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Windows Operating Systems Software Entertainment Games

The Future of Windows Gaming 66

Posted by Zonk from the more-money dept.
GameDaily.biz has up an interview celebrating the tenth anniversary of DirectX. Their talk with Chris Donahue covers how DirectX has evolved, where the industry is going, and some discussion of Microsoft's XNA initiative. From the article: "With XNA, which incorporates both DirectX and the Xbox/Xbox 360 Development Kits, we're making the tools to make it easier to make games for Microsoft's gaming platforms. We're looking to the game development community to surprise gamers with new ideas of what they can do with these tools--and of course, we're helping developers build games that can take advantage of the huge power of the next generation of hardware, both Xbox 360 and Longhorn."
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The Future of Windows Gaming More

The Future of Windows Gaming

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  • Uh oh, slip of the tongue... (Score:4, Insightful)

    by It doesn't come easy ( 695416 ) * on Thursday June 30, 2005 @12:51PM (#12951854) Journal
    [...] and of course, we're helping developers build games that can take advantage of the huge power of the next generation of hardware, both Xbox 360 and Longhorn

    Longhorn isn't next generation hardware. Longhorn will probably require next generation hardware to run well. Quote from I, Cringely [pbs.org], "For Intel to keep growing, people have to replace their PCs more often and Microsoft's bloatware strategy just isn't making that happen, especially if they keep delaying Longhorn."

    You may not agree with Cringely's conspiracy theories but it's been fairly obvious that the Windows/Intel duopoly has long been a mechanism to drive unnecessary computer upgrades under the guise of "innovation". Looks like Chris Donahue agrees that we'll be seeing more of the same.
    • huge power of the next generation of hardware

      What utter bollocks they spout, they say things in the most abstract broad strokes of wow, you can only imagine what it will be like, without longhorn, games will not advance, etc ,etc, oh piss off.

      Who the hell has heard of that site anyway? How can you tell the difference between a 'blog' style site for the sake of a site, and an independant, community focussed site nowwadays?

      The ability to put any message anywhere is quite scarey, and Microsoft are doing a
    • it's been fairly obvious that the Windows/Intel duopoly has long been a mechanism to drive unnecessary computer upgrades under the guise of "innovation

      You still playing Commander Keen on your 286? I didn't think so. Complaints of "bloat" and "unecessary upgrades" on a gamer's forum is just so much hot air.

    • I work in television and multimedia. You won't believe the amount of resources we have to purchase and/or build out to keep content in digital form. And I'm talking standard definition television. HDTV is a frickin' nightmare I hope to never deal with. Storage solutions for us are moving towards petabytes.

      It won't take an Intel/Microsoft monopoly to drive hardware sales. Believe me.
    • If that's the case then why does Linux run slower on the same hardware. For me anyway. Gnome is less responsive than Windows and I have about as much free memory left over after both OSs boot. There is no conspiracy, applications just grow to the available resources.
  • Well, here's my take on it. As much as I can't stand Microsoft, and as much as I hate Windows, I have to agree with the article, when it comes to Windows gaming. Windows is the platform to have in gaming, and the Xbox 360 will be nothing short of revolutionary. I know that this is an odd thing to say, coming from a Linux geek, but I am actually looking forward to seeing what happens with the Xbox 360 graphics, APIs and etc. I really like what they're proposing with the XNA and the whole 64 bit thing. Of cou

    • Re:Hmm... (Score:3, Interesting)

      by FidelCatsro ( 861135 )
      "I really wish that they would go to an open standard, but DirectX is the standard, and the way to go when developing games."
      OpenGL is equally as capable and it is an open standard .

      • OpenGL only handles graphics, while DirectX is an API suite which handles many things, including graphincs, input, sound, and network code.

        • Re:Hmm... (Score:4, Insightful)

          by ZephyrXero ( 750822 ) <zephyrxero AT yahoo DOT com> on Thursday June 30, 2005 @02:20PM (#12952613) Homepage Journal
          And for that you use SDL [libsdl.org]

        • Re:Hmm... (Score:1, Insightful)

          by Anonymous Coward
          DirectX isn't anything more than a loosely connected set of components. There is essentially zero connection between the components (except for DirectMedia, which is really just a load of audio / video codecs that are conventionally connected to DirectSound / DirectDraw). The different DirectX APIs have exactly four things in common.

          1 - They're all made by Microsoft.
          2 - They're marketed, branded, and distributed as one piece.
          3 - They all use COM.
          4 - They all have really stupid naming conventions (derived f
    • I have to agree with the article, when it comes to Windows gaming. Windows is the platform to have in gaming

      The only reason Windows is the platform for gaming is because they have over a 90% market share when it comes to PCs. Does it make more sense to try and develope a game that targets that other percentage which is broken up into various forms of Linux, something from Apple, or some other OS?

      Given the generally shoddy products that Microsoft has released over the years (IE, Windows ME, etc.) I

      • The last quote you have intrigues me. I would agree that PC gaming is where most new and innovative game ideas come from. The fact that it happens on the Windows Operating System is merely just a footnote though. The only place where independent developers can have a chance at being minorly successful is the PC game market. It costs thousands of dollars just to licence your game to a console, let alone the cost of development kits...as while a small developer can go pick up a PC, grab some free open-source
    • I like any sane person is for the advancement of any technology that allows for easier development of Interactive Entertainment software. Be it DirectX, SDL, or the like.

      Making the developer's life easier only makes for a better expression of vison. DirectX in the XBox 360? HOT DAMN.

  • Do they actually believe this? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by alvinrod ( 889928 ) on Thursday June 30, 2005 @12:54PM (#12951895)
    From the article:

    Windows gaming is kind of the Energizer bunny of gaming platforms--it just keeps going and going. And it keeps on innovating. Windows is where new and innovative technology happens first, and it's where new and exciting game genres show up first.

    Are all Microsoft employees required to incessantly spout the same crap over and over again. Microsoft has made some good products, but that last thing I want to hear over and over again is the same BS line about how Microsoft keeps innovating. I can't even look out the window anymore without some Microsoft goon shovel feeding me the same line about inovation.

    Honestly, I can never really recall any great innovative product ever really being made by microsoft. I know that they've made some good products, but it seems to me that they've all been done before.

    OS software was around long before Microsoft ever stuck its foot in the door. Internet browsers were around before IE came around. Text editors, spreadsheets, and other Office software had been developed before Microsoft made their versions. Gaming consoles and video games had been around a lot longer as well.

    Windows and IE aren't the best products in the world, but I'm quite happy with Word and my Xbox. I just wish they'd stop thinking I was born yesterday and will believe that they're revolutionizing the world with every single thing they do. It's almost gotten to the point where someone craps in a box and starts heralding it as the next big thing.

    If Microsoft wouldn't hype their stuff up so much, maybe some folks wouldn't be so let down when it doesn't live up to all the promises.

    • If Microsoft wouldn't hype their stuff up so much, maybe some folks wouldn't be so let down when it doesn't live up to all the promises.

      Maybe it is the persective of the person on that one. Most people expect the next Microsoft product to add something new, or make an old task easier.

      People do backflips when a release of Linux lets them install their sound card.

      Microsoft has to work harder to innovate past where they already are. They do hype things up, but certainly no more than the average news

    • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

      by account_deleted ( 4530225 )
      Comment removed based on user account deletion
    • I hate to tell you this, but "marketing" isn't going away anytime soon...
  • On the top level, I can see how many developers and gamers would think DirectX has been a help to gaming...but in the large scope of things it hasn't. It has made Windows gaming on IBM/Intel architecture better, but nothing else. If people had put even half the same effort into using real standards that work on multiple platforms we might be seeing much more interesting and innovative games now. If developers would take the time to learn to use OpenGL and SDL instead of DirectX we wouldn't have to worry abo

    • Re:I'd much rather celebrate OpenGL (Score:4, Insightful)

      by dhakbar ( 783117 ) on Thursday June 30, 2005 @04:57PM (#12954195)
      "If people had put even half the same effort into using real standards that work on multiple platforms we might be seeing much more interesting and innovative games now."

      While I, too, would like to see OpenGL/SDL utilized for compatibility's sake, I fail to see how it would help developers create much more interesting and innovative games.
  • "There are many things about console gaming that we can apply to make the Windows game experience better. Install is one area where we're working with game developers and publishers to simplify the overly-complex install process--do you really need to answer all those questions and click on all those buttons to play the game?"

    Because it's so damn hard to click next four times!
    Christ, not everybody that plays video games needs it to be f***ing Mario Party 9 for the PC!

    How about this for innovation, allow m

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