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Many years ago now a stupid stuck up company messed around with a CD giant, a giant that wanted a piece of the gaming market. Because of this said CD giant murdered the market, SEGA fell and Nintendo were forced to retreat from their headlined position. Sony was here.
Nintendo's survival depended on three things, their unique, totally different style to Sony meant Nintendo offered something Sony didn't. Nintendo also have the hardest dying fan base you'll ever see, a fan base filled with us lot. These two factors help but it was the Gameboy, a franchise left untouched by Sony's rampage that meant Nintendo could re-group and re-build.
Nintendo hid in their niche market, their fan base and their Gameboy franchise allowed them to soldier on as Sony's user-base tripled, quadrupled and whatever came after that. Could anyone stop this jugganaught?
Enter Microsoft. The biggest, richest company in the entire world... and all of a sudden Sony didn't look that strong. Microsoft has slowly chipped away at Sony over the past 2 years, eating more and more into both their and Nintendo's user base. Microsoft are a company that, no matter how hard they try, Sony cannot defeat even in their elevated position.
There is no room for 3 consoles, it is time for Sony to finish off Nintendo once and for all.
And this was the perfect time to do it. Despite unbelievable sales of the Gameboy Advance the Gamecube was falling. Nintendo's die hard fan based were annoyed, the company they loved so much was fiddling with franchises and ultimately creating games that were not up to the usual standard. Wind Waker, Sunshine and Pikmin... the Gamecube's self-proclaimed lead titles were, to some Nintendo fans, disappointing. Only Mario Kart and Metroid Prime proved that Nintendo did indeed still have it. The sale of Rare to Microsoft was another massive blow to Nintendo's fan base, the constant loss of third party developers every week made Nintendo appear doomed to failure.
Enter the death nail, the killer blow.... The PSP.
If Sony want to fight Microsoft then a handheld is the key. A platform that is said to be the future of gaming, a handheld would not only extend the already strong Playstation userbase but also cripple Nintendo beyond repair. Getting a massive head start over Nintendo's next Gameboy, introducing MP3 playability and what looks set to be the sexiest piece of kit ever created.
E3 2004
How Sony didn't expect this. Suddenly everything changed. Nintendo's third parties may be leaving but what at first seemed like a weak first party line up became stronger than ever. The die-hard Nintendo fans were happy with a line up that featured a brand spanking new realistic Zelda game, a fantastic looking Metroid Prime and what is set to be the best Resident Evil title ever made. With Mario Tennis, Donkey Kong, Geist, Starfox, Pikmin 2 and Paper Mario 2 all on the release list it was safe to say Nintendo have protected their die-hard assets.
Nintendo will also launch the next Gameboy before the end of the year.... sorry I mean the 'DS' before the end of the year... undercutting Sony. The DS may not look as cool as the PSP but for pure functionality the system is cool. The games looked gorgeous, the new way of holding games is fantastic and backward compatible with the GBA. Brilliant.
The PSP is launching with GT, Tekken and Metal Gear Solid. Despite those 3 games being some of the biggest in the world their popularity (a bit like Mario's) have taken a knock after their dissapointing latest outings. The PSP also needs to implement a jog proof system for the CD based hardware, a laser as well as an inbuilt memory. Could battery life be a problem? Yes the Playstation name sells, but can Sony sell a handheld console to an adult market? I won't underestimate them, they can do it but there is no way they can have as many PSP gamers as they have PS2 gamers... handheld gaming just is not popular with the adult gamers. Just look at the N-Gage. The DS is launching with Mario’s, Metroid and even Sony’s own Final Fantasy. It is also launching with Nintendo’s first full online mode, boasting touch screen, Wireless connection, a protected clam shape and an in-built microphone. Not all of that may appeal to the casual gamer. But some of it will.
Confessingly the Playstation Pocket looks more dangerous than I originally thought. It looks utterly stunning, lacks clutter (something the DS suffers from) with a beautiful screen. This alone could sell the system... but with the GBA SP set for a large price cut before the end of the year can the PSP defeat Nintendo’s massive, 95%, handheld empire?
If Nintendo are going down they are not doing it without a fight. If Sony’s PSP is forced out by the Gameboy, a system that has forced out many of Nintendo's competitors before, what can Sony do to stop Microsoft?
Dringo.
Nintendo's survival depended on three things, their unique, totally different style to Sony meant Nintendo offered something Sony didn't. Nintendo also have the hardest dying fan base you'll ever see, a fan base filled with us lot. These two factors help but it was the Gameboy, a franchise left untouched by Sony's rampage that meant Nintendo could re-group and re-build.
Nintendo hid in their niche market, their fan base and their Gameboy franchise allowed them to soldier on as Sony's user-base tripled, quadrupled and whatever came after that. Could anyone stop this jugganaught?
Enter Microsoft. The biggest, richest company in the entire world... and all of a sudden Sony didn't look that strong. Microsoft has slowly chipped away at Sony over the past 2 years, eating more and more into both their and Nintendo's user base. Microsoft are a company that, no matter how hard they try, Sony cannot defeat even in their elevated position.
There is no room for 3 consoles, it is time for Sony to finish off Nintendo once and for all.
And this was the perfect time to do it. Despite unbelievable sales of the Gameboy Advance the Gamecube was falling. Nintendo's die hard fan based were annoyed, the company they loved so much was fiddling with franchises and ultimately creating games that were not up to the usual standard. Wind Waker, Sunshine and Pikmin... the Gamecube's self-proclaimed lead titles were, to some Nintendo fans, disappointing. Only Mario Kart and Metroid Prime proved that Nintendo did indeed still have it. The sale of Rare to Microsoft was another massive blow to Nintendo's fan base, the constant loss of third party developers every week made Nintendo appear doomed to failure.
Enter the death nail, the killer blow.... The PSP.
If Sony want to fight Microsoft then a handheld is the key. A platform that is said to be the future of gaming, a handheld would not only extend the already strong Playstation userbase but also cripple Nintendo beyond repair. Getting a massive head start over Nintendo's next Gameboy, introducing MP3 playability and what looks set to be the sexiest piece of kit ever created.
E3 2004
How Sony didn't expect this. Suddenly everything changed. Nintendo's third parties may be leaving but what at first seemed like a weak first party line up became stronger than ever. The die-hard Nintendo fans were happy with a line up that featured a brand spanking new realistic Zelda game, a fantastic looking Metroid Prime and what is set to be the best Resident Evil title ever made. With Mario Tennis, Donkey Kong, Geist, Starfox, Pikmin 2 and Paper Mario 2 all on the release list it was safe to say Nintendo have protected their die-hard assets.
Nintendo will also launch the next Gameboy before the end of the year.... sorry I mean the 'DS' before the end of the year... undercutting Sony. The DS may not look as cool as the PSP but for pure functionality the system is cool. The games looked gorgeous, the new way of holding games is fantastic and backward compatible with the GBA. Brilliant.
The PSP is launching with GT, Tekken and Metal Gear Solid. Despite those 3 games being some of the biggest in the world their popularity (a bit like Mario's) have taken a knock after their dissapointing latest outings. The PSP also needs to implement a jog proof system for the CD based hardware, a laser as well as an inbuilt memory. Could battery life be a problem? Yes the Playstation name sells, but can Sony sell a handheld console to an adult market? I won't underestimate them, they can do it but there is no way they can have as many PSP gamers as they have PS2 gamers... handheld gaming just is not popular with the adult gamers. Just look at the N-Gage. The DS is launching with Mario’s, Metroid and even Sony’s own Final Fantasy. It is also launching with Nintendo’s first full online mode, boasting touch screen, Wireless connection, a protected clam shape and an in-built microphone. Not all of that may appeal to the casual gamer. But some of it will.
Confessingly the Playstation Pocket looks more dangerous than I originally thought. It looks utterly stunning, lacks clutter (something the DS suffers from) with a beautiful screen. This alone could sell the system... but with the GBA SP set for a large price cut before the end of the year can the PSP defeat Nintendo’s massive, 95%, handheld empire?
If Nintendo are going down they are not doing it without a fight. If Sony’s PSP is forced out by the Gameboy, a system that has forced out many of Nintendo's competitors before, what can Sony do to stop Microsoft?
Dringo.
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Bonus wrote:
> Dringo wrote:
> But Metroid Prime is a first person game but not an FPS...
>
> Surely by definition a First Person Shooter is a First Person Game.
Actually, a FPS may will always be in first person (obviously) but not all first person games are FPSs. So what he's saying is that just because it's in first person doesn't make it an FPS.
I agree that it isn't a traditional-formula (think Half Life) shooter, it's more of a first person adventure game (think Zelda in First Person), with shooting.
> Dringo wrote:
> But Metroid Prime is a first person game but not an FPS...
>
> Surely by definition a First Person Shooter is a First Person Game.
Actually, a FPS may will always be in first person (obviously) but not all first person games are FPSs. So what he's saying is that just because it's in first person doesn't make it an FPS.
I agree that it isn't a traditional-formula (think Half Life) shooter, it's more of a first person adventure game (think Zelda in First Person), with shooting.
Metroid Prime is a big jump in First Person gaming...
Whilst Halo is a mere step forward.
Whilst Halo is a mere step forward.
I don't think that Metroid is a 'Big Jump' in FPSs, I think it's just another avenue that the genre is going down. I see the avenue that Halo, Goldeneye, Half Life etc occupy coming to a creative end soon, so Metroid offers a new direction, but it doesn't have as much scope as the traditional FPS.
What I'm saying is that the style of Metroid can't really be expanded at all, I don't really see how anything particularly new can be done with it, apart from new items/weapons/story concepts.
I mean, name some things you would like to see in MP3.
What I'm saying is that the style of Metroid can't really be expanded at all, I don't really see how anything particularly new can be done with it, apart from new items/weapons/story concepts.
I mean, name some things you would like to see in MP3.
The oppertunity to seemlessly play the game in both first and third person mode... ideal for the likes of the DS platform.
Except that the third person would be of only GBA quality. Only one of the screens can display 3D.
gerrid wrote:
> Except that the third person would be of only GBA quality. Only one of
> the screens can display 3D.
I thought they both could display either and that it was up to the developers? Maybe I read it wrong.
Anyway I'd love to be given more of a third/first person mix... not the mention the oppertunity to ride vehicles etc...
> Except that the third person would be of only GBA quality. Only one of
> the screens can display 3D.
I thought they both could display either and that it was up to the developers? Maybe I read it wrong.
Anyway I'd love to be given more of a third/first person mix... not the mention the oppertunity to ride vehicles etc...
Both screens can display 3d, but only one at a time.
I understand that first person games don't need to be first person shooters, I don't understand why he said it was just an FPS like it was a bad thing.
I understand that first person games don't need to be first person shooters, I don't understand why he said it was just an FPS like it was a bad thing.
One screen can use the ARM 7 processor, and the other can use the ARM 9, so only one can display 3D, but they can switch seemlessly. That's how I understand it anyway, and this is corroborated by the fact that not one game had 3D on both screens.
Bonus wrote:
> Both screens can display 3d, but only one at a time.
>
> I understand that first person games don't need to be first person
> shooters, I don't understand why he said it was just an FPS like it
> was a bad thing.
Not that it's a bad thing. But it's hardly worth orgasaming over. Ocarina of Time and Goldeneye will remain the forefront of it's genre.... as will GTA 3.
But Halo won't.
> Both screens can display 3d, but only one at a time.
>
> I understand that first person games don't need to be first person
> shooters, I don't understand why he said it was just an FPS like it
> was a bad thing.
Not that it's a bad thing. But it's hardly worth orgasaming over. Ocarina of Time and Goldeneye will remain the forefront of it's genre.... as will GTA 3.
But Halo won't.
Halo surpasses Goldeneye at the forefront of the FPS genre. It is a much better game.
Timesplitters 2 is better than Goldeneye, it takes what Goldeneye was, and bettered it.
I have my own issues with some really boring sections of OOT, but that's definately personal opinion. Can't argue with an Edge 10/10, the same score it gave Halo ;)
Timesplitters 2 is better than Goldeneye, it takes what Goldeneye was, and bettered it.
I have my own issues with some really boring sections of OOT, but that's definately personal opinion. Can't argue with an Edge 10/10, the same score it gave Halo ;)
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