Microsoft Reputation Manager's Guide To Xbox One 611
symbolset writes "In the wake of a disastrous E3 product reveal Microsoft has purportedly distributed a confidential internal 100-point 'FAQ' for the Xbox One that reads like it's from the Ministry of Truth. It was of course immediately leaked on pastebin. Kotaku has the story and an amusing online poll. In the discussion below make sure to line up the FAQ entries with the AC comments for extra 'Informative' moderation."
Damage control (Score:5, Insightful)
This just in: The XBone One has managed to achieve what the Dreamcast couldn't... blowing up prior to launch. The Dreamcast at least fired the engines before exploding in a firey storm of shit. Which, given that their customers seem to be EA games and other publishers, and not, you know, people who are going to buy the console... seems about right.
There are Kickstarter consoles still on the drawing board, I mean, not even prototypes available yet, that have more pre-orders than the XBone. I don't think they could fail harder. Unless (dramatic pause) ... they bring Square Enix to headline this collossal cluster f*ck.
Re:Damage control (Score:5, Insightful)
There are Kickstarter consoles still on the drawing board, I mean, not even prototypes available yet, that have more pre-orders than the XBone. I don't think they could fail harder. Unless (dramatic pause) ... they bring Square Enix to headline this collossal cluster f*ck.
\
Citation badly needed.
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Citation badly needed.
Well, since you were a bit non-specific on what you're feeling butthurt about, I'll have to guess...Holy shit, a console made out of spare parts still has a better rep than the Xbone [kickstarter.com]. Allows you to run your own software. Costs $99. 63,000 pre-orders. Meanwhile, at Microsoft HQ... "There aren't any official numbers..." (troll face)
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Citation badly needed.
Well, since you were a bit non-specific on what you're feeling butthurt about, I'll have to guess...Holy shit, a console made out of spare parts still has a better rep than the Xbone [kickstarter.com]. Allows you to run your own software. Costs $99. 63,000 pre-orders. Meanwhile, at Microsoft HQ... "There aren't any official numbers..." (troll face)
Where are the hard numbers from Sony on PS4 sales? According to your logic, that must mean the Ouya has a "better rep" and more orders than the PS4, right?
Re: (Score:3)
Re:Damage control (Score:4, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3)
How does the achievable graphical complexity of the GPU in the Tegra 3 SOC of this "Ouya" console compare to that of the Latte GPU in Nintendo's Wii U?
What's interesting and/or unfortunate about Tegra 3, depending on your point of view, is that it doesn't have a lot of GPU. More than Wii, probably less than Wii U. It has been described as being similar to [original] Xbox-level graphics, but it's actually rendering at 1080p whereas the Xbox was operating at much lower resolutions. Also, the Tegra 3 games have more graphical effects than other titles; the Xbox didn't have the visual effects the Ouya does.
What's great about it is that it has an assload of CP
Re: (Score:3)
[Ouya] doesn't have a lot of GPU. More than Wii, probably less than Wii U. It has been described as being similar to [original] Xbox-level graphics, but it's actually rendering at 1080p whereas the Xbox was operating at much lower resolutions.
So in other words, it's comparable to Dolphin, which emulates a Wii but upscales the graphics.
What's great about it is that it has an assload of CPU.
But does it beat the 3-core PowerPC G3 in the Wii U? And even so, what would "an assload of CPU" provide to major video game developers to get them to develop for Ouya rather than Wii U?
Re: (Score:3)
I think it's a perfectly valid comparison based on the changing nature of gaming anyway. When the PS3 and XBox 360 were released, there was no such thing as Kickstarter projects, the whole commercial PC games scene was much more vibrant with fewer independent releases, and whilst Steam did exist then, there was no thought about making it available for Linux.
The need for closed and specialised hardware these days is lessening, whether it's for telephony servers (the industry I work in) or for gaming. Mobile
Re:Damage control (Score:4, Funny)
I don't know if you just coined it or someone else did way before. But it's the first time I've seen it called "XBone." I think the name will stick.
People are not just skeptical of this thing, they are outright afraid of it.
Microsoft... wow... just wow.
Re: (Score:3)
People are not just skeptical of this thing, they are outright afraid of it.
Microsoft... wow... just wow.
You forget that the people buying XBox watch TV commercials and that their competitor is the root-kit maker Sony.
This will hurt the XBox One like the rootkit fiasco or dropping Linux PS2 support hurt Sony --- this amount precisely and scientifically stated as "none at all".
Reality. Reality bites and marketing dollars matter. Film at 11.
Re:Damage control (Score:4, Interesting)
Amazon put up a poll for XBOX ONE versus PLAYSTATION 4 and they quickly canceled the poll, because with about 45,000 votes, 95% of them were for the PS4. It was a slaughter.
http://gengame.net/2013/06/amazon-prematurely-ends-ps4-vs-xbox-one-poll-when-ps4-takes-95-of-the-vote/ [gengame.net]
Re:Damage control (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Damage control (Score:4)
It's not fair to call the Dreamcast's untimely demise a fiery storm of shit. The Dreamcast had a lot of good points, even if it did ultimately fail. While mistakes were made, the Dreamcast was hardly shitty.
Re: Damage control (Score:5, Insightful)
The big problem problem that new consoles are fighting for is: a reason to exist. Most games demo-ed so far look possible on the current generation of hardware. Crowd sources AI is an interesting twist, but possible on current consoles. Killer Instinct is an odd thing to revive, but it would play just as well on a PS3.
Suddenly Microsoft comes out with a console that:
1. Phones home every day.
2. Bans game lending.
3. Possibly cripples the used game market, or maybe not, nobody is really sure.
4. Requires Kinect to be always on, because that wasn't a disaapointment.
Their sales pitch of "You can play games that are basically last-gen games, but with fewer rights" has had shocking trouble resonating with consumers.
Re: (Score:3)
The dreamcast owned well and long after it "failed". It failed because its best virtue was also its achilles heel; you could easily pirate all the games. That's why the dreamcast will live on forever. Calling the dreamcast a "shit" means you don't know what you are talking about.
You seem to have an opinion on every single slashdot story, so its not surprising that your knowledge might be spread a bit thin.
More realistically... (Score:5, Insightful)
The Xbone will do ok in the US. That's its home market, there's always a degree of "patriotic" buying (though not to the same extent as in Japan) and, like them or not, some of the 360's exclusive franchises still have a lot of market power. There are people who will buy an Xbone for Halo. The overlap between those people and "people who read slashdot" is probably quite small.
Will the Xbone do as well in the US as the 360 has (where the sales data shows it's the dominant console)? Probably not, at least on the basis of what we've seen so far. Sony's given the "floating voters" with no strong attachment to either camp a lot of reasons to go in the PS4 direction this time. But the Xbox series has a lot of loyal fans in the US and most of them will still be hanging on.
The danger for MS lies outside of the US. Ok, it's never managed to get the Xbox to succeed in Japan. So it's probably fair that it doesn't put too many resources into trying this time around (you'll never get away from the fact that the demographic profile of gamers looks very, very different in Japan and is much less interested in those games we consider "mainstream" in the West).
But Europe? Europe was in many ways the key swing battleground of the 360/PS3 generation and didn't really commit strongly to either camp. There's no "domestic" console, so no "patriotic buying" effect; in short, there's everything to play for. But MS seem to have decided not to play.
The TV offerings (which won't even be available in many territories to start with) aren't exactly tempting in Europe. I've had to sort out phone/tv/broadband packages in the UK, Belgium and the US in the last couple of years and can hand-on-heart say that you can get a decent TV package much more cheaply and easily in Europe these days. Sky or Virgin Media vs Comcast? It's not even close. MS is facing much tougher competition to take over from the existing TV providers.
The competition in Europe is, therefore, much more likely to be about being the better machine for games. Sony's messaging so far has been "games, games, games". I'm not really sure that Halo has more potency as a brand than Resistance, or that Gears of War is more potent than Killzone in Europe.
Then there are the emerging markets. The parts of the world that don't buy many consoles right now, but which might conceivably start to buy a lot more over the course of the next few years. These are also places where the 24-hour-dial-home restriction is likely to be a serious deterrent.
If MS doesn't do some urgent damage limitation, the Xbone runs a serious risk of ending up as a single-territory console.
Re:More realistically... (Score:4, Insightful)
Many gamers are kids. They have limited income, there is only so much MS and publishers can bleed them. They buy a lot of second hand games and always trade in the ones they finish. Those kids will be buying a PS4.
Some people will just put up with it and shell out the cash. Some people don't have that choice.
Re:Damage control (Score:5, Informative)
Must connect to the internet once a day or locks you out, extreme limitations on lending or buying used games, etc. An excellent reason to play Steam games under Linux overall.
Re:Damage control (Score:5, Insightful)
Must connect to the internet once a day or locks you out, extreme limitations on lending or buying used games, etc. An excellent reason to play Steam games under Linux overall.
Normally I'd snark this, but I got nothing. I mean, I'm just bone dry here. It's so stupidifying that I think it may have temporarily caused my brain to seize up like an old VW bug.
Re:Damage control (Score:4, Funny)
Must connect to the internet once a day or locks you out, extreme limitations on lending or buying used games, etc. An excellent reason to play Steam games under Linux overall.
Normally I'd snark this, but I got nothing. I mean, I'm just bone dry here. It's so stupidifying that I think it may have temporarily caused my brain to seize up like an old VW bug.
Or a new VW DSG.
Re:Damage control (Score:5, Insightful)
The reason why he said that is because Steam is far from a good thing. It is cool it provides a digital library with downloadable games. It is bad that you have to run Steam in order to play the game that you have already paid. It is bad that games are ridden with DRM. Sure, that might be a sign of times to come but for people that grew up playing games the old fashioned way, we clearly see that as a disadvantage instead of some revolutionary system.
Re:Damage control (Score:5, Interesting)
Running Steam isn't much of a hassle now. It used to be a bit of a resource hog, but not any more - it's currently using 74MB of RAM. Whoopdie shit. Other than an OCD obsession from the 90s about not having any background apps left open, it doesn't make any significant difference.
Most games on Steam don't have additional DRM, and I don't buy those that do.
And if you don't like Steam, go with GOG.com games. All of 'em are DRM free.
Re:Damage control (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Damage control (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Damage control (Score:4, Interesting)
Except a rep did say that, then they "clarified" their position. Sounds to me like they started taking flak for it, and changed their opinion. But the option, is still on the table. [levelsave.com]
Re: (Score:3)
https://twitter.com/XboxSupport1/status/345338828606812160 [twitter.com]
Care to retract and or restate your comment?
That is an official microsoft support channel stating exactly what I said.
Re: (Score:3)
To quote you:
"Please stop making up shit"
I was not making up shit. I had a referenced reply which directly stated what I was claiming.
A marketing droid (who has an awesome podcast) stated the opposite in your video. You ask "who would more likely know the details". I'll ask "who would more likely lie and throw spin as opposed to accidentally revealing corporate policy". Major Nelson has constantly been "wrong" about many things in the past pertaining to xbox live features and releases.
How is my comment
Re: (Score:3)
I had not yet seen MajorNelson's reply, as I avoid the reddit gaming forums entirely (the homebrewing forum is awesome though!) and don't have access to dedicated gaming sites from work. It appears it was only posted 1 day ago (I'm in Australia, already through Monday here).
I didn't have facts, but I had statements from the company. The twitter statement is the last thing I'd seen stated by actual MS employees. I wasn't making things up, ignoring "facts," nor anything else you accused me of.
How is anyone
Re: (Score:3)
It was a lowest level support rep on twitter versus the Director of Programming for the Xbox. Who was likely to have got confused and who would actually know better?
Re:Damage control (Score:5, Informative)
Uh huh. Steam is DRM and requires Internet too. If your Steam gets closed down or whatever, then you lose all your games. Also, you can't sell/transfer your games too.
Re:Damage control (Score:4, Insightful)
Well, except for the fact that they've stated that they will release an unlock if at all possible if the company ever goes out of business. And the fact that Steam DRM is ridiculously easy to crack and they have not made any real effort to improve it except from the multiplayer security aspect. Which is almost certainly because they both know that stopping pirates is ineffectual and it will allow people to continue playing games if anything catastrophic happens to Valve.
Re:Damage control (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Economies of scale (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Economies of scale (Score:5, Insightful)
But without the phoning home requirement, you'd get some of those millions of "ruralites" to buy an XBox One.
Re:Economies of scale (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3)
They ran 2 (or likely 2 million) situations through some great combonator. In situation A, they don't phone home every 24 hours and more people can buy the box, but publishers get mad that they can't impose draconian DRM. In situation B, they do phone home every 24 hours and less people can buy the box, but the publishers are happier. Situation B made them more money in spite of losing them customers, so that's what they went with.
What I think they may have failed to take into account is those of us who hav
Re:Economies of scale (Score:4, Insightful)
You don't get the point of his message: if you aren't urban, fuck off.
Suburbanites and ruralites aren't numerous enough to move Microsoft's needle. So fuck off.
Does it need to be more clear? Fuck the fuck off? Go away? You're not needed here?
Re: (Score:3)
Well, then I guess there's a fundamental misunderstanding over the producer/consumer relationship.
Who cares what Microsoft wants? It's not about what THEY want, it's about what the consumer wants.
And let's not BS. Microsoft doesn't "want you to have a decent internet connection" at all. They don't care about your bandwidth. You could probably use a dialup and as long as Microsoft ha
Re: Economies of scale (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3)
No, that's not the problem. As another follow-up rightly pointed out, broadband is a prerequisite for most online gaming.
The problem is that those friends in rural are locked out from console gaming at all. Well, that's one of the problems [cracked.com], anyway.
Re: (Score:3)
Cable/DSL != the Internet.
Even worse is those whose Internet service occasionally goes flakey. There may only be a small number of days a year that you have only smart phone-based access to the net, but it's on precisely those days when you'd really like to play a game.
Re: (Score:3)
Virgin Media recently had a five day outage round here, and my boss was telling me that his kids went nuts. No cable TV, no cable internet. At least they had their XBOX 360 to play with...
Re: (Score:3)
and when the XBone is released...they will still have the XBox 360 to play with!
56k modem (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Damage control (Score:5, Insightful)
A couple million military members and contractors do care about that. Phone home once a day? Hardcore region locked? Always on microphone? Not happening.
Re:Damage control (Score:5, Insightful)
do you really think anybody cares about the limitations?
Yes. If it was so different and awesome in architecture that it delivered really innovative stuff then this might be OK. But it uses the same processor, slower RAM, more RAM reserved for OS, slower GPU. The hardware is in every way equal or worse - so the software and terms must be better to compensate - and they aren't.
Re:Damage control (Score:4, Funny)
If it was so different and awesome in architecture that it delivered really innovative stuff then this might be OK
Yeah, if my car could go 500 MPH and get 100 miles to the gallon, but could only drive on gravel country roads far from where I live, it might be okay. Coz you know, car analogies. Obligatory. -_-
Re: Damage control (Score:5, Funny)
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Damage control (Score:4, Informative)
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Citation needed about that.
The Kinect is required because they want to encourage game devs to use the Kinect. If it were optional, developers may skip using some features since they may not be available. I don't see how it won't work if cam is obstructed.
Re:Damage control (Score:4, Interesting)
Well, I don't have that per se, but:
Q: Can I party chat or game chat between Xbox One and Xbox 360 Live users?
A: No. Because the new services of Xbox Live and the all new Kinect were designed to power next generation experiences (not compatible with Xbox 360), party chat and game chat will not be available between Xbox One and Xbox 360 Live members.
So best encourage all your friends to buy an XBone or you won't be playing each other!
Re: (Score:3)
How is the webcam different from the ones on every iPhone, iPad, Android phone and tablet and PCs/laptops?
And you the famous anti-MS hater zealot considered buying Xbox? C'mon, stop making up things.
I did a search for your handle to answer one of your replies and damn man ur all over this thread.
Two things come to mind here; a very large percentage of post are to benefit a product or company (not real) and damage control.
To answer your reply, every iPhone, iPad, Android phone and tablet and PCs/laptops normally aren't set-up prominently in the living room to watch everybody.
Noticed a reply below that says: " If the XBone webcam is obstructed the games will not play." that's totally unacceptable.
Read th
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
I care about things like buying a game on my account on my console in the den and letting another family member play it on their account on my other console in the home theater, without incurring a $10 fee or having to re-buy the entire game. The "ten family members" thing is a bullshit solution that I do not accept. It needs to be tied to my hardware, which they know is mine because I register it with serial number on xbox.com. Then, anyone should be able to play the game in my home, whether it's ten peopl
Re:Damage control (Score:4, Funny)
i don't understand and maybe I missed it in the news but there's no link in the summary... why was the XBone having a bad launch at E3? it seems like a cool product to me.
Sir, I'm going to have to ask for your geek badge. Anonymous Cowards -- please escort this person from the building, and then give him a 20 second head start before releasing the dogs. If he replies to this comment, reduce it to 10 seconds.
Re: (Score:3)
You should be looking at the PC version then, as it is known to be far superior to console versions if you're in it for just one game.
Re: (Score:3)
Re:Damage control (Score:4, Insightful)
Lots of people are pissed about not being able to freely trade games.
Lots of people are pissed about being required to get online once every 24 hours.
Of course even with all that there's still going to be plenty of people buying the Xbox, it's not going to be anywhere near the disaster that the Internet Armchair Quarterback Brigade are calling it, though I don't think there's any chance of the PS4 not having a better launch. Myself I don't really care about those, but I've recently reconsidered my gaming in general and decided to focus on the PC more. I'll evaluate the consoles in a year or two and see which one is the better deal. Most particularly I'm going to be looking for whether Gran Turismo 6 is even out, and if it is if it can compare to Forza 5.
Re: (Score:3)
You do realize that if for some reason your connection goes down you will be unable to play? What kind of idiot does not understand what that means for a consumer? Plus it costs more than $100 dollars more than the PS4 because of a feature I don't want (Kinect). I don't live in a farm, far from it, but I won't buy such a handicapped system, especially when there are alternatives. DRM isn't even the major issue here, since in my eyes they are doing the same thing Steam is doing in the PC, sans the extreme pr
Projection systems (Score:3)
Quite aside from the other purchase stoppers, I have a projection system, and the Kinect simply doesn't work in that environment -- I know this -- we tried it. It's blinded by the projector just to start, and when you stand where it can see your outline blocking the projector, you're an annoying shadow on the display anyway. Complete non-starter. We threw our Kinect in a box and never took it out again.
Spin it all you like guys ... (Score:5, Insightful)
For some of us, you've already lost the sale. Always on internet is a killer for many of us, since it's mostly taking away our freedom.
Fuck Xbox One.
Re:Spin it all you like guys ... (Score:5, Insightful)
And what a great time, coincidentally, for there to be a renaissance in PC gaming.
Now having had a peek at the next-gen consoles, I realize I've never been happier about being a PC gamer.
Re:Spin it all you like guys ... (Score:4)
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Re: (Score:3)
It's ok, I happily admit I'm the source of the investigations. Once the facts were confirmed http://www.trueachievements.com/n13475/xbox-one-privacy-connectivity-and-game-licensing.htm [trueachievements.com] I immediately consulted the competition act and found possible violations of sections 45, 75, 77 and the competition bureau added in 78, 80, and 90.1
Then when I first heard the MSP phase out plans I consulted the official MS FAQ on xbox.com and found it contained a line about converted funds expiring after 1 year. I then em
Re:Spin it all you like guys ... (Score:4, Insightful)
You pretty much make the point why the XBone should be avoided when you said "It won't prevent me from playing as often as I like as long as the servers are always working..."
I'm happy to pay $100 more for the new Kinect
I'm not! $100 just so I can wave my hand to switch channels?
Re:Spin it all you like guys ... (Score:5, Insightful)
This, THIS, THIS is why I have a problem with Internet-based DRM. It creates an artificial lifetime on a product where there doesn't need to be one. The ability to run the product is tied to the ability to authenticate against a server somewhere, which introduces so many points of failure (your net connection, the state of the remote server, the state of your account, etc).
If the product is considered out of maintenance and the authentication servers are taken offline, you're fucked. The vendor MIGHT patch out the requirement for authentication later (if they haven't disappeared entirely), but there's no guarantee they will, compared to something without DRM in which you don't have any need for stress in the first place.
Going towards an increasing level of restriction of consumer rights and a locking-up of software is not something we should be supporting. But a lot of people do, either because they're ignorant of the long term ramifications or simply because they don't give a shit.
The biggest problem I have is that there are a LOT of people who are defending these restrictions with the Xbone for some reason, and I doubt they're all Microsoft shills. Some are fanboys, while others don't see the point of pushing back against aggressive companies. Heck, there's an editorial on Neowin where the author suggests we shouldn't be worried about the privacy issues with the always-on Kinect as we don't have any expectation of privacy anymore. In his words we should just "suck it up and get used to it". How fucked up is that?
Re:Spin it all you like guys ... (Score:4, Insightful)
PlaysForSure
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Kinect is a gimmick like it always have been. I understand why people give away their privacy for something like Google products or Facebook, because at least they are getting something for free. But you are paying for this device and you are perfectly happy with them capturing marketing data off of you. Besides, you know perfectly well that both the XBox and the PS are pretty much the same thing. But hey, fighting for consumer rights does not work if there is people that will say, bah it does not affect me
Re:Spin it all you like guys ... (Score:5, Insightful)
Hilarious. Yeah, sounds good at first glance. But check other news stories -- Microsoft shares data and access with government. A 24h license thing is there to encourage people to leave their machines always on and always connected. I wonder what the motivation for that could possibly be? What is the practical rationale behind that if it is something completely unrelated to spying? Freedom to push updates with their constantly changing ToS?
Look, if you're willing to give up so much, could you help a brother out? Throw a bit of what you're throwing out the window in my direction.
Ignore the FUD, here's the truth (Score:2, Funny)
Netcraft confirms it, the XBone will definitely add 3-4" to your penis after only one use!
Re:Ignore the FUD, here's the truth (Score:5, Informative)
3-4=-1.
Beware Internet Echo Chambers (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Beware Internet Echo Chambers (Score:4, Insightful)
Remember the rage around here a few years back when Sony nixed Linux on PS3. Or the whole "rootkit fiasco"? Amazing how quickly past outrage is forgotten.
There's incompetence, and then there's monumental epic cluster fuck moments of total and abject negligence like this. Sony throwing root kits onto CDs and nixing Linux on the PS3 were just bad decisions. Dumb decisions. The development of the XBone makes that look like someone flushing a cherry bomb down the toilet compared to a FAE.
This isn't normal stupid... this is weapons grade stupid.
Re:Beware Internet Echo Chambers (Score:5, Insightful)
Let me see it I got that right: Sonny p0wing your computer is just stupid, but MS making an always online console is weapons grade stupid? I got that right?
Also, why does nobody remember the "always on" feature of the MS Teleprompt?
Re:Beware Internet Echo Chambers (Score:4, Insightful)
Let me see it I got that right: Sonny p0wing your computer is just stupid, but MS making an always online console is weapons grade stupid? I got that right?
Sony got found out pretty early on there, bud. See, that's the awesome part about even the partly open systems of the Windows world. You can't hide your dirty laundry for long.. and let's be honest: There's people out there far better than Sony at this. It was amateur hour, okay? This was a middle manager telling his engineers to make this happen "or else", and not much more thought put into it than that, because he read in a trade show mag somewhere it was his duty to defend the company from the evil pirates by any means necessary, ethics be damned. And the poor bastard fell into that pit trap and took the whole company's public reputation with him.
It was stupid, ill-thought out, and poorly executed.
Now on the other side, we have the XBone... it's watching you like some creepy stalker, while you undress, while you watch TV.. recording everything you do... it makes the NSA's capturing of your phone's "meta data" look positively germane. I mean, they're making no bones about the XBone's objective here: It's to hoover-vac every last shred of privacy you ever had and sell it to the highest bidder.
This was deliberate, well thought out, well-funded, and the only thing that was poorly executed here was the public relations. They've come out looking like some lovecraftian horror beast about to be sent back into the deep by Johnny Depp wearing a pirate hat... They served their asses on a silver platter. But no... there is no contest here man. Not. Even. Fucking. Close.
Re: (Score:3)
Wow, you're just eyeballs deep in the shit you spew.
it's watching you like some creepy stalker, while you undress, while you watch TV.. recording everything you do..
Cite specific, verifiable sources for this or STFU. If you honestly believe that bullshit, right before you put on your tinfoil hat, slap a few inches of electrical tape over the cameras. Problem solved.
Quoting a portions of the Chicago Tribune:
"Mr. President: Save us from Xbox One
May 24, 2013|John Kass
That's why Xbox One must die.
All the glitzy stuff aside, the danger of Xbox One is that in the hands of an evil genius — or an IRS agent — it could be a spy system.
Why?
It has a camera and a microphone.
The camera will look at you when you enter a room, recognize your face and greet you. The microphone will pick up your voice,
if you dare speak your thoughts out loud in your own home and transmit it
Re: (Score:3)
Also, why does nobody remember the "always on" feature of the MS Teleprompt?
Because nobody knows wtf that is. [google.com]
Re: (Score:2)
Re:Beware Internet Echo Chambers (Score:4, Insightful)
Just think about how many people is affected by the removal of OtherOS, and how many by the 24 hour authentication.
Re:Beware Internet Echo Chambers (Score:4, Insightful)
Sony may have screwed up in the past, but they also generated a metric fuckton of goodwill at E3. That press conference was a marvel of modern brand messaging. It convinced a lot of people not at all interested in this generation of console, myself included, to seriously consider a PS4.
There's principle, and there's bloody-mindedness for the sake of itself. It's okay to change your mind.
Re:Beware Internet Echo Chambers (Score:5, Interesting)
I still won't buy a PS4. Microsoft may have screwed themselves over, but Sony can't be trusted. As I said above, play games on a PC, in Linux ideally.
Re:Which $400 gaming PC? (Score:5, Informative)
You can get a gaming PC for about $400 but it will be entry level, when it comes to PC's better to spend at least a little bit more and get something that will last a while.
This one is $529 and is more than a match for the new generation of consoles.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229285 [newegg.com]
The biggest thing about investing in the price difference on a gaming PC is that when your not playing games, you can do a LOT of other things on a PC. So the price difference is more than made up for.
All this being said, I am lucky and have enough money to do both, I tend to buy 2 consoles from each gen and keep a gaming PC around. This will be the first gen I do not buy at least 2 of the consoles at launch. I own a Wii-U and I don't plan on getting a Xbox One, I also do not trust Sony enough to pick up a PS4 at launch my PS3 was not a good experience for me... Always seems like I spend more time updating the firmware than actually playing it.
Re:Which $400 gaming PC? (Score:4, Informative)
"Which $400 gaming PC that can play games with comparable graphics to forthcoming PS4 games would you recommend?"
One built yourself.
A10-5800K with 8GB RAM costs me.... $247.90 free shipping and before taxes.
Barebones System [portatech.com]
8GB RAM [portatech.com]
If I decided to drop the extra $150 on a better GPU than the 7660D included in the A10, then you could get a GTX560 [3btech.net] and be set to go. Or snag dual GTX460s for the same price.
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My cousin currently owns an Xbox 360 and likes to play Call of Duty series, Battlefield series, and similar first-person shooters. He has rejected the Xbox One and is trying to decide between a PlayStation 4 console and a new gaming PC this December. Which $400 gaming PC that can play games with comparable graphics to forthcoming PS4 games would you recommend?
The PS4 is yet to provide the same graphical experience as my 2009 vintage PC. Along with this, the TCO for a PC is lower. over 3 years you'll spend more on games for your console than you would on buying a decent PC and the same games.
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Yup, but the situations are quite different. In contrast to MW2, which was an end to itself, the One is merely a means to an end (i.e. it's what you use to enjoy your entertainment, rather than itself being a form of entertainment).
In the case of MW2, the only available alternative was to abandon it (and your friends) completely and play something else, which is a hard pill for some people to swallow. In the case of the Xbox One, the obvious alternative is to simply play your game on the competing console t
Herp Derp Derp (Score:5, Insightful)
Q: What exclusive first-party games are in development, and when will we see them?
A: None. Despite bending our customers over a barrel and raping them until they bled and screamed for mercy with our new DRM, we don't have a single exclusive to show for it.
Q: How many games do you plan to ship at launch?
A: We got a lot of promises, but the warehouse is presently, uhh, a bit vacant.
Q: What is the new Xbox Live?
A: For game publishers, it's the second coming of Christ, the ressurection, the moment we've been waiting for, beating ourselves off to in private fantasizing over. For game players, it's an unholy cluster fuck that makes Square Enix scorched Earth policy on every franchise you ever loved look positively humane.
Q: What new benefits does Xbox Live offer?
A: The new generation of Xbox Live gets to know you and your preferences, by watching you 24/7 through a webcam that cannot be turned off, and puts you at the center of all your games and entertainment, and then builds a giant 20 foot thick concrete wall between you and all your friends who you can't share any of it with without an extra fee. It will make sure your Xbox is always up to date and ready for you, like meeting every ex you ever had at a party, who then stalk you for the next year, posting comments on your Facebook about what a whore you were, and a cheater -- that gaming is better with smart, quick and intuitive multiplayer, unlike everything else on the market which can accomplish this basic feat without spying on you, whoring away your personal viewing habits, and knowing exactly when you're about to climax on the couch to post that new advertisement for Buxom Babes 7, backed by the new Smart Match system -- which is just like online dating, only creepier. It adds even more personalization to your TV and entertainment, because what's more entertaining and personal than sitting alone, in your basement, your friends unable to join you to play without paying an extra fee? Nothing, that's what! With the evolved Xbox Live, your games and profile are stored in the cloud, so you can access them from any Xbox One console, and we'd appreciate it a lot if you'd forget about what we've done with Sidekick, and every other Cloud platform we've absorbed like some Doctor Who alien, only with less wit and British charm.... this time will be different. We Promise(tm).
Q: I saw reports stating friends will be unlimited and reports saying the cap is 1,000. Which is correct?
A: We're excited to report it's the lower of the two, which shouldn't discourage you in any way... because we've tried very hard to match the same low standards that are already present in the industry with our next generation console!
Q: Do I have to pay to access Xbox Live?
A: No. We'll just be collecting your personal viewing habits and selling them to the lowest bidder.
Re:Herp Derp Derp (Score:4, Insightful)
On that note, I'm conflicted about this generation of consoles. I skipped the last generation entirely and was hoping update my aging PS2, but I certainly won't abide an always on type requirement. That leaves Sony's offering, but with their history I can't trust that they change their policy in a year or two after they eat Microsoft's lunch.
What this means for me, and I'm sure quite a few other people, is that I'm going to delay purchasing any console until the water looks less muddied. Or not. I already have a perfectly capable PC. If the console manufacturers can't make their experience easier and more convenient than a PC in the livingroom, well, why even use a console?
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Weird, most of the posts I've read from GirlinTraining have been interesting and well received by slashdot. Enough so that I remember her/his name. I can't say the same for either of you. Maybe you should try to contribute to the discussion rather than throwing stones?
Ah, who was it that said, "if ever a genius should appear you shall know them by this sign: That all the dunces will be in alliance against them." I take the hate mail in stride... if I'm not hated, I'm doing something wrong -- people only start throwing stones, throwing hissy fits, and generally behaving badly, when you start getting close to the truth. Given that almost all of my posts get at least a few "-1, Too Close For Comfort" mods and crap like this, I must be the most honest bitch out there.
Well,
Missing question (Score:4, Interesting)
101. Since I would have to pay 500$ for it, will I be able to run my own software on the Xbox One?
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The iPad costs the same, and you can't run your software on it.
I don't see what the price has to do with that.
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Re-read the OP post.
Here it is again.
Since I would have to pay 500$ for it, will I be able to run my own software on the Xbox One.
Now if you claim that OP says money is immaterial, take an English and a Reading Comprehension course before posting again.
Also, no one cares what you buy or don't, iPad and iPhone are selling tens of millions every quarter. Buy as many Raspberry Pis as you want.
Re:Missing question (Score:5, Insightful)
101. Since I would have to pay 500$ for it, will I be able to run my own software on the Xbox One?
Today Microsoft Studios and the world's biggest and most renowned publishers, including 343 Industries, Crytek, Turn 10 Studios, Capcom and Insomniac Games, unveiled their blockbuster games lineup for Xbox One, with more exclusive titles than at any time in the history of Xbox. We're excited to share more about our complete launch portfolio over the coming weeks and months.
101. Since I would have to pay 500$ for it, will I be able to run my own software on the Xbox One?
Similar to Xbox 360, Xbox Live on Xbox One is free to any system owner with a broadband Internet connection and includes access to a robust catalog of gaming content on Xbox Marketplace and personal profiles.
101. Since I would have to pay 500$ for it, will I be able to run my own software on the Xbox One?
We're in continued discussions with a broad set of content providers and owners but we don't have anything to announce at this time.
101. Since I would have to pay 500$ for it, will I be able to run my own software on the Xbox One?
I exorcise thee, every unclean spirit, in the name of Ballmer the Father, and in the name of Microsoft, our lord and judge, and in the power of the Holy Console, that thou depart from this creature of Consumer which our Lord has designed to call unto his Holy temple. I cast out you noxious vermin, through the same Christ our Lord, who shall come to judge the living and the dead, and the world by fire.
$400 too much (Score:4, Informative)
Since I don't game much any more, mainly because I have nothing to prove to 14-year-olds who would mow me down, the only aspect of Xbone that remotely appealed to me was the promise to revolutionize TV.
Luckily, TV and "sparts" were most of what they talked about! Oh joy. Just the same old TV repackaged. Wow this is totally what everyone wanted. Um.. yeah.
The thing is, I already have several TV gadgets that do most of that, or at least the parts I care about. One is a Roku box. Microsoft should get one. It was $90 at Costco and ranks up there among the best decisions I've ever made in electronics. The thing OWNS my TV on the weekends. Key points: it was under $100 and I already have it. Two of them, actually. Roku in the kitchen over wifi is like wireless cable. Now what am I missing again?
Another gadget is the new Dish Hopper with Sling. The box they tried to ban. Sure, I have to pay every month for it and it only gets "a whole lot of channels" mostly in HD, for not a lot of money. But it does a very good job at it the one thing it does. It also happily feeds ALL of that content to my phone, wherever I might happen to be. Or a PC or tablet or whatever.
Wait, RDB. What about playing pirated video files? What about porn files!? Roku doesn't do that very well! Nope. But the Hopper can play some and I also have an old WDTV Live box which can play nearly anything. It plays some things VLC won't touch. The WD box doesn't do much else but it does do file playback. A perfect companion device. It, too, was cheap.
So I am not feeling the need to drop $500 on another STB. What I have works. Nothing Microsoft demoed or talked about poses any threat at all to these devices. And even if they did, the price tag still kills it.
the only FAQ that matters (Score:3)
No.
All the rest of the questions and answers seem pretty stupid after that since that sort of undermines them all.
Re:XBone Fake FAQ (Score:5, Informative)
It's a bit too long for a troll document, and a just sufficiently corporate-speakish to be real. Teen trolls don't have the language skills to produce a document like that, while adult trolls don't have the time and patience to get over that many points.
It also doesn't look like a collaboration because the writing style stays the same throughout the document.
All in all, it has a very good chance of being a real thing.
Re:It will still succeed (Score:4, Interesting)
Insane amounts of money can move a bad product, but it does not ensure it will be a successful product. Just look at Zune, Microsoft threw money at that hand over fist but they still weren't able to gain a significant market share. The most they achieved with their marketing blitz was 10%, their market share plummeted after that, roughly halving every year until they gave up and mothballed the brand.
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