground fan club contained a horrible, horrible surprise. Not only did it inflict a Viewtiful Joe 2 demo on the PS2 fans, but it also erased their memory cards in the process. Sony offered a free game as consolation to anyone bitten by the bug, allowing mourning gamers to choose from several derivative sequels mouldering in an overstock warehouse, including such timeless classics as Hot Shots Golf Fore! and ATV Offroad Fury 3.
Even the Hype was Hyped - The year was filled with big games which failed to live up to their advertising budgets. Notable examples:
* Killzone, PS2 - Did anyone really think that this would turn out to be a Halo-killer? The average score on GameRankings at the moment is 73%, and dropping.
* Fable, Xbox - Look, when Peter Molyneux apologizes because the game didn't live up to the hype, that pretty much speaks for itself, no?
* Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles, GameCube/GameBoy Advance - A Final Fantasy RPG finally comes back to a Nintendo console! Before you get too excited, don't forget the minimum requirements in small print: two people, two GameBoy Advances ($120+), a GameCube ($100), and a few link cables. Oh, and don't forget the game itself, which originally retailed for $50. Of course, you can play through as a singleton and get away with just a GameCube and the game itself, but that's not playing the game the way it was designed, now is it?
