'XBOX ONE' ANNOUNCED!

[Psyfira]

Sorry microsoft, but I want a game console, not a TV tuner that happens to play CoD...

This. Though I suspect we've only seen half the presentation; with E3 in a few weeks they're probably saving the games for then, which makes me wonder why they didn't just save the hardware launch till then and do it all at once but maybe I just don't understand marketing.

Id've rather liked backwards compatibility though. I skipped buying a 360; I thought it was near the end of it's lifespan so decided to wait for its successor instead... aaaand that was 2 years ago. Damn did I misjudge that one. If I do get the new one I'd be waiting a lot longer for the library to build up a bit first than if the old library was available, but I suppose it's not a deal breaker. Though after a presentation about set-top boxes, Sports and Call of Duty (aka 3 things I don't care about), maybe I should go take a closer look at the PS4.

 

[JoostinOnline]

Id've rather liked backwards compatibility though.

Then you'd have kids crying about how it's not powerful enough for their eye candy. Sadly, they probably made the more financially smart decision. Most people these days don't care about content, as long as they can give their eyes cavities.

 

[FAST6191]

I was just thinking, this mandatory install account business is going to screw over the ability to rent games as well isn't it. There will be no reason for a company like gamefly to support this console.

Rental companies are already covered by separate sections of IP law, it might still do an end run around the traditional rental companies though. There are also technological measures that could be taken to allow rentals; as it stands my utilities companies already provide me with a little device I can wander down to various shops and top up with funds much like I would have done for a phone card. Given games consoles are computing devices able to execute arbitrary code at some level and with external facing ports this seems like a non issue.

 

[Hells Malice]

Name is 'XBOX ONE'
- ALL IN ONE ENTERTAINMENT CENTRE No thanks
- Power on with voice command Why?
- Watch live TV with Voice command I'd rather use my fingers
- Instantly switch between games, watch TV, movies, music, web browsing with voice commands - very fast/instant Welcome to Pointless.
- Snap mode Meh
- Skype multi video calls Has a PC.
- 3 Operating systems, Win8 Kernel Again, has a PC
- 40 controller additions/redesigns - new dpad New controller does look sexy
- Rumble triggers that's...kinda awesome actually.
- Dynamic achievements Interesting
- kinect in the box Get the fuck out
- xbox video recorder for games neat
- xbox live "some cloudy stuff" double neat
- EA have fifa, madden, NBA, UFC. EA sports ignite seems to be furthering their earlier stuff sounds awful
- EA -- daily stream of new content no one cares EA
- Forza 5 for xbox one launch, "more at E3" Ew
- Remedy games new IP -- "Quantum break" Never heard of
- MS studios -- 15 exclusive games in first year, 8 are new franchises. Interesting, possibly. Who wants to wager it's 14/15 shooters.
- Social imdb recommendations TV God no.
- Exclusive Halo TV series with Mr Spielberg (who needs a better scriptwriter) at the helm If it's what I think it is this seemed interesting
- NFL is back and fantasy football is still a thing Who cares anymore
- New Call of duty -- DLC at least timed exclusive to the xbox Above
- New multiplayer maps with "events" -- not new but possibly quite interesting Above x10
- "save us master film director and teach us how to tell a story" Wut
- Xbox one not necessarily online only Strike better indicate it isn't...though if it has a built in wireless adapter like it's supposed to, not a huge deal to me personally. As retarded an idea as it is.


/ignores 24 pages of comments

 

[ProtoKun7]

Great name they came up with.

2nd Xbox = Xbox 360
3rd Xbox = Xbox One

That's worse than the iPhone's system.

 

[Foxi4]

The numbering system is a little bit tricky, but there's logic to this insanity.

The original XBox was... well, just an XBox - a DirectX Box. The XBox 360 was named 360 because the idea was that "it revolves around you", the player. The XBox One is named One because it's supposed to encompass all entertainment-related devices into one as well as connect your smart devices together like a hub so that all your entertainment is available from one central device.

...of course the average consumers won't get that unless they're fed it directly via marketing, but hey.

 

[weavile001]

Does anyone get the feeling games are not the main focus of this box?

It's star trek and NBA.

 

[JoostinOnline]

The numbering system is a little bit tricky, but there's logic to this insanity.

The original XBox was... well, just an XBox. The XBox 360 was named 360 because the idea was that "it revolves around you", the player. The XBox One is named One because it's supposed to encompass all your entertainment-related devices into one.

...of course the average consumers won't get that unless they're fed it directly via marketing, but hey.

They should have learned from Nintendo's mistake. The name (combined with bad marketing) led many people (mainly those who didn't bother researching for themselves) that the Wii U is just a Wii with a few upgrades, such as the gamepad. They've been trying to fix that for months.

This is even worse than the name "Wii U" (although it doesn't sound nearly as silly). However, since the Xbox systems don't come along with a preconceived notion of being weak, I'm sure it won't have as big of an effect. It will just take some getting used to.

I can tell you, I'm not going to start calling it "The One". It sounds too much like The Matrix.

 

[Foxi4]

I can tell you, I'm not going to start calling it "The One". It sounds too much like The Matrix.

It is the Chosen system. All devices will become a part of The One. We will all be One. ;O;

...but yeah, you're right with the Matrix part. ;P

 

[chartube12]

I'd be okay about the no used games, if all new games were 19.95-34.99. But I don't see that ever happening. As for the always online part?, Microsoft you're 10-15 years too early.

Pretty much sums up everybody's reactions to the Xbox One.

 

[Nathan Drake]

I've finally taken some time to think about this, and I guess here are my thoughts:

TV, SPORTS, AND COD
The three above things are not what I would ever buy a gaming console exclusively for. CoD can be fun, sure. TV can be entertaining, though I haven't actually watched much TV in the past three or four years that wasn't uploaded episodes from a website, or off a service such as Netflix. Sports, well, that's a mixed market. It's a touch unfortunate that Microsoft is trying to push the idea of sports entertainment in both television and games so hard. Sports are a popular topic, but they're a system seller for very few people. Regardless, none of those are system sellers, yet they were a ridiculously large focus for the entirety of the reveal.

The biggest problem is that this entertainment box has put gaming in the backseat to try to morph all the services we already have into one, likely rather expensive, large and ugly box. I don't even know who they're trying to compete with, and in what market anymore. It's simply sad that Microsoft has deviated so far, trying to make their "game console" into essentially another computer. Sorry, Microsoft, but I can already get a computer that offers a lot of what you're bringing to the table for relatively cheap.

Online game activation, murder of the used games market, and entirely server dependent gaming
WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU MICROSOFT? WHO SAID THESE WERE GOOD IDEAS? If I ever lose my internet connection, no new games. If my live runs out and I can't afford it for a month or two, no new games (consider birthday's, holidays, and other special events here for how one may get games). If I live somewhere where I can't do better than dial up, or where reasonable internet just isn't available at all, no games to begin with. How about them used games though? Gamestop can't even sell them, since the disc is literally just a disc until you activate it. I can't believe they haven't learned from the horrible backlash associated with terrible PC DRM the past few years. Consumers hate DRM. An intense, fiery hatred is associated with it. Limiting what I can do with my purchase just isn't cool.

Now, the biggest problem is server dependence for acquiring games, as well as confirming games. I will acknowledge that I don't believe we've seen anything that has said that you can't play the game offline once you activate it online. What this does though is make it so future gamers will never touch an Xbox One for games. Ever. It won't even be possible for them to. Once the servers go, the Xbox One is totally dead. That is a very legitimate, long term concern. Some gamers have issues affording games actively and end up buying them slowly, sometimes purchasing them years and years down the line (see: people buying SNES games they've always wanted to own but couldn't afford 20 years ago, for example). Then, if Live is required to play a game at all times (which, I reiterate, I don't know if it is), the console is definitely dead for everyone as soon as the servers go. All in all, Microsoft is effectively shooting their own console right out of the gate, watching it bleed to death slowly, hoping to collect on the life insurance policy. It's sad.

So what about the next gen?
Currently, the Wii U seems to be the only console totally focused on gaming, with its core drawback being a very poor name that is still biting them in the ass. Once they recover, they'll be fine, but it's going to be probably another bumpy year until things totally fix themselves. The first party games will pick up the sales though, and as it becomes more clarified for the consumers, third party support will jump back on in droves. I don't know if the Wii U will be the winner of the next gen, but I can guarantee that it will do substantially better than the Xbox one.

The PS4, honestly, I've read nothing about yet except for the brief mentions in this thread. From what I hear, it's still basically a gaming machine with a relatively small focus on the social gaming aspect, especially when compared to the Xbox One. It suffers from the no backwards compatibility thing, which really, has been one of the coolest things about the PS1 and PS2, but if that keeps costs down out of the gate, then it's a very minor grievance overall. After all, a PS3 already isn't a very expensive system to buy brand new anymore.

I'd say that depending on how well the Wii U recovers, the next gen could go to either the PS4 or Wii U. At this point, the Xbox One is undeniably out of the running for anything but third place though.

 

[Deleted_171835]

I'd say that depending on how well the Wii U recovers, the next gen could go to either the PS4 or Wii U. At this point, the Xbox One is undeniably out of the running for anything but third place though.

Not necessarily. The Xbox One may be getting a lot of flack by core gamers on internet forums but the mass-market's reaction to the console still remains to be seen. The Xbox brand is still extremely popular and Microsoft certainly has the money to spend on a huge advertising campaign so you shouldn't count them out just yet.

 

[Nathan Drake]

Not necessarily. The Xbox One may be getting a lot of flack by core gamers on internet forums but the mass-market's reaction to the console still remains to be seen. The Xbox brand is still extremely popular and Microsoft certainly has the money to spend on a huge advertising campaign so you shouldn't count them out just yet.

Fair enough. It'll be interesting to see what Microsoft does.

 

[the_randomizer]

I thought the whole idea on game consoles being created was to you know, play games and only having multimedia options (including online features) as an afterthought. When a company releases a console that forces online activation, cloud storage and not the games, there's something terribly wrong. Using a remote server as storage is by no means infallible.

 

[GBA rocks]

well said

 

[KingVamp]

This had to be done.

 

[kirbymaster101]

so much people clapping....

 

[Guild McCommunist]

I do find it funny in this day and age that people complain about consoles having more features that aren't just games.

Like it doesn't exactly hamper your gaming experience, I understand that the conference wasn't super game focused but that's not to say it won't have as much of a game flow as consoles in the past. I think people just assume that a multifaceted console/conference = less focus on games while in truth it equals an equal focus on games but other focuses on everything else. Gaming is a larger industry now then when it was JUST games 30 years ago. That means that consoles can do more and have more resources at their disposal.

 

[Foxi4]

This had to be done.

...If I were a Moderator, you would be warned for each and every one of those.

That means you would earn a Permaban by now.

What is so great about this guy, I just don't get it, explain!

I do find it funny in this day and age that people complain about consoles having more features that aren't just games.

Like it doesn't exactly hamper your gaming experience, I understand that the conference wasn't super game focused but that's not to say it won't have as much of a game flow as consoles in the past. I think people just assume that a multifaceted console/conference = less focus on games while in truth it equals an equal focus on games but other focuses on everything else. Gaming is a larger industry now then when it was JUST games 30 years ago. That means that consoles can do more and have more resources at their disposal.

I think people are afraid that Microsoft might be losing focus on what's important about a gaming system. As far as the console is concerned, all the interesting bits were released via interviews after the presentation rather than being its main treat.

Now, I dig Multimedia capabilities. I think it's great that I can connect one box to a TV and that box will do whatever I want it to do and more. This is an on-going trend that started with the first CD-Based systems - first it was music, then video, then networking and so on and I'm glad that consoles are becoming entertainment hubs rather than things I just play games on. If they're capable of doing "more than just gaming" then they should go for it, I give them my blessing... but!

It's important not to lose focus of what a console is primarily. Secondly, it's important not to inconvenience your customer. Several innovations they introduce have fantastic potential for doing a lot of good... and an equally big potential for being terrible. Let me enumerate just a few:

1. Full Disc Installs. This is something I've always wanted my PS3 to do. I'll be frank - I'm lazy and if there's an option not to get off my seat to swap discs, I'm willing to take that option... unfortunately I'm not a big fan of Digital Distribution (although lately I do get most of my games on PSN simply because I share them between two systems). The XBox One does exactly that - it installs the game on the drive and bam! You don't have to worry about wear and tear of the laser, you don't have to worry about the condition of the disc - you just play the game... but... You have to activate it. Why? Because if the disc is merely a tool to install software, there is a very real possibility that one disc would be used for multiple installs, and that's unacceptable from a business standpoint. Serials are required, and what better Serials than online ones? Unfortunately, that entails Online checks and that's considered DRM - something users fear and abhour. It's both a blessing and a curse, really.
2. Kinect 2.0. Isn't it cool how it's not at all like Kinect 1.0? You still play with the (greatly enhanced) controller... but additionally the XBox One sees your body movement and listens to your voice. You can shield yourself with your arms, you can give voice commands to comerades in arms, be it player-controlled or AI-controlled, you can point at waypoints, you can swipe and snap on Metro App's to your games, you can do multiple things side-by-side, controlled both with the controller and with your hands... but that means the Kinect is a must - the system won't work without it. To me, it's a silly complaint - the Wii doesn't work properly without a Sensor Bar because it's an integral part of the system, and so is the Kinect 2.0, but it's not considered one yet. Many people think such functionality is useless or even impedes gameplay - it feels very much forced. Moreover, bundling the Kinect 2.0 to every system is going to ramp up the price big time - what could've been an affordable do-it-all system may and up being expensive for the sake of features many users will ignore.

...and that's just two points. The XBox One is very different from its predecessor and difference is what breeds anxiety, sometimes hostility.

 

[Gahars]

This had to be done.

King, you're a fine guy, I like you, but it needs to be said - you post the absolute worst videos.

Please, no more, I beg of you. I just want to get off this wild ride.