After watching MSFT's press conference, I'm starting to wonder if the Redmond giant is wading into Sony territory of not being able to figure out what their box is and why people buy it.  If you look at the way the press conference was structured, it opened and ended with a bunch of hardcore games, but the bulk of it was all about how the 360 is going to be a connected social networking media server.  Huh?  If you watch the whole thing, the only genuine cheers from the crowd were for the FF13 announcement (there were some forced ones here and there).  Microsoft seems to be paining itself to find ways to attract non-gamers and Europeans, but its efforts really come off as forced, especially the avatars which have designed by committee written all over them (they're half Mii, half Home, and laden with microtransactions).  I think everything they're doing is cool and potentially useful, but the way they're selling it just isn't working, or at least not in press conference form.  Hopefully they'll find a better way to communicate this to the masses come fall else they'll never grow their marketshare beyond hardcore gamers.

When I saw the demo for the new menu system, I thought it screamed "AERO GLASS!"

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MS's show owned Nintendo's and Sony's conference combined.  Sony is a ridiculous joke.  If anyone can accuse the 360 of being a shooter-fest, which it most definitely is not, then they need to take a look on SCEA's blog and read the many complaints (or celebrations) of the myriad of shooters on the system.

You can also read about how they should release more PSOne games on the PSN in the US, and fix their once-a-week disgrace of a PSN update, both of content and when it (eventually) updates.

btw, both Microsoft and Sony are out of their mind with their video marketplace/store pricing.

Gonna have to disagree here.  I thought Sony had the best conference, though that's not saying much since all three were pretty lousy.  I give the nod to Sony simply because it flowed very well and clearly outlined what they were trying to achieve.  Microsoft's seemed to have Multiple Personality Disorder (or should I say Multiple Demographic Disorder?) and Nintendo's was just dull (save for Iwata).

I really don't see what problem you have with Microsoft's.  They offered up a lot of good (and some not-so-good for me) games and nice changes for the system.  The system doesn't suffer identity crisis---if there goal is to offer something for everyone, then I can't imagine how that is a problem.  Perhaps the problem is your perception of the system all along.  Which is easy to do when you don't own one.

I'm talking about the way they are selling the 360 brand.  They're sending conflicting messages and trying to be all things for all people.  If they really wanted to appeal to non-gamers, they'd put WiFi in the box instead of charging $100 for the add-on, they'd improve the defect rate, and they'd stop charging for online play.  What I'm saying is that their stated strategy conflicts with their actions and I don't see them having the success they want in the expanded marketplace if they continue their current approach, avatars or not.

They are improving the failure rate and wi-fi would be nice, but sounds more of a thing for you and not the mainstream.  It is rather antiquated now, considering the competition though.  And considering how pathetic the PSN as a whole is and Nintendo's ridiculous friend code approach, Xbox Live is worth it.

Personally I thought that Sony's conference was pretty bad too, but that's probably just because my taste in games seems to vary drastically from the mainstream (I will defend the PC Engine and Gamecube to the bitter end).  They also didn't have any particularly interesting announcements of things we didn't already know were coming.

As for the 360, I really don't see diversification of their lineup as an "identity crisis."  If having a wide variety of software for different demographics gets you that, I guess the PS2 needs to go check itself into a clinic.

The PS2 didn't do such an obvious targeted move towards other markets in the same way.

Hm, but it also didn't compete with the Wii and Nintendo's extremely successful new gaming philosophy.  At least Microsoft is trying... how many shooters does Sony want on the PS3 before they diversify?

Oh I wasn't criticising them. Simply answering Joe's PS2 comparison.

What casual gamer wants to pay an annual fee to be called a fag by a ten-year-old?

Seriously?  You don't think casuals want wi-fi?  A casual gaming console will be put in the living room.  Most people don't want unsightly networking cables running all over their house.  If you're a hardcore gamer and you've got all your gaming gear and networking gear in the same room, then sure, just run the cable, but the casual target doesn't work that way.

lol, that question is good.  To be honest, I've never had that problem.  You can mute people, and you can ban them so you never meet them again.  And you can rate them appropriately too.  Lots of ways to take care of that.

I don't see what interest casual gamers have for it either way.  I basically don't see the assumption that casuals have wifi in their home.  Don't get me wrong, MS should include it or drop the price to a reasonable price, mainly so they can get more people online easier to Xbox Live and the online stores.  Their HDD prices are pretty stupid.

I dunno... broadband seems to be the way almost everyone is going these days, and around here I'm not even sure if you can get a broadband link from the (very few and almost monopoly-ish) companies that offer internet service that DOESN'T have a wireless gateway built in.  My parents are pretty fascinated by the fact that my Wii can go online without having to be plugged into anything, and they'd probably be confused and annoyed having to set up the networking cords for a console in the living room. 

As a side note, the lack of wifi in the 360 is pretty much the only reason I didn't pick one up as soon as I signed my contract for the new job.  The TV the game consoles are on is on a different floor of the house than where the computer/modem are.  There is NO WAY I'm paying that much for a wifi add-on that even the freaking $130 DS has built in.  I'll just wait until I move out to my own place and can have the modem somewhat near the TV setup.

^ Alright, I can see that.  I don't think wifi should make or break the system purchase, but it really isn't doing MS any favors by being ridiculous about it.