@Wavesta All I know is that the cash I save not buying a PSBOX41 will be better used on more important things like food, alcohol and WiiU... Maybe some 3DS but that's not looking too good either.
The truth of the matter, as always, lies somewhere in the middle. Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo are ALL guilty of rehashing franchises one too many times. And there ARE indeed some spectacular games on PS3/360 that Nintendo-only people missed out on last generation. Heck, there are some awesome PC exclusives that ALL console people have been missing out on for the past 30ish years!
As per this individual topic, I got to play the Xbox One at my friend's house the other night. It is remarkably similar to the 360 in terms of its UI and functions, with the addition of the ability to internally record, edit, and post game footage. The Kinect is improved, though the voice recognition success percentage was about 50/50, even when using the correct commands. If the game recording/social media/TV stuff is a must-have for you, then by all means, get out there and buy an Xbox One! You'll love it! If you want a new gaming machine and don't really care about the TV/recording stuff, you're going to have a 500-dollar doorstop for the next few months until some better games come out for it.
MadAussieVader lives to drain the life force of beer, destroy meat pies, dodge hard work and maximize leisure... WE WILL DO IT TOMORROW... MAYBE THE DAY AFTER... I MIGHT GET AROUND TO THAT NEXT WEEK... NAH SCREW IT
Hey guys! Just got back from a harrowing trip to Walmart - I got an Xbox One! The store received about 35 of them and were giving out wrist bands to those lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time before their "Black Friday (Thursday)" stuff started at 6PM.
Anyways, I just wanted to post my impressions of the UI in case anyone is interested. This is coming from the perspective of someone who mostly considers himself a PC gamer, but also owns a Wii U.
The UI is pretty cool, and the Kinect makes navigation really fun. I haven't had much trouble with the voice commands at all - I would say at least a 90% success rate. The trick, as one of my friends with the console told me, is to actually NOT speak to it in a robotic tone, but to just try and be casual (which is weird when speaking to a hunk of plastic, I know) ... but it's really worked for me! Saying, "Xbox, go to settings" instantly takes you there, negating the many complaints you may see that people find it hard to locate certain menus or folders by using just the controller. Most of the time, you can just say, "Xbox, go to ____________," and you'll be there in a snap! Switching between games, other apps, and TV is nearly instantaneous - it's a marvel to see, really. Very nice.
The Kinect camera, on the hand, I am having some problems with. I tried to play the free Kinect Sports title, but no matter how hard I try, it just seems like my tiny apartment is not providing the ideal space requirement the Kinect needs for visuals with this game. I'm going to play around with it more tomorrow and see if I can figure something out.
So far, I'm happy with my purchase. I bought it for the same reason I bought the Wii U: it offers something different that isn't being done on other systems. PS4 is mostly for games, and I respect that, but the Xbox One's Kinect and TV capabilities are what sets it apart and will hopefully provide different experiences in the future.
Day 2: Ryse (LONG read for those interested - if not, this is not the post for you!)
I picked up Ryse even though the reviews haven't been super great - I wanted something first-party that could give me a good idea of what the machine could do, even if only at launch. I have to say, I'm pleasantly surprised with everything about the game. The graphics are absolutely spectacular - like, really REALLY good. And this is coming from a PC gamer. It's not like I haven't seen graphics of this caliber before, but it is weird seeing them on the big screen rather than a smaller computer monitor. Water effects, lighting effects, textures ... it's all a bit exciting to see rendered in such detail on a big HDTV. By no means do I buy games for graphics, but boy, this game is pretty.
The gameplay is, like reviews have mentioned, pretty basic, but there are little nuances and attention to combos that many reviews fail to mention. I sat down and played it for a good three or so hours straight and wasn't really feeling fatigued. The cut scenes are spectacular (the faces and facial expressions look amazing), and there are some collectibles thrown in there, including the possibility to assemble a comic book of sorts - pretty cool. Timing and knowing your enemy types is everything about this game. It reminds me of God of War simplified. You can also choose "stances" to go into that give you different effects when you execute enemies, and you can change these stances with the d-pad even in mid-animation. It adds another layer of button control and awareness. I like it!
One big part of the game most reviews haven't mentioned is the gladiator mode. I only dabbled in it a bit, but it actually has quite a bit to offer. It has its own "level up" system embedded in the form of leveled items (almost like you're playing an MMO) that you can equip, and different challenges pop up for you to tackle on your own or with a friend. You need to be pretty good at the combat, though, especially if you try to do it on your own. I'm not quite at that level yet. The different maps are creative, and I've already fallen into that "just one more" feeling to make my gladiator a little better with every go.
Some people have been pointing out the "pay to win" aspects of the game. Yes, you do have the option to spend real money to buy everything from costumes for gladiator mode to skill ups that affect your character in all modes of the game. However, I can tell you with absolute honesty that none of this real money stuff is thrown in your face, and unless you see a multiplayer skin you REALLY want, none of it is necessary in the least. The skill up points are extremely easy to earn through in-game XP without feeling "grindy" at all. Heck, I already have a couple branches of the skill tree nearly leveled all the way up without spending a cent of real money, and I'm probably only a third of the way through the game. In short, it's not the menace that I see some blogs and "news" sites making it out to be.
since most of the new IPs for Sony are indie games
Sony has all there first parties working on PS4 titles a lot of them haven't even been announced yet, Sony also has more first party games coming in the first year than Microsoft.
Hey guys! Just got back from a harrowing trip to Walmart - I got an Xbox One! The store received about 35 of them and were giving out wrist bands to those lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time before their "Black Friday (Thursday)" stuff started at 6PM.
Anyways, I just wanted to post my impressions of the UI in case anyone is interested. This is coming from the perspective of someone who mostly considers himself a PC gamer, but also owns a Wii U.
The UI is pretty cool, and the Kinect makes navigation really fun. I haven't had much trouble with the voice commands at all - I would say at least a 90% success rate. The trick, as one of my friends with the console told me, is to actually NOT speak to it in a robotic tone, but to just try and be casual (which is weird when speaking to a hunk of plastic, I know) ... but it's really worked for me! Saying, "Xbox, go to settings" instantly takes you there, negating the many complaints you may see that people find it hard to locate certain menus or folders by using just the controller. Most of the time, you can just say, "Xbox, go to ____________," and you'll be there in a snap! Switching between games, other apps, and TV is nearly instantaneous - it's a marvel to see, really. Very nice.
The Kinect camera, on the hand, I am having some problems with. I tried to play the free Kinect Sports title, but no matter how hard I try, it just seems like my tiny apartment is not providing the ideal space requirement the Kinect needs for visuals with this game. I'm going to play around with it more tomorrow and see if I can figure something out.
So far, I'm happy with my purchase. I bought it for the same reason I bought the Wii U: it offers something different that isn't being done on other systems. PS4 is mostly for games, and I respect that, but the Xbox One's Kinect and TV capabilities are what sets it apart and will hopefully provide different experiences in the future.
Good post glad you managed to get a console for launch and enjoying it,
since most of the new IPs for Sony are indie games
Sony has all there first parties working on PS4 titles a lot of them haven't even been announced yet, Sony also has more first party games coming in the first year than Microsoft.
Well we don't know everything Microsoft is putting for next year as well. But there will be great games on all sides. So far Microsoft Studios consist of and what they're working on.
Its even more interesting that from interviews and what not Microsoft is planning to support their games a lot post release. Im guessing Internally Microsoft looked at how they can make gaming more like Movie and TV in delivery method.
WAT!
Hey check out my awesome new youtube channel shingi70 where I update weekly on the latest gaming and comic news form a level headed perspective.
I'm actually VERY interested in how Sunset Overdrive plays out. And the new Fable game? Yes please. Lionhead posted an Xbox One video "in-console" in the Upload Studio yesterday that was pretty cool. Apparently some sort of question and answer event is going to take place by recording your questions over your Xbox One and tagging it a certain way.
Day 3: (last post - I think a couple people enjoyed my impressions, so I'll make this final posting on the Kinect and Upload Studio)
The Kinect impresses me. I mentioned in my first post that a buddy of mine suggested speaking to it "casually" rather than rigidly like you're addressing a robot - it sounds perfectly ridiculous, but boy does it work. When simply navigating the UI with my voice, it's rare that I need to repeat a command or that an accepted command doesn't work. My girlfriend's been over for the past few days, and I haven't even turned on the controller at all! We've been navigating apps like Amazon Instant Video and the NFL app with only voice commands, and it's been working great. When the commands just flow like they've been, this console experience really does feel "futuristic." It's unreal to walk into my living room and just say "Xbox on" and have the console come to life and sign me in automatically. It's quite cool - makes me feel like I'm in Iron Man haha
The Kinect does encounter problems, however, when in-game or in other situations where the audio coming out of the TV may be rather loud. Even though it does calibrate itself to try and accommodate for noise, the voice commands noticeably drop in accuracy while in-game voice and music is playing from the TV speakers. This may be partly due to my setup, as my Kinect is immediately in front of my TV and perfectly in between both of the TV speakers, making it probably the loudest spot while gaming. I remember trying to use the voice commands in Ryse to fire arrow volleys and such: usually didn't work on the first or even second tries.
Finally, Upload Studio: it's pretty cool for a feature I didn't even think I'd dabble in. First off, it's almost like a small Youtube environment for Xbox One users. It kind of reminds of Miiverse, actually, just with attached personal video. There's a page of "selected" videos chosen by Microsoft that you can browse, usually with developers or well-known gamers giving tips, tricks, and updates on games. There's also a "feed" page that displays the videos made by all of your friends, which is really cool. I can see LOTS of functionality coming from that down the line, especially if you have tons of friends on Live. In fact, I REALLY like this Upload Studio experience because it doesn't force you into other social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook (both of which I don't even have) - you can upload and share your stuff in this sectioned-off little corner of the 'web without having to deal with the toxicity in places like Twitter.
As far as your actual recording and editing capabilities go, I can honestly say that I'm no expert. Like I said, I probably won't be doing any public uploading as I've never had an interest in it, but it is possible to cut, rearrange, and do all sorts of editing to any DVR clips you take from your gameplay. And being able to just say, "Xbox, record that" as you are playing is pretty cool. It seems that some games, including Ryse, automatically record clips at certain points, as well. I've already had Ryse record three clips without being asked to do so, but the recordings do seem to come at pivotal moments in the gameplay that would give outstanding players a chance to "show off."
Those are my thoughts in general - it's a darn cool console, in my opinion. The Kinect DOES add a lot to the experience without forcing itself into your actual gameplay, and the TV and media components are outstanding. If Microsoft continues to get the same third-party support the 360 enjoyed, it seems my Xbox One/ Wii U combination will be pretty awesome when it comes to experiencing the majority of games this generation. If anybody is on the fence or has any questions about the console or Ryse, just let me know!
Definitely. It really reminds me of a self-contained Youtube, to be honest, just without the ability to make public comments. (which I don't view as a bad thing haha). The "feed" from your friends is fairly static, though - it's not as interactive as Miiverse. It will tell you when your friends earn achievements or when they post gameplay footage, but you don't have the ability to "like" or "yea" anything, let alone leave a typed or recorded comment. I think PS4 may let you do that, though. Does anybody know?
Forums
Topic: The everything Xbox thread
Posts 1,201 to 1,220 of 11,953
Please login or sign up to reply to this topic