 flottenheimer | Skrevet 11/01-08 18:01, rettet 11/01-08 18:02 | Rimelig interessant resumé over "Xbox 360 året der gik" fra GI:
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The Road Ahead
11/01/2008
Microsoft's silence at CES could be the start of a tough year for the Xbox.
Success comes in many guises. Most people would agree that 2007 was a successful year for the Xbox 360 - a year when the firm's head-start over rival Sony was used to great effect, and when the console's software line-up was widely considered to be one of the strongest the industry has ever seen.
It was the year in which Halo 3 arrived, was critically acclaimed, and sold around 8 million copies - and perhaps most impressively of all, it was the year when Halo 3 almost seemed buried in an avalanche of superb games, whereas in any previous year it would have stood astride the software landscape like a colossus. It was the year when Xbox Live user figures passed the 10 million mark, and the year when Microsoft registered its second ever profitable quarter for the Xbox division (although it almost certainly slid back into a loss in the following quarter).
A good year, then? Well - maybe. Success is multi-faceted, and it's important to look at it from many angles before you make up your mind and stick a label on something. There are other ways in which 2007 was a terrible year for Microsoft - and in some regards, the company's lacklustre showing at CES in Las Vegas last week may be a hangover from those failings.
A number of problems plagued the Xbox 360 throughout the year. The woes over failing consoles finally reached the point where Microsoft could no longer ignore the system's dismal reliability - forcing it to extend its hardware warranty and set aside a billion-dollar reserve to fund repairs.
It may not have been too little, but it was definitely too late. The mainstream media had already latched onto the idea that the Xbox 360 was badly manufactured and prone to failure - while the hardcore gamers who had been Microsoft's most staunch word-of-mouth warriors suddenly became a liability, as they started talking to friends and forums about being on their third or fourth replacement Xbox 360.
No sooner had that furore died down, than it was replaced by another - the dismal failure of the Xbox Live system to cope with demand over Christmas, which has now extended into the New Year with no fix in sight. Customers paying for a rock-solid online gaming service are getting anything but; once again, Microsoft's ability to design and create amazing products seems to be let down by its ability to deliver quality on an ongoing basis. The problems aren't remotely as serious as the "Red Ring of Death" flaw on the 360 itself, but it's exactly the kind of press the console doesn't need right now.
For hardcore gamers, these are the problems which have put a dampener on enthusiasm for the 360 even in the face of a superb software line-up. Microsoft faces an even bigger problem with the console, however, to which its reliability concerns are only one contributing factor. The problem is this; it's still simply not clear how the company is going to grow its market, and there are strong signs that growth is already slowing down.
Along with plenty of other critics and commentators, I've been pointing out for a long time that the Xbox 360 still doesn't have sufficient appeal outside of the "cars and guns" market - the same 16 to 24 year old consumers who bought the original Xbox. A smattering of Japanese RPGs and, well, Viva Pinata, does not amount to a mass-market strategy that will finally unseat the PlayStation.
The proof of this unappetising pudding? Quick dinner-napkin calculations based on Microsoft's own estimates show that in 2007, the firm shipped fewer Xbox 360 consoles than it did in 2006. It's not a huge difference - but that's not what the growth curve is meant to look like, especially not when there's such an acclaimed line-up of software on offer.
How does all of this translate to the near-absence of Xbox from the firm's keynote at CES? Quite simply, there's a feeling that right now, Microsoft's Xbox division is looking long and hard at where it stands in the market - and how it breaks out of its current position to become a credible market leader. Despite a strong start and a loyal fanbase, it is assailed with challenges that will be difficult to overcome.
On one hand, it needs to learn how to appeal to the mass market - something which doesn't seem to come naturally to the product or the company. On the software front, Microsoft seemingly remains convinced that there is a single "mass market" which can be attracted by building a handful of games in key areas. The reality is very different; the "mass market" is merely a collection of a huge number of niches, and it's this vast diaspora of tastes which Sony has been excellent at providing for.
The PlayStation consoles have played host to a bewildering variety of software for different gaming tastes, and that's why they achieved mass market success - simply funding a few JRPGs and deliberately "quirky" titles isn't going to emulate this. An overhaul of how Microsoft approaches software development for its platforms as a whole may be required to nurture that kind of game library.
On the other hand, perhaps an even more daunting challenge is keeping the faithful satisfied in 2008. Going into 2007, the Xbox 360 `release` list looked absolutely stunning - whereas the 2008 schedule at this point in time looks comparatively barren. If Microsoft wants to maintain its momentum, let alone building new momentum, it needs to repeat the software success of 2007 - and it needs to do it without Bioware and Bizarre, both of which developed key Xbox 360 exclusives in the past but now belong to multi-platform publishers. It also needs to do it without Bungie; not only now an independent studio (albeit still likely to work on 360 exclusives), but also highly unlikely to have another game ready until 2009.
None of this is insurmountable, but it's certainly not going to be an easy ride either. Microsoft has done an absolutely amazing job in some regards - its hardware, despite launching a year earlier than the PS3, has held its own extremely well in terms of technical prowess, and its online service continues to be the benchmark for the whole industry. In terms of software, the late 2007 line-up is arguably one of the best the market has ever seen, fuelling an incredibly strong quarter for the industry as a whole.
Continuing that success, however, won't happen just through sitting on a sack full of laurels. In 2008, Microsoft's challenges will be greater than ever before. The Wii is trouncing the Xbox 360 in the casual market; the PS3 is keeping pace with it in week to week sales, despite acres of negative press, and at present has a more appealing 2008 line-up. Reliability problems just won't go away, the mass-market remains just as elusive as it's ever been, and key developers have been lost to third-party publishers. Nobody could describe a division that's just had such a brilliant couple of quarters as being in crisis - but when Microsoft finally breaks the silence that we witnessed at CES, it had better have some great responses to the challenges 2008 brings.
Kilde: GI | · ··~''' Insert coin to continue '''~·· ·
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 DeluxScan | Skrevet 13/01-08 05:59 | | Med Alan Wake og Banjo-Kazooie 3 i 2008 (Haaber vi) kan det vel ikke gaa helt galt. Men jo, der er en pointe... Halo 3, Forza 2, BioShock, Half-Life, PGR4 m.fl. er alle 'skudt af'... | Life is like videogame: It doesn't matter how good you get, you always get zapped in the end.Spiller nu: Battlestations: Pacific, Saboteur, The, Tropico 3
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 dpl | Skrevet 13/01-08 14:19, rettet 13/01-08 14:20 | SÅ jeg er den eneste der, synes 2008 allerede ser bedre ud end 2007, angående spil?
Også er der nok en hel del spil vi ikke har hørt om endnu. | ALDRIG og jeg mener ALDRIG, skriv mit navn med store bogstaver :@Spiller nu: Dragon Age: Origins, Forza Motorsport 3 [Lim..., Borderlands
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| Born2Play | Skrevet 13/01-08 18:42 | Jeg syntes alt det der 2007 bedste spil år nogensinde er noget crap!
Nuff said videre! | Swine flu for me and you!Spiller nu: Batman: Arkham Asylum
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| DeluxScan | Skrevet 14/01-08 02:08 | Enig med Born2play. Kom der virkelig så mange vidunderlige spil sammenlignet med andre år?
Lidt lækre goodies i år:
Turok
Brothers in Arms
Battlefield Bad Company
Condemned 2
LEGO Indiana Jones (Ser jeg MEGET frem til!)
GTA IV
Alone in the Dark
Fable 2
Indiana Jones 2008
Castle Wolfenstein 2 (Med lidt held)
Silent Hill 5
Tomb Raider Underworld
Activisions første James Bond spil
Og naturligvis Alan Wake og BK3! | Life is like videogame: It doesn't matter how good you get, you always get zapped in the end.Spiller nu: Battlestations: Pacific, Saboteur, The, Tropico 3
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 Herold | Skrevet 14/01-08 02:16, rettet 14/01-08 02:23 | | Jeg synes 07 var ret godt på stort set alle fronter. Jeg er først nogenlunde klar til nye spil nu. | This isn't life in the fast lane. This is life in oncoming traffic.Spiller nu: Left 4 Dead 2
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 Bede-x | Skrevet 14/01-08 04:09, rettet 14/01-08 05:11 | dRxL>
Lister du dem lige Bede?
Så ok da, men det bliver på ingen måde en fyldestgørende liste, men bare lige nogle af de titler, jeg går rundt med i hovedet:
Infinite Undiscovery
Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena
Deus Ex 3
Elveon
Fallout 3
Brutal Legend
Lost Odyssey
Banjo Kazooie 3
Alan Wake
Resident Evil 5(Er ikke sikker på, at udgivelsesdatoen er i 2008)
Grand Theft Auto 4 + eksklusivt content
Saint's Row 2
Tales of Vesperia(Uden officiel platform, men forventer/håber at det kommer)
Cry On
Ninja Gaiden 2
Just Cause 2
Viking Battle of Asgard
Bionic Commando
Age of Conan HA
Left4Dead
Halo Wars
Burnout Paradise
Army of Two
Devil May Cry 4
Fable 2
Wet
Far Cry 2
Golden Axe Beastrider
Splinter Cell Conviction
Huxley
Kingdom Under Fire CoD
Last Remnant
Mercenaries 2 WiF
Turok
Mirror's Edge
Project Offset
Rock Band
Soul Calibur 4
Silent Hill 5
EndWar
Tomb Raider Underworld
Too Human
Rainbow Six Vegas 2
Unreal Tournament 3
Alone in the Dark 5
APB All Points Bulletin
Condemned 2 Bloodshot
Jade Empire 2
Der ud over er der en masse mindre titler, som normalt ikke nævnes, når man snakker om kommende spil. Ofte fordi de ikke er specielt højprofilerede og måske endda af tvivlsom kvalitet, men jeg tror, at den slags titler er ekstremt vigtige for at tage markedsandele. Man vinder ikke en konsolkrig på en eller to stortitler - og jeg siger ikke her, at MS vinder, bare lige så jeg ikke misforståes ;) - men på at have mængder af titler i alle genrer. Skal man give et par eksempler som er udgivet i 2007, kunne det være:
Overlord
Spiderman Friend or Foe
Meet The Robinsons
Bee Movie Game
Project Sylpheed
Call of Juarez
Looney Toons Acme Arsenal
Crash of the Titans
Command & Conquer 3
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation - Hard Evidence
Earth Defence Force 2017
Ace Combat 6 Fires of Liberation
Eternal Sonata
Titler der ikke bliver skreget op om. Titler som en succesfuld platform har mængder af. Og også titler som af den ene eller anden grund ikke er kommet på PS3, som er den 360 oftest bliver sammenlignet med(Omend ES kommer senere). Om det så har været fordi, maskinen kom på markedet senere, at udviklerne endnu ikke var omstillet til multiformatsudvikling, at der i stedet kom en PS2 version osv betyder ikke så meget i den sammenhæng.
Det der betyder noget er, at der er en masse titler ude og på vej til 360, som ikke kan spilles på deres nærmeste konkurrent. De betyder ikke så meget individuelt, men der skal være mange af den slags for at give fylde til et spilkatalog. Engang imellem kan det så hænde, at man falder for et af dem: Fx var jeg ret vild med Earth Defence Force 2017 og Overlord var sjovt på en Pikmin-agtig måde.
Jeg synes, at der er annonceret en del af den slags titler gennem det seneste år. For bare at nævne nogle få:
Universe at War Earth Assault
Beautiful Katamari
Sacred 2
Raiden Fighter Aces
Supreme Commander
Dead Island
Culdcept Saga
Warhammer Battle March
Fairy Tales Three Heroes
Command & Conquer Kane's Wrath
Dungeon Hero
The Precusers
Spectral Force 3
World in Conflict
Two Worlds Temptation
Edge of Twilight
Bully Scholarship Edition
Operation Darkness
Apocalypse Desire Next
Guilty Gear 2
The shadow of Aten
Shikigami No Shiro 3
I de sidste generationer har Playstation formatet været langt foran, når det kommer til den rå mængde af spil. Det bliver meget interessant at se, om markedet reagerer på, at det ikke længere er tilfældet...
Nu kunne jeg så begynde at liste Live Arcade titler, men der er blevet annonceret for mange af dem i år, til at jeg vil bruge tid på det :)
Under alle omstændigheder tror jeg, at 360 spilmæssigt vil overgå sidste år. Der er vel 1-2 potientielt gode titler for hver en, der var i år. Det eneste der overrasker mig lidt, er manglen på FPS og bilspil af topkvalitet. Men det ville nok altid blive svært at overgå et år med Bioshock, Halo 3, CoD4, Orange Box, Forza Motorsport 2 og Project Gotham Racing 4.
Selvfølgelig skal det heller ikke glemmes, at vi kun er i januar. Don Mattrick har lige været ude at sige, at de har flere ikke-annoncerede titler på vej til 2008:
http://www.mercextra.com/blogs/takahashi/2008/01/06/meanwhile-this-xbox-360-memo-showed-up-in-my-inbox/
Der kan sagtens nå at blive tilføjet flere titler til 360 listerne. Gears 2, måske?
Om maskinen så kan sælge bedre end PS3 igen i år, er noget helt andet og der fortrækker jeg, at vente for at se tiden an. Den kamp er bestemt ikke afgjort til nogen sides fordel endnu. | Spiller nu: Halo: The Master Chief ..., Dying Light, Earth Defense Force 2025
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 Sumez | Skrevet 14/01-08 08:44 | Fallout 3, Brutal Legend, Lost Odyssey og Banjo Kazooie 3 ser jeg frem til. Ellers synes jeg ikke der er noget i 2008, der virker særlig attraktivt.
De spil jeg ser mest frem til i 2008 er helt klart SSBB og MGS4. | Spis sundt og tro på dig selvSpiller nu: Gravity Circuit, Bonze Adventure
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| Born2Play | Skrevet 14/01-08 19:57, rettet 14/01-08 19:59 | Er EU datoen for Lost Odyssey stadig d. 15/2?!
Jeg kan ikke klare ventetiden
:-(
Plus jeg netop nu er helt uden 360 og det er værre end forventet! | Swine flu for me and you!Spiller nu: Batman: Arkham Asylum
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| Born2Play | Skrevet 14/01-08 20:00 | flottenheimer>
Microsoft's silence at CES could be the start of a tough year for the Xbox.
Seriøst hvornår har CES nogensinde været stor for spil nyheder?! | Swine flu for me and you!Spiller nu: Batman: Arkham Asylum
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| Sephiroth | Skrevet 14/01-08 20:41, rettet 14/01-08 20:41 | Aldrig, men der har da været et par små megatons i årenes løb :)
Jeg ser peronligt meget frem til Lost Odyssey, Infinite Undiscovery og GTAIV - samt forhåbentlig Banjo 3 og Alan Wake. | Spiller nu: Catherine, Beyond Good & Evil HD
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| dpl | Skrevet 14/01-08 23:22 | Born2Play>
Er EU datoen for Lost Odyssey stadig d. 15/2?!
Jeg kan ikke klare ventetiden
Det nu let nok. Jeg købte bare nye spil for overleve vente tid (dejlig med både eternal sonata, conan og DMC4(når det kommer) til billige penge). :P | ALDRIG og jeg mener ALDRIG, skriv mit navn med store bogstaver :@Spiller nu: Dragon Age: Origins, Forza Motorsport 3 [Lim..., Borderlands
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| Valkyrie | Skrevet 15/01-08 09:47 | Så meget af det ligner sequels og spil baseret på eksisterende franchises.
Tror virkelig at suppen er kørt over kogepunktet.
Også fordi at folk kan lave de her liste alt det de vil, men faktum er at 20% af de spil ikke nør ud i 2008, og omkring 60% vil ikke være tilfedstillende nok til at ligge op på folks "best of" lister.
Så er man tilbage med en lille skare af primære been,there-done,that efterfølgere, og måske en eller to nye interessante spil.
De samme lange lister laver man hvert år, hvor hype bliver generet fra et par trailers og et preview lavet et eller andet ligegyldigt sted.
Jeg tror 360s succes udelukket kommer til at være afhængig af Sonys og Nintendos træk. 360 ville aldrig have fået sin nuværende penetration rate %, så tideligt hvis det ikke var fordi at Sony lavede nok fejl til at retfærdiggøre det(høje priser, udskydelser, skuffende high profile spil, ingen rumble, dårlig omtale etc). | Well crucify the insincere tonight...
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 Nuclear Deter... | Skrevet 15/01-08 12:51, rettet 15/01-08 12:54 | Så det har ikke hjulpet at MS har sikret at mange titler ikke længere er eksklusiv til sonys platforme, eller aftalt eksklusivitet på titler der er af en uhyre høj kvalitet?
Vi er enige om at en del af 360 succesen handler om at Sony har sovet i timen, men MS har bestemt ikke lagt på den lade side når det kommer til aggresivt at sikre sig en form fordel i denne generation: Tidlig launch, billig pris osv. Xbox 360 er jo ikke kun billig fordi PS3 er (har været) dyr. Den er billig fordi MS på de rigtige tidspunkter har nedsat maskinens pris, indført nye SKU's osv. | You mechs may have copper wiring to reroute your fear of pain, but I've got nerves of steelSpiller nu: Killer 7
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| Born2Play | Skrevet 16/01-08 01:24 | Valkyrie>
penetration
Høhø! Damn jeg bliver nødt til at komme mere ud! :-( | Swine flu for me and you!Spiller nu: Batman: Arkham Asylum
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