Gamasutra/GDCEurope - Integrating Xbox 360 Features

[AzBat]

Check out this article from Gamasutra titled:

"Postcard from GDC Europe Mobile 2005: Integrating Xbox 360-Specific Features Into Games"

By Simon Carless

http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20050831/carless_01.shtml

It's a pretty good read. Kind of explains of some of things we should expect from Xbox 360 near term and long term. For the latter, one was really interesting. Looks like Microsoft may not have forgotten completely about using Live for storing user data. Since storage medium is "abstracted" the system will "automatically handle future devices."

Tommy McClain

 

[Acert93]

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When ending the talk, Vrignaud also took a couple of questions from the audience on esoteric topics, revealing that, though the Xbox 360 has a virtual keyboard, it does also support USB keyboards.

Pleeease say there is ingame support for a mouse... please. Please?



Maybe if MS does not Sony will. That VGA Monitor 720p / Online / MS&KB combo with a heavy dose of sports and FPS... drool!
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[Inane_Dork]

I like what I read about online game saves. It's about freaking time. That would make the core SKU completely viable on its own (not trying to start ANOTHER one of THOSE threads, mind you).

 

[MoeStooge]

Check out this article from Gamasutra titled:

"Postcard from GDC Europe Mobile 2005: Integrating Xbox 360-Specific Features Into Games"

By Simon Carless

http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20050831/carless_01.shtml

It's a pretty good read. Kind of explains of some of things we should expect from Xbox 360 near term and long term. For the latter, one was really interesting. Looks like Microsoft may not have forgotten completely about using Live for storing user data. Since storage medium is "abstracted" the system will "automatically handle future devices."

Tommy McClain

Did you used to work for the SoundBastards? (PM wasn't working so sorry for being offtopic).

 

[Shifty Geezer]

I like what I read about online game saves. It's about freaking time. That would make the core SKU completely viable on its own (not trying to start ANOTHER one of THOSE threads, mind you).

Which does of course decrease the worth of the HDD model if one has masses of online saves.

From the article :

He also noted a minimum 15 frames per second requirement at all times, partly in order for Microsoft-authored features such as the Guide to function properly.

Is there really any need to set this as a minimum standard? 15 fps is poo, a diabolical framerate that shouldn't feature next-gen. If they capped to 30fps I'd appreciate the move to specifiy a minimum frame rate but this sounds silly!

 

[Guden Oden]

Which does of course decrease the worth of the HDD model if one has masses of online saves.

Not really. You don't need a harddrive to save some game settings, team rosters or whatever, that's always been possible using memory cards and whatnot.

It all depends on the amounts of data that needs to be stored: small amounts might as well be saved remotely, or on memcards. Large amounts such as extra levels/tracks, new monsters/opponents or - gosh - game patches, that would not (easily) fit a 64MB memcard or would have to be re-downloaded each time a game is started up, is best stored locally on a harddrive.

So one does not exclude the other...

 

[Acert93]

Minimum, as the lowst. Games take big dipps sometimes or may have a bad scene. Some games are quite tolerable/enjoyable at 30fps average for most, so a dip to 15fps would stink (grrrrr!) it would not be unexpected at times. Not defending low framerate games, but asking for 30fps minimum when in fact many games may shoot for that as their average--and work quite well at that frame rate--is a little unfair.

 

[pipo]

Finally, Vrignaud explained the broad, optional settings attached to a gamer profile which all games will monitor. These include difficulty levels, Y-axis inversion setting, preferred car transmission type (automatic or manual), and a handful of other extremely common game settings. There is then a requirement that game, on its first boot, checks those optional settings, so if the player always uses FPSes with inverted controls, he will never have to reset it in individual game cases - a welcome innovation for many.

Great stuff.

Good read too. There are lots of clever things in the new dashboard. You can see they spent a lot of time thinking it out.

 

[MrFloopy]

Please excuse my ignorance in this, but do online RPG's not store save game information on the server by default?

I have not had any experience (despite the constant yapping from colleagues at work) with this genre, but i would have thought it was not only logical but necessary security-wise for players state to be saved by the server not locally.

 

[Rodéric]

Please excuse my ignorance in this, but do online RPG's not store save game information on the server by default?

I have not had any experience (despite the constant yapping from colleagues at work) with this genre, but i would have thought it was not only logical but necessary security-wise for players state to be saved by the server not locally.

Sure, but what about updates, patchs and enhancements ?
(Basically any change from the DVD files will need be stored on your HDD or you'll have to download them EVERYTIME you play the game...)

 

[MrFloopy]

Sure, but what about updates, patchs and enhancements ?

firstly, patches:
These would be needed why?

secondly, updates and enhancements:
Ummm... don't have them.

Sounds like a pretty simple solution.

 

[London Geezer]

firstly, patches:
These would be needed why?

secondly, updates and enhancements:
Ummm... don't have them.

Sounds like a pretty simple solution.

Are you being serious?

 

[MrFloopy]

Are you being serious?

Are we talking about a console platform?

Sorry to answer a question with a question, but I had to check we are talking about the same thing.

 

[Arun]

MMORGPs tend to get weekly or monthly updates. Real updates. You CANNOT keep your userbase paying a substantial monthly fee with no new content to justify it, or at least bugfixes that justify the cost of a live team. Any game trying to reshape the industry in that way will fail horribly, unless it is being hypocritical about it; and if it cannot store patches in theory, that's not an option either.

Uttar

 

[London Geezer]

Are we talking about a console platform?

Sorry to answer a question with a question, but I had to check we are talking about the same thing.

Console games have always been seen as "proper" games cause they are released and they're finished, the developers don't have the luxury of patches so they have to release the game finished. If there are bugs, they're screwed. On PC, they can release half-finished games becasue they know they can always release patches.

Now you're telling me that developers for consoles with a large focus on online features won't use that to their advantage and start doing what they've been doing on PCs for years? That's very naive.

Same goes for "updates" or "new levels" or whatever else.

 

[AzBat]

Did you used to work for the SoundBastards? (PM wasn't working so sorry for being offtopic).

Check your Inbox. I didn't realize I had to clean out my Inbox after the forum software change. Hopefully I haven't missed too many PMs.

Tommy McClain

 

[MrFloopy]

Console games have always been seen as "proper" games

Says who? that is as silly a comment as "They can't possibly know how to push a console becuase they are a pc developer", and bordering on the the great punchline "PC gaming is dead".

Now you're telling me that developers for consoles with a large focus on online features won't use that to their advantage and start doing what they've been doing on PCs for years? That's very naive.

And they are going to do this how? Hasn't the rest of the thread (and most of the recent one's on this topic) been about how this can't be done without a HDD as standard?

MMORGPs tend to get weekly or monthly updates. Real updates. You CANNOT keep your userbase paying a substantial monthly fee with no new content to justify it, or at least bugfixes that justify the cost of a live team. Any game trying to reshape the industry in that way will fail horribly, unless it is being hypocritical about it; and if it cannot store patches in theory, that's not an option either.

There is a format for this type of delivery model already existing. It's called a PC. None of your comments fits the direction and market of console gaming.

Unless.........

oh go on guess.

 

[London Geezer]

Says who? that is as silly a comment as "They can't possibly know how to push a console becuase they are a pc developer", and bordering on the the great punchline "PC gaming is dead".

Selective quoting much? If you're going to quote people, do it properly and dont crucify them for the first few words of the sentence.

 

[MrFloopy]

Selective quoting much? If you're going to quote people, do it properly and dont crucify them for the first few words of the sentence.

Sorry, but the premise you put forward (as quoteed) was the subjkect of my criticism, not you.I was inteding to address your quote. please don't take offence, and if you have, my apologies I could have phrased that better.

 

[Rodéric]

I wrote HDD but I meant local storage device (HDD, Memory Card, MemoryStick...).
As a PC user, when I think 'storage device' I just think 'HDD', that's all.

So no more chat about that, it's not the subject of the thread.


MMOG, indeed, don't need big local storage devices to be viable, as PSO (and others Console MMOG) show.