Console Biases
I've had some interesting conversations about the Xbox 360 and its place in the industry lately. There's been something of a revelation bubbling up in me, and I've finally found the words for it. For a long time I was biased against the Xbox (for good reasons), and when I finally cracked and got my 360, it was with the realization that the Xbox 360 isn't a cultural or political movement--it's
just a console.
This is a powerful idea. Microsoft has spent a tremendous amount of effort making the Xbox into a cultural establishment for "hardcore" gamers--aka. jock gamers. The original Xbox was the console to have if what you wanted was primarily shallow, military-themed shooters and sports titles (or if you were a modder and wanted a cheap, easily cracked PC.) But recently I've started to meet Xbox 360 owners who are more the kind of gamer that I can relate to. These are people who don't like Halo, don't like most sports games, and openly embrace JRPGs and other kinds of games that jock gamers think of as "gay." The existence of such Xbox 360 owners challenged my notions of who the system is meant for.
Leading up to recent releases of Eternal Sonata and Blue Dragon, I thought of these games as flimsy attempts by Microsoft to woo the Japanese market, but now another possibility to apparent to me: maybe the Xbox 360 is out-growing its image as a jock gamer platform and becoming something that people simply play good games on. In other words, the Xbox 360 is becoming less of a "hardcore" accessory and more of a real gaming platform; hence, just a console.
There's something else strange going on here as well: the console FPS genre is maturing. For most of their early history, FPS games were PC-only affairs, with console versions being lame adaptations. The development of mouse-look controls is what sealed the deal, and ever since the likes of Quake 2 and Half-Life, consoles have been playing catch-up.
Lately, however, we're seeing more FPS games tuned specifically for play on consoles. In this category, one could include such games as Metroid Prime, Resident Evil, and Gears of War. These games are generally only barely FPS games in important ways; they have funny movement schemes or lock-on targeting controls that defeat what the genre is generally all about. In spite of that, these games are good in their own right.
I've had chats with my buddy Matt, who is a big fan of the great PC FPS classics, about what makes Resident Evil 4 great. One of the arguments that Matt has made (directly or indirectly) is that RE4 could be considered something of an FPS with a crippling control scheme and really easy computer opponents to balance that out. But RE4 isn't really like that; the controls are actually really good, even though they're not nearly as efficient as PC mouse-keyboard FPS controls.
The analogy that I made was to sports. Sports are often defined by the limitations that they impose on their participants. Consider basketball: one of the rules of basketball is that you have to dribble the ball while you move. Once you pick the ball up, you have to pass it before you can move again. These rules are very restrictive; obviously, it would be a lot easier to not have to do these things. But without these rules, the sport wouldn't be basketball anymore.
To consider a simpler example, look at water-skiing. Why would one bother with water-skiing when one can go faster and have better control from within the boat? Because then you wouldn't be water-skiing anymore: you'd be driving a boat. Being on skis is what makes the sport, even though it's not the fastest, most efficient way to get around.
Resident Evil 4 is like that. Certainly players could aim faster and move much more easily with PC FPS controls (think wasd + mouse), but then it wouldn't be RE4 anymore. For that matter, PC FPSes would be easier if everyone had aim-bots; then you could really crank up the AI difficulty. Why even require the player to navigate? Try turning the game into an aim-bot rail shooter and see how fun that is. While you're at it, maybe just code up a game where the user clicks the mouse once to see a huge "you win" flash across the screen. Yay!
I bring this up largely because a lot of worthwhile console-style FPS games are coming out, and for the first time I'm really seeing the benefit to these games being console titles as opposed to PC titles. All three of the current-gen platforms (Wii, Xbox 360, and PS3) are seeing this happen, and I think that it's a positive trend overall. I just had to get over my bias about what console FPS games are in order to see it. And now the Xbox 360 isn't just a console for jock gamers who don't realize how terrible console FPSes (like Halo) really are because the console FPSes aren't quite so terrible anymore (Gears of War, BioShock.)
While we're talking about console bias, I want to point out a very annoying trend in Wii games. Many developers and publishers have lamented missing out on the Wii launch because they underestimated the console. The Wii now has a massive, and still growing, install base, and there is little doubt that it will remain a driving force throughout the current generation of consoles. But because of a lot of preconceived notions about what the Wii represents, I think that developers and publishers are still missing out on the Wii market.
Look at EA, for example. They're convinced (and hardly alone in this) that the Wii is a "casual" and "family" platform for games like Boogie and EA Playground. While they've recognized that the Wii is a very popular system that needs to be capitalized on, they're still assuming that "normal" gamers will still have an Xbox 360 or PS3 which is the preferred platform for "real" games. And while it is true that the Wii has attracted a record-breaking amount of attention from "non-gamer" consumers, the simple fact of the matter, from where I stand, is that the Wii was chosen by
gamers and it is still
just a console.
The big hits on Wii aren't going to be cute family games like MySims, or dumbed down physical activity games like Wii Sports. The real hits are going to be deep, emotionally involving games; not necessarily ones that require a huge time commitment or are difficult to learn, but ones that players can get lost in nonetheless. People want to see another breakthrough in presentation and storytelling like Final Fantasy VII, with provoking themes and challenges. In spite of its lacking hardware and current marketing image, the Wii is the perfect platform to deliver those experiences because of its install base and the frenzy of attention surrounding it. Everything else is just glitter and fluff, and publishers like EA are missing the boat just as much now as they were last year at this time.
Of course, I'm just a gamer, and these are just my opinions. :)
So I got an Xbox 360
The real question is, why? I've been rationalizing to myself for a while now why I don't need a 360. Geometry Wars is available on Steam and coming to Wii. Xbox 360 wired controllers work on PC. Gears of War is coming to PC, Bioshock launched simultaneously on PC and Xbox 360. Stranglehold and Skate are available on PS3. What does that leave for exclusive 360 titles? Halo 3 and Blue Dragon? I could live without those. Recent PS3 price drops have brought it down quite a bit too. So why would I go out and buy an Xbox 360 now, when I could have either waited or chosen a PS3 instead?
The short answer is "because I could." I still intend to get a PS3 eventually--probably when Metal Gear Solid 4 and/or Devil May Cry 4 become available. In the meanwhile I hope and pray that the hardware revisions will get better and better. Of course, I could have waited on the Xbox 360 as well, and it might have been wise to do so. But that's just the thing: I don't care as much about the Xbox 360 in that way. It's more of a casual gaming console for me. In a sense, I only bought the Xbox 360 to tide me over until the PS3 is ripe. I've got some money saved up and I've got some time off coming my way, so I just went for it.
I know from recent experiences that Xbox Live has become a really cool thing. Online services in many Xbox 360 games are pretty good. The achievements system is excellent, and Xbox Live Arcade is one of the better digital delivery systems for cheaper games. (By the way, Ikaruga is coming to Xbox Live, if you haven't already heard.) The ability to link up with other Xbox 360 owner's gamertags and compete on leaderboards is very appealing, since many of my friends at work have Xbox 360 consoles at home. This was certainly a factor in my decision.
The real reasons are more subtle though. There is the very real chance that the Xbox 360 could win this round of the console war. It's far from a lock, but it is possible. My closest gamer friends believe that this is not so, and I don't blame them; I too hope for an eventual PS3 victory, or even to see the Wii take gold. But the Xbox 360 is undeniably good. One evening with Skate, Bioshock, and Stranglehold brought me to the stark realization that the Xbox 360 now is as exciting as any other console has been at the time that I purchased it. There is some real power there--and it's not just the "hardcore" brand image that Microsoft has been whoring to the public, or the fancy hardware. The Xbox 360 actually has things to offer to real gamers.
Skate and Stranglehold could have been PS3 titles for me, and this thought haunts me a little. But I also know from first-hand experience that North American developers take the Xbox 360 more seriously than the PS3, and for this reason many such games end up being just as good or slightly better on the Xbox 360 than on the PS3. Only time will tell for certain if I've made a blunder here or not, but right now I'm feeling confident that I won't look back and wish that I'd gotten the PS3 version instead. (Classic example: I once foolishly chose the GameCube version of Capcom vs. SNK 2 over the PS2 version. Whoops.)
For Bioshock and Gears of War, I could have made due with the PC versions. But having talked with gamer friends about this and seen some of the differences first-hand, I know in my heart that these games are truly meant to be played on a console. FPS games like these that were made for console gamers always lose something in the transition to PC, and what I ultimately realized is that I won't make time for these games as PC titles. I will, however, get a lot of mileage out of them as Xbox 360 games, and so these games are Xbox-exclusive to me, in a sense, even though technically they are not.
Finally, while I was watching the final round of the Omegathon at PAX, my heart did warm a little to Halo 3. I have known for a long time now that Halo really is a pretty cool multiplayer game, even though it is a console FPS (which I consider to be a second-rate genre alongside PC FPS games, although even that opinion has softened in recent times.) There was just something about it that made me eager to play, which is a feeling that I've never felt about Halo before. I actually plan to buy it and expect to enjoy it. Who knows, I might even try to get respectably good at it.
Skate really is an amazing game, in my opinion. I've wanted to get into the Tony Hawk series before because I find the idea of a skateboarding game very appealing, but one of the barriers to entry was how artificial Tony Hawk skateboarding games feel. Skate has taken a lot of criticism for how difficult it supposedly is to land tricks, but personally, I really like having to land on a rail to grind it (as opposed to just standing near it and holding a button to jump on), and I like having a more realistic feel to the game. Skate feels like the kind of game that actually teaches you things about real-world skateboarding (if only a few things), whereas Tony Hawk series games are obviously forays into utter fantasy. Simply put, I've been waiting for a game like Skate to come along for years now, and it delivers in a huge way.
What it all boils down to is that I've put a vote of confidence in the Xbox 360, and it seems to have been well deserved. Hopefully I don't experience the "red ring of death" issue and have my trust shattered. :)
PAX 2007, PSP
Busy! Pretty much the only time off I've had (and am going to have) in the last while is to attend PAX 2007 with Sunny. I've been meaning to post about the Sumo chairs, demoing cards games (including Eye of Judgment, which was much better than I expected), free Bawls, etc. etc. Suffice to say that it was an intense and amazing experience. I'll summarize some interesting bits in points form:
- Nintendo DS users out-numbered PSP users something like 20:1.
- Halo 3 looks good!
- It's frustrating to demo BioShock in 20 minutes given that the opening cinematic can't be skipped.
- World of WarCraft: The Trading Card game is mostly a rip-off of Magic the Gathering with a less elegant combat system.
- Rockstar Games had a really unimpressive showing (Midnight Club LA? What about GTA4 and Manhunt 2?!)
- Pink Godzilla will happily sell you a factory sealed copy of Suikoden II for $250, among other rarities.
- Sunny discovered Trackmania Nations.
- I discovered Quake 4 multiplayer.
- "Sumo" turned 180 degrees spells "owns."
- One can easily stuff a whole backpack full of freebies from the exhibition area (assuming one isn't too picky, of course; but there is good stuff to be had.)
I do have more to say about PAX, but I lack the time and energy to get into that right now. :( With any luck, I'll be able to revisit the topic later. What I do quickly want to talk about now is the PSP.
I bought a PSP to take to PAX, which turned out to be a really good idea. Three games in particular have shaped my PSP experience to date: Loco Roco, Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops, and Jeanne D'Arc. Sunny got hopelessly addicted to Loco Roco and I was barely able to pry the PSP out of her hands over the course of the weekend. :) Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops has so far exceeded my expectations, particularly in terms of story intensity and relevance to the Metal Gear saga. Portable Ops also exhibits the same addictive gameplay that has made the Metal Gear Solid series great. Finally, Jeanne D'Arc is a masterful blend of the gameplay styles of Disgaea and Fire Emblem, with some of the same stunning visual style of Dragon Quest VIII. In short, all three of those games are extremely powerful titles, especially for a hand-held system.
I have been completely blown away by the raw power of the PSP and the quality of its best titles. Since the release of the DS Lite, I'd whole-heartedly supported the DS as the best of the hand-held platforms, and lamented the PSP's spotty library. This trend seems to be turning back the other way: although the Nintendo DS is still an amazingly strong platform, the majority of the up-coming handheld titles that I want to play are PSP games. The hi-res display of the PSP also makes it a particularly potent platform for RPGs. I can hardly wait until Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness comes out, and I still haven't played Tekken: Dark Resurrection. To put it another way, I've had my Wii since launch (last November) and my PSP since PAX (a week and a half ago), and already my library of PSP games is as large as my library of Wii games.
Speaking of Wii games, I've been sitting on a copy of Metroid Prime 3 for a whole week now and haven't had the chance to play it. :( And don't even talk to me about BioShock--by the time I get around to that, it might even be a "Greatest Hits" release. However, after another month or so of stress at work, I should have some time off coming my way; the plan it to catch up on gaming in the fall.
