The Official "Console War" and Video Game Thread

[GeologyMule]

Of course its also 123 blocks I think just for the channel so that brings about the ugly issue of hard drive space that Nintendo seems to not want to fix

I never paid much attention to this, but what exactly is a "block"? Why didn't they stick with bytes that most people are familiar with?

[markatisu]

I never paid much attention to this, but what exactly is a "block"? Why didn't they stick with bytes that most people are familiar with?

Its been theorized a Wii block is aprox. 1/4 to 1/5 of a MB so 200-256k

So 123 blocks for this download is around 31mb, and the Wii has a 512mb hard drive

It was most likely done because Nintendo feared a large portion of the Wii audience is new gamers they wanted to avoid computer terms that might scare them or confuse them. Same reason we get the ****** sized hard drive (not even 1gb ) and the gimped online, no voice chat, etc, etc

[Skullface]

GTA4 - $310 million on day 1 - over $500 million in first week.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080507/..._theft_auto_iv

[markatisu]

GTA4 - $310 million on day 1 - over $500 million in first week.

It was also #1 across every country in Europe and laid claim to the biggest opening ever for a game in that region.

What will be interesting is if its all front loaded or if its similar to Call of Duty 4 and keeps selling over time. The 360 has an extremely niche userbase in understanding that new people do not flock to it, which is why its sales have been loosing steam. But it has the potential to sell to at least 1/2 - 2/3 of the userbase so it could very well rack up 7-8 million in sales in the US alone!

I still have yet to get mine but as soon as I come back from vacation I will be playing it!!!

[IronAvatar]

I never paid much attention to this, but what exactly is a "block"? Why didn't they stick with bytes that most people are familiar with?

It's pretty similar to the way that the PS1 memory cards used to work. I'm not sure what one block refers to in terms of size (Markatisu may have the right numbers for it) but I do know that segmenting the storage scheme into "blocks" cuts down on the hardware cost and software complexity.

Typicaly, one block might represent one memory chip/wafer and instead of being able to mark individual bytes as "allocated" it's easier and cheaper to mark a single chip/wafer.

This also means that there can a lot of wasteage. Say you have lots of little files that are 16-32k in size....well, each one of those files occupies a whole block for itself.

[markatisu]

Wii Fit is going to be a monster, in Japan it is exactly 2 weeks away from overtaking the PS3 as a "userbase" and crossing the 2 million in 4 months. In the UK its almost at 1 million after 2 weeks

Only the US is left for release and the signs are pointing to similar success, hopefully developers can take notice and utilize the massive potential and not just treat it like some tacked on controller


Gamestop and affiliates close Wii Fit Preorders

GameStop has confirmed to IGN it has ceased accepting pre-orders for the exercise program. Gamers eager to get in shape have apparently reserved all the units Nintendo has allotted the retail chain.

Amazon sells out of pre-orders at 2.5 a min

Amazon.com has sold out of its Wii Fit pre-orders. We spoke with an Amazon representative who told us that the online retailer depleted its pre-order stock this past Sunday and had been selling approximately 2.5 units per minute since reserves began April 15.

[GeologyMule]

I'm excited for this game. I wonder how well it will work on carpet? Being a former wrestler I know scales are weird on carpet...need hard floor.

[markatisu]

I'm excited for this game. I wonder how well it will work on carpet? Being a former wrestler I know scales are weird on carpet...need hard floor.

From the reports in the UK and JP it works fine on carpet and I know they have a third party mat with grips in case you have a carpet that things slide on and the board does not feel secure enough

[D-Day V1]

Im Glad I preordered my copy at my Best Buy

[markatisu]

For those still looking to preorder Walmart is offering a free $10 gift card with every Wii Fit preorder to cover the tax and entice you to buy it from them.

They are getting one of the largest allocations on release date and when we went today there were banners and signs all over the store for it.

[redskyy]

I still cant find an 80 Gb PS3.

You most likely won't find one in US retail stores until the MGS4 bundle launches in June. Since they pulled the original 80GB bundle, the only one available has been the 40GB.

As for Blu-Ray, I'm mostly waiting for a price drop on discs as well. The few movies I own were either purchased on sale or received through a free movie offer. With it becoming easier to rent HD movies, I would rather do that instead of paying an extra $10-$15 for the BR version. There aren't that many releases I feel are worth purchasing nowadays, let alone in high-def. But I am most definitely getting Batman: Gotham Knight. It's is one of the few that I'm excited about. That and a MotU Blu-Ray release would make my day.

[PJMania]

There could also be an element of xenophobic tendancies too...I remember overhearing some jarheads in Camp Lejune one time referring to Sony's console and Sony's Japanese origins in VERY racist terms and how Microsoft were the big american saviour of the video games industry.

I don't think, for the most part at least, that PS3's inability to sock it to the 360 in the US market is due to xenophobia. In addition to anti-sony sentiment, I feel like a lot of the US feels that Microsoft is just untouchable (although this is changing after the launch of the failure known as Windows Vista). Something I've noticed, in America, if you mention that you use a Mac or Linux, you are more likely to get trashed, flamed, or trolled by a Micro$oft fanboy than you are, for example, in Europe (at least through my experience, maybe some of our Euro-members can back up/refute that claim). American teenage boys, who make up a large group of gamers, LOVE Microsoft. If the 360, in its current form, were made by Apple for example, and not Microsoft, I don't believe it would have the same amount of success in America. Too many fanboys would be against buying an Apple product, much like they are against the iPod, in which they favor the Zune, not necessarily because its better (the interface on it is nowhere near as easy as the iPod and the battery life is awful, at least with the first gen), but because of the MS name.

As for the PS3 overtaking the 360 in America, is it possible? Yes. Does it appear to be happening anytime soon? No. The game library needs to increase, and some great exclusives need to come out to give people the need to buy it. I'm beating a dead horse by saying that, but it's the truth. Then and only then can it begin to beat Microsoft in the American market, especially if MS ever fixes the RRoD problem.

[markatisu]

I'm beating a dead horse by saying that, but it's the truth. Then and only then can it begin to beat Microsoft in the American market, especially if MS ever fixes the RRoD problem.

That is the sole reason I have yet to buy a 360 and I own everything else, everytime someone tries to convince me otherwise that the RROD is not that bad another person I know has it happen.

[IronAvatar]

In addition to anti-sony sentiment, I feel like a lot of the US feels that Microsoft is just untouchable (although this is changing after the launch of the failure known as Windows Vista). Something I've noticed, in America, if you mention that you use a Mac or Linux, you are more likely to get trashed, flamed, or trolled by a Micro$oft fanboy than you are, for example, in Europe (at least through my experience, maybe some of our Euro-members can back up/refute that claim). American teenage boys, who make up a large group of gamers, LOVE Microsoft. If the 360, in its current form, were made by Apple for example, and not Microsoft, I don't believe it would have the same amount of success in America. Too many fanboys would be against buying an Apple product, much like they are against the iPod, in which they favor the Zune, not necessarily because its better (the interface on it is nowhere near as easy as the iPod and the battery life is awful, at least with the first gen), but because of the MS name.

That's a very good reason, and it's definitely not something you see here in Europe. Half the guys in my office (that is to say, the half that are programmers) use Linux on their machines at home and we all feel slightly soiled whenever we have to log-in via remote desktop to a Microsoft server

Even I prefer using Linux, although I still think that it's not quite at the stage for the avergae user. While I'm a big supporter of Linux, I'm also of the belief that shouldn't need a degree in Comp. Sci. just to use your computer

Now that I think of it, this sort of confirms some of what I saw in Australia. I can't for the life of me figure this out, but so many PC gamers think that Microsoft is GOD when it comes to anything PC related, and this is based what I saw when I was in Australia (I tend to think of Australia as looking up to the U.S.A. as an idolized big brother kind of way and tries to emulate it) where one of my housemates was an out-and-out Microsoft fanboy.

God forbid you should mention to him about any Windows or PC alternative, the same goes for his friends.

Am I the only person who feels that the OS is supposed to run my PC, and not the other way around? This is the main reason I haven't bought Vista yet, and when it is time to upgrade, I'll probably buy a Mac.

As for the PS3 overtaking the 360 in America, is it possible? Yes. Does it appear to be happening anytime soon? No. The game library needs to increase, and some great exclusives need to come out to give people the need to buy it. I'm beating a dead horse by saying that, but it's the truth. Then and only then can it begin to beat Microsoft in the American market, especially if MS ever fixes the RRoD problem.

I agree with the exclusives part. Hopefully this year will see a really strong exclusives catalogue once things like MGS, Gran Turismo, Valkerie Chronicles and few others are released. The thing is, I'm not so sure the these exclusives are what the American audience really want.

[GeologyMule]

RROD

DON'T SPEAK IT'S NAME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Raining Light]

As far as Microsoft, for me, I just dont know anyone who uses Mac.
Everyone uses Windows, I dont know that it is better, but it seems more accepted, and I know that its cheaper as far as computers go. I havent seen an Mac computer at Walmart-lol. As for like MS consoles etc, try telling them the 360, during design ran on a MAC or was tested there or started there, something like that. See what they say-lol.

As far as consoles, I only have a 360. Had RROD problems, but there isnt a reason to get a PS3. What am I gonna play? It's not the hardware, its the software. The only reason I will get a PS3 is for Blu-Ray, and I can wait on that cause some of the movies I want the most aren't out yet.

Just my 2 cents.

[Skullface]

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 officially announced for later this year!

http://ps3.ign.com/articles/872/872830p1.html

[VaderLives]

...there isnt a reason to get a PS3. What am I gonna play? It's not the hardware, its the software.

EXACTLY.

My abbhorition of Sony aside, the fact remains that the PS3 has abolutely NO games I would want to play. And the 2 that I would want to play (guitar hero 3 and COD4) I already have on other systems. The ONLY PS3 game that holds any interest for me whatsoever is Metal Gear Solid 4. But I can wait for that. Hell, I just played through MGS2 for the first time last month, and am about halfway through 3 right now. So believe me, I can wait until everything goes way down in price.

Why on earth would I pay $600 for a gaming console that has no games I want?

Blu-Ray? I could give a rat's anus about Blu-Ray. For one thing I don't have an HD TV, and won't be getting one any time soon, so there's no point. Besides, the whole hi-def craze and the obsession to make everything as clean and bright as possible is severely hurting the artistry of cinema, but that's a rant for another day.

Secondly, I still haven't even finished upgrading my VHS collection to DVD, so why would I want to start collecting another format?

And hell, I've watched a few movies on Blu-Ray (Batman Begins and Pirates 2)and they looked TERRIBLE! I mean yeah, the picture was really sharp, but the color timing was COMPLETELY off. They looked fake. That's the only way to put it. It was like watching the raw footage edited together without any color processing. They looked, at worst, like they were shot with a high end camcorder and, at best, like a TV commercial. And I cannot stand the fact that this is probably how we're going to end up having to watch movies at home someday.

I dunno. I'm going to be getting a 360 later in the year (for my fiancee for her birthday, she really wants one), so it's not like I'm a blind Nintendo loyalist. It's just that the PS3 has abolutely nothing that makes it even remotely worth that rediculous price point.

[IronAvatar]

EXACTLY.
My abbhorition of Sony aside, the fact remains that the PS3 has abolutely NO games I would want to play. And the 2 that I would want to play (guitar hero 3 and COD4) I already have on other systems. The ONLY PS3 game that holds any interest for me whatsoever is Metal Gear Solid 4. But I can wait for that. Hell, I just played through MGS2 for the first time last month, and am about halfway through 3 right now. So believe me, I can wait until everything goes way down in price.

The same goes for the 360 though. I wont be buying one until there's something only on the console that appeals to me, and there has to be more than one decent titel for that to happen. Halo 3? Overrated. Gears Of War? Overrated yet again....you'll have to excuse me if I dislike playing a game that is supposedly an exclusive for a platform, but yet can't manage a constant 30fps without frame synch.

Outside of Ace Combat, there's nothing that appeals to me on the 360. If I want to play a bunch of first-person-shooters, I'll play them on the PC.

Why on earth would I pay $600 for a gaming console that has no games I want?

Because the 40GB PS3 is 400? Just saying.

[Fendi]

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 officially announced for later this year!

http://ps3.ign.com/articles/872/872830p1.html

Best news I heard all day, I can't wait for this sequel to come out.

[PJMania]

EXACTLY.

Why on earth would I pay $600 for a gaming console that has no games I want?

Only costs $400 actually. And why on earth would I pay $350 for a console that will probably crash on me.

Let's look at this generation in review. The PS3 for many people is a blu-ray player (and i dont know what brand of player you were watching on, but none of the movies ive seen looked bad at all)....the 360 has all kinds of hardware issues, and too many first-person-shooters IMO....and the Wii is, for the most part, getting PS2 ports. This whole generation is a joke.

[ehenyo]

And why on earth would I pay $350 for a console that will probably crash on me.

Best line ever!!!

[wolf-manj]

EXACTLY.

And hell, I've watched a few movies on Blu-Ray (Batman Begins and Pirates 2)and they looked TERRIBLE! I mean yeah, the picture was really sharp, but the color timing was COMPLETELY off. They looked fake. That's the only way to put it. It was like watching the raw footage edited together without any color processing. They looked, at worst, like they were shot with a high end camcorder and, at best, like a TV commercial. And I cannot stand the fact that this is probably how we're going to end up having to watch movies at home someday.

Then you probably werent watching it on an HD TV. Or the HDTV didnt have HDMI or component cables. I watched my first Blu-ray a few months back. I had both the HDMI and the composite cables hooked up. I switched back and forth several times and you can definately see an improvement. Am I getting the cable names mixed up? Which one is the standard red, yellow and white?

And as for your PS3 comment in the iron man thread : I don't really like Microsoft all that much but I don't hold any ill will towards them. Saying you hope a system or a company dies is extremely immature.


Anyways just thought I'd mention for anyone who is interested that No More Heroes and Rayman Raving Rabbids 1 are $20 at Circuit City this week. Although I found RRR at Best Buy for $20 so I bought it there to get the reward zone points. I've never played either of these games or seen a demo. Are they good games?

[Skullface]

And hell, I've watched a few movies on Blu-Ray (Batman Begins and Pirates 2)and they looked TERRIBLE!

Sorry to nitpick, but Batman Begins is not out on Blu-Ray yet.......(I assume you meant you watched it on HD-DVD)

[hemanrep]

I own about 6 games for the 360 and I've had the console (well 2 because of the RROD) since launch. I've had a PS3 since March 2007...and I have 4 games for it. My point is...more games on the PS3 have caught my interest than on the 360 which has a far larger library. If you love FPS', shooters, or a variation of the two, then the 360 is the perfect console for you. If you like a variety of genres like adventure (Uncharted), action (Heavenly Sword), or games like MGS4, or JRPGs, then you won't be disappointed with the PS3. I'm not really a western gamer. I find Japanese games much more compelling...simply for the fact that they don't just make FPS' and shooters.

Only costs $400 actually. And why on earth would I pay $350 for a console that will probably crash on me.

Let's look at this generation in review. The PS3 for many people is a blu-ray player (and i dont know what brand of player you were watching on, but none of the movies ive seen looked bad at all)....the 360 has all kinds of hardware issues, and too many first-person-shooters IMO....and the Wii is, for the most part, getting PS2 ports. This whole generation is a joke.

I'm definitely leaning towards this viewpoint. As much as I want to like the Wii, the library is full of poorly made games. The 360 is full of FPS' and shooters and the PS3 is having a tough time convincing people that it is more than just a Blu-Ray player.

This whole generation is kind of like a transitioning phase for each console maker. Sony is learning its lesson coming off being the console leader; Microsoft is finally gaining a foothold in the industry and learning how to diversify its library; and Nintendo is trying to figure out how to satisfy casual gamers and not lose it's core audience.

I can only hope that the PS3 can make up ground both in sales and games...otherwise, it's going to be a divided generation. I can't believe I'm depending on Sony to bring everyone together.