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28 Aug 04
I figure it's time for some wild predictions. The next generation of consoles will be announced and/or released in the next year or so (does that mean we can finally stop calling this generation of consoles next gen?). There are a lot of theories out there about what they do and look like and stack up against one another. I have no inside knowledge or way to get a sneak peek at the information. So I'll just pull guesses out of the air.
1. Microsoft's Xbox 2 will not be the clear "most powerful" console. They want that title and many Xbox fans are expecting them to maintain that title, but I don't think it will happen. You have to remember the original Xbox was created very late in the game. All the others had locked in designs about the time the Xbox hardware was being put together. They knew exactly how high the bar was so they designed their system to be the best. They don't have that advantage this time.
The stated goal of the Xbox 2 is to surpass Sony. They don't mean in power; they mean in sales. To do that they have to keep the hardware prices down. They need to have the freedom to aggressively adjust prices to keep pressure on Sony. Even if they keep the hard drive in the next Xbox, the fact that they toyed with removing it shows that raw power is not the end goal this time. I'm sure fan boys for all systems will claim theirs the most powerful, but I don't see a clear cut winner for the next round.
2. I predict Sony will learn something. A lot of people have complained the PS2 is underpowered. That's simply not true. If you look at some of the exclusive PS2 games, you can see the raw power behind the PS2. Part of the problem is that the PS2 is harder to work with than the other consoles. The two general vector units could be quite powerful, but you'd have to write special filters or shaders to use them. If you do that, that makes it much harder to port to other systems. Most design teams seem to like to keep the porting option open. So I think Sony will learn that being the easiest system to program for will result in better looking games.
The other thing I think Sony will learn (and Nintendo and Microsoft) is that since system memory is now cheap, too much is better than not enough. In the PS2, Sony went with a Rambus solution that was elegant, but slightly more expensive. Unfortunately, other memory prices dropped considerably, but not Rambus. Memory prices limited the amount of system memory put into the PS2. That memory limit has developers constantly butting their heads against it. Up with more memory!
3. I'm going to go out and guess that high end A/V features will be in all the consoles. We'll see 5.1, 6.1, 7.1 sound. We'll have 480p, 720p and 1080i video modes supported. You'll have ethernet out of the box. Despite all that, you'll still need to buy lots of cables, spare controllers and games separately to support all those features. The listing will look good on the box though.
Jason
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27 Aug 04
Today I want to disagree with myself. Ok, that's not all that uncommon. I like to look at issues from all sides before I make a firm decision. Mainly that's because I don't like making the wrong decision just because I was acting hastily. Anyway, it's about demo length. Rome had a very short demo that didn't show all of the scope of gameplay available in the final product.
Of course, there's a flip side to that argument. Some demos out there have limited maps or tech levels, but otherwise show the full game. And there are a ton of demos out there now. Have you gone through the strategy section of the usual suspects? Most game players have limited time to play. A lot of players also like to bounce from game to game to keep things fresh. Well, game companies don't want you to think about it, but a lot of gamers could subsist on demos.
Most of us have a backlog. Most have a limited gaming budget. With some of these demos giving you a lot of gameplay for free, why should we keep spending money on some of the crap the marketing people try to feed us? My answer really hasn't changed. Weather the hype storm, read reviews and then vote with your dollars to encourage publisher to make more games of the style you like.
Just a heads up, I put up a new poll in the news section. Vote for your favorite to be the next big tactical game. Oh and another heads up, if you haven't gone lately, go check out your local Toys R Us. They're clearing out games in anticipation of the holidays season. Many are an additional 50% off. Sure the gems are buried in with the trash, but it's worth checking out.
Jason
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26 Aug 04
I wanted to quickly go over my impressions of the Rome: Total War demo. If you remember way back to the original Shogun demo. It was a short battle tutorial followed by a historical scenario. At the time it was a huge, slow download for very little bang. It did show off the system. Well, on the plus side, for Rome average download speeds have gone way up. Many more people have broadband and won't be too put out for a short demo. Rome is actually kind of small compared to some of the demos out there today so that works for them too.
The Rome demo is similar to Shogun. There's a short tutorial followed by a historical scenario. If you didn't like the Shogun demo, there's not much here to change your mind. The demo shows nothing of the strategic map or that side of the game. The new engine is pretty but not mind blowing until you start counting up all the units out there this time rendered full in 3D. It shares the same problem with all beautiful 3D RTS games. You can't control the battle while looking at the eye candy. Rome does have a pause and give orders option if you really want to drink in the sights.
The historical battle is pretty simple. You're out numbered, but the designers have already set the ultimate trap for you. It's just up to you to spring it. Still it's pretty fun to send your elephant cavalry in to panic the enemy. I just don't know how many time you can do and still have fun. That might be the flaw of this demo. It gets people already interested excited, but I don't know if it will draw any new people in.
Oh yeah, the system requirements aren't bad, and it looks like it will run on a wide range of systems. Look for Rome in September.
Jason
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24 Aug 04
Ok, I'm willing to admit that Sony is never going to release memory stick adapter for the PS2. It's not hard to understand the economics behind it. Why release something that means users will never buy another memory card? Still isn't it about time for a bigger memory card? Nintendo has up sized its memory card twice already and it hasn't been out as long as the PS2. It's time for Sony to release a 32MB memory card. They don't want to force people off to Lik Sang for more exotic solutions.
Really it's time. I know Sony claims that the PS2 is just halfway through its life cycle. Whether that's true or not, anyone waiting for the price to drop again from $150 is not going to be buying multiple memory cards. The early adopters who built up the PS2 are going to be the first on board with the PS3. Unless the two share memory solutions (which would have to be bigger than the 8MB PS2 card), they won't be buying many more PS2 memory cards.
Sony has made vague gestures about the PS2 hard drive. But it has tiny market penetration. They've put very little support behind it. Games can only use it if they've been specially programmed to do so. How likely is that when many games don't even support the second memory card slot on the PS2? It's just additional cost and testing with very little benefit. Don't even get me started on the death of the HDLoader.
My point is that Sony needs to capitalize on their greatest strength, their huge library of games. With so many games available and many at greatest hits prices, they need to do everything possible to encourage people to fill out their collections. A large memory card now would do a couple things. First it would get some people off the fence about getting another card. Second it brings PS2 gaming closer to the "throw in the disk and play" ideal. Finally, it would encourage people to play more games in their collection since they don't have to worry about swapping cards or making room on the card they have. It's time Sony.
Jason
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23 Aug 04
The Rome: Total War demo is out. PC.IGN has put up some Evil Genius impressions. Phantom Brave and Growlanser: Generations are almost here for the PS2. September brings Xmen: Legends, Star Wars: Battlefront, Kingdom Under Fire: Crusaders, Half Life 2?, Locomotion, Kohan II, Rome, Shadow Vault, Warhammer 40k: DoW, Evil Genius, Super Power 2 and Tribes: Vengeance. I'm confident I can't afford all that.
I guess I'll have to prioritize. Then I'll check the budget. Unfortunately, a chunk of them will have to go in the wait for the price drop category. Still, I've got to practice what I preach and make sure I vote with my dollars to get the games I'd like to see more made like.
This week's game is another odd one. It's Darwinia (official site) from Introversion Software. It speculates on what would happen if a bunch of sprites from 80's style games escaped into the landscape of a modern 3D game. It hopes to combine strategic battle planning with fast paced action as you try to lead your tribe of sprites.
Jason
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