arstechnica.com— Everyone is talking about the PlayStation 3 dropping in price and Square-Enix's decision to keep Final Fantasy away from the 360. But is there truth to these rumors? We investigate.
Jun 6, 2007View in Crawl 4
Is it just me or shouldn't Final Fantasy just throw in the towel.I personally am not a fan of RPG's but alot of my friends loved that game but said this past one was a joke. Game reviews also showed this.
This probably has more to do with the fact that the current Final Fantasy is being produced on the "White Engine" which is a gaming engine specifically designed to get the most out of the PS3's hardware. In other words the White Engine can not just be ported over to the 360 like Unreal Engine 3. The White Engine is actually using the Cell to help render graphics, up to 6 of the SPEs are allocated to this. I'm sure someone will hate me for saying this, but FFXIII will look almost like a CG movie and that will put FFXIIIs graphics way out of the Xbox 360s range. If you don't believe me read this.... "The game runs on the White Engine, an all-new exclusive seventh generation game engine built for Square Enix's future games. Both the engine and the game were originally slated to be used with the PlayStation 2 but were later moved to the PlayStation 3.[12] The engine handles advanced audio processing, cinematic cut-scene transition, physics effects calculations and special effects rendering. The White Engine reportedly uses 4 of the 6 developer-available synergistic processing elements (SPEs) of the Cell processor to achieve near-pre-rendered CGI quality in realtime.[13]"source:<a class="user" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Final_Fantasy_XIII">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Final_Fantasy_XIII</a>The 360 processor can not help the ATI graphics card render and therefore the level of detail that will be in this game, if the report is correct, will not be achievable on the 360. This is not fanboyism, I am merely stating what has been said about the correlation and cooperation between the Cell and the RSX which is supposibly able to deliever some gorgeous graphics when harnessed properly.
i'm not buying a ps3 no matter what games they drop because i'm perfectly happy with my 360, but i will admit that with even a small price drop and a new Final Fantasy on the market as a exclusive that the PS3 will sell several million more units easily. in my opinion the ps3's only problem is not it's price but it's lack of a quality library of games, but that seems to be picking up a little steam, ya gotta remember that no matter how tight money is for people in some areas of the country there are now millions & millions of people that have no problem dropping $5 or $600 on a system and a $1,000 on a tv for a quality gaming/online/movie experience.at times it's hard to believe & it will even make you scratch your head in disbelief but there is really a huge demand and market for a hardcore multi-media experience and people are like dope fiends when it comes to getting their digital fix
@modifiedbearsI would agree except for the hype around Blue Dragon.I gave you a mod-up, because I think its important that people remember what a great game Blue Dragon is. Famitsu Loved it. Remember, it *is* the biggest selling title on Xbox 360 in Japan. While i think you are totally wrong, you bring up a topic Ive made posts around digg for a couple days now...Its no surprise that Blue Dragon _alone_ didnt move 1,000,000 Xbox 360s in overnight. The Xbox 360 is still trying to catch on in Japan, no doubt. But does _anyone_ think that MS wont eventually crack that nut? They are incredibly committed and innovative, they are going to keep fighting there - dont worry.More important IMHO is what Blue Dragon will mean for Xbox 360 owners in Europe and America(!) Blue Dragon is the product of the All Time All Stars of JRPG and its exclusive to Xbox 360. JRPG fans, outside of those who really really must own a FF title*, are going to get a great JRPG to play.I know it makes PS3 fans excited to suggest that Xbox 360 owners will be deprived of the precious FF, and they may take pleasure in imagining depressed or unsatisfied Xbox 360 owners -- but Im sorry to say, I just dont feel that way. I'm seriously looking forward to Blue Dragon and its totally new game world, narrative, characters and game-play innovation.Wont it be equally depressing for PS3 owners to not be able to play Blue Dragon? It is known to be a terrific game. Im not at all worried or upset that I wont be playing FF, if it comes to Xbox 360 or not - I wouldnt be buying it. Im looking forward to trying something new, Sakaguchi-san has had a chance to keep the good and leave the bad, and Blue Dragon is fantastic -- I cant wait to play it.*Why this is the case I dont know. The FF titles are based around a gameplay mechanic (that they are JRPG) and loosely related narratives. Each title has to stand on its own, and there have been hits and misses in the FF series, who knows how this FF will be. Since its has big expectations, I'd bet this particular title will be good, but then, its either a good game on its own or it is not, that it is the part of the FF series isnt as material as "Is It A Good Game?"
FF not going to 360 is obvious, because 360 doesn't exist in Japan.What if Square wants to sell this game in America?PS3 price drop WILL happen sometime, as all consoles drop in price. Even at a equal price, the Xbox 360 has much to argue makes it better than PS3. Further, you are aware that Nintendo & MS could _also_ lower their price?
pureeviljesterJun 6, 2007
360- $399.99 hd-dvd- $199.99 Total- $599.98 PS3- $599.99BR-dvd- (already included)Total- $599.99 It's hard to let go of that penny.
galaeronJun 6, 2007
Well I for one will not be buying a Playstation 3 just to play Final Fantasy. Good bye childhood.
xdevitJun 6, 2007
Is it just me or shouldn't Final Fantasy just throw in the towel.I personally am not a fan of RPG's but alot of my friends loved that game but said this past one was a joke. Game reviews also showed this.
edmanJun 6, 2007
This probably has more to do with the fact that the current Final Fantasy is being produced on the "White Engine" which is a gaming engine specifically designed to get the most out of the PS3's hardware. In other words the White Engine can not just be ported over to the 360 like Unreal Engine 3. The White Engine is actually using the Cell to help render graphics, up to 6 of the SPEs are allocated to this. I'm sure someone will hate me for saying this, but FFXIII will look almost like a CG movie and that will put FFXIIIs graphics way out of the Xbox 360s range. If you don't believe me read this.... "The game runs on the White Engine, an all-new exclusive seventh generation game engine built for Square Enix's future games. Both the engine and the game were originally slated to be used with the PlayStation 2 but were later moved to the PlayStation 3.[12] The engine handles advanced audio processing, cinematic cut-scene transition, physics effects calculations and special effects rendering. The White Engine reportedly uses 4 of the 6 developer-available synergistic processing elements (SPEs) of the Cell processor to achieve near-pre-rendered CGI quality in realtime.[13]"source:<a class="user" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Final_Fantasy_XIII">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Final_Fantasy_XIII</a>The 360 processor can not help the ATI graphics card render and therefore the level of detail that will be in this game, if the report is correct, will not be achievable on the 360. This is not fanboyism, I am merely stating what has been said about the correlation and cooperation between the Cell and the RSX which is supposibly able to deliever some gorgeous graphics when harnessed properly.
Closed AccountJun 7, 2007
jostheller, psp is the slower 802.11b not 802.11g.PS3 however, is wireless g.
Closed AccountJun 7, 2007
i'm not buying a ps3 no matter what games they drop because i'm perfectly happy with my 360, but i will admit that with even a small price drop and a new Final Fantasy on the market as a exclusive that the PS3 will sell several million more units easily. in my opinion the ps3's only problem is not it's price but it's lack of a quality library of games, but that seems to be picking up a little steam, ya gotta remember that no matter how tight money is for people in some areas of the country there are now millions & millions of people that have no problem dropping $5 or $600 on a system and a $1,000 on a tv for a quality gaming/online/movie experience.at times it's hard to believe & it will even make you scratch your head in disbelief but there is really a huge demand and market for a hardcore multi-media experience and people are like dope fiends when it comes to getting their digital fix
wageslavenJun 7, 2007
@modifiedbearsI would agree except for the hype around Blue Dragon.I gave you a mod-up, because I think its important that people remember what a great game Blue Dragon is. Famitsu Loved it. Remember, it *is* the biggest selling title on Xbox 360 in Japan. While i think you are totally wrong, you bring up a topic Ive made posts around digg for a couple days now...Its no surprise that Blue Dragon _alone_ didnt move 1,000,000 Xbox 360s in overnight. The Xbox 360 is still trying to catch on in Japan, no doubt. But does _anyone_ think that MS wont eventually crack that nut? They are incredibly committed and innovative, they are going to keep fighting there - dont worry.More important IMHO is what Blue Dragon will mean for Xbox 360 owners in Europe and America(!) Blue Dragon is the product of the All Time All Stars of JRPG and its exclusive to Xbox 360. JRPG fans, outside of those who really really must own a FF title*, are going to get a great JRPG to play.I know it makes PS3 fans excited to suggest that Xbox 360 owners will be deprived of the precious FF, and they may take pleasure in imagining depressed or unsatisfied Xbox 360 owners -- but Im sorry to say, I just dont feel that way. I'm seriously looking forward to Blue Dragon and its totally new game world, narrative, characters and game-play innovation.Wont it be equally depressing for PS3 owners to not be able to play Blue Dragon? It is known to be a terrific game. Im not at all worried or upset that I wont be playing FF, if it comes to Xbox 360 or not - I wouldnt be buying it. Im looking forward to trying something new, Sakaguchi-san has had a chance to keep the good and leave the bad, and Blue Dragon is fantastic -- I cant wait to play it.*Why this is the case I dont know. The FF titles are based around a gameplay mechanic (that they are JRPG) and loosely related narratives. Each title has to stand on its own, and there have been hits and misses in the FF series, who knows how this FF will be. Since its has big expectations, I'd bet this particular title will be good, but then, its either a good game on its own or it is not, that it is the part of the FF series isnt as material as "Is It A Good Game?"
wageslavenJun 7, 2007
FF not going to 360 is obvious, because 360 doesn't exist in Japan.What if Square wants to sell this game in America?PS3 price drop WILL happen sometime, as all consoles drop in price. Even at a equal price, the Xbox 360 has much to argue makes it better than PS3. Further, you are aware that Nintendo & MS could _also_ lower their price?