Console Wars V

[Asher]

I bought NHL 09 today.

Initial thoughts:
- Be a Pro mode is very cool.
- NHL 94 control mode is the BEST ADDITION EVER. YES.

NHL 09 continues to be the best sports game of any sport. Period.

But the **** at EB pissed me off. I got some Sony fanboy. I just went up, asked for NHL 09 for the 360. He asked me: "Why 360, why not the PS3? The online is free!".
I already subscribe to XBL, I prefer XBL, my friends are on XBL, etc. I told him this.
He said "Okay, but if you're getting it on the 360 you should get our extra protection for only $3 for a WHOLE year. Look at this" and he pulled out a copy of Guitar Hero II with what appears to be very clearly keyed DVD surface that was not precisely circular enough to be caused by the reading head on the console. He told me that "360s do this all the time to discs. It's why the PS3 is better"

Which was stupid. I told him I've had a 360 since launch day and own over 25 games and it's never scratched my disc. He finally just gave me the thing. ****.

[asleepathewheel]

Originally posted by asleepathewheel
Due to Hurricane Ike, I unexpectedly find myself with a four day weekend, at least two of which I have power. Thus I have purchased Infinite Undiscovery and review will be forthcoming.

Very frustrating game. I've never played an rpg, action or otherwise, where going into the menu doesn't pause the game. while looking at the map, you freeze and enemies still attack you, same with setting options.

not enough save points, I just lost a lot of time b/c I'm not good with using the secondary characters and couldn't heal at a boss

pretty game, voice acting is weird-comes and goes, sometimes text only, sometimes voices, very uneven.

Glad i purchased it, hoping it picks up a bit.

[Asher]

August NPD. 360 moves infront of PS3 pre price cut...

Hardware Unit Sales

PlayStation 3 185.4K
PlayStation Portable 253.0K
Playstation 2 144.1K
Xbox 360 195.2K
Wii 453.0K
Nintendo DS 518.3K

Top 10 SKU's August 2008
(includes CE, GOTY editions, bundles, etc. but not those bundled with hardware)
Publisher Release Date Rank # Units

360 MADDEN NFL 09 ELECTRONIC ARTS Aug-08 1 1.0mm
PS3 MADDEN NFL 09 ELECTRONIC ARTS Aug-08 2 643K
PS2 MADDEN NFL 09 ELECTRONIC ARTS Aug-08 3 424.5K
WII WII FIT NINTENDO OF AMERICA May-08 4 394.9K
WII MARIO KART NINTENDO OF AMERICA Apr-08 5 328.7K
WII WII PLAY W/ REMOTE NINTENDO OF AMERICA Feb-07 6 200.2K
360 SOUL CALIBUR IV NAMCO BANDAI GAMES OF AMERICA Jul-08 7 174K
360 TOO HUMAN MICROSOFT Aug-08 8 168.2K
WII MADDEN NFL 09 ELECTRONIC ARTS Aug-08 9 115.8K
NDS GUITAR HERO: ON TOUR ACTIVISION BLIZZARD Jun-08 10 111.2K

Madden on Wii continues epic fail.

[asleepathewheel]

Wasn't there also a price cut in mid-July?

[Asher]

Originally posted by asleepathewheel
Wasn't there also a price cut in mid-July?

Sort of. The few remaining 20GB units got a pricecut to flush them out of inventory. There weren't too many left and they sold out quickly. The replacement 60GB was the old 20GB price.

So it wasn't a pricecut, it was a minor inventory purge of the 20GB.

[Asher]

It seems installs are the price to pay for Bluray on the PS3 (in addition to $ and marketshare).

BioShock is now coming to the PS3. It looks identical to the 360 version which came out last year, except it requires a 15 minute, 5GB installation before you can play.

[DrSpike]

It'd probably be worth an up front delay if load times are reduced. I'm sure you're about to tell me they aren't though.

[DrSpike]

Originally posted by Asher
The problem is this:

Bluray is awesome for geeks like me. I like it a lot.

But mainstream consumers are fine with DVD. The mainstream aren't going to move to Bluray, but downloaded movies or streamed movies.

Sony themselves believe Bluray to be the last physical movie format. They've sacrificed the PS3 to position themselves for it, but I think they miscalculated it. Bluray adoption isn't happening nearly as fast as they'd hoped, and the adoption of downloadable movies is happening faster than they expected...

I'm certainly not getting BluRay yet. And I'm towards the end of the spectrum on this (just not as geeky as Asher).

[DrSpike]

Originally posted by Asher
I bought NHL 09 today.

Initial thoughts:
- Be a Pro mode is very cool.
- NHL 94 control mode is the BEST ADDITION EVER. YES.

NHL 09 continues to be the best sports game of any sport. Period.

EA seem to have done a decent job this year - may well pick up some sports titles, including this.

[DrSpike]

Originally posted by asleepathewheel


Very frustrating game. I've never played an rpg, action or otherwise, where going into the menu doesn't pause the game. while looking at the map, you freeze and enemies still attack you, same with setting options.

not enough save points, I just lost a lot of time b/c I'm not good with using the secondary characters and couldn't heal at a boss

pretty game, voice acting is weird-comes and goes, sometimes text only, sometimes voices, very uneven.

Fortunately I'm too mature to say I told you so.

[Asher]

Originally posted by DrSpike
It'd probably be worth an up front delay if load times are reduced. I'm sure you're about to tell me they aren't though.

They're definitely reduced as opposed to Bluray-only. I'm not sure if they're reduced compared to the 360.

The installs are required because otherwise Bluray is half the speed of the DVD in transfer rate from the 360.

[Verto]

Originally posted by Asher It seems installs are the price to pay for Bluray on the PS3 (in addition to $ and marketshare).

Originally posted by DrSpike
It'd probably be worth an up front delay if load times are reduced. I'm sure you're about to tell me they aren't though.

The upcoming Xbox Update is going to add in optional full-game installation, which is the way to go, IMO. Hopefully by the time MS rolls out their next-gen Xbox, we'll be able to download full games straight from XBL.

[lord of the mark]

Originally posted by Asher


I'm not sure why you bother posting in this thread.

There many things each one of us does not know. Its the human condition.

Your sarcasm is not funny nor is it insightful or biting.

Are you sure its sarcastic? I COULD learn something from him, I'm sure. Anyway, when I AM sarcastic, I'm not necessarily trying to be biting. Biting sarcasm gets stale rather quickly, as does all bitterness, nastiness, and rudeness.

It is true you know nothing about consoles, but you don't need to be sarcastic about it.

I'm merely appropriately caveating my remarks.

Let me know when you actually touch a controller of any of the current consoles.

How literal a response do you want?

That columnist is a bit off in his prediction, I don't know if he is completely sane. I'm not going to bother watching that video because I have a strong opinion on the stupidity of video blog posts.

Very well.

[Nikolai]

Now the time closes in that Nintendo has to do something. Today the 360 got a price cut here in Norway. The Arcade will now cost 1600 NOK (ca 300 USD I think), and the standard edition 2000 NOK. Which is slightly lower than Wii atm.

[asleepathewheel]

http://www.gamersdailynews.com/story...Microsoft.html

Continuing the global trend for console price cuts, Microsoft today announced the UK would be next in landing a reduced price Xbox 360 range.

The entry level arcade unit will now retail at £129.99 - down from £159.99. This latest reduction retains the Xbox 360 place as the UK’s cheapest current gen console, further openeing its lead compared to the Wii at 179.99, the PlayStation 3 at a whopping £299.99 and cheaper even than the forthcoming PSP 3000 which is currently pegged at around £150. The Premium bundle containing the 60GB hard drive will drop from £199.99 to 1£169.99, while the Elite version will weigh it at £229.99 - previously £269.99.

“Xbox 360 has now sold over 20 million consoles worldwide and due to its unprecedented success, we are now able to pass on the rewards of that success to the consumer with a new retail pricing from £129.99”, said Neil Thompson, Senior Regional Director, Microsoft UK. “With more games, more entertainment with Xbox LIVE and now even more value, we are looking forward to welcoming more customers into the leading Next Generation console, Xbox 360.”

The cuts come right at the beginning of the game industry’s big Christmas push, and certainly won’t harm the Xbox 360’s chances considering the lack of new technology available this year. A brutal strategy, but not one UK consumers - who face a looming economic recession - are going to balk at. Hopefully, Microsoft’s bold move will push the competition to stop viewing the UK as a free bank (that’s you, Sony).