quote:

---

>[ It's a no-brainer that PS3 will end up somewhat more powerful. the PS3
>is
> coming out later than XBOX NEXT. the PS3 has been in development for
> *much*
> longer. when Microsoft was working on the original XBOX (1999-2001) Sony
> was
> already working on PS3. XBOX NEXT wasn't underway until late 2001 or
> early
> 2002]
>
>
> http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4201391.stm
>
> What's next for next-gen consoles?
>
> The next generation of video games consoles are in development but what
> will
> the new machines mean for games firms and consumers?
>
> We may not know when they will be released, what they will be called or
> even
> what they will be able to do but one thing is certain - they are coming.
>
> Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo are all expected to release new machines in
> the
> next 18 months.
>
> The details of PlayStation 3, Xbox 2 (codename Xenon) and Nintendo's
> so-called Revolution are still to be finalised but developers are having
> to
> work on titles for the new machines regardless.
>
>
> The rumours are that PlayStation 3 will have a little more under the hood
> Rory Armes, EA
> "We know maybe what the PS3 will do, but we can only guess," said Rory
> Armes, studio general manager for video game giant Electronic Arts in
> Europe.
>
> "It's a horrendous effort in the first year," he admitted.
>
> Microsoft had delivered development kits to EA, said Mr Armes, but he said
> the company was still waiting on Sony and Nintendo to send kits.
>
> Although the details may not be nailed down, Mr Armes said EA was
> beginning
> to get a sense of the capabilities of the new machines.
>
> "The rumours are that PlayStation 3 will have a little more under the hood
> [than Xbox 2]," he said.
>
> Great leaps
>
> "Microsoft is obviously a software company first and foremost, while Sony
> has more experience in hardware. I think Sony will be able to push more
> into
> a box at cost."
>
>
>
>
> What is certain is that the new machines will provide great leaps in
> processing and graphical power.
>
> It is also likely that they will contain convergence technologies to make
> the machines more of an entertainment hub.
>
> At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas Microsoft boss Bill Gates
> said
> Xbox 2 would be part of his vision of the digital lifestyle.
>
> While short on detail, he painted a picture of a machine that would
> complement a PC and offer "great video gaming but video gaming for a
> broader
> set of people, more communications, more media, more connectivity".
>
> Sony is thought to have a similar vision for PS3 while Nintendo remain
> focused on a machine purely for games.
>
>
> Until it is clear precisely what the new machines can do, developers are
> working on a first round of titles to harness the new horsepower.
>
> Gary Dunn, development director at Codemasters, said the company had a
> central technology group which was at the forefront of preparing for the
> next generation of consoles.
>
> "We are working on new libraries of effects. A lot of the major techniques
> are already out there and in use in PC gaming, such as pixel shaders and
> normal mapping."
>
> Real-world physics
>
> Mr Dunn said he expected the introduction of real-world physics to be a
> major part of the new consoles.
>
> "We want to increase that level of immersion and realism in gaming to
> people
> can lose themselves in a game."
>
> In the first year at least, developers said gamers should not expect games
> which harness the full potential of the machines.
>
> Graphical spit and polish and better physics in line with the capabilities
> of current high-end graphics cards for PCs should be expected.
>
> Simon Gardner, president of Climax's Action Studio, said: "It's definitely
> an exciting time. We want to give more freedom to the player. We want to
> give players an emotional connection to the characters they play.
>
> "The environments will be much more believable and dramatic, growing and
> changing as you play.
>
> "There will be a breadth of effects, more involving worlds to play in.
>
>
> PS3 will provide graphics indistinguishable from movies

quote:

---

> "It's a bit like being an artist and being given a bigger canvas and a
> smaller brush. We're being given more tools.
>
> "For the average consumer, we can get things of a more filmic quality."
>
> Gerhard Florin, head of EA in Europe, said gamers should expect titles
> that
> blur the line between films and video games.
>
> Many will be sceptical - gamers were given similar predictions during the
> last transition of console hardware - but this time it would seem to be
> more
> likely.
>
> "PS3 will provide graphics indistinguishable from movies," said Mr Florin.
>
> He said the distribution method for games would also change radically in
> the
> next round of consoles.
>
> "A gamer could buy a starter disc for 10 euros. When he goes home he goes
> online and he could buy AI and levels as you go.
>
> 'Much smarter'
>
> "It's much smarter if you can get levels as you go."
>
> Mr Armes warned that developers still had to learn how to tell stories
> effectively in the medium.
>
> "In some ways we are trying to forget about the hardware, go in the
> opposite
> direction. We have been very bad at letting technology design our
> creativity.
>
> "What we have to do as a company is start ignoring the technology and
> learning our craft in telling stories."
>
> Mr Gardner agreed: "We can thrown more polygons around and have better AI
> but if it doesn't make for a better game then that's not very useful."
>
> Developers will certainly have the tools with the new machines, but how
> they
> employ them is still to be decided.
>
>