Forbes: Atari 2600 whups Xbox 360
by Vladimir Cole 
{ Nov 26th 2005 at 8:30PM }
Forbes writer Ed Lin tears into the Xbox 360 with
an editorial blasting the console for a number of failures, including, but not limited to:
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confusing core vs. premium bundles and super-premium bundles that some retailers offered, (says Lin, "These bundles are priced at $999.95. Picking one of these bundles makes you a sucker, not a gamer.")
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Lack of original games as shown by Ridge Racer 6, Project Gotham Racing 3, Madden 2006 (asks Lin, "How much more incrementally fun is Ridge Racer 6 than Ridge Racer 5, or even the original Ridge Racer?")
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Failure to evoke the simple fun of gaming embodied in the the Atari 2600, with its single-button joystick and genre-bending titles
He makes some good points, but we wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of the hatemail he's been getting. Some readers got really pissed at us when we chose Geometry Wars as the best title of the Xbox 360 launch lineup, but the fact is that Geometry Wars was the single title that created the most pure gaming energy in our living room last weekend. No fancy buttons or interfaces, no multi-million-dollar development budget, no anisotropic filtering, normal-mapping, or per-pixel motion blur—just two analog joysticks and waves upon waves of enemies. Gameplay's importance cannot be overestimated.
Don't think that this is some anti-Microsoft rant from a prejudicial fanboy. Neither Sony nor Nintendo are immune to these issues. The malaise is endemic. Microsoft bore the brunt of the Forbes article because Microsoft's console launched first. Sure, the Revolution does hold promise, but I'll print this post out and eat it if the next Sony and Nintendo consoles don't play host to a bevvy of sequels and movie adaptations. With relish.
