XBox Released

Gallowglass writes: "Salon has written a review of the Xbox which damns with extremely faint praise." There was a big hoopla in Times Square last night, but apparently no one pied Bill Gates. So, for all you poor souls who lined up to give money to the borg: does it work? Any blue-screens yet? :) Update: 11/15 15:23 GMT by M : Okay, I'm sorry. That's green screen of death, not blue screen.

700Mhz Pong Machine

Can I play pong on it? If Not why not?

anyone else reminded of batman...

The movie with the Riddler? Where he creates these boxes that sit on your TV and take over your thoughts? Are we sure that was Jim Carrey and not Bill Gates in that costume? :)

Microsoft: "What do you want to think today?"

Re:Come on

hmm yeah - I played GTA3 a couple of times on a friends PS2 and whilst it was very very beatiful, inclusing reflections of the secnery in the gleaming paintwork (and I could elect to drive my actual real life car which was kinda wierd)at the end of the graphical amazement, it left me cold - basically - it is *nothing* like driving a car. It may have been a different story with a wheel to steer with rather than that funny joystick thing, but I I'm not prepared to spend the £250 to find out :)

We played some other PS2 titles (which I forget the name of, although one was a Sar Wars title) and I came away thinking "hmm so basically, scenery of one type or another scrolls towards you, and you steer" This seemed the basic premise of most of the games. In some you could shoot things as well, whilst others you just avoided obstacles (snowboarding was one excuse). The annoying thing that all these games had in common, is that you are never *really* in control of your ship/board/car/shopping trolley etc as the game will just not let you move outside of the "approved" area of the scenery. For example, I couldn't fly out of the canyon in the SW game. But there was no apparent reason for this, it was just arbitrary.

The only other basic type involved 2 psuedo 3d avatarsviewed in 3rd person who face off in some osrt of kickboxing fight. The game appeared to be won by pressing everything on the controller at the same time rapidly.

Apparentley, GT3 is hailed as one of the best if not the best console game. Hmm well if a very pretty version of "horace goes skiing" is the state of the art, I'll stick to me PC this time around. With games like Star Wars Galaxies and Planetside from Sony coing next year, it's gonna be a blast.

Before I get flamed by all the console lovers, I should state that I fully recognise that the console has a place - it's damm sight cheaper than a PC for start (My video card cost more than a PS/2), and is more easily accesible by non "hardcore" gamers who just want a bit of a laff with their mates round the TV with the aforementioned beer and pizza, and not to have to spend the first few days of playing any new game, writing macros and message binds, and downloading the essential addons and extra maps you need to play in the "big league" - in many ways, the very flexibility offered by the PC as a games platform provides many more potential ways to cheat. And cheating is what ruins many an online multiplayer gaming experience - just ask any Counterstrike player. These games are effectivley being driven onto the private LAN tournament scene where inspections of the players kit whilst in play are possible leaving just the casual games on the 'net. Serious tournaments are almost impossible on the Internet because of the cheating opportunities available by simply hacking the models or game client. These client mods are undetectable by the server. So, with the "closed" nature of console games (ie you can't write your own config scripts or alter the models, sounds and textures ) perhaps there will be a resurgence of serious Internet based multiplayer play. That is, until the consoles start to look so much like a PC that they suffer the same fate...

OK the ramble factor has reached the "shut up now scoot" stage so I'll not bore oyu any more :)

I withhold judgement until I PLAY it...

I own a PS2 and am quite happy with it. However, I plan on keeping an open mind about the Xbox and the GameCube. Anyone else remember the damning the SNES got when it first came out? And how popular did it get?

another news article

the register [theregister.co.uk] is also carrying a story about this. it talks about the uk release date as well as containing links to sites with more info on where to buy it and where you can test them out.

For a different perspective...

...take a look at C|Net's review [cnet.com] of Microsoft's strategies with the Xbox. Bottom line of their article is that Microsoft has had to put on a completely different face to court developers for their game console, switching from monopolistic tyrant to play-nice we-want-to-help-you-succeed hardware investor. According to the quotes cited, it's worked, too. So far.

Re:XBOX advertisement blitz

All of Halo's graphics are done in-engine. As are Project Gotham: Racing. And Dead or Alive 3. Only Munch's Oddysee showed pre-rendered CG in the commercial.

Kindly get your facts straight.

Re:Hoopla indeed.

Microsoft is acting like a) their entire future is riding on this thing

But it is essentially.. at least, according to Cringley, it's the expansion into new areas like gaming consoles that Microsoft desperately needs in order to keep growing at the necessary rate to avoid going bankrupt.

Look at it from a positive consumer viewpoint -- as previous slashdoters have mentioned, Microsoft are essentially selling a half-decent PC at below cost. Get yerself an X-Box, get Linux running on it, and have a good laugh at them.

A PS2 with different games

I have it. I've played it. The bottom line at the moment is: *shrug*. It's extremely difficult to see how this is any different than a PlayStation 2. If you're expecting something miles beyond the PS2, then you'll be disappointed. From my point of view it's a PS2 with different games.

Halo is Yet Another First Person Shooter. I was expecting something revolutionary. Don't get me wrong, it's fun just like Half-Life and friends are fun, but it's simply other game of that style. It isn't a great leap forward. Arguably it isn't any leap forward.

Re:A PS2 with different games

There is a _major_ difference - the PS2 won't/can't do any resolutions above the NTSC standard 480i. That looks like crap on anything bigger than a 32" tube TV, and pales in comparison to the HD quality games that you can play on a PC. XBOX games are 480p (non-interlaced) at least, and the developers have the option of making them 16:9 - not by letterboxing, but by having more horizontal resolution. This is the #1 reason I've been waiting for the XBOX, as NTSC stuff just looks poor on my 120" FPTV.

Re:A PS2 with different games

Some of the higher quality TVs now will de-interlace incoming NTSC signals, and smooth out the picture by interpolating between the lines.

The result is that the picture looks like it has a higher resolution than it actually posseses.

So having NTSC input isn't as bad as it used to be.

Re:A PS2 with different games

This quote from the Salon article said it best (and I couldn't agree more):

"Have one look at the tanker scene in MGS2," says Keighley, "with the rain falling, the puddles splashing and the wind gushing, all at 60 frames per second. That scene by itself is more cinematic and more realistic than anything I've seen on the other consoles ... Microsoft keeps telling us that Xbox is more powerful than the PS2," says Keighley, "but at least at this point MGS2 is just as impressive looking as anything I've seen on the Xbox. It just goes to show that graphic horsepower and processing speed isn't always what matters -- creativity and artistry can go a long way to making a console successful."

Re:A PS2 with different games

Let's review Microsoft history, shall we?

Netscape 1 sucked on toast
IE1 sucked on toast with cherries on top

Netscape was usable
IE2 sucked on toast

Netscape 3 was great
IE3 was usable

Netscape 4 was big and bloated and didn't add anything useful
IE4 was great

Netscape 5... never happened
IE5 refined IE4 a bit

Netscape 6 sucked, from what I understand to be because it wasn't mature enough
IE6 was yet another refinement

Of course, Mozilla is another story...

Netscape is now yesterday's news and Microsoft is the 800-pound gorilla in yet another area. Netscape lost this battle primarily because they couldn't code as well as Microsoft... and they even had a serious head start (but does anyone really remember what a complete piece of crap NS1 was?)

When Microsoft decides to compete with someone they usually won't win in round 1 (at least if they play fair), but when you're a half-trillion dollar company, you can afford to both throw incredible amounts of resources at a problem and wait a few years for an industry-leading product to gel out of it. If the XBox is "as good" or "about the same" as a PS2 (better than being about the same as a PS/2, I think), then I would bet that the XBox-2 has a good chance to exceed the PS3.

I think the XBox's potential lies in the ability (I would assume) to easily port Windows code over to it. I'm not a Linux programmer, but I am a Windows programmer so that appeals to me. Of course, the day someone ports Linux to the XBox, I will laugh as hard as anyone else.

I'd love to see MAME ported to the XBox... that HD would hold all near-3000 ROMs. To me these days the consoles are more interesting now for the games that are distributed for them, but what they can be hacked to do.

In the meantime, enjoy the games!

Re:I do agree...

Bullshit. Customer buys a computer, it comes with a browser RIGHT NOW: Microsoft Internet Explorer. Netscape 3/4 is 5-6 hours away on a 14.4k modem, IF the customer can stay connected that long, IF they understand how to save files and find what they've saved afterward, and IF they're comfortable launching an installer.

I personally dealt with this problem on the phone with multiple individuals who wanted Netscape between '95 and '98 but just didn't have the means to get it, and their OEM couldn't install it for them because of Microsoft's tactics. In the end, they all throw up their hands and just use IE 3/4 because that's what they had available and they've got better things to do for a week than try to figure out how to satisfy their browser preference.

Then '98 comes out and even people with 32MB memory who had managed to download Netscape under '95 find that they can't "unload" IE, meaning that on their 32MB low-proc slow-disk machines with W'98 Netscape is DOG-SLOW while IE is still usable. End of game.

Not every guy on earth was a techie with a T1 back in '95 through '98 when the switch was happening. Most of the people in the marketplace at the time are CONSUMERS without the knowledge or the technical means to download and install Netscape alongside IE, much less figure out how to change registry entries, etc. to make Netscape the default browser even if sufficient hardware/bandwidth/install skill are available.

I'm not arguing about whether MSIE's win was "fair" or not, but it certainly was not purely on the basis of technical browser merit.

Sad, sad commentary

I personally sent a few stories Slashdot's way (including numerous discussions on hacking the Box) and apparently noone thought them worthy.

The problem here is that people instantly lambash the box without thinking of the ramifications. Basically:

- It's a strong PC with great graphics. In the living room. The centerpiece of the family community.
- It is a console to actually push competition and strengthen games. Other consoles from here on out are going to have to consider putting an ethernet card on board. Or a hard drive. Competition is always good (even non-franchise reliant Sony is getting stale at this point).
- It's just another system. It's not the antichrist. Bill Gates personally doesn't take a cut on each box (in fact, cuts are probably taken out of HIM).

Let's think about that first one a good deal. A real PC. In the living room of thousands of people -- people, additionally, who wouldn't have thought of putting a PC in their living room. Why doesn't this get more people excited? It does for me. Naysayers like to tout X-Filish conspiracy theories about MS owning the world. It's not going to happen. Other companies are going to expand, reject, and strengthen parts of the box with 3rd party peripherals and software. The dream of having some kind of decent server in everyone's house will finally be realized.

Even if you completely reject the box and all it's strong points, you've got to admit THE CONVERSATION IS GOOD. Unfortunately, even with a thousand comments, Slashdot editors won't learn that this is one of the things we want to talk about. And quite frankly, I still like to follow the average Slashdotter's opinion over hype.

your statements don't work

you claim things are good (such as having a PC in the living room or having an ethernet or a harddrive on a console) but you don't explain why these things are good.

i'll tell you my take; both of those things are not good in and of themselves.

i don't have my PC in my living room, it's in my bedroom. the console is in the living room with the TV. i play different games on them, completely different (RTS, RPG on the computer, Gran Turismo, Mario, Zelda, Final Fantasy (which are not RPG IMHO) on the console.)

an ethernet connection on a console isn't some gaming messiah. there are currently no games which i could see benefitting from this on any console, nor any in the future. same with having a hard drive. great, it'd lead to faster and more saved games. dandy. personally i don't run out of space on my memory cards, but that's me. this by itself is not a reason to buy a console.

as this salon article says (and i hate salon), it's the games, stupid. great games sell consoles, mediocre games sell a few as will the flood of adverts that MS has put out.

but in the end, there are no interesting games for the console, thus it is uninteresting and will ultimately fail.

personally, i'm spending $700 on a new computer which has more than twice the power (and 5 times the storage space, and that's nothing) of the X-box. there are actually interesting games for this computer i'm buying; civ3, dark ages of camelot, max payne (which i still haven't played), et cetera.

anyway, this is a dead horse i'll stop beating it.
...dave

Re:your statements don't work

an ethernet connection on a console isn't some gaming messiah. there are currently no games which i could see benefitting from this on any console, nor any in the future.

I share your opinion with PC good for some games, console for others (although, I'll add sports games to the console). Now you mentioned "Gran Turisimo" and I mention "sports" for console. Once you play a game for, say, a month, you understand the AI and what to expect. The only way you get replayability is by playing the unpredictable human opponents. Especially for Racing and Sports games. Ethernet is a messiah for consoles, because I can play my football games over and over again, and still lose, cause there's always a better human opponent out on the net (and the computer isn't a challenge anymore).

Just my opinion.

Re:huh??

One thing to worry about with the HD, tho':

Let's say I'm developing Spankman III: Out of Tissue and I've got some cross-promotional stuff going on with Kleenex and I have to ship by December 12th. It's November 15 and I'm not done.

Without a hard drive, I have to wait to ship until I'm done.

With a hard drive I can ship, even if the thing is still in beta because I can ask you - the player - to download patches later.

The Xbox means one thing to me: PC developers' bad habits can now follow them over to the console environment.

Bad idea.

C O N V E R G E N C E

People here know that I've gone on and on about having a reasonably powerful device in my living/family room to which I can stream audio and compressed video from a home server (hence the need for some kind of standard network connection). It has to be quiet, and not look like a computer.

While we're at it, it would be nice if it would let me browse the web, or perhaps run some online games that are playable at some distance from a relatively large, low-resolution (640x480) screen (though I have an HD-ready high-resolution set, most don't). And you know, all these entertainment devices with their complex controls, some of which have a video output for interactive menus are getting a pain to control. Why can't they provide a web server interface to a device with a browser and appropriate plugins, and just be hubbed into the local room 'net?

The ability to run local entertainment software (i.e. games), networked or not, is a feature that comes for free if we're going to have enough "oomph" to do MPEG2 decoding. While you might want to use it for non-entertainment duties (i.e. checking one's bank acount, or ordering a pizza on-line), work isn't it's primary purpose.

THAT is what the XBox could be. Architecture should be open, so third parties can develop apps/add on hardware for it. Still, it should be useful enough on it's own to justify it's price. Whether the hard disk (if present) and or CD/DVD-ROM is integrated, or outboard (firewire?) is more of a stylistic issue -- today we have A/V receivers as well as separates.

In my search I have come across some neat tech by Sigma Designs (http://www.sigmadesigns.com, http://www.sigmadesigns.com/products/netstream_con sole.htm (watch the damn inserted space), and particularly the iDVD3036 [allwell.com.tw]). So decent convergence products are coming (say 2002).

But, if PC history tells us anything, the ones that succeed will be more open than the one's that don't. Unless Microsoft opens the XBox up architecturally and makes it easy for third party hacker developers, they will be among the convergence also-rans.

Re:Sad, sad commentary

Gimme a break.

Repeat after me: "The whole point of a gaming console is to play games."

Most people don't buy consoles to double as a bloody servers. Sure, it can be done, and there's a lot of hack value there, but dude...get a clue! "The dream of having some kind of decent server in everyone's house" is NOT going to happen with an Xbox. Maybe with a good PC with a good OS, but NOT some mediocre gaming console. Compared to real PCs made in the last year or so, the xbox is by no means "a strong PC".

Lemme turn your argument around a little bit. Hey guys! I'm really excited. My furnace and air conditioner contain a Hitachi H8/3292 microcontroller, which is really a pretty hefty little CPU. I'm gonna hack the thing and run a server on my airconditioner! It keeps me cool in the summer, warm in the winter, it serves mp3s, and is now running Apache! Finally! The dream of running a server can be realized by the masses. w00t!

Bah.

why so negative towards xbox?

Almost every article on the Xbox I see on Slashdot is slanted against them. The Gamecube gets much more coverage and not the nasty slashdot commentary along with the story.

Is this my imagination, or does slashdot take its anti-microsoft bias into everything they do?

I mean really, linking the xbox release with one totally negative article, while other sites have given it a much better outlook.

Please try to be fair here slashdot.

Re:why so negative towards xbox?

Is this my imagination, or does slashdot take its anti-microsoft bias into everything they do?

Well, you had to say it, didn't you? I'm not going to defend Slashdot posters, other gaming platforms, or even myself. What I will tell you is that this isn't restricted to the Slashdot crowd.

Go on over to the The GIA [thegia.com] and read their double-agent columns for a while. You'll get more than a few comments for and against the XBox. The one that really stood out to me though, was this one: YOU BIG BULLY! [thegia.com]

There's the truth right there. Microsoft has had years to get into the game, and only does so now. Why now? Where were they back when I was 13, playing Zelda or Sonic? The problem is, company profiteering notwithstanding, they're making it obvious that's all they're interested in. "Oh look! The gaming industry has lots of money! We can get some of that!"

Not the best way to make friends.

Besides that, have you actually read what the general gaming community thinks about the XBox? I've talked to random people I meet in gaming stores, and I hear the same damn thing every time. "The Xbox is the size of a Buick," or "The controller could kill small children," and even a "Microsoft makes shit, and I won't buy it." These are the very people Microsoft is trying to target, here. What makes you think Slashdot is going to be more forgiving than your average gamer? The Slashdot bias is assumed.

But head on over to Penny Arcade [penny-arcade.com] if you think Salon is being harsh. Dear Sweet Merciful God, this thing is the laughing stock of the entire gaming community, and they seem completely blind to it.

I've been gaming since I was 5. Xbox is a me-too, and I'm not impressed. Go home, little Xbox, I don't want to play with arrogant bastards like you.

Re:why so negative towards xbox?

Is this my imagination, or does slashdot take its anti-microsoft bias into everything they do?

You say this like it's some kind of big secret that the Slashdot crowd's feelings about Microsoft range from mild antipathy to deep loathing. Are you the same guy who visits Macintosh advocacy sites and wonders why there's no positive press on Gateway and Dell?

Hardware reviews from Salon!??

What's next, Ars Technica's take on national health care?? Tom's Hardware celebrity gossip? If you're going to post a hardware review, you should aim a little higher than the online version of "The Nation". Surely someone that knows what they're talking about has reviewed this product?

Re:Hardware reviews from Salon!??

Slashdot's fashion pages will be next.

The reviewer is a contributing editor for gameslice apparently, but considering gameslice has had about 10 updates in the past year, I doubt he's working very hard in that respect.

XboX, WinXP... In the UK know better

[theregister.co.uk]
Check this picture

[virgin.net]
Or this other one

More on The Register [theregister.co.uk]

The true potential for the XBOX

is the hardware itself..

The launch titles suck.. Rehashed fighting/racing/whatever games.. extreme sports, extreme driving, extreme first person shooters with a console controller..blech..

But what we've got is a pc.. Fast as hell nvidia chipset, hardrive, network card, dvd drive..

Tell me someone isn't going to turn that into some cool as hell hardware.. slap a bigger hardrive into, make an mp3 box.. slap an even bigger hardrive into it, turn it into a pvr..

Take it even further.. turn it into the convergence device people have been talking about for the past 10 years.. Except instead of paying 999.99 for it, buy it for 299 (or less when the price drops)..

I think as a piece of hardware its got great potential...

As a console.. well its motsos.. (More of the same old s..t)

lastly.. for your truly rabid anti-ms people..

The XBOX represents the only true way you can DIRECTLY damage microsoft through buying things.. Every unit they sell is sold at a loss.. Buy one.. Hack the hardware.. make it do stuff its not supposed to do.. And don't buy any software for it :)

Okay maybe the logic's a little spurious.. But it sounds good on paper :)

Re:No more BSOD

Um, why has an unqualified picture of an XBox Development Kit* message box been promoted to front page news? All we can glean from this is that the "oct" in the URL implies that it was posted to HardOCP in October. There's no evidence that this is from a unit sold to a consumer. Nor is there evidence that this is from a crashing in-store demo kiosk. [gaming-age.com]**

Michael, this is neither funny nor professional. You're doing more to reinforce Slashdot's reputation as a childish, "M$ sux0rs linux 0wnz j00" site than any hundred Anonymous Cowards.

I've almost never agreed with Jon Katz's editorials. But I've always felt that squelching his opinion by banning him from my front page was wrong. You, Michael, have crossed that line. I'm banning you from my front page. I know that will cut my story count in half, but at least I can read the front page with the resonable expectation that I won't have my intelligence insulted.

*: That's the XDK in "XDK Launcher".
**: Sorry 'bout the annoying pop-unders, but that's the only crashing demo reference I could find through HardOCP on short notice.

The console wars...

Sony seems to think the xbox is going to force them to abandon PS2 sooner than they anticipated....and roll out the PS3...check it out here.

Full Story [gamespot.com]

--GuntherAEPi
"

Get one on eBay

They are really cheap on on eBay. [ebay.com]

And the eBay stupidity begins...

A couple auctions of interest. This one [ebay.com] sold a link to where you can preorder the Xbox for a final bid of $407. Funny, considering the link is in the description and the seller says "If you decide to place a bid, then I will only resend you this website. So if you bid, you will not receive the xbox system, just a link to where you can purchase a x-box".

The other auction of note is here [ebay.com], where the winner gets the box that the Xbox came in. The seller is very clear about the person only getting the box that it came in, yet the winning bid was still $366.

Was a crime committed here? Nope. They were just helping the fool part from his money sooner.

X-Box Linux Contest.

I am giving the domain xboxlinux.com [easywho.com] to the first person to successfully port/install Linux to the X-Box. No cost, no strings except you must be willing to continue work on it and release it to the public in some form.

Oh yeah, I expect Salon to be unbiased with MS.

NOT!

Slashdot editors are really scraping the bottom of the barrel in their overt attempts to bash Microsoft. They do so at any cost, and by that I mean regardless if it makes them look like biased buffoons or not.

Salon is the last place I go for anything remotely to unbiased reporting. Seems Slashdot wants to follow suit.

The X-Box should be judged for what it is, and that is an attempt to offer flexibility to developers to make the games they could only wish to create for the PC. Microsoft or not, I would love to see some real creativity in the market that didn't involve a regular game company.

Can Ms provide that? I don't know, but I won't slight them based upon a Salon review, in fact if Salon bashes them at all I see it as more of a reason to look at the product.

Salon's biased look at innovative games...

Salon is overlooking something very critical. They run down the list of X-Box titles and call them boring and pedestrian, then detail FUTURE Sony titles that will be innovative...

But they don't mention any future X-Box titles which will innovate, other than a dismissive mention of the 2002 lineup which claims to have 'nothing ambitious'.

Are they forgetting that Sega has close ties with Microsoft? Jet Set Radio Future, the first franchise to effectively work cel shading into the game's stylistic approach, is due out for X-Box. In addition, Shenmue, the series which redefined how adventure games and peristent worlds work on Dreamcast, will be an X-box franchise from now on. US gamers will be getting Shenmue 2 on X-box alone.

If you're going to hold one console above another, at least consider all aspects of both, rather than forgetting a key area. That's just good journalism, whatever your preference for gaming platforms or your like/dislike of Microsoft may be.

Other reviews

Here's a few links to other and may be more objective reviews

Zdnet [zdnet.com]
Gamespy [gamespy.com]
Gamespot [gamespot.com]
FiringSquad [gamers.com]
TeamXBox [teamxbox.com]
Yahoo [yahoo.com] 2 [yahoo.com] 3 [yahoo.com]

--
"Can I run a linux cluster of those?"

How does it play DVD's?

This may be a stupid question, but how does it play DVD movies? I mean, obviously it has a DVD-ROM, but where does the software to play it come from? Do you need a boot CD to load up the OS/player, then you swap in the DVD? Or is there a small Windows OS on the hard disk itself that contains a player? If there's a Windows OS on the HD, what's stopping the natural corruption of some DLL's and the player breaking?

Re:How does it play DVD's?

From what I understand you have to buy an extra DVD remote control to unlock the DVD feature. I think all the firmware is built into the base unit, but it needs the IR dongle to be plugged into a controler port to make it function. I guess the Remote is only $30 so its not that bad. Kinda crappy to make you buy one thought (admittedly the DVD on the PS2 is better with a remote.. no wires hanging around. But at least you can use it without one)

My take on the whole thing

I have always liked the editors at Salon and this time is no exception.

What Xbox has going for it...
1 - PS2 is known as a more adult gaming platform. I just bought a PS2 and finding games for my 9 year old daughter is interesting. Maby MS can capitalize it if they are smart.

2 - Should be easy to port PC games to it. Something lacking in PS2/Nintindo worlds.

What Xbox has going against it....
1 - Sony rules the console market right now. Hands down. Nintendo has some a good new platform and more kiddy friendly games. Xbox has to compete with this

2 - Microsoft is used to being able to do what they want because they have a Monopoly. How will management react to situations when they are the small guy. It's like General Moters starting to offer blenders. They are not experts and the people the people who have been making them know a lot more about it and actually listen to there customers.

3 - Lack of vision. Ties into #2. Where's the killer app? Do you really think Gates and Balmer can envision great new games.

4 - Game makers won't produce for a console that hasn't got a proven track record. Why spend millions developing a game for a potential 50 people when I can do it for tens of millions across the world (PS2).

5 - Blue/Green screen of death will put off gamers. I bought a PS2 so I could get away from computer gaming and costant error messages and rebooting. When has anyone ever seen an error message on a Playstation or a Nintendo? I want drop in a game and play it never seeing an error message. PC users are use to getting them and can live with it. Console games don't and won't tolerate it. I gave up PC gaming because I got sick of upgrading video cards, getting more hard drive space, better processors. I just want to drop that disc in and play the game.

6 - The goofy Balmer/Monkey/music crap that the Salon article talked about. If you have to dance around on stage and talk like a motivational speaker your not selling stuff in the console market. When Grand Theft III is released or the next version of Final Fantasy they don't even need to air a commercial. They could send it to the stores and put it on the shelf without a word and it will sell out. Microsoft ain't cool. Sony is, Nintendo is some what.

I could go on and on. I can't see Xbox being anything but a niche market. Microsoft bit off more than they can chew with this one.

Salon investors and editorial slant...

"Just six weeks after receiving a resuscitation investment worth $2.5 million from Bill Hambrecht and Adobe Systems founder John Warnock, Salon secured an additional $750,000 from a group of investors led by former HBO head Michael Fuchs." (http://main.travelwriters.com/articles/view.asp?a rticleID=68) Fuchs is the former head of HBO, part of the AOL Time Warner conglomerate, and is now a Salon Board Member.

Also part of that investor group was Wasserstein Perella Group, Inc., which has done M&A transactions for AOL (http://www.wassersteinperella.com/about/transacti ons.htm).

It's a stretch, but not a BIG stretch. AND this is off 10 minutes of research.

Microsoft is clearly the industry leader...

...when it comes to error messages. That green-on-black look alone is "hip" and "trendy," but the attention to detail shows that Microsoft has put a lot of effort into making the user's error message experience an enjoyable one. In the future, I'm sure we can look forward to more "dynamic" and "interactive" error message paradigms from this "innovative" company.

What an unbiased article... not.

I think this line from the article says it best:

So for the first time, I actually dared to entertain warm thoughts toward Microsoft.

Yeah, no kidding that he doesn't normally like Microsoft. I would never have guessed it from the consistently cynical tone of his article.

I'm no big fan of MS either, but jeez. Would a little unbiased journalistic integrity be appropriate? Hmm.

As it is, I don't think that I know anything more about how good the XBox is after reading the article than I did beforehand -- because I don't even begin to trust the opinions of the journalist with his obvious baggage of preconceptions.

XBox in Canada

I had a look at the Xbox at a Future Shop [futureshop.ca]. They are charging $600Cdn($377US). One of the store clerks was trying to set up a demo machine but it was too big to fit in the kiosk case they had for it. I asked him about playing DVDs on it and he said you could but you had to spend another $50 for the DVD controler and $25 for the cable to connect it to the TV. It comes with one game controler and to add extras would be another $50 each. So now I'm looking at shelling out $825 + $120 in taxes. I said no thanks and walked on which is what I suspect is most Canadians will say.

Xbox crashes

I work at a Best Buy, and our Xbox display unit freezes at least once every two hours, and we have to reset it. ( I usually leave it froze until a customer asks me to reset it, so more people can see that this thing freezes, heh heh). So far our gamecube has not froze once, we can leave it on all day with no problems. The only difference between the display units and the consumer ones is the demo units don't have the hard drive.

Re:Hehe

Um, and the XBox won't. The crashing thing is an urban myth supplemented with pre-launch stories of bad demo CD's crashing (which MS completely reissued).

But if you like FUD, let it flow...