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Oh dear!
If this is what online console gaming means, stop it now!
Okay, you could argue that it's a good thing... but then, one of the main attractions of console games has always been that you don't need to worry about this sort of thing.
Future of gaming, or a backward step for consoles?
Oh dear!
If this is what online console gaming means, stop it now!
Okay, you could argue that it's a good thing... but then, one of the main attractions of console games has always been that you don't need to worry about this sort of thing.
Future of gaming, or a backward step for consoles?
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I've got a fair amount of songs on my Xbox hard drive- about 20 albums.
It says thats over 70,000 blocks, but I still have 50,000+ available- same as the day I got my Xbox.
Its a great feature, one which no other platform can do and its underated. It can make such a difference listening to what you want to, and have the option to put on a track you know you love instead of being tortured by some blips from some Japenese blokes keyboard.
It says thats over 70,000 blocks, but I still have 50,000+ available- same as the day I got my Xbox.
Its a great feature, one which no other platform can do and its underated. It can make such a difference listening to what you want to, and have the option to put on a track you know you love instead of being tortured by some blips from some Japenese blokes keyboard.
Ok...
It is a patch, but it is what people were asking for....
Faster play.....
FSAA on and off select
etc
Yet when it comes along people then say, oh no not a patch, what did they expect.... A free game... Unreal Championship Extreme :)
No of course not.... Although it is a "patch" I can think of many games on all console formats where I thinkg, oh my god this needs sorting.
Thank MS for the Hard Drive and Digital Extreme for their continued game support :)
It is a patch, but it is what people were asking for....
Faster play.....
FSAA on and off select
etc
Yet when it comes along people then say, oh no not a patch, what did they expect.... A free game... Unreal Championship Extreme :)
No of course not.... Although it is a "patch" I can think of many games on all console formats where I thinkg, oh my god this needs sorting.
Thank MS for the Hard Drive and Digital Extreme for their continued game support :)
8GB is only relatively small when you're comparing it to PC hard drives. For a console, it's huge. Your typical patch won't be bigger than 10MB, and your typical saved game a tiny fraction of that. The only way people will seriously be able to fill an 8GB hard drive is with a huge amount of songs.
I don't think we will see many people running out of hard drive space any time in the near future.
I don't think we will see many people running out of hard drive space any time in the near future.
I agree that downloading patches is bad, but new maps etc is good.
However, I would have thought that it would be possible to find out whether a game is buggy by looking around the 'net or at magazines etc first.
And if people buy a game that isn't even reviewed, well, they deserve all they get...
Personally, I don't think the situation will get too bad on Xbox. Most patches on PC are to sort out problems with graphics card drivers and stuff like that. This obviously won't be a problem on Xbox.
But to sort out a buggy game, well, if people know that they'll have to download a patch, that could well p!$$ some people right off, which will mean less sales, and less money for the publisher and developer, which they won't want.
However, I would have thought that it would be possible to find out whether a game is buggy by looking around the 'net or at magazines etc first.
And if people buy a game that isn't even reviewed, well, they deserve all they get...
Personally, I don't think the situation will get too bad on Xbox. Most patches on PC are to sort out problems with graphics card drivers and stuff like that. This obviously won't be a problem on Xbox.
But to sort out a buggy game, well, if people know that they'll have to download a patch, that could well p!$$ some people right off, which will mean less sales, and less money for the publisher and developer, which they won't want.
Your Honour wrote:
> But Wookiee, any good magazine will make the bugs known when they
> review it, so people will have the option not to buy the game.
That doesn't change the fact that they should be properly tested first!
There are also many occasions when magazines don't review the final code of the game, or don't play through an entire game. Some games are "tweaked" between review and release, and some (very few, but still they exist) aren't even sent to magazines for review.
There's also the issue of patch size and HD capacity. The HD in Xbox is comparatively small at 8Gb. I doubt many people have filled their HD yet, but it's possible. Suppose, for example, you have alot of soundtracks recorded for games, a number of saves, maps for games like TS2, etc. At least one person on here has said that they've recorded all their favourite albums to their Xbox HD and use it as a 'jukebox' when they listen to music.
In theory at least, you could end up having to delete one patch to make room for another. Unlike a PC, you have no way of archiving anything on the HD, so you may end up having to re-download and apply patches. Not a great prospect for "a quick game" of something, is it?
I have a friend who has often said to me "I can't be bothered with all that pratting around, that's why I stick to consoles." The whole prospect of patching games is a big no-no for some people.
Downloading extra content for added value is one thing, but fixing a game you just shelled out £45 on will quickly become tiresome. For me, anyway.
> But Wookiee, any good magazine will make the bugs known when they
> review it, so people will have the option not to buy the game.
That doesn't change the fact that they should be properly tested first!
There are also many occasions when magazines don't review the final code of the game, or don't play through an entire game. Some games are "tweaked" between review and release, and some (very few, but still they exist) aren't even sent to magazines for review.
There's also the issue of patch size and HD capacity. The HD in Xbox is comparatively small at 8Gb. I doubt many people have filled their HD yet, but it's possible. Suppose, for example, you have alot of soundtracks recorded for games, a number of saves, maps for games like TS2, etc. At least one person on here has said that they've recorded all their favourite albums to their Xbox HD and use it as a 'jukebox' when they listen to music.
In theory at least, you could end up having to delete one patch to make room for another. Unlike a PC, you have no way of archiving anything on the HD, so you may end up having to re-download and apply patches. Not a great prospect for "a quick game" of something, is it?
I have a friend who has often said to me "I can't be bothered with all that pratting around, that's why I stick to consoles." The whole prospect of patching games is a big no-no for some people.
Downloading extra content for added value is one thing, but fixing a game you just shelled out £45 on will quickly become tiresome. For me, anyway.
its a good thing get over it
just like downloadable expansion packs etc you get more for your money
just like downloadable expansion packs etc you get more for your money
But Wookiee, any good magazine will make the bugs known when they review it, so people will have the option not to buy the game.
Strafex wrote:
> Just so long as devellopers don't use it as an excuse to release half
> finished games (which has upset PC users) then I think it's good.
That's my fear, though. The developers of PC and console games are often the same people. The fact that they now have the opportunity to rush out a bugged game and fix it later is a cause for concern for everyone, I reckon.
Console games often have glitches, but they're rarely so bad that they drastically affect gameplay, or - at worst - cause a game to crash.
In my opinion, a game should be properly tested before it's launched, even if that means delaying the launch. I have always found console titles to be far less bugged than PC games, and I've put this down to two reasons: (1) The hardware is consistent, obviously, but also (2) there is no way of correcting it afterwards, so things are tested more thoroughly.
If we - or more correctly, the developers - are not careful, standards will slip to the point where almost every game has a patch downloadable, just like with the PC.
Sure, it's nice to be able to be able to update and fix the software, but you surely don't want to be doing that with every other title you buy? You pay good money for your software, and it should be bug-free to begin with.
And then of course there are those who won't subscribe to the online services. For the foreseeable future, these people are likely to be in the majority, and will be left to make do with a sub-standard title. These people should at least be able to return their original disc for a free replacement containing the corrected version of the software.
> Just so long as devellopers don't use it as an excuse to release half
> finished games (which has upset PC users) then I think it's good.
That's my fear, though. The developers of PC and console games are often the same people. The fact that they now have the opportunity to rush out a bugged game and fix it later is a cause for concern for everyone, I reckon.
Console games often have glitches, but they're rarely so bad that they drastically affect gameplay, or - at worst - cause a game to crash.
In my opinion, a game should be properly tested before it's launched, even if that means delaying the launch. I have always found console titles to be far less bugged than PC games, and I've put this down to two reasons: (1) The hardware is consistent, obviously, but also (2) there is no way of correcting it afterwards, so things are tested more thoroughly.
If we - or more correctly, the developers - are not careful, standards will slip to the point where almost every game has a patch downloadable, just like with the PC.
Sure, it's nice to be able to be able to update and fix the software, but you surely don't want to be doing that with every other title you buy? You pay good money for your software, and it should be bug-free to begin with.
And then of course there are those who won't subscribe to the online services. For the foreseeable future, these people are likely to be in the majority, and will be left to make do with a sub-standard title. These people should at least be able to return their original disc for a free replacement containing the corrected version of the software.
WòókieeMøn§†€® wrote:
> Okay, you could argue that it's a good thing... but then, one of the
> main attractions of console games has always been that you don't need
> to worry about this sort of thing.
Not really. Console games have always had the odd bug/glitch.
The only difference is that they can now be fixed.
Devellopers rarely get it 100% perfect the first time round and we always had to wait for the sequel for it to be fixed.
One example is TS2. I've heard that the Xbox version has the odd problem with deleting saved files (I'm sure someone on here mentioned it).
A patch would solve everything...
Just so long as devellopers don't use it as an excuse to release half finished games (which has upset PC users) then I think it's good.
> Okay, you could argue that it's a good thing... but then, one of the
> main attractions of console games has always been that you don't need
> to worry about this sort of thing.
Not really. Console games have always had the odd bug/glitch.
The only difference is that they can now be fixed.
Devellopers rarely get it 100% perfect the first time round and we always had to wait for the sequel for it to be fixed.
One example is TS2. I've heard that the Xbox version has the odd problem with deleting saved files (I'm sure someone on here mentioned it).
A patch would solve everything...
Just so long as devellopers don't use it as an excuse to release half finished games (which has upset PC users) then I think it's good.
Maverick42 wrote:
> Then why do you lot own an X-Box?
>
> Such misguided fools..
Calm down fanboy....
Incidentally the Gamecube contains many parts simialr to a PC's, such as the IBM microprocessor, but unfortunately no hard drive.
Really, any console is just a set of computer components all brought together to make a machine for one purpose - console games. The PC is a modular kind of machine, with users able to chop and change components and have a greater choice, with all the positive and negative effects that has.
Even so, over Christmas, Xbox outsold the GC so obviously most buyers were more concerned about games, than arguing about construction, strangely enough.
~~Belldandy~~
> Then why do you lot own an X-Box?
>
> Such misguided fools..
Calm down fanboy....
Incidentally the Gamecube contains many parts simialr to a PC's, such as the IBM microprocessor, but unfortunately no hard drive.
Really, any console is just a set of computer components all brought together to make a machine for one purpose - console games. The PC is a modular kind of machine, with users able to chop and change components and have a greater choice, with all the positive and negative effects that has.
Even so, over Christmas, Xbox outsold the GC so obviously most buyers were more concerned about games, than arguing about construction, strangely enough.
~~Belldandy~~
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