Thoughts on new consoles?

[Astros Fan]

Mine is quite except when the CD drive spins up, then it stops and is all quite. I've heard other people complaining of the noise. It is more quite than my son's 360.

[ImaNihilist]

The fact that the new consoles have a disc still blows my mind. On the publisher/game dev side everyone was expecting no disc. Everyone all the way up to the C-level execs. Big publishers were already starting to work up contingency plans for how to deal with the reality of an app store with a million apps and a loss of control as a result of the absent retail experience.

I was looking forward to finally seeing the end of retail for a sector that absolutely doesn't need it. The amount of money that could be redirected towards development instead of distribution, and the opportunities for indie game dev at scale were really what I was excited about for a new generation of consoles. Instead we just got longer draw distances and better AA. Whoop-de-doo.

It's hard for me to consider the PS4/XBO "next-gen" when they still have a disc and the $99 Kindle FireTV that can play Android games doesn't.

I'm still hoping that the Steam Machine can save gaming. Valve is literally he only company with any vision and the only company that cares about games anymore. You know what we are talking about now? The future of console games where games no longer cater to gamers, but instead re-evnision IP to cater "whales" who spend $5,000/mo on worthless micro-transactions. We are one iteration away from a pay-to-win version of Battlefield, and just about everything else.

[Snakespy]

I've bought 5 games on the ONE, all downloaded. It is 26% full now because of that. Until we have terabytes for super cheap, please keep the discs coming!

Which brings up a question. How much $ and how are we going to get more space on the ONE? Probably some $300 external HD that takes up a much needed USB port. This 500 gigs isn't going to last a frikkin year.

If I could have bought a ONE with no kinect for $600 but with 2TBs, I'd be happier.

[Lee_T]

I currenty own a 360 and an outdated PC (sporting a whopping 3.1Ghz AMD phenom and 4gigs of RAM) I see no incentive today to either buy a next gen consoles or buy a new PC. I can't see a game in the next year that will make me drop the cash.

I was looking forward to finally seeing the end of retail for a sector that absolutely doesn't need it

For the moment they need the retail industry to distribute the physical consoles. The retail industry makes most of it's video game money from games new and used. If the console makers made download consoles only the retail industry would look at them funny. I'm not sure the console makers are ready to build their own distribution channels.

I'm guessing this will be moot when all our TVs will have inbuilt PC and Xboxlive and PSnetwork will be steamlike apps. A not so far away future.

[fastitocalon]

Your PS4 is loud? I notice a slight disc spin when on a loading screen. The only other noise it makes loudly is the rely clicking when I turn it on. I don't have an Xbox One to compare to though.

Compared to my X1 the PS4 is much, much louder at full load. Like a couple of 120mm fans louder.

[Timman_24]

The fact that the new consoles have a disc still blows my mind. On the publisher/game dev side everyone was expecting no disc. Everyone all the way up to the C-level execs. Big publishers were already starting to work up contingency plans for how to deal with the reality of an app store with a million apps and a loss of control as a result of the absent retail experience.

What's funny is that everyone I know were expecting a disc. I think Sony and MS did a very poor job shifting the market towards digital the few years prior to the next gen launch. They should have brought out much higher capacity consoles years before now with major incentives to buy digital to get people used to getting their content that way so when the next gen came along people would fully expect a disc less system. They didn't properly move the market in that direction and we saw major push back.

I was looking forward to finally seeing the end of retail for a sector that absolutely doesn't need it. The amount of money that could be redirected towards development instead of distribution, and the opportunities for indie game dev at scale were really what I was excited about for a new generation of consoles. Instead we just got longer draw distances and better AA. Whoop-de-doo.

It's hard for me to consider the PS4/XBO "next-gen" when they still have a disc and the $99 Kindle FireTV that can play Android games doesn't.

I didn't care whether the retail sector lost out or not. It wouldn't save me any money as we can see with how Sony and MS manage their digital stores. Same launch price, same price scaling, and very few sales. The thing I like the most are the "free" games given out once a month, but the selection has been rather poor for the last few months with Sony. I actually like picking up used games a year after launch for $5. I did that on a lot of games for 360. I'm not one to have to rush out and get a day-one game, so I like staying a few months/year behind on console. Sony/MS do not like to drop the price nearly as low as I can get used discs for. Space Marine is still 39.99 on Live while amazon has a used disc copy for $1.99 + $3.99 shipping. Hmmmm...

Until they start going crazy like Steam, I'll keep picking up used discs.

I'm still hoping that the Steam Machine can save gaming. Valve is literally he only company with any vision and the only company that cares about games anymore. You know what we are talking about now? The future of console games where games no longer cater to gamers, but instead re-evnision IP to cater "whales" who spend $5,000/mo on worthless micro-transactions. We are one iteration away from a pay-to-win version of Battlefield, and just about everything else.

Indie games are the only thing interesting going on anymore. Activision will be bringing three games to E3 other than skylanders. Three. It's all blockbuster, safe, and totally boring stuff. One is a movie game and the other two are shooters. Yup. Billion dollar company here.

[Squirrel Meat]

I knew they were going to have discs. There are too many countries/places/people who do not have the bandwidth and/or internet speed to make digital the only option. Plus alot of people use their console as their dvd/blu-ray players.
What blows my mind is that they both use slow 5400rpm hard drives. Loading save games on Killzone the first time you load up the game takes almost a minute, its crazy. But then again, im spoiled by SSD's and fast computers so im not too suprised.


I bought a ps4, I really like it but not enough to ditch pc gaming, no sir. I find myself playing Resogun 90% of the time. I tried getting into BF4 but the graphics are so friggin terribad compared to pc that its distracting. And like what was mentioned before, Steam games go on sale so much that paying more than $20 for ANY game seems so yester-generation. Granted there are games that im willing to pay for that I put the time in such as BF4, I have premium which when it came out was a grand total of $100 but that is the exception for me. One of my most played pc games is a f2p-Path of Exile. I even threw in $40 and bought some of the little animation add ons just to support the devs, but that game is such a good example of how f2p should be. The ps4 is supposed to be getting Planetside 2 which will still be f2p, it already has DCUO, Blacklight Retribution and Warframe. Seems thats the way thing are going to continue to go.

I can already tell that the ps4 will be used soley for exclusives and same room co-op type games. Everything else will be through steam.

*edit- the only time I can even hear my ps4 fans is when I dont clean it out after a week or so because of my super long haired cat gets all of its fur everywhere. When I can hear my ps4, its time to clean it out with some canned air. Other than that, its super quiet.

[Astros Fan]

I just got Watch Dogs yesterday for my PS4. I got it on disc, I didn't want to get it on disc, but I was able to get 20% off and buy it for $47.99 because of the gamers unlocked membership thingy at best buy that got changed a few months back. It gives 20% off retail price. I only have it for a month more then I'm never buying it again. They raised the price to like $100 or something, when it used to be only $15 and came with some coupons and stuff. I got my $15 back getting some games.

Anyway, I can usually find better deals on the media by buying disc. However, I do buy older games through PSN when PS+ sales happen, and I never buy disc for a PC. It is frustrating though to have to get up and swap discs, and I should just suck it up and go digi all the way.

I will say one thing and this is about digital books. I can STILL buy my books a heck of a lot cheaper for the good ol' smelly paper version versus kindle or nook. Now that right there is something I absolutely do not get. But that is probably due to some publisher lobby group or something. Until the old guard gets taken over by younger people that have grown up with digital it probably won't change. But paying $14.99 for a digital edition of a book that I can buy at the store for $7.99 + a 15% off coupon from my email is BS.

[taggart6]

We are quickly moving to a world where the very idea of a publisher is pointless for a majority of content since so many people can easily self publish digitally. The only thing holding us back is the outdated publishing system itself.

[Kamakazie]

I will say one thing and this is about digital books. I can STILL buy my books a heck of a lot cheaper for the good ol' smelly paper version versus kindle or nook. Now that right there is something I absolutely do not get. But that is probably due to some publisher lobby group or something. Until the old guard gets taken over by younger people that have grown up with digital it probably won't change. But paying $14.99 for a digital edition of a book that I can buy at the store for $7.99 + a 15% off coupon from my email is BS.

Yeah, that changed some time in the past few years and it's really annoying. Back when E-Readers were still a new thing, you couldn't find any E-Books priced higher than $5, now they're priced same-as or sometimes a few bucks more than paperback. Ridiculous!

[Timman_24]

We are quickly moving to a world where the very idea of a publisher is pointless for a majority of content since so many people can easily self publish digitally. The only thing holding us back is the outdated publishing system itself.

Small projects can easily be self published. Publishers will still be needed for projects that need steady funding. Publishers also bring with them a sense of notoriety that the work has been vetted, edited, and deemed worthy of print/publication. This isn't as big of a deal with video games, but with books it certainly is.

[Timman_24]

Yeah, that changed some time in the past few years and it's really annoying. Back when E-Readers were still a new thing, you couldn't find any E-Books priced higher than $5, now they're priced same-as or sometimes a few bucks more than paperback. Ridiculous!

I agree. I bought a few e-books early on, but now I'm back to buying physical books. I usually get a hardcover on Amazon used for dirt cheap. About half the price of the ebook shipping included.

[Kamakazie]

I agree. I bought a few e-books early on, but now I'm back to buying physical books. I usually get a hardcover on Amazon used for dirt cheap. About half the price of the ebook shipping included.

A lack of space means I still buy eBooks exclusively. I'll only buy a physical copy of something like an RPG sourcebook or a cookbook - something I'll want to use as reference and have easy access to. Even then, I have a shelf full of RPG books but I only bring PDFs to the table for convenience.

[taggart6]

Small projects can easily be self published. Publishers will still be needed for projects that need steady funding. Publishers also bring with them a sense of notoriety that the work has been vetted, edited, and deemed worthy of print/publication. This isn't as big of a deal with video games, but with books it certainly is.

I disagree. Publishers are not the only source of steady funding but are most prominent because of how the business is currently setup. Social funding, private funding, and self funding are becoming more common even with larger titles. The advent of digital publishing tools make it more cost effective to keep the process in house then partner with publishing companies that demand a substantial cut of the profit and ,in some cases, IP.

In the case of launch day problems on AAA titles, same day patches, and early release enrollment programs, I think publisher notoriety is no where near as respected or needed as it was back in the days when content HAD to be working on day of release.