The Twits.

[demiurgent]

These are the twits I twitted.

• 19:34 I... god, this is so hard to type... I... think the XBox 360 is a better game and entertainment system than the Wii. Way, way better. #

Comments

[troutman.livejournal.com]

Perhaps. But they still won't. They're already selling $400 consoles at a LOSS - a loss they AREN'T making up in software sales like every company is supposed to.

I know I'm coming off as argumentative, but I actually DO like the PS3. It's the best piece of hardware on the market. But the user base is small, the price is too high, and Microsoft's exclusive titles TROUNCE Sony's in sales. Blu-Ray might give it some legs, but in this generation of gaming, Sony is done. They can't make up over three years of losing.

In any event, it's all about price. Even if the PS3 gets a price cut, it still won't get into a competitive price range with the 360 Arcade's $200. Price is half the reason the Wii did so well for so long. I mean, 99.9% of Wii games are shovelware, but the price (well, and a retarded gimmick) keeps it selling like hotcakes.

[demiurgent.livejournal.com]

The loss is the significant point here. They weren't making money on the consoles when they were more expensive, and dropping the price as a loss leader was necessary to get machines out the door. Further dropping the price would be difficult at any point that the hardware is still anywhere close to cutting edge.

More to the point, the XBox 360 is in the exact place now that the PS2 was last generation. They were the first out, they were the first to a strong userbase, they were the first with a mature and diverse game line, and they're now a given as the platform you need to develop for if you want to make your development money back. The PS3 had a number of mis-steps along the way -- the biggest question was would they end up as this generation's XBox (significantly behind the leader but solid) or would they become this generation's Dreamcast.

As for Blu-Ray? We're seeing the apex of a technology that is itself being transitioned out. That Netflix stream on my television is the future of in-home media distribution, more than anything on a PC or Mac. There will come a day when stores won't have DVDs or Blu-Ray discs, they'll have laminated cards a la game time or points cards for the specific movies or shows, and you'll swipe or input their code into your system to download it. Every major media format had a major niche market driving its early sales into a ubiquitous presence. VHS beat Betamax because VHS would license to porn, so people who wanted their porn at home bought VHS machines, which meant that they bought their mainstream stuff on VHS too. DVD eclipsed videotape as quickly and completely as it did in large part thanks to the anime and other foreign niche markets driving imports and usage. Eventually, everyone had a DVD player. While Blu-Ray's beaten HD-DVD, it hasn't found that killer niche market that must have Blu-Ray. And, with most niche video markets going to direct download or BitTorrent, they're not likely to.

[demiurgent.livejournal.com]

Oh, and give the Wii its due. The games that use the kinetic controller well use it well. WiiPlay, Warioware and the like are really, really fun, especially when you have a party going. A gimmick it may be, but it's an innovative and effective one.

The problem is, now every game that comes out for the Wii needs to use the Wiimote as part of its repertoire. It's like a console that plays Rock Band better than all the others requires everyone to use the guitar and drums controllers to play all the other games too.

However, of all three consoles, the Wii is the only one full on nongamers pick up and play on a regular basis. The XBox 360 and the PS3 are gamer consoles. They're incredibly fun, but they're not a casual commitment even if you consider yourself a casual gamer. Grandmothers play the Wii. Non-gamer Grandmothers, I mean.

[troutman.livejournal.com]

I find that anyone that owns a Wii plays it for a few days (usually just Wii Sports) until the novelty wears off, at which point it collects dust. The only good games for it are first-party, which is pretty much true of ANY Nintendo system in the past few generations. It may be the "it" thing to own, but 99% of its software is shit. Sure, maybe grandma plays Wii Sports when she wanders over, but the novelty wears off fast.