Rumour: Console Gamers Killed 360 vs PC Cross-Platform Play
They just outright sucked, apparently.
The founder of computer designer VoodooPC, Rahul Sood, has said that Microsoft once tested Xbox 360 and PC cross-platform play on a range of different games. The idea was scrapped - allegedly because console gamers were getting pasted by PC players.
Sood posted the rumour on his personal blog, where he also suggested that the consequences of killing this feature allowed Apple to gain a foothold in the games market. "Had they kept it alive it might have actually increased the desire of game developers and gamers alike to continue developing and playing rich experiences on the PC which would trickle down to the console as it has in the past."
In an attempt to highlight the superiority of the PC platform, Sood wrote, "Personally I wish it would have stayed the course. I've heard from reliable sources that during the development they brought together the best console gamers to play mediocre PC gamers at the same game... and guess what happened? They pitted console gamers with their "console" controller, against PC gamers with their keyboard and mouse.
"The console players got destroyed every time. So much so that it would be embarrassing to the XBOX team in general had Microsoft launched this initiative. Is this why the project was killed[?] Who knows, but I'd love to hear from anyone involved --- what happened? You simply don't get the same level of detail or control as you do with a PC over a console. It's a real shame that Microsoft killed this."
Of course, the ability for Xbox 360 and PC players to play online together was realised in 2007's Shadowrun - a game that allegedly 'gimped PC players' by giving console gamers a bigger handicap.
Sood mused that instead of focusing on supporting the PC games industry by providing cross-platform play, Microsoft "wanted to keep an old business model alive," which ironically resulted in the industry at large "getting attacked" by Apple.
Speaking of Apple, Sood then goes on to discuss how the PC gaming landscape is changing, and how personal computers are becoming more mobile. He then gets to the point right at the end, encouraging developers reading his blog to jump onto parent company HP's recently-acquired webOS mobile system.
Sood posted the rumour on his personal blog, where he also suggested that the consequences of killing this feature allowed Apple to gain a foothold in the games market. "Had they kept it alive it might have actually increased the desire of game developers and gamers alike to continue developing and playing rich experiences on the PC which would trickle down to the console as it has in the past."
In an attempt to highlight the superiority of the PC platform, Sood wrote, "Personally I wish it would have stayed the course. I've heard from reliable sources that during the development they brought together the best console gamers to play mediocre PC gamers at the same game... and guess what happened? They pitted console gamers with their "console" controller, against PC gamers with their keyboard and mouse.
"The console players got destroyed every time. So much so that it would be embarrassing to the XBOX team in general had Microsoft launched this initiative. Is this why the project was killed[?] Who knows, but I'd love to hear from anyone involved --- what happened? You simply don't get the same level of detail or control as you do with a PC over a console. It's a real shame that Microsoft killed this."
Of course, the ability for Xbox 360 and PC players to play online together was realised in 2007's Shadowrun - a game that allegedly 'gimped PC players' by giving console gamers a bigger handicap.
Sood mused that instead of focusing on supporting the PC games industry by providing cross-platform play, Microsoft "wanted to keep an old business model alive," which ironically resulted in the industry at large "getting attacked" by Apple.
Speaking of Apple, Sood then goes on to discuss how the PC gaming landscape is changing, and how personal computers are becoming more mobile. He then gets to the point right at the end, encouraging developers reading his blog to jump onto parent company HP's recently-acquired webOS mobile system.
Companies:
Microsoft
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Comments
Lewis 22 Jul 2010 11:13
1/5
It's no massive surprise that the input method of PC gamers is far superior to that of console gamers and I've always said if you got PC gamers and console gamers playing against each other, the console gamers would get pwned, hard.
It's a shame but I think had Microsoft followed it up, they could have grown their XBOX live offering to the PC platform and give gamers the option of joining mixed console/PC wars. Leave it up to the console gamer, he'll decide if he's good enough to take on PC gamers with a controller.
It's a shame but I think had Microsoft followed it up, they could have grown their XBOX live offering to the PC platform and give gamers the option of joining mixed console/PC wars. Leave it up to the console gamer, he'll decide if he's good enough to take on PC gamers with a controller.
. 22 Jul 2010 11:50
2/5
its a shame they didn't allow a service which meant their own users would have a bad experience because of the lack in fairness between keyboard and mouse vs. controller?
sounds pretty damn logical! jeez
sounds pretty damn logical! jeez
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realvictory 22 Jul 2010 12:22
3/5
It depends on the game, to be honest. Driving with a keyboard and mouse is pretty rubbish.
I don't see why it can't be up to the player to choose, though - if they set up a server, they could choose which control formats are allowed, restricting who they play against if desired. Because you can have a keyboard and mouse on a console, you can have a control pad on a PC... I think people over-simply the difference between consoles and PCs, not realising this is the 21st Century :P
I don't see why it can't be up to the player to choose, though - if they set up a server, they could choose which control formats are allowed, restricting who they play against if desired. Because you can have a keyboard and mouse on a console, you can have a control pad on a PC... I think people over-simply the difference between consoles and PCs, not realising this is the 21st Century :P
alexh2o 22 Jul 2010 12:37
4/5
Personally I think its a good thing it never caught on! Part of the appeal of consoles is their simplicity - specifically, theyre all the same, run the games the same, and use the same input methods. Its just the perfect level playing field...
Tamikaze 23 Jul 2010 13:20
5/5
But the Dreamcast has this, and i don't see anyone complaining about PC players being better.