Shindig

When it comes down to it, AI hasn't progressed much from Eliza's doorstep. It'll still repackage a thing you've just fed it. It's what makes it so odd when a chatbot convinces someone to boil their own head or kill a reigning monarch.

It will never talk someone out of a stupid idea. Ever.

I don't quite get the benefits either. I've been pondering if there's a point where Microsoft stop entering the console space in favour of catering for the PC, Playstation and Nintendo crowd. Is Gamepass really impacting console sales in a big enough way or can they sacrifice that as they become more about services to all?

That's what I'm saying. An Xbox branded PC, possibly through a third party PC manufacturer like erm .... are Alienware still a thing?

Get your watches set for Intellivision 50: 2029.

This only happens if the next Xbox is a Windows PC.

I've got plenty out of my PS5 but there's definitely not been a lot pushing things forward. Be that graphical intensity or hot new tech. The hard drive/ masked loading stuff is genuinely awesome but it's rarely been used outside of some big Sony exclusives. Also, I quite like how some games will utilise the activity cards. I like knowing how far I am through a chapter, etc.

Covid definitely whacked some schedules back. Couple that with the industry's aversion to risk and it can feel like you go 18 months (not literally but it sure feels like it) between tentpole releases. And now enough time has passed for talk to centre around Pro machines when the current boxes seem to have so much to give. With the exception of the Switch which has ran its usual course.

I think increasingly the move is to sell to ravenous fans (if there are any) of said product before reducing it in various sales.

As a counterpoint, a new game in the incredibly faithful to PO'd would probably have no problem selling at $20.

@bigsocrates: I wouldn't consider TV/Movies/Music as good comparison against gaming. It's a different world.

Netflix has 270 million people on the hook worldwide. Spotify has 230 million subscribers and 650m active users. These are the numbers that make streaming services work.

Gaming is not that ubiquitous. It's fractured and always has been.

@bigsocrates: I've never understood the economics of Gamepass. Compensating developers versus raw sales data doesn't add up to me. If subscriptions gained matters, how can that balance the books when a $20-$40 game brings in $1 from a new sub.

It's a self-sabotaging approach I cannot wrap my head around. At least with the old model of actual sales, you can map it a lot easier. Hell, the developer is theoretically getting a better metric for success. Being compensated at the outset seems like your money pile is starting at a deficit and no amount of $1 subs will recapture that.

@thepanzini: Have they also conditioned a set of players that simply don't pay (aside from the subscription fee) for the games they play? I wonder.