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As a dedicated games player I have been disapointed at a certainissue that has been creeping into the air vents of consoles everywhere.That, my friends, is multi-formatting. "Multi what ing?"
Multi-formtting is developing games for more than one console.
I love PS2 dearly, and should the laws of this land change I would marry it (dont quote me on that). But the reason i like it is that it has things no other console offers. GTA3, Pro Evo, SSX Tricky, Metal Gear 2, FF and Resi. But now only 2 are exclusives. Metal Gear 2 is exclusive, but X-Box is getting metal Gear X. FF is exclusive, an rumours of it moving to Dreamcast are 90% unlikely, but they do see more reasonable when XBox and Gamecube come into the swing of things.
I have done my research, which involved a can of Red bull and 3 magazines, and have some shocking results. 13 games in the last 3 months have been released on several formats, including Harry Potter and Tony Hawk's 3. Games like SSX Tricky will be released on the 'other' next gen consoles when they hit our shores. 15 other games are set to be multi-format when they or the console is released, including Crash, Rayman M and GTA3 after a year's loyalty agreement. A whopping 33 games are being remade for a different console, icluding resident Evil, Sonic and Crazy taxi (GC), Dead Or Alive, Oddworld and Moto GP (XBox) and Headhunter, Virtua Ten nis 2 and Virtua fighter (PS2). Some are being redone on sevral consoles, including Soul Calibur, which was DC but is now being drawn to the bigger lights, GC and PS2.
We could always look on the bright side, if you fall out with a Gamecube owning friend you get the new found joy of sending him an Army Men game for his birthday. And believe me, if any one series is going to appear everywhere, it's those cursed Army Men. But that will backfire soon enough...
At least some games will stay put. Pokemon is nintendo's own child, so no-one ele will be blessed/cursed with them. A few games may stay faithful to just the one console, or maybe the developers will favour a particular console.Companies like Squaresoft and Naughty Dog only tend to work for PS2. Other big companies Namco, Rockstar, Konami and Codemasters have all gone multi, favouring the money rather than the customers self-respect. Any Ninty or XBoxy [?] reading this will eb getting angry that as a PStwooie, i am focused more on PS2. Well, Shigsy fans and Bill gates fans (if they do exist) have a load of exclusives, especially Nintendo, who develop the best only for themselves, and with more companies focusing their sights on GC, there will be alot of happy Nintos. Perfect Dark, mario etc are all brilliant yet exclusive. Bah! I haven't followed XBox closely, which is why this miht sound a little biased, but they have a lot of sequels for old PSone classics, and a few rarer gems like Halo. Although i can see Halo jumping ship at some time in the future.
This issue uncovers another quite starbge fact. If every console has relatively the same games, then what will happen to the good old console wars. Angry Sega fans will get no fun. Most will stick to their roots. N64 peoiple go to Gamecube. PSone to PS2. And most dreamcast fans are getting an XBox, as SEGA don't make consoles and X-Box must appeal to them. Some particular games will help the sales of the console rising, especiall resi on GC, although it may be set for a PS2 release as well.
But does this mean the console war actually finished before it had really begun? When we were all choosing an N64, a PSone or, to a lesser extent, a Dreamcast, we were deciding the result of something that would really crop up 5 years on?
That seems a good line to end on.
I hope this made you think
Asher
Multi-formtting is developing games for more than one console.
I love PS2 dearly, and should the laws of this land change I would marry it (dont quote me on that). But the reason i like it is that it has things no other console offers. GTA3, Pro Evo, SSX Tricky, Metal Gear 2, FF and Resi. But now only 2 are exclusives. Metal Gear 2 is exclusive, but X-Box is getting metal Gear X. FF is exclusive, an rumours of it moving to Dreamcast are 90% unlikely, but they do see more reasonable when XBox and Gamecube come into the swing of things.
I have done my research, which involved a can of Red bull and 3 magazines, and have some shocking results. 13 games in the last 3 months have been released on several formats, including Harry Potter and Tony Hawk's 3. Games like SSX Tricky will be released on the 'other' next gen consoles when they hit our shores. 15 other games are set to be multi-format when they or the console is released, including Crash, Rayman M and GTA3 after a year's loyalty agreement. A whopping 33 games are being remade for a different console, icluding resident Evil, Sonic and Crazy taxi (GC), Dead Or Alive, Oddworld and Moto GP (XBox) and Headhunter, Virtua Ten nis 2 and Virtua fighter (PS2). Some are being redone on sevral consoles, including Soul Calibur, which was DC but is now being drawn to the bigger lights, GC and PS2.
We could always look on the bright side, if you fall out with a Gamecube owning friend you get the new found joy of sending him an Army Men game for his birthday. And believe me, if any one series is going to appear everywhere, it's those cursed Army Men. But that will backfire soon enough...
At least some games will stay put. Pokemon is nintendo's own child, so no-one ele will be blessed/cursed with them. A few games may stay faithful to just the one console, or maybe the developers will favour a particular console.Companies like Squaresoft and Naughty Dog only tend to work for PS2. Other big companies Namco, Rockstar, Konami and Codemasters have all gone multi, favouring the money rather than the customers self-respect. Any Ninty or XBoxy [?] reading this will eb getting angry that as a PStwooie, i am focused more on PS2. Well, Shigsy fans and Bill gates fans (if they do exist) have a load of exclusives, especially Nintendo, who develop the best only for themselves, and with more companies focusing their sights on GC, there will be alot of happy Nintos. Perfect Dark, mario etc are all brilliant yet exclusive. Bah! I haven't followed XBox closely, which is why this miht sound a little biased, but they have a lot of sequels for old PSone classics, and a few rarer gems like Halo. Although i can see Halo jumping ship at some time in the future.
This issue uncovers another quite starbge fact. If every console has relatively the same games, then what will happen to the good old console wars. Angry Sega fans will get no fun. Most will stick to their roots. N64 peoiple go to Gamecube. PSone to PS2. And most dreamcast fans are getting an XBox, as SEGA don't make consoles and X-Box must appeal to them. Some particular games will help the sales of the console rising, especiall resi on GC, although it may be set for a PS2 release as well.
But does this mean the console war actually finished before it had really begun? When we were all choosing an N64, a PSone or, to a lesser extent, a Dreamcast, we were deciding the result of something that would really crop up 5 years on?
That seems a good line to end on.
I hope this made you think
Asher
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As a dedicated games player I have been disapointed at a certainissue that has been creeping into the air vents of consoles everywhere.That, my friends, is multi-formatting. "Multi what ing?"
Multi-formtting is developing games for more than one console.
I love PS2 dearly, and should the laws of this land change I would marry it (dont quote me on that). But the reason i like it is that it has things no other console offers. GTA3, Pro Evo, SSX Tricky, Metal Gear 2, FF and Resi. But now only 2 are exclusives. Metal Gear 2 is exclusive, but X-Box is getting metal Gear X. FF is exclusive, an rumours of it moving to Dreamcast are 90% unlikely, but they do see more reasonable when XBox and Gamecube come into the swing of things.
I have done my research, which involved a can of Red bull and 3 magazines, and have some shocking results. 13 games in the last 3 months have been released on several formats, including Harry Potter and Tony Hawk's 3. Games like SSX Tricky will be released on the 'other' next gen consoles when they hit our shores. 15 other games are set to be multi-format when they or the console is released, including Crash, Rayman M and GTA3 after a year's loyalty agreement. A whopping 33 games are being remade for a different console, icluding resident Evil, Sonic and Crazy taxi (GC), Dead Or Alive, Oddworld and Moto GP (XBox) and Headhunter, Virtua Ten nis 2 and Virtua fighter (PS2). Some are being redone on sevral consoles, including Soul Calibur, which was DC but is now being drawn to the bigger lights, GC and PS2.
We could always look on the bright side, if you fall out with a Gamecube owning friend you get the new found joy of sending him an Army Men game for his birthday. And believe me, if any one series is going to appear everywhere, it's those cursed Army Men. But that will backfire soon enough...
At least some games will stay put. Pokemon is nintendo's own child, so no-one ele will be blessed/cursed with them. A few games may stay faithful to just the one console, or maybe the developers will favour a particular console.Companies like Squaresoft and Naughty Dog only tend to work for PS2. Other big companies Namco, Rockstar, Konami and Codemasters have all gone multi, favouring the money rather than the customers self-respect. Any Ninty or XBoxy [?] reading this will eb getting angry that as a PStwooie, i am focused more on PS2. Well, Shigsy fans and Bill gates fans (if they do exist) have a load of exclusives, especially Nintendo, who develop the best only for themselves, and with more companies focusing their sights on GC, there will be alot of happy Nintos. Perfect Dark, mario etc are all brilliant yet exclusive. Bah! I haven't followed XBox closely, which is why this miht sound a little biased, but they have a lot of sequels for old PSone classics, and a few rarer gems like Halo. Although i can see Halo jumping ship at some time in the future.
This issue uncovers another quite starbge fact. If every console has relatively the same games, then what will happen to the good old console wars. Angry Sega fans will get no fun. Most will stick to their roots. N64 peoiple go to Gamecube. PSone to PS2. And most dreamcast fans are getting an XBox, as SEGA don't make consoles and X-Box must appeal to them. Some particular games will help the sales of the console rising, especiall resi on GC, although it may be set for a PS2 release as well.
But does this mean the console war actually finished before it had really begun? When we were all choosing an N64, a PSone or, to a lesser extent, a Dreamcast, we were deciding the result of something that would really crop up 5 years on?
That seems a good line to end on.
I hope this made you think
Asher
Multi-formtting is developing games for more than one console.
I love PS2 dearly, and should the laws of this land change I would marry it (dont quote me on that). But the reason i like it is that it has things no other console offers. GTA3, Pro Evo, SSX Tricky, Metal Gear 2, FF and Resi. But now only 2 are exclusives. Metal Gear 2 is exclusive, but X-Box is getting metal Gear X. FF is exclusive, an rumours of it moving to Dreamcast are 90% unlikely, but they do see more reasonable when XBox and Gamecube come into the swing of things.
I have done my research, which involved a can of Red bull and 3 magazines, and have some shocking results. 13 games in the last 3 months have been released on several formats, including Harry Potter and Tony Hawk's 3. Games like SSX Tricky will be released on the 'other' next gen consoles when they hit our shores. 15 other games are set to be multi-format when they or the console is released, including Crash, Rayman M and GTA3 after a year's loyalty agreement. A whopping 33 games are being remade for a different console, icluding resident Evil, Sonic and Crazy taxi (GC), Dead Or Alive, Oddworld and Moto GP (XBox) and Headhunter, Virtua Ten nis 2 and Virtua fighter (PS2). Some are being redone on sevral consoles, including Soul Calibur, which was DC but is now being drawn to the bigger lights, GC and PS2.
We could always look on the bright side, if you fall out with a Gamecube owning friend you get the new found joy of sending him an Army Men game for his birthday. And believe me, if any one series is going to appear everywhere, it's those cursed Army Men. But that will backfire soon enough...
At least some games will stay put. Pokemon is nintendo's own child, so no-one ele will be blessed/cursed with them. A few games may stay faithful to just the one console, or maybe the developers will favour a particular console.Companies like Squaresoft and Naughty Dog only tend to work for PS2. Other big companies Namco, Rockstar, Konami and Codemasters have all gone multi, favouring the money rather than the customers self-respect. Any Ninty or XBoxy [?] reading this will eb getting angry that as a PStwooie, i am focused more on PS2. Well, Shigsy fans and Bill gates fans (if they do exist) have a load of exclusives, especially Nintendo, who develop the best only for themselves, and with more companies focusing their sights on GC, there will be alot of happy Nintos. Perfect Dark, mario etc are all brilliant yet exclusive. Bah! I haven't followed XBox closely, which is why this miht sound a little biased, but they have a lot of sequels for old PSone classics, and a few rarer gems like Halo. Although i can see Halo jumping ship at some time in the future.
This issue uncovers another quite starbge fact. If every console has relatively the same games, then what will happen to the good old console wars. Angry Sega fans will get no fun. Most will stick to their roots. N64 peoiple go to Gamecube. PSone to PS2. And most dreamcast fans are getting an XBox, as SEGA don't make consoles and X-Box must appeal to them. Some particular games will help the sales of the console rising, especiall resi on GC, although it may be set for a PS2 release as well.
But does this mean the console war actually finished before it had really begun? When we were all choosing an N64, a PSone or, to a lesser extent, a Dreamcast, we were deciding the result of something that would really crop up 5 years on?
That seems a good line to end on.
I hope this made you think
Asher
Good point. But I hope Halo is ported to the PC after all, coz that's my most wanted game. I was horror-shocked when x-box greedily claimed it all to itself.
Also, I am a huge PC gaming fan, but not a Gates fan. Very few are fans of the huge-money-grabbing-monster-with-a-pale-face-coz-he-doesnt-get-out!
I think a lot of the stuff, on whatever console, is exclusive only for a certain period of time... GTAIII is heading from PS2 to the PC, and Halo will probably get a PC release sometime after the XBox sales calm down.
Publishers need to maximise the money they make from the licences that they buy. Take Harry Potter, a launch across GB, GBA, PS etc, etc... This is just to maximise money. You can't exactly blaim them for it.
There are a few "Killer Apps", take GT on the Playstation, Zelda on the N64, Crazy Taxi on the DC... I think Dead Or Alive may just stay on the XBox.
At the end of the day, we will choose the hardware we buy, by finding out about the software (games) it will run, right now, the XBox looks like it has the juciest games across the major genres. PS2 has the "brand" name (see the other thread about brands), and the Gamecube will be for the "hardcore" gamers I think... They will all deliver some great games, some will be exclusive to that format... Other will only be exclusive for a while, then will be ported to other formats.
Thats just the way it is. Like films. You watch 'em at the cinema, then, 6 months later, you can buy or rent 'em on VHS or DVD... A classic case of multi-formatting.
Publishers need to maximise the money they make from the licences that they buy. Take Harry Potter, a launch across GB, GBA, PS etc, etc... This is just to maximise money. You can't exactly blaim them for it.
There are a few "Killer Apps", take GT on the Playstation, Zelda on the N64, Crazy Taxi on the DC... I think Dead Or Alive may just stay on the XBox.
At the end of the day, we will choose the hardware we buy, by finding out about the software (games) it will run, right now, the XBox looks like it has the juciest games across the major genres. PS2 has the "brand" name (see the other thread about brands), and the Gamecube will be for the "hardcore" gamers I think... They will all deliver some great games, some will be exclusive to that format... Other will only be exclusive for a while, then will be ported to other formats.
Thats just the way it is. Like films. You watch 'em at the cinema, then, 6 months later, you can buy or rent 'em on VHS or DVD... A classic case of multi-formatting.
Also, GTA 3 will be on the X-box!! According to SR's latest magazine anyway! I had no idea??
Yeah, although how easy being a succesful gangster with nothing to aid you but a black frisbee...
I've got nothing against multi-formatting because if a game is good enough why not let all gamers regardless of the console/PC that they own play it?
If this means more money to the developers then it can only be a good thing, because it will allow them to spend more time developing AAA titles without having to rush them.
It would also be interesting to have an XBox and a PS2 side by side both running Max Payne or Halo to allow consumers to decide for themselves which console looks the best for displaying graphically intensive games, but perhaps this is what the console manufacturers are afraid of, and why they prefer exclusives.
I also don't think that the likes of Pokemon and Mario will always remain solely on Nintendo. Two years ago we'd have never have imagined Sega's Sonic the Hedgehog appearing on the Nintendo Gamecube and yet this will now happen.
The only games that will remain exclusive are those that physically can't be played on another console due to technical limitations. I.E. none, because games can always be 'down-graded' to work with another console.
Even point and click games for the PC were successfully ported over to the Dreamcast because the Dreamcast has a mouse and keyboard option as well as just a joypad interface.
I can see no problems with multi-formatting by developers, only plus points.
If this means more money to the developers then it can only be a good thing, because it will allow them to spend more time developing AAA titles without having to rush them.
It would also be interesting to have an XBox and a PS2 side by side both running Max Payne or Halo to allow consumers to decide for themselves which console looks the best for displaying graphically intensive games, but perhaps this is what the console manufacturers are afraid of, and why they prefer exclusives.
I also don't think that the likes of Pokemon and Mario will always remain solely on Nintendo. Two years ago we'd have never have imagined Sega's Sonic the Hedgehog appearing on the Nintendo Gamecube and yet this will now happen.
The only games that will remain exclusive are those that physically can't be played on another console due to technical limitations. I.E. none, because games can always be 'down-graded' to work with another console.
Even point and click games for the PC were successfully ported over to the Dreamcast because the Dreamcast has a mouse and keyboard option as well as just a joypad interface.
I can see no problems with multi-formatting by developers, only plus points.
i think that multi-formatting can only be a good thing. think about it for a moment, all gamers will be able to talk about they're games and owners of different consoles will know all about them because they own them aswell.
Also as we are just stepping into an era of online console gaming, multi-console games will give people the chance to have real console wars...
Also as we are just stepping into an era of online console gaming, multi-console games will give people the chance to have real console wars...
good points
All the XBox and GC owners are gonna gloat about how their versions of games have got marginally better graphics, or a 60Hz option, which is strange seeing as these were the same people that were slating the PS2 for not being a huge leap forward like teh PSOne one was, and the fact that they hadn't played the games, and just made a biased opinion.
Anyway, at the moment we get the games first, and people that pay £500 for an import XBox or GC are mugs, or at the very least spoilt brat type that can't wait for Christmas or their birthday to come around
Anyway, at the moment we get the games first, and people that pay £500 for an import XBox or GC are mugs, or at the very least spoilt brat type that can't wait for Christmas or their birthday to come around
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