Marek

Microsoft: hey why not buy a Wii?

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Yeah, and Wii will get you lots of chicks!
It totally shows your whimsical, sensitive side. Or somesuch.

:strangelove::hat1::zoid:

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I think that both the PS3 and to a slightly lesser extent the Xbox 360 suffer from the problem of being too costly.

I think that if I asked my mother for 4-600 dollars for a game console, it would result in the "are you stupid?" look.

When you think about it, I mean really think about how much money 400-600 dollars is.... it's a good amount of freaking money.

Consoles went from costing 100 dollars to costing 200 dollars.

I see buying the "lower level" version of either console as not an option, simply because you're missing out on a lot that way.

In effect, we skipped the $300 dollar bracket. (Remember, I just said, I'm not even thinking about the "core systems.")

We jumped right up to the 400 dollar range. Sony jumped to the 600 dollar range.

The most disturbing part of it, to me, is that we haven't even tapped the full potential of the current generation.

One of my friends has always said, "I will never pay more than $250 for a console. If I want to spend $600, I'll just build a new computer."

I think that Sony is too large of a company to be completely ruined if the PS3 fails.

The idea is still slightly worrying. What if the console proves to not be profitable purely because of its insane cost? Would they abandon it for something else, leaving the poor bastards who actually bought one stuck with a 600 dollar machine that isn't supported? What would happen?

I know a few people that are considering buying a PS3. These are people who are interested in games that are part of a series, and wish to continue playing them.

Even so, these people are currently saying, "I'll wait a year for the price to come down."

If everyone does that, it could be problematic.

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That, or those series(es? hard to express plurality here.) will move on to other consoles and continue being awesome with a different home. I'm talking about Third Party only here, of course.

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I actually don't think Reggie is corny. What's corny about him? I'm not asking this in his defence or anything, I just don't see anything of the sort on him.

Oh don't get me wrong, I love him. I was mostly referring to the "I'm about kicking ass, and taking names" line from a couple years ago. It's not so much what he does that makes him seem corny, but what the community has done--"Regginator" etc.

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Haha, the Regginator. Right, I see what you're talking abou, but I always managed to keep the two apart. And frankly, two years ago I was rooting for Reggie as well. Hey, remember the time when Nintendo didn't have a strong Western face? :violin:

Well, General, if I remember correctly, the PS2 was at the time ridiculously priced too, and for a whole year or something it was only to be found at select homes of people who were willing to invest in it. At the time it was a 'prestige' console as well. That all turned around after some price-cuts of course, but I guess it doesn't have to mean the ruin of the PS3. Don't get me wrong; I think it's a preposterous price and I would like to see Sony humbled (reflecting their role in the gaming industry as failed vanguard), but from an objective standpoint they're just repeating what they did with the PS2. It worked then, and they're hoping it'll work now.

It should be noted again that in Europe, everything's about 1.5 times more expensive than in America. Our qualms about prices are magnified accordingly.

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Hey, it's magnified here in Canada too. Despite the fact that our dollar is currently over 90 cents US (highest in a looooong damn time) we're still paying $500 for the what's a $400 Xbox 360 package south of the border.

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I think that Sony is too large of a company to be completely ruined if the PS3 fails.

The idea is still slightly worrying. What if the console proves to not be profitable purely because of its insane cost? Would they abandon it for something else, leaving the poor bastards who actually bought one stuck with a 600 dollar machine that isn't supported? What would happen?

Sony will take the cost hit just like MS did last time around. Sony have gambled billions on this, and their gambling will probably pay off.

Sony gambled that Bluray would win over HDDDVD, and this is looking likely.

Sure there will be some HDDVD titles available, but expect the market not to sell sufficient numebrs of the HDDVD attachment for the 360. Then watch developers decide not to publish to that format, then watch as sony gets its develoepers putting massive FMV sequences into their games.

Sony gambled big time (atleast ten billion) on the Cell processor, eventhough for a while it seemed like it would be a hard chip to develop for. No such problem.

If you think Sony are successful now - you just wait til the Cell processor powers every single consumer electronics device they make. I'd buy shares.

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Found these price comparisons over at ign:

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/643/643170p1.html

Atari VCS launched in 1977 for $249.99 ..................................$811.21 in 2005

Nintendo Entertainment System launched in 1985 for $199.99......$354.91 in 2005

SEGA Genesis launched in 1989 for $249.99..............................$389.67 in 2005

NeoGeo launched in 1990 for $699.99......................................$1041.12 in 2005

Super Nintendo launched in 1991 for $199.99............................$282.21 in 2005

Jaguar launched in 1993 for $249.99........................................$328.69 in 2005

3DO Interactive Multiplayer launched in 1993 for $699.95.............$920.30 in 2005

SEGA Saturn launched in 1995 for $399.99................................$497.66 in 2005

Nintendo 64 launched in 1996 for $199.99.................................$242.75 in 2005

SEGA Dreamcast launches in 1999 for $199.99 ..........................$228.09 in 2005

PlayStation launched in 1995 for $299.99.................................$372.01 in 2005

PlayStation 2 launched in 2000 for $299.99...............................$333.15 in 2005

Xbox Launched in 2001 for $299.99.........................................$325.34 in 2005

GameCube launched in 2001 for $199.99...................................$216.89 in 2005

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Found these price comparisons over at ign:

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/643/643170p1.html

Atari VCS launched in 1977 for $249.99 ..................................$811.21 in 2005

Nintendo Entertainment System launched in 1985 for $199.99......$354.91 in 2005

SEGA Genesis launched in 1989 for $249.99..............................$389.67 in 2005

NeoGeo launched in 1990 for $699.99......................................$1041.12 in 2005

Super Nintendo launched in 1991 for $199.99............................$282.21 in 2005

Jaguar launched in 1993 for $249.99........................................$328.69 in 2005

3DO Interactive Multiplayer launched in 1993 for $699.95.............$920.30 in 2005

SEGA Saturn launched in 1995 for $399.99................................$497.66 in 2005

Nintendo 64 launched in 1996 for $199.99.................................$242.75 in 2005

SEGA Dreamcast launches in 1999 for $199.99 ..........................$228.09 in 2005

PlayStation launched in 1995 for $299.99.................................$372.01 in 2005

PlayStation 2 launched in 2000 for $299.99...............................$333.15 in 2005

Xbox Launched in 2001 for $299.99.........................................$325.34 in 2005

GameCube launched in 2001 for $199.99...................................$216.89 in 2005

Yes, because disregarding inflation, computer/chip/tech manufacturing costs are about relatively the same now as they were then... There is far more tech manufacturing now than there was in the 70s, and even when talking top of the line of chips, the margins should counteract inflation to a certain degree.

Besides, many of those early systems launched WITH games too. Sometimes even more than one (hell, the NES came out with a fucking robot a gun and three games!!) Now we're just getting stiffed.

If you want to compare something, though, compare the price of games in 1986 to 2006. By the above console logic, games should be a hell of a lot more expensive than they are now. But they're not. In fact, they're considerably cheaper -- priced against inflation. So what does that list prove? Nothing.

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Now I remember why I didn't have a Neo Geo, 3DO or Saturn.

Note that the prices still tend to hover around $200-400, not $600.

In reference to what n0wak said about things included with the NES, I'm not sure that Duck Hunt came with the original launch, although my NES came with it and the gun, along with two controllers. It costs $50 for a second Xbox controller. Let releases had the ill-conceived track-and-field pad.

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I think one of the main things that added to the “cool” factor of the PS2 was GTA3, I saw a lot of people going out to buy a PS2 just to play that game. Although GTA 4 will be on both the 360 and PS3 I think that it will an exclusive game that pushes the boundaries in the same way could be what decides the victor of the current generation (if there is one).

I don’t reckon the PS3 will die, as it’ll be a success in Japan. I was expecting it to be more competitively priced to give the Sony Cartel a stronger edge in the DVD standardisation war, maybe they believe their own hype and reckon they’ve already beaten HD-DVD.

I was planning to go for a WiS3 setup but now with the price of the PS3 I’ll have to wait until the price drops. The thought of being able to play virtual fighter 5 online is very tempting as it was always difficult to find adequate adversaries for that game.

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I gotta agree on that one. That, and the fact that they look so much better in 1920 x 1200 vs the crappy resolution on my (non-HD) TV.

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Who's Morticia?

I think it's Melinda Gates. Besides her and Bill, they all look perfect for their respective characters, Gomez/Moore in particular.

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Actually Morticia is Perrin Kaplan, Nintendo woman of some kind.

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Actually Morticia is Perrin Kaplan, Nintendo woman of some kind.

That makes a lot more sense, but she still looks like Mrs. Gates though.

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Holy crap. Allard is the best Fester ever. How have I never realized this before?

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