160°

Microsoft Should Not Have Dismissed Backwards Compatibility

Backwards compatibility is more important than ever and whilst you may not agree now by the end of this article hopefully you will.

You may not play your old video games but there are loads of reasons to keep BC in, from future profits to the death of communities. Read more to find out why it is more important than you or Microsoft realise.

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casuallyhardcore.com
Hellsvacancy4410d ago (Edited 4410d ago )

It is bit of a screw you to 360 owners, isnt the XBOne using the same "kinda" (easy to develop for) architecture as the 360? I understand now why the PS3 doesnt have bc with older PS2 games because of the complicated (harder to develop for) Cell processor, again with the PS4, same thing, the architectures totally different, I kinda understand why it doesnt have bc with PS3 games

I thought MS games are made the same way PC games are made, easier, meaning it wouldnt take much effort to have these 360 games running on Microsofts new system

Im not going to pretend that I fully understand what im talking about, but im right aint I?

Blackdeath_6634410d ago (Edited 4410d ago )

i think its the same situation for the 360 and XBone as it is for the ps3 and ps4 it just wasn't possible without having to incorporate parts from the old console into the new one increasing cost and everything else. its worse for XBone because it being sold to gamers as an "all-in-one" system and the "hub of your livingroom entertainment" apart from controlling your TV it doesn't appear that the XBone can control anything else. if it can't control the 360 then its not really an all-in-one system is it? what about people that have other gaming consoles in their livingroom (like wiiU and ps4) can it control those too? what if you have a smart tv already with gesture control can you navigate menus in your smart tv using the xbone?

loulou4410d ago

it is no worse for xbox as it is for the playstation. sony are touting the ps4 as being all about games. just not ps3 games.

anyway, i aint buying neither next gen console for bc. i will keep my ps360 for the time being

we will see what both companies cloud services offer us.

Blackdeath_6634410d ago (Edited 4410d ago )

@loulou
sony have spoken about making ps3,p2,p1 games available via gaikai now i know none of that is actually happening at the moment and that they are working towards that, there is still a possibility of playing your ps3 games on a ps4 albeit with a likely fee (and that by the time that is possible it will probably be irrelevant). but i guess your right no BS for either

Outside_ofthe_Box4410d ago

I'm tired of repeating myself. Here is the reason why XB1 and PS4 have no BC:

http://n4g.com/news/1269498...

Yodagamer4410d ago

No the original xbox and the xbox 360 uses power pc architecture and the xbox one uses a x86. It's still easy to develop for just different coding. Just because consoles are easy to develop for doesn't make them compatible.

darthv724410d ago

xbox was x86 designed. It used the intel 733mhz cpu and nvidia gpu.

Yodagamer4410d ago (Edited 4410d ago )

sorry that was my mistake i thought I read somewhere that microsoft stated that as the reason for the original xbox not being supported. If it was my guess microsoft said it's time to move on regarding the orignal xbox, which is a shame considering it was my favorite xbox thus far and the emulation on the 360 was shoddy sometimes. @timotim It's the same as x86-64, x64 is just another name for it.

4410d ago
matgrowcott4410d ago

The key word is effort. It's certainly more likely to get 360 BC than PS3, but how easy it would be to do and the cost effectiveness of doing it is another question entirely.

I saw Game were selling refurbished Xbox 360s without a hard drive today, at £20. There's just no way for Microsoft to compete with that for the Xbox One, so they won't.

dumahim4410d ago

No. The 360 used a PowerPC just like the PS3 did. Now both switched to x86.

Tyre4410d ago (Edited 4410d ago )

@ Dumahim Your right. XBone & PS4 are both x86. Those diagreeing have no clue what they are diagreeing about. XB360 & PS3 had IBM Power PC architecture @Wikkid666 No your wrong PS3 Cell is also a IBM Power PC... in fact the Xbox 360 Chipset was based on the PS3 Cell and was developed later than the PS3 Cell. The PS3 & The Xbox360 were both developed by the same lead designer at IBM.

famoussasjohn4410d ago

No. It's using a completely different architecture. x86 is for the PS4 and Xbox One, both which are manufactured from AMD. The 360 architecture was from IBM which will not allow for backwards compatibility to be offered.

andrewsqual4410d ago

It is most certainly a "big deal" in Xbox's case as it was the only thing to stop people from jumping ship. I have friends who are bailing out of getting a Xbone because of this very fact. Mostly from the Arcade games they purchased over the years. They are keeping their 360s but not even considering the Xbone. I have smart friends.

ShaunCameron4410d ago

But you and your friends are just a dozen out of 80 000 000. In the grand scheme of things, XBOne not having BC really isn't a big deal and certainly isn't gonna be.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 4410d ago
mandf4410d ago

Media people have a lack of understanding of hardware. Games are coded to have AI, aliasing, particle effects ect etc run off different cores spus. A game is set up and optimised for the hardware that it's run on. You can't just plug code off a disc and hope it runs and new hardware. Things have to be recoded to run on new hardware setups. Which costs money.

strigoi8144410d ago

im still wondering about that HDMI in where you have to connect your cable box..i think they can plug the 360 there and ask the kinect to play my 360..well im imagining too much

matgrowcott4410d ago

That would actually be a pretty nice way of handling things. I'm guessing they won't do it (because they're focussing on having that for cable and asking people to constantly switch HDMI directly on the console would seem like a hassle), but they should.

NaAsAr4410d ago

i think we would still have to say "xbox, play tv" then it will switch to that designated hdmi port for the cable tv tuner. but instead it will be our x360 plugged in.

that would be weird. :(

dumahim4410d ago

What would be the point? How is it any different than just using the 360 normally?

strigoi8144410d ago

Well its gonna be same thing using cable normally right..but if they can do that the xboxone would act as a hdmi adapter to display 360 games without the hassle of connecting it again to your TV hdmi..

dumahim4410d ago

Oh, as a passthrough to save an HDMI port on the TV? Yeah, that'd be beneficial. Don't see why that wouldn't work. Might cause a slight delay though.

falviousuk4410d ago

Another rubbish article being thrown up to attack the xbox one, why are there no articles regarding the PS4 and the fact you cant play your older games on it either, that is unless you re-buy them and stream them through GAIKIA, a service that requires a fast stable internet connection, something that , again, the xbox one is being attacked from supposedly requiring.

However im forgetting this is the home of the Sony troll that posts up any rubbish article, and spins anything for a positive for SONY and into a negative for the Xbox even when they have similarities.

theWB274410d ago

I applaud you good sir/ma'am

Dno4410d ago (Edited 4410d ago )

yup its just the sony trolls NOT THE ENITRE FREAKING WORLD........

Your just as crazy as the trolls here.

SexyGamerDude4410d ago

I don't know where you've been. There have been playing plenty of people on here that has expressed their disappointment with the PS4 not being backwards compatible.

Also, needing internet to use Gaika and having to be connected to the Internet every 24 hours is completely different.

dumahim4410d ago

There were plenty of articles about it. Back in Feb/March after the reveal.

jcnba284410d ago

So true and these fanboys actually believe the entire ps3 library will be available through gaikai.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 4410d ago
blackberty4410d ago (Edited 4410d ago )

lol people forget that ps4 doesnt have backwards compat either.

it shouldnt even be an issue. if you wanna play your current xbox 360/ps3 games then use the PS3 or Xbox 360.

Minato-Namikaze4410d ago

Not in the traditioanal sense. But since Gaikai allows you to play any PS1, 2 or 3 game it kinda does. All that is left to wonder is if whether or not people who already own these games will have to pay again or will you somehow be able get gaikai to recognize that you already own the game.

Show all comments (47)
230°

‘I think Xbox hardware is dead’, says Microsoft gaming veteran

One of the founding members of the Xbox team has questioned Microsoft’s multiplatform gaming strategy, and said they believe the Xbox hardware business is effectively “dead"

Read Full Story >>
videogameschronicle.com
1d 2h ago Replies(3)
Goodguy011d ago

Think that rumor that they'll still make a new console but at a profit at $1000 will be true though. The series consoles will remain their cheap alternative throughout next gen I would say. Keep in mind that game pass and pretty much going 3rd party is their main focus. They want to bring xbox everywhere.

1d ago
GamerRN3h ago

If they don't maintain some kind of console presence, I think they will lose gamepass subscribers and just become a 3rd party publisher who eventually sells everything off

Cacabunga2h ago

Xbox games are releasing on all platforms. Who needs this hardware? PS or PC is all you need

Flewid6381h ago

I've never owned an Xbox in my life and I have GamePass.

thorstein32m ago

The only Xbox I owned was the 360. I have gamepass for my PC.

crazyCoconuts2h ago

Even if they could get it down to $800 for a box that can run with comparable performance to a PS6 (at, say $200 cheaper) the population of people willing to buy such a thing would be so limited.
It would be the worst of both worlds.

22h ago
Futureshark12h ago

A slow, painful and public death too.

Show all comments (57)
300°

Looming Xbox layoffs threaten Microsoft's reputation

Even as the company sets out to overhaul the very definition of Xbox, cuts at its studios risk creating a negative image reminiscent of EA's worst era

Read Full Story >>
gamesindustry.biz
Jingsing3d ago (Edited 3d ago )

I appreciate the article but this guy must be living in a delayed universe, The reputation was ruined 10+ years ago and hasn't recovered since. As such people have voted with their wallets and stopped buying Xbox products in large amounts.

YourMommySpoils1d 22h ago

Their reputation was lost way before that. From the moment Microsoft said they entering the console business, we all knew it would be a downgrade.

Bathyj1d 8h ago (Edited 1d 8h ago )

That's not true at all the OG Xbox had drive and they had hunger and they wanted to accomplish something. It was a great console.

they didn't quite reach their goals and they gave up prematurely because they couldn't win. It was halfway through the Xbox 360 when kinect released and that was when they lost their way and we're a rudderless ship ever since

Agent751d 6h ago

In all fairness, Xbox had some great games with online play, Xbox 360 even better. Xbox consoles started to die with the Xbox One. Ditch consoles for the PC and PS.

YourMommySpoils22h ago

@Bathyj hard to compute ay. Xbox was never better than a PC and that's all they ever were. A demo box. Doesn't get more true than that.

3d ago Replies(1)
isarai3d ago

What reputation is this threatening exactly? 😂

Lightning773d ago

Rumors of Turn 10 being either shut down or hit with massive lay offs is on the horizon.

The issue is MS will do something right only to do something very, very wrong. And they do this what seems calculative at this point. Doesn't matter what they do the Investors and leadership want more and more money an endless bottomless pit of purr insatiable greed. A company that acts like it's broke or hurting is what really, really infuriates me. They've surpassed apple again well over 3 trillion who acts like they're a million dollar company is fk stupid. Pivots and changes for no reason and can't do things for more than a year with out a pivot or changing their metrics.

Christopher2d ago

That would be really bad since Phil just hyped up next year as a big Forza year at Summer Game Fest.

1Victor2d ago

@christopher: “ That would be really bad since Phil just hyped up next year as a big Forza year at Summer Game Fest”
The key word big can be ether good or bad 🤷🏿only time can tell

DarXyde2d ago

First Forza being generated entirely via AI?

If any company would do it, it'd be them.

Nacho_Z1d 14h ago

Isn't the point that it's irrelevant how profitable MS is, the suits have decided it's time that the Xbox division started making them money. Hence the layoffs, the pivots.

hennessey861d 9h ago

That wouldn't surprise me, as motorsport has been heading down hill since the great number 4. Where as playground have consistently put out better games. I think the two studios will be merged under playground games banner.

2d ago Replies(2)
Show all comments (63)
660°

Microsoft planning “major” Xbox layoffs next week

The cuts are expected to be announced next week.

Microsoft is also planning thousands of job cuts that will impact other parts of it businesses

Read Full Story >>
theverge.com
6d ago Replies(1)
6d ago Replies(1)
Obscure_Observer6d ago

MFs has been beating their chests over great quarterly results and big profits to shareholders while firing people by the thousands just like Sony.

I wonder if at the top of those rumored layoffs they´ll also cancel upcoming or unannounced games while shutting down more studios as well.

6d ago
pwnmaster30006d ago

Always got to throw shade at Sony smh.
Yes we get it,
MS good Sony bad
MS bad Sony is also bad lmao

6d ago
Obscure_Observer6d ago

F* them both!

Just for the record, I don´t care about your victim complex crap either. Find someone else who cares.

blacktiger6d ago

He was talking about both. Why you getting offended when he's using both names

pwnmaster30006d ago (Edited 6d ago )

@Blacktiger

Im not offended , that’s just his formula lol
He can’t help help himself, he needs to bring Sony down when the topic involves MS.
Whether is good news for MS or bad, it some how leads to Sony doing bad lmao.
It’s actually hilarious.

InUrFoxHole5d ago

He's not wrong but im tracking what youre saying. In this case is should just be MS bad. Thats a lot of people fired

+ Show (4) more repliesLast reply 5d ago
Tacoboto6d ago

"just like Sony"

Gosh you're insufferable, not everything needs to be both-sides'd. Sony's had layoffs, but nothing like what Microsoft has been doing and is continuing to do.

CrimsonWing696d ago (Edited 6d ago )

I mean, no offense, but this is why you’re not some corporate business person running a major corporation. Big profits don’t mean jobs are safe. Do you understand why things like this happen:

Cutting jobs to maintain or increase profitability, especially in underperforming divisions like parts of Xbox like other gaming divisions.

Corporate restructuring and relocating resources for strategic stability in ever changing markets and consumer behaviors.

Investor expectations and optimizing operations to maintain investor confidence. Whatever boosts stock prices and improves future margins.

And there’s many other factors at play. It’s never as simple as business doing well, everyone’s safe. That’s just you not understanding at all how corporations work and have been working since the beginning. This isn’t something that’s specific to Xbox, you can bet your ass Sony and Nintendo do this and if it’s not clear by now, game development is not a stable job nor has it ever been for many. A lot of developers are contractors and guess what happens when a project is done?

Ganif6d ago

Nintendo said they have no plans for layoffs, and you can't seriously claim that the scale of Sony's layoffs most of which involved Bungie which is self managed as even close to the same scale as what Microsoft has done since they purchased Zenimax. And that significantly less layoffs would have happened if those publishers had stayed independent. Keep in mind that much of these layoffs have been due to redundancies specifically related to these buyouts.

CrimsonWing696d ago (Edited 6d ago )

@Ganif

Nintendo:

https://gamerant.com/ninten...

Sony:

https://gamerant.com/playst...

https://techxplore.com/news...

I don’t think it’s realistic to treat Sony’s layoffs as somehow outside the norm for the industry right now. Even if Bungie is self-managed, Sony’s cuts went far beyond that like Naughty Dog, Insomniac, London Studio being shut down completely, and multiple teams across the globe took hits. These weren’t just minor adjustments.

Nintendo, I had to look up and you’re right. They seem to be an outlier, but rest assured at some point it happens. And even then there’s been layoffs, albeit a smaller amount and contractors.

Would fewer layoffs have happened if studios from acquisitions stayed independent? Maybe. But even independents have been hit hard and look at what’s happened with Embracer’s fallout, or smaller devs like Digic, Roll7, or Volition. This isn’t just a “Microsoft problem” or strictly tied to acquisitions; it’s a broader correction happening across the whole industry, and unfortunately, layoffs are a big part of that process right now.

Ganif6d ago

From your article:

"According to reports, Nintendo of America restructured its testing operations, leading to layoffs of about 120 contractors, part of a strategy for global integration.

Nintendo of America, publisher of iconic franchises like Mario and Zelda, is shifting some contractors to full-time roles for better development integration."

Contractors are not employees, and even if you want to count them as that, it's 120 people vs around 7500 since Microsoft purchased Zenimax.

In an era of game industry layoffs, Nintendo is hiring more people
https://automaton-media.com...

Nintendo Announces 10 Percent Pay Raise For Devs Despite Lower Profits
https://kotaku.com/nintendo...

Nintendo CEO’s refusal to layoff staff goes viral following industry-wide cuts
"Satoru Iwata took pay cuts to ensure staff didn’t have to be let go"
https://www.nme.com/news/ga...

And as for Sony you're comparing less than 1000 total jobs to an estimated7500

Has the industry faced layoffs, yes, but that still doesn't account for the mass layoffs due to redundancies that was easily predictable, or that fact that at least 1/3 of Microsoft's layoffs and studio closures happened before the industry downturn.

thorstein6d ago (Edited 6d ago )

Take the L, Crimson.

People hate Nintendo, but Ganif proved why they deserve support.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 6d ago
-Foxtrot6d ago

It's like banging your head off a wall, he just can't help himself.

Microsoft can do no wrong, Sony sucks at everything and Nintendo is bigged up because it's less hassle than trying to defend Microsoft all the time

What's going to happen when Microsoft finally turn completely third party, then what?

anast6d ago

I enjoy Obscure. Obscure does good work.

crazyCoconuts6d ago

Did you know that the first n4g was designed to be a perfect human world? Where none suffered, where everyone would be happy. It was a disaster. No one would accept the program.

Tacoboto6d ago

I wouldn't be surprised at this point if anast and osbcure were both alts for the Admin.

We know how Obscure especially drums up additional comments and clicks with his spam-worthy remarks that somehow never get moderated

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 6d ago
Profchaos6d ago

Thats business present a strong front to your shareholders while your company burns around you.

Keep shareholders happy at all costs andnif not happy keep them numb to the reality of you organisation

Angyobangyo5d ago

" Just for the record, I don´t care about your victim complex crap either. Find someone else who cares. "

Just for the record, you clearly you do if you have to vent this hard.

TheExecutioner5d ago

Basically you think like kids when it come to choose between candy or chocolate.

Sonic18815d ago (Edited 5d ago )

Are you and Anast the same person?

+ Show (7) more repliesLast reply 5d ago
6d ago
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