Archive for September 9th, 2008

Doomsday machine to be switched on very soon

Large Hadron Collider Reminder: World Doesn’t End on Wednesday, and You Can Watch It Live

It’s September folks and what does that mean? It’s time for the Doomsday machine to be turned on!

Of course it’s not a “real” doomsday machine. I have the utmost respect for the scientists who made it. I really admire people who do a lot of things compared to those who do nothing. And when you think, think big. Now we have before us the product of their incredible brilliance.

You can watch all the action happening this week here.

Apparently price is not an option

Console Wars: Sony Doesn’t Seem Concerned By Xbox 360 Price Cuts

Since the Xbox is now priced lower than the Wii, this leaves Sony in a very expensive position. They are currently the most expensive next gen console on the market by failing to break the $300 mark. From their statement they still feel that they can generate enough sales to push forward.

Some people may say that this is not a good idea. No one will buy a more expensive console blah blah blah and so on. But on the other hand this shows a focus for the electronics giant. The Wii suceeded in a market which the Xbox and the Playstation didn’t fully serve, the casual market. Apparently there are that many casual gamers out there to warrant that it’s been almost 3 years since the Wii launched and there still isn’t enough to go around.

What the Xbox is now trying to do is get that casual market by lowering the prices of their console to make it more attractive and including “Mii” like avatars even though they’re not cute. Microsoft however is risking lowering their profits by going this route and possibly stretching their wings a little bit too far.

This strategy worked for the PS2 which still has a ton of games. Can the Xbox make this generation work? The failure rate of the Xbox is very disheartening. I know for a fact since I’ve gone through3 consoles myself in the past three years. This is not very encouraging.

Whatever happens, it’s the consumer who will profit. Despite earning warnings for practically every industry except for the oil, I think gaming will still have a very good year.

Is it time for a new Xbox?

Xbox 360 devs reaching the ‘upper end’ of the console’s graphic capability? – Engadget

Epic Games, developer of Gears of War and Unreal Tournament has expressed that they may already reaching the limit of the console.

If that’s the case, the Xbox 360 reached its end pretty quickly with both the Wii and PS3 still have a lot in them. The tranformation of the Xbox into your home entertainment device with the addition of Netflix rentals this fall could be a way to increase the value of the console. Already priced lower than the Wii, I think we could expect at least a preview of the their next next gen console by E3 next year.