Absolute Dog

Welcome to the forums. I see you are trying to get the 5 post minimum, so be aware the "Intros and Goodbyes" and "Offbeat" forums offer no post counts. Enjoy the play date.

This is the right area, along with the GD and news areas though there are a good number of threads that cover all aspects of the news XBOX. Here is one right below your dor example. http://www.343industries.org/forum/topic/29007-xbox-one-console-disscussion/?p=264166

There is no need to post so many videos in a single joke post. There is no need to post so many videos in a single joke post.

My tastes probably won't be very popular, but then again, it is what I like. The first post will be music I have listened to for..........well, many years. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRxqYoZiYPU http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiu6RMMNERs

The pictures and embedded links are something I think Bob will appreciate. Listen to at high volume!

There are those who aspire to be the next bit thing on you tube. When you see channels with tens of thousands of subscribers and millions of views and are aware of the monetary value of those kinds of numbers, you realize you can make a living managing a successful channel. Video capture is relatively easy and video editing is a fine art in and of itself, then you have to have a quality voice and provide something that viewers want and will return repeatedly to hear. Halo game play montages created a whole new genre of YouTube channels along with one like THFE, Ducain23 and Naked Eli. You could say Halo has spawned such an incredible amount of side works related to the game that it actually changed the face of YouTube and gaming in ways never imagined. It is definitely worth noting that regardless of how you feel currently about the franchise, what Bungie created all those years ago has left an indelible mark on the gaming industry in a way that no developer or game publisher could have conceived. Halo has set so many standards on so many fronts of gaming I seriously doubt another game will have the kind of impact it did for a long time to come. Lightning can always strike twice though.......

Bob is no doubt a classic! I personally would be honored to have him back in the colors again, whichever he would choose. Having someone who has ideas and desires to bring to the community is such a great asset to us and he is most definitely a proven member of the moderating team.Though I actually never had a chance to actually serve with him a a moderator, he was mostly not present when I was a Community Moderator, and stepped down shorty thereafter, 's name should be synonymous with quality leadership of the site. Drizzy.......you pulled this one out of your hat good sir, congrats on garnering a big one here! For you Bob.

The AVermedia LGP is the superior capture card due to twice the mps, at 600, plus you can record straight to an SD card without the need for a computer. That alone can be a big benefit to some. The AVermedia LGP has less latency, ie. time delay or lag, than the Elgato HD and it also records a much crisper and richer video. Both record up to 1080p, both are simple and easy to use, install and manage and where the Elgato is compatible with Mac computers and averages about $20.00 cheaper..........you need to decide about quality and recording convenience that is noticeable over lower price and Mac friendly. As an average in the US dollar, AVermedia LGP is $179.00 and the Elgato HD is $159.00.

There is no post count acquired when you post in the "Introductions" or Offbeat" forums.

How about we wait until Halo 5 is an actual news item before we have one of these topics guys.

You have to show signs of intelligence in order to 'search' for intelligence. It is clear you not only lack the very intelligence you seek, or maybe you seek it to assimilate it so you can see how it feels.......... you also lack tact and the basic conversational skills of some of the youngest members of this site. I am well known for allowing robust discussions and OP's by those that dislike the game, but you need to be able to actually carry on a conversation to remain here. I am putting you in the corner for two days to give you a chance to decide whether or not you wish to stay a member of this community. Please......message me if you have any concerns questions or comments.

The last election saw some mud slinging, rumor mongering and even some altered campaign posts. We fully expect our members to live up to the standards set by the previous elections and let the best member win! lol

Actually that is inaccurate. I have spend nearly 3/4 of my time on this site in offline mode. The counter does not work while in offline mode.

She is real, but 'he' doesn't want to cuddle! lol

The forum has enjoyed your presence for the past year, I know I have enjoyed your membership..........and your member name! Sweaty Bagels : https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sweaty-Bagels/151965138193187

Warning points are issued when members are noted for breaking the rules of the forum. They are issued for various reasons, the most important thing for a member is realize is that it should be seen as a reminder each time you post not to repeat the infraction you have previously committed and to also read the rules. They are only seen by the member affected and the moderating team. Warnings are simply that, warnings. It is possible to collect up to 5 before an auto ban takes place, but typically repeated infractions over a short period of time or becoming combative with the moderator issuing the warnings can lead to more significant actions. The best course is to heed the warning and move on, not to become embroiled in argument over them. Hope that helps.

The fundraiser has been verified as legitimate and I apologize for any inconvenience while the information was verbally confirmed from the actual charity.

The fact is Bungie's owner, Alex Seropian, is a major supporter of low budget games and start up game developers. He is noted for stating that the pressures companies like MS and Sony put on developers is killing the industry. Just look at how many companies have gone under because they did not produce a top selling game. Bungie Aerospace was created to help small, independent developers launch their mobile and social games. That company never forgot they were the small guy and has put their time, money and efforts into helping out the small companies. Every single games series created by Bungie has been a success in it's own right and most noted for cutting edge game play, graphics or top quality engine designs. Bungie putting serious hard earned money into a game they have been developing for years means the odds are it will not only be a game that hundreds of thousands (if not millions) will enjoy playing for a long period of time, but that Bungie will receive the just rewards for their efforts. To the OP, "Will Destiny be good?", I think it is going to not only be a great game, but introduce a whole new generation of gaming to the to the gaming community and once again Bungie will become the company that others will want emulate.

At a time when Microsoft (MS) is planning to unveil it's next generation XBOX it may be just the time to reflect on the past. Some companies will, seemingly, will unabashedly promote their newest products well beyond any realistic measure in order to get the biggest sales return possible. A story I recently read by Andrew Groen of Wired took a look back at all the hype offered by Microsoft surrounding the XBOX 360 and he provided an interesting retrospective of sales versus reality. These insights may better help the gamer to weed through the onslaught of hype, as experienced most recently with Halo 4, and the reality, as seen by the current population that still plays the game. The reality there is an unfinished game was sold to the consumer to hit a sales period for the holidays instead of taking the time to finish the product, which without a doubt, would have given the playing population a fully functional game that met the standards spoken to by it's producer and maintained a much stronger presence in the gaming world. The jubilation they thrived in briefly about sales was soon darkened by the reality of the disenfranchised fan base. This decision also affected a supporting company, Certain Affinty, whose reputation, and most likely income, depended on DLC content and their work on forge for Halo 4. Hopefully these companies will see this reality for themselves in a manner that will allow them to continue to produce quality products and experiences for their consumers without loosing sight of the consumers need to be able to trust in the very products and services they provide. The story as offered at wired.com 7 Years Later, Has Microsoft Kept Its Xbox 360 Promises? BY ANDREW GROEN - 04.25.13 - 6:30 AM Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer wasn’t shy about predicting that Xbox 360 would change the world of entertainment as we know it, but has the company delivered on its huge promises? Photo: Jonathan Snyder/Wired.com Microsoft was more than a little bombastic when it began hyping up the Xbox 360 before its 2005 launch. “In the next generation, Xbox 360 will transform the way people play games and have fun,” said Robbie Bach, former president of Microsoft’s Entertainment and Devices division, at the company’s 2005 press briefing at the Electronic Entertainment Expo. Certainly it did, but not necessarily in the ways that Microsoft promised. Xbox 360 was a great gaming device, one that Microsoft continually improved upon in a way that was unheard of in the game business until this generation. It constantly added significant new features, upgraded the user experience and moved from an also-ran to a major player, forcing the competition to follow suit. The PlayStation 2 you bought in 2001 was the same exact machine in 2005, but the Xbox 360 you bought that year would be unrecognizable now. Xbox 360 did change everything. But many of the things Microsoft talked about at the beginning of the generation turned out to be so much vaporware. And often instead of pursuing them, Microsoft allowed the competition to. It’s pretty clear Microsoft was shining us on about… well, a lot. On Wednesday, Microsoft officially announced what all of us have known was coming for years now: It will unveil the next generation of Xbox hardware at an event in Redmond, Washington on May 21. This follows the sort-of unveiling of PlayStation 4 by Sony in February, at which it made grandiose pledges such as saying that PlayStation 4 will “make you feel emotions that you have never felt in real life.” Sure it will. As we pointed out at the time, Sony made many similar promises about PlayStation 3, many of which failed to materialize. What about Microsoft’s hype about Xbox 360, back in 2005? Here’s what executives said, and what really happened. “A product with games at its core, surrounded by limitless connected digital entertainment.”— J Allard, then Xbox chief experience officer, at the 2005 E3 press briefing. “Limitless” was obvious hyperbole, and yet it ended up being truer than even former Microsoft evangelist Allard probably believed at the time. At the time, “connected digital entertainment” meant people would use their vast knowledge of 2005 technology to plug in an iPod to hear songs through the TV. Today, 360 users can access the internet, Twitter, Facebook, ESPN apps, live presidential election coverage and thousands of movies, TV shows and songs. Verdict: True ^ “For us to say we’re going to go through a whole generation without an HD capacity drive — I think that would be naive to assume that we’ll be sitting here at the end of the Xbox 360 generation and no such device will have shipped… We’re not going to be sitting here in five years saying, ‘Oh jeez, we don’t have HD DVD-type storage.’” – Steve Ballmer, Engadget interview, published May 2005. We suppose that Ballmer was technically correct: After launching Xbox 360 with a standard-capacity DVD drive instead of a high-density disc, Microsoft did release an HD-DVD drive that plugged into an Xbox 360 via USB. This was only for watching HD-DVD movies, not playing games, and Microsoft hastily discontinued it when HD-DVD lost the format battle to Blu-ray — a battle that may have been won solely because Sony put Blu-ray into every PlayStation 3. Had every Xbox 360 played HD-DVD discs, Blu-ray might have gone the way of Betamax. Seven years later, Microsoft is sitting here saying, “Oh jeez, we don’t have HD-DVD type storage.” Just call him Naive Steve. Verdict: False ^ “On the [Xbox Live] Marketplace… she might never pick up a controller, never take a run in the halfpipe but she’ll be able to design and sell stickers, shirts, boards, soundtracks and even design her own skate park for those hardcore gamers.” — J Allard, 2005 Microsoft E3 Press Briefing. The “she” in this particular statement was the infamous “Velocity Girl,” the online screen name of a hypothetical young female non-gamer who would use her Xbox 360 as a place to create and sell her own designs and products. Microsoft promised an online modding community where users could sell their digital wares for cash on the Xbox 360 marketplace, but the company never really even tried. Throughout the system’s lifespan Microsoft never implemented any large-scale programs that would have brought about the non-gaming hipster-design revolution that it prophesized. We’ve seen a couple small attempts over the years, though. The Forza Motorsport storefront, for instance, allows players to create car designs and other goods to sell for in-game credits — but not real cash. Players creating items and selling them at a profit has actually has become a reality — but it’s Valve doing it on the Steam service, not Microsoft. Verdict: False ^ “It’s a future where my games are always personalized to match my desires.” — “Kim,” the ultra-hip introduction presenter at Microsoft’s E3 2005 press briefing. In the early days of its marketing campaign, Microsoft used cringe-inducing statements like this to brag about how much Generation Me was going to be able to “express themselves” through their Xbox 360. While Microsoft has done some great work in making the console itself more flexible to the user’s interests (you can even still buy those staggeringly pointless faceplates that Microsoft abandoned years ago), the games themselves have rarely fit that description. Downloadable content has provided an avenue for players to somewhat personalize some games, but giving a company more money for new digital character outfits hardly counts as “personalization.” Verdict: False ^ Microsoft executive Robbie Bach had to walk a careful verbal tightrope when he talked about Xbox’s backward compatibility. Photo courtesy Microsoft “We will make money, and a lot of money in this next generation!” — Steve Ballmer, interview with Engadget published May 18, 2005. Microsoft spent four tough years with the original Xbox in which it operated the division at a big loss — reportedly $4 billion over four years — in order to try to gain a foothold in the videogame market. So investors wouldn’t have been pleased if Microsoft said they’d have to wait another generation for the profit to begin flowing. Though Xbox 360 also operated at a loss for its first few years, Microsoft’s fortunes finally turned in late 2008 when it posted the first net profits for the Entertainment and Devices division (which includes Xbox, Windows Phone, PC gaming and Zune) since its entry into consoles. It got off to a rough start, though. Xbox 360 faced a $1 billion setback when Microsoft extended the system’s warranty to three years due to the dreaded Red Ring of Death error, resulting in a disastrous $1.9 billion operating loss for the division in 2007. It will take more time for Microsoft to erase the massive multi-billion dollar loss accrued in the early years, but the division is now profitable and Microsoft is now a major market player. Verdict: Somewhat true ^ “Tonight we are pleased to announce that Xbox 360 will be backward compatible with the top-selling Xbox games.” — Robbie Bach, E3 2005 Microsoft Press Briefing. This is Microsoft’s most infamous statement prior to the launch of the Xbox 360. When Bach made this announcement, the crowd went wild before he finished his sentence, allowing him to mumble the “top selling” bit. It seemed, at first, that he had just said the Xbox 360 was backward compatible with original Xbox games, and anybody who purchased a 360 would be able to catch up on the first Xbox’s library of games. We soon found out that you really have to parse every single word of Microsoft’s statements. It indeed only intended to make the top-selling Xbox games backward compatible with Xbox 360, not the entire library. And it didn’t even do that, not at first: Less than a third of the Xbox’s library worked on Xbox 360 at launch, and the emulation software that ran the games was often glitchy, sometimes to the point where the game played much worse than it did on the less powerful machine. Many of the “top-selling” games were actually missing, since they were harder to emulate than the cheapo games: Splinter Cell didn’t work, but Barbie Horse Adventure was good to go. Over the next two years, Microsoft did work to add more games, eventually getting about half of the library emulated and adding most (but not all) of the biggest games on the platform. Verdict: A sneaky half-truth ^ “Microsoft will inevitably succeed in Japan.” – Takashi Sensui, general manager of Microsoft’s Interactive Entertainment Business division in Japan. The worldwide videogame business was a much different industry in 2005. Though Japan’s influence has recently begun to slip, in 2005 it was seen as a major key to success, and the original Xbox tanked miserably there. With Xbox 360, Microsoft devoted considerable resources to changing that, but not even two exclusive RPGs from one of the most famous designers in Japan (Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi) could overcome the widespread apathy toward Xbox 360. In June of 2011, Microsoft announced it had sold 1.5 million Xbox 360s in nearly six years. To contrast, the Nintendo DS has sold over 33 million consoles there to date. Hardly a good showing. Verdict: False ^ “We’ll get there by making games more approachable for people who didn’t grow up with a game controller.” — Robbie Bach, 2005 E3 press briefing, on expanding the market. Microsoft didn’t manage to do this when it launched Xbox 360, but Nintendo did the next year with the Wii’s motion controller. It was later revealed that Microsoft had turned down the rights to the underlying core technology of Wii. After Nintendo’s success, it was much more receptive to the idea for Kinect, a different type of motion controller. Kinect has brought about some of the most wretched games in the history of the console. But it did have a couple of highly successful, demographic-expanding, controller-free games like Dance Central. On the other other hand, Kinect has mostly been successful at selling to small kids who can’t yet handle a controller, not grownups who never learned to use one. Verdict: Half true ^ “Wouldn’t it be cool to have the game that has the person on the PC being the general who is driving the strategy, and the person on the console on Xbox Live executing the strategy? That is a completely new genre… and it leverages everything that Steve [ballmer] talked about that we’re putting in place.” — Robbie Bach, interview with Engadget, published May 18, 2005. Seven years later, no game even remotely approaching this type of PC-console cross-play has been released. There have been some instances of console and PC players being able to play the same game together, but unfortunately for Microsoft they were mostly on PlayStation 3. The only game that seems somewhat similar to this dream is Dust 514, a multiplayer shooter which is bound to the outer space MMO EVE Online. In Dust 514, players can coordinate with groups in EVE for funding and even artillery bombardments which can help them win battles. But this, too, is a Sony exclusive. So yes, it would absolutely be cool, but Microsoft hasn’t bothered to do it. Verdict: False ^ View full article

As reported in Comic Book Resources the Halo comic book series will continue in Halo:Initiation by DarkHorse comics. featuring Sarah Palmer. This new series will be written by Halo 4 writer Brain Reed, who also adapted the Halo:Fall of Reach into a comic book series for Marvel, and feature the artwork of Marco Castiello (shown below from Wired) and take a deeper look into the Spartan-IV program. Spartan OPs may have left fans wanting to know more and Dark Horse will release the new series of comics in mid August. DARK HORSE ANNOUNCES NEW ERA OF "HALO" COMICS Fri, April 26th, 2013 at 11:29am PDT CBR News Team, Editor Official Press Release Dark Horse continues in the tradition of bringing only the biggest and best characters and story lines to comics with the announcement of the Halo: Initiation miniseries, launching in August! This exciting new miniseries will be written by Halo 4 writer and comics veteran Brian Reed, with art by Marco Castiello (Secret Invasion: Front Line, Star Wars: Purge)! Before she was a supersoldier defending humanity as part of the Spartan-IV program, Sarah Palmer was an ODST—Orbital Drop Shock Trooper—carrying out the most dangerous missions behind enemy lines! See how she became the first Spartan-IV commander in this must-read series for fans of Halo 4 and the Halo franchise! "A rich science fiction universe driven by compelling characters, Halo has all the makings for show-stopping comics, " said Dave Marshall, Dark Horse Editor. "In Initiation, Brian and Marco are delivering an action-packed thrill-ride with a beating heart of authentic human drama." “It’s really exciting to work with Dark Horse in continuing the Halo story in comics. After Halo 4 and Spartan Ops, fans wanted to know more about the origins of the Spartan-IV program and Sarah Palmer in particular. So it’s great fun to be able to grant those wishes with a partner like Dark Horse,” said writer Brian Reed. About Dark Horse Founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson, Dark Horse Comics has proven to be a solid example of how integrity and innovation can help broaden a unique storytelling medium and establish a small, homegrown company as an industry giant. The company is known for the progressive and creator-friendly atmosphere it provides for writers and artists. In addition to publishing comics from top talent such as Frank Miller, Mike Mignola, Neil Gaiman, Brian Wood, Gerard Way, Felicia Day, and Guillermo del Toro, and comics legends such as Will Eisner, Neal Adams, and Jim Steranko, Dark Horse has developed its own successful properties, including The Mask, Ghost, Timecop, and SpyBoy. Its successful line of comics and products based on popular properties includes Star Wars, Mass Effect, Buffy the Vampire Slayer,Aliens, Conan, Halo, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Serenity, Game of Thrones, and Domo. Today Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent comic book publisher in the US and is recognized as one of the world’s leading publishers of both creator-owned content and licensed comics material. View full article