I thank yew

In reply to this comment by kronosposeidon:
*promote

"Japan is supplying PlayStations..."

At the end, was the guy to the right of BB eating yellow cake?

^It was actually when they were running the deal that if you signed up for a Playstation credit card you'd get $150 off. I waited for Amazon to have a holiday deal (they offered Resistance 2 and The Dark Knight on Blu-Ray) with the PS3, and went for it. I had to wait a couple of months for $150, but I did get it eventually.

... were they showing Playstation 2 boxing on that TV..?

I didn't know this was going to (d)evolve into an E-Peen thread, but I love that game, so here goes:

My first gaming experiences were, of course, Atari-2600 related. I still have the console and ~80 carts in my closet.

My folks bought their first computer, an Atari 4800 (lol.) I have fond memories of hand-entering the BASIC code for games, debugging them manually, and saving them to cassette tapes. We also actually purchased a phenomenal game called Lode Runner that is still emulated today.

First official console: Sega Genesis. I was unhappy with the palette "warmth", so I traded it up for a SNES. I still have that console as well. My wife and I resolved many disputes with Doctor Mario and Mortal Kombat Trilogy.

After I got out of the military, I bought my first PC, a CompuAdd 486, with which I happily played Doom, Doom2, Duke Nukem, Interstate '76, Mechwarrior (1,2), Tie Fighter, X-Wing, Warcraft, Populous, the list goes on.

It wasn't long after that my wife and I invested in a Nintendo 64, which I wasn't very pleased with. The games that we enjoyed were great, but the variety wasn't so much. We got a lot of mileage out of Mario Kart 64, Mario 64, and of course Ocarina of Time.

Disappointed with the 64, we bought a Playstation. There were a few games that became marital aides, primarily Tekken 3 and Super Puzzle Fighter. However, the console's primary purpose quickly became Spyro. I think my wife may have had a thing for that little dragon. Syro's 1-3 are still near to our hearts (I'm glad that they were all released on the PSN.)

Subsequently, we purchased a Dreamcast, primarily because of how easy it was to boot-leg games for the system. Other than the Sonic games, only Jet Set Radio stands out as a mentionable Dreamcast game. Simply fantastic.

After that, we dove into the PS2. Gran Turismo 3, 4, Jak&Daxter, Ratchet and Clank, Final Fantasy XII, ICO, Shadow of the Colossus were the highlights. Oh yeah, also Odin Sphere, great game. Ew, and Shin Megami Tensei 3, that too.

Back to the PC, I had purchased a beefed up system in 2006, primarily for Half-Life 2, but also fell back in love with Team Fortress and Counter Strike. That's also when I began my on-again off-again love affair with MMO games. Final Fantasy XI, the first I'd tried, was a bitch-lover, more a 2nd job than a "fun game". Since, I've played City of Heroes, World of Warcraft, Lineage2, EVE, and (most recently) Lord of the Rings Online. In between multi-player gaming, I've spent solo-time on Oblivion, Overlord, Sims3, Bioshock, and the fantastic Fallout 3.

On the mobile front, what started out as travel-toys for my son have turned into nice gaming distractions as well. We have Nintendo DS's, and a PSP. I've put a shameful amount of time into Pokemon Pearl (played through twice fully, on third play now.) On the PSP, Patapon was a nice distraction, as was Tales of the World: Radiant Mythology.

Year before last we bought a PS3. Stand-outs are: Little Big Planet, all of the PixelJunk games, Flower, and Infamous.

That's it for my gamer's resume. Hope I get the job.

@ dag:

Mac vs PC commercials are a great example of FUD tactics. This has been argued on other forums ad naseum and I will avoid repeating what has already been heavily debated. FUD on any scale is bad; I really could care less how Apple's compares to Microsoft or Sun or any other company. But combine FUD with the Apple RDF and it only serves to make consumers more stupid and companies richer for hurting the market =P

Moving on... As for the iPhone SDK and API, I'm only in partial agreement with you. I'm not sure if you are are low-level (assembly) programmer, dag, but to call the API for the iPhone unprecedented and robust is not accurate and really depends on what you code. It is, in fact, very limited from a more general viewpoint. This is in part due to the EULA and TOS (don't forget, Apple tells you what you are allowed to release for the iPhone) but also because of what access the APIs provide to the hardware.

That access, in fact, is none. The SDK and API are heavily abstracted from the hardware. This incurs a serious performance penalty that prevents certain applications from being practical. John Carmack, lead programmer of id Software made commentary regarding this while developing a version of Doom 3 for the iPhone:

“If you look at it in raw hardware horsepower, the iPhone should be better in performance than the Nintendo DS and the PlayStation Portable,” Carmack said. “But the truth is, you can’t exploit it all because of software inefficiencies.”

More can be found here: http://games.venturebeat.com/2009/06/10/next-generation-iphone-game-doom-resurrection-debuting-next-week/

Those software inefficiencies he is referring to are a result of the API design, and is not an example of being supportive of all external developers. Don't get me wrong. The current API works well for a large amount of apps, as proved by the number present on the App Store. But really, how many of these apps really push the technological envelope? Alot of the apps on the stores are the technological equivalents of a basic .NET project: easy and fast to code (good) but not efficient (bad). This effectively kills one area of development: high end games. Kind of funny when you think about it. Apple is yet again limiting game development on another one of their platforms, although for very different reasons. I'm convinced (at risk of butchering something Steve Jobs might say) high-end gaming is not compatible with Apple's DNA.

I do understand Apple's reasoning behind this level of abstraction: control. This isn't necessarily malevolent control. An advantage of abstraction is that it can prevent nasty things from happening... your risk of crashes is reduced for example. But you will always lose performance due to overhead. There is simply no way around that.

Overall the iPhone's API philosophy was probably the right way to go in the very beginning. It's now been two years, though, and Apple needs to rethink their strategy when it comes to low-level access if they expect AAA developers to do anything remotely close what Tegra-based hardware can do when it hits the market. The iPhone will appear quite flimsy by comparison and only an API change will fix it.

Sorry for the long post, but game and assembly programming are passions of mine and I feel people are incredibly misinformed as to the true nature of the iPhone SDK and API. Good for some, but not for all.

Plus Natal uses two cameras to capture your position in 3-D space. EyeToy, and Playstation Eye, obviously don't. The camera tech for these, obviously, has gotten way better in terms of resolution and frame rate as well, so comparing it to the original PS2 EyeToy is definitely a little disingenuous. And really all the Wii is is a couple of infrared cameras and some accelerometers, which also must be pretty low resolution given how jittery Wii seems to be. Anyway, personally I was more psyched about the Milo demo than this kind of thing, and also way more psyched about Sony's motion control demo using the PS Eye and the wands at a vastly higher resolution than the Wii provides. We'll see what happens next spring. Regardless, I can say with a fair amount of certainty that I'm not interested in Nintendo's Vitality Sensor.

You definitely aren't wrong, Croccydile. Tech demos are cool, but it's up to developers to come up with creative and compelling ways to use these tools. Engineers are there to just give you the tech, but they aren't game designers or artists. That's why I didn't think anything of Natal until Peter Molyneux came out and introduced us to Milo:
http://www.videosift.com/video/E3-2009-Project-Natal-Lionhead-Milo-Project
While I agree that this is still a tech demo, it's at least an original glimpse into what is possible with it.

Surely we won't see how well this will do until real developers get their hands on it, but personally I'd love to see what could be done with it when given to the brilliant creators of, say, Katamari, Flower, Eden, Boom Blox, etc. There will be a lot of crap, as there is on the Wii, but it might be worth sifting through it to get to the truly unique interactive bits of genius.

As far as the consumer goes, I don't think the price of entry on this is going to be much more than a normal controller. Since it uses the already available Playstation Eye. It should be very accessable, which may give it an edge when convincing developers to create for it.

Did you see the Sony conference, and their motion control prototype?

http://www.videosift.com/video/E3-2009-Playstation-Motion-Control-Prototype

They felt the same way about the need to have a controller in your hand. I dig it.

You mean the Bonus pack? (PSN is playstation network, right?)

It hasn't been cooked for PS3 yet, but it will be.

>> ^RedSky:
Pretty sure most computer manufacturing goes in more developed Asian countries like Taiwan and South Korea. China generally sticks more to basic manufacturing.


Really? Let's start by looking at Foxconn, which according to their homepage, mainly manufactures in China, and is the largest exporter there.

"Foxconn is the largest manufacturer of electronics and computer components worldwide, and mainly manufactures on contract to other companies. Although sometimes referred to as an original equipment manufacturer, Foxconn would be more accurately described as an original design manufacturer. Among other things, Foxconn produces the Mac mini, the iPod and the iPhone for Apple Computer; Intel-branded motherboards for Intel Corp.; various orders for American computer retailers Dell, Inc. and Hewlett Packard; the PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3 for Sony; the Wii for Nintendo; the Xbox 360 for Microsoft, cell phones for Motorola, and the Amazon Kindle." -Wikipedia

I'm sorry RedSky, but you don't know what your talking about. While companies like Foxconn and Asus have headquarters in Taiwan, the vast majority of computer manufacturing takes place in China.

For all the buzz, this generation may be the most lackluster collection I've ever seen.

The 360 is just evolutionary. It's the best system only because Sony and Nintendo did so much less. All the hardware issues put a big dent in its image. It's got the strongest library but a lot of the big games on 360 are meant to be played on a PC, so you're just getting a half-assed version of the game. Halo, L4D, Oblivion, Fallout 3, Dead Space, etc.

The PS3 was a departure for Sony. For the prior 2 generations they dominated the market with shoddy, obsolete hardware and slick marketing and they should have stuck with that. Instead they built an overpriced cash leech with lots of fancy new technologies that don't work well together and told their customer base to get a second job or take out a mortgage to buy one. Like the PS1 and PS2, the PS3 is impossible to program for and since it's got mediocre market share, developers can afford to skimp on it. PSN doesn't compare with Live, even when free... serious connection and throughput issues combine with hosts that kick you from the game if you're better than them to create a totally frustrating online experience. Oh yeah, and I hate Sony's little kiddie controller. It makes my hands cramp. If you're really into watching cutscenes (MGS, Final Fantasy), this is the console for you.

The Wii... obviously the most successful of the group by a longshot. When it comes to just doing business, Nintendo has been cleaning up for a while now. The Xbox and Xbox360 have yet to turn a profit and the Playstation brand has been never been profitable either. Nintendo, meanwhile, made a nice profit on the Gamecube by selling it above cost and has completely cleaned up shop with the Wii. Another thing I can appreciate is the honesty of Nintendo's product. They're not using it to manipulate people into repurchasing all of their movies or buying a Windows Media Center PC; they're just selling a gaming console. The unfortunate part of the Wii is that they never really pushed the envelope. They somehow took their "revolution" and reduced it to a cheap gimmick before the first shot was fired. If you've played WiiSports, then you've experienced 90% of what Wii has to offer.

>> ^Throbbin:
I also stream my downloaded videos from my desktop through my wireless network and watch them in the living room.

Welcome to the future. I've been doing that for 7 years now with my original Xbox. XBMC still does a better job of it than PS3 or 360.

XBOX gets most of my attention, but they are all good systems.

XBOX and its XBL interface has pretty much defined modern console gaming. It has the most titles (both full games and downloadable), the most players and the quickest and easiest interface.

The thing I like best about the PS3 is that they are not afraid to take risks creating interesting and artsy downloadable games like Everyday Shooter and Flower. It also has a Blu ray player and a handful of good exclusives. Playstation Home (a virtual 2nd life style neighborhood) is a good idea, but they need to come up with a more interesting environment than a shopping mall. The worst thing about the PS3 is the system updates, which can take forever. They could also use more high quality exclusives.

Wii waggle is good clean, inexpensive, fun, and the system has a respectable amount of exclusives, not to mention a legendary back catalog. It's got some nice paripherals - guns, balance board, steeling wheel. It's online/multiplayer/friend interface is horrible.

Advantage Xbox

Yeah, I've heard that Katamari is really good. The most fun/interesting casual game I've played in a while has been the Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney series for the Nintendo DS. If you happen to have one of those, you should definitely check it out, it's a ton more fun than one would think at first glance.

I grew up on consoles, I barely touched PC gaming until I tried Warcraft 2...before that it was the NES and SNES. I even remember how excited I was when we get a Nintendo 64, lol. Good times.

In reply to this comment by schmawy:
I've also always wanted to try Katamari Damarcy but I think that's playstation only. i'm definetley a console guy and my PC proudly boasts how Y2K compiant it is on the bootscreen, so it's not the freshest machine around.

In reply to this comment by JAPR:
Never had a Dreamcast, so I'm afraid I didn't.

I showed that Passage game to one of my good buddies and to my girlfriend today, they both loved it as well.

I like a pretty huge range of games, from RPGs to FPSs and some RTSs as well once in a while, but it all just depends on my mood. Usually I'm just into gaming as entertainment, but sometimes there are games that manage to be both massively entertaining and still make you think about things or care about the reality the characters are involved in, and those are probably the games that make me like gaming the most (though they're extremely few and far between).

In reply to this comment by schmawy:
I just recently bought an xbox, and as much as I enjoy violence and reckless driving, it often leaves me wanting. I think there's so much more room for art. I recently heard of a game that was audio only, and you put on your headphones or surround sound and play. how cool is that?

ever played Shenmue?

In reply to this comment by JAPR:
I especially liked that "Passage" video, as I'm sure you could tell by my comments on it. I think sometimes people forget that video games are themselves something we can use as a form of artistic expression.

In reply to this comment by schmawy:
Hey, Thanks, JAPR! What do you think of this one, i sorta thought you might like it when I saw it...

http://www.videosift.com/video/Egger-Pixels

Check out my pimp hand, eh?

I've also always wanted to try Katamari Damarcy but I think that's playstation only. i'm definetley a console guy and my PC proudly boasts how Y2K compiant it is on the bootscreen, so it's not the freshest machine around.

In reply to this comment by JAPR:
Never had a Dreamcast, so I'm afraid I didn't.

I showed that Passage game to one of my good buddies and to my girlfriend today, they both loved it as well.

I like a pretty huge range of games, from RPGs to FPSs and some RTSs as well once in a while, but it all just depends on my mood. Usually I'm just into gaming as entertainment, but sometimes there are games that manage to be both massively entertaining and still make you think about things or care about the reality the characters are involved in, and those are probably the games that make me like gaming the most (though they're extremely few and far between).

In reply to this comment by schmawy:
I just recently bought an xbox, and as much as I enjoy violence and reckless driving, it often leaves me wanting. I think there's so much more room for art. I recently heard of a game that was audio only, and you put on your headphones or surround sound and play. how cool is that?

ever played Shenmue?

In reply to this comment by JAPR:
I especially liked that "Passage" video, as I'm sure you could tell by my comments on it. I think sometimes people forget that video games are themselves something we can use as a form of artistic expression.

In reply to this comment by schmawy:
Hey, Thanks, JAPR! What do you think of this one, i sorta thought you might like it when I saw it...

http://www.videosift.com/video/Egger-Pixels

Check out my pimp hand, eh?