Desperate MS flaunts UNDEAD SPLAT TALLY to pep Xbox One fans You have to feel sorry for Microsoft. Sales of its new, next-generation console, the Xbox One, have clearly so far failed to come close to those of Sony’s PlayStation 4. It seems the best it can do in the battle of the console stats is tell us how many hours Xboxers have spent on the thing. Insisting that Xbox One is “ …
"You have to feel sorry for Microsoft. Sales of its new, next-generation console, the Xbox One, have clearly so far failed to come close to those of Sony’s PlayStation 4"
Not sure why you would feel sorry for them though - sales are running at roughly twice those of Sony's PS4:
http://blog.infoscout.co/black-friday-console-war/
I've got an XBOX one, picked one up on release day with a copy of Battlefield 4 (which is god damn fast and fluid, looks utterly gorgeous). The inbuilt game DVR is pretty wicked as well. Pass thru HDMI is also a bonus, especially as you can put your XBOX 360 thru as well (also works with the PS3).
To be honest I'm a happy bunny, not sure why anyone feels the need to declare something a failure after a few weeks of being out there and constrained supply, pretty daft.
When I get a chance I'm going to get a PS4 as well (I have PS3, 360 and a One) so why not, the exclusive games are a must (looking at you The Last of Us).
Console wars are always fought with fanbois in both sides declaring the console they use is best and everything else must be rubbish. Although the lucky few will just buy both and be happy regardless.
However if you don't, either the One or the PS4 will I am sure do you proud for a long time, stop being sheep people use what you like because you like it.
Simples.
I'm luck enough to have both and I couldn't agree more. They are roughly the same thing packaged slightly differently. XBox is more ambitious and a bit more aimed at doing other things than games. PS4 is more focused and is a bit more narrowly aimed at gamers. PS4 is cheaper, XBox has connect which is nice for the kids and missus though I'm not much bothered. XBox is in the living room with telly playing through it and space for the kids / missus to flail about. PS4 is in my games room where I hide from the kids/ missus.
They are both very nice bits of kit and a nice upgrade over their predecessors. If you only want one, pick either. Or a Steambox but I detect a whiff of vapourware there.
Which do I prefer? Way too early to say. Will depend on what exclusive games each gets etc. Ask me in a year or so.
I'm also a saddo with both, and so far the Xbox has seen more play with only Resogun on Sony's machine offering any thing close to fun. Forza and Dead Rising in contrast are surprisingly deep and use extra features such as SmartGlass and rumbling triggers intelligently. Dual Shock 4 is an improvement but still not as comfortable as Microsoft's controller, and having used a Vaio Pro's tpuchpad for the past few months I don't have much faith in that particular feature either.
On the horizon though I think Sony will have the finer roster of games
It's Microsoft's greedy, audacious anti-consumer attitude that is the problem. I'm sure you'll have fun with the device itself.
I have more integrity than that. I would go back to tic tac toe on a piece of paper before I would buy an Xbox One, or any other Microsoft product or service. (I've already got Windows 7 which will keep my current games running for the foreseeable future... there will be no more Windows purchases for me. I honestly thought they were turning over a new leaf, with the quality and friendliness of Windows 7 but they completely switched gears)
Microsoft. Dying one (self inflicted) paper cut at a time.
"It's Microsoft's greedy, audacious anti-consumer attitude"
Yes we all remember how Microsoft infected all our PCs with root kits from audio CDs, infected all our Bluray players with Cinavia and ran it's gaming network on a LAMP stack, such that it was easily hacked and tens of thousands of people's personal data was distributed across the internet....Oh, wait!
I mean; everyone still remembers the initial presentation where it became obvious that Microsoft was aiming for a daily lockdown on their consoles (you had to log on at least once during every 24hrs otherwise you wouldn't be able to play).
It doesn't matter that they eventually reversed their plans: the damage has been done.
You've obviously forgotten the Microsoft announcements since. People didn't want discs that become tied to the specific machine or an enforced daily check-in to seek permission to use the console because, ummm, they weren't smart enough to spot the benefits and they're all just living in the past and one day they'll realise that they were wrong and, anyway, it's not Microsoft's fault if the public is so backwards.
Furthermore, capitulation was a sign of strength and evidence that the XBox is the more versatile device. So there.
That all being said, one feels there's a game of dare going on. Microsoft and Sony are letting companies like EA (I'm talking about you, Sim City) take the flack for this sort of consumer-hating practice for now and will no doubt both integrate it back into the machine once every publisher is just having to do it individually anyway.
because, ummm, they weren't smart enough to spot the benefits and they're all just living in the past and one day they'll realise that they were wrong and, anyway, it's not Microsoft's fault if the public is so backwards.
You make a very cogent case. I can see why you think people are idiots. Giving up your privacy for all those XB1 features is totally worth it.
One thing a lot of people don't seem to realize about SteamBox is that it's based on Linux, and unless a game's developer releases a Linux port of their game on Steam, you won't be able to play it natively on the system. Native Linux support is still not all that common among big game releases. Valve offers Linux versions of many of their games, but even they haven't released ports of games like Portal 2 and CS:GO for Linux yet, though I suspect they'll have those by the release of SteamBox. But among games already released by publishers who don't have a vested interest in SteamOS, it's quite unlikely they'll invest the millions of dollars necessary to port their previously released games to Linux. So, most of your existing Steam library won't likely run on SteamOS. Apparently, there will be the option to run games on a windows system and have the video stream to your SteamBox over your home network, but this is obviously not an ideal solution.
...... when the stock checking sites stay green for longer than 30 seconds, which will be when supply balances with demand. Which is likely to be a while as Xbox still has to be released in a number of countries and the PS4 is not out in its major market, Japan, until February.
What the sales figures show is that MS had 1 million units ready for launch, Sony had just over 2 million for the staggered release. People with more stuff to sell manages to sell more stuff shocker.
It's also possible that Microsoft and/or Sony have hundreds of thousands of consoles stockpiled in warehouses in an effort to artificially boost perceived demand. If your console is sold out at stores this holiday season, that will create the impression that it is in demand and flying off the shelves, even if the actual reception is a bit more lukewarm.
The South Park "Song of Ass and Fire" episode : PS4 vs X-One on Black Friday. Very amusing.
As to my actual comment on this subject... am I now to assume that not only do MS want to track everyone via Kinect and all of the "features" that were de-scoped, but that will creep back in over the course of the console lifespan (although they won't admit that) - but now they are tracking every single in-game event or stat implying that all X-Ones are phoning home on an ongoing basis?
Or are their figures simply crap? Or are they based on Xbox live dashboard figures?
I presume the latter but just thought I'd ask?
Yep the 'creep' will creep back in as MS can't stop themselves. Some say they stopped adding new features for users even before Vista ,and instead began to focus on things like DRM. That shows where their loyalties clearly lie. Any company who thinks 'Trusted Computing' is a user feature needs to be deprecated!
BTW: I watched the SP clip Part II (11 mins), but thought it was a bit laboured (sorry)... The real tragedy about Black Friday are all the stories of innocent people who became collateral damage.... Glad I don't live there anymore...
The "creep" is already here...the sports games will penalize you in the game if you swear in real life...here is a link to that:
http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2013/12/swearing-at-the-ref-in-nba-2k14-still-gets-you-a-foul/
And MS is BANNING users for swearing during (supposedly) private Skype calls:
http://www.geek.com/games/swear-in-a-private-xbox-one-skype-call-get-banned-from-xbox-live-1578227/
I will NOT trust MS enough to EVER have their Kinect in my home, and I am doing my level best to eliminate ALL of their products from my life. They simply took a wrong turn under Ballmer's leadership, and I no longer recognize the company I once was so loyal to. They are done, stick a fork in 'em!
@AC: 15:36 GMT --- "And MS is BANNING users for swearing during (supposedly) private Skype calls:" Lies: http://www.infowars.com/microsoft-denies-monitoring-skype-calls-after-banning-users-for-bad-language/
From Article Link:
"However, a respondent to the Gizmodo article points out that one of the bans was applied for someone solely using Skype, remarking, “So yes they are listening, or someone complained about the persons behavior.”
-
Lies?
The "technical foul" penalties are not something added by Microsoft, but by the game's developer, for added realism and to make for a "more civilized online environment" according to the game's publisher. They are present in the PS4 version of the game as well, if you have the Playstation Camera, and were in last year's version of the game too, if you happened to have a Kinect for the 360. You also have the option of disabling them, by turning off voice commands in the game's options. I think it's a pretty amusing feature, actually. Putting it in more games could do a lot toward trolling all the twelve year olds who think they look big by swearing at others in online games. : P
Also, it sounds like that "skype ban" thing was just a myth. What people can get banned for is uploading gameplay videos that get reported for excessive swearing, which is against their terms and conditions you agree to. That's not to say such calls aren't being recorded, but the same could be true for call through any service.
I do agree about not liking the idea of having a camera and microphone always watching though. However, that's not just limited to Microsoft. Do you really trust the front-facing cameras and microphones found in smartphones and tablets?
"Plus it doesn't have a great big power transformer outside the box."
That's a big advantage of the XBO - the PSU is most common electronic item to fail and generates a lot of heat. The XBO runs about 15 Deg C cooler than the PS4 because of this design even though it has a faster CPU / GPU clock speed - and will likely be much more reliable over the long term...and you can easily swap or buy just the PSU if it fails...a PS4 will need to go back to Sony...
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