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Are we ready for on-line gaming? Most of us probably can't wait to get on-line and beat friends and even foreigners and also get some extra services from some of the developers. But are we really ready for our consoles to go on-line?
I for one don't think we are, there are a few reasons why I have this opinion and I shall share them with you here.
First one has to be lack of games to support it. I have only noticed a handful of games that have a certain kind of on-line feature, surely if this was going to be such a big event as the developers make it out to be then a little more effort to produce a wide variety of games before it all takes off so it is actually of use to some would be a good idea. Probably after people realise what exactly on-line gaming allows they will buy more games which support it then more developers will produce games that support it and so on.
My second reason has to be today's technology, today's games have great graphics, sounds and move smoothly. What kind of internet connection would be required to allow games to play on-line the way they were intended too with no slowdown or jerks in the graphics? Probably broadband, How many of you have broadband? Will you get it soon? Also I can't help but think that as soon as we all get our modems and get a connection that something better may come along. The way I see things is that 2002 will be the year all the consoles compete with each other. On-line gaming may be used as a marketing gimmick to try sell more units ie we got on-line first, buy our console and play on-line now. Until the technology is available all over and the cost is fair I don't think on-line gaming will take off in the big way people expect.
Thirdly, as we are British we seem to be a fair bit behind Japan and the US. If this is the case then what kind of service can we expect from the developers? Will it be the same? Will we all have identical features or will the usual thing happen and not only do they get it quite a bit before us but they also get more extras than us. I guess in a way this time round it could be a good thing to get this after Japan and the US, if it doesn't live up to the standards we are expecting then we know not to get involved until they get it right and make a success of it.
Next we have the cost. The cost of all this sure does go up and up. Firstly you need all the hardware, console, modem and possibly the hard disk if it isn't already included with the console. Then you need the games which use an on-line feature. After that you will need an ISP. Hopefully a deal will be made by the developers to have reduced costs for the ISP, It would be amazing if it was free but sadly I doubt it. If that is the case then you will have to pay for all the time you spend on-line playing games. I think Microsoft will be able to get the best deal by splashing their money around and with the way they dominate other industries it does look likely that they will try to top the market by trying to buy the best services for X-Box users. In saying that though we never know what is going to happen until it happens. Lets just hope for our sake that the cost is fair and worth paying.
I remember my younger cousin got a dreamcast on import when it was first released. He worked and worked until he and his friend could afford one, he also swapped his N64 for it too. His dad works for BT so they got free internet and he used to play on-line from time to time. I must admit the idea seems a good one but the service was poor and due to slow connection speeds and well in my opinion a rushed service it wasn't much of a good experience. On-line gaming can and probably will be a huge success but when? I just think it is a little early for it.
I am sure when the X-Box and GameCube are released over here then more effort may be put into getting on-line gaming to take off in a big way. I just hope we are ready for it when it happens.
Knowing the way things go though in the games industry it is unlikely that a developer will risk slipping up when there is so much money at risk and huge profits possible. So probably things will go smoothly and on-line console gaming will be a huge success.
I for one don't think we are, there are a few reasons why I have this opinion and I shall share them with you here.
First one has to be lack of games to support it. I have only noticed a handful of games that have a certain kind of on-line feature, surely if this was going to be such a big event as the developers make it out to be then a little more effort to produce a wide variety of games before it all takes off so it is actually of use to some would be a good idea. Probably after people realise what exactly on-line gaming allows they will buy more games which support it then more developers will produce games that support it and so on.
My second reason has to be today's technology, today's games have great graphics, sounds and move smoothly. What kind of internet connection would be required to allow games to play on-line the way they were intended too with no slowdown or jerks in the graphics? Probably broadband, How many of you have broadband? Will you get it soon? Also I can't help but think that as soon as we all get our modems and get a connection that something better may come along. The way I see things is that 2002 will be the year all the consoles compete with each other. On-line gaming may be used as a marketing gimmick to try sell more units ie we got on-line first, buy our console and play on-line now. Until the technology is available all over and the cost is fair I don't think on-line gaming will take off in the big way people expect.
Thirdly, as we are British we seem to be a fair bit behind Japan and the US. If this is the case then what kind of service can we expect from the developers? Will it be the same? Will we all have identical features or will the usual thing happen and not only do they get it quite a bit before us but they also get more extras than us. I guess in a way this time round it could be a good thing to get this after Japan and the US, if it doesn't live up to the standards we are expecting then we know not to get involved until they get it right and make a success of it.
Next we have the cost. The cost of all this sure does go up and up. Firstly you need all the hardware, console, modem and possibly the hard disk if it isn't already included with the console. Then you need the games which use an on-line feature. After that you will need an ISP. Hopefully a deal will be made by the developers to have reduced costs for the ISP, It would be amazing if it was free but sadly I doubt it. If that is the case then you will have to pay for all the time you spend on-line playing games. I think Microsoft will be able to get the best deal by splashing their money around and with the way they dominate other industries it does look likely that they will try to top the market by trying to buy the best services for X-Box users. In saying that though we never know what is going to happen until it happens. Lets just hope for our sake that the cost is fair and worth paying.
I remember my younger cousin got a dreamcast on import when it was first released. He worked and worked until he and his friend could afford one, he also swapped his N64 for it too. His dad works for BT so they got free internet and he used to play on-line from time to time. I must admit the idea seems a good one but the service was poor and due to slow connection speeds and well in my opinion a rushed service it wasn't much of a good experience. On-line gaming can and probably will be a huge success but when? I just think it is a little early for it.
I am sure when the X-Box and GameCube are released over here then more effort may be put into getting on-line gaming to take off in a big way. I just hope we are ready for it when it happens.
Knowing the way things go though in the games industry it is unlikely that a developer will risk slipping up when there is so much money at risk and huge profits possible. So probably things will go smoothly and on-line console gaming will be a huge success.
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I think that by the time the likes of Perfect Dark is released in the UK (2004), broadband will be fairly reasonably priced and practical.
I'll be willing to pay for it, and if hardly any other brits bother, I'll just play the Americans.
I'll be willing to pay for it, and if hardly any other brits bother, I'll just play the Americans.
I think gamers (console and PC variety) and developers are both ready to bring online gaming to the masses, but we are definately missing the telecoms infrastucture and low cost needed to fully realise it's potential.
As I own a PC, I have been gaming online (Q3 & UT) for about a year, but at 56k modem speeds I have to be really selective about the servers I play on. I want broadband, but to be honest, I'm moving soon and would prefer not to have a BT braodband contract hanging over my head until I'm settled.
I think that the UK needs a better infrastructure, for instance; why not start fitting standard "fat pipes" to houses, which could cope with many services such as digital TV, telephone, broadband gaming, Internet access and all that. With a standard "pipe" we should then be able to pick and choose what services we want from what companies... So you could have BT providing phone services, NTL feeding you TV, Barrys World for Online Gaming etc, or, you could buy a package for the lot from a single provider.
In summary, the gamers are ready, the consoles and PC's are ready, but the Telco's infrastructure is well behind in the equation.
As I own a PC, I have been gaming online (Q3 & UT) for about a year, but at 56k modem speeds I have to be really selective about the servers I play on. I want broadband, but to be honest, I'm moving soon and would prefer not to have a BT braodband contract hanging over my head until I'm settled.
I think that the UK needs a better infrastructure, for instance; why not start fitting standard "fat pipes" to houses, which could cope with many services such as digital TV, telephone, broadband gaming, Internet access and all that. With a standard "pipe" we should then be able to pick and choose what services we want from what companies... So you could have BT providing phone services, NTL feeding you TV, Barrys World for Online Gaming etc, or, you could buy a package for the lot from a single provider.
In summary, the gamers are ready, the consoles and PC's are ready, but the Telco's infrastructure is well behind in the equation.
You missed the UK Infratructure too...
Unless we are all going to be happy playing down an old 56k modem/phone line?
BroadBand is the future of online gaming, something which is wide spread in the US ans Japan, something which only just barely exists in the UK!!
With NTL slowly going under and BT being an @rse about third party access, britains online gaming future is looking pretty bleak. Even with the current free access that some firms offer, you don't want to be cutt off mid game because you've hit the 2 hour limit!!
Were rated something like 10th in Europe for BB access, you'd stand a better chance in Ireland than here!!
The technology is there, and the developers and gamers are there, but untill there is a decent widespread UK BB network, things will stay pretty boring.
Developers haven't included online options into UK games for this particular reason!!
Unless we are all going to be happy playing down an old 56k modem/phone line?
BroadBand is the future of online gaming, something which is wide spread in the US ans Japan, something which only just barely exists in the UK!!
With NTL slowly going under and BT being an @rse about third party access, britains online gaming future is looking pretty bleak. Even with the current free access that some firms offer, you don't want to be cutt off mid game because you've hit the 2 hour limit!!
Were rated something like 10th in Europe for BB access, you'd stand a better chance in Ireland than here!!
The technology is there, and the developers and gamers are there, but untill there is a decent widespread UK BB network, things will stay pretty boring.
Developers haven't included online options into UK games for this particular reason!!
Are we ready for on-line gaming? Most of us probably can't wait to get on-line and beat friends and even foreigners and also get some extra services from some of the developers. But are we really ready for our consoles to go on-line?
I for one don't think we are, there are a few reasons why I have this opinion and I shall share them with you here.
First one has to be lack of games to support it. I have only noticed a handful of games that have a certain kind of on-line feature, surely if this was going to be such a big event as the developers make it out to be then a little more effort to produce a wide variety of games before it all takes off so it is actually of use to some would be a good idea. Probably after people realise what exactly on-line gaming allows they will buy more games which support it then more developers will produce games that support it and so on.
My second reason has to be today's technology, today's games have great graphics, sounds and move smoothly. What kind of internet connection would be required to allow games to play on-line the way they were intended too with no slowdown or jerks in the graphics? Probably broadband, How many of you have broadband? Will you get it soon? Also I can't help but think that as soon as we all get our modems and get a connection that something better may come along. The way I see things is that 2002 will be the year all the consoles compete with each other. On-line gaming may be used as a marketing gimmick to try sell more units ie we got on-line first, buy our console and play on-line now. Until the technology is available all over and the cost is fair I don't think on-line gaming will take off in the big way people expect.
Thirdly, as we are British we seem to be a fair bit behind Japan and the US. If this is the case then what kind of service can we expect from the developers? Will it be the same? Will we all have identical features or will the usual thing happen and not only do they get it quite a bit before us but they also get more extras than us. I guess in a way this time round it could be a good thing to get this after Japan and the US, if it doesn't live up to the standards we are expecting then we know not to get involved until they get it right and make a success of it.
Next we have the cost. The cost of all this sure does go up and up. Firstly you need all the hardware, console, modem and possibly the hard disk if it isn't already included with the console. Then you need the games which use an on-line feature. After that you will need an ISP. Hopefully a deal will be made by the developers to have reduced costs for the ISP, It would be amazing if it was free but sadly I doubt it. If that is the case then you will have to pay for all the time you spend on-line playing games. I think Microsoft will be able to get the best deal by splashing their money around and with the way they dominate other industries it does look likely that they will try to top the market by trying to buy the best services for X-Box users. In saying that though we never know what is going to happen until it happens. Lets just hope for our sake that the cost is fair and worth paying.
I remember my younger cousin got a dreamcast on import when it was first released. He worked and worked until he and his friend could afford one, he also swapped his N64 for it too. His dad works for BT so they got free internet and he used to play on-line from time to time. I must admit the idea seems a good one but the service was poor and due to slow connection speeds and well in my opinion a rushed service it wasn't much of a good experience. On-line gaming can and probably will be a huge success but when? I just think it is a little early for it.
I am sure when the X-Box and GameCube are released over here then more effort may be put into getting on-line gaming to take off in a big way. I just hope we are ready for it when it happens.
Knowing the way things go though in the games industry it is unlikely that a developer will risk slipping up when there is so much money at risk and huge profits possible. So probably things will go smoothly and on-line console gaming will be a huge success.
I for one don't think we are, there are a few reasons why I have this opinion and I shall share them with you here.
First one has to be lack of games to support it. I have only noticed a handful of games that have a certain kind of on-line feature, surely if this was going to be such a big event as the developers make it out to be then a little more effort to produce a wide variety of games before it all takes off so it is actually of use to some would be a good idea. Probably after people realise what exactly on-line gaming allows they will buy more games which support it then more developers will produce games that support it and so on.
My second reason has to be today's technology, today's games have great graphics, sounds and move smoothly. What kind of internet connection would be required to allow games to play on-line the way they were intended too with no slowdown or jerks in the graphics? Probably broadband, How many of you have broadband? Will you get it soon? Also I can't help but think that as soon as we all get our modems and get a connection that something better may come along. The way I see things is that 2002 will be the year all the consoles compete with each other. On-line gaming may be used as a marketing gimmick to try sell more units ie we got on-line first, buy our console and play on-line now. Until the technology is available all over and the cost is fair I don't think on-line gaming will take off in the big way people expect.
Thirdly, as we are British we seem to be a fair bit behind Japan and the US. If this is the case then what kind of service can we expect from the developers? Will it be the same? Will we all have identical features or will the usual thing happen and not only do they get it quite a bit before us but they also get more extras than us. I guess in a way this time round it could be a good thing to get this after Japan and the US, if it doesn't live up to the standards we are expecting then we know not to get involved until they get it right and make a success of it.
Next we have the cost. The cost of all this sure does go up and up. Firstly you need all the hardware, console, modem and possibly the hard disk if it isn't already included with the console. Then you need the games which use an on-line feature. After that you will need an ISP. Hopefully a deal will be made by the developers to have reduced costs for the ISP, It would be amazing if it was free but sadly I doubt it. If that is the case then you will have to pay for all the time you spend on-line playing games. I think Microsoft will be able to get the best deal by splashing their money around and with the way they dominate other industries it does look likely that they will try to top the market by trying to buy the best services for X-Box users. In saying that though we never know what is going to happen until it happens. Lets just hope for our sake that the cost is fair and worth paying.
I remember my younger cousin got a dreamcast on import when it was first released. He worked and worked until he and his friend could afford one, he also swapped his N64 for it too. His dad works for BT so they got free internet and he used to play on-line from time to time. I must admit the idea seems a good one but the service was poor and due to slow connection speeds and well in my opinion a rushed service it wasn't much of a good experience. On-line gaming can and probably will be a huge success but when? I just think it is a little early for it.
I am sure when the X-Box and GameCube are released over here then more effort may be put into getting on-line gaming to take off in a big way. I just hope we are ready for it when it happens.
Knowing the way things go though in the games industry it is unlikely that a developer will risk slipping up when there is so much money at risk and huge profits possible. So probably things will go smoothly and on-line console gaming will be a huge success.
Page: