Console Discussion/E3/Tokyo Game Show Thread

[NobodyHere]

So today Nintendo had a Fire Emblem Direct presentation, with at least 4 games in the works. I'll probably get at least 3 of them (not a fan of smartphone games yet). But Warriors, Echoes and whatever game is coming to the Switch in 2018 look interesting to me.

Not bad for a franchise that was on it's deathbed just a few years ago.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Jesus. This is getting worse......

Reggie: Switch matchmaking and lobbies handled through phone app - NintendoToday

[Julio Riddols]

I can see how that is supposed to work with mobile gaming, but WiFi is accessible free and easy from a lot of places now, you'd think the device would be able to connect and handle matchmaking itself. Otherwise, for those gaming from home.. Why would you want to use another device? Nintendo is so far out of touch when it comes to modern internet tech.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Really good news for PS4 owners.

PS4 Is Finally Getting External Hard Drive Support

[Mota]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Really good news for PS4 owners.

PS4 Is Finally Getting External Hard Drive Support

And now we can finally welcome the PS4 to 2013!

[mckerney]

Did Nintendo Switch The Outcome Of Super Bowl 51?

[Kodos]

The fact that the NES Classic doesn't save hi scores sucks.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Little surprising, but in a good way. I would have never thought they could get close to their sales goal.

Playstation VR sales meeting expectations

[MizzouRah]

I'm already saving for the Xbox Scorpio

Xbox Scorpio 2017 release date: the 12 facts everyone NEEDS to know | Alphr

[Groundhog]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Little surprising, but in a good way. I would have never thought they could get close to their sales goal.

Playstation VR sales meeting expectations

I think the device-exclusive content we're seeing (especially from Sony) has the potential to hurt the format in the long term.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

I'm already saving for the Xbox Scorpio

Xbox Scorpio 2017 release date: the 12 facts everyone NEEDS to know | Alphr

If Microsoft was smart, they'd scrap the Scorpio now. It won't be any more successful than the PS4 Pro. Outside of the tech geeks that just want a new toy because it exists, there's no reason to get either of these upgraded consoles.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

If Microsoft was smart, they'd scrap the Scorpio now. It won't be any more successful than the PS4 Pro. Outside of the tech geeks that just want a new toy because it exists, there's no reason to get either of these upgraded consoles.

The Scorpio is so much more powerful than the PS4 Pro or anything ever released, it's not even close. So while it might be at a price point that mainstream players can't reach at release, once it gets a 4k library, it will eventually start selling. I think it will be a slow and steady growth over time and MS has said this might be their last console. It will also play XB1 games and hinted they might even look/run better.

At the time it releases, we will be ready for our first 4k TV for the living room, so I'm excited.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

If Microsoft was smart, they'd scrap the Scorpio now. It won't be any more successful than the PS4 Pro. Outside of the tech geeks that just want a new toy because it exists, there's no reason to get either of these upgraded consoles.

"if" Microsoft were smart? Last time I checked, Microsoft was a company that did over 80 billion dollars in sales with over double the stock price of Sony.

Will they make mistakes? Of course they will. Are they smart? Yeah, just a bit.

[CU Tiger]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

If Microsoft was smart, they'd scrap the Scorpio now. It won't be any more successful than the PS4 Pro. Outside of the tech geeks that just want a new toy because it exists, there's no reason to get either of these upgraded consoles.

So by reading this thread I learned that
1) The XB1 is so inferior tech to the PS4 M$ simply HAS to produce a new console immediately or they will forever lie in the rubble as the ultimate loser to the PS4

and simultaneously

2) There is absolutely no reason for anyone to want a new more powerful console M$ should scrap their new more powerful console immediately.

That's one hell of a situation you put them in there MBBF. In fact that might be the most fan boi take that any fan boi has ever fan boi'd. Congrats on breaking your own record!

[nilodor]

Is the main point of the PSPro and XB1 scorpio 4K gaming? There isn't a future where some games will only run on the pro systems?

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by nilodor

Is the main point of the PS4 Pro and XB1 Scorpio 4K gaming? There isn't a future where some games will only run on the pro systems?

There's absolutely zero games that will run on the PS4 Pro/Scorpio that won't run on the X1/PS4. Both companies have already said that they won't produce any games exclusive to the upgraded consoles. Some games will have a patch to upgrade a game's visuals, but in most cases, both manufacturers have already stated that frame rate will be the main change you see (30 fps up to 50-60 fps).

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

This seems like a pretty important announcement. Similar to the PS Now program on the PS4 except it's to download games. Hoping this pushes Sony to allow downloads as well.

Microsoft Unveils $10 Monthly Gaming Subscription Service For Xbox One [Update]

[bob]

Switch reviews have been pretty mediocre so far.

[dubb93]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

This seems like a pretty important announcement. Similar to the PS Now program on the PS4 except it's to download games. Hoping this pushes Sony to allow downloads as well.

Microsoft Unveils $10 Monthly Gaming Subscription Service For Xbox One [Update]

Doesn't "similar to PS Now" sell this short a bit? PS Now is a service that allows you to play PS3 games on your PS4. This seems clear that this service will include current generation games. This could be a game changer.

[stevew]

Seems like the Scorpio Xbox could serve as a Steam Machine if they're willing to tweak a few things on the revenue end. Obviously Microsoft would want to share on the revenue side, but I'm sure something could be worked out. So you have a normal xbox for console games, and enhanced one(or several different ones) that can play stuff from store bought discs at a high resolution or can play Steam/Origin games.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by dubb93

Doesn't "similar to PS Now" sell this short a bit? PS Now is a service that allows you to play PS3 games on your PS4. This seems clear that this service will include current generation games. This could be a game changer.

It's going to be current gen games that are already considered for throw in on the Gold/PS+ style offering. It's only 100 games at any given time, so that's not a lot. Here's the part that would turn me off in a hurry.

Players will have access to all games on the pass as long as they remain in the libraryand the player remains subscribed.

So they basically can just yank games out at any given time and you can't keep them at that point. That works fine in EA Access where the majority of the time you have a new version of the game arrive shortly thereafter (i.e. yearly sports game releases). That doesn't work as well in the case of games that don't have yearly releases.

In the end, this will be much like PS Now. It'll fill a niche for some gamers at minimal overhead to MS, but it's not going to register for most gamers.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Saw that Sony has dropped the PS4 price from $299 to $199 in the EU countries starting today to coincide with the Switch release. Not a bad idea at all to have a low price when people come into the store for a Switch that isn't in stock due to low supply.

[ISiddiqui]

Soooo.... Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is getting INSANE ratings:

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild for Nintendo Switch - GameRankings

429 Slow down

[Julio Riddols]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

Soooo.... Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is getting INSANE ratings:

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild for Nintendo Switch - GameRankings

429 Slow down

This is why Nintendo should go the way of Sega and just make games. Trapping Zelda on a shit system sucks, especially when it looks like one of the best games in the series.

[ISiddiqui]

And how are Sega's iconic characters or series doing on other systems?

[Marmel]

It has only been 1 day, but I have the Switch and it is a great system. Now, I am not a graphics or processor snob, in fact, I don't know anything about those things, but it being a console for the TV and portable is amazing. Zelda is great. 12 Switch is actually pretty awesome, especially for the kids, but the wife and I were having a great time with it. I was pretty sure my console days were over until this came out.

[Julio Riddols]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

And how are Sega's iconic characters or series doing on other systems?

Yakuza Zero is looking absolutely amazing, I can't wait to get my hands on it. Valkyria Chronicles is excellent and very popular in the RPG genre, They seem to really be trying to resurrect Sonic this year, Alien:Isolation was a fantastic game, Shenmue 3 will be absolutely huge when it comes out, Persona is a big series with a new edition coming this year... They're doing pretty good IMO.

Zelda on the Xbox 1 or PS4 would probably function completely too, without the stuttering that seems to really be hurting it in spots on the Switch. This particular Zelda would likely be one of the best selling games of all time if it wasn't exclusive to the Switch.

Don't get me wrong, I like the idea of the switch. The price and the power are way way off though. Nintendo is a money grubbing company that is way out of touch and its bad. Their system only comes with 26GB of usable frigging space for god's sake.

The cost of having a Switch and all the things you need to truly enjoy it with family or friends is insane, like 500 plus dollars. No pack in game, nothing. Just a 32 GB tablet that you can plug in to your TV if you want to see how bad the graphics get on a bigger screen.

I'm not a guy who generally cares about graphics much either, but when you try and charge me that much to get into your system and it is that poor of a performer, I have little faith and little interest in joining in no matter how bad I want to play Zelda. I will not pay 500 dollars for the Switch and all the accessories I would need, especially when I can pick up a PS4 for a couple hundred or so.

[ISiddiqui]

I like how you think Nintendo is money grubbing - I assume that Sony and MS are totally virtuous.

And nothing you named is an iconic Sega series, aside from Sonic (which has basically done nothing since Sega stopped making hardware) and Shenmue (whose third iteration is a Kickstarter game - not being released by Sega itself). I mean what has Virtua Fighter done lately? Or Phantasy Star? They are basically just some average 3rd party software maker at this point. I thought similar thoughts on this as to why doesn't Apple make its OS available for PCs... but I realized sometimes controlling the hardware and software just makes for a different experience.

[Julio Riddols]

I mean I get it, I understand the whole idea. But they're charging current gen prices for something that has last gen capability essentially. That's why I say money grubbing. There is no bundle, no pack in game. (12 Switch would have been PERFECT for that) That's another reason why I say it. There is a pretty major defect already being heavily scrutinized in that the left JoyCon frequently loses sync and causes issues when playing games. Their system can't even handle Zelda smoothly despite its relatively light load. They only have 32GB of memory in their system, which is orders of magnitude lower than other systems. They inflate prices by producing limited quantities, so one can't even really get into a Wii these days without paying exorbitant prices for the system and games. They're gonna charge a similar rate to PS Plus and XBox live for their online service and give people much less for their money. They don't even have the ability to stream Netflix yet. That's crazy to me, even if its practically pointless. Those are all reasons why I say they are money grubbing. They are far worse than anyone else in the market.

I can get an XBox or PS and a whole bunch of older games for ~500 dollars, I can only get a Switch, one or two games, and one pro controller for about the same amount. I don't have the money to just say hell with it and get a Switch anyway.

The only thing Nintendo does well is make great games. This is why I think they would be better served doing just that.

Sega isn't having trouble with their classic series because they're doing the wrong thing, they're having trouble with them because they are producing shitty versions. Sonic hasn't been a good game in years, which is why it seems like a failing property.

Nintendo could completely stop producing underpowered, weak and gimmicky systems and probably do better for themselves.. But they won't. They could try and provide a competitive product, but they won't. They could give people the games they want, but they seem really reluctant to do even that.

It's just upsetting, that's all. I used to love Nintendo, but now they're climbing right up there with EA for me.

Edited to remove misinformation about Nintendo's virtual console games.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Really Nintendo??????

Nintendo Advises Switch Owners With Joy-Con Connectivity Issues To Avoid Bundles Of Wires, Aquariums

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by Julio Riddols

I mean I get it, I understand the whole idea. But they're charging current gen prices for something that has last gen capability essentially. That's why I say money grubbing.

Well, you know.. aside from a portable that works also as a console... I don't exactly see 'last gen' systems from Sony or Microsoft doing anything close to that.

I can get an XBox or PS and a whole bunch of older games for ~500 dollars, I can only get a Switch, one or two games, and one pro controller for about the same amount. I don't have the money to just say hell with it and get a Switch anyway.

So here's the thing. I don't see anything in an XBox One or PS4 that is appealing to me. But I do think the Switch is quite fantastic and am willing to shell out to $300 for it.

Sega isn't having trouble with their classic series because they're doing the wrong thing, they're having trouble with them because they are producing shitty versions. Sonic hasn't been a good game in years, which is why it seems like a failing property.

Yes... because they don't have the money that comes from a system that allows them to produce good games.

Nintendo could completely stop producing underpowered, weak and gimmicky systems and probably do better for themselves.. But they won't. They could try and provide a competitive product, but they won't. They could give people the games they want, but they seem really reluctant to do even that.

For some reason people seem to forget the Wii, which sold very, very well. I don't give a shit about the newest Xbox or PS, but I really want a Switch. It's interesting and innovative and has fantastic 1st party games.

[Julio Riddols]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

Well, you know.. aside from a portable that works also as a console... I don't exactly see 'last gen' systems from Sony or Microsoft doing anything close to that.



So here's the thing. I don't see anything in an XBox One or PS4 that is appealing to me. But I do think the Switch is quite fantastic and am willing to shell out to $300 for it.



Yes... because they don't have the money that comes from a system that allows them to produce good games.



For some reason people seem to forget the Wii, which sold very, very well. I don't give a shit about the newest Xbox or PS, but I really want a Switch. It's interesting and innovative and has fantastic 1st party games.

Don't get me wrong, I'm mostly mad because i would love to get a Nintendo console, even a Wii. I just can't afford it and it pisses me off.

I guess in the end, I want to have my cake and eat it too, and I want to play Zelda on my XBox instead of having to pay for a Switch or a Wii U.. Which both cost about the same, oddly.

[ISiddiqui]

So it seems the Switch had the biggest first 2-day sales in the history of Nintendo (Wii was second). And Zelda Breath of the Wild is the best selling standalone launch title in Nintendo history:

The Switch is the fastest-selling console in Nintendo history

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

So it seems the Switch had the biggest first 2-day sales in the history of Nintendo (Wii was second). And Zelda Breath of the Wild is the best selling standalone launch title in Nintendo history:

The Switch is the fastest-selling console in Nintendo history

If you release a console and there's only one real game available, is that saying that much? I'm sure I'll take flak for this, but I would have been shocked if it wasn't the best selling launch title in Nintendo history. I'd think it would have been a huge disappointment if it didn't hit that milestone given the complete lack of any other quality games.

I'm a little surprised at the number of different issues with the console product. Nintendo has always been much higher quality on release.

Switch Owners Report Hardware Problems, Though It's Tough To Tell How Many

[tarcone]

I want to play NCAA football. So Im looking at buying a playstation 3 . I think this is probably the only game I will play for awhile. My daughters may jumo on it.
Is this the way to go?

[Kodos]

NCAA 2014 is excellent on PS3 or the 360.

[tarcone]

Bought a PS3. Been messing around. Its got a little bit of a learning curve for this old guy.
I did buy C&C Red Alert. Cant figure out how to play it.
Couldnt get my origins to work on NCAA 14. Had to DL a demo of a new EA game so it would read that.
Created my own team on Team builder. But my gamecant find it. So I shut it all down and went to the gas station.

Taking a break for awhile now. HAve a playstation headache.

[Kodos]

Did you search for your username? That's where you'll find the team you created.

[tarcone]

Yeah, I found it after I started again.

laying this game feels like the old days again. Best game ever.

[ISiddiqui]

Good news for Nintendo (and those want a Switch ):

WSJ: Nintendo is selling way more Switches than it expected

The WSJ says Nintendo plans to double production from 8 million units to 16 million for its 2017 fiscal year (starting in April) in order to keep up with higher-than-expected sales.

Before it started shipping, analysts figured Nintendo would sell just 5 million units in its first year, due to the relatively high $300 price tag and lack of a free game with the console. However, strong early reviews and the widely-praised Zelda: Breath of the Wild launch title pushed sales to 1.5 million in the first week alone, and Nintendo could ship as many as 2.5 million units in the first month, the WSJ says.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Interesting.

GameStop to shutter 100+ stores - Mar. 25, 2017

I think the comment about the lack of new consoles isn't totally accurate. The PS4 continues to sell well and the attach rate is around 7.5 right now, which is better than the PS2 and Wii produced at this point in their lifecycle. Games are definitely selling, but I'm not sure how well GameStop is able to tune in to that attach rate with their current business model.

[jeff061]

With digital downloads, what's the market for them? Was only a matter of time.

[MizzouRah]

Plus, with Amazon prime I get games at a discount and free 2 day shipping. Doubt I'll ever visit a Gamestop again.

[dubb93]

Last time I went into my local GameStop I couldn't even tell what games were new releases and which were old releases. They had no new release section and everything was mixed in together. I had to pull out my phone and google the new releases. This was at Christmas time.

They also haven't done anything to counter Amazon Prime or Best Buy's GCU preorder incentives and I can't remember them ever having a sale like Target's buy 2 get one 1 on new games they do every three months. They seem to just price retail and continue to focus on that used market. They also all but left the PC market just as it was exploding again. They don't seem to have much foresight or creativity as a company.

[ISiddiqui]

The Switch and Zelda: BOTW is everything I possibly could have hoped it would be. Absolutely Fantastic!

[Vince, Pt. II]

The Switch leaves a good bit to be desired, but nothing about it is gamebreaking in my mind. Zelda is definitely as good as all of the reviews make it out to be. I am probably about 90% done with the story but I still feel like there is a TON out there to be explored.

[Eaglesfan27]

Anyone who didn't get a launch day Switch having any luck finding it in any stores?

[Vince, Pt. II]

I had to ask a buddy up in Idaho to purchase one and ship it to me (SF Bay Area). They had tons sitting on shelves up there.

[dubb93]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

I have to scratch my head a bit on this, or rather, on the relevance of this.
I don't mean in this thread -- I'd seen the article prior to seeing your post -- but in general.

And the reason I don't see the real relevance is right there in the article, where it notes that due to multiplatform titles being so common now, there really isn't a shortage of playable titles on the XB1 coming any time soon.

I mean, aside from mostly friendly sniping amongst friends, were there really a lot of titles being sold on the basis of "I only want this cause people on the other console can't have it"?

I get that it was a marketing thing back & forth between the two, and that exclusives could sell consoles on the front of release cycles. Maybe I just misread the article or something, but it felt like they were suggesting more than that.

I'm possibly buying a console in the next week. It'll be a second XB1 for us as a family, 'cause what I'm looking to play is there. But the notion of exclusive titles has zero impact on my choice as long as what I'm gonna play is there , it being exclusive has no real bearing.

I actually think exclusives won the console generation for Sony. Not PS4 exclusives, but I think at the front end of the cycle people compared Sony exclusives to Microsoft exclusives over the generation of PS3/360 and decided to invest their money in a new Sony console.

[SackAttack]

Originally Posted by dubb93

I actually think exclusives won the console generation for Sony. Not PS4 exclusives, but I think at the front end of the cycle people compared Sony exclusives to Microsoft exclusives over the generation of PS3/360 and decided to invest their money in a new Sony console.

I think what "won" the generation for Sony (to the extent that early adopters made it a foregone conclusion at all) was the steady drumbeat of ready-fire-aim that Microsoft had going for them in the run-up to launch.

Remember, it was heavily hinted that the Xbox One would include tech that would allow third party developers to disable used/rental games; there was Don Mattrick saying that anybody who objected to Xbox One's requirement for persistent broadband should probably just stick with Xbox 360; and there was the inclusion of a Kinect with every console (which I felt was the right way to handle such a peripheral if they wanted it to succeed) and an extra $100 tacked on to the cost of the console as a result. The added cost was a self-inflicted wound that was visible to every consumer, where not every consumer who went to buy a new game console would have necessarily been aware of the first two bits I mentioned.

And those were far from the only missteps.

They suffered comparable hubris after the success of the 360 to Sony's own after the success of the PlayStation 2. What Sony had in their hip pocket that Microsoft has never had was a Japanese market willing to purchase their product. For Microsoft, playing catch-up has meant doing it on the backs of the North American and PAL markets.

Sony had some pretty great exclusive titles in the PS3 generation, but many of those were from smaller development houses that couldn't afford to publish on both platforms, and one of the more high-profile exclusives - Final Fantasy - went platform-agnostic in the last generation. As much as I love the Disgaea games, and would have bought a PS4 for them alone, I really don't think the great masses chose PS4 over Xbox One because of games on that tier.