Xbox 360 Hardware: Preview and Thoughts

Professor S · 11-03-2005, 12:02 PM

Well, I've been posting thoughts and previews for various Xbox 360 games, but I haven't really touched the hardware. What exactly will you be getting for your $299 or $399 consoles or more likely $499 and $599 bundles?

Well, that answer is complicated. All the stats are located here along with a lengthy but thorough explanation:

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/663/663045p1.html

I won't bore you with all the stats or even my opinion on every little thing (mainly because I don't know what the Hell half of it is or what it does), but I'll hit on a few points.

HARD DRIVE

As everyone know that hard drive is no longer going to be included with the core system. At first I was very (very) angry about this and noted on several occasions on this site that I was basically boycotting the system. Well, I've had time to think it over and I've reconsidered, basically for one reason:

My issue with the hard drive being non-standard was not that I feared being "jipped", I was worried that developers would be disinclined to use it in in their games seeing as not every 360 gamer would have it. Then I thought: "Were developers using the hard drive as more than just a giant memory card when the hard drive was standard?" The answer is an easy "no", and the few that did develop their games around the HD tended to suck out loud. Remember when Blinx was the next big thing? It turns out that having a cat who controls time and does battle with a vacuum cleaner is a bad idea afterall. The HD is necessary for one central function, and this will upset many MS gamers, and that is the fact that you need it for your 360 to be...

BACKWARDS COMPATIBLE

Yes, the 360 will be backwards compatible, but that is with a huge asterisk. You need to HD. Now before you start flipping out about MS gouging you, there is a definite reason why beyond sucking more money out of you, although the money is definitely a factor.

The internal structure of the 360 is completely, and I mean completely, different from the original Xbox. The 360 runs on a three tiered series of 3+ Ghz processors, each with 2 threads for processing information parallel to each other. What this means is that while the capabilities of the 360 dwarf the original, the games also need to developed under an entirely different coding structure.

What all that means to you is that if you want to play an old game on the 360, you'll need to download a "patch" or sorts from Xbox Live that will allow your Halo to run on the stratified hardware. A memory card can sustain enough information for one or two game "patches", but if you really want to open up your old library you'll need the HD to save all of that coding.

SHADING

Yes, the Xbox can push a rediculous amount of polygons and pixels, but the areas that have always been the more important to me when it comes to presentation are Lighting and Sound. Nothing immerses me in a game more that realistic lighting and great sound effects and music. Sound has always tweaked my berries, since the first playing Call if Duty and hearing the uber-realistic sounds of war, and Halo with its foreboding and exciting score (if a game can make me pee myself a little by just cuing music at the right time, its doing something right). The preview didn't go into sound very much, but since the Xbox was the console leader in this area I'll give MS the beneft of the doubt.

Apparently the 360 is a true beast when it comes to lighting. The Xbox was the king of this as well, but from what is being reported the shaders in the 360 make it look downright ancient. Lighting adds life and dimension to a game like no pixel or polygon can. It takes a flat looking game and can make it nearly photorealistic. Even the much maligned Madden 360 footage I've seen is helped out a ton by dynamic lighting effects. If the 360 can do half of what the preview is claiming, it should be a real leap forward.

CLOSING THOUGHTS

I'm a bit more optimistic about the 360 now. While MS probably could have made one system with everything, we also have to remember that they are trying to make a profit. Many of you here delight to post MS's losses when it comes to the Xbox, so you shouldn't then profane them for trying to make one. Also, by even offering the $399 version, they are losing potential profits as the cost of all that is included would greatly exceed the $100 you are paying over the core system. So I view that as a concession to the consumer on their part, but thats debatable I guess.

Mainly I'm more optimistic because of all the speculation about the PS3 pricing. The 360 is looking downright cheap and looks to give you a good amount for the money. If Sony is not careful, they could price themselves out of the next generation, rabid fanbase or no, but I'll wait to pass judgement until the real numbers come out. What about the Revolution, you say? Well I can't count on them to keep ****ing Mario out of my ****ing games, so **** `em.

Null · 11-03-2005, 01:04 PM

Well one of the things about the HD that will begin to be there now that wasnt there as much for xbox is...

the ability to get updates and patches for games. i know many console gamers will say that its just the developers rushing the game and they should take more time to make sure everything is good. but thats just not the case, online games NEED patching, with all the players that go thro and play it and find bugs, exploits and cheats, there NEEDS to be a way to fix thoes problems. No amount of developer time can take care of every problem that will come up in online games.
Xbox gamers started to see just that in Halo2's online, exploits will be found and used.

The more and more games go online, the more they're going to start needing a HD to give the full power of what online games can provide.

Though, for many things, sure developers can make it so people with a HD can use and ones without dont need. more work for the developers tho and might just leave it out all together to save time. However the things like updates on online games can only be done if everyone has the space to save the patches. thats where a HD not stardard hurts a lot.

However this isnt exactly hurting 360 this gen unless PS3 throws a curve ball and sony desides on a HD standard.
And i wouldnt be so optimistic on the price issue just yet. im betting the prices will be even, especially after reading that the latest speculation, which might be from sony itself is that PS3 will be below $400, possible at PS2's launch price point wich was $300. (just for the record, i dont think it will be as low as 300 unless sony releases a core package too) however i guarentee it wont be over $400

and yes dont worry, im trying to find where i read that last be right now.
[edit: Actually its quite easy to find, theres a lot of sites reporting the same thing right now... Engadget has and interesting idea on it, heh and interesting enough at the time they wrote that, it was a couple months before this latest price speculation]
http://www.engadget.com/entry/1234000443056098/
http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3145024

Right now tho, i'd like a 360, however im not spending the money on a console at launch anymore. first years always suck and its just not worth it. i'll reconsider after the first price drop. (goes same for PS3... as for nintendo, maybe in thier 4th year when it gets to $100 and they release the first zelda for it... other then that im tired of the dust collecting machines)

Professor S · 11-03-2005, 01:41 PM

I'm noit buying one at launch either. 1) I don't have the money. 2) ES IV: Oblivion won't be out until the spring and neither will the next Halo or many of the awaited games. I probably won't get one until the summer or fall.

Good to hear about the PS3 pricing. Speculation before was a little rediculous, and I'm glad to see people still have sense.

Null · 11-03-2005, 01:59 PM

i registered to win a 360 from EGM tho. lol. theres a sliiiiiiiiiiiiight chance i could always win it. lol

Xantar · 11-03-2005, 02:53 PM

Like Null, I think the hard drive will become more and more necessary as more games go online. But if Xbox Live gets a 50% adoption rate (which is five times more than it did currently), that's still several million people who won't find much conceivable use for the thing.

My problem with the two packages had less to do with the hard drive and more to do with all the other accessories like wireless controllers and component cables for HDTV being absent from the basic version of the Xbox 360. It wouldn't be so bad if Microsoft didn't ridiculously overcharge for them. But overall, it's not a big deal.

I think Microsoft's biggest problem is that in the process of trying to become profitable (which is certainly a good goal), they squandered some of the good will they built up in this generation. The publicity from the two packages was bad. The MTV unveiling turned a lot of people off, and I'm betting most casual gamers have forgotten all about it by now so that Microsoft essentially gained nothing from it. And I'm not sure that launching early was such a hot idea either. The Xbox 360 is competing against the previous generation when games for the PS2 have never looked better. The result is a generalized reaction of "Meh, I can wait until next year." And the problem with that is by next year, the PS3 will be out and in full swing.

I'm sure the Xbox 360 will produce some nice graphics, but the question is whether they will be better than the PS3's. I really don't know, but they'd better look damn good by the time Sony enters the fray.

Professor S · 11-03-2005, 05:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xantar

The result is a generalized reaction of "Meh, I can wait until next year." And the problem with that is by next year, the PS3 will be out and in full swing.

I don't think the apathy is just Microsoft's problem. Look at these boards. They're dead. We are in the middle of unveiling a new system, and the two other console companies are gearing up for their new consoles, and there is NO HYPE. Last generation the internet was blazing with hype, rumors and stupid arguments. This new generation, which looks to not just be an upgrade but a fulfillment of a promise made last generation, is met with a resounding "yawn".

Well, at least in the more "hardcore" community there is more apathy. I think 360 pre-sales to the general consumer are doing really well (at least in my area, I haven't checked numbers, and where do you find numbers like that?).

I actually think a lot of the apathy is a result of the ground that the PC market has regained. WoW alone has garnered a lot of energy and sales for the PC market, as well as Half-Life 2, Battlefield 2 and others. Its not the only reason, but I think its a part of it.

Xantar · 11-03-2005, 05:11 PM

Well, there's little hype for the PS3 and the Revolution because they're not coming until next year. I think right at this moment, this is Microsoft's show to win or lose because the other two just aren't going to even try to challenge them at this moment.

Although I do notice that there isn't much hype for any current generation console games either, so you may be onto something. There doesn't seem to be a GTA or Halo or Final Fantasy type blockbuster on the horizon as far as I can tell.

I actually find that a lot of PC gamers and PC columnists are saying that the PC games market is very weak right now. World of Warcraft is great and so is Half Life 2, but those were a long time ago. What have PC gamers got to play lately? I'm not sure that Call of Duty 2 is really going to be enough all by itself to generate enthusiasm.