21/12/2013, 14:50 - Tesco Extra supermarket, Yeovil, Somerset, United Kingdom.
This was the moment when I had purchased the Xbox One console. Now a year on; what do I have to say about the system?
Did it reach my expectations? Was it worth the cost? Was it ludicrous to buy at the time?
Answers: Not really, I could afford it so who cares, and yes it was ludicrous to buy an Xbox One when I did.
Okay so the simple stuff is out of the way, next comes the explanations. I learnt like the majority of gaming fans that the Xbox 360 successor was coming in the form of the Xbox One, and it had these technical specifications and these abilities and whatever Microsoft were hyping. My reaction was lukewarm; the Xbox 360 is phenomenal and I wasn't going to get tired of it anytime soon, so I had no real reason to get the Xbox One in the foreseeable future. That said, the lifespan of the Xbox 360 was coming to an inevitable conclusion meaning the next instalments of games I enjoyed on the Xbox 360 such as Need For Speed, Forza Motorsport, Halo, and so on would become available on the Xbox One and not continued on the Xbox 360 (although that assumption proved wrong later on). As more was learnt about the Xbox One, it became a matter of trying to understand what the system could and couldn't do because there was definitely a lot of confusion since Microsoft were going back on what they said, and weren't providing straight answers to particular features that I wanted to know about. By the time the Xbox One was released in the United Kingdom, I had learnt much to my dismay pretty much everything I needed to know and figured it would be something I would get, but not anytime soon because Microsoft needed to do a lot of work and offer more games to make purchasing the Xbox One worth it.
So what the hell happened you might be asking. In truth the key points that interested me about the Xbox One were Forza Motorsport 5, and the fact that my Xbox Live account (strangersparky) could be imported and co-exist on both the Xbox One and Xbox 360, which meant the achievements and (small number of) gaming 'friends' would continue to build up without fault. Additionally the Xbox One controller was supremely comfortable and engaging to use which is something I thought wouldn't be possible to improve upon following the success of the Xbox 360 controller. I also assumed the next instalments to games I enjoy such as Forza Horizon, The Sims 3, Metal Gear Solid, Star Ocean, Devil May Cry, Halo 3 and 4, Devil May Cry 4, Resident Evil, Silent Hill and countless more would in time be available on Xbox One (which for the most part is accurate).
Ultimately though it came down to an alignment of circumstances that convinced me to take the plunge. I had the money, there were Xbox One consoles in stock at the Tesco Extra store in Yeovil which I happened to be in that day, I had a coupon for double points on any purchases I made with my Tesco Clubcard, and I felt impulsive. All these added up to me getting the Xbox One despite my previously made decision to wait a while for the Xbox One to get better and offer more choice. In the end I returned home with an Xbox One console, Forza Motorsport 5, Dead Rising 3, an additional Xbox One controller and two (2) charge and play packs for the controllers; all of which come to the total cost £609!
Now £609 is a lot! But in truth I wouldn't have saved much had I waited a year later because the price for the same configuration wouldn't have been so significant to make me want to smash my brains in with a cricket bat. Let's work it out; according to the receipts I have of the transaction on 21/12/2013 the £609 is broken down like this:
Xbox One console with Kinect: £429
Dead Rising 3: £48
Forza Motorsport 5: £48
Xbox One controller: £44*
Two (2) official charge and play packs: £40*
Total: £609
* These items were purchased in the Game store in Yeovil on the same day.
Now a year on, the price breakdown would work out like this:
Xbox One console with Kinect: £389
Dead Rising 3: £28**
Forza Motorsport 5: £44
Xbox One controller: £39**
Two (2) official charge and play packs: £40**
Total: £540
**These items would have to be purchased in a Game store or on Games online store since Tesco Extra in Yeovil do not sell these items.
The price difference a year on for the same configuration is £69, not exactly mindboggling...
Of course where it matters is of course the Xbox One hardware and software and ultimately this is where the deciding factor lies because as of 21/12/2014, the Xbox One has been improved somewhat and the library of games has grown from the near bare bone providing there was a year earlier. In 2013, there was only one (1) game I cared about having and playing and that was Forza Motorsport 5. Now Dead Rising 3 is a fine game and especially fun in short bursts, but the Dead Rising series wasn't something that I overwhelmingly enjoyed and the problems in previous instalments were present in 3 including the telling signs that Dead Rising 3 wasn't completed before it was released. In truth I got Dead Rising 3 out of necessity because my brothers could enjoy the zombie slaying and be satisfied until something else came out.
Of course the Xbox One's biggest problem in my mind is the inability to import and play music while playing a game as effectively as the Xbox 360. The Xbox One CAN play music whilst I play a game, but its not mine and my younger brother's music. What the Xbox One can do is play music from apps on the system such as YouTube and Xbox Music, but in doing so the app becomes 'snapped' and takes up a percentage of the gameplay presentation, which if you 'unsnap' will stop the app. Not only don't the apps have the extent of the music we like and have, but the way the Xbox One system has been configured means the presentation of a game like Forza Motorsport 5 is compromised by the window the app takes. It also has to be said that Xbox One is a prescription service that's not included in the monthly Xbox Live prescription, now that's complete and utter burnt and puked on Christmas Day roast turkey dogs***!!
Seriously this was a tremendous problem that put me off the Xbox One system and still does. While monthly updates are improving the functionality of the Xbox One and recent updates now allow a USB to be plugged into the Xbox One so it can play several media files such as mp3s, there is no option to import music onto the Xbox One through a USB or CD to be used later on for whatever purposes. Personally I do not fully comprehend why the Xbox One is incapable of this when the Xbox 360 CAN, especially with a hard drive of about 460 GB. Initially I had hoped that with time this would become possible on Xbox One and the usability of music stored onto the hard drive would mirror the Xbox 360, and that I and my younger brother could play WWE 2K15 just like we play WWE 2K14 on the Xbox 360. But no, and while its no longer a bigi because WWE 2K15 is a total downpour of misery and larva raining upon my expectations, melting my hopes and ambitions like a strip of magnesium held above a Bunsen burner, the feature would be nice for games like Forza Horizon 2 and Dead Rising 3.
To elaborate; on the Xbox 360 we have about 1200 songs on the hard drive which we have painstakingly ripped from writable CDs we filled with our kind of music and unique tracks that cannot be obtained in any way other than to make them yourself. When playing the Xbox 360, we have the choice to play music from the hard drive and 98% of the time we do, and when we have our own music playing; it does NOT interfere with the gameplay or the perception we see and hear. The biggest example of this use is when we play WWE 2K14 and fabricate our own WWE in Universe mode; we have the commentary turned off because it is terrible and instead we provide our own meanwhile we have a playlist of songs playing in the background during matches because without it, the gaming experience stinks. Additionally we have specific songs on the Xbox 360 hard drive for each of our 100 created characters which we've loudened, cropped, and added to as desired. This means we can songs by Puddle of Mudd, Chevelle, Three Days Grace and songs from other media such as 'Regalia' from SoulCalibur V, WWE songs that aren't on WWE 2K14 such as Kane's 'Slow Chemical' by Finger Eleven, and lastly songs we have edited significantly such as 'Jes XXIX Relentless Tragedy (SBG Mix)' which is Disciple's 'Someday' with five (5) plus minutes of fabricated tracks from Corpse Party, 'Noel's Theme' from Final Fantasy XIII-3 OST, Dexter, Team Four Star's DragonBall Z Abridged series, Final Destination series, Sabrina The Teenage Witch, CSI, Oddworld Abe's Exodus, GTA III, Pokémon, Top Gear, The Angry Video Game Nerd, and numerous sound effects like explosions, gunshots and so on, spliced over the song (I'm not kidding here, this is some real grade A horses*** here).
The point is this is what mine and my younger brother's music consists of and its one of the reasons we adore the Xbox 360. The Xbox One's inability to have the same functionality is distressing and makes tedious aspects of games that more discouraging. Think of it this way; wouldn't it be nice to at least have the option to play your own music during those possibly weariful elements of gaming such as building up your party in a RPG like Final Fantasy XV, or the option to have something else play in the background instead of the repeating radios on Grand Theft Auto V and Forza Horizon 2?
There is a silver lining in this however because recent updates have enabled me to choose a image or theme to be represented on the Xbox One background just like I can on the Xbox 360, which means I can have a Corpse Party image on the Xbox One background which is nice. With Xbox One consoles being sold with bigger hard drives; there may yet come the day where I can have custom music playing in the background. I just won't be holding my breath because it could be a while before this is realised, if it is actually possible.
Those who were patient enough to hold off buying an Xbox One until more games became available, they may be tempted by the offerings available today and the bright outlook of games coming out in 2015. The thing is from my perspective which is based on a year's worth experience of owning and playing an Xbox One Console; there is yet to be a definitive game that is totally exclusive to the Xbox One. Sure there are great games on Xbox One like Alien Isolation, Halo Master Chief Collection, Fifa 15, Grand Theft Auto V, Call of Duty Advanced Warfare and Forza Horizon 2; but ask yourself this: are these exclusive to the Xbox One? The answer is no, nearly every game or oncoming games are and will be available on other systems and while some games perform and appear better on Xbox One than the Xbox 360 counterpart, these still take away the appeal of having an Xbox One when you can have more or less the same experience and satisfaction, and save money having the Xbox 360 versions. I know there are exclusives like Sunset Overdrive that stand out, but frankly I do not foresee many exclusives in the near future.
Now I'm not deliberately picking on the Xbox One by stating the above, the PS4 is in the same boat and neither consoles are marginally different from the their predecessors in terms of unique offerings. This brings me up to one of the big reasons for purchasing any console from this eighth (8th) generation of video game consoles; the graphics. Getting a Xbox One or PS4 or Will U; you'd expect several things like superior graphics or revolutionary gameplay, but the truth is there's very little to prove that the eighth (8th) generation is a revolutionary step up from the seventh (7th) generation. In some instances there are differences in terms of number of pixels and presentation and gameplay that stand out like with the higher detail models of Superstars on the Xbox One and PS4 versions of WWE 2K15 over the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions, or the Kinect on Xbox One to detect sounds and movements made by the player. Ultimately however the differences are few and far between the different versions of the same games (7th gen or 8th) and unless you really care about 1080p, then you don't really care as long as the games and the console of your choosing is enjoyable.
As a side note; I must concede that the Wii U is arguably the best in terms of exclusivity out of the three (3) home consoles but that exclusivity is a key reason why I don't have a Wii U because I prefer simplicity and all the bells and whistles of the Wii U make it unappealing and inaccessible (the Wii U gamepad in particular) to gamers who are used to the yearly instalments of Call of Duty and sports games. If you must have any console from the eighth (8th) generation then I would recommend the Nintendo 3DS family of systems because it offers exclusive games, favourites such as Mario and Pokémon, and portability.
Switching back to evaluating the Xbox One a year on plus since its been released; I have to admit the Xbox One still leaves a lot to be desired and Microsoft has a lot of work to do before I can be convinced that the purchase of the system and its library of games and dedication I have given so far is worth it. Its undoubtedly good and it will get better with time but with hindsight I should've waited until Autumn 2014 because by then the desirable games would have been released or close to be released and the system itself would've been updated enough to have avoided the headaches and disappointment I experienced since I purchased the Xbox One in December 2013.
Thankfully Forza Horizon 2 is the game for Xbox One I've been waiting for since the Xbox One was announced. It really is a ton of fun and it gives me the chance to exercise my creativity with the cars (even if the creativity isn't on par with others). If there is one (1) game that I would recommend for the Xbox One; its Forza Horizon 2. With any luck in 2015 there will be more recommendations like Halo 5 Guardians, and Metal Gear Solid V The Phantom Pain, but for now its a start.
Well, ...this is it for my diagnosis of the Xbox One a year on. I look forward to the offerings in 2015 and hopefully a year from now when I do a diagnosis of the system two (2) years from its release; I'll have more positive things to share about the Xbox One.
Before I say 'see ya' I will divulge on New Year's Eve what games stand out, what stink and which are a complete pile of deplorable s*** smothered in a bucket of pus, puke and famine along with such terribleness like 'Pudsey: The Movie'. I will also share what I will be looking for the most in 2015.
Until then, see ya!
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