Mass Effect New In Game Video and Screens = drool

[XoXoXAlexOxOxO]

that does look cool *crosses fingers for a pc version*

[HerbieZ]

For me it's the other way around, I will actively not buy an X-box 360 console just because Mass Effect is for the console only. To do so would only actively encourage Microsoft to ensure that future games are X-box only as well since you prove to them that their nasty marketing strategy is working.

 

I'd rather pass over a good game than further contribute to the death and decay of the PC game market, however insignificant and unnoticeable my part of it is.

 

Hopefully Bioware will have a change of plans. I've bought all PC games they've released so far and have been more than satisfied with every one of them. Though since MGS is involved in this project I'm not overly optimistic.

 

 

As much as i agree with you, i thought i would'nt really have to worry about that if i actually got an X-Box 360.

 

I never really bothered "sticking it to the man" after i realized "the man" knows that i mean diddly squat to his multi-billion dollar empire so i figure if i buy an X-Box 360 only i will benefit and someone at Microsoft gets to eat on a plate tonight.

 

Of course it's all a moot point though as i have just enough money for some magic beans right about now.

[Astrotoy7]

...I'd rather pass over a good game than further contribute to the death and decay of the PC game market, however insignificant and unnoticeable my part of it is.

 

Death and Decay ! Thats a bit dramatic !! As Ive mentioned elsewhere - I'm a hardware guy - so have my finger on thee pulse of what is available in the market. If PC gaming was on the slide, PC Gaming hardware would be few and far between. This is far from the case. So many manufacturers are chiming in with impressive components - its sometimes hard to keep up with ! And then, there's DX 10. If it lives up to what MS claims it is meant to do - then it will be a revolution for gaming full stop - and place PCs firmly on top on any console currently available as far as their hardware capabilities. To tell truth, a well spec'd SLI/XFire PC an already outperform any of the next gen consoles, simply because they can maintain high framerates, outputting at SHD(super hi definition - 1440i)

 

If NWN2/KOTOR had been released on XBox only - would you also have given it a miss !??? This is what I was faced with when Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles came out - Im a FF devotee, and a new FF game was being released on the gamecube only !!! I eventually got a gamecube of course(dirt cheap of ebay) but it was worth it because it was a great game.

 

It all comes down to marketing strategies, forces beyond our ability to influence them....believe me !! Look at Jade Empire - BioWare were adamant about it being an Xbox exclusive. Looking at Mass Effect, it looks simply uunmissable - if that means I need to track down/rent/borrow a 360 then so b e it. Console are pretty easy to get a hold of, a super gaming PC, not - you generally have to make one yourself, or otherwise shell out ridiculous money to people like alienware etc - which I'd rather not do !

 

*pats his 1337, Dual Core, SLI PC*

 

mtfbwya

[CSI]

Oh? Yeah? [Yawns] Eh, looks intersting to me...[Fell back to sleep]

[stoffe]

Death and Decay ! Thats a bit dramatic !! As Ive mentioned elsewhere - I'm a hardware guy - so have my finger on thee pulse of what is available in the market. If PC gaming was on the slide, PC Gaming hardware would be few and far between.

 

Perhaps a bit. But on the software side the PC game market seems to stagnate compared to how it use to be, at least it seems that way to me. The focus seems to have shifted away from impressive and innovative content to rehashing what has been done before, dumbed down but with impressive and innovative graphics and more voiceover instead.

 

All the big game publishers seems to have bought up each other until only a few monoliths now remain, who now struggle to make a profit and use safer proven concepts rather than innovate and break new ground. Since it's cheaper to develop games for the consoles, and they can be sold at higher prices, developers are lured away from the PC crowd towards console development. And then the big console manufacturers offers them incentives not to release their games for the PC as well and keep it console exclusive.

 

This is far from the case. So many manufacturers are chiming in with impressive components - its sometimes hard to keep up with ! And then, there's DX 10. If it lives up to what MS claims it is meant to do - then it will be a revolution for gaming full stop - and place PCs firmly on top on any console currently available as far as their hardware capabilities.

 

Certainly, but there is more to a good game than jaw-dropping visuals. Those may be fun for a while, but soon lose their appeal if the game is otherwise lacking in content. Of course good graphics and good content are not mutually exclusive, but the trend seems to be going towards cutting down on the content since it would make the game too large to make a game on the scope of some older games with state of the art graphics and voice overs.

 

And with dual-platform games the consoles will inevitably lag behind the computer side in performance since they don't have hardware upgrades that often. These hardware bottlenecks leads to the dreaded "x-box dumbdowns" of the PC ports as well where the games do not live up to the full potential they could have on the computer since they had to be made with the limited resources of a console in mind (Deus Ex:IW is a good example). With the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 this has changed for the moment, but those consoles will inevitably become a bottleneck as well for games released on both the PC and a console as the PC hardware development rushes ahead.

 

 

To tell truth, a well spec'd SLI/XFire PC an already outperform any of the next gen consoles, simply because they can maintain high framerates, outputting at SHD(super hi definition - 1440i)

 

It also tends to out-perform the consoles when it comes to draining the content of your wallet. A Playstation 3 is not a cheap piece of entertainment, but a state of the art gaming PC will cost you nearly twice as much. Cost is not a non-issue for everyone. And far from all PC gamers are sitting on hardcore gaming machines, nor are they willing to replace their computer every 6 months to keep up with the development. Ironically the rapid pace of PC hardware development is as much a danger to PC gaming as it is a boon.

 

If NWN2/KOTOR had been released on XBox only - would you also have given it a miss !???

 

I would. Half of the entertainment value and 75% of the longevity of such games comes from modding. Not only can you fix bugs and annoyances and things you disagree with yourself to enhance the game experience, but the game lasts much longer when it can be extended with new content developed by other talented people out there. Not to mention it's fun to do mods yourself. A console-only NWN1 without a toolset and no moddability would have been old and forgotten after a year at most. As a moddable PC game it's still going strong 4+ years after its release, outdated graphics notwithstanding.

 

Though I am aware that my opinion on that matter doesn't exactly conform to that of the average mainstream gamer who plays through a game perhaps once or twice and then moves on to something else.

 

 

Look at Jade Empire - BioWare were adamant about it being an Xbox exclusive. Looking at Mass Effect, it looks simply uunmissable - if that means I need to track down/rent/borrow a 360 then so b e it.

 

I will most certainly buy Jade Empire when the PC version is released. The console version did not interest me, for the above mentioned reasons. I'd be surprised if Mass Effect caused me to think differently, but we shall see.

[Char Ell]

And then the big console manufacturers offers them incentives not to release their games for the PC as well and keep it console exclusive.

I'm not familiar with the facts on this subject. But IMO MGS should promote development of both its platforms, PC and Xbox 360, and should look to reduce the barriers between developing a game on both platforms. My expectations don't appear to match the reality of the situation though. Perhaps Vista and DirectX 10 will help matters but I'm not really counting on it.

 

I get frustrated though when I see a game like Mass Effect, where its developer has strong rep for making PC games and the publisher is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company that makes Windows for crying out loud, and all we hear is, "Nope, no plans to make it for PC." I just don't get it.

[Astrotoy7]

...I get frustrated though when I see a game like Mass Effect, where its developer has strong rep for making PC games and the publisher is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company that makes Windows for crying out loud, and all we hear is, "Nope, no plans to make it for PC." I just don't get it.

 

Stoffe hit this one on the head - can you imagine the specs you'd need to run ME decently on a PC. Even with NWN2, which has 'reasonable but not spectacular' gfx many are facing compatibilty issues, bugs and poor performance. Its much harder for devs to come up with a PC game that will play friendly with the mish mash of hardware people have. This isnt a problem on consoles.

 

I have a pretty decent gaming PC, and whilst I did build it myself for a fraction of the price of buying something similar, it still cost more that what a ps3 would cost. A high end graphics card alone is half the price of any rig nowdays

 

@Stoffe - I think the specs vs devs struggle is going to hit a ceiling pretty soon. Seriously, how far are devs going to lift their game to really 'push' the sheer processing capabilities of quad core + DX10 systems!

 

They are just beginning to properly write for dual core and SLI/Xfire systems...just and barely at that ! Its a big enough leap from DX9 based games. Anyone who invests in a SLI/Xfire/DX10 + dual/quad system is future proofing for 2-3 years at least. By which time the only console that can complete at a hardware level is perhaps the ps3.

 

mtfbwya

[swphreak]

*pats 360*

 

Just release the damn game already. Been drooling my pants off waiting for Bioware to finish.

 

I'm just now downloading the X06 footage off the official site.

[Prime]

I'm willing to wait a while in hopes of a PC version. I'm not against the 360, but owning that is a ways off for me.

 

But imagine being able to mod this thing?

[swphreak]

But imagine being able to mod this thing?

 

Star Wars: Mass Effect

 

 

You just know Bioware has to make Kotor 3, or share the Mass Effect code.

[Char Ell]

Stoffe hit this one on the head - can you imagine the specs you'd need to run ME decently on a PC. Even with NWN2, which has 'reasonable but not spectacular' gfx many are facing compatibilty issues, bugs and poor performance.

OK. So current PC h/w doesn't cut the mustard. I can understand that when the Xbox 360 can execute up to 6 separate threads and most PC's out there will only run up to two. But it still irks me. And I wonder if it has less to do with PC hardware capabilities and more with other factors, like the additional complexity involved when programming for PC that you mention. Because if it was strictly a matter of h/w support then why wasn't Jade Empire released for PC sooner that it will be? That game doesn't seem to be all that resource intensive since it was made for the original Xbox.

I'm willing to wait a while in hopes of a PC version.

Just curious as to how long "a while" is in your "sands of time", Prime. Because if Mass Effect follows a path similar to Jade Empire then you're looking at a PC version release 18+ months after the Xbox 360 version. Understand that I realize that PC's have taken a back seat to consoles but I didn't know it was past the back seat of the bus, out the emergency door and getting dragged along on a 100-yard length of controller cable where PC gamers hope to catch any stray games that get tossed our way. [/drama king]

 

Oh and BTW Chris Priestly just announced that Jade Empire's PC release date got pushed back to late Feb. And this of course happens to me the first time I pre-order a game.

http://jade.bioware.com/forums/viewtopic.html?topic=532986&forum=108&sp=0#4651237

[Prime]

Just curious as to how long "a while" is in your "sands of time", Prime.

A few years.