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I have a worrying suspicion that the XBox will go the same way as the DC. Why is this?
Well, many people on here have said that they won't be buying one. If you scale that up to cover the entire console buying population, you get quite a few people who won't be buying Microsoft's box of tricks.
So what if they haven't released a console before? As has been mentioned many times before, the same was said of Sony before they launched the PSX and we all know how well that sold. MS have got all the ingredients of a great console in the making.
Firstly, the hardware, as this seems to be what most people quote when they talk about consoles. I'm not going to bore you with figures of polygons per second etc. What i will point out is that MS are using tried and trusted companies to make the components. The nVidia graphics chip should have no problems working with the processor, which was originally going to be an AMD chip but has now been changed to Intel. Along with it's RAM, which is the most a console has ever had the XBox hardware is spectacular.
As the hardware is so similar to a PC, developers should have no worries getting to grips with it. The "warming up" period, the time the developer have to spend getting the most out of the hardware, should be minimal. The likeness with a PC should mean that ports are going to be easy, and with the quality of PC games at the moment, B&W , Operation Flashpoint, Deus Ex etc, that can only be a good thing.
The XBox looks like it may have a strong launch as well. With Halo, Project Gotham (essentially M: SR with an extra city, tarted up graphics and AI and also destructible cars!) and another Abe's Odyssey game supposedly available at launch, along with a number of games that Sega have in development as well, the XBox will have a good line up.
But i still feel that the XBox will not do as well as it deserves, as did the DC. By the time it is released the PS2 will have established a large user base, and the 'Cube will have been out for a little while as well. I feel that a lack of established games like a Mario or a Sonic will also discourage people to buy the console. Although games like Halo and Project Gotham could well be classics, as not many people have heard of them, it may put them off slightly. Sony doesn't really have a mascot character, but they have the MGS and GT series which people recognize.
The DC didn't take off because of people remembered the Saturn and that put them off. Sony had also announced the PS2 and a large number of games were still being released for the PSX. The same sorts of things may put people off an XBox. Some people still relate Microsoft only with Windows and the problems they have experienced with that. The PS2 will probably be at it's peak of games releases and as i've mentioned before, the 'Cube will have only just been out.
I'm hoping people think of Microsoft as the company that made the first force feedback joystick and now the whole range of quality peripherals. The company that released classic games such as the Age Of Empires series.
But only time will tell whether Microsoft and the XBox can become a success.
Well, many people on here have said that they won't be buying one. If you scale that up to cover the entire console buying population, you get quite a few people who won't be buying Microsoft's box of tricks.
So what if they haven't released a console before? As has been mentioned many times before, the same was said of Sony before they launched the PSX and we all know how well that sold. MS have got all the ingredients of a great console in the making.
Firstly, the hardware, as this seems to be what most people quote when they talk about consoles. I'm not going to bore you with figures of polygons per second etc. What i will point out is that MS are using tried and trusted companies to make the components. The nVidia graphics chip should have no problems working with the processor, which was originally going to be an AMD chip but has now been changed to Intel. Along with it's RAM, which is the most a console has ever had the XBox hardware is spectacular.
As the hardware is so similar to a PC, developers should have no worries getting to grips with it. The "warming up" period, the time the developer have to spend getting the most out of the hardware, should be minimal. The likeness with a PC should mean that ports are going to be easy, and with the quality of PC games at the moment, B&W , Operation Flashpoint, Deus Ex etc, that can only be a good thing.
The XBox looks like it may have a strong launch as well. With Halo, Project Gotham (essentially M: SR with an extra city, tarted up graphics and AI and also destructible cars!) and another Abe's Odyssey game supposedly available at launch, along with a number of games that Sega have in development as well, the XBox will have a good line up.
But i still feel that the XBox will not do as well as it deserves, as did the DC. By the time it is released the PS2 will have established a large user base, and the 'Cube will have been out for a little while as well. I feel that a lack of established games like a Mario or a Sonic will also discourage people to buy the console. Although games like Halo and Project Gotham could well be classics, as not many people have heard of them, it may put them off slightly. Sony doesn't really have a mascot character, but they have the MGS and GT series which people recognize.
The DC didn't take off because of people remembered the Saturn and that put them off. Sony had also announced the PS2 and a large number of games were still being released for the PSX. The same sorts of things may put people off an XBox. Some people still relate Microsoft only with Windows and the problems they have experienced with that. The PS2 will probably be at it's peak of games releases and as i've mentioned before, the 'Cube will have only just been out.
I'm hoping people think of Microsoft as the company that made the first force feedback joystick and now the whole range of quality peripherals. The company that released classic games such as the Age Of Empires series.
But only time will tell whether Microsoft and the XBox can become a success.
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I have a worrying suspicion that the XBox will go the same way as the DC. Why is this?
Well, many people on here have said that they won't be buying one. If you scale that up to cover the entire console buying population, you get quite a few people who won't be buying Microsoft's box of tricks.
So what if they haven't released a console before? As has been mentioned many times before, the same was said of Sony before they launched the PSX and we all know how well that sold. MS have got all the ingredients of a great console in the making.
Firstly, the hardware, as this seems to be what most people quote when they talk about consoles. I'm not going to bore you with figures of polygons per second etc. What i will point out is that MS are using tried and trusted companies to make the components. The nVidia graphics chip should have no problems working with the processor, which was originally going to be an AMD chip but has now been changed to Intel. Along with it's RAM, which is the most a console has ever had the XBox hardware is spectacular.
As the hardware is so similar to a PC, developers should have no worries getting to grips with it. The "warming up" period, the time the developer have to spend getting the most out of the hardware, should be minimal. The likeness with a PC should mean that ports are going to be easy, and with the quality of PC games at the moment, B&W , Operation Flashpoint, Deus Ex etc, that can only be a good thing.
The XBox looks like it may have a strong launch as well. With Halo, Project Gotham (essentially M: SR with an extra city, tarted up graphics and AI and also destructible cars!) and another Abe's Odyssey game supposedly available at launch, along with a number of games that Sega have in development as well, the XBox will have a good line up.
But i still feel that the XBox will not do as well as it deserves, as did the DC. By the time it is released the PS2 will have established a large user base, and the 'Cube will have been out for a little while as well. I feel that a lack of established games like a Mario or a Sonic will also discourage people to buy the console. Although games like Halo and Project Gotham could well be classics, as not many people have heard of them, it may put them off slightly. Sony doesn't really have a mascot character, but they have the MGS and GT series which people recognize.
The DC didn't take off because of people remembered the Saturn and that put them off. Sony had also announced the PS2 and a large number of games were still being released for the PSX. The same sorts of things may put people off an XBox. Some people still relate Microsoft only with Windows and the problems they have experienced with that. The PS2 will probably be at it's peak of games releases and as i've mentioned before, the 'Cube will have only just been out.
I'm hoping people think of Microsoft as the company that made the first force feedback joystick and now the whole range of quality peripherals. The company that released classic games such as the Age Of Empires series.
But only time will tell whether Microsoft and the XBox can become a success.
Well, many people on here have said that they won't be buying one. If you scale that up to cover the entire console buying population, you get quite a few people who won't be buying Microsoft's box of tricks.
So what if they haven't released a console before? As has been mentioned many times before, the same was said of Sony before they launched the PSX and we all know how well that sold. MS have got all the ingredients of a great console in the making.
Firstly, the hardware, as this seems to be what most people quote when they talk about consoles. I'm not going to bore you with figures of polygons per second etc. What i will point out is that MS are using tried and trusted companies to make the components. The nVidia graphics chip should have no problems working with the processor, which was originally going to be an AMD chip but has now been changed to Intel. Along with it's RAM, which is the most a console has ever had the XBox hardware is spectacular.
As the hardware is so similar to a PC, developers should have no worries getting to grips with it. The "warming up" period, the time the developer have to spend getting the most out of the hardware, should be minimal. The likeness with a PC should mean that ports are going to be easy, and with the quality of PC games at the moment, B&W , Operation Flashpoint, Deus Ex etc, that can only be a good thing.
The XBox looks like it may have a strong launch as well. With Halo, Project Gotham (essentially M: SR with an extra city, tarted up graphics and AI and also destructible cars!) and another Abe's Odyssey game supposedly available at launch, along with a number of games that Sega have in development as well, the XBox will have a good line up.
But i still feel that the XBox will not do as well as it deserves, as did the DC. By the time it is released the PS2 will have established a large user base, and the 'Cube will have been out for a little while as well. I feel that a lack of established games like a Mario or a Sonic will also discourage people to buy the console. Although games like Halo and Project Gotham could well be classics, as not many people have heard of them, it may put them off slightly. Sony doesn't really have a mascot character, but they have the MGS and GT series which people recognize.
The DC didn't take off because of people remembered the Saturn and that put them off. Sony had also announced the PS2 and a large number of games were still being released for the PSX. The same sorts of things may put people off an XBox. Some people still relate Microsoft only with Windows and the problems they have experienced with that. The PS2 will probably be at it's peak of games releases and as i've mentioned before, the 'Cube will have only just been out.
I'm hoping people think of Microsoft as the company that made the first force feedback joystick and now the whole range of quality peripherals. The company that released classic games such as the Age Of Empires series.
But only time will tell whether Microsoft and the XBox can become a success.
I will be buying an X-Box. I've got my £350 at the ready, I've got £100 extra ready for games. I'll be camping out for it and drooling into my sleeping bag outside The Galleries in Bristol, anticipating bringing home and firing up one of the BEST CONSOLES EVER TO BE RELEASED IN THE HISTORY OF CONSOLE MAKING!!!!!
And then I'll come on here and tell you all about it :-)
And then I'll come on here and tell you all about it :-)
does anyone know for sure the price of the x-box? i think a projected fee of around £300 has been said. Now can this price really make the console a success? the PS2 will proabably be near £200 by the time x-box comes around next march and the other competition, the cube, will have been around for a month at half the price. It dont look too good for the x-box.
Your wrong the X-Box will not go the same way, I've been a supporter of Nintendo all the way but with the X-Box coming out before the Gamecube! The gamecubes graphics are also superb, but now Nintendo have switched to the Disk they will be wiped out by X-box!
The X-Box has everything the Gamecube has got and more. Except the X-Box could use a handheld which could link up with the X-Box. But the X-Box could do with being cheap like the gamecube will be!
I think that's all!
The X-Box has everything the Gamecube has got and more. Except the X-Box could use a handheld which could link up with the X-Box. But the X-Box could do with being cheap like the gamecube will be!
I think that's all!
the x-box aint coming out before the cube. the cube beats the box by 3 days in america and i month in europe.
ISSpro wrote:
> does anyone know for sure the price of the x-box? i think a
> projected fee of around £300 has been said. Now can this
> price really make the console a success? the PS2 will proabably be
> near £200 by the time x-box comes around next march and the
> other competition, the cube, will have been around for a month at
> half the price. It dont look too good for the x-box.
"On Wednesday, May 16, during a live webcast, the plans for the Xbox launch were revealed. Xbox consoles will be available at an estimated retail price of $299 USD starting Nov. 8, 2001 at retail outlets throughout North America. Approximately 600,000 - 800,000 units will be available on day one."
Source: E3 2001 Press Conference details from the official XBox site.
> does anyone know for sure the price of the x-box? i think a
> projected fee of around £300 has been said. Now can this
> price really make the console a success? the PS2 will proabably be
> near £200 by the time x-box comes around next march and the
> other competition, the cube, will have been around for a month at
> half the price. It dont look too good for the x-box.
"On Wednesday, May 16, during a live webcast, the plans for the Xbox launch were revealed. Xbox consoles will be available at an estimated retail price of $299 USD starting Nov. 8, 2001 at retail outlets throughout North America. Approximately 600,000 - 800,000 units will be available on day one."
Source: E3 2001 Press Conference details from the official XBox site.
ISSpro wrote:
> the x-box aint coming out before the cube. the cube beats the box by
> 3 days in america and i month in europe.
Not what I read in NOM!
> the x-box aint coming out before the cube. the cube beats the box by
> 3 days in america and i month in europe.
Not what I read in NOM!
the news in NOM is usually a month old. I used to buy that mag but found out recently that all the info in magazines can be found on th web for FREE. quicker and in advance.
Fact is GC is coming out before the box in the US. Rumour is cube is coming out in FEB here and box i think has been confirmed for march.
Fact is GC is coming out before the box in the US. Rumour is cube is coming out in FEB here and box i think has been confirmed for march.
Members of this site have mainly been in favour of the GameCube.
It is strange that the same people who have been criticising the PS2 early releases for having too many sequels, are favouring GC with their early release line up including updates to Wave Race, Rogue Squadron, Smash Brothers, Zelda and the usual selection of EA sports games.
What we can expect from Nintendo is that these games will be top quality, as they were on the N64.
I hope that the GC will be successful, but they need to produce progressively better games - something which didn't really happen with N64. This problem eventually sealed the machine's fate. As an example, the most raved about releases of recent times - Excitebike and CBFD - were they really any better than the early games such as Mario 64, Mario Kart, Gioldeneye, Wave Race etc?
In my mind, this is an area where PSX excelled, with bigger and better games always on the horizon - something that PS2 is also showing. This creates excitement in the gaming community and long term hardware sales. As for N64, the only real games creating a frenzy some time down the line were Zelda, Perfect Dark and No Mercy.
Nintendo need to recognise the need for plentiful, progressive, not to mention quality games over a long period of time.
There have been numerous threads discussing the console 'war', covering software, hardware, marketing, price, but I haven't yet seen anything (regulars correct me if I'm wrong - I'm reasonably new to this site) mentioned about Nintendo's move to disc coupled with their ability to conquer the potential loading time problems.
After all, this was one of the things that made the N64 such a good machine - quality games without the wait. It is something that they will need to succeed at to win over Sony fans smarting at the loading times on PS2.
X-Box needs to inject something new into the gaming market to really succeed in this country - something PS2 and PC gamers don't have. From the early magazine exposure there has been little to shout about (apart from the WWF game which looks far better than the PS2 version). It will also need to provide something that is not available to PS2 and PC gamers. The console and controller design look decidedly dodgy, and reports have shown that Japan is very hesitant to show real support.
I think X-Box success here will be defined by it's USA release. If it fails in Japan and America, I don't think the machine will be fully supported and marketed for Europe.
It may aim at the online gamers, but how popular will this be? It certainly didn't lose Sony any fans.
Nintendo will always have it's army of Mario fans, Sony will have a strong head start.
Personally, I'm a reasonably happy PS2 owner, but a big Nintendo fan (even aged 29) who is heading for a GC.
Sorry X-Box, but there is nothing you can (appear to) offer me to sway my mind.
It is strange that the same people who have been criticising the PS2 early releases for having too many sequels, are favouring GC with their early release line up including updates to Wave Race, Rogue Squadron, Smash Brothers, Zelda and the usual selection of EA sports games.
What we can expect from Nintendo is that these games will be top quality, as they were on the N64.
I hope that the GC will be successful, but they need to produce progressively better games - something which didn't really happen with N64. This problem eventually sealed the machine's fate. As an example, the most raved about releases of recent times - Excitebike and CBFD - were they really any better than the early games such as Mario 64, Mario Kart, Gioldeneye, Wave Race etc?
In my mind, this is an area where PSX excelled, with bigger and better games always on the horizon - something that PS2 is also showing. This creates excitement in the gaming community and long term hardware sales. As for N64, the only real games creating a frenzy some time down the line were Zelda, Perfect Dark and No Mercy.
Nintendo need to recognise the need for plentiful, progressive, not to mention quality games over a long period of time.
There have been numerous threads discussing the console 'war', covering software, hardware, marketing, price, but I haven't yet seen anything (regulars correct me if I'm wrong - I'm reasonably new to this site) mentioned about Nintendo's move to disc coupled with their ability to conquer the potential loading time problems.
After all, this was one of the things that made the N64 such a good machine - quality games without the wait. It is something that they will need to succeed at to win over Sony fans smarting at the loading times on PS2.
X-Box needs to inject something new into the gaming market to really succeed in this country - something PS2 and PC gamers don't have. From the early magazine exposure there has been little to shout about (apart from the WWF game which looks far better than the PS2 version). It will also need to provide something that is not available to PS2 and PC gamers. The console and controller design look decidedly dodgy, and reports have shown that Japan is very hesitant to show real support.
I think X-Box success here will be defined by it's USA release. If it fails in Japan and America, I don't think the machine will be fully supported and marketed for Europe.
It may aim at the online gamers, but how popular will this be? It certainly didn't lose Sony any fans.
Nintendo will always have it's army of Mario fans, Sony will have a strong head start.
Personally, I'm a reasonably happy PS2 owner, but a big Nintendo fan (even aged 29) who is heading for a GC.
Sorry X-Box, but there is nothing you can (appear to) offer me to sway my mind.
PieroGas, you raise some good points.
Firstly, Nintendo are going for a DVD instead of a cartridge, only they will be using a smaller disc to try and cut down on piracy. Can they have cartridge style loading times? I doubt it.
The only way they could reduce laoding times is to have more RAM. As far as i know the XBox has the most RAM, 64MB i think.
I am tempted to get an XBox as i beleive there will be laods fo great titles for the machine. Also it means i can play PC games without upgrading my PC all the time!
However, with the GC only being, allegedly, £150 in relation to the XBoxs £300 i am in favour of the Nintendo machine.
Ideally i'd like to buy both!
Firstly, Nintendo are going for a DVD instead of a cartridge, only they will be using a smaller disc to try and cut down on piracy. Can they have cartridge style loading times? I doubt it.
The only way they could reduce laoding times is to have more RAM. As far as i know the XBox has the most RAM, 64MB i think.
I am tempted to get an XBox as i beleive there will be laods fo great titles for the machine. Also it means i can play PC games without upgrading my PC all the time!
However, with the GC only being, allegedly, £150 in relation to the XBoxs £300 i am in favour of the Nintendo machine.
Ideally i'd like to buy both!
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