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At the moment there are rumours going around about how badly Microsoft have handled the launch of the Xbox, people have guessed at what the future holds for the Xbox, but no-body really knows what is going to happen at all. Sony and Nintendo have built up a very loyal fan-base over the years which have boosted the gaming market in a financial way which has also helped to boost the reputation of a market which is only second to the music industry in terms of popularity. Nintendo deserve a loyal fan-base, over the years Nintendo have delivered some of the best games that we will probably ever experience on a gaming console, they struck a balance between Graphics and Game-play which seemed to strike the gaming market in a very powerful way, this was the start of a giant empire which would then lead to one of the most powerful consoles ever created, the GameCube. Anyone who owned an N-64 or previous Nintendo consoles was going to be very excited by this new console which was originally named the Nintendo Dolphin. Nintendo’s name alone was going to sell consoles, one person had the console on pre-order for over 1 and a half years, but have Nintendo used their loyalty scheme to draw out its expected life? In my opinion I don't believe they have, but as Microsoft at the moment they are going through a game drought.
Most people like to discuss the failures of the Xbox, people would love to see this console fail, but with the marketing budget that Bill Gates has suggested alone will keep the Xbox going. $2 Billion have been invested into the Xbox over the next 2 years, Xbox Live is going to change on-line console gaming and Bill Gates has promised big things for the console. Looking at the current market, Microsoft has some great games out but the main ones are to be released over the coming months between now and Christmas. The GameCube is no different, they had some great launch titles but they need more top games to keep gamers interested. After browsing the Nintendo forum I found someone (who shall remain name-less) who said that these were must own GameCube titles; Star Wars Rogue Leader: Rogue Squadron 2, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3, Burnout, Super Smash Bros. Melee, Luigi's Mansion, Wave Race: Blue Storm, International Superstar Soccer 2, Super Monkey Ball, Bloody Roar Extreme, Driven, NBA Street, NBA Courtside 2002, Extreme-G3, Pikmin and Red Card.
It is not for me to turn around and say that list isn't good, the games which are licensed by Nintendo are superb, but I would hold a question mark next to tiles like Driven and Burnout (Driven scored very poorly). If that is a list which is going to sell consoles then surely Microsoft's list for the Xbox is easily good enough to increase sales? Obviously not, although Microsoft says they are on target for sales world-wide we all know that it could be doing a lot better. This then opens up the loyalty question, Nintendo fans have had past consoles to look upon and see the abilities of what they can do, Microsoft had/has nothing! None of my friends had pre-ordered an Xbox, 2 of them had a GameCube on pre-order months in advance of its release. After asking them why, they replied, "Nintendo have delivered great consoles in the past, hopefully this one will live up to their reputation". Fair enough I thought, it’s a reasonable answer, but what would they say if I asked them about the Xbox?
Without any previous reputation, the Xbox was almost like a lost soul entering a fierce and very powerful gaming market. People weren't prepared to risk their money purchasing an Xbox console, people didn’t trust the words of Bill Gates and they all thought that with Sony's and Nintendo's past consoles that the next generations consoles would live up to all the hype. In my opinion the Playstation 2 never did, I waited anxiously on my 15th birthday morning to play Gran Turismo 3, but all I got was disappointment. Reading magazines and internet articles kept my hope alive for the Playstation 2, on-line functions were promised by the Christmas of 2001 and the launch line-up looked impossible to beat. The hype surrounding the PS2 was huge, 2 years before the console launched in Japan there were already talks about how it will change the way gamers think, all it made me do was think about how Sony has betrayed my favouritism for their consoles, the PSONE sold me the PS2, I was dragged into a media whirl-pool which rested on the foundations of "what if".
Sony fans will disagree with what I just said and they have a right to, if you are satisfied with your Playstation 2 then I am pleased, the console just wasn't for me. After the very successful PSONE, Sony fans thought that the PS2 would live up to its predecessor and as far as hype goes, it did, but it you look further into it, it doesn't even touch the surface of what the PSONE did for gamers world-wide. In Japan the PS2 sells between 70-80 thousand consoles a week, the Xbox sells between 4-8 thousand consoles a week, is this case of divided loyalties? Let’s be honest, after playing my friends PS2 and seeing what Gran Turismo 3 could do in terms of graphics I had already made my mind up about getting one. After Grand Theft Auto 3 I was anticipating what looked like an un-beatable release calendar, Metal Gear Solid 2, Pro Evolution, Max Payne, Deus Ex etc all made me want to kiss my PS2 (I even nearly did), but after each one was released and the reviews said, "too much hype surrounded the release of this game", it just made me realise that out-side of Sony's shell and possibly 2 very good games, there was nothing there. Only very loyal Sony fans would stick by the console and state that it was the best on the market, granted it does have the most games available, but out-side of Grand Theft Auto 3 and Metal Gear Solid 2 there was nothing to keep me playing on my PS2 and I wasn't the only one who felt the same way.
By now there mist be at least one PS2 console in every house in Japan, in sales terms the PS2 is un-beatable and although it has been out longer than the Xbox and GameCube I believe that it will still out sell both by a long shot (especially the Xbox), The GameCube however is doing very well in terms of sales and un-like the PS2 it already has a handful of great games available mixed in with a few mediocre ones which make good rentals. Sony and Nintendo have established themselves very well, they have loyal fan-bases and people are flocking to buy their consoles, past reputations have helped to put the Playstation 2 and GameCube where it is today. The Xbox however still has a lot to prove and so far loyal customers are hard to come by, this explains the poor sales which the consoles has obtained so far. As time goes by people will begin to support the Xbox more and sales will begin to increase, but until then the 2 'power-houses' which are Nintendo and Sony will continue to control the sales market and attract more customers to their consoles. As the Dreamcast showed, no matter how great the console is it needs the sales to keep it alive, lets just hope that the Xbox will soon be up there with the Playstation 2 and GameCube battling for the TV's in peoples living rooms, until then we will just have to wait and see.
Thanks for Reading!
Garbe123
> blah blah blah
You know about as much as a tin of sardines. It's been well known for months that the Gamecube has both 56k modem and Broadband capabilities, and they have already made them!
As for modems are crap, thats just your ignorance. I've played many games online using the Dreamcast, and games such as Warcraft III and Neverwinter Nights on the PC online, and I only have a modem connection, they all run without a hitch. If microsoft really gave a crap about their customers they would have seperate servers for modem users and broadband users, because a modem user playing with other modem users provides a lag free game.
"Xbox marks Microsoft's first entry into the video game market, which is estimated by analyst firm Gartner Group to grow to 39 million units by 2002."
Lets see if this is actually true, its 2002 and has this analyst got it right, well I dont really think so, but once Xbox live is started it hopefully should boost the number of units sold especially in USA where DSL/ADSL is cheap there.
> What Gamezfreak said on the PS2 broadband and the FFXI I think Sony
> are ripping us off. All us PS2 owners to play the latest games will
> require us users to have a flipin hard drive which costs quite alot
> and I think you'll also require the adapter.
Yeah, but i the quote i mentioned was from the Offical Xbox Magazine, not me!
> Thats one clever thing about the Xbox its built in, when developing
> the Xbox they done it right the first time.
Hard drive and internet capability already built in is a major advantage with console-online plans.
Thats one clever thing about the Xbox its built in, when developing the Xbox they done it right the first time.
I also read that soon users will have the option to use broadband if they have it or use a normal connection. This is the future case for the Gamecube, they will sell 2 adapters, which is good for those on whatever connection they have.
> I am just waiting for xbox live I have the broadband connection
Same here.
> You *have* to have broadband for X box live?
Clap,Clap.
No-one wants lag in gaming, so broadband was used.
But by the time xbox Live comes over here, probs around christmas/spring time, broadband providers will have dropped their prices.