ArsTechnica 360 smackdown: A crumbling tower: Sony lays siege to the 360's weak spots

[AnimalMother]

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post...microsoft.html

When the PS3 launched, the 360 was the system with more, better games, and the better online strategy. Microsoft also did a wonderful job in poaching some of gaming's largest franchises. Microsoft even brought this up at its press conference at E3: We have Grand Theft Auto, Devil May Cry, and now Final Fantasy! Look at how we've caught up to Sony!

The problem is, these games are still on the PlayStation 3, and Microsoft isn't offering much in the way of improvements to these titles. In fact, given that Microsoft bet on the wrong optical format, we don't know how many discs Final Fantasy XIII will take up when the title arrives on the 360. What else does Microsoft have in the way of exclusives? Halo is a system-seller, sure, but Metal Gear Solid IV is still a PS3 exclusive. Microsoft has many solid racing franchises, but nothing like the power that Gran Turismo brings to the system.

Microsoft has spent so much time trying to match Sony's past glory in terms of game selection that it finds itself somewhat at a loss now that Sony has managed to keep some games as exclusives, at the same time it's developing all news ones. The new firmware update that will refresh the UI of the 360 looks strong, but the press gave it a scarily icy reception at E3; the full-scale plagiarism of the concept and design of the Nintendo Mii had many onlookers audibly laughing. It was not a comfortable moment.

Whether or not Microsoft has fixed its Red Ring of Death problem, the fact remains that most gamers think the hardware is untrustworthy. You hear about it in the forums, in the game stores, from even casual gamers... everyone either has had systems go bad or they know someone who has. The PlayStation, on the other hand, is damn near rock-solid. Microsoft has to start getting the word out that it has fixed the reliability problems; pretending like this issue never happened is not the solution.

Microsoft also has to pay attention to the hard drive of the PS3. The drives are large, getting larger with the standard systems, and anyone can swap out their drive for a roomier one. Heck, Sony suggests it and gets the word out about DIY tutorials on the upgrade. Microsoft, on the other hand, is sticking with expensive, proprietary drives. It's a situation made more frustrating by the fact that, without large, standard drives, Microsoft can't begin to match Sony's efforts at releasing full games through its online portal.

There is also the fact that Sony's online offerings are free. Yes, Xbox Live is better. But how much better? There are large numbers of gamers out there who simply will not pay money for online play and are more than happy with Sony's offerings. So what if you can't send a voice message across games? Sony's newly-launched in-game XMB adds a ton of functionality, and the Trophies it brings seem to be gaining popularity; I know many people personally who are revisiting old games to tackle the new challenges. Frank and I argued about making Xbox Live free, but it may not matter; the more powerful Sony gets with the PS3, the less Microsoft can count on Live as a profit base.

The article goes right for the jugular in exposing where Microsoft has gone wrong with the 360. Seems Microsoft rested on their laurels too long, riding on a strong launch in the US and sputtered out having to deal with RRoD and paying off every third-party, only to dismantle nearly their entire first-party.

[TheLastGenius]

There is some validity to that. MSFT was an amazing system for the first two years, I mean so great...just now it seems like they aren't really doing anything new, and their recent strategies have been based in copying Nintendo and swiping a couple important exclusives. The sad part is that they should be focused on making the 360 great and different, not second rate imitations of their competitors. That Moore guy I think, was the best thing there ever was for the 360, the new President of the entertainment divison seems like he is making foolish mistakes with the Xbox brand.

[Injected Sin]

Well Peter Moore who was in charge of X360 left and went to head EA's sport division. I totally agree with you when he left the direction of the X360 kind of got lost.

[chaz]

J Allard. Bring him back.

[Gbeav]

Originally Posted by Injected Sin

Well Peter Moore who was in charge of X360 left and went to head EA's sport division. I totally agree with you when he left the direction of the X360 kind of got lost.

The guy that said why do you need more than a 20 GB HDD and DVD is fine?

ya he was a genius

[SoylentGreen]

Originally Posted by TheLastGenius

There is some validity to that. MSFT was an amazing system for the first two years, I mean so great...just now it seems like they aren't really doing anything new

Yep, that's it, the 360 was pretty good for games, when nothing else was around. Sure it was a unrelible pile of junk, and still is, but when there was nothing else out there, it rocked...

However, this is now a better, more future-proof console, thats reliable, and has better games, that's free to play online. Microsoft have nothing left to offer...

[XodusTrance]

Good article it highlights some strengths, especially about paying more for online play.

It did miss something tho, and that is the 360's major exclusives. While some major exclusives went multi this gen, the 360 has not lost gears, halo, or any other "destined to be classics" exclusives. The PS3 did, so that also is a key strength ms should play on.

The reliability thing is a major hit, especially in my eyes. People are like just get the replacement, well Live and replacement plan add another $90 - 100$ to your total bill, and is unneccesary. Even without the prp, MS extended warranty only covers that one single defect, so its not even an extended warranty. Its a bandaid to avoid class action suits.

Price - while $399 may seem steep to some, ms has no competition with price/features. A $150 360 with an HD would be fair given the cost of wireless adapter ($100), which I use as do many others, cost of online play($50/year), lack of BR playback(while worth much more than $100, we will say $100 to be modest).

There you go - show me a $150 360 with HD and Ill bite. Otherwise, the choice is clear for me, ps3.

[Gbeav]

Originally Posted by XodusTrance

It did miss something tho, and that is the 360's major exclusives. While some major exclusives went multi this gen, the 360 has not lost gears, halo, or any other "destined to be classics" exclusives. The PS3 did, so that also is a key strength ms should play on.

Everything will be multiplatform soon. I see no financial incentive that would force any developer to go only one way unless one platform can only do what they want, and disk space is the only difference.

MS has only a few studios so don't hold your breath about Geow2 not going limited exclusive just like bioshock did and that space rpg whatever its called will soon be.

The real key will be profitability and the need to do a new unit because the market is split now. You won't be seeing any cutting edge stuff out of the xbox 720 or ps4.

[AnimalMother]

Originally Posted by Gbeav

MS has only a few studios so don't hold your breath about Geow2 not going limited exclusive just like bioshock did and that space rpg whatever its called will soon be.

Gears2 is being publishing by Microsoft so there's pretty much zero chance it will turn up on the PS3. There's rumblings that EA is producing Gears3 and it will be multi-platform. Makes sense. By time it comes out (Fall 2010) both consoles will be in the 50M until install base range.

[michealo]

i don't think sony is doing enough to really make people want to upgrade their PS2's.

[kickingtotalass]

Originally Posted by michealo

i don't think sony is doing enough to really make people want to upgrade their PS2's.

I find the title amusing. Oddly they see MS as keepers of the castle apparently and not Sony.

I was under the impression these roles were reversed.

More like MS laying seige to SDF HQ this gen.

PS2 tower crumbling would be more appropriate.

MS takes the main gate with a hardcore attack, while Nintendo strikes from the north up the waggling river at Sony's exposed casual defenses!

[Shadow1019]

Originally Posted by michealo

i don't think sony is doing enough to really make people want to upgrade their PS2's.

Yeah, I have a feeling we're going to be seeing similar follow-up articles on Ars examining the state of the PS3 and Wii.

Originally Posted by kickingtotalass

I find the title amusing. Oddly they see MS as keepers of the castle apparently and not Sony.

I was under the impression these roles were reversed.

More like MS laying seige to SDF HQ this gen...

If you want to look at the state of the industry from a historical perspective, then the story is obviously different. Ars is looking just at this generation - which has it's merits.

[SoylentGreen]

Originally Posted by XodusTrance

, the 360 has not lost gears, halo, or any other "destined to be classics" exclusives. The PS3 did, so that also is a key strength ms should play on.

Errm, the PS3 has not lost Uncharted, Ratchet and Clank, Gran Turismo and MGS exclusives, so what exactly is your point.

in the same way that Playstation lost GTA Franchise, 360 lost Bioshock, both systems have lost exclusives to become multi-platform titles.

[hddvdnot]

What I hate about silver free XB Live account is that they now make you wait a few weeks before letting you try out popular demos. I hope Sony will never do this..

[Vindibudd]

1. There's nothing with the "power" of Gran Turismo on 360.
Except for Forza.

2. Getting major exclusives from Sony is not a big deal.
Except that you can play the same games on a more economical price point. $250 vs $400.

3. Xbox Live costs money.
Yeah, but it works, and is a heck of a lot better than playing a game hosted on someone else's console. I have both.

4. Sony has blu-ray.
360 has netflix.

5. Sony has larger drive capacity.
Irrelevant. 95% of console buyers are not going to upgrade the hdd.

6. Sony has home.
360 has Live.

I love my PS3. Seriously, I absolutely love it. I also love my 360. This article is written by a moron.