Console Programming

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    • RE: Random tip

      Right you are sir. I must say that is one the driving factors in my fascination with the whole subject: knowing and understanding the tools involved. If you know of any "practical" and affordable solutions (other than the ones I listed of course) I'm all ears.

      Sometimes I really enjoy the compact and "pre-determined" nature of the console. It gives a straight forward path. But the flexibility and "openness" of the PC platform has its appeal as well. I like them both.

      cheers

    • I'd like to believe that console programming is a subset of PC programming and that if you can program on a PC, then you have the means to program on console... you just have to be tighter on memory usage and leakproofing the code than you would on a PC, but that's the thing.... all programming should be that way.

      Every environment you code on will be somewhat unique... and so learning to code on a PS2 doesn't neccesarily mean you're qualified to code on GC. So because the technology-specific information doesn't neccesarily transfer, and because technology is not always going to stay the same, I'd say pick a platform that is easiest to obtain now... and get good at it.

      I think something Mr. Mike would say is to just be a good programmer... and the rest will follow.... or something like that.

    • RE: Random tip

      I'm not sure that I would classify console programming as "straightforward."

      The constraints on memory, CPU, and secondary storage cause you to make really tough choices about your technology. If you only have 0.03ms to accomplish a task - it probably won't be a solution that will appear in an ACM paper. It will likely be a clever trick that works because you know something about your game environment.

      One thing that is nice is a standard hardware platform with a standard OS. This kind of thing is SUCH as waste of time on the PC, since all that effort to get the same game running on XP/2k/Me/98/95 does not make the game fun. It just makes it run.
      Mr.Mike
      Author, Programmer, Brewer, Patriot

    • RE: Random tip

      Yea, I hear that mike. You are really trying to put as much performance as you can in a very small container with console programming.

      In your experience, would say many people get involved with console programming via PC? (meaning they work for a company doing PC games first and build on that experience) or do they start out on console? And if they do start on console, what skills did they have that allowed them to operate well in such a position?

      thanks

    • RE: Random tip

      With XBox Live, the consol is able to do the things that PC's always could, and at some points was able to push consoles ahead of the PC.


      Bah, PC's will always be technologically superior to consoles. How can a few hundred dollar piece of hardware that is improved on once every few years compete with a few thousand dollar piece of hardware that is improved on continuously? The only difference between PC's and consoles will, and will always be the games.

    • RE: Random tip

      How can a few hundred dollar piece of hardware that is improved on once every few years compete with a few thousand dollar piece of hardware that is improved on continuously?


      That right their seems to be the main problem with PC gaming... The expences that come with PC gameing is never ending... You always have to be upgrading your computer just to play those highly anticipated games.
      What it really comes down to for me is this... I can spend 150$ on an xbox, and know that i can play any xbox game. But i would have to spend atleast that just to get my computer to be able to play some games; and that's only going to be enuff for a few months.
      Wort wort wort.

      The post was edited 1 time, last by Kaimera ().

    • RE: Random tip

      Bah, PC's will always be technologically superior to consoles. How can a few hundred dollar piece of hardware that is improved on once every few years compete with a few thousand dollar piece of hardware that is improved on continuously?


      Never say never. Consoles are becoming more like computers every day, Nintendo64 users have already had a taste of hardware upgrades with the RAM pack. Also the consoles are apparently worth a lot more than we pay for them and the companies claim they make their money back on licence fees and SDKs etc. The fact that the hardware is also produced on mass gives them another price advantage. Also hardware creators for the consoles don't have to worry about compatability with many machines.

      So if console hardware becomes as easy to upgrade as a PC so that it keeps fresh with the market and yet is much cheaper than a PC upgrade and yet is able to have faster release times, who knows, it could once again take back it's title as the superior game playing machine.

      But I doubt it will happen any time soon (if ever).

    • RE: Random tip

      Making a console upgradable sort of ruins a consoles ability to play every game on the market. For example, people who didn't get a memory expansion for their N64 missed out on some games.

      Anyways, a computer is more expensive that a console because it can generally do much more than a console can, and usually better. Show me a console that can download a movie from a digital camera, edit it, convert it to divx, then upload it to a PDA.