Hard Light Productions Forums
Off-Topic Discussion => General Discussion => Topic started by: Deepblue on April 24, 2005, 08:36:50 pm
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More pics showed up at Ourcolony.net recently, as well as a picture from SA.
(http://forums.unfiction.com/forums/files/thumbs/t_e8b4_147.jpg)
(http://media.teamxbox.com/games/ss/1141/1114229643.jpg)
(http://pictures.xbox-scene.com/4/xbox360/xbox360org19iz5ow_b.jpg)
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The top two look OK, though you don't see the whole thing. The third one, and I think this is more or less a consensus among gamers since the pictures were released, looks like crap.
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Uhhh..aren't the top two the same thing as the bottom one. It really looks pretty slick. Its a melding between a X-Box, a PC, and a Mac Mini :)
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Does that middle pic say 40GB?
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Icefire, Rictor knows it is one thing. The first two incomplete shots make it appear appealing and interesting. The third shot, which shows the entire design, looks like crap. I would have preferred a simpler design without the curve, a smaller power button, and a darker shade.
EDIT: Raa, I think it does. The general consensus seems to be that it's an optional hard drive.
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For the record, I think the curve is appealing and that the shade is determined by the ambient light...which in this shot is intentionally overblown to highlight all surfaces and not cast more than the necessary level of shadow. If it works for Apple and all those bloody iPods it'll work for X-Box :D
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I don't really care what it looks like, so long as the games on it are good
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umm...is there only one controller port?
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slap on a black case, put in Hexley and I will be having the time of my life!!!!! its a beast, I can't wait till it comes out :D
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Wireless controllers are standard.
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wireless? eeew. :ick:
I don't wanna have to recharge the controllers every night :(
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interesting....standard wireless...better work better than the old sega ones :)
and no hard drive included, right? that just about ticks me off....
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heh, wireless ftl :D, anyone plan on modding their beast?
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If the wireless works as well as it does for the GameCube then I'll be happy. We ran that Nintendo Wireless controller for a year before the batteries kicked out.
We weren't heavy users but I was darned impressed.
I imagine the corded controllers could use a simple hub system to split them anyways...its based on USB...no practical limit to game controllers.
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I think the black spot in front may be for the wireless, not the wired.
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meh, you are best to stick with wired controllers, unless you are too lazy to pack them up correctly after using them
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whoa you just brought that to my attention, there is memory card slots and one controller slot.......hmmmmm interesting
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i think the above was correct...i think that one "controller slot" is prolly just the IR or whatnot for the wireless controllers...
still dont like the wireless...i hate using batteries...it's lame
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This provides more backing for my next-gen console position: PS3 or nothing.
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*whines*
but i dont LIKE sonystation....
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Isnt it true that they decided not to call it Xbox 2 just because it sounded too much like playstation 2?
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doesnt really matter why they called it what they did....
but yeah, i can imagine having a "2" competing against a "3" may have been deemed by their marketing geniuses as "not good"
so...360...has a "3" in it...but MORE....what a plan....
i'm not buying anything until both have been out for a while...heck, i got a relatively new computer that'll hold out long enough for me to see which is the better of the new generations
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My foot hurts.
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Originally posted by krisvek
doesnt really matter why they called it what they did....
but yeah, i can imagine having a "2" competing against a "3" may have been deemed by their marketing geniuses as "not good"
so...360...has a "3" in it...but MORE....what a plan....
i'm not buying anything until both have been out for a while...heck, i got a relatively new computer that'll hold out long enough for me to see which is the better of the new generations
Probably true. And probably relevant too. People are stupid :)
I'll be doing what I did with my current X-Box...buy it two or three years later when the price has dropped and they bundle games with it. Maybe I'll have a job then.
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Whoa, rampant speculation!!!
About wireless/wired controllers, my personal belief is that the panel on the right of the box is removable, and behind it you would find places to plug-in and charge wireless controllers, or places to plug in wired stuff, like wheels, etc. (that is, if that panel is legit)
I'm really happy about the fact that it looks to be smaller than it's bloated predecesor. Compare the dvd drive with the rest of the console.
Apparently, it's going to be released standard with a grey/chrome finish like the Ourcolony.net shots, but you will be able to strip off the standard case and stick on a custom one.
I personally believe that the "complete" picture from SA is a photoshop job that used the Ourcolony pictures and descriptions of the Xbox 360 to create the missing pieces, namely the right side. This is supported by the fact that the eject symbol is misaligned when compared to the Ourcolony photos, and the fact that the memory slots on the Ourcolony photos are labled in all undercase whereas the SA job has capitalized labels. Then there's the fact that the glowy power thing on the SA pic is also not aligned correctly (wrong angle, even if the Xbox 360 stood on it's side, which it won't). While looks aren't the most important thing, I refuse to believe that Microsoft would be stupid enough to stick a giant glowy thingy on their next-gen console and uglify it. If so, they seriously need to higher some new art and design people...
Performance wise, the Xbox 360 should still beat out the PS3, based on the specs. Plus poking around a patent filed by ATI produced this...
"The patent, filed in August 2, 2000, exposes a custom memory used by the graphic chip for storage of the frame buffer.
This custom memory has been created mostly to perform anti-aliasing operations and help overcometoday's biggest problem in graphics chips: memory bandwidth.
Generally, the present invention provides method and apparatus for supporting anti-aliasing oversampling in a video graphics system that utilizes a custom memory for storage of the frame buffer. The custom memory includes a memory array that stores the frame buffer as well as a data path that performs at least a portion of the blending operations associated with pixel fragments generated by a graphics procesor. The fragments produced by a graphics procesor are oversampled fragments such that each fragment may include a plurality of samples. If the sample set for a particular pixel location can be compressed, the compressed sample set is stored within the frame buffer of the custom memory circuit. However, if such compression is not possible, pointer information is stored within the frame buffer on the custom memory, and a sample memory controller included on the graphics procesor maintains a complete sample set for the pixel location within a sample memory. When the sample memory controller maintains a complete sample set for a pixel location, the frame buffer stores a pointer corresponding to the location of the sample set.
The invention can be better understood when viewing the following image:
(http://media.teamxbox.com/dailyposts/xbox360/xbox360_edram.gif)
The figure illustrates a block diagram of a “graphics processing system” that supports oversampling anti-aliasing. The system includes a graphics processor (GPU), a sample memory (the standard memory on today's video cards) and a custom memory module (the embedded RAM). The graphics processor, the sample memory, and the custom memory may each be individual integrated circuits.
Embedded DRAM is expensive, because it’s very similar to microprocessors cache memory, so that is why the patent explains that in order to keep costs low, the amount of additional logic included on this custom memory may be minimized. Therefore, although some of the circuitry always found within the video graphics system has been moved onto this new custom memory invention, some functions still remain within the graphics processor in order to keep the production costs low for the custom memory.
So what does all this mumbo jumbo mean? It means we’ll get games running at 720p HDTV resolution, that is 1280x720, with full screen anti-aliasing and almost no impact on framerate. Imagine Project Gotham Racing 3 or those badass Unreal Engine 3-powered games running at some 60 FPS, with full screen anti-aliasing and anisotropic filtering taken to the max!
It’s a hardcore gamer’s dream come true!"
One more thing, pictures of the dev kit have found their way onto the internet...
(http://media.teamxbox.com/dailyposts/xbox360/rumor/xdk.jpg)
Power Mac G5 anyone?
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I'm going to do what i always have done. Wait for the good stuff to come out on PC. I have no reason to get a console, as my pc will do anything they can do, more than they can do, and better than they can. and if i can't play a game because its console only, well shucks, i'll try to survive and go back to playing freespace :p
EDIT: A G5? thats somewhat crazy.
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Originally posted by Deepblue
Power Mac G5 anyone?
It runs on a PowerPC chip, so that sounds about right. The unholy alliance has found its way to fruition.
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well....i definitely dont have much to say...compared to that...heheh
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Correction, three 3.0 Ghz PowerPC chips.
While I'm at it, I might as well list the specs:
CPU will use three 3.0GHz PowerPC cores, each with 32KB L1 cache, 32KB instruction cache, and the three share 1MB of L2 cache. Later alpha decks only featured two cores.
The graphics will be handled by a “next-gen” 500MHz ATI post-X800 adapter
There will be 256MB RAM—no word on what type; memory cards will range from 64MB to 1GB
There will be no “next-gen” (i.e. Blu-ray or HD-DVD) drive, but instead a dual-layer DVD
There will be an optional hard drive (as we heard before)—no word on final size
There will be a USB 2.0 camera for 1.2-megapixel shots and VGA-quality video
5.1-channel audio is handled in software—X3DAudio to be exact (no word on in/outs)
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And speaking of 64MB - 1 GB memory chips...
Here's proof of the 64MB:
(http://www.ourcolony.net/images/gallery/3737115.jpg)
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How's Linux support? I'd like to see how well FS2_Open runs on it. :p
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lol.
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So who's volunteering to buy one and send it to me when it comes out? :D
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Can it play the "old" X-Box games?
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i dunno about the wireless controllers, i'd like to SEE them before i make any judgement, however.
word has it, that it IS backwards compatible
that ir "port" doesn't seem to have the right kind of sheen to it like it would have, it looks like a bonefide controller port, tho.
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it could use rf freqencys like bose remotes or my logitech keyboard and mouse. rf would be faster and would operate through non transparent bariers better. battery life on wireless controllers would probibly be pretty good. i have to chare my mouse every 2 weeks (and thats because of the high power led in the thing) and my keyboard every 2 months. id see the controllers lasting about a month. perhaps they use battery pacs and the machine comes with a built in charger for them. id like to see support for windows xp joystick drivers so you could use a pc controller (saitek x52 for example).
as for the harddrive i can ijmagine microsoft including a dedicated operating system (xbox windows). that means mod capability and such. no doubt they well include an optional keayboard and/or mouse. if they managed to make the thing rival pcs in the software compatability department it would be cool. like if you could install windows xp on the thing and run stuff like photoshop or 3d modeling proggies or even pc games. any modern console is just a game optomised proprietery comuter anyway.
none the less il stick to computers for my gaming needs. i might buy a console should they ever pass a pcs performance but it would still only be a secondary gam8ing medium to me.
on a related topic, does anyone have any specs on the psp?
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like a bluetooth hub in concept?..
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Well, I believe having the PC games working on it was the plan.
About the "curve", if we can make it stand vertically like the PS2, I'll have no problem with that.
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Originally posted by Deepblue
Correction, three 3.0 Ghz PowerPC chips.
While I'm at it, I might as well list the specs:
CPU will use three 3.0GHz PowerPC cores, each with 32KB L1 cache, 32KB instruction cache, and the three share 1MB of L2 cache. Later alpha decks only featured two cores.
1 chip with 3 cores, actually. Akin to having 3 processors on the single die; somewhat analogous to the parellisation touted in Hyperthreading.
Incidentally, there's still no evidence over which console (of all 3) is the more powerful; offhand, neither Sony nor Nintendo have released precise technical specs for comparison. I've heard rumours of developers quoted as saying the PS3 'insanely powerful', and also that the Nintendo offering will again be lower performance, lower price and possibly focus on the controller method.
I have read that, with regards to the Xbox 360 (****ing awful name), there are 2 versions; a cheap version without HD, and a more expensive one with the HD and also backwards compatibility; I think the Nintendo revolution is confirmed as have GC comapatibility as default, and the PS3 probably doesn't have any.
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I only care about Halo 3. Curses, marketing wins!
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Originally posted by Nuke
it could use rf freqencys like bose remotes or my logitech keyboard and mouse. rf would be faster and would operate through non transparent bariers better. battery life on wireless controllers would probibly be pretty good. i have to chare my mouse every 2 weeks (and thats because of the high power led in the thing) and my keyboard every 2 months. id see the controllers lasting about a month. perhaps they use battery pacs and the machine comes with a built in charger for them. id like to see support for windows xp joystick drivers so you could use a pc controller (saitek x52 for example).
as for the harddrive i can ijmagine microsoft including a dedicated operating system (xbox windows). that means mod capability and such. no doubt they well include an optional keayboard and/or mouse. if they managed to make the thing rival pcs in the software compatability department it would be cool. like if you could install windows xp on the thing and run stuff like photoshop or 3d modeling proggies or even pc games. any modern console is just a game optomised proprietery comuter anyway.
none the less il stick to computers for my gaming needs. i might buy a console should they ever pass a pcs performance but it would still only be a secondary gam8ing medium to me.
on a related topic, does anyone have any specs on the psp?
PSP; http://homepage.mac.com/gregorypierce/iblog/B251959301/C4010552/E1190434189/
[q]PSP Specifications:
PSP CPU Core
MIPS R4000 32-bit core
128-bit bus
333MHz
8MB eDRAM main memory
2.6Gbps bus transfer rate
FPU, VFPU (2.6 billion flops)
3D graphics extended instructions
1.2V
PSP Media Engine
MIPS R4000 32-bit core 128-bit bus
2MB eDRAM submemory
90nm CMOS manufacturing process
1.2V
PSP Graphics Core
2MB VRAM
5.3Gbps bus transfer rate
3D curved surface and 3D polygon engine
Support for compressed textures, hardware clipping, morphing, bone, tessellation, bezier, b-spline (NURBS)
Sound Core
VME (Virtual Mobile Engine)
Reconfigurable DSP engine
166MHz
128-bit bus
5 billion operations per second
CODEC capabilities
3D sound, 7.1 channels
Synthesizer, effecter, and other abilities
ATRAC3 plus, AAC, MP3 for audio
1.2V
Media
UMD (Universal Media Disc)
60mm-diameter disc
660nm laser diode
1.8GB capacity (dual-layered disc)
11Mbps transfer rate
AES crypto system
Unique disc ID
Shock proof
Other Specifications
16:9-format widescreen TFT LCD (480x272 pixels, 24-bit full color)
MPEG4 AVC decoder
Wireless LAN (802.11)
IrDA (Infrared Data Association)
USB 2.0
Memory Stick
AV in/out
Lithium ion battery[/p]
NB: apparently the CPU is capped at 222HMz; this may be for battery life; it's been suggested that games may come with a firmware upgrade to 'unlock' it where needed (which would suggest some games use more batteries than others as well).
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Originally posted by Setekh
I only care about Halo 3. Curses, marketing wins!
you and me both ;)
halo 2's engine, bar obvious bugs, had the most impressive post-prod effects i've seen in a game engine
imagine the Xbox 360 iteration..
that said, it's not a /terrible/ name strictly speaking.. i think that name was coined because to them, it'll be a revolution in entertainment technology, or just that the name was already taken :p
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Originally posted by Turnsky
you and me both ;)
halo 2's engine, bar obvious bugs, had the most impressive post-prod effects i've seen in a game engine
imagine the Xbox 360 iteration..
that said, it's not a /terrible/ name strictly speaking.. i think that name was coined because to them, it'll be a revolution in entertainment technology, or just that the name was already taken :p
What, you mean because Nintendo nicked it?
I suspect it is simply to have a '3' in the name. Some people are probably facetious enough to care about that sort of thing.
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Originally posted by aldo_14
What, you mean because Nintendo nicked it?
I suspect it is simply to have a '3' in the name. Some people are probably facetious enough to care about that sort of thing.
:nod:
hey, if it's one thing microsoft do best, it's advertising, but, all things aside, the Xbox is a great little ( :ha: ) console, say what you want about it, or listen to the console fanboys, but the numbers don't lie, all three of this generation's consoles sold really well, save for the GC in australia, and the Xbox in Japan.
money speaks louder than obnoxious little teenagers who whine about stupid things and speak 1337 :p
the reason people don't go on and on about PC's like the consoles fanboys do, is that, they're pratically everywhere and in every shape or form, with hundreds of variences and uses. ;)
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Originally posted by Turnsky
:nod:
hey, if it's one thing microsoft do best, it's advertising, but, all things aside, the Xbox is a great little ( :ha: ) console, say what you want about it, or listen to the console fanboys, but the numbers don't lie, all three of this generation's consoles sold really well, save for the GC in australia, and the Xbox in Japan.
money speaks louder than obnoxious little teenagers who whine about stupid things and speak 1337 :p
the reason people don't go on and on about PC's like the consoles fanboys do, is that, they're pratically everywhere and in every shape or form, with hundreds of variences and uses. ;)
Albeit, I wonder if any of the current generation actually expanded the target market....... I think what Nintendo are doing with the DS and (apparently) the Revolution is really clever; they seem to be focusing on ease of control, which arguably is a key to opening up a new demographic base. The DS may be less powerful than the PSP, but it's aimed at a different base, namely people who maybe don't give a **** about MHz or ultra-realistic physics and are happy using a single stylus rather than a 4, 6, 8+ button controller.
If you look at the Sims success, it's arguably due to similar reasons of finding a 'new' or untapped market. So, tis interesting IMO.
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Aye. If \ when they make Halo3, its gonna be a blast. :)
Speaking of which I downloaded the 4 new maps available. They are all pretty kickarse.
I'm a little dissapointed with Turf however, as I was expecting roads and a general vehicle map, but its more of a tight quaters, alley fight out set up similar to Zanzibar.
Warlock is basically an improved version of Wizard, so its kind of meh, felt like its been played many a time before.
Sanctuary is pretty cool for team skirmish's or a medium large sized slayer.
Anyoen else check em out?
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The obvious symbolism of the Halo 360 name amuses me.
"We're right back where we started!"
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I read an interesting rumour, incidentally, that the Nintendo Revolution (and this is complete guesswork, albeit from a reasonably informed source*, so no evidence to support it) in some way will support projection or stereoscopic imaging for the display.
Which would be interesting.
*http://gamesradar.msn.co.uk/news/default.asp?pagetypeid=2&articleid=35533&subsectionid=1587 for details; note this is completely speculative.
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thanks for the specs aldo. i know im not buying one now :D you can get more power out of a pda and run descent 2 on it, and thats good enough for me :D
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I haven't really been keeping up with this 360-thing, but when are they planning to release it?
IMO the problem with X-Box was that they never really made any games (other than couple of sports games) that I was truly interested in. Shame really, a LOT of wasted potential, especially because the controller was so kick-ass.
Specs really mean **** to me, it's the games that they are gonna release for it that will decide whetever I'm getting it.
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I've seen a lot of evidence supporting the wireless controllers on the successor to Xbox. I'd really hold off on debating the power of the PS3 vs. the Xbox 360, however, as they are really completely different architectures, even if both are based on IBM technology. It will really come down to the skill of the programmers at using the technology, and the compilers used for the PS3.
Either way, though, IBM is set to make a killing, as all three consoles are using IBM designs for the processor.
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OMG IT IS HUGE, if that is the actually plan for the xbox360, it's a pc god damnit!! IT IS ORGASMIC!!!!! there is no doubt im paying full price for xbox360, im gonna be one of the first in my neighbourhood to own one, and halo2.5, the supposed "Release title" for xbox360, im gonna buy that too, even though halo2 sucks ass, and halo was amazing, this leaves halo2.5 to be at a 50/50 chance of sucking, either way im buyig because im a huge halo sucker, damn halo2 was such a disappointment, but i still like it anyway.
and Hexley, MMOFPS for xbox360 on xbox live:nod:
definitely buying it too, although xbox live seems to be a rip off
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You do know that Halo 2.5 is Halo 2 with better graphics, right?
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negative, it is not...you gotta be on your toes buddy you are way behind
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Something funny someone gave me
http://www.hcn.zaq.ne.jp/cabic508/rsf/frame1.html
But I think it is really funny that my laptop severly outclasses the current XBox, despite the it being made for games only.
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Halo 2.5 is only a rumour. There's been no mention of it by Bungie or others. Plus it is very much so against the Bungie way.
How is Halo2 a dissapointment btw? It improves on everything from Halo1.
Do you have xbLive? Or play multi? That's its main greatness.
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Originally posted by Grug
Halo 2.5 is only a rumour. There's been no mention of it by Bungie or others. Plus it is very much so against the Bungie way.
How is Halo2 a dissapointment btw? It improves on everything from Halo1.
Do you have xbLive? Or play multi? That's its main greatness.
How many of the founding members of Bungie are actually still at Bungie, anyways?
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Well, Alex Seropian, one of the founders of Bungie (also made the music for Marathon) left Bungie 2002.
Also, Greg Kirkpatrick (not a founder, but anyways, wrote much/most of the storyline for the Marathon games and made maps for the games) left Bungie after Marathon 2 to work with Double Aught who worked with Bungie to make Marathon Infinity. IMO it's very noticeable in Halo that he left the company since Halo lacks the "twist" that the Marathon-storyline has.
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Most are still there. The bungie way is still present in the behind the scenes vids.
Though there community team can be kinda jerks sometimes. Though thankfully they have little to none involvement in the actual games.
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Originally posted by Pacinoisthemoon
OMG IT IS HUGE, if that is the actually plan for the xbox360, it's a pc god damnit!! IT IS ORGASMIC!!!!! there is no doubt im paying full price for xbox360, im gonna be one of the first in my neighbourhood to own one, and halo2.5, the supposed "Release title" for xbox360, im gonna buy that too, even though halo2 sucks ass, and halo was amazing, this leaves halo2.5 to be at a 50/50 chance of sucking, either way im buyig because im a huge halo sucker, damn halo2 was such a disappointment, but i still like it anyway.
and Hexley, MMOFPS for xbox360 on xbox live:nod:
definitely buying it too, although xbox live seems to be a rip off
Am I the only one that got mixed messages from that???
Xbox Live is actually a pretty good deal, if you have broadband.
But anyhoo, heres a recent pic from ourcolony.net of the gamer profile thingee that will be on the Xbox 360. It also pretty much proves that it will have an external digital camera.
(http://www.ourcolony.net/images/logos/932874983279.jpg)
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bungie is MS now though....
2.5 COULD be a reality....after all, the expansion pack seems like a real deal now, and i never really thought they'd stoop to that level
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I'm not gonna beleive a single bit of info I see on Xbox 2 until E3.
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Originally posted by krisvek
bungie is MS now though....
2.5 COULD be a reality....after all, the expansion pack seems like a real deal now, and i never really thought they'd stoop to that level
Stoop?
9 new multiplayer levels (that were created AFTER the game came out, not completed then pulled out of the final game) that eventually will all be free on Xbox Live? And some new cinematics? Is this a bad thing???
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CINEMATICS!!!!!!!!!1111111111111
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Originally posted by Deepblue
Stoop?
9 new multiplayer levels (that were created AFTER the game came out, not completed then pulled out of the final game) that eventually will all be free on Xbox Live? And some new cinematics? Is this a bad thing???
It's an overpriced thing........
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LiKe OMg!!1!11
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I actually like the PS/PS2 controller the best out of the last 2 generations of systems. The rest, with the exception of the N64 and Game Cube, just seemed to bulkiy. The N64 had problems with controller durability, and the Game Cube I just couldn't get used to.
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The New X-Box looks lame,but probley won't be, but everyone knows...THE PC RULES ALL :lol:
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Originally posted by Raa
LiKe OMg!!1!11
Exactly! :p
Halo 2's cinematics kick ass. There's also significant empriical evidence that they're better than sex. On Halo 2's release date, thousands of people didn't show up at their jobs or schools to buy and play Halo 2.
When was the last time you heard of that many people staying home from work/school "to have sex"? :p
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How many sick days are taken a year?
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:lol:
More ourcolony stuff:
A magic eye puzzle appeared today:
(http://www.ourcolony.net/images/logos/pict.jpg)
For those of you (like me) who are unable to do magic eye...
(http://server3.uploadit.org/files/DeepblueWA-magiceyesolved.jpg)
This pretty much proves that the next xbox will have wireless controllers. I would LOVE it if it had built in wireless networking too... ;7
And here is the reward picture for solving the challenge:
(http://www.ourcolony.net/images/logos/21212121.jpg)
Playing with the gamma and contrast a little reveals this:
(http://server2.uploadit.org/files/DeepblueWA-enhanced.jpg)
TeamXbox believes this to be from "Gears of War" based on comparisons of the armor you can see in the picture to renders of a Gears of War character wearing that armor style.
Wheee! Puzzle solving is fun.