MS Xbox is gaining momentum...unstoppable...

[Guest]

First THIS.

Then the great XO2 Event.

Then Sony talks CELL.

Then Nvidia CEO talks Xbox2.

Now talks about a Capcom buyout and MGS3 XCLUSIVE.

MS wants to support promising new setups


Now putting all these points into context, we can see that MS is very very very aggressive. Sony is sitting back, basking in their 40m PS2 light, not knowing what is gonna hit them soon.

Sony, as usual, is going for their brute force 'crazy' hardware architecture, which could always be delayed.
Xbox2 will likely to use DX10 and NV5A(?) and AMD/nForce and all.
While it may or may not match up against the PS3 this time, you can be assure the familiarity of mature DX API will allow developers to get great results faster(vs PS3). Nvidia will teach IBM something about graphics.

PS3 will likely be the end of Sony dominance, no?


EDIT: The C&VG needs you to be registered.

 

[zurich]

Whoa there, calm down boy.

Just because MS is buying/throwing money around, doesn't mean consumers are

And I at the MGS3 rumour. Even if its true I doubt it'll get published in Japan. MS is going to have to buy Enix & Square outright to crack that market (only reason why Sony is here is because they jumped ship).

I really do have to laud MS's efforts in this market. It just somewhat upsets me that despite all their work, some games still turnout to be complete duds, ie: Dead To Rights. I can only hope that this doesnt discourage the suits too much, because they had the right intentions

Ed Fries is still a very, very bright man. I trust he'll do the right thing (as Ballmer lets him).

zurich

 

[Johnny Awesome]

We see eye to eye, you and I.

Sony is going to win this battle in what will be at least an 8 year struggle, but I still feel that Microsoft is going to win the war. They just have too many resources at their disposal. Sony has enlisted IBM and Toshiba though, so the fight is going to be a good one, but only if IBM is a full-fledged partner of the PS3. Otherwise, Sony doesn't have the financial muscle to compete against Microsoft.

There is a dangerous assumption from Sony fans: that money can't buy talent and "that magic special something" that great games have, but this is a myth. Microsoft is about to show that persistence and money can result in great games.

In the first year from launch through the summer, Microsoft launched about 12 first party titles. Of these, Halo and Project Gotham were successful, and Rallisport and Amped showed some potential for future success. If one in six games that Microsoft publishes turn into hits, then Microsoft is in amazing shape.

This Fall I'd probably pick Blinx and Quantum Redshift as series with potential that will only sell moderately well, whereas MechAssault will be a success. Whacked! and MS Sports will probably do fairly poorly. Brute Force is being delayed to make it that number two success that MS needs, but it's hard to say if it will turn out well.

Going forward, MS has invested heavily in Oddworld, Psychonauts, Rareware, Midtown Madness, Crimson Skies, Halo 2, PGR 2, and so on. They'll be fine in the long run.

The doom and gloom Xbox crowd is mistaken if they think that MS, which has created two winning franchises in 9 months on Xbox is going to abandon the market. It won't happen. Wait until you see the software attach rate numbers this holiday on Xbox. Through the roof.

 

[Guest]

Now, anyone care to tell me what competitive rivals had been bulldozed or overtaken by the sheer might of MS?

IIRC, off teh back of my mind:

Netscape
RealPlayerG2
Winamp3
IBM home OS
Apple Mac
that old Word Processor i cant recall teh name
all other Office Suites

Feel free to add/remove from that list of mine.

 

[zurich]

The thing that Xbox fans/owners have to fear most, isn't Sony or Nintendo, but rather the Microsoft suits (namely Steve Ballmer sp?, MS CEO).

Non-gamer, bottom-figure, profit-driven guys like him are going to look at the expense report, and make an executive decision that would ultimately f*ck everything the Good Guys, like Ed Fries, had been working towards.

Not to say that he'd axe the Xbox, but instead refocus the whole project to make it 'profitable', ie: the $499 TiVo-Xbox-w/Windows XP stupid thing.

If you read 'Opening the Xbox', right from the beginning Gates and Ballmer were quaking in their boots that MS would be investing so much money into something that didn't come with the Windows/MS Office safety net attached.

The tend at MS seems to be 'Integrated For Success', ie: IE4->Win98, Messanger->XP, WMP8->XP, etc. I wouldnt be surprised to see MS try and make a logical leap from profitable, cashcow MS OS/business apps to Xbox in order to boost sales. And if they did, that'd be bad, as it'd loose face amongst gamers.

zurich

 

[Guest]

Kutaragi isnt any much better.
Xbox is already using windows stuffs. No surprise if Xbox2 has WinXP2, Pallandium, .Net and so forth. PS3 is not gonna be just a console anymore too.

MS might not always finish top(they usually do), but you can count on them to still finish a strong second, soon or later.

 

[MrSingh]

Feel free to add/remove from that list of mine.

Please add Nuon and Indrema to that list....

 

[Vince]

Wow, this thread is just a collection of the best and brightest, huh? Why does it not surprise me that Johnney's talking out his ass again?

I could reply point by point, but to what end. This threads a joke.

Microsoft on a roll? Last time I checked, it was 40 to 5 and the gaps widning. Wake me up when MS sells out their original, launch, shipment in japan, ok?

And I at the MGS3 rumour

Hehehehe

 

[Grall]

Feel free to add/remove from that list of mine.

Please add Nuon and Indrema to that list....

Those were hardly killed by M$.

They were either botched from the start (Nuon) or total pipe-dreams (Indrema). I do think Microsoft is a front for world-domination and that Bill Gates is evil incarnate, but they're not behind EVERY crashed hardware launch ever.




*G*

 

[Guest]

Grall, i think MrSingh is joking here.

Vince, i think this thread is pretty valid.

 

[Teasy]

Wow, this thread is just a collection of the best and brightest, huh? Why does it not surprise me that Johnney's talking out his ass again?

Hehe, I'll take a guess, because he does it consistently? Talk about a pom pom waver.

As for the thread itself, I think there are far to many assumptions here and the title is.. well

 

[Grall]

Chap:

So am I.

*G*

 

[zurich]

bah, i think my posts are valid.

 

[Tagrineth]

Now, anyone care to tell me what competitive rivals had been bulldozed or overtaken by the sheer might of MS?

IIRC, off teh back of my mind:

Netscape
RealPlayerG2
Winamp3
IBM home OS
Apple Mac
that old Word Processor i cant recall teh name
all other Office Suites

Feel free to add/remove from that list of mine.

Netscape's making a "return" with AOhelL... and I know a few people who do use it instead of MSIE on Windows.

Even one of my friends who tested and found conclusively that Windows Media Player is more efficient than WinAMP still uses WinAMP.

And I use StarOffice™ myself

 

[Sonic]

Truth be told Win Amp 3 is a major POS. It's too slow and clunky for my tastes, but Windows Media Pkayer is far worse. I will stick with Win amp 2.8, the version that's good for me.

And I usually use Zoom Player for my media needs, it's a program that doesn't ake up much memory space, and it's harldy a resouce hog. Plus it's overall faster than WMP.

Regarding Microsoft and the Xbox, money does talk. Sony knows this better than anyone else, but people who think Sony can't compete with MS have got to be kidding me. If this turns into a Microsoft vs. Sony hardware war in the coming years then I am fairly confident when I say that Sony will win. I just don't see how MS will pull this one off, especially since allthe money that will be thrown around will inevitably be lost. You can't just throw money into the industry and expect to make it back, it takes time and lots of high selling games. Microsoft can always be a success in North America, but I doubt it will ever be more successful than Sony is in any market with the systems. And it has been said before, IBM is looking very heavily in building a worldwide network that goes into the homes of millions. Sony wants this too and that's why they are partners with IBM regarding the CELL technology. Microsoft wants such a network too, but I don't really know if they can compete with IBM who has alot more experience and expertise in the field.

Then again, I also believe IBM will be making a hell of alot more money that MS will in the next 5 years.

 

[Magnum PI]

i use:

*winamp

very efficient ! not like the overbloated windows media player
(i use it with the mad winamp plugin for MP3)

* openoffice

because it's free and it also runs under linux.

* mozilla

because tabbed browsing rules !
because they respect internet standards.
it also run under linux.

* a logitech mouse

i just prefer their mices

at home i use windows 2000 because it's better for gaming.
i use linux too.

at my work i use linux with openoffice and mozilla.

 

[Johnny Awesome]

I'm not sure why Vince has to be so insulting all the time, but I'm sure I'm not alone in noticing it. I don't really have any interest in debating these matters with him anyway, as he seems to believe the console war is a 9 month battle.

Sonic, IBM is formidable and I think they could team up with Sony to pose a serious threat to MS, but it would still be a very good fight. Let's not be naive here.

Zurich

I don't think the "suits" at MS are going to intervene in the Xbox project if they meet their 9 million target by June 2003. I remember when everyone laughed at Window 3.1 and Pocket PC (I was one of them, a big Amiga supporter back in the early 90s), but who's laughing now?

Microsoft is serious about getting into the home entertainment business. They bought Rare, which is a huge signal that they are thinking long-term.

Just because Sony has a 35 to 5 million unit advantage after 9 months, doesn't mean that MS won't be successful at selling 30+ million Xbox units by 2005. I know a boat load of PS2 owners that are either getting an Xbox at $199 or later at $149.

Only 25% of the market has decided which console they want. It's still pretty wide open.

 

[Blade]

While I agree that MS is taking some steps to strengthen their software lineup (Rare, anyone?) it doesn't mean they're going to dominate. Half of the links you posted there were rumors, some of which have been confirmed to be fake.

 

[pcostabel]

I don't think the "suits" at MS are going to intervene in the Xbox project if they meet their 9 million target by June 2003. I remember when everyone laughed at Window 3.1 and Pocket PC (I was one of them, a big Amiga supporter back in the early 90s), but who's laughing now?

You cannot compare the two. The software industry is all about content.
Windows is successfull because of the huge software library.
But in the console market, Sony has the most content. I'm not talking
just about games: they also have movies and music. M$ has very little compelling content that can help them sell an entertainment system.
What was the last M$ movie you saw?

Microsoft is serious about getting into the home entertainment business. They bought Rare, which is a huge signal that they are thinking long-term.

Just because Sony has a 35 to 5 million unit advantage after 9 months, doesn't mean that MS won't be successful at selling 30+ million Xbox units by 2005. I know a boat load of PS2 owners that are either getting an Xbox at $199 or later at $149.

That's the problem. Xbox appeals to hard core gamers, those that are willing to buy two or more systems. Most people only buy one, and if M$
cannot convince single-system buyers to go for the Xbox, they will never
survie, nuch less beat Sony.

Only 25% of the market has decided which console they want. It's still pretty wide open.

Unfortunately for M$, that 25% is made of early adopter, that are more likely to buy multiple systems. The remaining 75% will only buy one.
Guess which one?

 

[CaptainHowdy]

the Capcom rumor was shot down this morning by....capcom..
and the MGS3 rumor is just wishful thinking.