General gaming news

[Tachys]

Ok I am in a console market

I haven't really paid much attention to consoles in years

Was thinking XBox 360 or Playstation 3

Seriously how do I even begin to choose

I tried looking up comparisons on the internet

But most of them are like 2-3 years old

I read some of this thread and it really isn't that helpful

Could some of you please help

I own a PS2 if that means anything

[Kyo]

What kind of games do you generally like to play, when you had your PS2 what exclusives did you enjoy. Are you intrested in blu ray at all? Thats a pretty good starting place.

[miokomioko]

Given your tone... I would say PS3, hands-down, is a better purchase.

The only reason to lean towards the Xbox360 is if you really care about their exclusives and don't care about having a Blu-Ray player (unless you already have one). Seeing as how you don't have an Xbox now, I wouldn't imagine you're a big enough fan of Halo shit.

Cue the 360 vs. PS3 exclusives lists.

[Kyo]

Shootan games vs a good variety, pretty much, lol.

[6souls]

I'll update as I find & rip it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sgB-EQv5wI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cbz5sM_vuMI

SCEE's Social Media Manager Jem Alexander has confirmed today on the European PlayStation Blog, as part of Sony's CES announcement, that 3D games and movies are coming to the PS3 in 2010.

To quote: Among all the technology announcements you would come to expect from the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas (such as new 3D Bravia TVs coming this Summer), Kaz Hirai announced that the PS3 will be fully 3D compatible this year.

There will be two firmware updates at some point in 2010 — the first will add 3D Stereoscopic Gaming functionality to the PS3 and the second will add 3D Stereoscopic Movie functionality. We’ll be announcing more details regarding 3D Gaming as we get further into 2010 and, as usual, you’ll see a lot of this here on the PlayStation.Blog.

Kaz also revealed that 2009 housed the most successful holiday season in the history of the PlayStation 3, with over 3.8 million units selling worldwide over the last 5 weeks of the year. European movie fans will also be glad to hear that the Video Download Service will be expanded to more territories throughout the year, too.

Finally, the PlayStation Network has been adopted as the central online service for many Sony products, which means you will eventually be using the same login on your PlayStation 3 as your Bravia TV, VAIO laptop or other Blu-ray player.

What does this mean? We’ll have more details in the future, but one cool benefit we can highlight is using the same virtual wallet across all of our services, on all of our platforms.

This is just the start of what should be another great year for PlayStation — we’ve got lots more stuff to announce throughout 2010, so keep checking the PlayStation.Blog regularly.

http://www.ps3news.com/PlayStation-3...o-ps3-in-2010/
http://blog.eu.playstation.com

http://www.ps3news.com/images/img_18917.jpg
At CES 2010 in Las Vegas, Kaz Hirai confirmed Sony's plan to expand PlayStation Network beyond the PS3 and PSP to their other products, including Bravia televisions and VAIO laptops.

With over 38 million-strong in the PlayStation Network community, Engadget reports that Sony's premium video offerings will mimic Microsoft's Live Anywhere philosophy... a single user ID and password will work across all Sony products and services.

Additionally, the PSN virtual wallet can be used universally across Sony's services.

To quote: "To help facilitate the cross-proliferation of content across Sony's multiple devices, Hirai also announced the creation of a new division within Sony: the not-very-creatively named Sony Network Entertainment, Inc.

With this new initiative, expect the PSN logo to be far more ubiquitous than ever before."

http://www.ps3news.com/PS3-Online/so...-more-devices/
http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/06/s...s-blowing-min/

Their conference stream;
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/sony-c...onference-2010

[6souls]

I'll update as I find and rip it.

Today GamesIndustry.biz reports that Microsoft is opting for an XBox 360 software solution after dropping the internal hardware chip in Natal in an effort to reduce costs of the device.

The load previously handled by the chip now falls on one of the main three Xenon processors, but while taking a "percentage" of performance away from the system, most games don't use up 100 per cent of the available processing power anyway.

To quote: "Microsoft has dropped a chip from its forthcoming Natal motion control system as the platform holder eyes accessible price points in the build-up to release later this year.

The chip, which was responsible for processing information for the Natal's 'bone system,' has been removed in favour of a software solution."

http://www.ps3news.com/XBox-360/micr...ware-solution/
http://www.gamesindustry.biz

Below is a Project Natal video, courtesy of MixxedbaggDotCom via YouTube, for XBox 360 from Microsoft's presentation at CES 2010 dubbed Concept to Reality.

It showcases Project Natal as a ground-breaking technology, where the body replaces ordinary controls.

During Microsoft's financial analyst briefing, President of Entertainment and Devices Division Robbie Bach was asked to explain who the targeted demographics are for Project Natal, due out this holiday.

Bach explained Natal was for everybody, including hardcore gamers expecting to play Halo: Reach, to quote:

"Take your hardcore gamer, they're going to love Natal,"Bach explained. "Now, they'll play a different style of game on that when they're doing it. When they play Halo: Reach, they might be back with their controller doing some very, you know, targeted things. But the style of game they will play will be different."

"But they will absolutely love Natal," he added.

Bach also stated that 70 percent of the publishers are now developing titles for Project Natal. The company revealed a modest listed of Natal developers during this past Tokyo Game Show. The list included names such as Bethesda, Capcom, Konami, and Ubisoft."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZR2bklupF4

http://www.ps3news.com/XBox-360/vide...pt-to-reality/
http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/105/1059115p1.html

http://www.ps3news.com/modules/image...pg&w=500&h=400
Natal's lead developer Alex Kipman has revealed that the upcoming peripheral will demand 10-15 per cent of the 360's CPU resources.

He added that the device can recognise any pose in just 10 milliseconds – quick enough to suggest that the final product won't suffer from lag issues.

And in under two-tenths of a second, says Kipman, Natal can recognise the body shape of a new user stepping in front of it.

To quote: "Natal has to work on the existing hardware without taking too much hardware processing away from the games developers," added Kipman in an interview with trade publication New Scientist.

The lead designer added that he and his team had collected "terabytes" of data of people making poses likely to appear during game play."

http://www.ps3news.com/XBox-360/lead...nner-workings/
http://www.develop-online.net

[6souls]

Not CES, but demo footage of a tester using Natal with Half Life 2

[Kyo]

Why people even care about natal I'll never know.

[Tachys]

Well I have no need of a Blu-Ray player

Games I played on PS2 are Dynasty Warriors Series, Grand Theft Auto Series and Final Fantasy X

Always would have liked to find a good multiplayer first-person shooters. But the only game like that I have ever liked is Tribes and Tribes 2.

How important is Hard Drive space on these, what is Hard drive actually used for?

Any place that would have a list of exclusives?

[Kyo]

hard drive is used to save games and game data, or download games, just like a PC works. You can always google a list of system exclusives.

[Tyche]

Well I have no need of a Blu-Ray player

Games I played on PS2 are Dynasty Warriors Series, Grand Theft Auto Series and Final Fantasy X

Always would have liked to find a good multiplayer first-person shooters. But the only game like that I have ever liked is Tribes and Tribes 2.

How important is Hard Drive space on these, what is Hard drive actually used for?

Any place that would have a list of exclusives?

If final fantasy is imperative, you want a PS3. Both systems have good multi-player shooters (Halo and Killzone). HD space can be important if you store HD movies or lots of downloadable games.

Here's your exclusive lists
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Categor...n_3-only_games
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Categor...360-only_games

[BRP]

Why people even care about natal I'll never know.

NATAL version 4, in the year 2025 might be interesting.

[Isiolia]

Why people even care about natal I'll never know.

I consider it on two levels. The actual technology/capability, and then what MS is going to try and hype it into.

The former I'm relatively interested in. Granted, it's not entirely new, but little is by the time it makes it into mass-marketed consumer electronics. There are a myriad of potential uses for the tech - budget motion capture, biometric security, accessibility for disabled folks, or even non-gaming controls (a la Minority Report computer interface). 'course, that's also making an assumption that, being the PC juggernaut that they are, we'll see Natal in some form for Windows PCs as well.

It's not perfect for every last application, but I can't think of any input devices that are. IMO, it has potential as an addition to the lineup of input options we already have, and be a logical addition for "3D" gaming down the line.


That being said, I'm very leery of what MS is going to try and spin Natal into. My more optimistic side says that we're seeing demos using -only- Natal because MS wants to emphasize what the tech is capable of. Controllers or other peripherals will still be possible, so using both simultaneously for what they work before may well be the norm. It'd just create confusion as to what's doin' what if they had people demo'ing Natal like that today.

More cynically, however, MS is probably just going to try and capture the Wii demographic with lame motion-oriented crap. Given how much money Nintendo is making with it, I can't blame MS for trying to follow 'em, but I can't say it'd interest me much at all.

[Rokku]

The Wii's motion controls are nothing more than a gimmick, albeit at times an amusing one. Natal might be interesting in 20 years when they've actually refined the technology beyond something other than a gimmicky video game controller, and the PS3's upcoming attempt at an Eye Toy + Magic stick motion control system is laughable at best.

Just let the Wii keep it's gimmick imo, this motion control frenzy is getting absolutely asinine.

[volcanicweather]

Like it or not, motion controls are here to stay due to the fact they have such a widespread appeal and allow companies to target a much larger audience in result.

What's really going to be interesting with Natal is if Microsoft follows their current business model of undercutting their consoles and charging out the ass for "optional" (but basically necessary) accessories or if they adopt more of a Wii pricing model where you basically have everything you need (minus a 2nd controller) straight out of the box. If they stick with the xbox model I don't see it doing too well.

Then of course, there's also the factor the product itself might just straight up bomb (i.e. virtualboy style) for 2 reasons:

1) that shit is way too active for most gamers. most people view gaming as a form of entertainment, but also as a form of relaxation. On Wii, you can still chill and just play with a flick of a wrist - not the same with Natal.

2) physical limitations... the Natal basically requires you to have a big ass room to play in where you aren't going to break things. a lot of college kids live in tight quarters and there's too many spaz moms who think their kids will break stuff

[Shojin]

It's already been reported that Microsoft have removed the processing chip in Natal to "keep costs lower". It will not rely on Xbox 360 processing power, which will be using around 15% of its power. It also has a 100ms-200ms input lag. Microsoft also reported they will be focusing on new games rather than implementing Natal in to major games and already released games.

Take that as you will, but from what it looks like, be prepared for casual shovelware.

I expect Wiiports of shovelware for both NATAL and Playstation Sphere/Gem.

Being the actual owner of a Wii, which I rarely play, the biggest problem I have with it is how unresponsive the Wii remote is. I know Motion Plus is supposed to help it, but it still has a long way to go. With the PS Sphere/Gem, with its sub-millimeter accuracy and how the tech demos used the tech, and if they actually implement it well instead of casual shovelware games, then I could actually see having some fun with it. Plus with the room tracking with the PS Eye, it seems like it is what the Wiimote should have been.

It will be interesting to see how each new tech works out though.

[BRP]

100ms-200ms input lag

lol.

What is the input lag on the PS3 gimmick sticks?

[Shojin]

No idea. Also, might not be that much in the final product, but the main complaint about it from sites I've read is that the input lag can be a problem.

[6souls]

A video is available below showcasing Razer's upcoming XBox 360 and Sixense controllers along with a headset from CES 2010.

To quote: "The XBOX 360 controller, which was prototyped for the show, brought a whole slew of features. Their hyper responsive buttons employ a switch rather than the standard membrane. What does this mean? Its freaking easy to click, and has nice audible feedback.

It has a lit edge, rubberized grip and is a pretty comfortable shape. On the top of the controller are two new shoulder buttons that are programmable via two sliders on the controller back.

These two buttons can mimic the functions of any face button, including analog clicks. Speaking of the analog sticks, each has an independent tension dial to allow you to get the “just right” feel on either stick. Its MSRP is slated at $49.99 and will be available in the near future.

The XBOX 360 headset was a nice piece of work as well. It features a wired base station that doubles as a charger and 5.1 surround support. When the system is powered off, the base station allows audio pass through so there will be no need to switching your receiver around.

For tournament play, the headsets cab ne daisy chained together to provide a private voice chat network. The headset was also a prototype and is said to have an MSRP of $129.00 sometime in the near future."

Check out some pics and the video below, courtesy of Blip!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAU9UDEEXQA

http://pixelatedgeek.com
http://www.ps3news.com/PC-Tech/video...-with-headset/

[Allelujah]

PS3>360 that is all.