When people trade in their old games to Gamestop they put that money towards new games. This means that gamers will end up purchasing further games. The big boys like EA will benefit from this because those are the games that people buy first, but the smaller developers will be hurt badly.
The xbox ad campain writes itself... The xbox one, one game, one account, one player, one mandatory 24 hour log in, The xbox one, you wont want one.
Bravo!! Which leads me to my next point... The big boys are smoking either dope or dog food if they don't realize that the used game market heavily subsidizes the new game market.
Microsoft owns more than 90 percent of worldwide computer usage (through various Windows incarnations), and Windows Phone is making significant strides against its previous irrelevance in the mobile space. The Xbox One has in no way caused any danger to Microsoft's existence, nor has the Xbox brand been damaged in any way. Everyone was pissing and moaning about the PS4 and how nebulous that product announcement was (and we still know very little about it), yet now that Microsoft went through their own mild misfire (the only thing I disliked about today's announcement was the integrated Kinect, although I expected it; there is simply no way I'm going to speak, verbally, to turn on an entertainment device, no matter how much a company wants me to treat it like the main computer from Star Trek), everyone is doing their best to piss on that, as well. It's a game console. The purpose is to play games. Wait for the games. Long story short: Calm down, folks.
I'm not necessarily thrilled with a lot of what they did with this reveal, but I thought it was much better than Sony's. Of course I was mostly in it for COD Ghosts, and that dog <3. At least they showed the fucking thing. I think just making it extra boxy was a good call. I'm looking at my PS3 now, and Christ what an eyesore. PS4's reveal harped on about that fucking "share" button like nobody's business. When it comes down to it that is even more useless to me than managing my TV. At least yelling "XBOX ESPN" saves me the trouble of remembering which channel is which. I watch my cable service fairly rarely but when I do I usually end up Googling "channel name + uverse" to a)figure out if I even have that channel, and b)figure out what channel I need to turn to. Somewhat stupid? Sure, but when I needed to switch from the web live stream to the TV version because I had to hop on a GoToMeeting for work, I did exactly that, Googled "spike uverse" and kept watching. And as a huge NFL viewer maybe I'll find some use out of those features. Both companies are pushing features that just don't matter to an old fuddy duddy like me. Chances are I'll get both anyway as a hardcore gamer with plenty of disposable income. PS4 sounds slightly more appealing on the hardware side, though they are very similar. A lot of what it comes down to for me is which console is going to run COD more smoothly. If you directly compare the PS3 versions to the Xbox 360 versions, it's obvious that the PS3 really struggles with it. Actually the primary concern for me is whether the XIM team will be able to make a mouse adapter that works on both #NicheConcern The DRM stuff is a little worrisome. I think the current generation had it right for the most part. Being able to plug a game into a system connected to your TV, and just being able to play is the way a console should be. But everyone is pushing towards the "software as a service" sort of model. I hear lots of people in this thread saying they will refuse to buy it, but what are you going to do in 10 years if EVERYTHING is like that? Are you really going to stick with pre-2013 content till you keel over and die? Lots of people said they'd move to another country if the presidential election didn't break their way too, but in the end they almost never actually go though with it.
I think the PS4 event was much better. At worst, the reaction to that event was "meh". At best, it got people excited. The Xbox One event reactions seems to range from "shit" to "meh". Not the reaction Microsoft wanted, most likely. At the end of the day, it's because PS4 focused on gamers and (to a lesser extent) developers. For example, the integrated PlayStation Eye was mentioned once during the tech specs, but never mentioned again because they know most gamers don't care about it. While people are going to mention that hardcore gamers are in the minority, the fact is that the people who are going to pre-order these consoles or pick it up day one are hardcore gamers. Their impressions are going to generate the buzz that will impact the decisions of those less in the know. Microsoft has to do damage control, fast. I think it's clear that Microsoft had no clear message going into this event. The number of contradictory statements being issued/reported are staggering. BTW, while I am a PS3 fan, I am no fanboy. Sony has been very hesitant to say if there is a strategy around used games. I bet they are waiting to see the reactions from Microsoft's event before they make a decision. They must be seriously considering something similar for the PS4, even if it's just to appease developers/publishers. I'm also curious to here about changes to the PlayStation Network. Again, there is still time for Microsoft to fix their image and plenty of time for Sony to drop the ball. I can't wait for E3, just to see what happens.
I was planning on going PC for most games and Wii U/3DS for Nintendo games this gen, the Xbox Press conference did nothing to change that, if anything it made me want an Xbox One less then I did before I knew anything about it. I was also really hoping Remedy's next game was going to be Alan Wake 2 since I loved the first one, and I'm a bit disappointed that it's not.
I don't have an issue with digital download only. Rarely buy CDs, DVD/BDs now (now vinyl is another matter ). But I assume they could bring down cost (less on production, etc); would be nice to demo mode before purchase; and should definitely still offer cheaper d/l (equal to 2nd hand disc) when game is past its prime sales point.
Steam have close to the perfect model on direct download games. Only thing that could improve it really is a subscription service Ala Spotify for games.
^ . Like the Spotify idea. I do wonder if I'm the only one who was 'excited' by that launch (EA and kool-aid presenters aside). Maybe I'm just happy to get any improvement on present 360.
Not for nothing, but that already existg... It's called "Playstation Plus." I did like the multimedia aspects of the X1. Voice command is pretty cool, but I'm not going to pay $500 for it. The 15 exclusive IPs they boasted intrigue me. I'm not a fan of Halo or Gears. We'll see what happens at E3.... and pricing.
Oh yeah, I have PS+ and it's a good service and a great bargain but you don't get options on which games you get, just the ones they offer each month.
You're right about that, that's the direction that digital media is going. But that transition needs to be incentivised with lower prices to balance out the disadvantages of no longer being able to resell, share, or loan out games. Steam works because the games tend to be €5-€10 cheaper than on consoles at release, and they provide great value through frequent sales. They also provide services like Steam Workshop that allow you to extend the life of a game by easily downloading free mods. Microsoft don't have a reputation for providing great value for money, they have a reputation for being money-grubbing bastards. Their sales have historically been paltry in both their frequency and their discounts. The Xbox marketplace is very much a closed platform where free updates are discouraged. They also charge for basic services such as multiplayer gaming and the web browser. Unless Microsoft reforms in most of these areas, they'll have a tough time convincing consumers that these new restrictions are providing value for money. I wasn't wowed by the PS4 reveal, and it had plenty of awkward moments (such as the Bungie guys and their motionless arms). But the sense I got from their press conference was that they were acknowledging the mistakes they made with the launch of the PS3 and were trying to do better by their customers this time. Not all the games appealed to me, and some of those that did will probably be multi-platform, but their focus was clearly on providing a great gaming service. It wasn't a great press conference, but it did open my mind to the possibility of buying a PS4 even though I have been mostly satisfied with my 360. Job well done for the Sony marketing department. The Xbox One press conference kinda discouraged me from the console. I don't really watch TV any more, I don't give a shit about sports, and Call of Duty isn't really my thing. I like dogs, I suppose, but I presume that the PS4 will also have virtual dogs. This has been MS's plan all along, of course, they used a game console as a means to get a general entertainment device into people's living rooms. Maybe that will work out for them, but as someone who wants a console mainly to play games, this press conference was a disappointment. As a side note, Gamespot is tracking a twitter battle between those siding with the PS4 or Xbox One, with PS4 currently winning 89% to 11%. It's not all bad news for Microsoft though, they're winning in Nicaragua, Montenegro, Albania, Macedonia, Iran, and Sri Lanka. All fine emerging markets.
Super unimpressive - very vague on specs and showing off stuff that isn't all that impressive - unless you're easily impressed. Add to that the very credible sources saying that you can't buy or sell used games any more and that it DOES in fact have to be online at least once a day... big swing and a miss this generation for Microsoft.
One of reasons I definitely won't be getting an xbox is if you have to tie all you games to an account, what happens to all your games if your account gets banned because you're being a dick? Do you lose everything? What if someone steals or hacks your account, will they be able to tinker all your games without even breaking into your house? The script kiddies who won't even think about the consequences of what they're doing are probably already waiting for the ways to do this.
The mandatory 24 hour login mystifies me. How does this work exactly? You must log in every 24 hours or else they deactivate your account? Is nobody allowed to go on vacations or business trips any more without lugging their XBoxes along? Something really doesn't track with that one. There has to be more to it...
Try not being a dick? Well that's a real concern about any online thing like this. You just have to hope they have a decent customer service team to deal with it.