230°

What the new Xbox 360 controller means for 2D fighters and more

"Paul Gale Network (well known for 2D fighting expertise and 2D games in general) discusses what the new D-Pad technology offers to fighting fans and explains what games will work best with the Plus design vs. the Disk design."

Read Full Story >>
paulgalenetwork.com
HiroyasuKarpovsky5411d ago

I couldn't agree more with the article. This is what Xbox needed because I don't like playing with an arcade stick....just not that good but instead now having a good dpad is just what I needed for Marvel vs. Capcom 2.

Christopher5411d ago

I'm the opposite. Even on the PS3 I find it very hard to be accurate with my fighters. I looked for some deals and got a nice Tekken arcade stick that has been perfect for me.

Maybe it's because I played so many fighter games in arcades back in the 90s?

-Alpha5411d ago

The 360 controller is fine. Yes, the DPAD is horrible, but not as used this gen as the rest of the buttons. I find it horrid for navigation though.

Other than that I love the control, minus the battery pack.

rockleex5411d ago

If the Plus still sits on TOP of the Disc, then expect the same problems to still be there.

GeorgeAnimal5410d ago

I hate the gaps in the Playstation controller's dpad. Then again I also don't like the way Xbox's is. This one looks promising.

ThanatosDMC5411d ago

But the d-pad placement will probably still feel weird no matter how close they try to copy how the ds3 feels.

Bethany5411d ago

Joysticks are useless to me so this is great.

Motorola5411d ago

Improvement obviously. But y February for outside the US? I dont get it. Is it because they had a chance to get a version of this controller before? If I remember correctly, Europe had this controller limited edition for a soccer game last year...

KimberlyHopr5411d ago

It's just one of those unfortunate things in this indusrty. Why do certain games take soooo looong to port from Japan to US? Localizing it and so on. With controllers it shouldn't take this long but maybe it has to do with hardware sales and being as timely as possible. Just a thought.

hannibus5411d ago

Whatever the reason to bad for Europe. No word on Japan right?

John007guy5411d ago

I trust him. I mean if your big enough of a fighting gamer to be made into a charcter in Street Fighter IV (look it up it's true) it's fair to take his word on how the controller will work with fighters.

sajj3165411d ago (Edited 5411d ago )

but at what cost? You can get Tekken 6 plus a fighting stick for almost the same cost as the new controller

EDIT: For reference ..

http://www.amazon.com/gp/pr...

JohnApocalypse5411d ago

WTF man. $20 extra for a different d-pad

sajj3165411d ago

To be "fair", it includes a charge and play kit. Why would I need another one? Just give me a new controller with a Dpad for $40 dollars.

MidnightGamer95411d ago

It does come with the pack of extra stuff to.

Baka-akaB5411d ago (Edited 5411d ago )

yeah but i know a few people wich really sucks with a stick and prefer pads no matter what . I'm sure it's of worth to them , and more so than a stick .

Plus the tekken 6 sold stick isnt really good . it's one of the cheapest hori for a good reason

Boody-Bandit5411d ago (Edited 5411d ago )

I will stick to my Sanwa stick and buttons on my TE's.

Baka-akaB5411d ago

yes i'm being kind indeed , you are mostly paying for the tekken art , wich you could have printed and applied on a better customized stick .

Same as you but with seimitsu buttons and sticks instead

Boody-Bandit5411d ago (Edited 5411d ago )

Oh I have one of those too.
I have one of my TE's modded with a Seimitsu 32-01 and 30mm buttons. I love it for charge characters but I have trouble pulling off ultra's with motion characters while using that joystick. I use to be able to do it at will but lately I can't do one to save my life. Guess I am just in a rut. I am going to keep at it till I get both down to a science.

Thinking about adding the Hori Vewlix stick to my collection next.

JeromeRichfield5411d ago

What's the best joystick in your opinion?

Boody-Bandit5410d ago (Edited 5410d ago )

The best?
Either a Madcatz TE or a Hori SE EX or SA (depending on which console you have) EX is for XBox 360 & SA for PS3.
The Hori SE EX has Seimitsu parts and the SA uses Sanwa Denshi parts.

Overall most SF fans prefer Madcatz because they are easy to mod and come with Sanwa Denshi Joysticks and buttons.
The Hori sticks (except the expensive Vewlix $299) are glued and it makes modding a lot harder if you wanted to make any changes.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 5410d ago
MidnightGamer95410d ago

It is pricey but looks worth it.

hannibus5410d ago

True but this pad lets you switch and comes with the special package but I wish I could buy it by itself because I really don't mind double a's.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 5410d ago
Sarcasm5411d ago

It looks to be a great change, but why in the flying major nelson's anus did they make it only available in the stupid play n' charge kit and not standalone???

silvacrest5411d ago

nuff said

oh, and so they can charge $65 without people screaming "WTF" although i still did

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490°

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
4h agoReplies(1)
4h agoReplies(1)
Obscure_Observer4h 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.

4h ago
pwnmaster30004h ago

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

4h ago
Obscure_Observer3h ago

F* them both!

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

blacktiger2h ago

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

pwnmaster30002h ago(Edited 2h 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.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 2h ago
Tacoboto3h 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.

CrimsonWing693h ago(Edited 3h 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?

Ganif2h 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.

CrimsonWing691h ago(Edited 1h 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.

Ganif1h 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.

thorstein42m ago(Edited 39m ago)

Take the L, Crimson.

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

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 42m ago
-Foxtrot3h 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?

anast2h ago

I enjoy Obscure. Obscure does good work.

crazyCoconuts2h 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.

Tacoboto2h 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 2h ago
+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 42m ago
3h ago
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260°

AMD CEO Shares Vision Behind Xbox Partnership and Next-Gen Chip Roadmap

AMD CEO Lisa Su talks about the Xbox AMD partnership, next-gen Ryzen + Radeon chips, and AI rendering tech coming to all Xbox devices.

Read Full Story >>
clouddosage.com
Obscure_Observer5d ago

AMD is really building hype around their unique partnership with Microsoft to help and build an advanced and seamless Xbox ecosystem across all Xbox consoles and devices.

I wonder what she meant by "full roadmap of gaming optimized chips" though? Seems ambitious.

Next year´s Xbox Showcase already looks promising and exciting. Here´s hoping they deliver.

InUrFoxHole4d ago

They had best show 3yrs in a row. Heading for another

VenomUK4d ago

Obscure_Observer said “I wonder what she meant by "full roadmap of gaming optimised chips" though? Seems ambitious.” To me, I interpret this to mean rather than having a couple of X/S products for launch and a handheld there is a longer term plan to release new products with higher specs at timed intervals. I’m speculating of course, but this could mean a spec bump every year or two, so that even if the PS6 or Steam Deck Home is released a year after ‘Xbox’ Microsoft can release an updated model that has a higher spec.

Agent754d ago

But Microsoft forgot the games.

KwietStorm_BLM4d ago

It's X3D chips for console. Everyone knows this. And it's been rumored in the PS6 forever.

Ganif4d ago

Correct.

"Sony's PlayStation 6 reportedly will feature an AMD semi-custom APU with a Zen 5 CPU and UDNA GPU, capable of 4K 120FPS and 8K 60FPS gaming. The console will include X3D cache and advanced AI upscaling technology."

https://www.tweaktown.com/n...

Obscure_Observer4d ago

"It's X3D chips for console. Everyone knows this. And it's been rumored in the PS6 forever."

I doubt that AMD´s CEO would waste her time making this huge and important partnership announcement over a tech that will be 7 years old by the those next gen consoles will be released.

Notellin4d ago

You should have just lead this comment with the fact that you have zero understanding of technology in the consoles and instead have a Toms Hardware online forum level of education.

Obscure_Observer1d 3h ago

"It's X3D chips for console. Everyone knows this. And it's been rumored in the PS6 forever"

I´d told you were on some bs

https://www.pcgamesn.com/wp...

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 1d 3h ago
Agent754d ago

But Microsoft forgot the games

Obscure_Observer4d ago

@VenomUK

"I’m speculating of course, but this could mean a spec bump every year or two, so that even if the PS6 or Steam Deck Home is released a year after ‘Xbox’ Microsoft can release an updated model that has a higher spec."

Very interesting theory. Still not sure how MS would actually make it work.

KwietStorm_BLM3d ago

"I doubt that AMD´s CEO would waste her time making this huge and important partnership announcement over a tech that will be 7 years old by the those next gen consoles will be released."

How old is the tech in consoles? It's not a huge announcement. It's marketing and you know it is.

Obscure_Observer3d ago (Edited 3d ago )

"How old is the tech in consoles? It's not a huge announcement. It's marketing and you know it is."

Dude, what I know for certain is that a tech as old as X3D chips which is actually *older* than both PS5 and Xbox Series consoles, is hardly the reason behind this new partnership between AMD and MS to build new *custom silicon* for next generation of consoles.

And yes it´s a huge announcement since AMD is working closely with MS to co-develop custom SoC which will allow backwards compatibility across all MS´s next gen devices allowing seamless integration between devices and full backwards compatibility across all generations of Xbox consoles.

I also know is that this announcement don´t have anything to do with Playstation and their strategy with AMD for the PS6, so stop comparing the two pretending that you know what´s going on, because you clearly don´t.

If Sony is working on something remotely similar, that´s remain to be seen.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 1d 3h ago
Fishy Fingers4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

Some odd, deliberate wording, no branding, not 'Xbox consoles, Xbox handhelds' specifically, feels and sounds like they're building towards hardware that anyone can be used or licensed to/by themselves and other manufacturers.

Multiplatform software and hardware 'Xbox/AMD APU'.

Obscure_Observer4d ago

I guess you missed Sarah Bond´s next generation Xbox announcement this week, were she clearly states:

"I´m thrilled to share that we´ve established a strategic multi-year partnership with AMD to co-engineer silicon across a portfolio of devices, including, *our* next generation *Xbox consoles*."

But hey, I don´t think you´re entirely wrong, maybe MS will build their own Xbox consoles while licencing other manufactures to build and sell their own Xbox branded consoles. Who knows

BeHunted4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

I think you watched the wrong video. It's below the description, or you can watch it directly on YouTube.

https://youtu.be/kprpRvsOua...

HyperMoused4d ago

Shares vision....we provide chips for money, this deal will sell many chips, we will make lots of money...good vision

Christopher4d ago

The marketing behind this is so heavy that I worry about the actual outcome. Why are they just not showing us the product, why all this talking in market speak?

Lightning774d ago

Probably because the next xbox isn't ready to release yet?

The marketing and rumors seem to be heavy out of no where. The rumor was a 27 release but it maybe it could be 26 new console launch instead.

Who knows.

Eonjay4d ago

There PR is alrways super heavy handed. No one is acutally buying an Xbox as is.
Also it is very early to be talking so much about a next gen console.

Obscure_Observer4d ago

There´s a lot of people interested on Xbox Next and its ability to run games from major stores like Steam.

We know that the PS6 is just around the corner as well, but so far, no news on what it might improve over the PS5 or PS5 Pro.

However, Sony already made public that their priority and actual focus is the PS6. So its not "very early" to talk about next gen when the very console manufactures are talking about it.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 4d ago
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210°

Activision Forces Adverts into Call of Duty Black Ops 6 and Warzone Loadouts

With the launch of Call of Duty Season 4, Activision quietly put adverts inside loadouts for Black Ops 6 and Warzone, sparking a backlash in the process.

23d ago
23d ago
lukasmain23d ago

Putting Ads in a pay-to-play Premium title? Well done Microsoft. Well done /s This is really scummy.

jjb198123d ago

This game will never change because these sweatlords love buying up all the skins and bundles that become obsolete the following year. They're the ones perpetuating Activision's greed.

VenomUK22d ago

If Microsoft introduces adverts into its other games I hope it can do them without disrupting the immersion of the game world. So for example in the new Fable game it would look out of place if there was a billboard advertising Cadillacs.

A far better way to do it would be to have a wizard conjure a 'dream cloud' in front of your character and then in the cloud you can see the Cadillac car and see the text with price and availability and hear a booming sales voice promoting the car. That would work so well as it wouldn't be a billboard and completely, 100%, fit in with your character's adventuring in Albion. Doesn't that sound so much better?!

crazyCoconuts22d ago

@venom, or how about our of 100 farts in Albion, 1 of them has a Cadillac pop out

VenomUK22d ago

@crazyCoconuts That’s undeniably off-beat - but it could really work!

23d ago
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