PS2 or Xbox?

[Blennidae]

I am not the person who works for a game company. Ask gibby.

[BlackHalo]

WHOOPS

8)

errr...Gibby?

[logamus]

i love my ps2 but in reality i spend way more time playing games on my comp than on a console.

[gibby]

Re: WHOOPS

Originally posted by BlackHalo
8)

errr...Gibby?

I currently work for Activision...the slightly No. 2 publisher...hehe!

Actually, I work for a company that was bought out by Activision...Treyarch. We used to do your Triple Play baseball series. I actually did a little programming on the PS2 version.

The two titles I've worked on for Activision was Spiderman: The Movie Game which was well received but could have been much better. We hope our next iteration of SM will turn a few heads. Also, another title I wished I didn't work on was Minority Report...UGH! Mind you, the MR team isn't the same team as the SM one as there were many management issues and egos to overcome. It was just the most frustrating experience I've had working on a game. But we can't always make Triple A titles can we?

But luckily for me, I'm back on the Spiderman team and we're trying our hardest to give what the gamers want.

Will you be going to E3 this year? If so, maybe we should hook up, trade a few games, or if time permits...play paintball? Will EA throw a party? If so, get me a pass...hehe. Not sure if Activision is but we'll find out soon enough!

[MAGma 14]

I dont care what the xbox does the ps2 is better

[BlackHalo]

I remember Treyarch

I didn't work on any of the Triple Play titles (luckily...I can't deal with all those stats!) when I was in QA. I'm in Mastering now so technically I work on all titles going out of our studio. This unfortunately means that I'll probably be working scant minutes before E3 starts, trying to get the Demo builds to the people who are going to E3.

I liked Spiderman, I only played a couple of hours of it when a friend of mine brought it into work one day. Incredibly I'm not much of a gamer...heck the first game console I've owned is the PS2, and I think I play more DVD movies on the thing than games.

Btw (just to keep this OT)- by pure console sales I think the line up is like this. You may experience week by week variance but generally this is about right

North America and Europe
1. PS2
2. GBA
3. PSOne
4. XBox (almost tied with Gamecube)
5. Gamecube

Japan

1. PS2
2. GBA
3. Gamecube
4. PSOne
15.XBox (apparently they really don't like M$)

[alkafluence]

North America and Europe
1. PS2
2. GBA
3. PSOne
4. XBox (almost tied with Gamecube)
5. Gamecube

Japan

1. PS2
2. GBA
3. Gamecube
4. PSOne
15.XBox (apparently they really don't like M$)

I'd like to see the breakdown for both Korea's and China as well.

Given all the press over gaming in Korea as of late, and with China having the largest population of any country on Earth, I think those are significant markets as well.

[BlackHalo]

hmm

There isn't a special license area for Korea, they use the same systems as Japan...I haven't seen any sales numbers. I do know that we have distrobution channels in Korea and we localize builds specifially for Korea so there must be some kind of market there.

I don't think they even distribute any systems to China. With the rampant piracy there, I think 98 percent of all software sold is pirated and I suspect the 2 percent is used to make the other 98. I hear they even sell pirated software at schools and other offical offices.

I don't know if anyone will distribute until China starts to recognize and enforce copyright laws. It's just not financially viable.

[Patron God of Pirates]

7 reasons why X-Box can suck it

This is an article from "The Best Web Page in the Universe". It pretty well sums up how I feel about the X-Box:

1. Piss-poor design.
The system is the brain child of Seamus Blackley, a 32-year-old red-haired jazz pianist and nuclear physicist. To quote him: "I was flying back from visiting [my girlfriend] and I had just got a new laptop and I was trying it out on the plane and I was thinking about graphics cards and I realized that we could make a machine that had much higher performance than anything else in the industry." Yeah, it's called PC dumb***. Real revolutionary idea. Take existing hardware, throw it together in a big clunky box and call it a console. Everything about the system reeks of poor design. Rather than getting a hand full of the most talented game developers in the world (here's a hint: YOU WON'T FIND THEM MAKING PC TITLES IN THE US ******--GO TO JAPAN) and designing a system around the games from the ground up, Blackley comes along with an unlimited supply of stupid ideas about the gaming industry and designs a system that he himself admitted to being "little more than exposed cards with processors and graphics chips hooked to a monitor." No ****? I couldn't tell from how HUGE the case is. It's almost as if it was thrown together with pieces bought off of a store shelf--oh wait. What more, once he senses the impending fizzle of the launch, he bails from the company to work someplace else--where he'll inevitably spawn more stupid ideas.

2. The games suck.
It's been almost one full year since the launch of the Xbox and so far the only game that doesn't suck as much as everything else on the system is Halo. Everything else is either out on another console, mediocre or a boring PC port. Even Halo doesn't cut it as far as I'm concerned. The first person shooter (FPS) genre is best done on PC, period (just because some genres have been represented best on PC doesn't mean I'm biased towards PC, if anything I'm biased towards consoles so quit emailing me). As good as Halo is, it's not even the best in its genre (an honor reserved for Half Life as far as I'm concerned). The Xbox library of games is flooded with **** titles like "Azurik": games that seem more like projects for computer science majors in their senior year at college than professional products. I would rather be shot than have to play one more uninspired ho-hum platform title starring some stupid cat or some random guy that runs around bumping into other vague uninspired objects. Throw that **** away.

Here are some examples of the bull**** games on the Xbox:

* Max Payne - Wait, so not only do I lose the ability to adjust my resolution and system specs to improve performance, but I get a game that's been out for months on PC already? Where do I sign? The game's not too bad, but why bother with it on Xbox when it's on PC already?
* Nightcaster - How original, a rushed third-person RPG title with four magic types: light, dark, fire and water. But wait, here's where the strategy comes in: use water against fire, light against dark enemies, etc. Brilliant.
* Blood Wake - I liked this game better when it was called Twisted Metal and you drove cars instead of boats. Unoriginal, uninspired.
* Azurik: Rise of Perathia - Would have been more aptly titled "Azurik: Onset of Paralysis." Bad gameplay, poor camera, muddy textures, lame characters. Does the fun ever start?
* Star Wars: Obi-Wan - More like "Star Wars: Obi-Wanna-Play-A-Different-Game." Poor AI, poor controls, boring environments. Any non-geeks care to play this? Doubtful.
* Bruce Lee: Quest of the Dragon - Broken gameplay, bad camera work, cheesy voice acting, and the game crashes. All this crap for just $50? It's a win/win situation for publishers: put a lackluster effort into development and make boat-loads of cash off of suck-er.. customers.

Sure, every console has its share of ****** games but the Xbox has a disproportionately higher percentage of them. In fact, I think only the N64 rivals the Xbox in the ****** to good title ratio. When all is said and done, it doesn't matter what I or anyone else thinks about the games, the fact is that the games just aren't selling. All you cry-baby, whining, sniveling ****** can stop emailing me with "HAY MADDOX YOU IDIOT YOU DIDN'T MENTION DEAD TO RIGHTS LOL!!!" Because here are some cold hard facts:

For the entire month of July, only 2 games made it into the top 20 highest sellers (based on units sold), and only 1 in the top 10: Halo at #10 and NCAA Football 2003 at #11. For the month of June, only 3 games made it into the top 20, with only 2 in the top 10. Same for the month of May 2002, and only one in the top 10 in the month of April 2002. Even when the Xbox newly launched, their best month ever has only yielded 4 games in the top 20 with only 2 in the top 10, and don't even bother looking at Japan's stats where the Wonder Swan system is outselling most Xbox games (Source: NPD TRSTS Video Game Service). Compare this to Sony's healthy 15 titles and you can see the big picture. I don't favor Sony's platforms, but these are facts. Any other systems sell this poorly in recent memory? Oh yeah, the Dreamcast and where is the DC now? The DC was by far my favorite system in its prime, but the only difference between me and all you whining Xbox ******* is that I can see the same thing happening here. It doesn't matter how good anyone thinks the games are, because they're just not selling which should tell you dumb***** something. That's not to say that good games always sell, but there's no excuse for Microsoft to have this kind of piss-poor performance because they have all the marketing muscle in the world to make it happen and they're screwing it up.

3. The controller is almost as big as my nuts.
This has to be by far the ******** controller packed with a home console ever. What were they thinking? Over 25% of the surface area on the controller is wasted by a giant green Xbox jewel--you know, in case you forget what system you're playing in between loading screens. You can seriously drop the controller onto a cat from 5 feet and break its back... so I've heard.

What Microsoft should have done was team up with Sega to buy all their unsold Dreamcasts and just use them as controllers for the Xbox. It probably would have been smaller than the 8 lb atrocity that they have now.

4. People who own the Xbox don't play video games.
The average Xbox owner attends Microsoft SQL Server release parties, reads books on database theory and hates games like Super Mario because they're too old for "kiddie" games since everyone knows that it's graphics, not game play that makes a great game. I mean, why play a game that's actually fun when you can waste hours watching rendered, uninteractive intros instead? Ask the typical Xbox owner what other video games or consoles he likes and you'll draw a blank stare. The reason they bought an Xbox was because it's by Microsoft and they're blindly devoted to the company, not because of the games (being as there aren't any).

5. No Soul.
You'll never see games like Metal Slug, Radiant Silvergun or Castlevania come out for the Xbox because Microsoft hasn't made the system attractive to the Japanese market. Capcom, Konami, SNK and a slew of other big game developers have turned their backs towards the Xbox except for a cursory presence with a half-hearted title port. There is light at the end of the tunnel, however. Sega is working on a Panzer Dragoon title as well as Toe Jam & Earl III. Regardless, the Xbox is still a PC at heart, right down to the hard drive and buggy software.

6. ******* philosophy.
Blackley thought he had the formula for a great system because all the components were there for a great system (and they are): a powerful graphics chip, a beefy hard drive, a fast processor and DVD capabilities. What he failed to realize was that just because you have all the raw material to make a great system doesn't mean it's going to be great. Saying the Xbox is a good system because it's powerful is like saying you made a great painting because you used the best set of paints.

The Xbox is designed by people who think they know a joystick from their *******. The problem is that they're mostly fat business men and not gamers. They're out to make a buck and it's painfully obvious in how poorly they're marketing the system (I think they've cornered the market on middle-aged men who buy one or two sports titles per year for their system).

7. Too expensive.
The last figures I heard were that Microsoft was eating $150 on every Xbox sale because they had hoped to subsidize the hardware cost with software sales. Too bad that all their software is ****, otherwise their plan might have worked. Unfortunately, Microsoft has deep pockets so we'll probably have to endure a couple more years of mediocre Xbox titles until Microsoft's share holders decide they've had enough. Don't buy an Xbox. Or if you do, wait until something worth buying comes out for it first.

For all you inevitably offended Xbox owners and developers, quit ********. I'm not hell bent on the ruin of the Xbox, and I'll eventually buy one, but not until some 'decent' **** comes out for it (ie, more than one game worth purchasing). The point of this article is that there are a lot of dumb ***** out there who buy systems out of blind devotion to the company rather than the games.

A lot of people email me asking which console I prefer. The console I prefer is the console with the most games that I want to play, and right now Gameboy Advance and PS2 have the most games that I want to play.

[ShooterJM]

Originally posted by nippinout
Nintendo going to way of SEGA? Nintendo has 7 billion dollars in cash. Nintendo is the NUMBER ONE videogame software company. No other company makes as much profit as them. No other company has more million sellers.

/me dislikes it when people talk about video games and don't know what they are saying or talking about.

Technically Nintendo has a cash or cash equivilent holding of around 863 billion yen. Depending on exchange rates that's about $6.7 billion in US dollars. Ok so we've established they're in good financial position so far. Nintendo posted about a 20% gain due to the release of the GBA and GC although I personally haven't seen sales figures that split the sales out. GREAT. Now, I start looking around. How many people do I know have a GC vs GBA. Maybe 3 vs 24. I ask around. I get around the same ratio. This leads me, perhaps incorrectly, to believe that the GBA might very well be accounting for a higher percentage of net sales then the GC. So I visit resellers. Lots of GC's, no GBA, Xboxs or PS2s. Interesting. Ok so we have a finacially stable company, a powerhouse in the handheld line, but with a faltering position in the home console area. Throw in two extremely powerful competitors that are very well financed. Now throw in the fact that nintendo is planning on releasing another console in what, 04/05? Historically nintendo isn't backword compatible. I see them losing more market share there too. What it comes down to is unless something drastic changes it will become an inoppropriate use of resources to continue in the home console market. It should be directed toward software and the handheld niche. Now what does sega do..... But hey, it's just my opinion.

/me dislikes it when people respond with a small tirade and don't even bother to ask him WHY he holds an opinion

[BlackHalo]

quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by nippinout
Nintendo going to way of SEGA? Nintendo has 7 billion dollars in cash. Nintendo is the NUMBER ONE videogame software company. No other company makes as much profit as them. No other company has more million sellers.

/me dislikes it when people talk about video games and don't know what they are saying or talking about.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I have no idea how to quote so I'll just cut n paste.

Nintendo isn't the NUMBER ONE video game software company. EA is. I belive that EA is the only one that constanly run in the black (profit). But you're probably right about the million sellers bit, they do make some great games.

Here's a snippet from NASDAQ.com that I found -

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:ERTS) is the world's leading interactive entertainment software company. Recently the company announced that the unique and challenging experience of The Sims is now available on all next-generation console platforms. The Sims was the best selling PC game of both 2000 and 2001 and is now the best selling PC game of all time. This is good news for gamers and great news for investors. The company is also working on other war themed games for those that can't get enough from the nightly news. In January, ERTS reported EPS of$1.69, which was up 89% from its latest quarter and revenue was $1.23 billion vs. $832.9 million for the same period last year. Already, ERTS is up over +20% for the year and if the economy manages to stage a comeback there's no telling where this gaming giant will end up. Investors looking for stocks with good growth potential should follow several All Star analyst leads and pick up ERTS before the plane leaves the hanger.

[nippinout]

BlackHalo, Nintendo has never had a quarter where there was no profit. Since it was a manufacturer of playing cards, they have always been profitable. They are also the most profitable. They control the console, no licensing fees for hardware and no DVD royalties to be paid.

ShooterJM, anectdotal evidence doesn't portray the larger picture. Visiting resellers aren't hard statistics.

Nintendo plans on a 2005 release of their next console. This isn't the typical 5 year lifespan. They are doing this in order to launch closer to Sony's next console launch.

How is it a bad idea for Nintendo to continue making consoles? The XBOX has yet to post a profit for Microsoft's Home and Entertainment division. So why is Nintendo, the profiting company touted as the next SEGA when the XBOX has yet to make a profit for MS. MS is a corporation with many othe divisions. All bossed around by investors. Investors won't support another money burner.

I don't mind the XBOX. What bugs me is when people see Nintendo as some huge failure in the making.

EDIT: BlackHalo, did you know that Wal-Mart doesn't release video game sales numbers? Well, they do but it is very rare. Wal-Mart is also the number one retailer of video games, so they are poopy for not releasing them.

[*captain_cox*37]

I would say x box probably because it is exactly like a computer and came out a year after ps2. Has to be better. Plus look how huge it is. The controller is bigger then my head.

[ShooterJM]

Please point out where I said nintendo was going to be a failure. In fact, I recall saying that they were financially stable and were a "powerhouse" in other sectors.
What I'm saying is if they continue to lose market share, and I see no hard evidence to the otherwise, they will hit a point where, even though they COULD make money on consoles, they can make more money on another product. Internal required rate of return.

[nippinout]

"The day Nintendo exits the hardware business is the day Nintendo exits the video game industry." -Satoru Iwata.