* Posts by Steve Rowsell

23 publicly visible posts • joined 13 Oct 2007

MS claims US weekend sales victory in console war

Steve Rowsell
Stop

Breaking News - Reg Hardware to be re-named Microsoft Haters Anonymous

I look at the headlines on this site most days and whenever anything to do with Microsoft is mentioned, whether its new hardware, old hardware, operating systems, price cuts, sales figures or even conjecture, its usually jumped upon by morons who feel that because they own anything branded with the word 'Sony', they are contractually obliged to try and stamp on anything Microsoft related.

People complain about the 'cult of Apple' and the way that some Apple owners tend to think they are superior to others. The jury is out on whether this is indeed true, but at present, I think some of the Sony owners who constantly post vitriolic nonsense ought to take a long hard look at themselves. At present, some of them appear to be so up themselves they're in serious danger of disappearing up their own backsides.

For crying out loud - you've bought a PS3 - well done, I am pleased for you (and I'm not being sarcastic here). You opened your wallet, took out some cash and bought the system of your choice. I used to think that people bought things to meet their own needs - now I'm not so sure. I think that these days, people buy systems to try and feel superior to the owners of other systems. WHY??

I initially bought a 360 Core model because it was cheap, it had a pretty good catalogue of games, and the idea of online gaming on a console appealled to me. OK - you have to pay for Xbox Live - I don't have a problem with that, its not that expensive overall and I consider it to be worthwhile considering a month's use equates to less than 2 pints of beer.

I didn't have a hard drive or wireless adapter when I bought the console - no problem - I could add those when I could afford them, and if I felt they were necessary. I didn't want a Blu-Ray player and didn't want to pay through the nose for one - my PS2 had the first DVD player I owned, but I barely used it for DVDs - when the time came, I bought a standalone DVD player.

So the Xbox 360 met my particular needs. I didn't buy it because I love Bill Gates and I didn't buy it because I hate Sony or Nintendo. A single look at my collection of consoles, (SNES, Megadrive, Game Gear, Gameboy, Gameboy Advance, Dreamcast, PS1, PS2, PSP, N64, Gamecube, Xbox 1) will confirm that I don't particularly favour any console manufacturer.

I now have a good collection of games for my 360 that I enjoy playing with friends. I'm happy and have FUN with my console, which is surely the whole point of the purchase. I'd like to think that the majority of people with PS3s and Wiis do the same.

However, the constant stream of attempted one-upmanship that I read daily, (especially on this site) makes me sick - do you not realise how pathetic it sounds? I know that this plea will be like a fart in the wind, but just for a moment, take a step back and look at how ridiculous all this bickering sounds - you might be surprised, and perhaps, just a little ashamed.

Luke Skywalker's lightsabre goes on sale

Steve Rowsell
Happy

@ Mark York

Hello There !

Showing the true depths of my geekiness here, but in one of the expanded universe books, it transpires that the saber was picked up by Imperial forces (complete with attached hand).

The hand was then used some time after the timeline of the movies by an evil clone Jedi called Joruus C'Baoth to create an evil clone of Luke Skywalker, (apparently named Luuke Skywalker), who ended up using the saber.

You don't need to see my identification - Move along...

Sony said to be planning Spring PS3 price cut

Steve Rowsell
Thumb Up

Too expensive for me - a reduction would be good...

It'll be interesting to see whether this price cut happens. I would perhaps be tempted if the price cut were to take the price of an 80gb model down by £100.

Its something that Sony must have realised they would have to do in the end. The price of standalone BR players is falling, meaning that the built-in BR player is less of a selling point now that the PS3 is no longer the cheapest way to get hold of a half decent BR player.

I've always maintained that I have no interest in the PS3 as a Blu-Ray player, and would only think of getting one for gaming - I'm a bit of a completionist in that I usually end up with all consoles from each generation of hardware, as ever since the days of the Commodore 64 and the ZX Spectrum, there have been platform exclusive games that it'd be a shame to miss out on.

I currently just have a 360 from this generation and enjoy it immensely, but I'd be lying if I were to say there were no PS3 games I wouldn't mind in my library as well. I'm afraid the Wii, popular as it is, leaves me cold. Too gimmicky and a guaranteed dust gathering device if ever I saw one. I will add one to my collection one day, but it is last in the queue.

So if there are any Sony execs reading this, go ahead, reduce the price by £100 and I will buy one!

Gamers voice NXE woes

Steve Rowsell

Freezing issues with NXE

I've installed the new dash board on my new 60gb premium (bought a few weeks back in readiness), and whilst the avatars should really have been called 'Twees' as they are pretty unnecessary and overly 'cutesy', I do like the new look. I also like the party chat and install games to hard drive idea. The overall look is a lot cleaner and I prefer it to the old blades layout.

However, I have experienced issues where the system has locked up entirely when on the new dashboard, 2 or possibly 3 times. Whilst this is undoubtedly a pain, its not that much of a problem, as I just have to turn the box off for a second and restart the system.

I think its inevitable that there will be some teething problems, and I'd imagine there will also be an element of rogue posts being left all over the internet by childish PS3 owners, claiming their 360 RROD'ed immediately after installing the dashboard update.

Presumably 360 owners will end up retaliating occur as and when 'Home' finally launches on the PS3, and I can't help thinking its all a little bit sad. I can't see why people just can't be happy with what they have and get on with enjoying it. Competing systems engenders an atmosphere in which developers are constantly trying to outdo each other, and that can only mean good things for gamers, whatever their system. As many thousands of people have written before, why can't we all just get along?

Of course, there will be some people unlucky enough to have the installation coincide with a RROD problem (that would most likely have occurred, new dashboard or not). If you are one of those people, my sympathies are with you.

NXE fans tempted with refurb Xbox HDD offer

Steve Rowsell
Stop

@ AC - LOL

Would you like me to explain to you what the word 'optional' means?

My 360 suits my purposes perfectly, I have a full catalogue of great games and have not paid £300 for the privilege of having a Blu-Ray player that I have no use for.

I pay a fiver a month for an online matchmaking service that is vastly superior to the PS3's and am happy to continue doing this.

I could provide you with a great many more reasons why I am happy with my purchase, but frankly, I just can't be bothered.

These forums seem to be overpopulated by sore PS3 owners with nothing to occupy their time and I'm getting bored responding to their attempts to belittle the 360 and its user base. Why not go and use your oh so wonderful console if its that great and stop flaming anything 360-related.

Pathetic.

Oh yeah, LOL.

Console modders banned from Xbox Live

Steve Rowsell
Thumb Up

Fair enough

As someone who pays for their games, pays for their Live subscription and plays fairly online, I don't have a problem with this. Perhaps it will lead to some of the banned players actually paying for their online gaming, in which case Microsoft might like to consider lowering the cost of Xbox Live Gold accounts slightly...

I'm not banking on it though!

Demand for consoles, add-ons skyrockets as PC games plunge

Steve Rowsell
Unhappy

If its not dead, its certainly looking a funny colour...

I agree with almost all everyone's comments as to why PC game sales are in decline, especially those that highlight the ease with which you can play games on consoles without having to check specifications, bug check, download patches and jump through various DRM hoops. I admit that whilst I still buy PC games, I now tend to buy more games for my XBox 360, which is simply easier to use for a quick gaming fix. I also agree with the points about having to constantly drop hundreds of pounds on new PC kit to even be able to run a title, let alone play it with half decent graphics without the risk of the game turning into an interactive slideshow. I just can't afford to keep buying new processors, graphics cards, PSUs, memory, operating systems and hard drives every few months!

However, I don't think anyone has mentioned the important fact that games shops are perpetually reducing the size of their PC games sections, sometimes to the degree that they are smaller than the 'miscellaneous items of game-related tat' sections, (Mario plush toys, and so on). They're also almost always stuck out of the way in some rarely visited area of the store or conversely, in the most awkward place imaginable.

Gamestation seem to be particularly prone to doing this - my local store appears to be selling off most of their pre-owned PC games for a pittance, and have placed the pre-owned section directly in front of the staff door to the stockroom. Similarly, the brand new PC games are placed on a very small number of shelves directly in the way of where people queue for the till. If you want to browse either section, you're either continually being 'excuse me'd' out of the way by staff carrying armfuls of console goodies to and fro, or bored punters waiting to pay for stuff.

And then theres the criminal lack of variety in stocked titles - I know for a fact that there are more games out there than are displayed in stores. Now that Gamestation is part of the same chain as GAME, their stocked PC titles are pretty lacklustre and usually identical, an example of this being the fact that as my wife has a liking for LEGO games, I was looking to try and find LEGO Batman shortly after its release - this proved more difficult to find than a piece of hay in a large stack of needles. In the end, I ordered it from an online retailer.

Stores like as HMV and Zavvi are even worse than the supposed specialist game stores. Even my local CEX (traded games only) have shifted their PC games from right next to the area where people queue for the tills to a dank area right at the back of the store, (see what I mean about the PC game placement trend?). Even supermarkets have stopped stocking PC games entirely, or if they have some, they tend to be the top 5 or 10 games, which invariably means half of their stock are bloody Sims expansions that no-one actually wants.

So although I've been a staunch supporter of PC gaming in the past, and have often posted rambling diatribes against lazy console ports, I think I'm on the verge of giving up on the PC as major gaming platform.

It just seems to be getting progressively easier and cheaper to get a console and an armful of good games instead, set myself up on my settee and crack on with the serious business of having fun...

Plus, PC Zone magazine seems to be turning into a tri-monthly games leaflet, with people pulled off the street with a shepherd's crook every other month to take a turn as a reviewer/freelance journalist/magazine editor before they leave the sinking ship. But thats another gripe I have...

PS3 too expensive, claims analyst

Steve Rowsell
Stop

@ Anonymous Coward

Yet another $ony fanboy displays his fear of his favourite console at being supplanted by the Xbox 360.

It amuses me at just how quickly the marauding bands of fanboys seize upon any opportunity to try and talk down the Xbox. Anyone would thing they didn't have any good quality games to play on their oh-so superior system and had to instead get their jollies by lurking on forums to criticise Microsoft and their console...

I must have made this point so many times that a google of the phrase must come up with a great many results, but as yet, no-one has actually answered the question -if the Xbox it is such a poor console, then why on earth do so many PS3 owners need to bother attacking it at every opportunity. Surely if its that bad, it'll die a death of its own accord. But oh no, it hasn't, and people continue to snap up the latest releases for it at a fair old rate. My theory is that these PS3 owners are feeling threatened. I must say that their brand loyalty is admirable, but their gullibility is certainly not.

And this is for the first poster - 'anonymous coward' alone - the disparaging remark about 360 owners needing carers it says a lot about you and your meagre cognitive abilities. I imagine that you'd rush out any buy an empty egg box if it had Sony plastered all over it. Grow up and encourage your brain cells to mingle with each other a little, you blithering prat.

Leak reveals Xbox 360 Pro debut due

Steve Rowsell
Stop

To all PS3 fanboys that have hijacked this thread...

...for Gods sake, grow up.

If your console is so great, why not try playing games on it, rather than trying to hijack threads with puerile and juvenile comments?

I have a 360 and have used it heavily for the last 18 months. I've had no technical issues so far, and love playing it. If it RRODs, I'll send it back to Microsoft and get it repaired / replaced. Its not a problem.

I had the opportunity to buy a PS3 about a month ago and was quite close to doing so at one point. I'd actually like to have the 360 and a PS3 side by side, so that I could choose the best games on each system and play them as required.

What stopped me? Well, the more I researched it, the more I realised that the PS3 just didn't represent value for money in my eyes..(at this moment in time). These were the stumbling blocks that I could see:

- the lack of backward compatibility with PS1 / PS2, (OK, I have a PS1 & PS2 and could use them to play my games - however, my living room is not the size of the QEII and my TV only has so many AV inputs. I already have my GC, PS2, Xbox 1 and Xbox 360 hooked up and my wife complains about the space taken up by games consoles as it is...)

- the price (if I bought the console, I'd essentially be paying for not only a games console, but also a Blu-Ray player that I don't want. I don't care whether its the cheapest way to get a Blu-Ray player...I don't want one thanks).

- the catalogue of games, (barring a handful of good titles on PS3 that are platform specific, the rest of the half-decent PS3 games are available on the system I already own. I can't justify spending £350 for a PS3 and a couple of good games)

- the poor online gaming service, (it may be free, which is a good thing, but I've heard its disappointing and that matchmaking with friends tends to be difficult)

- the generally poor way that Sony has treated its European customers over the last few years.

I generally end up buying all of each generations' consoles in the end, so I will probably end up getting a PS3 at some point. However, the way things are looking, it won't be for some time, (and may even be when its price drops just before PS4 is released...whenever that might be).

I guess my point is - whatever console you own, enjoy it - don't spend your time trying to score points against other systems and their owners - whatever they have, it meets their needs and they are obviously happy with it.

Xbox 360 'Wii Remote' in development?

Steve Rowsell

@Mark

Another Sony fanboy spending their time flaming the Xbox 360 instead of playing their huge catalogue of AAA games or watching overpriced movies on their wonderful console.

If the PS3 is so superior, then why not enjoy using it and wait for the demise of the 360, (as you and all your sheep-like fanboy chums seem to think is inevitable)? I'll tell you why not, because you all feel threatened by the console with the larger user base and superior games catalogue.

Its almost like you fanboys feel you have to justify your purchase of your white elephant of a console. When your highest profile release (and the first to be bundled with the console) is little more than a demo, then I'd imagine you would be starting to regret purchasing the PS3.

Get a life mate.

Blu-ray drive in development for Xbox 360

Steve Rowsell
Flame

@Phil Irwin

When the 1st comment is about Microsoft and humble pie, (and then is echoed several times within the first 10 comments), you've really got to wonder why these PS3 fanboys are so intent on flaming the 360. Could it be they still feel their machine of choice is threatened?

I fully realise that someone has made comments about crayons and childishness, but in the very best tradition of being childish, I'm going to say: 'But they started it!'.

Also, if you're bored of reading comments of this nature, don't read them. The information you're likely to be after will be in the main article, meaning that there is no actual need to read the comments.

Anyway - to continue...I'm not going to let Sony fanboys take over this thread with their usual 'ooh, red ring of death, ooh the console is sometimes quite loud, ooh HD-DVD is dead'. Well done numbskulls, we all know about these things, and we know that:

- Microsoft extended the warranty and that newer machines have a lesser chance of experiencing this problem

- Yes the console is noisy - no arguments there. But I can live with it.

- Yes, HD-DVD is dead. But I don't have a HD-DVD drive; I've no interest in having one. I have no interest in Blu-Ray either. I'm not in the habit of buying GAMES CONSOLES to play movies on. I buy dedicated equipment for that.

Sure, the 360 has had its problems, but then again, as someone else has mentioned, its a perfect console for someone who doesn't want/can't afford to spend several hundred pounds all at once, but instead wants to steadily add hardware to it. Also in its favour is the fact that it has a huge catalogue of superior games and a decent online gaming service.

Meanwhile, the PS3 has just received the much-vaunted GT5 Prologue to a chorus of yawns and general apathy. For one of the PS3's long awaited 'must have' games, (that hardware packs are being released around, no less), that must be more than a little disappointing.

From the reviews I have read, (both professional and gamers' own posted reviews), the game is basically a shinier, cut-down version of its predecessors with the same lack of damage modelling and poor AI. Oh yeah, and when it was released, the multiplayer was apparently totally broken.

Angry PS3 owners will now be lining up to blurt such comments as 'but this is only a taste of the full game', 'you wait until the full version comes out'.

To which I reply, 'so you're having to pay £25 for a demo then?. If it has taken this long to release a demo, how long is it going to be before you get the full game?'. Maybe Microsoft will be on Xbox 720 by then, with Forza 3 or Project Gotham 5...

Bottom line is that if the Xbox 360 is as poor a machine as PS3 owners are constantly trying to make out, they wouldn't be flaming it at every opportunity. I'd say that criticism is the most sincere form of envy in this case.

Blu-ray 'to bloom', now HD DVD's dead

Steve Rowsell
Thumb Down

BD or no BD? That is the question.

The short answer is 'No - I won't be joining the BD revolution'.

The longer answer is that after spending hundreds (thousands?) of pounds on a VHS collection over the years that is still in the process of being replaced by DVDs, I have no wish to start the process all over again.

The previous post mentioning the difference between the jump from VHS to DVD versus the jump from DVD to BD makes a very valid point; the difference in my view is much smaller, more so if you have a DVD player that upscales your existing DVDs.

Now I realise that I am about to get leapt on by:

- numerous Sony/BD/PS3 zealots with foam coming from their mouths,

- people who only see such discussions as a forum to boast about how they've bought a $10,000 BD projector and have knocked all the walls of their house through in order to get a 200" screen up, (but who probably really use a 14" black and white portable TV in a 1 room bedsit directly above the neighbourhood cat lady)

- people explaining that although 50gb Blu Ray discs will still mean studios fitting 4 episodes of a series on a single disc, it'll be so much better for my overall viewing pleasure in the long run, ('you'll be able to see people's nose hair and everything' - woo...great!)

- boffins trying to explain exactly why I couldn't possibly live without BD, providing in-depth data to support this conclusion, whilst having little idea that if you spend a movie pondering bitrates and resolutions, you really are missing the point and ought to really consider a better class of movie than 'Generic Buddy Shooty Car Chase Movie 8 - The Return of the Revenge', or 'Crappy and Wholly Unamusing Spoof Movie 22').

So, I'm going to save them a job and explain why I will not be joining so many other sheep and jumping on the BD ship.

- If my eyes, (I'm blessed with 20/20 vision apparently), tell me there is little difference in image quality between DVD and BD, I can't see the point of 'upgrading'. This is of course unless each BD player comes with an independent team of experts, (equipped with lab coats, clipboards, pointing devices and heavy spectacles) to stand in the corner of my living room, so that they can interject at key points in movies to explain where and how my viewing experience has been significantly heightened.

- I have no desire to pay through the nose for another of Sony's products, (after they deign to release the product for we poor unimportant Europeans)

- I don't want to build a fairly large collection of BD movies only for them to be superceded by another apparently superior format a handful of years later

So there you go, a flawless set of reasons why I will not be adopting this format. Argue as much as you want, these are my reasons, 100% valid and personal to me and however hard you try, you won't change my opinion on this.

Feel free to try though, as I could do with a laugh...

Missing: 80GB PS3. Last seen: Sony's website

Steve Rowsell
Alert

@ Mark

Quote : ' ...the Xbox360...What did happen to it?'

Its' games library continued to grow, as did its' huge user base. It continued to outsell the 'PS George Forman Grill' or 'PS Breadbin' or whatever its called, much to the chagrin of label-obsessed Sony fanboys everywhere'.

Just because Blu-Ray has apparently become the HD format of choice doesn't mean the overpriced, underfeatured and underwhelming console that is the PS3 is going to catch up either.

That was just a thought for you, (as you don't seem capable of having an independent, non-Sony endorsed thought of your own).

NB - If any of the Regs' mods are reading, how about a picture of Sony Home Entertainment's CEO Kaz Hirai with a set of horns? It'd only be fair...

Satin PS3 to launch in Japan

Steve Rowsell
Flame

Re: moan moan moan

Ahhh diddums. Your favourite console still not selling? Its' manufacturer coming up with increasingly desperate ideas to appeal to consumers? What next? Go-faster stripes? Pleease !

I take it that by saying 'XPox', you mean the successful games console with a greater market share, better take-up rate, better selection of games and superior online gaming.

Which pretty much makes the PS3, the overpriced, bulky black/satin/white elephant of an excuse to get a foothold in the Blu-Ray market.

Incidentally, I can afford a PS3. I just don't want one.

If I had one as a gift, I'd sell it and buy games for my successful console. My Xbox 360.

I'd rather play games on my console than stand around boasting 'Ooooh, I can afford a PS3' - only for people to point out that its little more than a glorified DVD player.

You paid money for that and STILL want to shout it from the rooftops? I'm beginning to see Sony's marketing masterplan unfolding - 'Sell to fanboys with more money than sense'.

Monster-capacity PS3 in the pipeline?

Steve Rowsell
Alert

@ Andy Bright

Quote : 'If you like your PS2 games that much, save yourself some money and keep your PS2.'

We've already worked that out for ourselves thank you. I think that is part of Sony's problem, (well, that and the Wii and 360 devouring its market share).

People are holding onto their old kit for the very reason that they DO like their old games, (who wants to have built up a library of hundreds of pounds worth of games only to find that they're then expected to pack them away, never to be played again?). This is an especially important thing to think about when you consider it is a good 18 months since the release of the PS3, and only now are there a handful of half-decent games available for the system.

Why do you think Sony is peppering the market trying to find a model of the PS3 that people will actually buy in any great numbers? This is obviously barring the more easily influenced (brainwashed?) of us, who'd not only feel obliged to buy a turd if it had a Sony logo on it, but also claim that it was then sleeker, featured better content and ran faster (!) than all the other turds out there.

My guess is that somewhere down the line, although backwards compatibility is 'no longer going to be a feature of the PS3', the online Playstation store will suddenly come up with some form emulator, and start selling the PS2 games you USED to own (but then sold), ensuring many of their customers pay twice for the same product. (Don't believe me? See also PSP emulation of PS1 games).

Bascially, I'll continue to vote with my wallet whilst Sony continue to insist their European customers bend over and think of Ken Kutaragi.

Incidentally, for those who can't quite work it out for themselves, the reason why 'Sony-bashing seems to be so popular at the moment' is because since the release of the original Playstation, Sony undoubtedly built up a huge and loyal customer base, (who bought PS2s en masse, despite it not being the best of the last gen machines).

It would appear that this loyal customer base is now becoming quite angry and disenfranchised, (especially those of us who have the misfortune to live in Europe), as they basically see Sony's recent actions as a kick in the teeth as a reward for their continued custom.

To coin a phrase, this whining from people who don't seem to recognise they are being stiffed is irritating to say the least.

Sony denies Euro, US white PS3 plan despite FCC filing

Steve Rowsell
Stop

Sony Haters...

Well, as the owner of a PS1, PS2 and PSP and many other items of Sony equipment, I never used to be.

However, the way their console division has operated over the last couple of years means I now refuse to buy Sony consoles.

Re: The Skype add-on for the PSP - well done on that, fair enough. I applaud your sole item in the defence of Sony.

However, what you fail to mention is that the Skype add-on is only for the Slim and Lite PSPs and not the older models that early adopters (like myself) own. This, despite the fact that the older PSPs are well capable of Skype and there are already homebrew applications out there.

Now, just one 'non-bull' reason why Japan is favoured over Europe:

15 March 2006 - SCE in the form of Ken Kutaragi announces PS3 will recieve a simultaneous worldwide release in early November 2006.

11 November 2006 - 60gb PS3 released in Japan, equipped with hardware based backwards compatibility. Retails at 59,980 yen, (approx $492).

17 November 2006 - 60gb PS3 released in USA, equipped with hardware based backwards compatibility. Retails at $499.

23 March 2007 - Cut-down 60gb PS3 released in Europe, equipped with no hardware based compatibility (software only). Retails at £425 in the UK, (approx $872), and 599 Euros elsewhere, (approx $827).

Therefore, Europe is made to wait 5 months for PS3s and when they are finally released, they're inferior AND overpriced. Those looking to import a model through websites such as Lik-Sang have limited success, as Sony put Lik-Sang out of business.

Despite there being stocks available for Europe at the launch date, these are quickly purloined for the Japanese & US markets, (obviously considered to be more important).

This is just one example of why I no longer buy Sony, (despite being a bit of a fanboy in the past). I am just one of many who feel this way.

Oh, and if you did read my original comment, you might notice that I did mention 'Not that it actually matters'. Meaning I actually couldn't care less about the colour of the console...

...FFS

Steve Rowsell

Well - theres a surprise...

Wow - not that it actually matters, but yet another case of 'Japan yes, Europe no'.

I suppose its not too bad though, as if they did release one for the European Market, it'd probably be inferior. I reckon it'd be crudely painted with white undercoat and called the 'Sony streaky-white PS3'. Whats more, they'd probably try and sell it for another £50 as a limited edition...

Sony keep giving me reasons not to buy their new console...

'Fat PSP' owners won't get Skype

Steve Rowsell
Stop

Unwillingness to support older hardware is the problem

As the 2 of the most recent posts have mentioned, it is possible for homebrew programmers to make a workable VoIP application for both flavours of the PSP.

I'm afraid Sony have lost the plot as they are alienating ever increasing sections of their user/customer base. My PSP is the last Sony console I've bought after buying and loving the original Playstation and PS2 and this just strengthens my resolve not to buy from Sony again.

There are many reasons why I decided to drop Sony like a stone, and I don't want to bore everyone (any more than I need to). The main reasons include :

- Delays in bringing the PS3 to the European market,

- Sony releasing substandard hardware in Europe at inflated prices (compared to US & Japanese PS3s released with the Emotion Engine included, Europe got limited backward compatibility via software emulation and got to pay more than US & Japanese customers for the privilege),

- Sony attempting to force its customers to build their Blu-Ray market share when all a lot of people wanted was a capable games console that built upon the successes of the PS1 & PS2

- Sony dropping backwards compatibility completely with the recently released 'castrated 40gb model',

- And now, Sony are trying to force people who already own its product, (the fat PSP), to buy the 'Slim' version by restricting the functionality of their existing console for no apparent reason.

Just wait, I imagine this will be just the first of an increasingly two-tier approach to firmware updates for the two (nigh-on identical) PSP models.

Sony's marketing policy and business plan over the last couple of years must have been dreamt up by a madman with the tagline 'How to lose friends and alienate people'. Well, the plan is working...

Nintendo kills Wii ads due to console shortage

Steve Rowsell
Thumb Down

@bogsheet

Congratulations, you win todays prize for most facile, empty-headed comment.

I applaud Hedley Phillips for taking a stand against the 'must have at all costs' attitude of too many people.

Whereas 'bogsheet' has shown that he/she is all too easily taken in by the marketing baloney that convinces people that three stripes on a pair of trainers means they are three times more valuable than those without.

Pathetic.

Steve Rowsell
Stop

@ Will

Ahhh...my heart bleeds for you.

if you want to try and take advantage of the Wii shortage by buying up ridiculous numbers of them in the hope of bleeding parents dry, you deserve everything you get, (i.e. to get your greedy fingers burned).

I personally hope you sell none of them and you find yourselves £14 grand short.

(and no, I'm not in the market for a Wii, I'm very happy with my Xbox 360. That was just my objective opinion).

Xbox 360 outsells PS3 in Japan

Steve Rowsell

Re: Sony's dead?

Some good points there. However, I am not sure what you mean by 'credit the posters here for not forgetting about the effect Halo 3 had on console sales'.

The very reason Microsoft took on Bungie as an in-house developer was to release a 'killer app', a must-have game that makes the punters want to buy their console. I guess my point is that surely the high sales of Halo 3 and associated console sales shouldn't make any difference to people's perceptions of the sales figures. At the end of the day, where do you draw the line?:

- '...ah - I see 360 sales are up...'

- '...yes - but don't forget thats only because a lot of consoles and games were sold this month...'

Vaguely ridiculous, I think you'll agree.

The interesting thing is that whilst Halo 3 has had an effect on console sales, there are so many high quality games on the market at present for 360, I don't think that Halo 3 is the sole reason why console sales have increased. There are platform exclusives, like Halo 3 and Bioshock, but also a few other releases that are out now for 360 but not yet for PS3, such as the Orange Box. Factor in the fact that a lot of the current releases for PS3 are also out on 360, (Call of Duty 4, Assassins Creed, etc), and I think you have the reason why the 360 is doing well.

Quite simply, it offers a wide variety of good quality games, which are usually £10.00 cheaper than a near identical PS3 version, and are not games that have a gimmick programmed in as an afterthought where you wave a controller about, (i.e. quite a few Wii games). Don't get me wrong - I really like the Wii, but everyone I know that owns one has had the initial period where they play it constantly. But then they realise quite a few of the games have no real depth and get bored quite soon afterward.

Although I own a 360 and have taken the stance that I will not buy a PS3 due to the poor manner with which Sony has treated its European customers, I do not doubt that the PS3 is a good piece of kit. However, I do feel it is overpriced for what it offers, (especially the neutered 40gb model), and I don't want to have a Blu-Ray player forced upon me. If I want one, I'll buy a standalone player - same for HD-DVD. I'm only about half way through the arduous and expensive task of replacing my favourite VHS movies with DVDs and have no intention of replacing them yet again at even more expense.

I do think that the strategy of building PS3s with Blu-Ray players is a risky one and gambles a lot on the gamers who buy the PS3 also buying into the whole 'hey - lets replace every DVD I own' idea - in addition to spending their hard earned cash on gaming. After all, Sony pushed the UMD on PSP owners when cartridges or memory sticks would have been a viable alternative and look what happened to that...

EA aquires Bioware and Pandemic

Steve Rowsell

- Alastair

Actually, I own and have played all but 2 of the games listed, 1 of which was not made by Bioware; NWN2, (as has been correctly pointed out by Paul). The other was Jade Empire, which I do intend to buy.

I've read through your post a couple of times, and you appear to firstly be bashing my defence of Bioware and Pandemic, and then rather oddly, bashing me for liking EA?!? Let me see, how can I make this clear?

I DO NOT LIKE EA - I DON'T WANT THEM TO SWALLOW UP ALL THE SMALLER STUDIOS.

Sorry to shout, but obviously I need to reinforce the point I already made quite clearly in my original post.

I stand by my original comments, and feel playing games that may be shipped with a few bugs, but have quality gameplay, plot and replayability are infinitely preferable to the processed garbage that EA churns out with appalling regularity.

And with regard to your point about Metacritic, I'd rather believe an overall score taken from a large number of publications and websites that I read regularly and trust through experience, than pay attention to someone who can't even read the post he is supposed to be trashing/trolling.

There - understand now?

Steve Rowsell

Re: To be honest

Some of Bioware/Pandemic's games may have been late and/or buggy, but at least they were vastly more original, fun and playable than EA's 'Generic Sports game 07/08' series generally are, where the onus is on simply re-releasing the same game year on year with slightly shinier graphics and a new gimmick.

I think its a damn shame that even more studios have been swallowed up by the Borg-like EA. In a few years time when there is a real dearth of originality in games, people will wish they'd been a bit less apethetic when all the quality developers were consumed.

Even though I hate bugged releases with a passion, I hate lack of originality and banal gameplay even more.

I don't even agree with your rather skewed views on the games you've listed. Perhaps for a more balanced and realistic impression of these games, we should have a look at the Metacritic scores:

NeverWinter Nights: 91

Jade Empire: 81

NWN 2: 82

KOTOR: 93

KOTOR 2: 85

and just for the record,

Full Spectrum Warrior: 80

Full Spectrum Warrior 2: 70

Conclusion - none of these games are as you have so eloquently described, 'shit'.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that from your comments, you appear to be a bit of a tool and you should perhaps refrain from posting such ill-informed rubbish.