The most important thing for Microsoft to remember is that Human Resources are the key to victory. Having the most skilled people as part of Microsoft will always result in the best software being made.
However, this group of developers have years of experience creating games in a specific genre that has been rising in popularity over the last several years--the Real Time Strategy genre.
Ages of Empires is the best RTS game series ever released on the PC...so we need to immediately ask ourselves, "What will happen to Ages of Empires if Ensemble is closed."
Also, we need to ask ourselves what will happen to the Halo Wars franchise if the Ensemble game studio is closed. I realize that only 3 employees have stopped working on the game since Microsoft has said the studio will be closed, but I bet that is because there is some sort of financial bonus that people will not be eligible to receive if they leave the studio before the game is finished.
Microsoft, if you insist on having your employees located in a specific geographic region, please have your human resources people find homes for the developers. Although the "Ensemble" studio will no longer be in existence, it would be a great idea to keep those Ensemble developers working as a group when they are officially employed by Microsoft Game Studios.
2009 is scheduled to be BY FAR the BEST YEAR yet for the Xbox 360!
Just some of the games I can think of off the top of my head are:
* Alan Wake
* Forza Motorsport 3
* Halo 3: Recon
* Halo Wars
* Peter Jackson's Halo
* Mass Effect 2
* Star Ocean 4: The Last Hope
* Bioshock 2
* Grand Theft Auto 4 downloadable content
* Dead or Alive 5
* F.E.A.R. 2
* Prey 2
...Xbox 360 has the biggest and best lineup of games in every genre for 2009!
You cannot compare sales based on "similar points in lifetime" in order to determine which system is best. There is no question that the Xbox 360 has been far superior to the Playstation 3 ever since the Playstation 3 launched.
It could be argued that the only time the PS3 was better than the Xbox 360 was in 2005 when the Xbox 360 was on the market, but the Playstation 3 was nothing but a BIG LIE that Sony was telling people about...After all, with great games like Tekken 6 and Final Fantasy 13, how could the Playstation 3 be stopped (Note: those games have now been announced for Xbox 360).
When 2006 arrived and the Playstation 3 was released, we clearly saw that all of Sony's statements about the PS3 were nothing more than lies and exaggerations.
Business industries are NEVER going to determine which system is the #1 platform based on "who was better at different points in time, when both systems were of similar age." ... That is not how it works...
That's like saying "Coach, he might be a senior who is better than I am now, but I am a junior who is better than he was as a junior, so I think I should be starting."...It doesn't matter...the only "starter" is the person who is best NOW...and the Xbox 360 has been best all along, and it will remain that way for this entire generation.
For crying out loud, the Playstation 3 has been available for THREE holiday shopping seasons, and it only now got its FIRST game in the Real-Time Strategy genre!...That is TERRIBLE!!!
Xbox 360 had great games in EVERY GENRE...all along!
It's also important to keep in mind that MANY of the people who bought the Playstation 3 bought it strictly because it was the least expensive Blu-ray player. This is proven by the fact that the Playstation 3 has BY FAR the worst software-attachment ratio.
But now that there are dedicated Blu-ray players far less expensive than the Playstation 3, which offer better performance than the Playstation 3, it means that the era of seeing improved sales as a result of being the lowest-priced Blu-ray player are over.
Bottom Line: Xbox 360 has the best software available in every genre. Xbox 360 has the best hardware. Xbox 360 has the lowest price. Xbox 360 has the best online service. Xbox 360 has the largest number of exclusive games. Multiplatform games virtually always end up either noticably or significantly better on the Xbox 360. There is absolutely no doubt which console is best this generation.
Tomb Raider Underworld producer Eric Lindstrom talks about Lara Croft’s essential personality traits, and why they’ve helped her survive all these years.
Network now...
Kim_Naroz's Comments
Halo 3 is fine the way it is.
The most important thing for Microsoft to remember is that Human Resources are the key to victory. Having the most skilled people as part of Microsoft will always result in the best software being made.
However, this group of developers have years of experience creating games in a specific genre that has been rising in popularity over the last several years--the Real Time Strategy genre.
Ages of Empires is the best RTS game series ever released on the PC...so we need to immediately ask ourselves, "What will happen to Ages of Empires if Ensemble is closed."
Also, we need to ask ourselves what will happen to the Halo Wars franchise if the Ensemble game studio is closed. I realize that only 3 employees have stopped working on the game since Microsoft has said the studio will be closed, but I bet that is because there is some sort of financial bonus that people will not be eligible to receive if they leave the studio before the game is finished.
Microsoft, if you insist on having your employees located in a specific geographic region, please have your human resources people find homes for the developers. Although the "Ensemble" studio will no longer be in existence, it would be a great idea to keep those Ensemble developers working as a group when they are officially employed by Microsoft Game Studios.
2009 is scheduled to be BY FAR the BEST YEAR yet for the Xbox 360!
Just some of the games I can think of off the top of my head are:
* Alan Wake
* Forza Motorsport 3
* Halo 3: Recon
* Halo Wars
* Peter Jackson's Halo
* Mass Effect 2
* Star Ocean 4: The Last Hope
* Bioshock 2
* Grand Theft Auto 4 downloadable content
* Dead or Alive 5
* F.E.A.R. 2
* Prey 2
...Xbox 360 has the biggest and best lineup of games in every genre for 2009!
You cannot compare sales based on "similar points in lifetime" in order to determine which system is best. There is no question that the Xbox 360 has been far superior to the Playstation 3 ever since the Playstation 3 launched.
It could be argued that the only time the PS3 was better than the Xbox 360 was in 2005 when the Xbox 360 was on the market, but the Playstation 3 was nothing but a BIG LIE that Sony was telling people about...After all, with great games like Tekken 6 and Final Fantasy 13, how could the Playstation 3 be stopped (Note: those games have now been announced for Xbox 360).
When 2006 arrived and the Playstation 3 was released, we clearly saw that all of Sony's statements about the PS3 were nothing more than lies and exaggerations.
Business industries are NEVER going to determine which system is the #1 platform based on "who was better at different points in time, when both systems were of similar age." ... That is not how it works...
That's like saying "Coach, he might be a senior who is better than I am now, but I am a junior who is better than he was as a junior, so I think I should be starting."...It doesn't matter...the only "starter" is the person who is best NOW...and the Xbox 360 has been best all along, and it will remain that way for this entire generation.
For crying out loud, the Playstation 3 has been available for THREE holiday shopping seasons, and it only now got its FIRST game in the Real-Time Strategy genre!...That is TERRIBLE!!!
Xbox 360 had great games in EVERY GENRE...all along!
It's also important to keep in mind that MANY of the people who bought the Playstation 3 bought it strictly because it was the least expensive Blu-ray player. This is proven by the fact that the Playstation 3 has BY FAR the worst software-attachment ratio.
But now that there are dedicated Blu-ray players far less expensive than the Playstation 3, which offer better performance than the Playstation 3, it means that the era of seeing improved sales as a result of being the lowest-priced Blu-ray player are over.
Bottom Line: Xbox 360 has the best software available in every genre. Xbox 360 has the best hardware. Xbox 360 has the lowest price. Xbox 360 has the best online service. Xbox 360 has the largest number of exclusive games. Multiplatform games virtually always end up either noticably or significantly better on the Xbox 360. There is absolutely no doubt which console is best this generation.
2008 will go down in history as a very competitive and overall successful sales year for the Xbox 360 in Japan.
Great software in every genre was the key to that level of success.
All Kim_Naroz's Comments