So I'm getting really weird mixed signals about where the XBOX is going as a brand. I did defend as most of us did most XBOX games going to PC. Most original XBOX games went to PC. But I also view it as maybe Microsoft losing faith in the XBONE or maybe they wish to turn the XBOX brand into a steambox type service. Granted to get a PC that runs XBONE games you'd probably end up spending what would add up to the cost of an XBONE, PS4 AND WII U. Then on the otherside of this doom and gloom is the fact that Phil Spencer is talking about upgrade packs for the XBONE, a XBOX 32x if you will. Good idea? Bad Idea? I don't know the Xdrones love it. Unbiased people aren't so keen on the idea. I'm not sure what to think. I DO want an XBOX One. Cheaper than a PC, plus physical media for these games is always a plus. But I just don't know if by the time I get one, there will still be an XBOX brand.
Here's what it comes down to: do you like the exclusives? Do you feel as though you would very much like to play said exclusives? Then buy a fucking xbox. If you don't give a shit, then don't buy a fucking xbox. It's literally that simple.
lmgtfy.com Edit: https://twitter.com/xboxp3 Best to always go to the source, above is the twitter page of Xbox head Phil Spencer
The idea of an external GPU is interesting. Maybe they will upgrade the hardware in small increments with accessories, then consolidate those accessories into the hardware with redesigns. Add in something like "faster, smaller CPUs" or extra RAM (sort of like GBC or New 3DS - maybe we will get XONE+ / XONE.1). If they do plan on eventually making the Xbox One a continuous platform, it might go along with the smartphone model - one platform + incremental hardware upgrades + mainstream support timeline + planned obsolescence They could support the 2013 platform sometime into the early 2020's, have hardware upgrades, and run games on the same platform and framework if they provide devs with an easy means to structure their software more like PC games (graphics/resolution/quality settings). Easier said than done, though.
It's an innovative idea I'll give them that, not sure if it'll work. I'm just getting all these mixed signals from both Microsoft and it's fans. Plus I'm hearing rumors of more studio closures. I long for the days of the original XBOX.
Trying to get a feel for Microsoft's future vision is always a fool's errand. At least with the Xbox and Xbox360 the earlier years were tremendous, and then MS would just fall apart as time went on (quit caring with the Xbox, got too absorbed in the Kinect with the 360). With the Xbox One we're ~2.33 years into its life and I have no effing clue what Microsoft is trying to do. The way they handle Killer Instinct is about the only competent thing I see them doing these days.
Not so fast there DeChief With Windows10 and Xbone cross platform play that Xbone is losing exclusives to PC users. As for the dedicated system, who knows. Sony has blown Nintendo out of the water (and Sega rip Dreamcast) with the PS1 and PS2 (despite PS2 being garbage). With their success they got a bit cocky and they messed up on the PS3 (at first but eventually it got the ball rolling). PS4 is destroying the Xbone in forms of success for sales and support and that doesn't even help the Xbone case. It's not looking good for the console without the help of a system seller.
I think the more accurate description would be: "Nintendo and Sega lit their boats on fire with their handling of the N64 and Sega Saturn/Genesis add-on products". Granted, Nintendo came back with steel plated boats in the form of the DS and the Wii. Sega came back with a boat that ran on futuristic fuel, but since that fuel was futuristic the boat couldn't do anything, sprung a leak, and then sank.
No? What cross-platform play is there other than KI? The Halos are still Xbox One exclusive, those are the system sellers dude.
I think this is basically the end of the real "year one" for the XB1, the system's first 18 or so months were spent furiously trying to undo the colossal fuckup that the launch was. In that respect, they at least managed to turn it around faster than Sony did with the PS3, which lasted about 2 years. Thing is, for the longest time (until like 2 years ago when the mobile market ate into it) Nintendo had the handheld market on lockdown. Yeah the Game Gear and PSP weren't total disasters, but they barely made a dent in the steel boat that was the Game Boy line/DS line. Microsoft, on the other hand, is large enough that the Xbox division isn't really that important. Looking at their recent financials, other than the huge increase in "unusual expenses", their financials are holding pretty steady. I wouldn't be surprised if Microsoft tries to fully merge their PC gaming with the Xbox line in the near future. As I said in my most recent podcast, I think this might be the end of actual consoles as we know them, with Microsoft floating upgradable hardware and Sony inching closer to a streaming game future.
No, it's not; they've already tried it before and it failed miserably. Games for Windows Live + XNA was supposed to be a "write once, run on Windows + Xbox". Except that the GWL ecosystem wasn't wanted and didn't work right. XNA was a pleasure to work with as a developer, until Microsoft decided to just abandon it. Now, Microsoft wants to move everything to Windows to support their Windows as a Service positioning. Making the Xbox brand a "cross platform" brand (it's not, it runs a version of Windows 10) helps support this at the cost of the Xbox identity. As a developer, I don't want Xbox to be nothing more than another store front on an upgradable PC and I certainly don't care about the Windows Store.
I thought one of their current plans right now for the XboxOne is basically a plug it in and play console. While Windows 10 PC gaming is for power users. Besides, it's not like they're that enthusiastic into porting XBone games to the PC. It also solves that complaints about PC users being neglected while flexing that "PC Master" thing which I think is a joke gone too far.
XBOX is just a brand like "Games for Windows" back on Windows 95. Clearly what Microsoft is doing is trying to merge Windows and Xbox together as a gaming platform. Windows 10 is going to be a life-time OS, and likely that's what they want to do with XBOX. The hardware is already pretty close. Not sure what rock you're living under either GoH, Xbox games are install discs, just like PC physical media is. Which by the time you get it will need a 2GB+ of updates anyway. I was blindsided by the XBOX brand and thought everything Microsoft was doing was neat. I booted up the system again after like months of not touching it and absolutely thought it was rubbish - only good thing about the Xbox One is the controller. So in order to answer the 'cross platform' question being thrown around the Internet, I doubt that's the plan. Likely a completely Windows running PC-Console will be next. Already the Xbox One is a hybrid of that. Many gamers can rage and throw tanties at physical media coming to an end, it's been the talk for a long time and it's bound to happen. Possibly my change of hobbies have shown me the other side of all this but we all know it's happened to music and movies - games soon to follow. Let's face it, companies want to keep production costs to an absolute minimum have any of you felt the plastic on the Xbox One?! If games go fully digital for consoles (if they happen next gen) they'll be exactly the same price and will just be more money for companies.
Is it true that developers are developing multi-plats for the PS4 then porting them over to XBONE, much in the way multi-plats of the previous generation were originlly programed for the 360 then ported over to PS3? Somebody mentioned this to me the other day, and I haven't had any luck finding if it's factual or not. If so, that's somewhat of a hurdle.
I don't know how true that is. The differences between XBONE and PS4 are negligible. Like PS4 has faster ram and a slightly more powerful graphics card. XBONE has slower ram but a CPU that is barely and I do mean BARELY faster than the PS4s. It's not like PS3 running on a Rubicks Cube over the 360's Power PC architecture.
