Night Elves announced in WoW

[Quark]

If you think I'm a zealot you really need to see the rest of the world.

My friend's X-Box is not defective. If it was defective it would consistently fail. And the same games that froze would not do it on another X-Box. But some games manage to never freeze. Many others do. The design philosophy is whats defective. They're making games for it like it's a PC. Unstable and poorly programmed. Worse yet, the only game I've gotten to freeze on my PC in the last year, excluding an incident of overheating due to a fan dying, was a DOS game I was trying to configure for XP. How is it that software designed for a system that's identical everywhere can be so buggy compared to software that runs on a system I can garauntee is different from anyone elses.

You dismissed my freeze comments as if they did not exist simply because it hasn't frozen for you. Well guess what, the world doesn't revolve around you. Besides the fact that you're entirely wrong on the defective part. My first PS2 was defective, the fan wouldn't run causing overheating. Do I bitch and moan about the PS2? No, in fact I'm quite happy with it.

Finally, I never said I hated the X-Box because of Halo. I personally don't care since I'm not an FPS fan. I said it's a reason, as in a legitimate reason for other people to get upset. Your parents tell you they're getting you a brand new car. The next week they turn around and say they grabbed it for your sister instead. You telling me you're not gonna get upset at all?

This, of course, is all besides the point that this started with someone advocating exclusive titles as a good thing. Yes, as game designers, we must limit our target audience! We shall never allow anyone using a PS2 or Gamecube to have any decent game! Monopoly forever!. Gimme a break.

[Roland]

For everything else, there's MasterCard.

. . .

Oops. :D

Seriously though, SOME things should be exclusive. The fact that Nintendo has 99% of said things is beside the point. :D I would not want Metroid, in any way, shape, or form, on anything but a Nintendo console. On the other hand, I applaud the idea of Starcraft: Ghost being on all THREE major consoles. And, quite frankly, I think it's about time Blizzard did a REAL console game, from the ground up, and not just some half-assed port (sorry, but SC, C&C, etc. do NOT belong on a console; RTS need mice as much as FPS).

I used to be a major Nintendo fanboy. But that was back when the only alternative was Sega Suck. :P And, frankly, Sega's systems DID suck. Always have. They had some damn fine games, but their hardware was just never good enough. I, personally, liked the Saturn. It had some REALLY nice games on it that I had ALOT of fun with. Was it a great console? No. Probably one of the worst ever built. :P But it had fine games, and was fun. And that's what mattered to me.

Back to the subject at hand, though... We have enough limitations in our lives as it is. We don't need to impose (or accept) any more. Producing a title for multiple platforms is not only a wise business move, but also ensures the greatest amount of customer satisfaction. (Note: this is not to you, Quark.) If you've got a problem with SC:G being made for X-Box and PS2, instead of just GC, well... that's your problem. And, you are in the minority. Big time. Nintendo is losing its (already small) fanbase in droves, and with good reason: they're turning into Sega. First Virtual Boy, then N64, and now this. All GOOD systems, with GOOD games, but... lacking. Severely. And it shows.

X-Box has Live!. Without that, they would sink. Period. It is the ONLY thing keeping them going. They have very few games, and most of them can be found on the PS2, anyway. They have Microsoft's BS, and from what I hear a higher rate of failure than normal (just rumors; not stating one way or the other, so save the comments). PS2 has a SLEW of games. PS1 was the Atari of the modern day: thousands of games, but most of them crap. PS2 took that philosophy, and refined it. Essentially, made gold from lead. Now you have lots of games, but most of them are GOOD. They have a VERY high rate of failure (this speaking from an ex-salesmen's point of view, working at Babbages), and yet still outsell every other console. Nintendo has... what? A couple decade (or more) old icons from some die-hard fanboys childhoods? A vain clinging to nostalgia in a tiny group of people? An inability to make up their mind whether they're a "kiddie console" or a "gamer" console? Sorry. Nintendo's days, at least with Game Cube, are numbered. It will be JUST like N64: a good system gone wrong; a few good games, but not enough support to be worth it in the long run (OR the short run) for anyone but the hardcores (fanbase, and gamers). Your Average Joe gamer will get either a PS2 (if they don't already have one), an X-Box, or both. Game Cube will not be on their list. And, really, why should it be?

I love my Game Cube. I love Nintendo. And I love the nostalgia it brings me. But that's ALL it is: nostalgia in a box. Nintendo is not the king of gaming anymore. IMO, they never will be again. I will always support them, but I'm not one to stick my head in the sand: their King of the Hill days are over.

[Amaethon]

I have had my XBox since the day it was launched. It has not frozen, hiccupped, or done anything but work perfectly. The failure rate for the XBox hovers around 1%, the exact same failure rate as every other console. Now if only every other console could claim to be as powerful as the XBox...

It makes me laugh to see people mocking the XBox and "macrosuck." When "macrosuck" walks away from E3 with Game of the Show for Halo 2 or Fable I'll be sure to mock them.

JS

Amen...the ONLY problem I have with XBox is the skinny game selection, that and the fact that most games never get cheaper as they age. (I can live with both of these since the games are mostly excellent) IMO MS has done DAMN well with the XBox and it has been money well spent! Something else you may want to consider before you badmouth is that game disks come from the factory defective as well.

I have heard rumors about my local EB that Bungie will release a PC version of HALO sometime this year. (after E3 before xmas) Id say that the hardware of the day couldnt handle HALO as BUNGIE wanted it to look. So they released on a specialized platform and waited till PCs caught up...which they have.

[Quark]

Something else you may want to consider before you badmouth is that game disks come from the factory defective as well.

Considering I've never had that problem with PC, PSX, PS2 or any other console I've played whatsoever (disc or cartridge), I'd consider that a pretty lame excuse for trying to save the XBox. It's also funny that you try that excuse when the XBox choked on so many different games from different developers/publishers.

Id say that the hardware of the day couldnt handle HALO as BUNGIE wanted it to look. So they released on a specialized platform and waited till PCs caught up...which they have.

Do you even know what is in that console?

733 Mhz Intel processor. My computer had a superior architecture 1.4Ghz AMD before XBox came out.
A graphics card, 250Mhz, that is a enhanced GeForce3.
64MB RAM. Alright, it may not have much overhead but somehow I doubt that equaled the 256MB RAM and 32MB Video RAM I had when the system came out. (Which has since more than tripled)
Ethernet - had it.
Hard Drive - had a bigger one.

So tell me, where and when was the XBox ever superior to PC?

The reason Microsoft stripped Halo from the PC was because they wanted people to buy their XBox. Not because the PC was 'inferior' in some way. It is a selling point, nothing more. Bungie itself wanted Halo on PC, and it's only through their arguing with Microsoft that it's finally coming out for PC. That and, of course, the fact that Halo 2 is already in developement.

[Swarmalicious]

Not sure if this is old news or not, but GMR magazine, along with some bee-ooty-full screenshots released the following info in their June 03 issue:

While you'll spend a lot of your time fighting the game's 1000-plus creatures, it's the PvP combat the designers have been reticent to discuss. Until now, that is. GMR can reveal that World of Warcraft will only feature consensual PVP combat in designated areas such as (the) coliseum.

Just waiting for GFraz to tell us that they can or cannot deny or confirm that was or was not written in or out of GMR magazine. And that they are working hard for a speedy release.

The writer also admitted that as far as video-crack goes, from what he'd seen, this one will probably take all of the proverbial cake. Oh god... I'm in so much trouble. :D

[Wiccan]

why its pay and play

from the website

Will there be monthly fee to play the game?

Yes; however, we are still investigating our business model and have not yet determined what the fee will be.

Why isn't World of Warcraft free?

World of Warcraft will require a fee to play. This fee will be used to support the costs associated with the high-quality levels of service, support, and ongoing content creation that we are planning for World of Warcraft.