Xbox and Microsoft

[The Lone Wanderer]

I try my best to be unbiased gamer, but I'm playing my 360 less and less because of the poor decisions Microsoft made. A cheap disc drive, the lack of wireless internet adapter (sold separately to make you shell out another $40), lack of Achievement sharing features, wireless controller requires AA batteries. My poor 360 pretty recently had the Open Tray Error which I had to pay to get it fixed and my left analog stick is rather worn from use, so you know I played games on it quite a bit but I'm starting to lean more towards my PS3 now because I've almost never had a issue with it except for one time when my controller needed to be recalibrated, but mostly because I like sharing my trophies on Facebook. I've never been big on multiplayer, with a few exceptions, but I always loved sharing what games I'm playing with my friends. I honestly would sell my 360 if it weren't for a few original Xbox games I still want to play, because back then the Xbox got improved ports of PS2 games even though it was a wideload with a huge controller.

So what's your opinion on the Xbox and Microsoft? Please try not to sperg/fanboy.

 

[_blank_]

Microsoft has been having a helluva bad year recently IMO, and that is putting it nicely. If they hadn't won so many brownie points with western audiences with the 360 last generation, I doubt they'd still have a leg left to stand on after the Xbox One release. However, they have been trying to make amends and while the PSN is still better for the buck, I still still use Xbox Live mostly because I'm used to it and that's where all my gaming friends are. Hardware-wise, it's obviously an older machine, but I'm a person who loves playing games like Earth Defense Force and Deadly Premonition - the shiniest graphics aren't that important to me so long as the game is fun. And although to risk jinxing myself, I have owned two 360s so far, the first I gave to my bro, and neither of which I've ever had any problems with other than a small formatting issue which I resolved in a couple of hours. Controller wise, I've had to replace a couple, but that is mostly because I can be somewhat of an ogre when a game decides to be a dick... and let's leave it at that.

I have a PS3 which I bought nearly a year ago and have a small collection of games for it, but after the credit card scare back in 2011 and Sony's inexcusably poor reaction time to it, I refuse to pay full price for anything from them. I'll probably get a PS4 eventually, but there isn't any reason for me to hop on right now. And as for indie games, that's why I have Steam.

So, tl;dr - I still use Microsoft and Xbox because it's the most convenient and it suits what I want out of a gaming console, and I just flat-out don't trust Sony enough to want them to be my primary gaming provider. I'm not a Hex-bawx fanboy and I have a whole series of gripes with them, but nothing so far that's made me want to give up on 'em. Yet.

 

[Surtur]

For what its worth, the Xbone seems to have little to no problems in its first year, at least compared to the 360. Besides its better to be #pcgamingmasterrace

 

[That Chris Guy]

I try my best to be unbiased gamer, but I'm playing my 360 less and less because of the poor decisions Microsoft made. A cheap disc drive, the lack of wireless internet adapter (sold separately to make you shell out another $40)

Mine's a Slim, so it's already built in. No problems there.

But yeah, the original wireless adaptor was kind of crap. Kind of like how the 360 originally didn't have a built-in hard drive. Stupid mistakes.

lack of Achievement sharing features

Please elaborate. Last I checked, I can share any achievements I get on Facebook if I wanted to. I just haven't - it's not my thing.

wireless controller requires AA batteries.

Not if you get the Plug-and-Play charge kit with it. I got that with all my controllers, since I don't want to shell out dosh for AAs.


I use my 360 a heck of a lot more than my PS3, but they've both had their share of problems. It seems neither of them can handle having to do two tasks at once (e.g: signing in to your account and starting up a game), so they freeze up. Still, the 360 doesn't need to cache the system after an improper shutdown, and it doesn't need to load Achievements from online in order to view them. The worst part of the PS3 is not being able to communicate cross-gaming; that was a huge error on their part.

So yeah, Xbox got the lion's share of my attention last-gen. Might also be because Sony was not unlike Microsoft in the current gen: They were a bunch of greedy, arrogant assholes who thought they could get away with anything. Force feedback? That's old news, our crappy SixAxis is the future! Wii's a lollipop, but wait 3 years and we'll copy it down the road with Move! We don't care about gimmicks, but in this racing game you can use the PSP as a car mirror! They were flat-out awful.

Nevertheless, I haven't bought either of the current gen and don't plan to. I would be more inclined if Sony had a first-party game I liked, and not one that's made by a third-party company who will make a better multiplatform title of the same type somewhere down the line.

For what its worth, the Xbone seems to have little to no problems in its first year, at least compared to the 360. Besides its better to be #pcgamingmasterrace

Well you say that, but the computer I bought in 2010 grew inundated by 2011, barely being able to keep up with low to moderate Battlefield 3 specs, and don't even think about playing the latest gen on it. I've been meaning to buy another, but it's still a shitload of money for such low returns. Only thing that makes it worth it is pirating games, and developers have been trying their hardest to stop you from doing that.

 

[The Lone Wanderer]

Please elaborate. Last I checked, I can share any achievements I get on Facebook if I wanted to. I just haven't - it's not my thing.

Really? Must be hidden somewhere or only accessible when your online. I have the 2012 360 Elite Holiday bundle. I don't even have any 360 games anymore so I don't see why I should go out and pick up an adapter for $40. Plus I was using the AV plugs on a 25" tv, but my boyfriend gave me his 32" and I noticed the picture is very blurry, but again I don't want to shell out more money to Microsoft for an HDMI cable. I wouldn't have minded paying a bit more up front if all the essentials were included like the PS3, but to have to pay extra for that stuff seems like a rip-off to me. Although I only recently got an HDMI cable for my PS3, being my boyfriend's idea.

Not if you get the Plug-and-Play charge kit with it. I got that with all my controllers, since I don't want to shell out dosh for AAs.

I probably would if I had more games for my 360, but as of a week ago I no longer even have one 360 game.

I use my 360 a heck of a lot more than my PS3, but they've both had their share of problems. It seems neither of them can handle having to do two tasks at once (e.g: signing in to your account and starting up a game), so they freeze up. Still, the 360 doesn't need to cache the system after an improper shutdown, and it doesn't need to load Achievements from online in order to view them. The worst part of the PS3 is not being able to communicate cross-gaming; that was a huge error on their part.

As in multiplayer? I never cared not had any multiplayer games really, just a few single player games with multiplayer tacked on. Besides you need Gold for multiplayer IIRC.

Nevertheless, I haven't bought either of the current gen and don't plan to. I would be more inclined if Sony had a first-party game I liked, and not one that's made by a third-party company who will make a better multiplatform title of the same type somewhere down the line.

Same here. I only have a Wii U cause I'm a sucker for The Legend of Zelda. PS4 and XB1 don't offer any games I'm interested in.

Well you say that, but the computer I bought in 2010 grew inundated by 2011, barely being able to keep up with low to moderate Battlefield 3 specs, and don't even think about playing the latest gen on it. I've been meaning to buy another, but it's still a shitload of money for such low returns. Only thing that makes it worth it is pirating games, and developers have been trying their hardest to stop you from doing that.

I have a shitty laptop with 3 GBs of RAM. I had pirated FO3 for PC just to see if I would like it because I had never played Fallout before and I absolutely loved it, but it lagged so bad on my shitty laptop so I went ahead and got the GOTY Edition for PS3.

 

[Surtur]

Mine's a Slim, so it's already built in. No problems there.

But yeah, the original wireless adaptor was kind of crap. Kind of like how the 360 originally didn't have a built-in hard drive. Stupid mistakes.



Please elaborate. Last I checked, I can share any achievements I get on Facebook if I wanted to. I just haven't - it's not my thing.



Not if you get the Plug-and-Play charge kit with it. I got that with all my controllers, since I don't want to shell out dosh for AAs.


I use my 360 a heck of a lot more than my PS3, but they've both had their share of problems. It seems neither of them can handle having to do two tasks at once (e.g: signing in to your account and starting up a game), so they freeze up. Still, the 360 doesn't need to cache the system after an improper shutdown, and it doesn't need to load Achievements from online in order to view them. The worst part of the PS3 is not being able to communicate cross-gaming; that was a huge error on their part.

So yeah, Xbox got the lion's share of my attention last-gen. Might also be because Sony was not unlike Microsoft in the current gen: They were a bunch of greedy, arrogant assholes who thought they could get away with anything. Force feedback? That's old news, our crappy SixAxis is the future! Wii's a lollipop, but wait 3 years and we'll copy it down the road with Move! We don't care about gimmicks, but in this racing game you can use the PSP as a car mirror! They were flat-out awful.

Nevertheless, I haven't bought either of the current gen and don't plan to. I would be more inclined if Sony had a first-party game I liked, and not one that's made by a third-party company who will make a better multiplatform title of the same type somewhere down the line.



Well you say that, but the computer I bought in 2010 grew inundated by 2011, barely being able to keep up with low to moderate Battlefield 3 specs, and don't even think about playing the latest gen on it. I've been meaning to buy another, but it's still a shitload of money for such low returns. Only thing that makes it worth it is pirating games, and developers have been trying their hardest to stop you from doing that.

Its why you buy the high end stuff. My R9 290 is a year old and still maxes out the newest games. A mid to high end rig should last you a few years.

 

[That Chris Guy]

Stuff *condensed for page space*

Well if you don't own a single 360 game or play online multiplayer, then I'd have to say that it's not very surprising at all that you're not using it. Regardless, you shouldn't commit money to a console you're not going to use, and in hindsight, I probably should have bought all the third-party games I had on the PS3 for the 360 instead; I probably would have played them more as a result. MGS4 was worth the console though, at the time.

Its why you buy the high end stuff. My R9 290 is a year old and still maxes out the newest games. A mid to high end rig should last you a few years.

But therein lies the problem: it's only ever for a few years, and if you're doing things by the books and buying what you play, you better be making some damn good use of that backlog, because I can sacrifice the highest-end graphics if I can get it on a console instead without any fuss.

Being thoroughly exhausted of MMOs, the only thing the PC has over consoles for me is RTS, and lately that genre has taken a nosedive in terms of good games. It's very depressing.

 

[The Lone Wanderer]

Well if you don't own a single 360 game or play online multiplayer, then I'd have to say that it's not very surprising at all that you're not using it. Regardless, you shouldn't commit money to a console you're not going to use, and in hindsight, I probably should have bought all the third-party games I had on the PS3 for the 360 instead; I probably would have played the more as a result.

I was actively playing Skyrim until recently. Just got tired of all the bugs and boring fetch quests.

 

[Surtur]

Well if you don't own a single 360 game or play online multiplayer, then I'd have to say that it's not very surprising at all that you're not using it. Regardless, you shouldn't commit money to a console you're not going to use, and in hindsight, I probably should have bought all the third-party games I had on the PS3 for the 360 instead; I probably would have played them more as a result. MGS4 was worth the console though, at the time.



But therein lies the problem: it's only ever for a few years, and if you're doing things by the books and buying what you play, you better be making some damn good use of that backlog, because I can sacrifice the highest-end graphics if I can get it on a console instead without any fuss.

Being thoroughly exhausted of MMOs, the only thing the PC has over consoles for me is RTS, and lately that genre has taken a nosedive in terms of good games. It's very depressing.

Nonsense. You don't need the highest end graphics. A solid mid range card can run any game on high. Hell, I was playing New Vegas on a dual core APU.

 

[That Chris Guy]

Nonsense. You don't need the highest end graphics. A solid mid range card can run any game on high. Hell, I was playing New Vegas on a dual core APU.

I'm not sure if you interpreted it as "highest-end graphics card", but I meant the graphics themselves. I'm a little jaded though, since I've been burnt twice in my PC purchases, where I've bought a brand new "cutting edge" PC and had it floored by the next game on the horizon.

 

[exball]

Well if you don't own a single 360 game or play online multiplayer, then I'd have to say that it's not very surprising at all that you're not using it. Regardless, you shouldn't commit money to a console you're not going to use, and in hindsight, I probably should have bought all the third-party games I had on the PS3 for the 360 instead; I probably would have played them more as a result. MGS4 was worth the console though, at the time.



But therein lies the problem: it's only ever for a few years, and if you're doing things by the books and buying what you play, you better be making some damn good use of that backlog, because I can sacrifice the highest-end graphics if I can get it on a console instead without any fuss.

Being thoroughly exhausted of MMOs, the only thing the PC has over consoles for me is RTS, and lately that genre has taken a nosedive in terms of good games. It's very depressing.

But you're paying at least half the cost of high end computer on a console and all you can do on a console is play games.

 

[Surtur]

I'm not sure if you interpreted it as "highest-end graphics card", but I meant the graphics themselves. I'm a little jaded though, since I've been burnt twice in my PC purchases, where I've bought a brand new "cutting edge" PC and had it floored by the next game on the horizon.

That's never happened to me. Unless you bought a seriously low end card, you should be fine for a few years. The increase in power each year is not as much as it used to be. Cards are focusing on becoming more efficient.

 

[The Lone Wanderer]

But you're paying at least half the cost of high end computer on a console and all you can do on a console is play games.

But that's what consoles are supposed to be for, not a multimedia device like a PC.

 

[exball]

But that's what consoles are supposed to be for, not a multimedia device like a PC.

So? I don't use my phone solely for phone calls. I text, play games, use the internet. That's like if you refused to buy a car because it had a stereo even though it's meant to transport you places.

 

[The Lone Wanderer]

So? I don't use my phone solely for phone calls. I text, play games, use the internet. That's like if you refused to buy a car because it had a stereo even though it's meant to transport you places.

No, it's not the same thing. A lot of Xbox fans abandoned the XB1, in favour of PS4, because it was more focused on multimedia than games. Games are the center of a consoles focus. Extras like music playlists and shit are fine, but they shouldn't be the main focus or overshadow the main reason why people buy consoles.

 

[That Chris Guy]

But you're paying at least half the cost of high end computer on a console and all you can do on a console is play games.

Your point being? If I wanted to mess around with Microsoft Word or in Photoshop, I can do that on the PC I currently own. The only reason I *ever*consider upgrading the PC is for games, and unless a sea of RTS are a stone's throw away from release, there's no rush given how lackluster AAA has been.

That's never happened to me. Unless you bought a seriously low end card, you should be fine for a few years. The increase in power each year is not as much as it used to be. Cards are focusing on becoming more efficient.

Eh, still going to wait. Honestly, the only first-party title I'm interested in right now (besides fighting games, which will churn out sequels anyway) is, ironically, Halo. I mean, I think their HD revisions are really what all legacy collections should be doing, but that's an IP from two console generations ago. Where's the new stuff? Where's the definitive title that tells you that you've got to have next-gen? It's nowhere to be found.

Oh, and Beyond Earth looks kinda cool. Will watch that one.

 

[Surtur]

Your point being? If I wanted to mess around with Microsoft Word or in Photoshop, I can do that on the PC I currently own. The only reason I *ever*consider upgrading the PC is for games, and unless a sea of RTS are a stone's throw away from release, there's no rush given how lackluster AAA has been.



Eh, still going to wait. Honestly, the only first-party title I'm interested in right now (besides fighting games, which will churn out sequels anyway) is, ironically, Halo. I mean, I think their HD revisions are really what all legacy collections should be doing, but that's an IP from two console generations ago. Where's the new stuff? Where's the definitive title that tells you that you've got to have next-gen? It's nowhere to be found.

Oh, and Beyond Earth looks kinda cool. Will watch that one.

Star Citizen, I have the Alpha an I can max it out at 1080p. Its why I built my rig.

 

[exball]

Oh, and Beyond Earth looks kinda cool. Will watch that one.

Beyond Earth is overwhelmingly meh. It's Civ V, but with satellites.

 

[That Chris Guy]

Star Citizen, I have the Alpha an I can max it out at 1080p. Its why I built my rig.

Forgot about that one. Going to sit and watch, since I really want a new interplanetary sci-fi game to come out. I also think 40k should be making its move with this gen.

Beyond Earth is overwhelmingly meh. It's Civ V, but with satellites.

Really? Well bugger, I was hoping for more.

 

[Burned Man]

I think the thing with consoles is it's cheaper and more convenient than buying a PC built for gaming. I've heard you can cut costs by building your own, but not everyone is willing to put in the time and effort or have the patience or ability to build one. With consoles they are all the same so there are zero personal changes to them that could effect performance, and they don't rely on outside programs.
I occasionally play games on this laptop but I'm not much of a pc gamer. I've had problems that I haven't had to deal with on consoles. I've had anti virus software prevent me from playing games on Steam without any notification it was doing that and I've had to manually change the resolution in a games for files in order for it to launch. Now I'm generally incompetent when it comes to computers. So when I encounter a problem I check for solutions online and when those don't work I generally despair. The resolution problem I solved myself through trial and error when all the answers online didn't help one said the version of the game I was playing was screwed and to get the other so I did and encountered the same problem. My point is there are no outside variables when it comes to console gaming when I encounter some problems in a console game, loading a save, restarting the game or installing it to the hard drive solves it. If that doesn't work I can just return it and get a full refund.

I just like the ease of use of consoles compared to computers. I generally don't care how a game looks just how it plays so I never saw the reason to play games on PC if I could help it although I do like being able to play with mods.