Saturday, October 24, 2015

MIXED BAG. UNBOX-KING #29 HALO GUARDIANS LMTD. EDITION XBOX ONE CONSOLE!


It took some doing but I am finally back in the mud with the console peasants (and yes I have a Wii-U but we both know Nintendo isn't trying to compete with the other two big consoles and they haven't found it to be a threat either...until NDX rears its head next year). And, I gotta say, while the console is gorgeous, it is exactly what I expected:

A more powerful 360. I'll admit that part of my hesitation, to buy either the ONE or the PS4, has been that this generation feels like such a small step forward that I wasn't dazzled by any of the new social features or gizmos. More so than ever, this generation feels like it is holding back technology and falling way behind the PC curve set into motion by services like Steam that give PC gaming a lot of affordable custom options. In fact, the first game I booted up, Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes, was notably less impressive on my new console as my three year old Dell. This generation of games has been scaled back, again, from maintaining a standard of 60 fps and it shows. And I'm not even the sort of guy to pick apart the graphical nitpicks. It was noticeable different when I booted up the Menu Screen.

BUT, and this is a big but, I didn't buy an Xbone to replace my PC. I bought a Xbone to share multiplayer experiences with my friends who have an Xbone but lack a dedicated gaming PC. And I am still excited to be able to play Halo 5, Battlefront, and Black Ops 3 this Holiday season. Even if it cost me an arm and a leg, friendship is worth it.

P.S. It really is a pretty console.