Anyone else keeping track of E3?

[badger]

I was only half-paying attention, but it should come as no surprise to anyone who has ever used a computer in the last 20 years that Microsoft managed to screw things up.


Read this thing from Forbes for details. (http://www.forbes.com/sites/insertcoin/2013/06/11/playstation-4s-price-and-policies-humiliate-microsofts-xbox-one-at-e3/)

Cliff's Notes version: Microsoft is disallowing the free sale/rental/borrowing/etc of used games between consumers. Microsoft is also requiring users to check-in online every 24 hours to play their games. Finally, Microsoft is also charging $100 more for its new console compared with Sony's new console, and they're expected to launch around the same time later this year (November).

Poor Microsoft.

[SoonerStormchaser]

Dammit...I thought this thread was about me and my plane...alas, I am bummed

[SoonerAtKU]

It's so odd that they went this route after clearly winning the long-term battle the last generation. The sticking point is the insane DRM, including their so-called "cloud" processing, which is nothing more than the game ensuring an always-on internet connection to prevent piracy and game-trading. They seem to be saying that the publishers wanted this, but if Sony's not doing it, then there's really no other purpose than trying to put Gamestop and other re-sellers out of business.

I really really hope the negative PR with this causes them to back out of that plan, because even at $500, a new Xbox with built-in Kinect is not a terrible deal. The hope for that part is that if studios are guaranteed to have motion and voice recognition built into every system, they'll design for it and take full advantage. That's probably worth an extra $100 ultimately, but if you combine that with the always-on DRM, I'm going to have a really hard time justifying that purchase.

I didn't ever buy a PS3 and haven't really missed it, but missing some of those MS exclusives like Halo will be rough.

[badger]

There is only one system that NP and I have ever bought on launch day, and it was the Nintendo Wii (got chance to buy via Hastings store lottery). I haven't seen anything from Xbox One or PS4 that makes me want to take the launch day dive again.

We got Xbox 360 a few years after launch and have used it primarily since, even when we got a PS3 a year later (it bricked last year, so we Gamestopped it along with all its games).


even at $500, a new Xbox with built-in Kinect is not a terrible deal

Deal or not, $500 is just the starting point for an entertainment option. Can't you still get an OU football season ticket for about that much? Or a new high def TV (maybe in the 30-inch range instead of the 50-60 inch range, yes)? Or a few hotel nights with nice dining money left over?

Some day, baby baj will be old enough to ask us to buy her things. I hope she asks for $5 things instead of $500 things :P

[SoonerAtKU]

I'm almost certainly going to wait for a price drop and any bugs to be worked out. After the problems faced by this last console generation, I think we've learned a little patience rather than rushing out to get the new hotness. Besides, there are still a ton of great 360 games available, and a PS3 after a deep price cut might be good to catch up on some exclusives like Uncharted and a few others.

I do think it'll be interesting to see two consoles releasing and competing in the same holiday time frame. I don't think that's happened in quite some time. At this point, I'm more of a curious observer rather than a frothing customer, waiting to be directed between two choices.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

Microsoft has always struggled with asinine requirements from their legal department that no one can get killed until they have proven to be disasters. The xbone looks like legal wrote the entire feature set.

[badger]

Microsoft has always struggled with asinine requirements from their legal department that no one can get killed until they have proven to be disasters. The xbone looks like legal wrote the entire feature set.

yeah, we call it "x bone" now too :)

i agree that M$ has definitely burned some bridges in the past --- remember how long it took for them to extend warranties, etc. after the red ring of death issue?

Another interesting development of the new generation is that Sony is also taking the "pay for online play" plunge that Xbox already dove headfirst into with Xbox Live.

I highly suspect (there have been internet rumblings, including a later-denied recall of Wii U basic system packages) that Wii U is going to get a price drop before the holidays. Sony hardly ever drops prices (the Playstation 3 retailed for $599 U.S. dollars much longer than it should have), so don't hold your breath for a PS4 price drop.

The X Bone? They may have to drop if their sales are dismal next to PS4's $100 cheaper pricetag.

Edit: I suspect that the price point is going to stem off some would-be first-day campers looking to make an eBay profit. Then again, it didn't stem 'em with the PS3 launch

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

i agree that M$ has definitely burned some bridges in the past --- remember how long it took for them to extend warranties, etc. after the red ring of death issue?

Yes, I have quite a few gray hairs that represent dealing with quite a few of the sordid details.

If you want to know how a lot of these features happened, ask NP about working with smart people who can't and/or refuse to recognize a dumb idea at a client (most of the time because of politics).

[SoonerAtKU]

MS seems as if they're pushing the boundaries of what we can expect from a gaming console. They seem to want to be the all-in-one box as well as a digital distribution center like Steam. Well it makes perfect sense from a publisher's perspective, and it makes perfect sense at Microsoft, but if it's not accompanied by deep-discount pricing ala Steam, then it just doesn't make sense for the consumer.

Steam is great because it's scalable to whatever system the consumer has and is a centralized location for both independent and large-scale developers to offer product sometimes at great prices.

We've seen no evidence that MS is interested in any of those things, except for "making money like Steam does" and "eliminating resellers".

[8timechamps]

I agree that Microsoft is in danger of losing all of the ground they gained on Sony with the current generation of gaming. All Sony has to do with the PS4 is say "we're not charging an additional fee for used content". It's going to be interesting to see how Sony plays this.

The developers are siding with Microsoft on this, as it generates additional revenue that was not previously available. If Sony doesn't follow Microsoft's lead with this, then all MS really has to "sell" is their exclusive games, which are good, but not enough to overcome something this big.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

I agree that Microsoft is in danger of losing all of the ground they gained on Sony with the current generation of gaming. All Sony has to do with the PS4 is say "we're not charging an additional fee for used content". It's going to be interesting to see how Sony plays this.

The developers are siding with Microsoft on this, as it generates additional revenue that was not previously available. If Sony doesn't follow Microsoft's lead with this, then all MS really has to "sell" is their exclusive games, which are good, but not enough to overcome something this big.

The problem is that MSFT managed to bundle 2 turd ideas with a $100 higher sticker price. Both of the turd ideas are believed by their customers to increase their cost which puts a seriously negative light on that premium price. The last I checked PS4 had something like an 80/20 favorable rating over the xbone. I wouldn't be surprised if that represents a 40% drop in customer sales.

[badger]

It's going to be interesting to see how Sony plays this.
Oh, you didn't see the instructional video?
kWSIFh8ICaA


Both of the turd ideas are believed by their customers to increase their cost which puts a seriously negative light on that premium price.
Yeah, and as we've seen with the Gamecube/Wii/WiiU, developers like EA, Activision, etc won't develop for systems where their games sell much worse than on other systems. If their games sell on PS4, it would be foolish to declare exclusives for X-Bone solely on the "**** you gamestop" mindset.

Speaking of, it seems like Nintendo is sitting out this holiday console season and letting M$ and Sony duke it out on their own. As excited as I'm sure fans are that they can throw bottles into Wind Waker's expansion ocean and shorten an already short game further with faster boating times ([/sarcasm]) it wasn't worth getting in the middle of this mudsling.

Next question... which moron company won't produce enough consoles and force consumers to buy their competitor this Christmas?

[8timechamps]

Oh, you didn't see the instructional video?
kWSIFh8ICaA


Yeah, and as we've seen with the Gamecube/Wii/WiiU, developers like EA, Activision, etc won't develop for systems where their games sell much worse than on other systems. If their games sell on PS4, it would be foolish to declare exclusives for X-Bone solely on the "**** you gamestop" mindset.

Speaking of, it seems like Nintendo is sitting out this holiday console season and letting M$ and Sony duke it out on their own. As excited as I'm sure fans are that they can throw bottles into Wind Waker's expansion ocean and shorten an already short game further with faster boating times ([/sarcasm]) it wasn't worth getting in the middle of this mudsling.

Next question... which moron company won't produce enough consoles and force consumers to buy their competitor this Christmas?

I hadn't seen that, or heard anything about what they were planning. That's going to be a big blow to MSFT.

Ordinarily, I'd say a console shortage by one company would drive sales to the other. However, in this case, I think the cost and the fact that MSFT is charging for used content is going to really hurt them even if they have tons available.

I rarely play console games, and even I don't want an Xbox One. Since I think the biggest part of their market is younger gamers (which probably don't have a lot of disposable income), Microsoft is in trouble.

I am really surprised at MSFT's move on this. I give the person in charge of this less than a year after launch before he's canned.

[8timechamps]

The problem is that MSFT managed to bundle 2 turd ideas with a $100 higher sticker price. Both of the turd ideas are believed by their customers to increase their cost which puts a seriously negative light on that premium price. The last I checked PS4 had something like an 80/20 favorable rating over the xbone. I wouldn't be surprised if that represents a 40% drop in customer sales.

It's going to get ugly for MSFT. If online opinions represent future sales (and they typically do), then MSFT has already put themselves behind the eight ball.

[badger]

It's going to get ugly for MSFT. If online opinions represent future sales (and they typically do), then MSFT has already put themselves behind the eight ball.

There's a big piracy thing going on and I think everyone realizes it. The problem is, the first solutions to piracy that board rooms usually implement screw the loyal customers instead of the pirates. I believe one of the Assassin's Creed games for PC required users to always be online. Pirates took the requirement out of the pirated version, so they got to play the game offline while pay-customers fumed during Internet outages :(

NP wants to get a WiiU. He is seeing the vastly growing Virtual Console (or whatever the WiiU calls it) library expanding and the ability to just play it on its tablet-like controller as huge pluses. He misses the games he grew up on and likes Nintendo first party stuff in general.

btw, if you all are Xbox Gold subscribers, I just downloaded Fable 3 for free. I heard next month's games are Halo 3 and Assassin's Creed 2, so if you haven't tried those yet but want to, get Gold and then wait till July for their free-ness :)

Yes, this is M$ copying Playstation Plus

[badger]

So after seeing the beating they were taking on preorders and E3 hype, M$ finally relented and basically undid everything they built up on the always-on, no-used-games stuff they were trying to do for the X Bone.

Lol M$ (http://www.forbes.com/sites/timworstall/2013/06/20/links-20-june-microsofts-xbox-one-retreat-and-the-value-of-competition/) (link via Forbes)

[8timechamps]

So after seeing the beating they were taking on preorders and E3 hype, M$ finally relented and basically undid everything they built up on the always-on, no-used-games stuff they were trying to do for the X Bone.

Lol M$ (http://www.forbes.com/sites/timworstall/2013/06/20/links-20-june-microsofts-xbox-one-retreat-and-the-value-of-competition/) (link via Forbes)

Well, that didn't take long.

[badger]

Well, that didn't take long.

I just watched Yahtzee's Zero Punctuation for the first time in a long time last night (I saw a Fable 3 video, which Xbox Live gave to subscribers free this month) and I wonder why I ever stopped watching :D

Here's hoping he does an E3 edition soon