Comments on: The upcoming free Microsoft console http://www.bruceongames.com/2008/07/21/the-upcoming-free-microsoft-console/ A veteran's view on marketing games Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:07:25 -0800 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 hourly 1 By: Jonathan Blow http://www.bruceongames.com/2008/07/21/the-upcoming-free-microsoft-console/comment-page-1/#comment-2853 Jonathan Blow Wed, 23 Jul 2008 01:10:48 +0000 http://www.bruceongames.com/?p=612#comment-2853 This article is so wrong, in so many ways, I don't know where to start. Please talk to a technical person about this sometime so you can correct your misconceptions! This article is so wrong, in so many ways, I don’t know where to start.

Please talk to a technical person about this sometime so you can correct your misconceptions!

]]> By: Phips http://www.bruceongames.com/2008/07/21/the-upcoming-free-microsoft-console/comment-page-1/#comment-2826 Phips Tue, 22 Jul 2008 08:26:32 +0000 http://www.bruceongames.com/?p=612#comment-2826 So MS will have two pay the same amount of money for the expensive hardware (now at there servers and not at the client machine) plus even more hardware for compression and a lot of bandwidth (expensive) and the cost for maintaining this highest end servers and the bills for electricity (which is actually quite high for server systems). It does not sound like they are getting back more money then with average consoles. Plus decrompression of the whole graphic sound etc. in real time does require GOOD hardware at the users machine side. ;) I don't think it'll ever exist... So MS will have two pay the same amount of money for the expensive hardware (now at there servers and not at the client machine) plus even more hardware for compression and a lot of bandwidth (expensive) and the cost for maintaining this highest end servers and the bills for electricity (which is actually quite high for server systems). It does not sound like they are getting back more money then with average consoles. Plus decrompression of the whole graphic sound etc. in real time does require GOOD hardware at the users machine side. ;)

I don’t think it’ll ever exist…

]]> By: Bruce http://www.bruceongames.com/2008/07/21/the-upcoming-free-microsoft-console/comment-page-1/#comment-2825 Bruce Tue, 22 Jul 2008 08:25:00 +0000 http://www.bruceongames.com/?p=612#comment-2825 Runescape already does this with millions of gamers. So it is proven to be possible. Even without hardware compression. And even without the far greater bandwidth that will be available in the future. Runescape already does this with millions of gamers. So it is proven to be possible. Even without hardware compression. And even without the far greater bandwidth that will be available in the future.

]]> By: Anon http://www.bruceongames.com/2008/07/21/the-upcoming-free-microsoft-console/comment-page-1/#comment-2824 Anon Tue, 22 Jul 2008 08:13:17 +0000 http://www.bruceongames.com/?p=612#comment-2824 this is just stupid , its technically impossible "for now" to do it for tens of MILLIONS of gamers! Maybe in the future, but that will make us slaves! this is just stupid , its technically impossible “for now” to do it for tens of MILLIONS of gamers!
Maybe in the future, but that will make us slaves!

]]> By: Caid Johnson http://www.bruceongames.com/2008/07/21/the-upcoming-free-microsoft-console/comment-page-1/#comment-2821 Caid Johnson Tue, 22 Jul 2008 05:57:47 +0000 http://www.bruceongames.com/?p=612#comment-2821 Interesting concept which might be realised later. Another problem this would prose is the fact that a lot of countries aside from the US and Canada are still working with ten year old internet quality. Imagine all companies decide to do this, you'd be left with entire nations that could not take part as well as them not having a console with current games to play themselves. The challenges this would create are length, but not impossible. All in all however, I believe this is a little idealistic in the end. I kinda like owning my game libraries as well. Enough said from me however ;) Caid. Interesting concept which might be realised later. Another problem this would prose is the fact that a lot of countries aside from the US and Canada are still working with ten year old internet quality. Imagine all companies decide to do this, you’d be left with entire nations that could not take part as well as them not having a console with current games to play themselves.

The challenges this would create are length, but not impossible. All in all however, I believe this is a little idealistic in the end. I kinda like owning my game libraries as well.

Enough said from me however ;)

Caid.

]]> By: speuzer http://www.bruceongames.com/2008/07/21/the-upcoming-free-microsoft-console/comment-page-1/#comment-2815 speuzer Mon, 21 Jul 2008 18:10:53 +0000 http://www.bruceongames.com/?p=612#comment-2815 Companies are already doing this, Virgin has been working on a model for this kind of delivery in Europe and there are other companies working on the same tech. Problem is the graphical fidelity will never be anywhere close to what a complete next gen home console will be. The games that are being delivered now are older games like Need for speed Underground, stuff like that. (and the don't have big libraries either, the more games they have the more servers they need to run) Lots of hotels have been doing this for years (the ones who have fake n64 controllers plugged into the TVs) To deliver a 16 player game of halo 3, their server's 3d renderer would have to be the equivalent of 16 xbox 360's. Maybe they could get away with fewer processors that are faster, but when comes down to it they still have to render 16 screens... thats one massive server!. Lets say its possible... and 1 server is reserved per Halo 3 match... how many people play halo 3 nightly? Microsoft would have to have acres if not miles of servers set up just to run Halo 3. What if its a game people don't play anymore, does Microsoft keep the server up just for the couple thousand of people that play it regularly? No. Once a game was not being played anymore, they would have to drop it from their library, shut those servers down. I'm not saying this won't happen, companies are already making it happen. But it will never be anywhere close to the graphical fidelity you could get if you went to the store and bought the newest next gen console. The home console is not going to die. Companies are already doing this, Virgin has been working on a model for this kind of delivery in Europe and there are other companies working on the same tech. Problem is the graphical fidelity will never be anywhere close to what a complete next gen home console will be. The games that are being delivered now are older games like Need for speed Underground, stuff like that. (and the don’t have big libraries either, the more games they have the more servers they need to run) Lots of hotels have been doing this for years (the ones who have fake n64 controllers plugged into the TVs)

To deliver a 16 player game of halo 3, their server’s 3d renderer would have to be the equivalent of 16 xbox 360’s. Maybe they could get away with fewer processors that are faster, but when comes down to it they still have to render 16 screens… thats one massive server!.

Lets say its possible… and 1 server is reserved per Halo 3 match… how many people play halo 3 nightly? Microsoft would have to have acres if not miles of servers set up just to run Halo 3.

What if its a game people don’t play anymore, does Microsoft keep the server up just for the couple thousand of people that play it regularly? No. Once a game was not being played anymore, they would have to drop it from their library, shut those servers down.

I’m not saying this won’t happen, companies are already making it happen. But it will never be anywhere close to the graphical fidelity you could get if you went to the store and bought the newest next gen console. The home console is not going to die.

]]> By: Ant C http://www.bruceongames.com/2008/07/21/the-upcoming-free-microsoft-console/comment-page-1/#comment-2814 Ant C Mon, 21 Jul 2008 18:01:01 +0000 http://www.bruceongames.com/?p=612#comment-2814 I think the broadband infrastructure in the UK is the biggest obstacle facing this kind of model. In the US and many parts of Europe, upstream bandwidth is much, much higher than that typically offered here. I know SDSL is a bit much to hope for, but when many subscribers with high speed downstream connections have a microscopically small upstream bandwidth, server-based gaming via a STB is going to suffer. I think the broadband infrastructure in the UK is the biggest obstacle facing this kind of model. In the US and many parts of Europe, upstream bandwidth is much, much higher than that typically offered here. I know SDSL is a bit much to hope for, but when many subscribers with high speed downstream connections have a microscopically small upstream bandwidth, server-based gaming via a STB is going to suffer.

]]> By: Player911 http://www.bruceongames.com/2008/07/21/the-upcoming-free-microsoft-console/comment-page-1/#comment-2813 Player911 Mon, 21 Jul 2008 17:41:04 +0000 http://www.bruceongames.com/?p=612#comment-2813 Yea this is nothing new... but they are expanding it. Basically the game runs on a server... and the video gets sent back to you in a real-time stream. It won't work unless you have high bandwidth. Think of it as remote desktoping into a gaming machine to play games over the network. The local controls are sent to the server system, executed, and the resulting video is sent back. The bad side is lag = missed controls Yea this is nothing new… but they are expanding it. Basically the game runs on a server… and the video gets sent back to you in a real-time stream.

It won’t work unless you have high bandwidth. Think of it as remote desktoping into a gaming machine to play games over the network. The local controls are sent to the server system, executed, and the resulting video is sent back.

The bad side is lag = missed controls

]]> By: Arjen http://www.bruceongames.com/2008/07/21/the-upcoming-free-microsoft-console/comment-page-1/#comment-2812 Arjen Mon, 21 Jul 2008 15:49:09 +0000 http://www.bruceongames.com/?p=612#comment-2812 It doesn't have to be free as long it just works properly! And not fixing problems 2 years after... And I guess they won't need a BR player they will just use the faster internet in a few years to watch movies and get game assets from the internet. but it will take a little time for all the new things to show up It doesn’t have to be free as long it just works properly!
And not fixing problems 2 years after…

And I guess they won’t need a BR player they will just use the faster internet in a few years to watch movies and get game assets from the internet.

but it will take a little time for all the new things to show up

]]> By: Ateanboy http://www.bruceongames.com/2008/07/21/the-upcoming-free-microsoft-console/comment-page-1/#comment-2811 Ateanboy Mon, 21 Jul 2008 15:45:30 +0000 http://www.bruceongames.com/?p=612#comment-2811 The "box" you speak CAN be created, but it would be mediocre at best. If they can manage to give it away for free, it will not have the power needed to stream and play todays games. Which means you will be left with tetris, or Uno, something that my cable box does already for free, in channel 125. Furthermore, if there is any company that DOES have what it would require for this to work, it wouldn't be Microsoft (who is a Software-based company), it would be Sony who is a hardware-based company and already have all those lines of Television sets and DVD players at their disposal to integrate the technology as they see fit. The “box” you speak CAN be created, but it would be mediocre at best. If they can manage to give it away for free, it will not have the power needed to stream and play todays games. Which means you will be left with tetris, or Uno, something that my cable box does already for free, in channel 125.

Furthermore, if there is any company that DOES have what it would require for this to work, it wouldn’t be Microsoft (who is a Software-based company), it would be Sony who is a hardware-based company and already have all those lines of Television sets and DVD players at their disposal to integrate the technology as they see fit.

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