Please read everything I post and save me reiterating the obvious... you've taken to adding friction to every comment of mine.
Brittany said:
'Might want to go do my homework'? You've basically just restated my opinion with more details to support it.
In my first post I poked provocative statements at nobody in particular by stating rather cynical yet realistic comments at many things that were said at the E3 by the industry. You went ahead and ... slammed, shall we say, these comments?
edit: Pardon, my bad, misread one line of yours. I'm doing this at 1AM after work, apologies.
Brittany said:
Is that why we're seeing more PS3 demos and information than it's competitors, even when X360 is set to be released months before PS3? Sure, having many cores may make it a bit more difficult, but developers aren't forced to utilize each and every core for every game. The big work will be carried out by it's largest core and PS3's RSX chip, while the smaller ones simply leave the option for more specialized power, which may or may not be fully pursued by developers.
Of course not, very few titles of the current generation consoles used the full power of the processors. Metroid Prime 2 was the only game that actually made my GC lag at times. Frame wise, I don't go and review the specs of every game published, but I do know that only a handful that I can count on my fingers fully utilize the power available in the current consoles.
I am, however, stating that regardless of how many polygons or textures are utilized by the games made, the architectural code surrounding the chips
will be more difficult. The cell is an asymmetric chip, the logic alogarithms run completely differently than most conventional computer chips. I won't go into detail since you probably don't care, but if you've taken any, even elementary, programming courses, you'll know what I'm referring to.
Brittany said:
And to the average consumer, it is a supercomputer. Compared to the computer and console games currently out, this will blow them away(along with X360 and Revolution)
To make you content, I did poke around gamespot's full review of the PS3 specs, and I am frankly impressed. However, even they state that;
Sony also unveiled the PS3's graphics chip, the RSX "Reality Synthesizer," which is based on Nvidia technology. The GPU will be capable of 128bit pixel precision and 1080p resolution--some of the highest HD resolution around. The RSX also has 512MB of graphics render memory and is capable of 100 billion shader operations and 51 billion dot products per second. It also has more than 300 million transistors, larger than any processor commercially available today. It will be manufactured using the 90nm process, with eight layers of metal. The RSX is more powerful than two GeForce 6800 Ultra video cards, which would cost roughly $1,000 total if purchased today.
which I commented on earlier already. There is going to likely be some sacrifice to make this affordable to consumers. I don't know many parents who are going to be buying a console that costs more than 1k for their kids.
It doesn't blow computer gamers completely out of the water, but it does set a competitive benchmark. In comparison, the last time I was completely astounded by a game, was when Half-Life came out on the PC in 1998.
edit: No, the first time I was completely astounded by a game was Total Annihilation in 1997.
Prior to that would be all various 2D chip improvements in color display, ie SNES vs Genesis, etc.
In different news, programs like 3D studio max and Maya chew up powerful gaming rigs for breakfast, spit them out mutilated, and ask for seconds. THAT, is what I am referring to in stating that I don't like the companies boasting about how they can do such-and-such to the ignorant (and fanatical) fans, when it's complete nonsense. I am not pointing this comment at you btw, but much of what I've seen so far points to that conclusion. Not to mention that all of the people buying these consoles upon initial release in stores will be so hyped up that they can't wait a few months for price drops.
Brittany said:
O_o Sorry, I know you're trying to get on the nice side of discussion here, but first of all, PS3 is the largest of the new gaming consoles.
... right... I'll save you the time and show you that the nextbox is still ginormous and space comsuming. [see attachment]
Brittany said:
Secondly, how can you doubt what was already shown? We haven't exactly seen CG quality previews here, which means they're obviously not milking us... unless they're trying a new approach- sub-par CG clips shown for previews, so we think the games are starting to get worse- great marketing scheme! [Insert evil laugh here]
Come again?
Brittany said:
Frankly, what we have the most of at the moment is this 'cold hard marketing and technical specs.' to discuss... other than trailers, we're talking about current gen gaming, and that just isn't what this thread was about.
Read what I said about things changing prior to release. If you've followed historical presentations of consoles to date, the PS2 first shown at the E3 of 1998 or 1999 (forgot, whatever it was prior to release), they watered down the graphics chip, internal ram, and some other components. This was to make it a feasible price (not that they had any competition at the time since the N64 bombed and the PlayStation/One was doing fine).
Bit of trivia for you for those that don't know. The first generation PS2's that launched in Japan (the
very first, in 2000 March 4th), were the factory powerhouse models that Sony had promised the world. Two weeks later, they were leaked some information that hackers were abusing the internal chips with their incredible power to crack into international banks and a lot of other international affairs (Any of you read the news regariding all the theft of PS2's after the first release? Teens and the like mugging children on their way back from the store to get at their newly bought consoles, Japan isn't paradise you know), and after severe pressure from many companies affected, Sony issued a nation wide recall claim to consumers to please return their PS2's for ... a flawed design, and will be reimbursed with new models for free. The majority of the machines were never returned, and they currently reside in niches in the marketplace (many have been modded, rigged, hacked up, you name it). The next closest thing to Sony's ideal is the legendary PSX model. The whole escapade was never publicized overseas much obviously to maintain Sony's image, but it did happen.
Brittany said:
I hope your friend meant the Cell chip. Toshiba designed it with the help of IBM and Sony, IBM contibuted their top-of-the-line processors as a base to start off with, and Sony gave them a big lump of money and lots of promises ;)
Yes he did, and we are all aware that Toshiba/IBM/Sony co-produced the chip, learn to recognize sarcasm if you please.
The way I view it, the architecture and design behind the Cell is absolutely brilliant and truly reflects IBM's long lasting desire to ... finally beat Seymour Cray who beat them (and every other company) for decades. A friend of mine is already contemplating the prospect of simply ripping the Cell out of a PS3 and using it in a computer workstation. Sure, it's going to make for a very fast processor capable of stunning graphics, but what I am truly excited about is the scientific applications for it. Racks full of Cells are going to quickly overwhelm the top 500 super computer list and I think the scientific world is going to be much better off.
The Rambus XDR memory used in the system is also fast... dang fast to say the least. There was a memory war several years ago between Rambus and DDR over speed. From what I can remember, they were fairly evenly matched (if not Rambus actually being a bit faster), but DDR won mostly because of preferences from the big motherboard manufacturers and the like. This new XDR memory, however, that Rambus is putting out, is completely shaming DDR memory in tests and pure specs. This along with the incredibly high bandwidth in the Cell... I personally, am excited.
Conclusion for you if you like of all my ramblings; I'm just not biting onto the E3 hype, I'm waiting for a factory release with specs, and especially wary of the price tag. (or does not being a ecstatically ill fanboy/girl label you as a disbeliever on these forums o_O)
Now, shall we continue this verbal sparring or get back into the non-debating zone.
~DS
