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Xbox 720 could launch at $199

The price of a console at launch can make or break the success of the console down the line. Consoles need to be released at the right price to offer good value for its potential buyers. Launching a console at a price that is above what people are willing to pay can be a very risky move. The PS3’s launch price at a staggering $599 almost killed the console, with Sony barely able to recover with some clever marketing. While the PlayStation 4 has yet to receive a launch price, it’s safe to say that Microsoft will do anything in their power to release their system at a lower MSRP than Sony. Current speculation says that both systems will have similar specifications, so how exactly will Microsoft pull this off?

Microsoft will not be beat by Sony, and they will fight back using their most powerful weapon today, Xbox Live. More specifically, Microsoft will release a subsidized Xbox 720. They tested this with the Xbox 360 in some retail store to minor success, and they will launch this system in full force with the release of the Xbox 720.

But why is this such a great idea? It’s the same reason most cellphones are bought subsidized, because there are a lot of people who would rather pay for their system over time than pay the full cost up front. Releasing the console at $199 and charging $15 a month for 2 years sounds a lot better to the consumer than a $399 console. Not only is this good for the consumer, but it’s good for Microsoft too. Instead of making $399 on each console sold, Microsoft will make over $500 on the system over the course of the 2 year contract price.

Mind you there are also plenty of consumers that aren’t willing to go down on a contract, so it’s still likely that Microsoft will release an off-contract Xbox 720 for $350 or $399 because there are still going to be plenty of people who do not wish to buy a system on a contract. By releasing at both price points/options, Microsoft will set itself up for success simply by appealing to both demographics.

-Jidery

Why 60 Frames per Second Won’t Be The Standard For the Next Generation

60 frames per second (FPS) is something that every console gamer have been asking for since the release of the PS3 and Xbox 360, and very few games have delivered. Many gamers have made up excuses as to why we still haven’t made 60 FPS the standard, the most common one being that current generation hardware simply isn’t capable of a solid 60 FPS. This is far from the truth. Making 60 FPS a standard isn’t a hardware limitation; rather it’s a developer limitation.

Before we try to understand why 60 FPS isn’t the standard, we must first understand why it is such a wanted feature. The main benefit is the pure smoothness and responsiveness of a game that runs at 60 FPS. Many cite 60 FPS as being a “smoother, more fluid experience.” Beyond simple responsiveness, making 60 FPS the standard would solve many performance issues within the game. For example, 30 FPS is currently said to be the minimum for smoothness to a game (the “smoothness threshold”). While many games run at 30 FPS, some games struggle to maintain a locked frame rate and in extreme cases can dip down to 20-25. Killzone 2 comes in mind, with many graphic heavy parts of the campaign dropping the system frame rate to a noticeable 20. However, if every game was running at 60 FPS, even with some minor fluctuations in frame rate, games should never drop below the smoothness threshold.

It’s clear that there are a few advantages to having higher frame rate, mostly coming down too the all-around smoothness of the game. So then why is 60 FPS such a bad idea if it offers some great benefits? It’s not a hardware limitation, rather it’s a limitation put onto the developers by gamers who have high standards for the visual fidelity and scope of the game. Simply put, when a developer doubles the frame rate, they also double the required resources and power. This essentially cuts the amount of visual fidelity and the scale of the game in half. If someone releases their game at 60 FPS, they are essentially using twice the amount of resources for the sake of a slightly smoother experience. While some developers are willing to work around this constraint, many won’t, and that’s the largest problem.

Killzone struggles to maintain 30 FPS in some cases

 

Killzone struggles to maintain 30 FPS in some cases

The real issue with using more resources to double the frame rate is not every developer will do it. If developer X releases game Y at 30 FPS, then gamers are going to expect developer A’s game to have similar visual fidelity as developer X’s game, meaning that developer A also needs to release their game at 30 FPS or risk releasing a game that is visually not up to gamers standards. One great example of this is the Call of Duty games, which have always received a lot of flak over their lackluster visuals, despite the game trying to run at a buttery smoother frame rate. Many gamers don’t realize it’s unfair to compare games running at different frame rates and we shouldn’t expect a game running at a higher frame rate to look as good as others running at a lower frame rate. (Gran Turismo being the only exception to this rule).

So in reality, the only way for 60 FPS to become the standard is if the console manufacture makes it a requirement for all games. Unfortunately, if a console makes the higher frame rate a requirement, they risk limiting developers and hurting their games much more than the potential benefits. In an extreme case, if Microsoft were to release their next Xbox with similar specs to the Playstation 4, but decided to make 60 FPS a requirement, they risk having their games being smaller in scope and graphically inferior to the PS4. The only way for this system to work is if every game publisher and manufacture made this the standard, and that is unlikely to happen.

Should we expect all games to have amazing visuals?

That’s not to say that we won’t see 60 FPS become more common. The PS4 is shown to be an extremely power piece of hardware with plenty of system memory and graphical headroom for developers to work with. This will make achieving a higher frame rate much easier. Developers have it pretty lucky this generation, getting the ability to work with fairly easy hardware, which should lead to smoother games. Unfortunately, gamer’s high standards will still hold some developers back. I expect that going into this generation we will see less than half the games released at 60 FPS with a majority still favoring the30 FPS frame rate.

-Jidery

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