#maybe VR is the next step and Sony has the lead on that

[laponarta-blog]

Something interesting about video game console is that in the 90s there was far more competition in that market than today.

20 years ago the scene was being contested between Atari, Nintendo, Sega, SNK with several being released consoles in a short timespan.

Nowadays, you can only pick between a Switch, an Xbox and a PlayStation, and I wonder if that has hindered the innovation of this market.

The way I see it, the PS5 and the Xbox are identical, oniy the switch offers a unique experience.

[inkni]

There Is No Ninth Generation

I: Reflection.

Sometime around age 14 or 15, musing on the future of gaming, I wrote the following:

The next-generation systems (the replacements for GameCube, Xbox, and PS2) will roll out sometime around the year 2006. This will either continue the rise of video games, or begin the path towards their inevitable decline. Having us stare at a TV screen for hours on end will not keep the industry going. They must evolve to changing technology and, well… boredom.

I feel I was both prescient and incorrect here. (Albeit mostly vague.) Nintendo, as is their wont, did revolutionize gaming anew with the introduction of motion controls with the Wii, copied by PlayStation’s MOVE and SixAxis controllers. Microsoft introduced the Kinect in fits and starts. Technology did change, and changed gaming.

—but to what extent? Microsoft backpedaled utterly away from their promise to make the Kinect central to the Xbox One experience. The early promise of the Wii U GamePad (see: Nintendo Land) was squandered amid dreadful sales. The biggest games of the Nintendo 3DS (Pokémon Sun & Moon) don’t even bother to utilize the portable’s central 3D gimmick. And now we’re looking at 2.0 follow-ups to the One and PS4 that honestly don’t look all that different in form or function from the Xbox and PS2 I was contemplating in my mid-teens. (By which I mean, the gameplay is still essentially the same, with updated graphics. The overall user experience, I’ll concede, has shifted significantly with the rise of internet connectivity, streaming, and social.)

II: Innovation!

I still think, as ever, that innovation is central to the continued success of gaming. In this vein, two themes emerge: A) I worry about the industry as a whole, bloated with massive financial success and therefore afraid to take risks; B) I am more glad than ever to have Nintendo.

A) The gaming industry has never been easy to break into, but wow—gone are the days in which a massive company like Microsoft would step up to launch a new system from scratch. And the notion of any individual games company like Sega being able to rise from scrappy underdog to massive presence as they did throughout the nineties? A joke. For the most part, we’re stuck with what he have. (And on the software side, AAA developers release open world after open world, bungled with bugs, on an annual schedule like a Hollywood blockbuster studio. Is it sustainable?)

B) Thankfully, we have the Nintendo Switch. While I’m for sure a Nintendo fangirl, any historian of the gaming world has to acknowledge the company’s drive for innovation and how much it has shaped every aspect of the controllers we use & the gameplay we experience. I don’t want to get bogged down in this broader post with a lot of musing about the Switch, but it excites me to see Nintendo pushing forward in blending home and mobile gaming, while still delivering new features in the how of gameplay with the amazingly crafted Joy-Cons. This is the kind of new shit that compels me to purchase a console!

The overly dramatic title of this post is in fact in reference to Windows OS. After the messiness of Windows 8, Microsoft opted to skip right over 9 and debut their “final” OS, Windows 10. From this point onward, they claim, it’s just upgrades to the same basic framework. I wonder if home consoles have perhaps reached this point? Rumors abound about how the Switch might be upgraded via a new tablet or dock every few years, and of course the controllers themselves are modular as well. Microsoft and Sony have already made clear that they see their forays into 4K as upgrades to their existing lineups, and not wholly new tech. What major leap left could consoles take from here?

III: Disruption?

To return to my teenaged self:

You see, video game consoles are going to change very rapidly, it would seem. Not too far in the future… a virtual reality Zelda? Yeah, where you run on a treadmill to move across Hyrule, and by the time you get to an enemy, you’re too tired to swing your 3D sword peripheral! Great idea! Or how about, hmm… oh yeah, and when you swim, you get to wave you hands in the air, and make a fool of yourself!

OK, so maybe there won’t be a virtual reality Zelda any time soon, or at least we pray that there won’t be one. It would be nice, though, if you could have something like that X-men person… umm… Cyclops’ (?) glasses, where, in order to look around, you would have to physically turn your head! While still using a controller, for old time’s sake.

Yes, VR. Longed for since the days of the Virtual Boy, and now finally here. The sword peripheral came first, with Skyward Sword and Wii MotionPlus. Kinect’s truly impressive tech can detect arms swimming through the air (and the Switch’s right Joy-Con will have a similar, smaller feature.) The Wii U GamePad can be swiveled around to reveal hidden elements of a virtual world surrounding you. And now, Oculus Rift puts two fancy, immersive controllers in your hands while you’re strapped into a headset that engulfs your existence.

Even as the basics of console’s couch gaming have remained the same for decades, improvements in interactivity have swirled around our sofas, leading us to this point. Will VR truly present a major shift in gaming? Will Oculus (or another VR company) become a major force in the industry if it does—or will the Big Three stay the same, as Nintendo teases VR for the future of Switch and Sony already has PlayStation VR on the market? Is this all so much hot air?!

I didn’t know at age 15, and I sure as shit don’t know now. But the hype train is rolling, and I’m fully on board!

[jenniferasberryus]

Why Batman’s New Game Deserves a Better Tease Than This

Nearly five years since the launch of the last full-fledged Batman: Arkham game, WB Games finally seems poised to reveal a continuation of Batman’s Arkham legacy. But rather than let the Dark Knight step into the spotlight with the fanfare he deserves, WB’s promotional teases feel as if they’re testing the patience of fans rather than delivering what they’ve long hoped for — and possibly setting the developers up for unfair judgment, too.

As it stands right now, a new Batman game hasn’t officially been announced, but ever since Rocksteady’s trilogy came to a close in 2015 with Batman: Arkham Knight, fans have waited for the next in the series. Even as Rocksteady moved on to a still-unannounced new project (after completing Batman: Arkham VR), the world has waited for a return to Gotham.

The History of The Mystery Batman Game

And not without reason — since 2016, reports have suggested that Arkham Origins developer WB Games Montreal was focusing on a new Batman game. And fervor for the still-unannounced game rose again in 2018 when a WB Montreal developer tweeted an image that seemed to include a possible Batman: Court of Owls logo in it. But at the same time, the studio affirmed then that its new game — still not confirmed to be a Batman game — would not make an appearance at The Game Awards.

[poilib element="quoteBox" parameters="excerpt=If%20I%20didn%E2%80%99t%20know%20any%20better%20I%E2%80%99d%20say%20we%E2%80%99re%20as%20much%20in%20for%20a%20Batman%20emblem%20pin%20set%20as%20we%20are%20a%20proper%20new%20video%20game."]

The studio remained quiet, with E3 2019 passing without any info, but in September of 2019, the WB Games Montreal account tweeted out a Batman Day tease, which was also just ahead of an announced State of Play from Sony, highlighting a series of new logos and the tagline “Capture the knight.”

Then...nothing. For months — until now, when the account tweeted out partial logo images to signal yet another logo for this unknown Batman game. If I didn’t know any better I’d say we’re as much in for a Batman emblem pin set as we are a proper new video game.

[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=batman-court-of-owls-logos&captions=true"]

Why Constant Teasing Is More Tedious Than Tantalizing

And honestly, as a fan of the Batman: Arkham franchise? It’s a little exhausting. There’s no indication, especially given the sporadic timing of these two tweets, when a proper reveal will come. Inside Xboxes, States of Play, and The Game Awards have passed all without even a teaser, let alone a proper reveal.

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/01/09/new-batman-game-teased-through-several-logos-ign-daily-fix"]

Even if this Court of Owls game hasn’t been officially confirmed, we all know it’s coming — and it does the developers working on a project a disservice while the marketing department drip-feeds us images. There’s an art to teasing out information and playing things close to the chest, but this isn’t quite it, given the weighty expectations around the franchise and the lack of transparency about when this breadcrumb trail ends.

Take another superhero saga - Marvel’s Avengers. After an official teaser trailer and announcement in January 2017, all news around the game went dark until Square Enix gave us a name and a promise of seeing more at E3 2019, only to finally reveal gameplay footage, story info, and a behind-closed-doors demo. Even something non-superheroic, like Far Cry: New Dawn, got a tease ahead of its proper Game Awards reveal two years ago. But these teases for Batman, because of how sporadic they are, how tight-lipped WB as a whole has been about the future of Batman, and the lack of a clear endgame, have created an experience that, while originally intriguing, is now somewhat frustrating.

And it sets the developers up for an unfair first reveal. There are a lot of expectations placed on the first follow-up to Arkham Knight, and these logos keep creating the expectation for that reveal to drop any day now. Even the PS5 logo reveal from earlier this week, while a small thing, came with Jim Ryan’s promise that more about Sony’s next console will be known in the coming months. But for Batman, these teases have been followed by...nothing, making some fans irate for having to wait for a marketing plan that trades in hype but lacks in substance. (Yes, it’s fun to wonder how the League of Shadows or Court of Owls or GCPD may be involved, but with so little to go off of, it’s hard to speculate beyond figuring out what comic book runs to go read. And if the first reveal doesn’t showcase why these teases matter, it could further muddy the waters.)

Just take a look at the latest tweet, one that, as of this publishing, showcases the full logo that the account posted half of that same day. “Obnoxious;” “Please just announce the game;” and “Stop the teasing” are some of the frequent refrains the logo is being met with. Had this reveal and the one last September given... any indication about when an actual reveal would come, fans -- myself included -- would likely be more OK with this rollout. But for now, it’s just intermittently throwing images at the community that don’t properly represent the developers’ work and asking people to be excited about it.

That’s not a great way to treat fans, and it’s not a great way to treat the developers working hard on a game hidden behind obscure logo reveals who, presumably, want to share the excitement for their project with the audience who knows it’s out there. What these teaser images do is allow for endless speculation, and while that can be plenty of fun — and I’ve speculated myself about what I hope the game will be — those predictions can also have the reverse effect. Instead of generating excitement, it can lead to frustration with no end to the teases in sight, which sets the proper, full reveal up with weighty expectations to be worth the breadcrumb trailer before it. This would be the first Batman game in years, by the developers of a lesser-loved entry in the series, so it already comes saddled with baggage.

[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-ign-batman-video-game-review&captions=true"]

I expect we’ll get a proper Batman reveal sometime this year – it could even be tomorrow, who knows — and maybe even a release, considering we’ll see new consoles launching next fall but I hope it’s not preceded by months and months of more teases without any tangible info about the game itself. This game in particular is saddled with a particularly long lead-up: we know it exists, and we’re just waiting for it to be something we can acknowledge. As IGN’s Brian Altano put it, it’s like having an unwrapped present underneath the Christmas tree, but you can’t use it yet.

There’s a time and place for a social media-fueled marketing campaign, but when it crosses the line into making fans feel like WB is pulling the rug out from underneath them, it may be best to either step into the light and make an announcement or stay in the shadows until the time is right. After all, that’s what Batman’s best at, isn’t it?

[poilib element="accentDivider"]

Jonathon Dornbush is IGN's Senior News Editor. Talk to him on Twitter @jmdornbush.

from IGN Video Games https://www.ign.com/articles/opinion-batmans-new-game-deserves-a-better-tease-than-this via IFTTT from The Fax Fox https://thefaxfox.blogspot.com/2020/01/why-batmans-new-game-deserves-better.html

[slatterycrawford11-blog]

The Story Of Virtual Gifts

To understand what I'm on the point of say, you need to understand this: Happiness in life comes not from idleness but from helping other programs. Not helping others at doable you dislike, but helping others gain their real inner solace. So imagine if you is merely a pawn in this Virtual Reality Headset bet on life. Countless if experience like anyone could have done this before time upon time. It is what you think you already know. Frankly it still amuses me to move the pieces around and alter the outcome once in a while to avoid the ultimate degradation of pure boredom, and positive I may at any cost very carefully sensation of pain generated by having too many hours on my hands. You might be my entertainers. Sony and Microsoft might need learned through the current generation of consoles, adding features like TV, film, music, sports and apps together with gaming one Xbox Much more VR Headset while using the PS4. Disney Quest is a theme park like you've felt. It is interactive. 5 story building is along with all pores and skin games. Games range from classic video games to oculus rift games. It is a great place to go as soon as the weather outside starts to rain or maybe if it wrong in size hot. Neither of these examples has anything really to use description, but that's my point. Avoid the description until own the reader's interest. Keep that first chapter a page turner and save the description for later. Begin in the middle of the action, a pivotal moment for the leading character, next in another chapter, after you have hooked the reader, discover go on to describe the and the setting. . Sorry pricking yourself with a pin to find out if you bleed won't prove how real you are; only how foolish when the. Anyone can bleed, but solar panel systems us are designed independent think. Now, ego is very efficient indeed. It is so by design. Sport wouldn't work otherwise. Once you buy into the illusion this reality is real - that could possibly actually be threatened, that you are your body and that "danger" is real (which is a thrill, admittedly) - it can certainly seem like the ego has a mind and agenda from the own - and that agenda will be have dominion over you. I investigated her so saw in her own eyes which it wasn't this she didn't like escalators. She was scared industry experts. More than too embarrassed. There was actual terror in her eyes as she watched the flat steps slide through those steel teeth and form into staircase.

[davidegbert]

MWC 2017: What to expect?

Christmas comes early this year, boys and girls, as does every year for smartphone fanatics, enduring tablet devotees and newfound wearable and VR enthusiasts. The 2017 Mobile World Congress technically kicks off Monday, February 27, but as you’ve probably come to expect, most of the actual exciting product announcements will take place in the days leading up to the show’s formal commencement.

Let’s not waste time with further introduction therefore, and get down to business. We already know a lot about what many important companies plan to unveil in Barcelona, although obviously, you still have plenty of blanks waiting to be filled in.

LG

Typically, we’d start our roundup of the highest-profile MWC exhibitors with this OEM’s domestic arch-rival, but for obvious reasons, Samsung isn’t shaping up as the number one showstopper this time around.

Instead, the LG G6 could (should?) steal the spotlight on Sunday (and beyond), full-metal body, improved resistance under pressure, extra reliability, Google Assistant integration, larger, sharper, slimmer-bezeled screen and all.

The question is will features like even better Quad DAC skills and water protection offset a non-removable battery, rapidly aging processor and “modest” 4GB RAM count? It may depend on how fast it reaches stores, and whether or not Samsung can salvage its tarnished reputation.

Samsung

Speaking of the smartphone king, its tablet commitment is still surprisingly strong, despite the recent free fall of Android-powered behemoths. Of course, we’re expecting at least one Windows-running new Galaxy device to break cover alongside the Google-endorsed Tab S3, and perhaps even a refreshed low-cost virtual reality headset.

Ironically, the chaebol’s most thrilling MWC 2017 announcements are unusual behind-the-scenes types, possibly demonstrating an advanced foldable prototype to a lucky few, and publicly debuting a highly anticipated Galaxy S8 video teaser. We should also hear more on the “next big thing’s” availability and pricing, and see the Exynos 9-series (9810?) flagship SoC fully detailed.

Nokia

Who here remembers the old Finnish outfit’s last MWC smartphone debut? We certainly do, as much as we’ve tried to forget, but it’s monumental flops like the X family that will make you appreciate what exclusive licensee HMD Global has cooking for the time being.

Unfortunately, the first Nokia-branded hero phone in three years must wait a little while longer, with the upper mid-range 6 tipped for an international expansion on Sunday, February 26, when lower-end 3 and 5 smart handsets are also strongly rumored for official introductions. And let’s not forget that modern reimagining of the “dumb” 3310 classic.

BlackBerry

Talk about a blast from the past. A past that seems so distant now, though many would like to experiment again. While it’s not the same thing, both the vintage Nokia and BlackBerry names will be revived soon enough by partners, manufacturers, distributors and promoters HMD and TCL.

The latter, China-based, affluent and skilled in raising other companies’ profiles, will finally and fully take the wraps off the so-called “Mercury” on Saturday, hopefully combining an already compelling design with respectable specs, reasonable pricing, aggressive distribution and imminent release date.

Huawei

Technically, the P10 and P10 Plus look very interesting on paper. But there’s not a lot of buzz around them. And now the Honor V9 is out, reminding folks on the Western hemisphere how cheap this company’s domestic fans can buy its Chinese flagships.

Maybe that second-gen Huawei Watch with Android Wear 2.0 can step up to the plate, and make a few headlines on arguably this year’s most crowded day in terms of mobile-related product announcements. Oh, and a MateBook 2 is probably also coming, full Windows 10 PC support, up to a 15.6-inch touchscreen, detachable keyboard and all.

Motorola

You have got to be kidding us! Another noteworthy February 26 launch?! Lenovo must be crazy if it thinks for a second its Moto G5 and G5 Plus can outshine LG, Nokia and Samsung’s unveilings, especially after all the recent information spills, high-quality renders included.

Yes, it’ll be interesting to see a pair of smaller new Gs with a more premium, Moto Z-inspired build, but not that interesting.

Sony

No Xperia XZ 2? Not even a renewed X or X Performance? Good thing Sony was smart enough to schedule its MWC conference for Monday, February 27, though its purported second-gen Xperia XA and XA Ultra still need serious bang for buck or other compelling selling points to make us forget about the previous-day LG G6 or Galaxy TabPro S2.

Alcatel

Five mystery phones, including a stab at the modular concept, and knowing this other TCL subordinate, some movement on the VR front as well. Once again, wise February 27 release timing.

OPPO

The latest addition to an already lengthy exhibitor list, this Chinese rising star aims to further substantiate its upswing, taking advantage of Xiaomi’s reorganization with a “5x” innovation. A new “selfie expert”? An all-around photography champion? We don’t know for sure, but we’re definitely intrigued.

ZTE

They say only the Nubia sub-brand will hold a press conference in Barcelona to unveil… something new and presumably affordable, with that Gigabit Phone heading directly for the show floor, where our team of correspondents, reporters, hands-on specialists and video content producers will be sure to take the prototype for a spin. Any Axon news? Maybe a ZTE Quartz with Android Wear 2.0 confirmation? Both are doubtful, but who knows?

Other stuff to possibly look forward to

While we’re on the “who knows” subject, we can’t help but feel it’s all too quiet on the mobile-based VR hardware front. Granted, everyone’s working on the industry’s next big thing, i.e. standalone headsets, but in the meantime, something tells us we’ll be seeing an additional few launches in the Gear VR or Daydream View vein.

 We’re also anticipating an Android Wear 2.0 smartwatch onslaught, though Tag Heuer, Casio, Swarovski & co. might need some refinement time before joining the LG-organized party. And then there are possible phones and tablets from Archos, Kodak, Lenovo or Acer that are simply not very exciting. Then again, there’s always room for surprises and revelations. Stay tuned to hear (and see) all about them.

Source link