Xbox One Vs Ps4

[Momma There Goes That Man]

Have you seen Crackdown 3, Quantum Break, the Gears of War collection, Or Rise of the Tomb Raider? Xbox has a ton of exclusives coming out in the next year and a half. More than I think Sony has.

Didn't care for the previous Crackdown games but this one has my interest:

So, Crackdown 3 might be the most impressive demo I've ever seen. We'll have a full preview up later today, but suffice it to say that all that bluster about "leveraging the Cloud" to bring hitherto unseen levels of physics-based destruction is totally accurate. That moment in the CG teaser trailer where an Agent collapses a building into another building to kill the naughty crime boss inside? You can do that. Easily. I've seen it happen. I have seen such things.

While the offline single-player game plays out like the Crackdown of old, it's in multiplayer - set in an entirely separate city - where the game flexes its next-gen muscles. It works off of a startlingly simple conceit - the city is divided into distinct sections, each governed by a single server. When you start destroying things in an area, the physics calculations are sent to its server, and the results are sent back to your Xbox, which resolves that into everything from a single bullethole to a skyscraper tumbling down.

If you, say, blow a chunk off of a building, which then flies into an adjacent area and smashes the window of the tower block next door, that neighbouring server then helps the original to resolve this. Destruction is persistent, and every piece of rubble remains interactive, and can continue to be shot, blown up or pushed around. Servers can be piled on servers to keep this working - in our demo, we saw 11 being used at once. Producer, Dave Jones, assured me that that was the tip of the digital iceberg.

You'd think this would require an immense internet connection to keep it rolling, not least when four players (this is the current maximum size for a multiplayer party, although it could increase) are doing the same thing in four separate corners of the city, but the relative ease of swapping information between Xbox and server means the strain is fairly small. Jones says that his team are optimising the game for a 2-4mbps connection.

So, I ask the question - does this technology make the Xbox One more powerful? Jones nods. Does it, effectively, make it the most powerful console ever made while those servers are running? Jones nods. While Crackdown utilises it purely for physics, the opportunity here is clear. Who knows what another company could make with this, given the time? For the moment, though, I'm not entirely bothered - I just knocked a penthouse balcony off its moorings and watched it take 20 others out on its way to the ground. I'm still smiling.

[RonArtest15]

Don't know how many are left, but this was a crazy deal from best buy....xbox1 + 40" samsung TV for $500

 

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/xbox-one-halo-master-chief-collection-bundle-with-40-tv/9999251700050003.p?id=pcmprd250200050003&skuId=9999251700050003

[Gamebreaker]

Didn't care for the previous Crackdown games but this one has my interest:

 

 

I loved the first Crackdown, didn't play the second as I heard it was a major disappointment. But this third installment looks awesome. 

[Momma There Goes That Man]

That's insane

[Gamebreaker]

If that deal was going for the PS4, I'd get it as soon as a Best Buy opens tomorrow morning. 

[Momma There Goes That Man]

I was thinking about buying 2 of them and putting them up on eBay separately. The Xbox should recoup most of the money and the TV will be mostly profit

[PokerPacker]

So apparently Del Toro has soured to game development and he is not going to try to make a game again. Thanks, Konami.

[Springfield]

So apparently Del Toro has soured to game development and he is not going to try to make a game again. Thanks, Konami.

Has he developed any games before this?

If not, we never knew what we were missing.

[Mufumonk]

Has he developed any games before this?

If not, we never knew what we were missing.

He was working with THQ before going belly up.

[Springfield]

He was working with THQ before going belly up.

So it's entirely possible that he should just stick to movies. We will never know.

[PokerPacker]

So it's entirely possible that he should just stick to movies. We will never know.

well he made that "playable trailer" that people seemed to have been excited about.

[Gamebreaker]

What exactly does Del Toro do with these games anyway? Clearly he's not a game designer, so he isn't coding. So is he just standing over the team's shoulder, and giving them direction for suspense and jump scares? 

[PokerPacker]

What exactly does Del Toro do with these games anyway? Clearly he's not a game designer, so he isn't coding. So is he just standing over the team's shoulder, and giving them direction for suspense and jump scares?

There's a lot more to making games than the grunt work of programming. As someone who's programmed a few games, I found the hardest part in the design process for me was figuring out what I wanted the game to be; I'd spend a week coming up with an idea I was satisfied with and then a day throwing it together (granted I worked on some simpler games, the point remains that coding is but one part of the process). By the way, if you ever wanted to thwart an alien invasion by throwing cats at the invaders, I've got you covered.

I would imagine Del Toro would be a guy who can come up with an idea of a world for the game to take place. He'd be a guy who can draw up a storyboard and his experience in the horror genre of film could perhaps bring something different to gaming that we don't currently have. There's a lot of theory that can go into horror games that you can delve into without knowing a lick of code. There is paper written by Thomas Grip (Amnesia: The Dark Descent) talking about Self, Presence, and Storytelling*, and it doesn't touch code (if you're interested in the theory of game design, here it is: http://unbirthgame.com/TheSelfPresenceStorytelling.pdf).

*I was looking over the paper again reminding myself what all it talked about, and there's a footnote in there referencing Del Toro. How appropriate.

[Springfield]

I'd make for a badass game designer.

[Mr. Sinister]

**** you, Konami. Just an absolutely horrible 2015 for them

[nemocystem]

I bought Ground Zeroes...wasn't overly impressed...& now i just can't bring myself to support Konami with MGSV. Maybe i'm trippin', but i just don't get the feels anymore for that series.

So...i went in to BB to get Rare Replay, & a $15 XBL card so i can buy the Mega Man Legacy Collection. Walked out with pre-orders for Uncharted: NDC, Halo 5, GOW ultimate edition, & Fallout 4, plus the aforementioned.

Bummed too...would have pre-ordered Uncharted 4 if they had it available for pre-order.

Now i need to decide if i'm going to get Madden 16, & play with you guys...or get Forza 6. I'm not all that into cars, but i have always been a sucker for a good racing game....Forza is on top of the industry in that genre for my money.

Oh...only paid $34.76 too....no trade-ins either.

[Mr. Sinister]

Ground Zeroes is awesome. Good missions, each with several different tactical methods. Takes a bit to adjust to the Fox Engine, and the suoer enhanced line of sight, but it rocks, in just about every way imaginable, plus the casette bonus recordings between Chico, Paz and Skullface, and several other bonus features.

A lot of people never played MGS: PeaceWalker, which is a shame, because its arguably the best game in the entire franchise. Sequel to Snake Eater. If yo smipped that one, a lot of things will not make sense in Ground Zeroes

[nemocystem]

I actually really liked GZ, but it's the whole trajectory that Konami is heading that makes me leary.

I find that i turned into a huge Splinter Cell fan for a while, & then kinda fell away from the whole stealth genre for some time & haven't really ventured back in.

Honestly...i kinda get that space filled with games that hybridize stealth to where it's not the leading mechanic so as to discourage player options. Games like Deus Ex, or Skyrim would fill that void.

Bummer though about Konami.. .really is an interesting, & sad development to have occurred with he who built Konami.

[PokerPacker]

I find that i turned into a huge Splinter Cell fan for a while, & then kinda fell away from the whole stealth genre for some time & haven't really ventured back in.

Did you fall away from the stealth genre, or did Splinter Cell?

[nemocystem]

Did you fall away from the stealth genre, or did Splinter Cell?

Haha...both.

I think in general i have veered away from specialized experiences in favor of games that present more variety in their gameplay. That said, i readily admit that i love a great story, & have usually been satisfied by what MG games offer in this regard vs the Splinter Cell series.

I have just preferred the gameplay mechanics to the SC series until after the 3rd iteration.

Separate note....anyone else getting Super Mario Maker? I imagine this should be wonderfully good times with the little one.

[PokerPacker]

Haha...both.

I think in general i have veered away from specialized experiences in favor of games that present more variety in their gameplay. That said, i readily admit that i love a great story, & have usually been satisfied by what MG games offer in this regard vs the Splinter Cell series.

You know, I actually haven't played any Metal Gear games, so I can't compare.

 

I have just preferred the gameplay mechanics to the SC series until after the 3rd iteration.

You didn't care for Double Agent? Also worth noting, there are two completely different versions of the game. XBOX/PS2/GCN/Wii, and 360/PS3/PC. The former played on the Chaos Theory engine (CT, of course, being the pinnacle of the series). Pretty badass ending, too. So disappointing the direction they went afterwards.

 

Separate note....anyone else getting Super Mario Maker? I imagine this should be wonderfully good times with the little one.

I still haven't picked up a Wii U yet, but I'm definitely gonna get one this year and definitely picking up Super Mario Maker. I don't know how much I'll even create as I might save my creative juices for my own original games, but it's gonna come with 100 levels and then who knows how much incredible user-generated content will be available. The fact that it supports OG Mario, SMB3, World, and NSMB based gameplay/art is fantastic, and then add in all the crazy new features that can be added in... I'm really looking forward to it.

[nemocystem]

Yeah...with regards to SC Double Agent....i just lost interest before it came out. I heard good things, & i liked the gameplay on the others beforehand. I just kinda walked away from the genre.

Funny too...after a while there i remember getting really tired of defending SC to a lot of my friends who were MGS purists. It was a beaten horse to be sure. I still feel that SC rejuvinated the genre, & specifically MGS....it made Kojima rethink what he could do, & got some competitive juices flowing.

Still believe story is kind of a non-starter with SC...it's there, but it's not really all that engaging for my part. I'm also not a huge fan of Clancy story material...but it doesn't detract from the experience, so it's usually a wash for me.

Not to say that the stories weren't good...they just aren't my cup o' tea, & they don't particularly move me.

Shifting gears...what are some of your thoughts on RE2 remake? For starters...i hope they don't even consider using the same ****ty mechanics. Worst mechanics on a great game perhaps, ever. Otherwise, i think it's a great remake candidate, & i'm excited to see what they can do.

Also...speaking of Clancy games...i really love what i've seen for the Division. Curious if anyone else here is thinking of picking it up. It's been at the top of my want list since E3 2014, & i'm ok with them losing the mobile app stuff if they felt that it took away from the overall balance. I love the premise though, & the graphics, & gameplay look super clean.

[Warhead36]

Ground Zeroes wasn't bad. Not sure if I'll get the full game though. Open world MGS seems...weird.

[Mr. Sinister]

It does, but Kojima never half asses anything. Besides, Peace Walker was like halfway open world, where you had all the training/stealth reconnaisance challenge stuff, as well as building Mother Base, expanding MSF, and building Metal Gear Zeke

[PokerPacker]

Still believe story is kind of a non-starter with SC...it's there, but it's not really all that engaging for my part. I'm also not a huge fan of Clancy story material...but it doesn't detract from the experience, so it's usually a wash for me.

Not to say that the stories weren't good...they just aren't my cup o' tea, & they don't particularly move me.

I want to preface by saying that I am a Clancy fan. I believe I'm only missing one of his books in hardback form. That said, I do not believe he actually wrote any of the story for the Splinter Cell games. His involvement was more on the creation of the Third Echelon. Regardless of who wrote the stories for the games, they were to my fancy up through Double Agent. I've heard a bit about what happened with the story since then and it makes me happy that I stopped after Double Agent.

Shifting gears...what are some of your thoughts on RE2 remake? For starters...i hope they don't even consider using the same ****ty mechanics. Worst mechanics on a great game perhaps, ever. Otherwise, i think it's a great remake candidate, & i'm excited to see what they can do.

I tried to go back and play the Gamecube remake of RE1, and I didn't get very far before I decided I was not a fan. Too many elements mixed together that I just didn't like starting with the tank controls. Add in the cheap scares (zombie that is right in front of your character's face, but you can't see it because it's "hiding" under a chandelier), limited saves, knowledge they're gonna try another cheap scare on you (I'm positive they were planning to pull a stunt on me during one of those door-opening animations), etc. ... I just couldn't bring myself to play it very much before deciding it wasn't for me. I assume RE2 follows a lot of those same tropes and it isn't until RE4 that it really changes (at which point it more more into action territory than horror).

Now after that mini-rant, I believe I read that the more recent RE1 "remake" of a remake added in a non-tank-control option, so maybe RE2 can also be had without tank controls which should help improve the experience. I don't think these are full-blown remakes, though, as much as they are remasters.

Also...speaking of Clancy games...i really love what i've seen for the Division. Curious if anyone else here is thinking of picking it up. It's been at the top of my want list since E3 2014, & i'm ok with them losing the mobile app stuff if they felt that it took away from the overall balance. I love the premise though, & the graphics, & gameplay look super clean.

Not sure how I feel about The Division. I thought it was kinda cool when they first unveiled it, but I've become pretty jaded to Ubisoft lately. I can't help but think Watch_Dogs, and I also get the feeling it's gonna be rather repetitive. Granted, I haven't been keeping up with the game's development; I was unaware they'd dropped the mobile app (that was for the UAV, right?).