Will you be getting a PS4 or an Xbox One ?

[FPAlpha]

I don't know if MS can afford to wait 18 months before they decide to offer the XBO without Kinect.

As cool as the device is it is not quite there yet and currently is more of a gimmick than a real input alternative so MS should think fast about offering a version without it and be able to drop the price to PS4 levels.

They need to swallow their ego and modify their plan to offer the entertainment center of the future when people just want a gaming console. They tried to impose their will on the customer before the console has even launched and paid a heavy price for it and still they refuse to change their path.

I doubt the XO will be a huge loss for MS or a loss at all but they could profit a bit more if they got rid of the mandatory Kinect. The XO is not a bad console from what i read, maybe slightly less powerful than the PS4 but honestly.. if you're weaving between buildings gun raised looking for targets would you really notice a slightly inferior resolution?

I sure don't and so the differences are cosmetic, at least to me.

 

[RoJoHen]

I have a friend who is an XBOX junkie, but even he passed on the XBone. He did end up buying Titanfall, but he bought it for PC.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

^ "XBone"?

 

[137th Gebirg]

^^^ A common humorous and derogatory moniker since its introduction last year with all its wonderous spyware capabilities and draconian DRM and licensing enforcement. Microsoft has been trying to tamp down its use since that time to no avail.

I prefer to call it X1, out of simplicity's sake, if nothing else.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I realize it's probably intended to be "XB-one" but it looks way funnier as "X-Bone".

 

[RoJoHen]

That's kinda the point.

 

[Owain Taggart]

Could it be people are tired of Multiplayer FPS? The XB1 doesn't interest me in the least, as I'm not into those, but it seems to me that a lot of the 360 and XB1 exclusives have been FPS games. If they'd diversify a bit, I think they'd have more of a chance. I've always felt Playstation exclusives were a lot more diversified.

Or maybe it's the fact that players like those other FPSes like CoD as they likely can't exploit Titanfall the same way, as I heard TF gameplay is supposed to try to level the playing field by giving all players a chance.

 

[BillJ]

I think both machines are pretty similar from a power standpoint. The reason I went with a PS4 was because I was tired of swapping batteries and I got frustrated with Microsoft constantly pressuring me for a second way to contact me.

 

[TheGodBen]

I don't know if MS can afford to wait 18 months before they decide to offer the XBO without Kinect.

I agree, waiting until 2015 doesn't make much sense. They have no reason to believe that the situation will change in the next year, and that would be an extra 12 months of falling further behind. Acting sooner would yield greater dividends over the long term. The fact that Xbox have a new guy in charge also makes it more likely for them to dump Kinect as it would be an admission that a mistake was made under Mattrick's tenure, not Spencer's.

I think a Kinect-less SKU being announced at E3 this year for $350 is a real possibility. I also think there's a good chance they'll drop the paywall for third party apps to bring Xbox Live into line with PSN.

 

[137th Gebirg]

They seem to be controlled purely by ego right now. Removing the Kinect from the SKU would be a bald-faced admission that the device was an unqualilfied failure - a device that was touted to be nothing less than an industry game-changer. Decisions made from pure ego and pride are very difficult to overcome, even in the face of all evidence that exists to the contrary.

I, too, hope they don't wait for another year to drop it, but there needs to be a major culture shift and acceptance of reality within the highest echelons of Microsoft to make it happen.

 

[Kelthaz]

I think both machines are pretty similar from a power standpoint. The reason I went with a PS4 was because I was tired of swapping batteries and I got frustrated with Microsoft constantly pressuring me for a second way to contact me.

The PS4 has a fairly significant advantage in power. You're not seeing it now because neither system is being taxed by launch games, but late generation multiplatform games will look and/or play better on the PS4.

 

[Relayer1]

I think both machines are pretty similar from a power standpoint. The reason I went with a PS4 was because I was tired of swapping batteries and I got frustrated with Microsoft constantly pressuring me for a second way to contact me.

The PS4 has a fairly significant advantage in power. You're not seeing it now because neither system is being taxed by launch games, but late generation multiplatform games will look and/or play better on the PS4.

I.e. 1080.

But Titanfall was supposed to be their ace in the hole. Remember E3 last year? "Our DRM policies don't matter, we've got Titanfall." They were banking on the game to sell consoles, they paid tens of millions to EA to secure console exclusivity, they funded a huge marketing push behind it, and they sold bundles at a hefty discount. Most people, myself included, were expecting MS to pull off a decent victory over the PS4 for March in North America. The fact that they didn't is a worrying sign for the console.

And they released a perfectly good 360 version at pretty much the same time. My son's reaction was 'Cool, there's still no reason to buy an Xbone'...

 

[Owain Taggart]

And they released a perfectly good 360 version at pretty much the same time. My son's reaction was 'Cool, there's still no reason to buy an Xbone'...

That's a really good point. If they'd made it an XB1 exclusive, then maybe it would be considered more of a system seller, but being on the 360 as well, many have no reason to go out and buy a new console if they want to play it. So while the game is probably selling well, it's not selling the console, which is a problem as there's no big exclusive to hook people in. I'm not saying it's a downfall, because it likely was a conscious decision in wanting to sell the game to a large number of people, but I do think it's led to cannibalizing of sales. Microsoft will likely want something truly exclusive for the console in the coming months. And no, Kinect games don't count.

 

[Kelthaz]

Microsoft needs to develop more of their own games rather than rely on paying EA hundreds of millions for "exclusive" games. They lag far behind Sony and Nintendo in both quality and quantity when it comes to first party games.

 

[JarodRussell]

Microsoft needs to develop more of their own games rather than rely on paying EA hundreds of millions for "exclusive" games. They lag far behind Sony and Nintendo in both quality and quantity when it comes to first party games.

Whatever Microsoft pays them, it's certainly less than what the production, marketing and distribution costs.

 

[TheGodBen]

I, too, hope they don't wait for another year to drop it, but there needs to be a major culture shift and acceptance of reality within the highest echelons of Microsoft to make it happen.

There has been a big shake-up in MS management in the last year, and they've finally relented to those demanding the return of the Start menu in Win8, so I'm hopeful they've learned the lesson of not forcing their pet projects on consumers.

The best of both worlds option would be to release a version of the Xbox One without the Kinect cameras, but with a small, cheap microphone array so that the voice commands still work. That way they can release a cheaper SKU but also stick to their "vision" of an all-in-one entertainment device with voice controls. In truth, they haven't been pushing the gesture recognition part of the UI much, and from what I've read it's pretty crap anyway.

 

[Owain Taggart]

Yeah, most of those questionable decisions were made under Ballmer's reign as CEO. It's still too early to tell, but the new CEO has shown to have a different vision and strategy for the company, and a willingness to think outside the box. So, here's hoping he sticks to it.

 

[Lance]

Microsoft needs to develop more of their own games rather than rely on paying EA hundreds of millions for "exclusive" games. They lag far behind Sony and Nintendo in both quality and quantity when it comes to first party games.

There's a fundamental problem MS has had all along. Way back in the original Xbox days, they bought up prolific and highly acclaimed third-party Nintendo developers, Rare. Their intention was obviously to have some of the very best games designers working in-house for Microsoft Studios... but then they strangled out all the creativity that made Rare a household name, and put them to work developing Kinnect Sports. I mean, FFS, talk about not recognising the full value of your assets.

What's left of Rare these days isn't worth talking about, and it's all down to poor management decisions at the top of the Microsoft chain over the years. Seriously. Those guys are true talent. They could be delivering the goods for XBoxOne, cranking out exclusive in-house games that would be true 'Killer Apps' for the console, no question...

... if only they were given the full creative autonomy that they had before the take-over.

 

[TheGodBen]

Yeah, Giant Bomb posted a Quick Look at Rare's latest effort yesterday, Kinect Sports Rivals. The character creator thing is pretty neat, but the actual gameplay didn't appear to be fun at all. It's bogged down by over-tutorialising everything and inaccurate Kinect controls.

[yt]v=URdvQ2j6BpE[/yt]

 

[SPCTRE]

^ This makes me miss Ryan Davis so much. He always made those original Kinect Quick Looks so much fun.