No idea what it is, but I'm going to go ahead and get blindly excited by it. Video tomorrow!
And here it is! The rumors were true after all. It looks very interesting. The only question I've got left is whether that cartridge slot will take 3DS and DS games for backwards compatibility with that line. I predict yes, but I couldn't get a clear enough view of that slot in the preview to know for sure.
... So um, I wasn't really planning on getting another console now and definitely didn't think I'd get one of these things, but after seeing this price a few days ago, I just couldn't resist. Well, I did resist at first, only to return later that day and bought it. Heh. (Note that I posted most of this in the 'games I bought' thread too, but this version is like twice as long as that one since it has lots more detail.)
Hardware
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Playstation 3 (12GB black Super Slim model) - $60, with power cord, HDMI cable, a (micro?) USB charging cable, and a Dual Shock 3 controller. Yes, really. This system doesn't have a hard drive in it now, which is why it was so cheap, so I'll definitely need to get a HDD... but this is a really good price for a PS3 I actually got locally, I don't think I've seen one this cheap from an actual store. The Super Slim is kind of weird in that it has a top-load drive, a definite step down in some ways from the slot-load drive of the earlier models, but it's probably more reliable so that's fine. I will definitely need a hard drive though, far more games require large installs o nthe PS3 than the 360 so I won't be able to get away with just the internal memory for a year or more like I did on the 360. Too bad. Is this because the Blu-Ray drive reads slower than a DVD does? Lots of multiplatform titles have multi-gig installs on PS3 but read straight off the disc on 360! I know a few 360 games install (GTA5, NFS Rivals, a few more), but not many But whatever the reason for this on the PS3, it's kind of annoying. On the other hand though, I didn't even think of this until after I'd bought it, but I finally have a Blu-Ray player now. I only have a couple of Blu-Rays and don't want to spend bunches of money on them, DVD quality is mostly fine... still though, I guess it's nice to have, even if Blu-Ray is almost outdated now, with 4K Blu-Ray out now.
Additionally I got a Playstation Move camera, two Playstation Move controllers, and a Move Navigation controller for $7 each, because motion controls are fun. Gamestop's prices for these things are so high, but fortunately a local chain is much cheaper.
PS3 Games (complete unless noted)
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MLB 12 The Show - $2, disc only (this is the only disc only game, all others are complete)
Puppeteer - $9
LittleBigPlanet 2 - $10 - These games are okay, but it's a shame they aren't more fun to play... the physics and controls are just not quite right.
Lair - $4 - Good or bad, as a Factor 5 fan I definitely had to get this game!
Uncharted: Drake's Fortune - $3
Resistance: Fall of Man - $1
Motorstorm - $1 - I've played some of this one now and it seems pretty good. Good graphics, fun gameplay.
Motorstorm: Pacific Rift - $9
Untold Legends: Dark Kingdom - $4.50
Sports Champions - $3 - The original Move game. Seems quite solid, with some fun sports minigames.
Genji: Days of the Blade -$4 - Had to get the infamous "giant enemy crab" game!
Sorcery - $3 - A Move game I've wanted to play. I know this got mediocre reviews, but for some reason I've always really wanted to try this game, so I made sure to get it.
The Shoot - $3 - A Move light gun style shooter.
Tales of Xillia - $18 - I definitely wanted to get one of the three PS3-exclusive Tales games (well, PS3-exclusive in the US), so I got this one. It doesn't have a manual, but I don't think there is one.
Dragon's Crown - $18 - This is a quite good beat 'em up. It got some bad press for the sexualized characters, but the gameplay's very fun and the graphics are good 2d stuff.
Download games - I did not buy any now, but I have five games I got for the PSP that are also PS3 compatible -- the four PS Minis I have (Trailblazer, Fortix, Retro Cave Flier, ), and my one PS1 Classics game, Crash Bandicoot.
Additionally I have one PS3-only download game that I got some time back, After Burner Climax. The games' licensing rights ran out some time back so the gaqme was removed from sale (and it is still gone, you can't buy this game anymore). Unfortunately I didn't hear about it in time to buy it for the 360... or the US PS3 either. But the game was available on the European PS3 store for some days longer than the other systems and I really wanted to have this game, so I made a EU PSN account, found a website to buy some UK PSN points from, and bought this game. It runs just fine on a US PS3; you need multiple accounts, but don't need to switch them to run other-account games, which is nice. And yeah the game is great fun, and it's really unfortunate that it is now impossible to buy!
Additionally, downloading from the Playstation Store to PSPs directly via the internet was shut down a year or more ago, so you can't download games to a PSP from the system itself anymore, you need to do that via another Playstation console. Last year I tried to figure out if you can download games to a PSP from the web, but had no luck, at least not for US-region titles. So, I had a couple of PSP games that I had bought over a year ago but hadn't been able to play until now -- I had not previously been able to play Z.H.P., Black Rock Shooter, or Guilty Gear Accent Core + (Plus). Now I can, since I downloaded them to PS3 then copied them over to PSP via USB, and that's great.
As for my thoughts on the hardware, I made a thread about my first (bad!) impressions of the interface. The few games I've played so far do seem good though, so it does feel like it was worth getting. If the PS3 was fully backwards compatible on the PS4 I wouldn't have bought this I think, but it's not, so it is something worth having...
(Oh, I do not currently have a PS Plus subscription, never have, and don't plan on getting one soon unless there's something essential that needs it. I already pay for Xbox Live...)
So what do I think of the hardware? Well, the Move works pretty well, it's responsive. It's unfortunate that you can't use it with a pointer in menus though, that'd be a nice option -- the PS3 menu interface is terrible compared to the 360's! Seriously, here's a list:
- Gamepad only in menus, no PS Move pointer support. This is the opposite issue from the Wii, where I wish it had both gamepad and pointer support in the system menus instead of only pointer.
- It's slow, doing anything takes longer (loading...)
- There is no simple list of how much space games/apps take up for example, unlike the 360, you need to go into each games' page separately. This means that if you do start running out of space, figuring out what's big could be tedious.
- The store is not integrated into the OS but instead is a completely separate application
- You cannot view the download list while in the store and cannot view the menu in the store either (you need to quit the store to view what you're downloading, then wait for the store to load again to go back in if you needed to...)
- After downloading a game you need to install them and this must be done on the interface, not in the background. On the 360 the whole download and install process is seamless and runs in the background, but that doesn't work here.
- And why is the download and install separate anyway? On PS3 and Wii you don't need to install things, that's just a part of the download! This serves to slow things down even more, installs are slow. And on a related note, deleting things on this system takes FAR longer than it does on 360 or Wii. Why does everything in the interface take so long?
- For any titles on multiple Sony platforms (PS3/PSP, PS3/PSP/Vita, or such), it seems that their installers stay permanently in the Games list... above all actual games. So to find your downloaded games you need to scroll past these useless installers to get down to the games below, which is completely stupid. The PSP does not have this issue, you don't have to scroll past useless installers to get to actual games, etc. This is worse because...
- Sorting functions in your downloaded games list are minimal, and it's harder to find a game here than it is on the Wii or 360. You cannot create custom folders or re-organize the games' order yourself as you could on the Wii, and there are fewer sorting options than the 360 has. There isn't a fast scroll option like using the L/R buttons to scroll pages on 360 game lists either. And while the 360 has a nice built-in search function, the PS3 doesn't; you just need to scroll down this stupid list until you find the game in question. The only folders option just sorts them into three categories -- PS1 Classics, PS3 games, and PS Minis. Sure I only have a handful of downloadable games right now, but with more stuff I can see this being awful!
As for the hardware itself, for a Sony system it looks okay, but while as I said earlier the top-loading drive probably is less prone to failure than slot-load drives are, it makes switching games takes slightly longer and doesn't look as nice. While I have the second version of the 360, not the last, MS kept a slot-load drive in the last 360 (the E).
- The Super Slim has only two USB ports, both on the front only, and you'll need one of those for the PS Move camera... which I really wish I could plug into the back. The controller is okay, but of course I've never liked Sony controllers much. I like the triggers on this pad a lot more than PS1 or PS2 shoulder buttons though, for sure! They're nice. The surface on the analog stick feels a little nicer than the PS1 or PS2 ones as well I think. Still though, I'd have liked to see the boomerang controller...
Once you finally get into a game the system works fine, but seriously this interface is not very good. I have heard that the Xbox One's interface is slow and the PS4's is actually better, that'd be an unfortunate reversal. As for comparing it to the Wii there are plusses and minuses; the Wii's interface is easier and quicker to use and is more customizable, but the Wii does also have a separate store app and you can't download/install games you bought in the background.
So anyway, overall, the PS3 has some good games but a bad interface. I'm sure everyone knew this 9-10 years ago, but it is kind of surprising that over the course of the very long 7th generation this was the best Sony could come up with...
It's official, Apple's new phone won't have a headphone jack. It's opted for a proprietary format, but they are making a little accessory that'll convert the old standard to lightning. While they made that announcement, I kept thinking back to Nintendo's exclusion of the audio jack from the GBA SP, with a similar adapter made for it, and the similar restriction of not being able to charge the GBA while using headphones.
Then Miyamoto suddenly showed up on stage.
I think it all makes sense now.
Apple is asserting this is just progress, and it was brave of them to do this. I just have to ask why it's progress now and it wasn't back then. We've had USB headsets for years after all, and I've yet to notice any real quality difference between an analog and a digital signal. This is probably because no matter how that attachment works, in the end it has to turn into an analog signal anyway before it reaches your ears. The signal, in all modern computers, also always starts out as a digital one. What difference does it make, ultimately, whether the signal turns to analog at the phone end or by your ears? It's a pretty short distance to travel after all, and not really much to degrade it. I suppose if nothing else, it'll prevent their own designs from adding noise before it's even left the phone. So... there's that.
Really though, even if there was a good reason to make the signal digital for longer (for example, Ultra HD just isn't doable over a VGA connection, at least not without some ridiculously expensive signal tuning hardware and an incredibly high gauge cable, though I don't see anyone introducing Ultra High Def sound equipment pushing out those frequencies fast enough to need a digital solution), the biggest issue is they made it proprietary. I'm not buying two headsets just so I can use one with Apple products and another with everything else (everything else opting for USB-C, as it happens).
The real reason for all this has been leaking out all over the place. Digital signals can be encoded, and encoded signals mean DRM schemes, and there's already an active push to implement DRM into the upcoming USB-C audio standard. The music industry has relented and current online music stores sell their music in DRM-free forms. There's simply no point in trying any sort of DRM when anyone that knows how to connect an output jack to an input jack can circumvent it. If it's protected though, well, the music industry is going to start encoding their new releases and advertising them as "lightning/USB-C connector exclusive", making ridiculous claims about how this "new music standard" sounds way too good to work correctly on old analog connectors.
There's reason to hope though. The switch to HDMI made logical sense and brought with it substantial upgrades, but this switch is so pointless any claims about music quality would be exposed as lies almost immediately. It's just a matter of us getting out there and making sure they don't get a chance to get their message out ANYWHERE without it being immediately challenged.
This could lead to some interesting things. Firstly, it won't support the latest HDMI revision. That's most likely due to HDMI wanting to keep making those licensing dollars off of their tech, which USB Type C would avoid.
I'm very interested in that. HDMI might have shot itself in the foot without even realizing it. The Display Port alt mode supports up to the latest revision, so we're looking at a cable transition now. Firstly, it just became reasonable to start sticking USB Type C connectors onto new TVs, and in fact start phasing out the older HDMI ports. Console makers will also find it a good idea to have a range of USB C ports to replace the HDMI port they need now. With USB C to HDMI converters to handle older ports in both cases, both sides will have to start thinking about which alt modes to include. 4K at 60 FPS is being heavily promoted on the next revisions of Sony and MS's consoles. They would do well, in the future, to include alt modes for both HDMI and Displayport in one. However, going forward, if both TVs and consoles already have Displayport as standard, companies will have little reason to bother with HDMI licensing fees. We could be looking at the first real chance for Displayport to usurp the grip HDMI has.
And in it, a bunch of stuff was announced and shown
- Super Mario Maker is getting a 3DS conversion. It looks similar, but sadly has somewhat broken online support -- the only online modes ar the 100 Mario Challenge or pre-selected levels Nintendo allows, you cannot type in a code and play any compatible stage. There is no excuse for breaking Mario Maker like this; yes, I'll surely get this as I really want to play Mario Maker, but it's a bad version of the game! Nintendo's excuse basically sounds like it is 'but you can share levels locally', but as someone who does not live in Japan, who cares? Outside of Japan we need online support, not near-useless local trading and StreetPass. I've never used StreetPass and doubt I ever will. This isn't the first time Nintendo has released 3DS games with somewhat broken online support, either... it's incredibly frustrating to see them not care about people who don't live in Japan, which is the message they send with moves like this. There is no technical reason for the 3DS version to not be allowed to play any compatible stage! I could understand if some levels wouldn't work because of the lesser hardware, but that is a very solvable problem.
- The best Nintendo DS game, Picross 3D, is finally getting its sequel Picross 3D 2 released in the West. I've been waiting for this! Sadly, while Europe and Japan get this game as a physical release, NoA continues being annoying by releasing this digital only. I'd REALLY rather have a physical copy of this instead of having to make room on a Micro SD card... :( Everyone else gets it on cards, Nintendo! Why not us? Getting it in some form is far better than nothing, of course, but still that's disappointing.
Additionally:
- New 2.5d Pikmin game coming to 3DS next year; it looks fun, like Pikmin but crossed with a platformer.
- Poochy & Yoshi's Wooly World announced, for early next year. It's a port of the Wii U game, with some added levels starring Poochy the dog.
- New Pokemon of course
- The New 3DS XL has a new color available in the US
- There are also some new mini StreetPass games. I don't care much.
- And this was announced several days ago, but 5 3DS games and a couple of Wii U games have been added to Nintendo Selects, which means lower prices for those titles. None definitely interest me though, I think.
(Oh yes, and it sounds like the 3DS will probably be supported into 2018, so it's not being discontinued soon, as far as game releases go.)
So, in recent weeks, Nintendo has gone on a spree of shutting down fanmade games that use Nintendo properties. First they got a free-to-download Metroid 2 fan remake taken down immediately after its release, which is a really scummy thing to do when Nintendo has no interest in making that kind of game themselves (I've played the Metroid Prime Federation Force: Blast Ball demo that's currently available for 3DS, and I do think that it is fun, but it's obviously quite different from a 2d Metroid game...). That was a really bad move, though waiting until after it was released does ensure that people will continue to be able to find it somewhere.
Now, today, Nintendo struck again, by issuing DMCA takedowns on over 500 games on the free indie game site Game Jolt. I've never heard of it before, but here are the details: http://techraptor.net/content/nintendo-game-jolt-dmca On the face of it this is another really bad move, but the article's update does say that creators make 30% of ad revenues from ad views on their games, so it IS likely that people were indirectly making money off of Nintendo IPs that way. But still, the users pay nothing, so I do think that this is an overall bad move for Nintendo to make. If people are selling un-licensed Nintendo-IP titles for money, sure, take them down, but going after free games that make some probably small amount of internet ad revenues off of the game? While it is maybe defensible, it's a very borderline case.
I got Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, or "Smash 4" as the game is called for3DS and Wii U, last month, and while I haven't played a huge amount of it, I have been playing the game some. I know that it's been out for a while now, but I got this closer to its release than some games... :p
So, my main reason for making this thread is to agree with the most common criticism I've seen of Smash 4 -- that series creator Masahiro Sakurai consistently refuses to make another game that plays like SSB Melee. Now, this is because Melee ended up being, probably unintentionally, a game with some pretty serious depth and challenge to it, and so it of course is still super-popular to this day among fighting game fans who like Smash games. But he does not want to make a tourney-caliber game, he wants to make something "fun for everyone" while intentionally refusing to make the game the way Melee's devoted fans want.
Now, I always liked but didn't love Melee; back in the '00s in college I played it quite a bit, but usually wanted to play something else sooner than many of the other Nintendo fans at school. Still, in comparison to its sequels Brawl and Wii U/3DS (Smash 4), Melee is clearly the far better game. Maybe Smash 4 is better on the Wii U, I expect that it is because the controls are one of the issues I have with this game on the 3DS and on Wii U with that adapter you can play with a Gamecube controller (the way Smash is best!), but even just going on the core gameplay, Smash 4 is slower-paced and not as fun as Melee, and it has less depth too. Yes, it is an improvement over Brawl, but still, why does Sakurai continue to refuse to make the game that most of the series' fans want? It's unfortunate and has been hurting the series for sure. Fighting games are usually made with the core audience in mind, not in ways that intentionally spite the most devoted fans! Yes, I know this is Nintendo and they want to make games for all audiences and worry that another Melee would be too hard for some, but it would be a better game, and that is what matters in the end. Smash 4 is alright, but I wish it was better... like Melee is. And I did go back and play some Melee after getting the 3DS game, and the difference was immediately obvious.
![[Image: TjJxM.gif]](http://i.imgur.com/TjJxM.gif)