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©Dark Watcher
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| DW's State of the Game Console Address 4/1/2009 | 4/1/2009 |
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Greetings game console compatriots. Ole DW here with your "state of the gaming union" address.
Looks like the gaming community is buzzing with news from GDC'09. The one tag line we found quite humorous was "OnLive could threaten Xbox, PS3, and Wii". If for some reason you briefly escaped our dungeon of n00b, and / or you are far too lazy to Google, we will give you a brief synopsis of what OnLive is....
The brainchild of WebTV founder Steve Perlman and former Eidos CEO Mike McGarvey, OnLive will be a digital game streaming service that will steal the thunder from the current big 3 console manufacturers. It will allow streaming of games on an Intel-based Mac, standard PC with XP or Vista, and on a standard television with the aid of a small plug-in device.
With that said...please allow us to release the flood gates of rant...
Here we go again with news of a magic do-hicky that will change the course of console gaming as we know it. Ever since Micro$oft packaged a PC in a console shell, we have received news of vaporware such as Indrema, Phantom, and Evo:Phase 1. The Phantom promised game downloads, and supposedly threatened the console market of its time by eliminating the need to purchase physical media. It was ridiculed, died, and the game download concept was rolled into the big 3 current gen consoles.
So let’s see here...You can download games on current consoles. Heck, you have been able to download games on PC from services like Valve's STEAM and GameTap for years now."...but but DW...the games can be streamed!" Don't make us put you in the n00b dungeon. The OnLive system requires a 1.5 Mbps broadband connection for standard-definition gameplay, and 5 Mbps for high-def. We are sure it worked perfectly at GDC with their 'controlled' environment. However, there is no promises of lag-free gaming in an uncontrolled broadband world. Limited 3rd-party game developer support, and game size limitations also a cramp. In short...if OnLive makes it to the market...then great for gamers, but if you intend to use taglines like the one mentioned above...we have a nice cage ready for you in the DW dungeon.
GDC'09 seems to be paying homage to our historical mention of the infamous Phantom.
" Introducing the Zeebo™ Console.
Zeebo has reinvented the game console for a new wave of global consumers. The Zeebo Console smashes the barriers that have held interactive entertainment back in emerging markets around the world."
Zeebo will be a device marketed in South America, Eastern Europe, China and India. It reportedly has the graphical capabilities somewhere in the middle of the original Playstation and Playstation 2. So we are thinking Dreamcast or PSP. The device will follow the same digital download concept that everyone else and their mother are using, but will utilized cellular 3G networks. Zeebo aims to be affordable. The retail cost will be $199USD, but is designed to use require little power (works on 1 watt), comes with 4 installed games (and one free download). Other downloadable games will be sold at low cost.
Hopefully, Zeebo does well and brings good gaming to markets where current gen consoles are far from affordable. Guess we will just have to wait and see...
This concludes our "state of the gaming union" address. Until next time....DW fading into black...
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| New Years Gaming Resolution | 1/21/2009 |
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And so the new year arrives, and it already brings about change. It also is the time for new resolutions.
2009 marks changes for the Dark Watcher. Ole DW will be trying their hand at marriage, but preparations for this event will be taxing. Regardless, we made a new years resolution to complete the many videogames that have been piling up, and enjoy those wonderful videogame consoles that have been without power for a time.
We got a good start on the new year with a stubborn addiction to Pac-Man Championship Edition for the Xbox 360. This fabulous remake to the classic franchise was bundled with the Xbox 360 Arcade we recieved as a gift for Christmas. Our beautiful fiancee had done well. She kept the cost low by getting the “Arcade”, but made sure the package featured the new 360 RROD resistant Jasper chip (with built-in memory), and a wireless controller. Talk about a dream girl…but we digress.
We then spent some time figuring out ways to prevent Micro$oft from squeezing more money out of us. Times are tough, and we are proud being a cheap gamer. It is funny how PS3 is getting so much flack for it’s retail price. What you get is almost everything you need to get current Gen gaming. Our new Xbox 360 was functional out of the box, but the additional perks sure add up.
360 Arcade = $199
Online Adapter = $99
HDD = $99 to $130
Xbox Live = $$$ Ongoing
So by comparison 360 full featured cost is the same if not more then PS3. “DW you should have just asked for a ‘Pro’ or ‘Elite’…” Ha! If our fiancee could spend that kind of money then we would have married her years ago! No worries…DW has been a gamer for a long time, and is quite resourceful.
360 Arcade = $199 gift
Online Adaptor = Wireless laptop with shared bridge connection = No cost
HDD = Buddy with an old spare 20GB HDD
Xbox Live = Abuse free Gold till expires then re-examine the need later = No cost
Now we have some catching up to do gaming wise, but we are sure the cheaper Platinum Hits 360 games will do us well. So its back to gaming when we can…and back to writing for VGCL.
See you online!
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| Site News and Update 2008 | 8/13/2008 |
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8/13/2008 -It's been a full year since the site has recieved an update. Much has gone on in our lives, and our passion for console history has suffered. We've had difficulties with hosting, scripting, web space, etc. The website was at the brink! Then a hero comes along (Cue Mariah Carey)...
A fella by the name of Marriot_Guy shows up with a cape and VGCL across his chest. He reached out to the site saying "Take my hand if you want to live..." In all seriousness, Marriot_Guy has asked the Dark Watcher to join in his website "THE VIDEO GAME CONSOLE LIBRARY" He has scripted a fabulous website catering to console collectors, historian, etc. What better way to give back to the console community.
So much of our work will continue at VGCL. Marriot_Guy has already converted much of our work there, but we will keep DWCONSOLES open for as long as it is hosted.
We are also maintaining this BLOG. It's perfect for ranting and keeping ideas fresh ;)
Thank you to all those who have enjoyed our little hobby. We hope you will continue to view our work at http://www.videogameconsolelibrary.c...ibrary.com. In the meantime, we have some updates as promised.
-DW
* Added coverage of the Classic Gaming Expo 2007 under "Features"
* Fixed a few pages, links, etc (If you even notice..hehe)
* Updated Article "Game Media History" to include Blu-Ray, Wii discs, and 7th Gen downloads
* Updated Article "Game Controller History" to include 7th Gen controllers |
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| Site Update in 2008? | 1/10/2008 |
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Greetings console history fans...
DW hasn't quit the project. The website is alive and well. If you use to bookmark the old "psxfanatics" address you may be thinking the website is dead. A nice trip to "www.DWCONSOLES.com" can alleviate that problem :)
It seems we let the bill for the DNS server for "psxfanatics" lapse. We figured...wow..Its been up and down lately and we are paying for a mirror...Hmm..LET IT DIE!!! Our apologies to Emulation developer Xeven if you were counting on us to keep it up. Email us if you need the renewal info.
Oh! And many thanks to Keith for hosting it so long!
Things have been crazy lately in ole DW's life. Being busy would be an understatement. We will make it our businesss to get an update up soon. Oh...and we love the Wii, and are impressed with the PS3 (Only with the PS2 hardware chip...the other versions seem handicapped). No Xbox 360 yet, but who knows...Pricess seem to be getting better.
Stay Tuned....no seriously...we mean it this time :p
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| 40GB PS3 without PS2 Compat? WTF? | 10/10/2007 |
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We were pleased at first by the buzz concerning a 40GB cheaper Playstation 3 console SKU. The official announcement first occured in the UK. Here was our reaction…
40GB of HDD space = No problem. We doubt we would need any more then that. Keep your Pr0n on your PC.
Removed the SD / Memory Stick Duo / Compact Flash slots = No problem. We can by an accessory if we wanted
2 USB slots instead of 4 = No problem. Simple USB hub or add-on management.
Price point of £299 (UK), ¥39,980 (JP), Possible $399 US = Beautiful thing. Finally somewhat affordable to working class.
"No longer backwards compatible with PlayStation 2 titles" = What the “F” are they thinking?
The last time we checked, The latest SKU Playstation 3 uses a software solution to emulate Playstation 2 hardware. So removing the ability to play PS2 games is NOT a cost savings measure. So why would they not include it? It makes no sense to us….Particularly since Sony is net positive on the sales of PS2 titles. Granted the software emulation solution has its compatibility issues, but why include PSOne compatibility and not PS2?
Guess it is either we go the cheap route or pony up for a 20 / 60GB original model. We still have our old faithful PS2, but we still can’t shake this nagging feeling like Sony has backslapped frugal gamers.
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| All Settled In - Again | 9/26/2007 |
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It seems EFX2Blogs is a constantly evolving creature, and Dark Watcher is the old cave man that keeps getting left behind.
So here we go again...Managed to save some of our old posts from the old DWCONSOLES blog, and settled on a template for this version of BLOG_a_Lution.
We suppose that makes us like those weird cave men from the "Geico" commercials (Psst..Look it up if you got the "WTF" face).
Hopefully...this puppy stays up for a time :) |
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| High Cost of Gaming - We are All to Blame | 5/24/2006 |
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As we normally do, We have been following the announcements revolving around the up and coming Playstation 3 (Nintendo as normal is tight lipped about Revolution). The worst of the recent announcements is the reported delay of the PS3 launch. We don't particularly view this as bad news. We believe this will better prepare it's launch as far as the hardware and games are concerned. Better a successful delayed launch then a bug ridden rushed effort that plagued their initial launch, (and recently Microsoft's Xbox 360 launch).
Sony is reportedly finalizing the system specs and controller specs, but the announcement of a 60 GIG hard drive coming standard was definitely interesting. That storage space has to be for something more then ripping music (the most common use for the Xbox HDD). We believe emulation will play a role in backwards compatibility (thus lowering the need to add extra hardware components at an increased cost). We are sure the HDD will use space for this, caching needs, and of course multimedia files. The biggest use will obviously be for Sony's online strategy to rival Xbox Live. The standard HDD will of course encourage developers to take advantage of the feature so of course there will be online components and downloadable content. There service is also reported to be free, but the added announcement that developers can use there own servers will obviously mean fees in certain game titles (something we see now anyways).
What does all the stuff we wrote above have to do with the title? Obviously with all the goodies Sony is planning on packing with the added 60 GIG HDD, this puppy is going to cost a pretty penny. There have been outrageous reports ranging as high as $900, but mostly the $500 price seems to be the common magic number.
We don't see a $500 price point, but somewhere in the 4 hundreds sounds right. Why do we think this? Well we suppose we could blame the gamers themselves.
Xbox 360 came out with the 2 SKU system, but we all know those who purchased the system got the full $399 package including games. So guess what? All these complaints about pricing did not amount to much as far as corporate Sony is concerned. To them they saw game purchases totaling more then $450 on average for a competitors system. That just told them that although we will complain...The "Must have it now" gamers will still pay the money. So Sony execs are probably imitating the movie Jerry Maguire and shouting "Show me the money!!" Heck even Sony Prez Kuturagi-san has been reportedly saying to start saving your pennies. What does that mean to us gamers? Say goodbye to the old $299 price point that is expected for new consoles. It's a funny number anyways. Would you believe the old Atari 2600 (a console released in the 1970's) retailed for $299? We suppose time and inflation can be to blame, but mostly it is we the gamers.
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| New Console purchase Advice: Xbox 360 | 12/6/2005 |
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The Xbox 360...ah yes the latest gaming craze. Next Generation graphics (We are sure high-end PC owners get a chuckle at that one), and a bunch of bells and whistles. We can see how people buy into the hype (Although we still cannot fathom how people can wait in line for days just to own a new console).
With that said, and with the holiday season looming, it is our duty as a gaming enthusiast / Console Historian to lend some words of wisdom. So take heed. Also note that this advice will also be applicable to other next generation consoles that will be released in the upcoming future.
The Xbox 360 is currently available in the US with a retail price of $399USD with European and Asian releases coming soon, and with games at a $10 markup price ($60-70USD). There is also a "Core System" available for $100 less, but is virtually a pointless.
Buying a "Core System" is like buying a new razor blade without the blade cartridges.
Buying a "Core System" is like buying a pepperoni pizza without the pepperoni.
Buying a "Core System" is like buying a computer without an operating system.
Hopefully, you get the point. So we move on to the many reports of defective Xbox 360 consoles that have been sold. If you have not read any of the reports then you need to get caught up. Ignorance does not equal bliss where this is concerned. History has demonstrated that these defects should not be a surprise. Microsoft rushed the buggers to the market. When have we seen this before? Ah yes...The release of the Playstation 2. The PS2 also had the hype, the lined up gamers, and also the initial unit defects. Heck..even the original Xbox had its share of glitches.
So our words of wisdom? BE PATIENT and hold off on buying the Xbox 360. It's not going to kill you to wait minimal 4 months (we recommend 6 months). This gives Microsoft a chance to work out the problems, and also gives developers a chance to put out more games. Right now you are looking at:
Call of Duty 2 ... We admit the game looks and plays great (retail price $59.99), but you also have the cross platform release Call of Duty 2: Big Red One on existing consoles for $39.99 and it plays just as good.
Project Gotham 3 ... Retail $49.99, but is just a slightly graphical tweak of Project Gotham 2 which costs $19.99. There are also tons of other racers available at a lower pricepoint.
Madden 2006 ... A pretty update that retails for $59.99, but has less gaming features then the Madden 2006 ports on existing consoles at $39.99. Check game reviews to see what we mean.
Perfect Dark Zero ... The hyped FPS is no Halo killer at $49.99. Speaking of Halo you can get Halo 2 Collectors edition for $39.99 and Halo 1 for under $19.99
Hey, if you want to shell out $399 plus $60 per game plus more money on accessories..Thats your call. Keep in mind that the original Xbox sold at a retail of $299, and dropped the price to $199 roughly 6 months after the console release. Take a look at what a little patience can do. These prices reflect the original Xbox.
� US$299 (November 15, 2001, Launch Price)
� US$199 (May 15, (2002)
� US$179 (May 14, (2003)
� US$149 (March 29, 2004)
Don't get us wrong. We think the Xbox 360 is an impressive machine, but as with all new console releases it is best to wait.
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| Next Gen and Hype: A Dark Watcher Viewpoint | 10/19/2005 |
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DW has been quite lucky over the years with new consoles, next gen hype, and the like. Although we enjoy the hype of up and coming systems, we have always made the right decisions when it comes to buying. At times we look back and try to determine what drives our gaming purchases. Decisions usually involve money, and to us the purchase of a new system is like an investment. Perhaps when "you" are the one paying for a game system it makes you more likely to do some research rather then falling for hype. The biggest lesson we learned is "Patience", and to pay attention to things that occurred in the past. Take a journey into the Dark Watcher's gaming past, and feel free to imagine the swirly "TV-like" flashback effect.
We don't recall seeing any commercial advertisements for videogame consoles back when we were a wee little Watcher. Perhaps because that tiny black and white television with the hangar antenna could only receive two channels. Needless to say we did not come from wealth, and knew nothing of games or computers. One day the "old man" stops in our room with some odd device with a bunch of cords and wires. He knew we had a knack for tinkering with gadgets, and had apparently found it tossed away in the trash. It turns out to be one of the many "Pong" machines released in those days. We got it working (not sure why it was trashed), and could now use another channel on the tiny television. Channel "3" and Pong began an unquenchable gaming desire.
Atari hit the market in full force, but when you�re young and broke you need a wish and a prayer. We were forced to get our gaming fix by visiting cousins who were better off financially. A trip to a shopping mall, and a convincing salesperson, answered our prayers. The parents came home with a Colecovision gaming system with an Atari 2600 adaptor. They were wise enough to restrict us from total gaming immersement. The system was kept locked away in their room, and game time was minimal. It was enough to maintain the habit. The Colecovision would soon die as a result of spilled orange juice (Don't you just want to kill younger cousins sometimes?), and the videogame industry would soon crash.
The Nintendo Entertainment System would breathe life into a dead videogame market. We recall spending much more time with the very same cousin who had owned Atari simply because he graduated to NES. If "Pong" started a gaming desire, then NES made it a full blown addiction. We recall pinching every penny we could just to own one. It was worth it.
Of course by then our friends and family would come to own other systems. There was that cool Sega Master System, and that Turbografx-16. We would then get hooked on Sega Genesis, and then the hype for SuperNES began. So many fabulous systems and so little pay...
We worked odd jobs, and later invested in SuperNES. We kept our Sega needs at bay by visiting a friend, and swapping systems. Sometimes it is good to have friends and family who are well off enough to always buy the latest and greatest. We got to try out newer systems without having to buy them, and could later take the older systems off there hands when they were engrossed in their "Next-Gen" machine. Perhaps this is why we never became a so called "Fan-boy". We got to enjoy them all.
When money is a factor you start to learn patience. We would always wait for the price drops, and wait and see how the system turned out game wise. We had joined the military, and were ready to put our first real paycheck into a worthwhile investment. Our SuperNES was still getting great titles, but we could no longer keep our Sega needs so far away from home. We decided to finally invest in a Sega Genesis of our own. What we came home with was a boxed set containing the Genesis Model 2 and Sega CD combo. CD gaming was actually pretty impressive to us. We didn't particularly like the grainy FMV games, but arcade ports like Final Fight and RPGs like Lunar made it worthwhile. Soon other CD gaming based systems would hit the market. Hype began to surround amazing technical wonders like 3DO and Phillips CD-i. Intuition and a lack of funds told us to hold off. Up to this point we had never purchased a system that was "fresh on the market". We chose to instead invest in more Sega and Nintendo games. It was a wise decision... (Though somehow we missed out on NEC TurboDuo)
Oh how we enjoyed the "16-bit" gaming wars, but news of a 32-bit age began surfacing. Sega had put out another 32-bit add-on called Sega 32X. Oddly enough, we would be deployed to Japan, and would later learn about Sega Saturn and a machine called Sony Playstation. We felt as if we were in the videogame mecca. We jumped on any gaming kiosk we could, and became very impressed with the Playstation. We returned to the US with 32X clearly forgotten, and with a need to delve further into Saturn and PSX. We were impressed by both, but the cheaper Playstation (and Final Fantasy 7 hype) eventually won the day. This turned out to be a lucky decision. In later years a friend would give us his Saturn since he was far too busy enjoying Playstation 2.
Ah yes...then comes the 64-bit age. You would think people would grow weary of these "Bit Wars". We were never really impressed with Atari Jaguar, and followed the Nintendo 64 hype through it's many naming codename conventions. After many delays the N64 was finally released. We did not give into the hype, and patiently waited. The choice to stay cartridge turned us against the system. We would walk the shelves and check the prices of 3rd Party game releases. Why pay $60 to $70 on a game we could get on PSX for $40? Of course we were impressed by many N64 titles, but it was not enough to make us buy. We also hated the controller. Who would have thought we would avoid a Nintendo product. We would later purchase the system for $30.
Another Next-Gen age! Be amazed by the power of 128-bit! Sega hit the market with the Sega Dreamcast, and we were impressed. Hype told us to buy, but history told us to wait. We learned that competition makes videogames cheaper and worthwhile. We also became wary of Sega after the many times they dropped support on game consoles in the past. We waited till competition would arrive in the form of Playstation 2. We were lucky enough at the time to work in the same building as Sega of America (location in San Francisco). We recall spending many lunch ours enjoying Dreamcast games on Kiosks they had available in the lobby. It was enough to tide us over. The Playstation 2 was finally released, and it was the first time we had purchased a system "fresh on the market". Perhaps we gave into the hype, but we told ourselves that we needed a DVD Player (we did), and if anything we could play our older Playstation games on it. Sony and Sega went to war. Sony won the war, and we picked up a Dreamcast for $50.
Sony was king of the hill for a little while, but Nintendo and Microsoft were set to try and steal the throne. We had already spent enough money investing in PS2. So purchasing a new game system at the time was out of the question. Microsoft was the new kid on the block (in consoles anyway), and Nintendo was fighting to regain 3rd Party developer support (and their original place as king of consoles). We waited to see what they had to offer game wise, and ignored all the flashy tech specs. Microsoft did not make the type of games that interested us. We did like a few of Nintendo's character license titles, but there were not many games we were interested in at the time. Our patience paid off when a fellow military member gave up his Nintendo Gamecube for $50. We would then buy a Microsoft Xbox in 2004 for $150.
So what will we do in this new generation war? History has taught us many things. Microsoft believes that Sony won the previous war because they had launched first. The head start will give them time to gather the developers needed to put out good games, but history tells us that being first did not help Dreamcast or Turbografx-16. Patience has shown us that competition brings about great games and prices, and that it is best to wait and see how well a system does on the market (We never did buy a 3DO, CD-i, 32X, and Jaguar after all). Experience has taught us that hype and specs do nothing for console investments, but it is the games that matter. Money (or the lack of it) has taught us to wait for the best deal. We will wait for all 3 systems to be released, and then judge which will be purchased first. Until then we will enjoy the games we have now...
This story goes out to all the crazy fan boys who are driven by hype, and to those who have enjoyed videogames and will for many years to come
- DW
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