What you seem to forget is that every generation starts anew on Day 1. It doesn't matter how much Sony loses on each console if they win the gamer mindshare, which is what they're doing right now. Or, more specifically, what Microsoft is losing every second. And these issues do not need to be dealt with on Day 1 either, gaming evolves as we go. Microsoft trying to control the narrative for how these services will be dealt with is going to backfire, you can't control how the market will react, you can't dictate that stuff, it's a fallacy.
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Wired: Hardcore Console Gamers Dont Want Much, Just the Impossible
- Thread starter Piper Az
- Start date
What you seem to forget is that every generation starts anew on Day 1. It doesn't matter how much Sony loses on each console if they win the gamer mindshare, which is what they're doing right now. Or, more specifically, what Microsoft is losing every second. And these issues do not need to be dealt with on Day 1 either, gaming evolves as we go. Microsoft trying to control the narrative for how these services will be dealt with is going to backfire, you can't control how the market will react, you can't dictate that stuff, it's a fallacy.
krypt0nian
Banned
That Microsoft stock fall must have hit Wired employees hard.
HocusPocus
Member
Microsoft's strategy is the correct one, but I'm not sure if they are going to be able to deliver it. Obviously they could have done everything Sony is going to do and then some. They didn't because it was always meant to be an everything box. That's at the heart of everything they have designed / done. A lot more market to appeal to than just hardcore gamers who would probably rather buy a used game than pay full price for a new one. Hrmm... that might be part of the problem 
.
.
The PS4 is different from the PS3 in that Sony isn't going to blow billions of dollars developing an exotic CPU and a brand new disc format. They aren't going to sell it at a $300/unit loss. Oh, and they aren't actually losing any money on gaming now, either, even though they have a flop handheld on the market and are knee deep in PS4 prep.
I find it hard to believe that any of this is new to you.
Yeah. The issue I have with the idea that they're broadening the appeal of the Xbox beyond the core is, exactly what demographic are they appealing to?
If your focus is on the gaming aspects then obviously there would be a great deal of appeal in getting a game console. If you're not that into games then what exactly does the console provide that you can't already get? It's a lot of money to spend on what would amount to a fancy cable box.
When the price of the console goes down, then I can see their audience widening, but that isn't really something they need to worry about at this moment.
la flama blanca
Banned
In time....
Sakura
Member
Fixed that for ya.
Felix Lighter
Member
From my perspective, I would think they would desperately want to appeal to early adopters especially considering the fact that their major competitor is launching a very similar device around the same time. Are the casual public looking to buy a $400-$500 media hub? I'd think targeting the hardcore demographic, desperate for new hardware, would be key at least when your trying to build your user base while the value proposition is at its absolute worst.
PoweredBySoy
Banned
Article sucks.
What gamers want is pretty simple.
I'll admit that the Wii U would fit the bill nicely - if someone would just make some f'ing games for the thing.
On paper the PS4 seems to be right on track, as long as they don't fuck it up with anti-consumer practices and botched developer support.
What gamers want is pretty simple.
I'll admit that the Wii U would fit the bill nicely - if someone would just make some f'ing games for the thing.
On paper the PS4 seems to be right on track, as long as they don't fuck it up with anti-consumer practices and botched developer support.
GregLombardi
Member
Even Wired has fallen to the power of advertising dollars, eh? What gamers want is art balanced with good business. Not art overwhelmed by obsessions with long term profits.
We have to call that "The Original Xbox" now.
Then I shall call this new one the extra crispy.
hardcastlemccormick
Banned
Note the bold. Sony seems to have their shit together for the PS4. Hopefully they don't make the same mistakes.
Mammoth Jones
Member
Microsoft said from the start that their goal with the Xbox was to have a set-top-box in every household. They're on record with this.
After seeing what they did with the 360 (Netflix, ESPN, HBO..etc) it blows my mind that gamers are acting shocked. Especially when a HUGE chunk of 360 owners utilize those features.
FFS, it's going to play games. I think we can all agree on that. Wait till E3. If it's nothing but TV shows on Xbox I'll take it back, but I'm pretty confident it'll be games....
After seeing what they did with the 360 (Netflix, ESPN, HBO..etc) it blows my mind that gamers are acting shocked. Especially when a HUGE chunk of 360 owners utilize those features.
FFS, it's going to play games. I think we can all agree on that. Wait till E3. If it's nothing but TV shows on Xbox I'll take it back, but I'm pretty confident it'll be games....
Well, the writing was on the wall long ago. It is nothing that concerns me because I decided I wasn't going to get another Microsoft console way before all this anti-consumerist shit came to light.
The way I see it though, from a gamer's perspective, it's very much about where Microsoft's priorities lie. It's a game console first and foremost, supposedly. It will be too expensive at this moment in time to conceivably be a set top box for every household.
It was the core gamer that bought the 360 at launch. They were the ones that stuck with it despite the RROD issues and all the other crap they had to put up with. What did Microsoft do? They basically said a big "Fuck you!" to the core and focused on Kinect and the casual market for a while.
I can understand people being a little concerned about the message Microsoft is putting out. Sure, I can see them catering for the core at the beginning, but will they be so focused on them a few years down the line?
I don't think this is the right time for them to be courting the casual market. It's not them they have to win over right now.
Soulscribe
Member
It's obvious from the crazy backlash the One has had that "hardcore" gamers have an obvious insecurity that needs to be addressed. The first post nails this point: "we want a console that plays games as its main function." Why does it matter whether the One's main function is video games or otherwise? If the quality and quantity of games are going to remain the same as the generation prior, then what does it matter whether its "main" function is to play games or whether it's to just be an entertainment device?
The Xbox will always have games. It holds 50% of the industry's capital as a platform and that will continue for many more years to come. The notion that development for the Xbox will drop because it's being advertised as an entertainment machine (not a "non-gaming machine," mind you, but an "entertainment machine") is absolutely ridiculous. Entertainment is an umbrella term. Gaming is part of that umbrella. Advertising the One's TV functionality has no effect on its ability to play games, nor does it hinder its chances of getting developers on its side.
The fact is that we live in an era now where entertainment and gaming aren't mutually exclusive. It's all one in the same. I consider Netflix-watching, Skype-ing, gaming and Youtubing as a unified experience; the PS3 and 360 became MUCH more enticing a buy for consumers because it became a box that housed a plethora of features that people wanted to use.
So yeah, this Wired article has a point. A console can have all the games you'll ever want but if it's being marketed as a cumulative device then suddenly the company doesn't care about your needs. So annoyed with all this backlash against these companies for advertising a console the proper way. Halo and Gears of War aren't going anywhere just because Microsoft isn't headlining them at their conferences.
The Xbox will always have games. It holds 50% of the industry's capital as a platform and that will continue for many more years to come. The notion that development for the Xbox will drop because it's being advertised as an entertainment machine (not a "non-gaming machine," mind you, but an "entertainment machine") is absolutely ridiculous. Entertainment is an umbrella term. Gaming is part of that umbrella. Advertising the One's TV functionality has no effect on its ability to play games, nor does it hinder its chances of getting developers on its side.
The fact is that we live in an era now where entertainment and gaming aren't mutually exclusive. It's all one in the same. I consider Netflix-watching, Skype-ing, gaming and Youtubing as a unified experience; the PS3 and 360 became MUCH more enticing a buy for consumers because it became a box that housed a plethora of features that people wanted to use.
So yeah, this Wired article has a point. A console can have all the games you'll ever want but if it's being marketed as a cumulative device then suddenly the company doesn't care about your needs. So annoyed with all this backlash against these companies for advertising a console the proper way. Halo and Gears of War aren't going anywhere just because Microsoft isn't headlining them at their conferences.
The problem with the plan to have a "all-in-one entertainment/media device for your living room" is already kind of outdated. IMO, Microsoft should've had something like this in mind back in like, 2010 in which tablets, etc. were in their infancy. Then they probably would've stood a chance.
Most people around the world already own one or more of these devices now: Tablets, Smartphones, Roku's, Apple TV's, Google TV's, Smart TV's, DVR's, Blu-Ray players (especially the one on PS3), Skype TV Webcam's (or TV Webcam's in general), & of course, the Wii, Wii U, PS3, & 360 themselves in which most of these devices can already do the same things that the Xbox One is doing right now. And they're not about to shell out $400 or $500 with a Xbox Live subscription just to access the same stuff in which they can already do it on everything else (& for free, I might add).
Well technically, Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo are all giving you that.
The fact that you choose to see something else is completely on you.
Just saying.
Yeah. There are too many devices on the market that provide similar features. Another issue is how many of those features on the Xbox One are behind a paywall? A lot of those features you'd probably get for free elsewhere of course.
darkistheway
Member
The only problem I have with the Xbone is that Microsoft is attacking the First Sale Doctrine. Sure you'll probably be able to sell your games but it will convoluted and only with Microsoft's explicit permission.