VC&WiiWare vs. XBLA vs. PSN

[Mahlzeit]

Achievements are the future of gaming

Forget cross game chat, Halo 3 and unreliable hardware, the Xbox 360's real legacy will be achievement points.

Forget Halo 3 and unreliable hardware, the Xbox 360's real legacy will be achievement points. What a genius concept. Gamers get "rewarded" - points added to their gamerscore plus that joyous achievement unlocked sound, of course - while the manufacturer gets total platform loyalty. How many gamers who own both a 360 and PS3 buy their multiplatform games for the 360 purely to get the points? Publishers should be happy too. After all how many 360 owners have bought rubbish like Avatar just to get some easy points?


As you'd expect Sony have released their own version of achievements - PS3 Trophies. Like the PS3 generally Trophies shows huge potential - showing off in Home etc - but isn't quite there yet. Plus the rewards are not backdated so you will need to play your PS3 games again to get the Trophy. Annoying, although replaying something as excellent as Uncharted shouldn't be a chore.


And the achievement concept has moved beyond the consoles. Blizzard has just announced plans to introduce achievements across all their games, not just upcoming WoW expansion Wrath of the Lich King. As Blizzard's Jeff Kaplan explains:


"Your 'WoW' score would be just one factor that will go into your Blizzard Level. And rather than call it a 'score,' we just wanted it to be like you're leveling up on Blizzard games... You'll have this Blizzard identity, and you'll be able to see things like 'Oh, this guy was great at Diablo III, but he never played Starcraft and he was mediocre in WoW. That sort of thing."


Blizzard are one the few publishers who have the brand loyalty to be able to pull this off but it probably won't put the others off. In a few years time you could end up having - I don't know - an Xbox 360 gamerscore, a Blizzard level, an EA medal, a Sega star and a large collection of PS3 trophies. All you need then is somewhere to show them off - expect achievement aggregation sites to be huge. Anyway achievement points and trophies, you a fan? Or is it just a gaming fad?

http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/games/archives/2008/08/06/achievements_are_the_future_of_gaming.html

 

[PeterGerri]

Hat das was mit Onlineservice zu tun? Na, dann wird Nintendo auf dem Bereich sicher zügig nachziehen, mit der Wii 3 dann.

 

[KrateroZ]

Hat das was mit Onlineservice zu tun? Na, dann wird Nintendo auf dem Bereich sicher zügig nachziehen, mit der Wii 3 dann.

Hey, ich bin doch hier der Pessimist ...

Ich denke, mit der Wii 2 wird auch Nintendo zumindest ein ähnliches System anbieten - Insignien?

 

[Mahlzeit]

Hat das was mit Onlineservice zu tun? Na, dann wird Nintendo auf dem Bereich sicher zügig nachziehen, mit der Wii 3 dann.

Nach 6 Seiten blättern finde ich schon das es hier reinpasst.

Wenn Nintendo sowas macht, bitte von Anfang an und ALLE Games.

 

[PeterGerri]

Wenn Nintendo sowas macht, bitte von Anfang an und ALLE Games.

Damit dann alle schlechteren Spieler bei Mario Kart weinen müssen, wenn sie nicht so gut sind wie erhofft? Da kennst du Nintendo aber schlecht..

 

[Nerazar]

Damit dann alle schlechteren Spieler bei Mario Kart weinen müssen, wenn sie nicht so gut sind wie erhofft? Da kennst du Nintendo aber schlecht..

Naja, Brawl hat auch Achievements...
Man wird sehen, ob Nintendo da nachziehen wird! Ich finde Achievements ganz nett

 

[N-Freak]

TGS: Xbox Live mit 14 Mio. Mitgliedern

09.10.08 - Microsoft gibt bekannt, dass der Online-Dienst Xbox Live derzeit weltweit 14 Mio. Mitglieder hat.

 

[LustigeStiefel]

09.10.2008 11:04
Hat da etwa jemand Luft aus Redmond eingeatmet? Sony gibt über den offiziellen US-Blog bekannt, dass man ab dieser Woche so genannte „Premium Themes“ anbieten wird. Das ist genau das, wonach es sich anhört: Designs für die PlayStation 3, die etwas kosten! Der genaue Preispunkt ist jedoch noch nicht bekannt, wird aber wohl durch das kommende US-Store Update in dieser Woche zwangsweise enthüllt. Für den europäischen PlayStation Network Store ist noch nichts Spezielles angekündigt worden. Laut Sony wird man pro Monat 6-10 solcher kostenpflichtigen Themen anbieten. Sie werden neue Hintergründe, XMB-Icons sowie teilweise individuelle Sounds enthalten… Also im Prinzip genau dasselbe, wie auch schon die kostenlosen Designs!

areagames.de

 

[Mahlzeit]

Europe’s Version Of Qore is Called Official PlayStation Magazine HD

Over the last month Sony Computer Entertainment Europe have been putting together their own version of Qore. Because European PlayStation owners have suffered enough. The program will be called Official PlayStation Magazine HD, this will of course be a premium service (meaning you pay for it), and will be distributed weekly over the various European PlayStation stores.

A job listing for the program says that the show will feature “hi-def video, game demos and other content”, so basically, expect Qore, but with a much longer name and maybe, just maybe something exclusive for Europe that people in North America won’t get.

http://www.beefjack.com/blog/2008/1...e-is-called-official-playstation-magazine-hd/

 

[Mahlzeit]

Xbox 360 tops PS3, Wii in online buzz

Garnered the largest share

Microsoft’s Xbox 360 is currently the most buzzed about video game console, topping Sony’s PlayStation 3 and the Nintendo Wii, Nielson Online reported.
According to the Internet media and market research service, the 360 garnered the largest share of online buzz among the top game consoles, with 41.6 percent of messages mentioning Xbox, Wii, or PlayStation between November 1 and December 9.

Wii and PlayStation ranked number 2 and 3, with 29.8 percent and 28.6 percent of game console messages, respectively.

http://gamerush.zoomshare.com/files/news/002635_Xbox_360_tops_PS3_Wii_in_online_buzz.htm

 

[Mahlzeit]

PS3 Beats Wii on Internet Use
Gaming versus Internet use... Wii doesn't win.

With more than 30 million Wiis sold into homes in its life to date compared to 16 million PS3s and both with Internet browsers, you might expect that Nintendo's family-friendly box to have a larger 'market share' on the Net than the former.

You'd be wrong. A new report from Marketshare indicates that PlayStation 3 owners like to use their console (sorry, Interactive Entertainment System) for Web use than those people playing with their Wiis in December 2008.

With Microsoft's Xbox 360 not having a browser, it doesn't figure in the stats.

The gap between the PS3 and Wii is huge. Nintendo's machine gets 0.01% of 'operating system market share' compared to the PS3's 0.04%. It might look small - but it actually means that PS3 users use the Internet 400% more than Wii users.

Neither compares to Windows' 88.6%, which still dominates. Apple's 9.63% of share is actually up 9% since November - a great deal of this is down to the iPhone according to Fortune. That coverage also indicates that Microsoft's Windows has lost 1.1% of share in December

http://news.spong.com/article/16824/PS3_Beats_Wii_on_Internet_Use?d=200901021010&cb=489

 

[Mahlzeit]

Mind blowing" growth for Xbox Live

Year-on-year digital spending by Live users climbs 84 per cent
Microsoft’s group product manager for Xbox 360 Aaron Greenberg has stated that the strong sales enjoyed by his firm’s console over the Christmas period has been mirrored by some equally impressive growth of the company’s Xbox Live digital platform.

“We saw year-over-year online consumer spending on Live grow 84 per cent, well outpacing any other segment," he told G4TV.

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/32908/Mind-blowing-growth-for-Xbox-Live

EA announces branded XBLA Channel

Hasbro Family Game Night to offer range of digital family games on Microsoft’s rejuvenated XBL service
EA and Hasbro have announced that they are to launch a branded channel on Xbox Live Arcade under the Hasbro Family Games Night banner.

The move mirrors similar deals struck by Sony on its recently released PlayStation Home service, and is the first of its kind to emerge since the launch of the New Xbox Experience.

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/32838/EA-announces-branded-XBLA-Channel

 

[Mahlzeit]

Nintendo teams with electronics makers for Wii Fit health servicesNEC, Hitachi and Panasonic to launch new services starting in April.

Nintendo announced today the development of Wii Fit Body Check Channel, a new Wii Channel program that will shortly be used by NEC, Panasonic and Hitachi for various health products and services.

The Wii Fit Body Check Channel program serves two purposes. In addition to providing a simple interface for users to receive health instruction, it also connects to the internet to send Wii Fit player data to health professionals.

NEC, Panasonic and Hitachi take over from there. Each manufacturer is developing specialized systems for long distance health guidance. The systems use Wii Fit Body Check Channel as a bridge between users and professionals, offering the two parties a better means of communication.

Hitachi's system, which is being developed with Hitachi Software Engineering, will see an internal test in February, with a full rollout taking place if this is successful.

Panasonic's system, Plissimo Sigusa, will be offered to health organizations and insurance companies in April.

NEC's system, developed with NEC Mobiling, will take the form of a health support system for NEC Group employees and their families to kick off in April. In addition to long distance guidance, the service connects Wii Fit Body Check Channel with a mobile health service that NEC has been offering since December, allowing users to regularly check up on their health. NEC plans on offering the system externally as well, and hopes to receive 150 orders over a three year period.

In addition to Wii Fit data, the Wii Fit Body Check Channel program will support user walking data from Nintendo's Lifestyle Rhythm DS title (Aruite Wakaru Seikatsu Rhythm DS).

http://www.andriasang.com/e/articles/2009/01/27/wii_fit_body_check_channel/

 

[Mahlzeit]

Shock! MGS4 LittleBigPlanet pack is top downloaded add-on in January

The latest episode of Pulse reveals yet another Top 10 list, this time focusing on the downloadable add-ons available on the Store. Unsurprisingly, the Metal Gear Solid Level Kit for LittleBigPlanet is the top download in January, followed by the accompanying Costume Kit.

It's interesting to see how thoroughly LittleBigPlanet dominates this list. The various add-ons make up 6 of the top 10 downloads. Sony must be raking in quite a bit of money on these premium downloadable extras. It's also interesting to see the continued popularity of Call of Duty 4. The Variety Map Pack continues to sell incredibly well, over a year since the original game's release

http://playstation.joystiq.com/2009...gplanet-pack-is-top-downloaded-add-on-in-jan/

 

[Mahlzeit]

Microsoft undecided on Netflix for Europe

UK Xbox boss Neil Thompson has declined to comment on when - or indeed whether - European 360 owners will ever get a Netflix-style movie download service.

"Netflix is a great deal in the US, and we're looking at what we might want to do here in the future," Thompson told Eurogamer. "But we think the content we're offering is broad-ranging and pretty deep. We have to evolve the live service in different territories at different speeds, depending on what we're able to achieve."

Thompson was speaking during a press event to promote Microsoft's new deal with Universal Pictures, which will see 30 new films added to the European movie download library. Well, 30 old films, but they're new to Xbox Live.

"We're announcing 30 movies for Universal but on the service there's over 300, so the choice is fairly broad, and we're updating it daily," said Thompson.

But 300 is not a lot compared to 10,000 (unless you're a Spartan obviously), and that's the number of films American Xbox Live users can access. It's all down to the deal with Netflix which was announced at last year's E3 and launched last "fall". More than a million US Xbox 360 owners have since taken advantage, but there's still no news of any such service launching over here. So isn't this a case of poor old Europe being left behind again?

"I think that's reasonably unfair," said Thompson. "We have a history with Xbox, certainly with Xbox 360 and its launch, where Europe has always had a similar launch for much of the technology we've delivered.

"When it comes to the Live service, yes, there is a difference with Netflix. But with much of the content and services we provide, Europe's been pretty much at the forefront of what we've been trying to do."

So, any chance we might see a Netflix-style deal in Europe by, say, the end of this year? "I don't know yet where we're going to take the services we've got," Thompson said. "We're concentrating on delivering the services we've got and bolstering the content we've got."

He added, "There will be evolutions of that service, absolutely, but I'm not going to give you any timelines or specifics." Oh well.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/microsoft-undecided-on-netflix-for-europe

 

[tinkengil]

Microsoft sollte sich in Deutschland mal mit Maxdome zusammentun. Ist im Prinzip genauso wie Netflix (wobei Netflix eigentlich hauptsächlich noch den DVD Verleih per Post bewirbt und erst in Kürze reine Streaming-Tarife in den USA anbieten wird). Und wie heute angekündigt wurde, wird Maxdome ab Quartal 2 auch HDTV Inhalte anbieten.
Serienpaket 10€ im Monat, das würde mir reichen. Premiumpaket kostet 20€ im Monat.

 

[Mahlzeit]

lt. der amerikanischen XBox Seite, kostet das Gold Abo nun 39,99 $ statt 50 $. Hoffe das kommt auch noch hier

http://www.xbox.com/en-US/

 

[Mahlzeit]

Xbox UK chief doesn't believe Sony's 20m PSN figure

Stephen McGill says there's questions over what Sony's numbers really mean.

Microsoft UK has responded to Sony's recent claim that the PlayStation Network has exceeded 20 million registered accounts, questioning what exactly it means.

Last month Sony sparked intense debate after it sent out a press release announcing that "the cumulative number of registered accounts on PlayStation Network has exceeded 20 million as of February 20, 2009".

The announcement suggested PSN had three million more registered users than Xbox LIVE, which, according to Microsoft's latest figures, has more than "17 million active members".

However, speaking to VideoGamer.com, Microsoft's head of gaming and entertainment in the UK, Stephen McGill, said that "there's questions over what does Sony's numbers really mean".

He said: "When we talk about our numbers we feel they're active users who are actively engaged in all the forms of entertainment we offer on Xbox 360. I think if you look at the comments made on the forums, or the comments made by analysts at Screen Digest then there's questions over, well what does Sony's numbers really mean? Are they duplicates? I think there's a lot of questions there.

"All I'm really worried about is, I know I'm the largest online video on demand service in the UK, we are worldwide, we've got a great online service the others can't come close to. They're not right now. When you think of our heritage as a company Microsoft has proven we are probably the only company in the world that can offer great online experiences for millions and millions and millions of people. And that's what we do every day with Xbox LIVE."

McGill added: "Sony do what Sony want to do and if they think that's right for their business to say those kind of numbers then they can do and will do whatever they want to do. Do I believe them? No."

http://www.videogamer.com/news/xbox_uk_chief_doesnt_believe_sonys_20m_psn_figure.html

 

[Hellfrog]

naja, ich hab auch knapp 3 Accounts im PSN (seit PS2 Socom Beta ^^), von daher kann die zahl stimmen. aktive spieler werden es aber sicherlich net sein.

 

[Mahlzeit]

COD4 has 11m Live, 4m PSN players

Call of Duty 4 has racked up 11 million unique players since launch on Xbox Live, and over 4 million on PlayStation Network, according to Infinity Ward's Rob Bowling.

Bowling revealed the sensational figures when accepting one of COD 4: Modern Warfare's three BAFTAs in London on Tuesday night.

"I'm delighted that we just reached 11 million unique players on Xbox Live and we've got over 4 million on PSN," Bowling said, according to eyewitnesses (who'd had a bit to drink so don't blame us if the wording isn't exact).

We've confirmed with Activision that the figures relate to COD 4 alone, not the entire Call of Duty franchise.

According to Microsoft, Xbox Live has 17 million users overall, meaning two-thirds of them have played Infinity Ward's first-person shooter. The figures track all players, not just those who've played online multiplayer (necessarily so, since the word is that only 9.5 million people pay for Xbox Live Gold).

Add the untold number of players out there who haven't connected their 360s to the internet, and you get a sense of the true scale of Infinity Ward's success - and that's not even counting PC and PS3 players. As a comparison, MMO king and Activision Blizzard stablemate World of Warcraft has 11 million players worldwide (although, unlike the COD figure, these are all currently active).

Infinity Ward is currently working on a Modern Warfare sequel, due for release at the end of this year.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/cod4-has-11m-live-4m-psn-players