Next Gen Thread (Xbox Series X & PS5)

[Axls_Moustache_Rules]

I've never heard anyone push the narrative about redesigning it. It looks cool. Bit sci fi bit weird. Very futuristic looking. 

14 hours ago, downzy said:

Except it will never look like this.

That’s either a heavily photoshopped image or taken in a room with no other lights or tv on.

I mean I've got one.

It looks cool to me.

[downzy]

1 hour ago, Axls_Moustache_Rules said:

I've never heard anyone push the narrative about redesigning it. It looks cool. Bit sci fi bit weird. Very futuristic looking. 

Then you haven’t been paying attention.

https://www.cnet.com/news/the-ps5-is-the-weirdest-thing-ive-ever-seen-in-my-life-playstation-5/

[James Bond]

While price point, performance, and compatibility were top factors in my decision to get a Series S, the aesthetic did indeed factor into it. I wish they had made the fan cover white to match the overall look of the console instead of looking like a speaker, but generally speaking the small size and frost white colour look sharp.

[bucketfoot]

The PS5 looks absolutely hideous and the Series X isn't much better, why can't these companies seem to design a nice, smart bit of kit anymore?

N64 and Dreamcast, now there were two seriously good looking consoles.

[downzy]

2 hours ago, bucketfoot said:

The PS5 looks absolutely hideous and the Series X isn't much better, why can't these companies seem to design a nice, smart bit of kit anymore?

N64 and Dreamcast, now there were two seriously good looking consoles.

I don't have a problem with the aesthetic of the Series X, just the proportions.  I like that it's a big black box that won't distract from the TV and could pass as a stereo amp.  It just won't fit in my entertainment console.  

[James Bond]

I know white isn't everyone's cup of tea, but this is still my aesthetic champion of the new consoles. Plus I can shout my coffee order into jt!

[downzy]

46 minutes ago, James Bond said:

I know white isn't everyone's cup of tea, but this is still my aesthetic champion of the new consoles. Plus I can shout my coffee order into jt!

It is nice.  I like the minimal and modern design.  It is odd they decided to go with the black fan cover.  

I really wish Sony and Microsoft released colour options from the get-go.  Kudos to Nintendo for at least giving people the option. 

Give us a black, white, and possibly one neutral colour option like Apple does with its phones.  I can't see it being that big of a supply or manufacturing issue.  

[RussTCB]

10 hours ago, bucketfoot said:

The PS5 looks absolutely hideous and the Series X isn't much better, why can't these companies seem to design a nice, smart bit of kit anymore?

N64 and Dreamcast, now there were two seriously good looking consoles.

I never cared much for the look of the N64 but I looooooved me the look of the Dreamcast 

[James Bond]

I think most of Nintendo's consoles have looked fine, with maybe the exception of the Wii U. The elongated shape was odd, as if it should have gone the other way, but then again the console should have never existed anyways.

[Dazey]

1 hour ago, James Bond said:

I think most of Nintendo's consoles have looked fine, with maybe the exception of the Wii U. The elongated shape was odd, as if it should have gone the other way, but then again the console should have never existed anyways.

The (Japanese/European) SNES was a thing of beauty as was the original PS1.

[James Bond]

As much as it entered the market at a strange point and left just as quickly, the red and black Wii Mini was a great looking console. Very slick and minimalistic.

[bucketfoot]

On 12/8/2020 at 4:29 AM, RussTCB said:

I never cared much for the look of the N64 but I looooooved me the look of the Dreamcast 

Pound for pound, the Dreamcast is my favourite console ever, although the PS2 and SNES both run it close. It was a beast of a machine for its day and easily SEGA's best. It's a real shame they abandoned it so quickly, though it lived on for years beyond it's official lifespan on the homebrew and emulation scene.

Only downside was when switched on, it sounded like a plane taking off!

On 12/8/2020 at 11:07 AM, James Bond said:

I think most of Nintendo's consoles have looked fine, with maybe the exception of the Wii U. The elongated shape was odd, as if it should have gone the other way, but then again the console should have never existed anyways.

Have to disagree strongly on the WII U, I love it. It really is a little gem of a console, albeit an underappreciated one. It was marketed terribly and sold poorly as a result but did a lot of good things. The gamepad was innovative and the Off-TV play feature was the bridge to the Switch, it was obvious what Nintendo would do next in terms of a console that combined home and handheld gaming. Third party developers ditching it was the beginning of the end but the first party games were of the highest quality, you only have to look at how many were either ported over to, or received sequels on the Switch, to see how good they were.

It was also hampered by not having a true Mario game released for it (although 3D World was fantastic).

Breath Of The Wild and HD versions of Twilight Princess and Wind Waker, are also in it's slim but great catalogue of games.

It's also fully backwards compatible with the Wii and there's even a way to run Gamecube games on it.

Overall, I see it as a bit of a glorious failure, similar to the Dreamcast.

Edited December 20, 2020 by bucketfoot

[James Bond]

2 hours ago, bucketfoot said:

Have to disagree strongly on the WII U, I love it. It really is a little gem of a console, albeit an underappreciated one. It was marketed terribly and sold poorly as a result but did a lot of good things. The gamepad was innovative and the Off-TV play feature was the bridge to the Switch, it was obvious what Nintendo would do next in terms of a console that combined home and handheld gaming. Third party developers ditching it was the beginning of the end but the first party games were of the highest quality, you only have to look at how many were either ported over to, or received sequels on the Switch, to see how good they were.

It was also hampered by not having a true Mario game released for it (although 3D World was fantastic).

Breath Of The Wild and HD versions of Twilight Princess and Wind Waker, are also in it's slim but great catalogue of games.

It's also fully backwards compatible with the Wii and there's even a way to run Gamecube games on it.

Overall, I see it as a bit of a glorious failure, similar to the Dreamcast.

I respectfully disagree with your disagreement!

To me, the Switch is Nintendo's "do over" after the failure of the Wii U. To their credit, they got it right. The Switch is excellent. The Wii U shouldn't have come out when it did - it should have either been an upgraded Wii (a Wii Pro, if you will) that was at least cross compatible, or they should have held off until the Switch.

I don't see how the gamepad was particularly innovative. The DS and 3DS were already incorporating a secondary touch screen, so it wasn't exactly a surprise nor a game changer that they brought that concept to their home console. A bridge to the Switch sure, but nothing that would make someone who just bought a Wii rush out to buy a Wii U (especially as the Wii was still selling near a million units per week at that point).

It's kind of a moot point to talk about its quality game ratio since the lifespan was so short. There wasn't exactly time for too many clunkers! But with that I don't disagree entirely. It is indeed baffling that not a single main entry Mario came out for it, but had the system caught on then I'm sure it would have happened eventually.

I think the fact that so many games came over to the Switch is more rooted in the fact that they wanted to give these games a fresh life on a console people actually own. I'm all for that - it would be a shame to let some of the titles go to waste.

[downzy]

32 minutes ago, James Bond said:

It's kind of a moot point to talk about its quality game ratio since the lifespan was so short. There wasn't exactly time for too many clunkers! But with that I don't disagree entirely. It is indeed baffling that not a single main entry Mario came out for it, but had the system caught on then I'm sure it would have happened eventually

Nintendo is weird with some of its marquee properties.

You'd think having an AAA Metroid Prime game on every console generation would be a no brainer.  But no, it apparently takes a decade plus in some instances to release a new Metroid Game.

I think the original Mario Bros and Super Mario Bros have been the only Mario brothers that launched with the system.  It took Nintendo seven years between Mario Galaxy 2 and Odyssey.  For some reason I thought Sunshine came out well after the GameCube that wasn't right; it came out a year after the GameCube's release.  But still kind of strange when Mario 64 had been release 6 years earlier.

It's interesting how launch titles have become less important with every next-gen console launch.  Most gamers have grown accustomed to waiting for marquee games; they know their preferred system will eventually offer what they want.  

 

[Dazey]

26 minutes ago, downzy said:

Nintendo is weird with some of its marquee properties.

You'd think having an AAA Metroid Prime game on every console generation would be a no brainer.  But no, it apparently takes a decade plus in some instances to release a new Metroid Game.

I think the original Mario Bros and Super Mario Bros have been the only Mario brothers that launched with the system.  It took Nintendo seven years between Mario Galaxy 2 and Odyssey.  For some reason I thought Sunshine came out well after the GameCube that wasn't right; it came out a year after the GameCube's release.  But still kind of strange when Mario 64 had been release 6 years earlier.

It's interesting how launch titles have become less important with every next-gen console launch.  Most gamers have grown accustomed to waiting for marquee games; they know their preferred system will eventually offer what they want.  

The good thing about the Wii U is that with even a semi decent PC you can emulate everything in it's back catalogue pretty much perfectly in higher resolution at 60fps. I've got loads of Wii U games on my PC and they work great with the occasional exception where the touchscreen on the gamepad is integral to the game.

[downzy]

11 minutes ago, Dazey said:

The good thing about the Wii U is that with even a semi decent PC you can emulate everything in it's back catalogue pretty much perfectly in higher resolution at 60fps. I've got loads of Wii U games on my PC and they work great with the occasional exception where the touchscreen on the gamepad is integral to the game.

Nice.  Good to know.

I'm tempted to someday buy a gaming PC and skip this Xbox gen.  Not sure there are too many Xbox exclusives that won't end up on either PC or PS5, which I plan to get to play all the PS4 games I missed.

Maybe someday if and when I retire I'll finally have the time to play all these games.  

 

[Dazey]

54 minutes ago, downzy said:

Nintendo is weird with some of its marquee properties.

You'd think having an AAA Metroid Prime game on every console generation would be a no brainer.  But no, it apparently takes a decade plus in some instances to release a new Metroid Game.

I think the original Mario Bros and Super Mario Bros have been the only Mario brothers that launched with the system. 

I'm pretty sure that Mario 64 was a launch title for the N64. I know I bought it with mine on day 1 but that was in the UK where the system launched months after Japan and the US.

Fuck me that was 1997. I'm going to go and cry myself to sleep now.  

[downzy]

49 minutes ago, Dazey said:

I'm pretty sure that Mario 64 was a launch title for the N64. I know I bought it with mine on day 1 but that was in the UK where the system launched months after Japan and the US.

Fuck me that was 1997. I'm going to go and cry myself to sleep now.  

You’re right, how could I forget about Mario 64?  I think that was the first game that made my jaw drop. 

[action]

the N64 design is pure art. everything from the lines to the color interplay of the controller and the console.... it was a stroke of genius.

as iconic as the coca cola bottle

 

Edited December 9, 2020 by action

[RussTCB]

I've just never really understood what's so special about the N64 design. 

I think we can all agree that best controller design easily goes to Atari 5200 though.... Lol

[James Bond]

2 hours ago, RussTCB said:

I think we can all agree that best controller design easily goes to Atari 5200 though.... Lol

More reliable than the Joy Cons.

[action]

[Dazey]

On 12/6/2020 at 3:09 PM, downzy said:

Aside from the PS5’s colour, it’s just a hideous design. The curves and bulbous nature makes little sense to me. I would be getting the digital version but I’m really hoping Sony offers a redesign at some point where the box itself isn’t meant to capture any attention. I want something that gets lost in my entertainment space; not a focal point. Microsoft has been on to something since the Xbox One X, but unfortunately the dimensions of the Series X are unlikely to work with my entertainment unit (which I really like and don’t see ever changing for a long while). 

If I was a 14 year old kid the PS5 might have impressed me. But as a 40 year, I want something that’s minimal and doesn’t scream “gamer” when guests are over. But maybe that’s just me. 

I actually quite like the PS5 design and colour but then if I was worried about anything screaming gamer I wouldn't have my arcade cab full of flashing lights bleeping and blooping all over the shop right next to my TV unit.  

[James Bond]

Series S is getting delivered today! I will report back if a cinder block or some cat litter arrives instead.

[James Bond]

I am happy to report that the console arrived safe and sound. Time to sort out the Developer mode.