Steel Batallian

[Tsyr]

Like I said in another post; Steel Batallion was a risky experiment. You can say all you like that Microsoft asked them to make it and therefor it was no risk, but it was. There was a considerable amount of production time wrapped up in this game that would be lost if it didn't sell well, just to start with. Time that could have been used on other games. But more than that, even if this was funded my MS, you think Microsoft would look very kindly on them in the future if this totaly bombed?

And yes, it's hard to get Steel Batallion now... All of the stores around here got 1-4 of them in, and they were mostly all preorders at that. I've never actualy seen one just sitting in a store, waiting to be purchased. Only behind the counter with the reserve sticker on it. I don't think the second run will be the last though, for sure... it depends on how big it is, and how many sell... If they do produce a second one (fingers crossed), they will undoubtably produce at least one more small run of the first game, or offer a limited amount of the second game that also has the controller. They are sorta shooting themselves in the foot if they don't do that.

I personaly wouldn't order one online... Not that I have anything against online ordering, far from it, but the shipping is insane on it... generaly 20-30 dollars even for the lowest shipping option the place you are ordering it from offers, because of its bulk. It comes in a box only slightly smaller than a computer box.

 

[Ristamar]

Like I said in another post; Steel Batallion was a risky experiment. You can say all you like that Microsoft asked them to make it and therefor it was no risk, but it was. There was a considerable amount of production time wrapped up in this game that would be lost if it didn't sell well, just to start with. Time that could have been used on other games. But more than that, even if this was funded my MS, you think Microsoft would look very kindly on them in the future if this totaly bombed?

Not if... was. It was funded by Microsoft.

And seriously, it's pretentious to believe Capcom is extremely worried about what Microsoft 'thinks' of Capcom. Capcom has proved its own worth over the years time and time again and can handle itself quite nicely with or without MS. MS' fate in the console market won't cause Capcom to lose sleep any time in the near future. This leads to an interesting point...

You see, on the other hand, Microsoft should be worried about what game developers think of Microsoft itself. It brashly strutted onto the console market, cocky and arrogant, thinking it could be as hard headed and heavy handed in this venture as it is in the PC market.

Clearly MS doesn't have such clout in this new arena, and its ego has turned quite a few people off. MS has much to prove, and the quicker it realizes and alleviates this problem instead of acting like it already runs the schoolyard, the more success it will come to find, as its current situation isn't very rosy.

Despite good sales in North America, the XBOX is a financial catastrophe, costing billions of dollars, blurred only by the fact that MS has unfathomably deep pockets, a stubborn drive to dominate the market, and a hope to ultimately profit off of the XBOX's successor.

In addition, XBOX penetration in the ever important Japanese market is nearly non-existent, being outsold by the likes of the portable Wonder Swan gaming system. Never heard of the Wonder Swan, you say? I rest my case.

I applaud Microsoft's sponsorship toward offering something new and innovative with a game like Steel Battalion. I truly wish I had an extra $400, so I could pick it up along with an XBOX. But until MS realizes it's currently not the biggest dog in this particular yard and acts accordingly, it's never going to achieve the success it desires.

I personaly wouldn't order one online... Not that I have anything against online ordering, far from it, but the shipping is insane on it... generaly 20-30 dollars even for the lowest shipping option the place you are ordering it from offers, because of its bulk. It comes in a box only slightly smaller than a computer box.

Yeah, I've heard about the nightmarish shipping costs, which is why I had inquired about retailers' stock.

 

[Tsyr]

In addition, XBOX penetration in the ever important Japanese market is nearly non-existent, being outsold by the likes of the portable Wonder Swan gaming system. Never heard of the Wonder Swan, you say? I rest my case.

Actualy, just as a point of reference, I have. I own one ;p

I'm one of those freeks who imports any gaming system I can get my hands on, just to say I have one, though... I don't count

 

[Ristamar]

Actualy, just as a point of reference, I have. I own one ;p

I'm one of those freeks who imports any gaming system I can get my hands on, just to say I have one, though... I don't count

*chuckle* Er, well, I obviously stand corrected! I don't think I've talked to anyone who owned one until now...

 

[Hollywood]

I'm not even touching that statement, as this isn't the place for such a discussion, other than to say I strongly disagree and could give numerous valid reasons to support my discordance.

Yes, its off the topic and point. The point was I was/am unhappy that its an exclusive Xbox title if what Tyr was saying about its true. I have a better PC than what the Xbox [or any other console is], so I really would prefer such an excellent game on my platform of choice. This is especially true since I've been a mecha fan for years [I prefer Five Star Stories myself] but have been disappointed with the recent mecha offerings, especially the latest MW series [as I stated previously].

But eh, whatever.

P.S. If you thought it was a flame or troll-baiting, you shouldn't have responded at all. But go ahead and refute my statement without even knowing what my particular system is.

 

[Ristamar]

Yes, its off the topic and point. The point was I was/am unhappy that its an exclusive Xbox title if what Tyr was saying about its true. I have a better PC than what the Xbox [or any other console is], so I really would prefer such an excellent game on my platform of choice. This is especially true since I've been a mecha fan for years [I prefer Five Star Stories myself] but have been disappointed with the recent mecha offerings, especially the latest MW series [as I stated previously].

But eh, whatever.

P.S. If you thought it was a flame or troll-baiting, you shouldn't have responded at all. But go ahead and refute my statement without even knowing what my particular system is.

I didn't accuse you of intentionally trolling.... regardless of your intent, though, it was a slightly inflammatory statement, at the very least (perhaps not so much here, but on most gaming related boards, it could easily start a flame war ), which is what I was attempting to point out.

As for your system... System specs and hardware features, while obviously nice, are largely irrelevant. No one is going is to refute that a near top of the line PC running the latest games generally boasts a larger graphical feature set and crisper resolutions than any given console. But again, that's irrelevant, as the pros and cons of console gaming vs. PC gaming delves far deeper than mere numbers.

I can understand why someone would prefer PC's to consoles. But to imply that PC's simply outclass and embarrass consoles altogether is ridiculous. Better hardware and eye candy does not instantly equate to system superiority.

 

[Tsyr]

Actualy, I'll be blunt... I wouldn't want to play Steel Batallion on a computer.

 

[Hollywood]

Actualy, I'll be blunt... I wouldn't want to play Steel Batallion on a computer.

Well, give an explanation why thats the case. I'm interested in knowing as it sounds like a really good 'mech game.

Originally posted by Ristamar
I didn't accuse you of intentionally trolling.... regardless of your intent, though, it was a slightly inflammatory statement, at the very least (perhaps not so much here, but on most gaming related boards, it could easily start a flame war ), which is what I was attempting to point out.

Yes, I suppose... but to me it'd only have been a flame if I'd said "CONSOLES SUCK AND ARE STUPID". Course I didn't say that, just expressed me opinion concerning my thoughts on *my* PC compared to consoles.

I can understand why someone would prefer PC's to consoles. But to imply that PC's simply outclass and embarrass consoles altogether is ridiculous. Better hardware and eye candy does not instantly equate to system superiority.

Again, I was speaking of my system and my system only, not PCs in general. Because of the nature of the Xbox and its vertical integration between components, even its one generation behind NVidia graphics processor and its P3 CPU can beat out most ~1Ghz to ~1.5Ghz P3s and P4 PCs.

But nonetheless, I do think that the PC has the system superiority not only based on possible hardware specs, but in variety of games that can be made due to the variety of hardware available to the PC. Especially in terms of control devices. FPS, RTS, RPGs, etc. are better with the keyboard and mouse, flight sims are better with joysticks, HOTAS and pedals, racing sims are better with wheel and pedals... all which you can get higher quality controllers for the PC. Sports and fighting games need gamepads, and while the PCs gamepads are very good these days, there maybe some slightly advantage of the console. Not to mention, with most controllers coming as USB devices, I can take my controller from PC to PC, I don't have proprietary controllers that only work with one game system, or one version of that game system.

Then there is always the saving issue... only the Xbox sorta rivals the PC in this area since it has a HD. With a PC you can save games directly to the harddrive, no needing proprietary and expensive save cards. And so forth.

Anyways, we could go on and on about the differences and what they mean, but I'm in favor of the PC because of it limitlessness both in terms of hardware and software.

However, no matter what platform games appear on, today its almost a hit and miss that a game actually has good gameplay as opposed to just looking pretty. And even rarer when it has inovatve gameplay. Which is one reason the Steel Battalion caught my eye here, because it seems to have gameplay thats been lacking in 'mech titles [of any genre].

Nonetheless, we've hijacked this thread and I'm still interested in why in the game and why it wouldn't be a good play for the PC... maybe it'll give me reason to buy an Xbox, rather than just playing on friend's.

 

[Ristamar]

Well, I will give a brief response... a full fledged debate on this subject could take up pages and pages, and I'd rather not get into that.

But nonetheless, I do think that the PC has the system superiority not only based on possible hardware specs, but in variety of games that can be made due to the variety of hardware available to the PC. Especially in terms of control devices. FPS, RTS, RPGs, etc. are better with the keyboard and mouse, flight sims are better with joysticks, HOTAS and pedals, racing sims are better with wheel and pedals... all which you can get higher quality controllers for the PC.

Steering wheels are about the same these days (though console wheels used to be pretty lame). Flight sticks are still weak on consoles, while gamepads still are subpar on PC's and are also far too expensive in comparsion to console gamepads.

There's also the issues of smaller, high resolution monitors vs. larger, lower resolution TV's, with the recent rise of progressive scan in console gaming making this subtopic even more interesting.

But really, the whole interface issue is mostly moot and comes down to nitpick preferences, as there are devices that allow swapping of controllers from console to console and console to PC. Consoles can be hooked up to monitors and PC's can be hooked up to TV's. Keyboards are also available on most consoles, as well.

Then there is always the saving issue... only the Xbox sorta rivals the PC in this area since it has a HD. With a PC you can save games directly to the harddrive, no needing proprietary and expensive save cards. And so forth.

That's a very skewed perspective, to say the least. One or two $15 memory cards that will save 30+ games will always far cheaper than any reasonable hard drive on the market.

Anyways, we could go on and on about the differences and what they mean, but I'm in favor of the PC because of it limitlessness both in terms of hardware and software.

I agree, it is limitless, which is one the reasons I like my PC. But it's also expensive as hell to continually upgrade, and in terms of potential power vs. effective usage, the PC wastes a lot of its resources.

Consoles are generally tapped close to their fullest potential before being replaced years later by the next generation. Most PC game developers code for a lowest common denominator, rarely taking full advantage of the hardware available to them simply because the PC hardware market is so varied. Along with that comes patching, conflicts, and incompatability issues that will never be found on console systems.

As for genres, the PC has been playing catch-up in the RPG department (and doing very well now, thanks mostly to Bioware and Black Isle), while consoles have been doing the same with FPS'. The PC has an edge in FPS' while consoles still maintain a slight RPG edge, IMO.

Platform and adventure games, in general, are far superior on consoles, while RTS and flight sims are generally always much better on PC's.

Sports and racing games are more of a toss-up and could be argued either way.

These are all broad generalizations, of course, and barely scratch the surface of the debate. Obviously, unless there is some sort of industry amalgamation, there are certain games that will never see the light of day on PC, and games that will never come to consoles, save through various forms of illegal emulation and/or modification.

I won't even go into the difference in 'feel' between console and PC games. There's also socialization issues, ease of transport, among other things.

However, no matter what platform games appear on, today its almost a hit and miss that a game actually has good gameplay as opposed to just looking pretty. And even rarer when it has inovatve gameplay. Which is one reason the Steel Battalion caught my eye here, because it seems to have gameplay thats been lacking in 'mech titles [of any genre].

On all of those points, I agree 100%.

Nonetheless, we've hijacked this thread and I'm still interested in why in the game and why it wouldn't be a good play for the PC... maybe it'll give me reason to buy an Xbox, rather than just playing on friend's.

I can only venture a guess, but one reason may be that Tsyr prefers a large viewing area, hence the recommendation for a 27"+ TV...

 

[Tsyr]

I can only venture a guess, but one reason may be that Tsyr prefers a large viewing area, hence the recommendation for a 27"+ TV...

Yeah, that's the big one. Anything smaller and you just have too small of an actual view... You have to deal with the cocpit and so forth, in Steel Batallion.