Tag: microsoft

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XBOX One News

Hey remember yesterday when it was reported that Microsoft had finally come to their senses and were no longer making the Kinect a mandatory piece of hardware for the XBOX One? That was a relief huh? Finally you could use the XBOX One to play videogames like a normal person again, not shouting expletives across your living room at people causing you injustices in online multiplayer games, or worried a troll will yell out “XBOX turn off!” in the middle of an epic boss battle? That was pretty great wasn’t it? The best part of no longer needing a Kinect to play videogames means that we no longer need to pay for a Kinect to play videogames. Well, not exactly. Everyone who would buy an XBOX One now that the system is obviously cheaper since Kinect is no longer a requirement take one step forward. Not so fast! Turns out that even though the XBOX One no longer needs the Kinect to function you still have to buy the peripheral with the system.

 

Yes, I wish I was kidding but Microsoft is insisting that the Kinect still be included with every XBOX One. This action is one of “What the hell?” I mean it is widely documented the unpopularity of Kinect and making it optional is a good move but you are still going to force people who don’t want it to buy it? At this time Microsoft has made no comments on the possibility of an XBOX One package without the Kinect, so for the foreseeable future anyone who gets an XBOX One is getting a Kinect. This decision is hard to accept considering that part of what makes the PS4 more appealing is that it costs $100 less than the XBOX One. This was Microsoft’s chance to price the XBOX One more competitively but no apparently Microsoft thinks that everyone needs Short Circuit’s disembodied head whether they want it or not.

 

It gets better though. Microsoft today has announced that 8 of the 21 countries that were supposed to be getting the new XBOX upon launch day this fall will now have to wait until “as soon as possible 2014.” ( Don’t worry though one if those countries is not the U.S. ) Apparently Microsoft is saying they jumped the gun and were too ambitious with their goals. Issues with region specific languages and dashboard content are being touted as some of the larger concerns right now. This is yet another thorn in the side of Microsoft as they try to compete with Sony for the title of top next-gen console. The 8 countries removed from the initial launch window this fall are Denmark, Sweden, Belgium, Norway, Finland, Russia, Switzerland, and Sweden. Previously Microsoft had already announced that Japan would not be getting the XBOX One until 2014. The 13 countries still getting the XBOX One on its original launch day are Austria, Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, Spain, United Kingdom, United States, and New Zealand.

 

While the countries omitted from the XBOX One’s initial launch window aren’t exactly in the biggest gaming markets it still doesn’t reflect well on Microsoft who have struggled greatly with the concept of what they wanted their new console to be versus what the people want their new console to be. Since the XBOX One was revealed last May a fierce war between company and consumer has been waged. Every time it felt like the consumer has won a battle against an unpopular feature on the XBOX One Microsoft has found a way to ruin that victory for everyone. The restrictive DRM was taken away, score one for the consumer, Microsoft takes away their poorly explained family sharing feature, everyone loses. The always online requirement is taken away, now people including soldiers overseas without a solid internet connection can still enjoy videogames in their downtime, then Microsoft announces that a day one online download is still mandatory for the XBOX One to function offline. Most recently with the news that the Kinect is no longer necessary for the XBOX One to function Microsoft insists that Kinect still comes in the box. Are you seeing a pattern here?

 

Microsoft has stated recently that at this years Gamescom event in Germany that they have some big exclusives yet to unveil. One exclusive is said to have something to do with Europe’s biggest franchise of which I am almost certain deals with the FIFA franchise. Hopefully whatever Microsoft does at this years Gamescom its something positive.

 

-Z3R0TH3RT33N

Follow Sonic Mercury on Twitter @SonicMercury and like our Facebook page Sonic Mercury

 

 

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One – Kinect = Win

XBOX fans rejoice! Kinect is no longer mandatory! According to IGN during a recent Ask Microsoft Anything event XBOX Corporate Vice President Marc Whitten has stated that the Kinect is no longer required for the XBOX One to function. You can now use your videogame console for playing videogames just like nature intended. No awkward camera controls, no restrictive DRM policies. The removal of the mandatory Kinect functionality should come as a huge relief to fans as not having the peripheral means that now you should be able to acquire the new machine at a lower price and owners of the XBOX One will no longer have to worry about what happens to their console if the Kinect becomes damaged or broken.

 

The mandatory inclusion of the Kinect 2.0 peripheral for the XBOX One to function was a puzzling choice for Microsoft to make considering that the original Kinect had a fairly high dissatisfaction level among the people who bought it. It is understandable that Kinect 2.0 is supposedly a much more refined device but with the original Kinect’s poor reception among users, a mandated successor to the Kinect for the brand new XBOX One to function seemed counterintuitive.

 

Making the Kinect an option and allowing the XBOX One to function freely without it is the latest in Microsoft’s policy reversal’s. After the removal of the XBOX One’s highly restrictive DRM policies and always online requirements this latest concession from Microsoft is promising for the future of their newest console. The mandatory Kinect was one of the unpopular XBOX One features to survive the post E3 fallout where Microsoft reversed many of its other unpopular features. Microsoft’s direction with the XBOX one has changed drastically since this year’s E3 in June. This is largely in part because of abysmal reactions from the entire gaming community. Its inspiring to see fan feedback affect a billion dollar company like Microsoft so dramatically.

 

-Z3R0TH3RT33N

Follow Sonic Mercury on Twitter @SonicMercury and like our Facebook page Sonic Mercury

 

 

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Nintendo Woes

I am not sure if you know this, but Nintendo has a new console. In fact they have had a new console on the market for about nine months now. The console is called the Wii U. Which is actually similar to the sound a child makes when they are impersonating an ambulance siren. This is kind of a fitting analogy because the Wii U for all intents and purposes is getting very close to being put on life support. ( Brace yourself because here comes a few sales figures. I know its like math but I simplified it you’ll be fine. ) Since its release last November the Wii U has posted sales of about 3.6 million units worldwide. To put things into perspective Nintendo’s previous console the Wii sold 9.3 million units in the same amount of time. If you compare unit sales between December 31st and June 30th of their respective launch years the Wii sold just over 6 million units while the Wii U has sold about 550 thousand units. These numbers are fairly troublesome for a company that wishes to stay relevant in a market where Microsoft and Sony are poised to release two of the most anticipated video game consoles ever this fall. Pre-orders are selling out world wide for both the PS4 and the XBOX One, ( Although it has been documented that Microsoft is intentionally giving retailers smaller inventory of the XBOX One to boost demand. ) there is a lot of hype for these consoles.

 

E3 ( Electronic Entertainment Expo ) was a major publicity event this year for both Sony and Microsoft. Whether it was the surreal moment at the end of Sony’s conference where they openly took shots at Microsoft’s unpopular and poorly explained DRM ( Digital Rights Management ) policies or some very bone headed comments by the then President of Interactive Entertainment at Microsoft Don Mattrick, the XBOX One and the PS4 were all anyone could talk about. E3 is a platform that all video game developers use to publicize new software and hardware for consumers and investors alike to be aware of and excited for.

 

Nintendo has held a conference every year at E3 since the very first E3 in 1995. This year however Nintendo decided instead of a conference at E3 they would air a special pre-taped event about upcoming software and hardware on their Nintendo Direct internet channel. While Nintendo did have a presence at E3 this year, not having a conference feels like a major misstep for the videogames legend. The special Nintendo Direct event underwhelmed most viewers with one of the highlights being Nintendo executives coming out in cutesy cat suits to make light of a new feature coming to a new Super Mario game. I have read that the games actually shown on the floor at E3 were solid games, but without the impact of the E3 conference its hard to think that the games are all that good. If the games are so great why couldn’t they have been shown off at a conference, just like Sony and Microsoft do every year and like Nintendo has done every year before this one?

 

E3 for those of you who are unaware is the Super Bowl of video gaming to many people. There are many other platforms during the year where companies show off videogames and related hardware worldwide but E3 is usually where the big names in gaming bring out the big guns and show off their latest and greatest projects. Few, if any, videogame related events receive anything near the media attention that E3 receives every year and this year was pretty big with the PS4 and XBOX One coming out this fall. Not doing a conference is an acknowledgement, be it conscious or otherwise, that Nintendo doesn’t believe its console can compete with Sony and Microsoft.

 

For Nintendo to remain relevant they have to appear in full force at E3. They can’t opt out of their annual conference to do a “Nintendo Direct” broadcast. Whether its true or not this seems like an action of surrender. The mindset seems to be that they are OK with Microsoft and Sony grabbing the majority of the video game market as long as the the hardcore Nintendo fans keep supporting them. Titles like Mario and Zelda have large drawing power and respectfully are videogame legends, few titles have lasted half as long and still managed to be relevant.

 

The problem is Nintendo only has a handful of these types of exclusive titles. These games are great in their own respects but Nintendo’s apparent refusal to evolve these titles or to develop new IP’s ( Intellectual Properties ) are definitely points of concern. We all love Mario but people are burning out on him. Mario games seem relatively the same since the Super Nintendo days, only now the games have updated graphics and ( sigh ) magic cat suits. Their have been tweaks to the level designs and presentation and the differences may be substantial to the people who actually play them but to people on the outside looking in these games appear more and more like the same old thing. At least Link has received several different character designs over the years to help distinguish one game from the next.

 

The issue isn’t with Mario so much as it is with Nintendo relying so heavily on tired franchises. By the end of this year there will have been 5 Zelda games and 4 Super Mario games released in the last 2 years! Meanwhile 3rd party developers are getting very hesitant to create anything new for the Wii U. Earlier this year an executive for EA ( Electronic Arts ) actually went as far as to say publicly that the console was “crap” and as of right now EA has nothing in development for the Wii U. Most of the 3rd party titles coming to the Wii U right now are bad ports of games from other consoles. Many features like online multiplayer aren’t even being developed for games on the Wii U. Most recently Warner Bros has stated that their upcoming Batman: Arkham Origins for the Wii U will not have online multiplayer capabilities because they want to concentrate development for the largest online multiplayer audiences possible. To add insult to injury large retailers around the world are pulling the Wii U from their shelves in favor of “consoles that actually sell.” ASDA a Wal-Mart subsidiary and one of the U.K.’s largest retail chains will no longer offer the Wii U in their stores. Some Wii U games may still be available in store but if you want the console it will now have to be ordered online from the ASDA website.

 

Another reason why a proper E3 conference was and is so important to the Nintendo brand is that many people think that the Wii U is just a new controller for the old Wii. The fact that Nintendo has failed to properly explain the Wii U to the mass market as a brand new console is unforgivable. This year’s E3 was Nintendo’s chance to clarify to the world what the Wii U is all about and what kind of future consumers can expect with the new console. Instead they chose to stream a special on their own Nintendo Direct of which most casual gamers outside of Nintendo have never heard of or for that matter know how to access. If Nintendo’s faith is in the casual gaming market because of the success of the original Wii then why were the casual gamers excluded? Casual gamers are not looking up a special feed to watch Nintendo’s pre-recorded Direct event.

 

The Wii U itself doesn’t exactly have the highest specs for a console and will be considerably under-powered compared to the XBOX One and PS4. However the Wii U does support full 1080p high definition graphics and comes with an interesting tablet style controller that has a large screen built into the center. The Wii U only has 32 gigabytes of memory but the controller has multiple motion gaming capabilities and other features such as a built in camera. Since basically the dawn of home videogame consoles the console with the highest specs  has rarely won the so called “console wars.” The console with the “killer app” is almost always the one that wins the majority of the market share. In earlier years it was exclusive games like the original Super Mario, or Sonic the Hedgehog that helped a console sell. Nintendo themselves proved one of the most recent examples with the original Wii. The Wii didn’t even have high definition graphics and yet for a while it was outselling its competition at a factor of 6:1.

 

If the Wii U fails is it possible that Nintendo could leave the console market all-together and concentrate solely on software development? Its not likely as of right now. It is possible that the Wii U is mid swan song and if nothing substantial happens with the console soon it could very well be on its way out. Nintendo does have one card up its sleeve though. The Nintendo 3DS is one of the best selling handheld gaming devices of all time. Amazon reported that pre-orders for the handheld doubled that of the Wii in some regions. Currently the 3DS has an install base of about 33 million units. The question now is if the Wii U tanks will Nintendo forget about competing in the home console market and concentrate only on handheld gaming? Maybe Nintendo could use the profits from the 3DS to develop an all new console. Chances are that Nintendo spent a significant amount of money developing the Wii U and that could understandably make them weary of immediately developing a new console even if they can afford it.

 

Most recently Nintendo has released Pikmin 3, a long anticipated sequel to the 2004 Nintendo Gamecube game Pikmin 2. Pikmin 3 does seem popular with Nintendo fans right now and is helping to move some consoles. Something to consider is that even if Pikmin 3 does become a hit, with the high cost of videogame development and the relatively small install base of the Wii U will the success be enough to lure other developers to the console? The Wii U is navigating troubled waters right now. Their is a lot of hype for the PS4 and XBOX One coming out this fall. Nintendo has to bring out the heavy artillery if they want to remain relevant in the home console market and I fear Mario just isn’t enough anymore. For Nintendo this holiday season could be particularly cold.

 

-Z3R0TH3RT33N

Follow Sonic Mercury on Twitter @SonicMercury and like our Facebook page Sonic Mercury

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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TLOU Multiplayer

 

 

The Last of Us online multiplayer is familiar but with enough of a twist to keep things fresh. Elements from story mode such as crafting weapons and listen mode are still present. There are two modes right now although more might be added with dlc. ( downloadable content ) The modes are Supply Raid and Survivors. Each mode consists of 4 on 4 team death matches. Supply Raid mode has a twenty minute timer and a limited number of respawns. You start with your team of 4 plus 20 lives for the entire team. Every time you or one of your teammates die a life is deducted from a shared pool. The main object is to wipe the other team out or have more total respawns than your opponents team when time runs out. Survivors mode has the same 4 on 4 team death match dynamic but the difference is that the mode is split into best of 7, 3 minute rounds, and if a player dies they stay dead until the next round. This makes your tactics into battle all the more important.

 

In each mode supply boxes are scattered throughout the different multiplayer maps. These supply boxes are invaluable for crafting items to help your team win. Anything from molotov cocktails to vicious melee weapons for hand to hand skirmishes can quickly swing the momentum in your favor. Like in story mode resources are limited so again use your items wisely. You can either choose from a preset class or you can create your own class using a limited amount of load-out points to equip your character before an online match. There are various weapons and abilities to equip your online character with. The basic outline is like this. You get 2 slots for guns, a primary and a secondary, 4 or 5 slots for different abilities like “marathon runner,” and 1 slot for a purchasable weapon if you so choose. The purchasable weapon is acquired by spending supplies you collect during matches and does not carry over after a match is finished. You are free to customize within those parameters anyway you see fit as long as you keep within your allotted load-out points.

 

Multiplayer online in The Last of Us is like a game within in a game. No its not as complicated or convoluted as the movie Inception but there is more here than just cut and dry death matches. Upon starting online multiplayer for the first time you will be asked to choose a faction. The Hunters or the Fireflies. This selects your online narrative and effects some minor cosmetic elements in your online experience. After a faction is chosen you are debriefed. Essentially you are given a clan of five people. Your goal is to grow this clan and help it to survive as best you can for a period of twelve weeks at which time help will arrive to save your clan. Sporadically throughout the twelve weeks you are given a list of tasks you need to complete within the multiplayer matches to help your clan survive. Tasks last for 3 days, or 3 matches and can be anything from reviving teammates to downing enemies with a certain weapon. The catch is every time you complete a task if you choose to do the same task again the number of times you have to do said task increases. So say you needed 3 downs with the hunting rifle, next time you will need 6 making it harder to complete within the 3 day window.

 

It is completely possible to fail a task and let your entire clan die. This means you will have to choose your faction again and start from the beginning. So choose your tasks wisely. You can equip guns with silencers at the cost of load-out points. Weapons can be upgraded but only with supplies you collect during matches. You can only acquire your purchasable weapon by spending in game supplies. You also have to collect a certain amount of supplies during a match to keep your clan fed. This adds another dynamic to attacking enemies because you might have a great shot on someone from far away but if you take him down, will you be able to swoop in and pick up the supplies he has dropped to help your clan? Your character has some customization as far as what they wear but they always spawn as a different type of person at the beginning of each match.

 

One thing I will say with The Last of Us multiplayer is that for some reason their seems to be an abundance of trolls. I have played many online multiplayer games before and have never encountered so many trolls. Obviously there are a lot of cool people to play with that make the online experience a lot of fun but I have gone entire sessions in the online multiplayer for The Last of Us where there was someone in every match who took away from my enjoyment of the experience. That aside I know the online game sounds a little complicated but once you get the hang of it, its pretty straight forward and can be a lot of fun and fairly addicting.

 

-Z3R0TH3RT33N

Follow Sonic Mercury on Twitter @SonicMercury and like our Facebook page Sonic Mercury

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The Last of Us

 

 

The Last of Us is an exceptional new title exclusive to the Playstation 3. It is one of the highest rated games of all time. Some have even called The Last of Us the Citizen Kane of Video Games. I have heard to put things in perspective you have to think of it like this, if we were comparing video games to film we would have just reached the Jazz Singer. For those of you who aren’t film buffs and never heard of the Jazz Singer it was the first feature length film in history to have fully synchronized dialogue. In other words the first full length movie where people actually talked instead of having cue cards with dialogue on them. That is pretty monumental when you think about it.

 

A video game, something that literally evolved from two glowing white “paddles” hitting a white square back and forth simulating a rudimentary version of tennis on a plain black screen, has evolved to a point where a “game” has drawn comparison to one of the most iconic pieces of cinema ever. That is a fairly impressive feat to say the very least. It is a testament to the developer Naughty Dog who are no stranger to creating triple A titles with exciting narratives and compelling characters.

 

The Last of Us is a benchmark, a new ruler of which all games will be measured for years to come. I personally really enjoyed The Last of Us because the style of gameplay reminded me of the classic Resident Evil series, by which I mean the first 3 games with Resident Evil 2 being one of my all time favorite games in general. Because I have lost all faith in Capcom, to me this is probably as close as I am ever going to get to those glory days of survival horror. The focus is not about high scores or how quickly you can defeat enemies but instead the focus is on the characters and their stories, emphasizing their personal experiences. The journey is what is important.

 

To fly through a game like The Last of Us is a waste of time and money. If you are someone who doesn’t care about story and only cares about beating levels as fast as you can, don’t bother with this one. That’s not to say that the actual game play is bad in any way because in fact although not exactly revolutionary the gameplay is very well thought out and feels finely tuned. Every action is performed in real time and the game does not pause while you are crafting supplies. I actually had a moment where I was about to be discovered hiding behind a desk by a patrolling guard, I panicked and threw a glass bottle aimlessly across a large room and just when I was about to be discovered the bottle hit the far wall catching the guards attention and he turned to see what it was allowing me to get the slip on him. Moments like this were part of what made the game play so engaging to me. My one gripe, albeit minor, is that in the world presented throughout The Last of Us I feel like setting traps like snares and trip wires makes perfect sense within the confines of the game and in a game so thoroughly realized it feels odd to me that traps weren’t included.

 

I found in the online mode, which I will elaborate more on in a separate article, is that some people, not all but some, from the Call of Duty fps ( first person shooter ) crowd really didn’t seem to enjoy this game. The Last of Us is about the journey of two people twenty years after a global tragedy that saw tremendous casualties. Society has broken down into a world of survivors. Remnants of order still exist but for the most part it is everyone for themselves. Cars lie rusted and dilapidated on highways. Complete towns are deserted. Entire cities are empty. Many people live with an ambiguous moral code where their is a large grey area mostly consisting of the question, “Is it wrong to do something if not doing it means that the people I know, as well as myself will probably die?”

 

Every location you traverse has its own story to tell. There is much to discover in every location. Follow a streak of blood and you may discover the signs of a previous struggle leading you to the fate of some other poor soul that came before you. That person might have a note giving light to why they were there and what they were doing. Explore an empty home and you might find a letter addressed to a lost loved one telling them where to meet up in a quarantine zone only to go into the next room to find a suitcase that someone never finished packing. It is this element that gives The Last of Us its unique spice. This may sound a little strange but the people in the game actually feel human. They have real personalities. Every encounter be it with someone who is friendly or hostile feels like a real life.

 

The violence in The Last of Us is honest. It can be quite vivid but it never feels gratuitous because the violence is in no ways glorified. You never get the sense that your characters enjoy harming others, rather it is an often unavoidable conclusion to some particularly rough situations. The stealth approach seems most desirable in many situations as you want as few hostiles to know of your presence as possible. Supplies are very valuable and as such using them to take down an unsuspecting enemy can be a hard sacrifice to make, especially in a world where you’re not sure if you will be able to craft an item when you absolutely need it. So a simple choke hold, while not nearly as quick as a shiv, is still an effective take down. However with a choke hold your enemy will struggle more and will take more time to subdue. It makes the experience so much more raw. These aren’t soldiers fighting “bad guys.” You are not the ultimate bad-ass. These are ordinary people in tough situations which sometimes come to violent conclusions.

 

Its not all about the violence though. There are many places where the action slows down and you are allowed to take a breath. These moments in the game allow for exposition to give depth to the characters and the world they live in. I won’t give it away but my favorite part of the game was one of these moments. It was a lighthearted moment the two main characters shared while traveling through the ruins of an old building. What The Last of Us does which is so hard to do is incorporate many emotions into this story. Some moments are intensely sad, others can make you laugh out loud, some things will make you angry. It is this rare ability to incorporate all of these different things organically that make the game so great. Each experience adds another layer to the dynamic between the two main characters and you become a little more invested in their outcome. Until before long you find yourself outright rooting for them. The facade of a game fades away and you become a part of the journey.

 

The Last of Us is something you just have to experience to really understand. Its more than some blockbuster movie that you may like, or even just a movie with a great story you really like. Those are passive experiences. In The Last of Us you are actively interacting with the story. The story proceeds because you proceed. Everything hinges on your actions. The reactions happen because you participated. Its not what “I” saw but what “I” did. That is what really makes The Last of Us so endearing.

-Z3R0TH3RT33N

Follow Sonic Mercury on Twitter @SonicMercury and like our Facebook page Sonic Mercury

 

 

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Madden-ness

Football season is coming! In less than two months “America’s favorite pastime” will begin again. I myself am a big football fan, although my devoutness has suffered a bit in recent years due to my suspicion of a WWE like structure being instated behind the scenes and a general distrust of Roger Goodell, but that is a whole other story. The story at hand is video game related I swear.

With every new season of football comes a new iteration of the blockbuster football video game franchise Madden. This year in fact is the 25th anniversary of the first Madden. Honestly that is really commendable considering how hard it is for any franchise to grab hold with an audience, let alone still be relevant a quarter of a century after its original appearance. A new entry in the Madden franchise sells several million units every year. There is of course the dreaded Madden curse which seems to effect whichever NFL player graces the cover of the game each year, if you haven’t heard of it look it up its eery to see how many players have bad seasons the year they were on the cover of Madden.

There is something else though that is beginning to feel more and more like a curse, Electronic Arts’ deal with the NFL to have exclusive rights to make games with the NFL license.  I have grown up with the Madden franchise and once the NFL Blitz arcade style football game started to get stale Madden was the football video game me and my friends would play. Nowadays though I am really sick of the Madden franchise. The ongoing joke is that getting a new Madden game is just getting the old Madden game with a new coat of paint. I think the issue has become worse than that though. With new entry’s into the Madden franchise fans aren’t just getting a new coat of paint, they are getting “innovation.” Sometimes this works well enough, I personally enjoyed a few years back when QB vision was a feature in the game, but last years new physics engine was a mess. Players tripped and fell walking into each other or on invisible objects.

I will say this though, Madden 13 was the first Madden I had played in about five years I really enjoyed after I bought it. Yeah the players on the field looked goofy in between plays but during actual game play I had a good time. Madden was fun again. I could run a play and pass the ball and felt like the game was actually fair in all aspects, offense, defense and special teams. Everything felt balanced. Then like six weeks in there was an update to the game and all of the sudden the ghosts of Madden’s past came screaming back. Linebackers could suddenly jump ten yards again in all directions, receivers couldn’t catch a cold, the game felt broken. Which makes me think that there is a mentality at Electronic Arts, I am sure they would deny because they basically have to, that they don’t have to actually finish the Madden title they are working on because they can always finish it or “fix” the game with a patch down the line.

About a day or two after that first patch last year me and everyone, and I am not exaggerating, everyone I knew stopped playing Madden. We just felt burned again. Finally for the first time in years the game was fun again and just like that it was taken away and all the issues that I just listed in the last paragraph and that most people I have talked with about the Madden franchise, came flooding back. I for one am sick of it.

The exclusive rights deal that Madden and Electronic Arts have together expires this year. It seems most likely that they will simply renew the contract as both parties have done in previous years. I am sure there might be some minor alterations as far as money is concerned between the two but for everyone looking in everything will appear as it has been for what feels like the dawn of time. This isn’t intended to be a rant against the Madden franchise itself so much as it the fact that Madden is the only football video game that you can buy, that’s what sucks. I think that the Madden franchise should continue on, with one condition, Madden is no longer the only NFL licensed video game from here on out.

Competition is exactly what is needed. If Madden had to compete against other games with the NFL license maybe the ghosts of Madden’s past would finally be cured and they couldn’t come storming back with a patch because those bugs still exist within the main Madden code. It would be really refreshing to have a choice when it comes to buying a NFL licensed game. The consumer could finally hold Electronic Arts accountable if they made an inferior product. “This year’s Madden kind of sucks maybe the other franchise is better.” Even if you are a die hard Madden fan you know the game would be better if it was forced to compete with other football games instead of just doing whatever they feel like. I am sure argument can be made that the Madden franchise has innovated over time but I am forced to wonder how much more would have and still could be done if the Madden franchise had some healthy competition.

When researching this topic (I know right? I actually research my topics) I heard a similar argument pop up over and over. The argument basically goes like this. Every other football game with the NFL license has been out of production for almost ten years now even if 2K Sports, EA’s biggest competitor, were to get back the rights to make an official NFL licensed game it would be terrible because they just don’t have a team that is familiar with making a competitive NFL simulation style game anymore. 2K Sports would have to build a new engine from the ground up to make a new NFL licensed game. There is no way 2K Sports or any other game developer looking to make an NFL licensed game could compete with the Madden franchises yearly entries.

Tell you what, that is a great argument if you work for Electronic Arts or are one of their investors. For the rest of us that is some bold bullshit. If by some miracle the NFL, a money hungry billion dollar entity who loves to incessantly control its image and the people associated with said image, and EA, a money hungry billion dollar game developer who loves taking the NFL’s money, somehow fail to reach an agreement and the exclusivity deal between the two companies somehow falls through, (I seriously doubt it will) I can foresee an exciting new era of NFL games on home consoles. Especially now on the verge of a new generation of console gaming with the PS4 and the XBone coming out this fall.

Can you imagine a developer like 2K Sports finally allowed to make an officially licensed NFL game again? Developing a new NFL game from the ground up. Starting fresh. The prospect of a new entry to end the tyranny of the Madden-opoly seems not only liberating but a necessity. You can argue until your blue in the face about how great the Madden franchise currently is, and by no means am I saying its terrible, but there is no way you could possibly say it couldn’t be better. I understand that it would be quite a stretch for any developer to come out blazing with a new NFL licensed video game franchise to compete with Madden a year from now, what about the year after that? or the year after that?

The Madden franchise doesn’t need to go away it just needs a friendly dose of competition. Winning wouldn’t be so great if nobody lost. As long as the NFL and Electronic Arts are running hand and hand all the way to the bank everyone else loses. Is this exclusivity agreement even legal? Doesn’t making Electronic Arts the sole purveyor of an officially NFL licensed video game a monopoly? I am considering starting a petition against this agreement because as long as there is only one “choice” there really are no choices and well that just plain sucks. When it comes to something like games based on sports where there is a yearly entry I think it is paramount to have competition. As the old adage goes “when companies compete consumers win.” I want to win, don’t you?

 

-Z3R0TH3RT33N

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Is Micro$oft’s change good?

(Image courtesy of Christopher Ott and London 1888)

Reaction to DRM Removal by Micro$oft

 

                                                   It is easy to say Microsoft’s removal of DRM or digital rights management from the XBOX One is a good thing. Essentially under the infrastructure that Microsoft was building or had built for the XBOX One people would only be renting games from them. For whatever reason if you could not have gotten an internet connection within the 24 hour check-in cycle the XBOX One as I have stated and many other sources have stated would become a cable box and you would not be able to play any of your games. I know that many of us have internet and we are moving into a more digital era every day.

                          Just the other day though my internet actually did go out. It was out for maybe an hour and a half tops. Not very long really I didn’t regress into some sort of fire worshiping cave man or anything like that but it got me thinking what if I had the XBOX One and that hour and a half was at the end of my 24 hour window? Most people have routines that they are committed to whether they like it or not, jobs, kids activities, AA meetings, and what have you, the point is most people game at similar times each day.Therefore the incident I recently had with the hour and a half of internet darkness is a relatively short time in the grand scheme of things but if I had to go to work the next day, maybe that was my window for gaming that day. It isn’t that uncommon for anyone’s internet to go down here or there and if you are gaming around the same time every day suddenly any hiccup in your service could be potentially fatal to your gaming schedule.  My point is this, with the busy lives we lead, an hour and a half of no internet could mean 24 hours of no gaming for even single player games. That is just plain unacceptable. Penalizing your customers because they can’t get internet is pretty harsh.

                           I totally understand that the online features of the XBOX One could have been, and still could be really cool but to treat your fans like common criminals is pretty unforgivable. Twenty four hour check-ins to make sure that no one is modding an XBOX or region locking the console to even further restrict consumers is not OK. Oh yeah and the XBOX One still comes with the Kinect which can monitor your heart beat in the dark and is you know, programmed to listen and watch you at all times! They say the Kinect now has a sleep function but its still listening for certain keywords to activate your XBOX One.

                            Lets reflect shall we? It is good that seemingly all the militant restrictions the new XBOX One were going to have are being removed. I find it hard though to trust anything Microsoft is doing right now. We all know the changes were made because pre-sales for the XBOX One were abysmal not because they cared what people were saying about the new XBOX One. Let’s be honest, the original version of the XBOX One might as well have been the puzzle-box from the Hellraiser movie and when you turned it on you were sucked inside to meet Pinhead and his Cenobyte friends and he just laughed as hooks attached to chains ripped your flesh while Pinhead said to you “Oh, the sights you will see!” Because the original version of the XBOX One sounded like an absolute nightmare. Don’t buy that line about Microsoft having to take away family sharing too because its not true. That’s Microsoft acting like the snobby rich kids they seem to be lately. It turned out the consumers were smarter than Microsoft anticipated and rejected their absurd proposal to actually buy their insanely restrictive machine, so Microsoft took everything away instead of just the things they should have removed.

                          At this time Micro$oft appears to be floating in the abyss. The fact that no one seemed able to adequately explain the purpose or function of any part of the XBOX One except of course for the Kinect and its eye of Sauron is wholly disheartening. How could no one really explain the functions of things like family sharing? Especially at E3! Where they promised to admonish any reservations people may have had about the infrastructure the XBOX One was going to have. The arrogance towards people who can’t get internet. Its just how? How I ask you? Can one company be so out of touch with the world around them? Did they really think people would want something that required 24 hour internet check-ins to work? Its like Microsoft completely ignored a good portion of the Earth with this internet policy, DRM and region locking the system. Both Germany and Australia have condemned the XBOX One as a monitoring device designed to spy on people.

                           Microsoft is an entity without a country right now and that is how it should be. A lot of bridges have been burned by sheer arrogance and ignorance. I don’t believe for a second that the people at Microsoft are stupid. You don’t become as big as Microsoft by being stupid. Too much of the XBOX One’s release was based on assumptions that clearly should have had more testing with the actual demographic. Their is a lot to prove now. The XBOX brand has been severely damaged  by this mess. Microsoft’s abandonment of DRM is good but the fact that they were willing to drop all the features the XBOX One was going to have raises a lot of questions. The explanations of the different XBOX One features by anyone from Microsoft were inept. For example family sharing still hasn’t been fully explained. How could no one from Microsoft who addressed the public be able to fully explain the functionality and reasoning for the XBOX One’s features? Basically, what was the point of making the XBOX One the way it was? A lot of research and development as well as millions of dollars had to go into developing the XBOX One. Now that Microsoft has flipped on a lot of the things they were implementing as integral to how the new system would operate, do they even have a plan? That is the big question.

                          Microsoft’s rescindment is a victory for the gamers. Getting a corporation to change their mind about anything is pretty impressive. Ultimately Microsoft’s success with the XBOX One is up to the gamers. It is hard to forget though that Microsoft was willing to unleash the XBOX One like Hellraiser’s puzzle box on its millions of fans. Sort of like if you caught Pinhead trying to pass off his puzzle box as the new XBOX One but you caught him so he was like, “OK you got me, here’s the real XBOX One instead. Don’t you want it? I swear its completely fine.” I don’t know about you but I am a bit sketched out that Microsoft would try to implement such harsh rules on its own fans. The people who built the XBOX brand. Its kind of hard to trust anyone who would try such a thing, especially with a device that will be used in your own home for the better half of the next decade.

-Z3R0TH3RT33N

 

 

 

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XBOX 180

Micro$oft has performed a 180

                        News is popping up from many different sources including IGN and Kotaku that Microsoft has rescinded on basically all of its draconian policies. The XBOX One no longer turns into a brick that only plays TV now when you don’t check in online every 24 hours. The XBOX One will now allow offline video game playing, however you will still require an internet connection to initially set it up. DRM is supposedly dead for now on the XBOX One. Region locks have been removed. It seems for the moment anyway that Microsoft has removed all the extremely restrictive features from their newest creation. The Kinect however, still mandatory for the system to function.

Don Mattrick President of the Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft basically said this today, “Nobody wanted to buy our system,” (Look it up, a poll on Amazon yesterday had an overwhelming 95% stating they are buying a PS4 over an XBOX One) Don continues, “because no one wants to buy our system the way it is, which honestly may have had some really cool stuff on it but we acted like such arrogant douche bags about the whole thing we never even tried to tell gamers why we we’re implementing this new infrastructure for the XBOX One. We are going to go back on basically everything we said we were going to do. (KINECT STILL MANDATORY) Everyone seems to really, really, REALLY HATE the policies that we have with our new system and Sony isn’t going to do basically any of them. Given the fact that there is an overwhelming disdain for the XBOX One and I am literally sitting on what is and still potentially could be an XBOX One themed landfill. We here at Microsoft have decided instead of proceeding with what is at the moment a COLOSSAL FAILURE  in the eyes of millions and millions of wallets world wide,  me and my friends stand to lose a lot of cash, I mean ahem, the fans seemed not too fond of some of the XBOX One’s new features and we don’t want to let our fans down so we are going to end DRM”

In an YouTube interview on the Angry Joe Show a representative from Microsoft, “Major Nelson” arrogantly condescended to Joe as he politely asked honest questions about the restrictive nature of the XBOX One. Even going so far as to ask Joe “Don’t you want to come to the future with me Joe?”  Joe wasn’t allowed to finish his answer as the interview was cut short but he later said I do want to go to the future of gaming but I want to own my games not rent them from you.

There are so many things to think about now that Microsoft has rescinded on DRM and most of its other restrictive features. (EXCEPT FOR the always on KINECT which supposedly now has a “sleep mode but its still listening for “certain keywords”) For one thing if Microsoft was so sure that there business model for the XBOX One was the “future of gaming” then why not stick to your guns? Another thing to consider now is that even though it appears that Microsoft is rescinding on its policies we all now know what there real thoughts of the consumers are and where there true intentions lie. They don’t care about the gamers at all. What they wanted was a micro-transaction paradise filled with “free to play” titles, “the first one is always free.” A dystopian future where no one owns there games they simply rent them from Microsoft. “Hey I am not really crazy about this game I just got can I bring it back?” No, well that’s OK I will just give it to a friend. “Your not allowed to have friends unless Microsoft says its OK!” “Hey I am a soldier overseas and after a day full of getting shot at and protecting my homeland I like to come back to base and play some video games, its cool I don’t have any internet connection out here right? I just want to play some single player games anyway.” Fuck you! You want to play video games, buy an XBOX 360 the XBOX One is not for you!

Even though Microsoft has rescinded these absolutely despicable policies.  It is really hard to forget that Microsoft was willing to enforce such brutal restrictions on its loyal fans, the people who built the XBOX brand. The people without whom Microsoft wouldn’t even be here at this moment to release a third console! To top it off the non-existent effort made by Microsoft to politely explain the purpose of its policies, such as implementing DRM or a system that becomes useless if you don’t plug it in to the internet every twenty four hours, and not explaining these features in a way that is easily understandable to the average person is very unsettling. How can you trust them if they can not give you a straight answer? Instead Microsoft’s approach was very arrogant, very condescending. They acted like people should just “lie back and take it” as is so famously quoted now in there Killer Instinct stage demo during there E3 conference. Watch the interview with Don Mattrick and Geoff Keighley on the Gametrailers channel and also watch the interview that Angry Joe did with “Major Nelson” on YouTube they are pretty telling of the mindset at Microsoft upon releasing this abomination into the mass populace.

The only thing I could really think of when considering how Microsoft could be so disconnected from their core audience is that maybe they never actually polled their core audience. Maybe everyone who tested an XBOX One wasn’t primarily a console gamer but a PC gamer and that is why Microsoft actually thought designing the XBOX One the way they did was a good idea. PC gamers are used to DRM with online gaming however they still have a choice as to where to get there games. Ultimately I think Microsoft is not wrong in thinking that the future of gaming is digital. I do however think forcing it down our throats with a smug disposition really was not a great approach. Sony and the PS4 definitely seem like a better ship to be on these days if your a gamer. How will the console wars end up? That is a hard one to answer but its easy to see that Sony and the PS4 have a strong lead, and rightfully so with its gamer friendly culture it seems a much better place to be gaming right now.

-Z3R0TH3RT33N

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Sony’s E3 Conference

PS4

 

                              The Sony conference last night started a little slow. It was reassuring to hear that support for the PS3 and PS Vita were still be very much a part of Sony’s future plans. Many new AAA titles are still appearing and going to appear on the PS3 for at least the foreseen future and not only are a lot of cool new titles are being developed for the Vita such as Batman Arkham Origins and Killzone Mercenary. A new Walking Dead PS Vita bundle will also be coming out soon, with the entire first season of Tell Tale’s Walking Dead video game series available on Vita, along with the second season just announced Walking Dead: 400 Days. Speculation is that with 5 playable characters you might spend 80 days apiece intertwining each characters individual story into one single larger story.  Sony has pledged its commitment that we will see full integration between the Vita and PS4 this next generation of console gaming. We will have to wait and see exactly what that means but it does sound promising.

                                 Next we were shown the actual PS4. Admittedly at first glance I thought it was similar to the XBOX One design and it does bare some resemblance. The PS4 is smaller than the XBOX One, and can lie flat or be stood up like a tower and the PS4 is also angled in the front, I assume to make it go faster. The overall finish is somewhat similar to the XBOX One only the PS4 doesn’t seem to have as many vents as the XBOX One.

                                The beginning of the press conference covered a lot of familiar games that were shown at the PS4 announcement conference back in February. We saw new parts of Killzone Shadowfall which I think is definitely shaping up to be an interesting departure from the original series. We also got to see more of Infamous Second Son, a game that I wasn’t that excited about upon its announcement but this second trailer seemed much more promising delving a bit more into the characters and the direction of the new iteration of the series. Second Son looks great with new graphics and honestly I never really got into the Infamous series but the new characters and the style of the gameplay shown really makes me want to give it a try.

                            Sony’s conference really picked up though when they talked about their commitment to the independent developers showcasing a lot of independent games and there creators. The bullet point on this announcement was the fact that independent developers will be allowed to self publish for the PS4. This is of note because Microsoft has made it clear that self publishing will not be allowed for the XBOX One.

                            Announcements were made for Kingdom Hearts 3 which sounds great and definitely is exciting new in the gaming community all we really saw was a trailer divulging very little about the actual game and what it might entail as far as story of if there even is one yet. Also a bit troubling was at the end of the Kingdom Hearts 3 trailer all was said is that the game is in development. Well the Last Guardian has been “in development” since 2009 and is now in hiatus so that announcement doesn’t sit so well with me now in retrospect. Also announced was that Final Fantasy XIV would be coming to PS4 along with the believed dead game Final Fantasy Vs which is now being re-branded as Final Fantasy XV which again is kind of exciting. Will we ever see it?

                            Sony’s announcement to pair with Gaikai is promising, more promising than the announcement of Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy because those are in the end just software. Two franchises that are equally beloved but without which I think that the PS4 would be able to survive just fine. Gaikai however will be integral to the infrastructure of the Playstation Network allowing for high speed streaming for the entire Sony ecosystem PS3, PS4, and Vita. Gaikai will allow for users to play games while they are downloading, high speed connections for online multi-player games. Gaikai will allow PS4 players to stream a large library of PS3 classics at ease. A promise I think Sony will make good on. Gaikai is not supposed to launch for Sony until 2014 but I think with the potential cloud gaming has to offer gamers, it will be well worth the wait. Playstation Plus will carry over to PS4 with an instant online game collection available to users on the PS4 and the Playstation Network will be full of bonuses as well but multiplayer online will now only be available to Plus users which will cost $5 a month. Drive Club a very impressive looking new car game emphasizing team building will be immediately available to PS Plus users upon purchase of the PS4.

                           The explosions started to happen after that with Sony’s Jack Tretton coming on stage to address the audience about used games. To summarize…”Ahem…You buy the game….YOU OWN THE GAME!!” Sony will not enforce any new policies on the treatment of used games. Once you buy a PS4 game it is YOUR GAME and you do not have to verify ownership online…..EVER!! The crowd, twitter everyone watching went nuts. By the end of this note in the conference you could hear people in the audience cheering PS4! PS4!

                        Then after Sony virtually curb-stomped Microsoft in front of the whole world,  they went on to show a demo for Destiny an impressive looking FPS (First Person Shooter for the uninitiated) MMO(Massive Multiplayer Online) game developed by Microsoft’s golden goose Bungie, the creators of HALO. Not only does Sony publicly lay down the gauntlet against Microsoft they finish off their conference showing off a game made by Bungie looking drop dead gorgeous on the new hardware.

                         Just when you think Sony has finished pummeling Microsoft’s lifeless body up and down the conference hall, they come out “oh yeah, by the way PS4….$399 this holiday season.” BOOM!!! after everything that Sony already did, they are also selling the PS4 a full hundred dollars cheaper than the XBOX One. MIC DROP! Sony just made a statement and that statement as of right now, the Playstation name was built by gamers and we built the Playstation 4, for gamers. The PS4 is the place to be for next generation GAMING.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           -Z3R0TH3RT33N

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Micro$oft

                               Anyone who saw the XBOX ONE reveal definitely has to wonder what Microsoft is thinking. They took a department of their team wholly created for the purpose of home gaming and turned there next big console into a glorified DVR with voice controls and MANDATORY kinect units. Watching the XBOX ONE reveal was like watching Microsoft slowly commit gaming suicide for an hour. Oh I know E3 will change everything. To be fair it is totally within the realm of possibility that Sony can still mess up at E3, but now with the confirmation that  XBOX ONE has to be connected to the internet once every 24 hours for your games to work and you can only lend a game to ONE of your friends, allowing of course that they have been your XBOX live friend for over thirty days makes the next generation of gaming look pretty grim.

-Z3R0TH3RT33N