10th July 2006, 6:52 PM
I remember that. I didn't see the problem when you showed up talking about Xenogears (loved it then and love it now). I just thought you should play Zelda :D.
But really, while Sony is making some pretty boneheaded mistakes (the HUBRIS), these particular issues may very well start affecting the other companies. MS for example has something to worry about. Nintendo does too. It all depends on the company it seems. I for one would want to get all the content in my game out all at once and fully tested so I NEVER had to touch that project again and could move on. From interviews I've seen, the general consensus is that programmers LIKE to move on to new things themselves. Why then, this strange compulsion to make games with a miilion little add-ons tossed in later? The occasional add-on you can download every now and then? Sure I'd love that. The game that's fully online with content added by a dedicated team who loves developing that little world? Sure thing. What could compel them into doing something as stupid as intentially removing already completed content and then tossing it in as a seperate download to be incorporated? Sounds like extra work for no decent reason, except money. This HAS to be a marketting department overrulling the developer thing...
By the way, the stuff Sony is doing? There are similarities to how Nintendo was behaving. Nintendo too thought they were in charge and despite any attraction developers and gamers alike had to other systems, people would buy Nintendo's system. They were never worried it seems, then they were pushed into a distant 2nd place, holding on only because their hubris didn't extend into making terrible games and the system actually was decently designed.
Sony is in a position similar to that one. They think that things are good, and will continue that way, FOREVER. They ARE video games. Nintendo was too, so was frickin' ATARI. I fear they are making mistakes which, although of a different nature, still have enough precedents regarding each one to at least give people pause. Super expensive, no "must have" ultra hyped games at launch, only two must haves in the forseeable future AFTER launch, untested format that is also very expensive to produce (due to the fact that they have to first pay for all that infrastructure they need to put in place) and competing with a more "open" format anyway, two systems to divide the market, though fortunatly not so much as gameplay affecting, and a lack of any real innovation.
What are they doing right? Well the system is still fully backwards compatible playing PS2 and PS1 games, but the PS2 people already own does that too :D.
I've been studying history of gaming, as various links I've put up here may have indicated, and let's just say there is good cause to think Sony isn't going to be top dog this time around.
I might even go as far as to say they could drop into irrelevence in the console side of things, at least next generation... They may end up just nursing their wounds with going back to full support on the PS2.
I'll tell you one thing. If the predictions end up accurate, look for ultra cheap PS3's as stores clear up shelf space. That'll be the only time I'd get mine. Other than that, I think I'll wait for the two must haves to get ported to one of the other systems and just buy a visually inferior version.
Sad though... The PS1 was a great system that taught Nintendo an important lesson, and the PS2 and the XBox taught Nintendo a few more lessons. Now this... Sucks, because I like my not so little PS2.
But really, while Sony is making some pretty boneheaded mistakes (the HUBRIS), these particular issues may very well start affecting the other companies. MS for example has something to worry about. Nintendo does too. It all depends on the company it seems. I for one would want to get all the content in my game out all at once and fully tested so I NEVER had to touch that project again and could move on. From interviews I've seen, the general consensus is that programmers LIKE to move on to new things themselves. Why then, this strange compulsion to make games with a miilion little add-ons tossed in later? The occasional add-on you can download every now and then? Sure I'd love that. The game that's fully online with content added by a dedicated team who loves developing that little world? Sure thing. What could compel them into doing something as stupid as intentially removing already completed content and then tossing it in as a seperate download to be incorporated? Sounds like extra work for no decent reason, except money. This HAS to be a marketting department overrulling the developer thing...
By the way, the stuff Sony is doing? There are similarities to how Nintendo was behaving. Nintendo too thought they were in charge and despite any attraction developers and gamers alike had to other systems, people would buy Nintendo's system. They were never worried it seems, then they were pushed into a distant 2nd place, holding on only because their hubris didn't extend into making terrible games and the system actually was decently designed.
Sony is in a position similar to that one. They think that things are good, and will continue that way, FOREVER. They ARE video games. Nintendo was too, so was frickin' ATARI. I fear they are making mistakes which, although of a different nature, still have enough precedents regarding each one to at least give people pause. Super expensive, no "must have" ultra hyped games at launch, only two must haves in the forseeable future AFTER launch, untested format that is also very expensive to produce (due to the fact that they have to first pay for all that infrastructure they need to put in place) and competing with a more "open" format anyway, two systems to divide the market, though fortunatly not so much as gameplay affecting, and a lack of any real innovation.
What are they doing right? Well the system is still fully backwards compatible playing PS2 and PS1 games, but the PS2 people already own does that too :D.
I've been studying history of gaming, as various links I've put up here may have indicated, and let's just say there is good cause to think Sony isn't going to be top dog this time around.
I might even go as far as to say they could drop into irrelevence in the console side of things, at least next generation... They may end up just nursing their wounds with going back to full support on the PS2.
I'll tell you one thing. If the predictions end up accurate, look for ultra cheap PS3's as stores clear up shelf space. That'll be the only time I'd get mine. Other than that, I think I'll wait for the two must haves to get ported to one of the other systems and just buy a visually inferior version.
Sad though... The PS1 was a great system that taught Nintendo an important lesson, and the PS2 and the XBox taught Nintendo a few more lessons. Now this... Sucks, because I like my not so little PS2.
"On two occasions, I have been asked [by members of Parliament], 'Pray, Mr. Babbage, if you put into the machine wrong figures, will the right answers come out?' I am not able to rightly apprehend the kind of confusion of ideas that could provoke such a question." ~ Charles Babbage (1791-1871)