Xbone is approaching what you describe. Basically a software update away.
Honestly… I can’t see the point
it used to be that consoles were the safe option, cheaper, reliable, no hassle and longer life cycle. You buy the hardware, get the games, pop them in an play within seconds
The graphics were worse than on the PC but there were optimised for a very specific hardware, many of the titles were exclusive and you could avoid the arms race required to keep pace in the PC master race multiverse
I remember enjoying my PS1 and gamecube and XBOX, heck I still buy XBOX 360 games now and then, I like to buy an old game in amazon at a reduced price and all the extras and enjoy it at my pace, savouring all the details of the gameplay.
Nowadays AAA console games are mere ports of PC versions with some tweaks for specific hardware, the consoles themselves being cut down versions of gaming PC. Exclusivity is reduced to a handful of titles and a few game modes ripped from the game to be sold to the highest bidder and the games themselves are annual franchises with minimal incremental changes and riddled with extra payments. I really fear for the new generation of gamers
My son loves to game but he was getting tempted by microtransacions, fornite, roblox… they are everywhere, so I decided to take a more active role, I let them play these games but he knows I will not pay for lootboxes. I also play with him narrative focused games, together we put 200 hours on breath of the wild and now we are doing windwaker, next will be twilight princess or ocarina of time.
There are 100s of alternatives without having to spend PC money on a new console, in 5 years or so we will see
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Wild guess on my end but i think the shape might be because of the GPU, i’m also wondering if they have some kind of big ass heatsink in there. Though i do think the design looks stupid, hope the consumer version looks nothing like the dev unit.
Its usually the other way around. But the quality of ports in general has gone up (barring some particularly bad ones). And the longer cross platform releases are the rule, the more deliberately developing with it in mind is the base approach. It wasn’t too long ago that most PC versions for cross platform titles were pretty perfunctory or had nasty bugs that never got fixed.
I wouldn’t really expect it to. Here’s what the Dev kits for the Xbone and PS4 apparently looked like:
I’m also doubting pretty hard that that’s what the Dev kit actually looks like, especially at this stage. Apparently early run dev kits are usually just mounted in PC cases.
Sounds like you want to be part of the pcmasterrace.
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Imagine what happens when you inadvertantly violate a ToS and they take your entire life away.
There’s something to be said for sitting on my couch in front of a large screen and decent surround sound system using relatively inexpensive and purpose built hardware and having stuff just work.
I don’t have much time these days for gaming so when I do get those precious few hours a week to really be able to sit down and play something I don’t want to spend it dicking with configuration files, graphics settings, optimization profiles, the upgrade death march, and so on.
Am I missing out on the “ultimate” experience? Possibly. But this is a case where I greatly prefer convenience and comfort.
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Yup. I’ve personally seen early dev kits for many consoles and they are basically a combination of heavily customized and commodity hardware shoved in modded PC cases. The N64 dev kit was basically an accessory that you plugged into an SGI Indy.
I vividly remember the early Dreamcast “Katana” prototype as it was basically a mini tower case with some custom molded plastic on the front to make it look fancier.
By the time the console design is finalized, dev kits are just slightly modded hardware - maybe some extra ports or appendages on it.
These days you can take a commodity Xbox One and turn it into a dev kit by simply changing a setting. How wild is that?
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Right. And you look at the cases on the apparently later dev kits I posted above. And they’re still pretty basic, not too different from a cable box or generic dvd player. Minimal markings, and certainly no reason to put SSD or other logos on it. No real resemblance to the consumer products.
Dev kits aren’t prototypes of consumer goods, they’re separate tools often produced through the life of the console. And they don’t need whizbang, lights, and pricey branded cases. Every one I’ve seen is hugely utilitarian.
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That’s actually a reference to The Golden One, who’s a so-ridiculous-you-can’t-believe-he’s-sincere-but-he-is alt-right YouTuber. Not surprising, since that comic is a frame from a Zero Punctuation video, a dude who used to be super funny, but turns out also has one foot in the alt-right.
After the very first one, they’re always just a copy of the consumer console with my memory and a few debugging ports opened in the OS.
Yeah, I used to enjoy Yatzee,
I’m not at all surprised that he’s a dick.
I mean, check the hat.
Also… I’m getting the impression that you don’t think
that I look just like Fabio.
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I built my own computer and i would say that i never have needed to dick around with files. At most i’ve lowered graphics settings for games but you can do that in-game with no effort. My desktop “just works” and i’ve been very happy with it, and for background i have no real knowledge on how to problem solve things so me not having to fuss with my desktop should say something. It doesn’t require me to be a programmer or have IT knowledge. I also love being able to easily upgrade, something i can’t do with a console… with my PS4 i just have to use it and then buy the next console, unlike me using essentially the same PC.
That said, i’m totally system agnostic. I have a PC but own a PS4 and a Switch, whatever form a person chooses to game and they enjoy it then more power to them. I don’t think it’s constructive to be derisive toward people who prefer console gaming as the experiences are different, not everyone is going to want the same things out of their consoles/computers.
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I just don’t think its can be that far along. We’re still in the middle of the consumer release of the GPUs these will be based on, and they only hit manufacturing early this year.
Regarding your PC gamin experience I think you are stuck in the mid 90s, when we all had to fiddle with the autoexec and the config files and there were some serious problems running certain games. Macs crash and there are viruses too
Nowadays is all done for you, just install steam (or other digital platform) and download the game, double click and presto… the game configures itself to give you the optimal settings, with a decent SSD gaming in less than 30 sec from switching on
And yes, I also have consoles (XBOX 360 and switch) and yes I do play games in the big HD TV with surround sound, etc
My point is that if the consoles from now on are going to be basically PCs in a branded plastic case with some custom software, priced almost the same and running a lightly tweaked version of the same game, I honestly don’t see the point
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I feel like if Sony really wanted to differentiate PS5, they’d make VR the default, or at least, a core element of the system. You buy a PS5, you have a VR kit.
Then again, that didn’t go over so well when Microsoft made the Kinect a core required element of the Xbox One.
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Killer leaps forward in tech need killer apps or else there’s no uptake. I’m still banking on Half Life 3 shipping with whatever consumer grade VR headset Valve finally puts together.
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Absolutely true, and that’s also where the trouble lies… with top-tier AAA games being so expensive, it’s tough for someone to take that leap.
“We want you to make us a killer game!”
“Sure, but we’re not going to make one until you can assure us that the tech will be there and accessible for people.”
“It’ll be there! Make us the game and we’ll make the tech.”
“You first!”
“No, you!”
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Totally. Meanwhile your example of the Kinect cratered for the exact reason you’re citing.
In theory it had voice control as value added in the event that the control scheme didn’t take off but then it was just an extremely expensive microphone? And how hard is it to build your console with a microphone? Not that hard apparently as it’s standard now on the Xbox One!
WHICH brings us back to the PS5. They’re touting this responsive controller as if it’s this big new thing and … it’s not? It’s really just not. It’s just another value added gimmick that doesn’t move the needle enough to be worth buying a whole new console.
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Definitely do. At least rule my domain which would be my stereo and HDTV. The last time I paid attention to the stereo stuff, CD’s were the thing. Now it’s streaming, and it’s a bit complicated and bewildering. Last time I paid attention to the TV, I bought a Vizio smart tv, which is now not being updated and is not playing nicely at all with Youtube and Hulu.
As soon as full digital signal paths, wi-fi and bluetooth, cellphones, desktop or tablet etc get involved and need to play together- it truly becomes a big PITA, at least for me and my now qualified-for-Medicare brain. I truly would love something simple yet future-enabled and I daresay I am not alone. 
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