I like these long breaks between blog posts, because it gives me a decent amount of material to speak about. Sometimes, though, I wait too long, and there's almost too much to really address. Let's get into it.
Gaming, Part I: Consoles
The first thing I want to address is what's going on with gaming right now. We know that the big reveals for Microsoft and Sony's new consoles are coming. For Sony, it seems like it may be sooner than later, as they're having a much talked about presentation on February 20th.
It won't be long before the next Xbox climbs into the forefront as well, especially with E3 rapidly approaching. Seriously, June is right around the corner.
(ahem... Kev, if you'd be so kind, please acquire a press pass for me?)
But as this incoming round of consoles nears, the rumor trains are speeding ahead at full steam. Most of what we're hearing is not good.
According to speculation, both consoles will completely reject the use of used games. There are some people who don't find this particularly daunting, because they have the means to spend whatever they want on games without endangering their livelihoods.
For some of us, however, we're balancing our checkbooks against mortgages and car payments and other day to day bills. I certainly can't afford to buy every single game that releases at the full price.
And then, you get into the second part of the equation. If the consoles won't allow used games to be played (or at least, not without incurring additional costs), there will be less incentive to trade a game in. That means taking fewer risks on games. This is even more of a problem lately since we know that occasionally, publishers will buy a decent review score - yet when we play it, we know it's not deserving of that score.
What a lot of people don't immediately recognize is that if this becomes the industry standard, it's going to have a profound effect beyond just how often someone goes to GameStop. Game rental will be effectively dead, unless you want to get your game on the floundering Wii U, which is getting very little third party support as of late. Backward compatibility will be a laughable afterthought as well. During the opening few months to a year of a console's lifecycle, content is painfully lacking, as we're seeing right now with Nintendo's system (and as we saw last year with it's handheld). But Nintendo had one thing going for it right out of the gates. It's back catalogue is robust, thanks to the Virtual Console, and the Wii backwards compatibility. Microsoft and Sony had a dreary start, in part due to it's decision to limit backward compatibility. If the Xbox 720 and PS4 abscond from the idea of empowering it's launch window, they're going to suffer even worse than the Wii U is now.
It's also going around now that Microsoft might require a persistent internet connection, as well as making the Kinect a mandatory part of it's equation. This would effectively drive up the price, and force every Microsoft gamer to use their Xbox live service, which is already a huge slap in the face of everyone - and we are blissfully ignorant of it, and happily pay it.
The industry is getting increasingly muddled as of late, and it's scary to see the direction that these consoles could be going. As of now, it remains just speculation, but we may know as soon as February 20th for certain what kind of restrictions or freedoms the next-generation consoles bring to the table. If backward compatibility and used gaming are not in the cards, we may begin to see the industry crumbling from within.
Gaming, Part II: Games
Of course, the most important part of any console is going to be the games they provide. Wii U has been taking an awful lot of flak lately, due to it's very dry Q1 software releases. Pikmin 3 was pushed back, and exclusive software is still a ways off. While they had a decent presentation last month, we know that we aren't going to see very much of Mario/Mario Kart/Zelda until E3.
And then of course last week, Nintendo was hit with a bombshell. Rayman Legends, arguably their most important title at this point, was going to be delayed 7 months to September, to release alongside recently announced PS3 and Xbox versions.
Gaming forums on the internet was ablaze within hours. Nobody really cares that the project went multiplatform. I'm a diehard Nintendo fan, but I would rather some uber PS or Xbox fan get a chance to play a decent game than gloat like a moron that my console has what yours doesn't. The real problem is that delay. This game was supposed to release yesterday. They let us know days before release that they were going to push it back.
It's become public knowledge at this point that the developers are openly against this decision. It seems that Ubisoft's suits and ties department didn't like the numbers involved with releasing strictly on the Wii U, thereby crushing the expectations of its fans, who are ultimately what will get them that number they're looking for.
Microsoft is taking some heat because of this move as well. Though it's just speculation at this point, some people are indicating that Microsoft's publishing policies limit when a game can be released on the console. They reserve the right to refuse a game if it comes out on another system first. While we'll never know for sure what happened, that's a pretty despicable move by both Ubisoft and Microsoft if that is what ultimately transpired.
Of course, this is a business, and exclusivity is as important now as ever... or is it? IGN recently ran an article regarding the state of console exclusives, especially going into the next slew of consoles that are coming out. Nintendo will always have the upper hand, thanks to the plethora of first party mascots that it can churn out. Microsoft and Sony will never have the staying power of Mario, Link, Kirby, Donkey Kong, Samus, Star Fox... and the list goes on and on. But, while Nintendo has this huge catalogue of games to pull from, it's console's power leaves some guessing. You'll always have the die-hard Nintendo fans who will flock to whatever system they put out, just because they want Mario, Link and all the rest. What remains to be seen is whether those games are new enough, innovative enough, and shiny enough to entice beyond the superfan. And hey, this drought isn't even all that bad right now - at least, not just for Nintendo. The multiplatform games that the big N is missing out on haven't been that great as of late - although, that'll all change when Bioshock Infinite passes it up.
For Microsoft and Sony, the stakes are a little different. Both consoles have some pretty impressive excluxive line-ups. Halo, Gears and Fable have been Microsoft's tried and true trifecta for awhile. Sony can reach a little deeper, thanks to Gran Turismo, Uncharted, God of War, Little Big Planet, Infamous, Sly Cooper and so forth and so on. Beyond Kratos and Master Chief, though, the name recognition doesn't go as far on either of these two systems. In fact, Gran Turismo typically pushes further on Sony than any of it's character flagships.
The real strength of the Playstation and Xbox catalogues are in it's third party support, as indicated by their sales of Grand Theft Auto and Call of Duty.
Because of this, you run into a problem where those two consoles are so close to each other, that the smaller details become more important. If we're pressured into picking favorites, we're forced into determining what we prefer. Do we like gamerscore over trophies? Do we like the apps offered on Live over the Playstation Network? Is it important that I don't have to pay a monthly service fee just to use the internet that I'm already paying for anyway?
And then of course, the next important detail is where everyone is playing. If your friends typically play everything on the Xbox, chances are, you will too. Likewise for Sony. Therefore, the next round of console strategy has to rely a little more on which console releases first.
It's the culmination of all of these details that makes the decision of which consoles to support this generation that much more difficult. More than ever, our role as consumers will shape which way the industry moves. If we adamantly take a stand against the actions of the big three, they'll be forced to take more consideration with us in the future. They have a lot riding on the next six years, and if they choose incorrectly, we could see one of them dropping from console production completely by the year 2020.
Movies and Television
It's very rare for me to get too into the minutae of the film industry. I pretty much just take this time to endorse movies that I saw that I enjoyed.
With that said, I really do insist that you watch Identity Thief if you're looking for a decent comedy that has the capability to lightly tug on your heartstrings here and there. Jason Bateman is always hilarious, and Melissa McCarthy is showing her star power more and more with every movie she puts out.
With television, I feel like I have a little more to say. When you're a fan of a show, you put a significant investment into it. A single movie doesn't really develop a lasting bond with you. That's why trilogies and other series movies are having such a profound effect on movie-goers lately.
That said, television has a much easier time of telling you to go fuck yourself (as is evident with the weak series finales of shows like Lost and Awake). My most recent experience with this was during Community's Season 4 open. I know that the show switched it's main writers, and is probably going to have to find its feet again, but it felt like a completely different program. Hopefully tomorrow, they show that they only missed a step, and didn't forget how to dance altogether.
On the other hand, I'm constantly reminded of how good some shows can be. Rhianna and I have been watching through Star Trek: The Next Generation, because she missed that show growing up. She's a huge Trekkie at this point, and the season three episode, Yesterday's Enterprise, that we caught last night was a good indication of why. It wasn't a season finale or premiere, but it had a level of quality that could have been used for a feature film. In fact, it's number one on EW's best of Star Trek: The Next Generation list. It really makes me sad to think there most likely won't be any Next Generation films going forward.
Anyway, that's about it for me for now. For more on anything entertainment related, be sure to check me and Kev on tezone.net, and listen to our podcasts, including a weekly review of ABC's Once Upon a Time.
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