Video Game News and Miscellany

mikerc

mikerc

Eriol said:
But that's the part about WHQL stuff: MS doesn't MAKE those drivers, the manufacturers do (a few "generic" exceptions to this). But if the manufacturer STOPS submitting to the database, but release drivers through their own "update" application, then you can have newer, and then the OS looks against the "master" DB and says "you got a rogue driver from somewhere" and overwrites it. It's bad manufacturer behavior that's to blame there.
Click to expand...
Maybe I'm missing something here (perfectly possible), but what's been the advantage for manufacturers to submit to the database? Other than "because Microsoft wants us to"?

While you're making good points that MS *is* actually trying to benefit their users if the process they're using to do that requires other non-MS companies to do something that they don't seem to be doing then that process will fail. And that's the experience I'm getting.
 
Eriol

Eriol

mikerc said:
Maybe I'm missing something here (perfectly possible), but what's been the advantage for manufacturers to submit to the database? Other than "because Microsoft wants us to"?
Click to expand...
The advantage to MS (and to users) is that MOST blue-screen errors can ONLY be caused by bugs in drivers. It's how the modern memory model works. If you can throw things at a driver that cause it to blue-screen, while you may be "breaking" what the API intended, ultimately it's the DRIVER'S fault for not filtering bad data. Thus MS imposing standards on such makes WINDOWS more stable.
mikerc said:
While you're making good points that MS *is* actually trying to benefit their users if the process they're using to do that requires other non-MS companies to do something that they don't seem to be doing then that process will fail. And that's the experience I'm getting.
Click to expand...
As others have said, device manufacturers want to release their device, and release the drivers, and never look at it again, no matter how terrible those drivers are. MS is saying "you need to fix your shit" and they're going "meh". But if Windows gives big scary popups that the drivers aren't WHQL signed, people then wonder why the MANUFACTURER is doing bad. So that's the idea.
 
Dei

Dei

I have been snoozing my latest Windows update for 2 weeks, so I know you can stop Windows from doing it automatically. Though I suppose I'd have to forcibly shut down my computer to keep it from updating next time I restart.
 
mikerc

mikerc

Eriol said:
The advantage to MS (and to users) is that MOST blue-screen errors can ONLY be caused by bugs in drivers. It's how the modern memory model works. If you can throw things at a driver that cause it to blue-screen, while you may be "breaking" what the API intended, ultimately it's the DRIVER'S fault for not filtering bad data. Thus MS imposing standards on such makes WINDOWS more stable.

As others have said, device manufacturers want to release their device, and release the drivers, and never look at it again, no matter how terrible those drivers are. MS is saying "you need to fix your shit" and they're going "meh". But if Windows gives big scary popups that the drivers aren't WHQL signed, people then wonder why the MANUFACTURER is doing bad. So that's the idea.
Click to expand...
Ehh, I'm still not convinced that this is a good thing (mainly because I haven't had those big scary popups that the drivers aren't WHQL signed, I've just had my stuff stop working) but you have got me to move my opinion on what MS are doing from "terrible idea" to "good idea, badly implemented".
 
Eriol

Eriol

mikerc said:
Ehh, I'm still not convinced that this is a good thing (mainly because I haven't had those big scary popups that the drivers aren't WHQL signed, I've just had my stuff stop working) but you have got me to move my opinion on what MS are doing from "terrible idea" to "good idea, badly implemented".
Click to expand...
Fair enough. I think there's flaws in their implementation as well, but I put most of the blame on the HW manufacturers, not MS. Apple doesn't have this problem because they only need to support a small number of hardware vendors, and that's it. If you go outside of that, they say "nope, doesn't work, your fault, you should have gotten Apple-brand stuff." MS has to deal with EVERYBODY.
 
figmentPez

figmentPez

Staff member
At E3 Double Fine got together some of the voice actors from Grim Fandango and did a live reading of select parts of the game's script. Jack Black filled in for assorted parts whose actors weren't there.

 
GasBandit

GasBandit

Staff member
Eriol said:
But back to Windows, updates are automatic now because too many people never updated. That's the simple, no-nonsense reason why they're automatic now, without being able to defer them. Many many people deferred FOREVER.
Click to expand...
I prefer that to MS being a nanny and fucking up my shit. Hell, I've posted THREE separate occasions in the last year where doing an update, even on 7, fucked my shit up. "Never update" has become a self-defense mantra for many people, simply because the the updates (as often as not) fuck. shit. up.
 
chris

chris

figmentPez said:
I continue to be in love with 8BitDo's product line. Their new announcements at E3:

The N30 Pro 2 adds a bunch of new color options, but more importantly it has vibration and motion controls:


I'm not sold on the color choices for the SN30 Pro+, and I really want to know if they have analog triggers, but they do fill the need for an 8BitDo controller with handles. (These also feature vibration, and motion control.)
Click to expand...
No colored buttons for the SNES one?
ThatNickGuy said:
So apparently Cyberpunk 2077 will be in first-person, not third-person like The Witcher games. Still an RPG and they've specifically said it's NOT a shooter, but still first-person.

I don't know how I feel about this. Part of what pulled me into Witcher was the third person because I could see Geralt interacting with the world.

Still, I'm about 80% sure I'll be pre-ordering the game. I want to see some gameplay footage, first.
Click to expand...
There is a lot of talk of a playable demo at the E3 show floor but I can't find any leaks of video footage. The trailer looked really good. Lots of 80s cyberpunk influences. I will also preorder unless they really fuck this up.
 
Frank

Frank

https://www.theverge.com/2018/6/14/17462782/kingdom-hearts-3-confusing-story-nomura-e3

On the story:
Director and creator Tetsuya Nomura says that while he has a firm grip on where the game’s story is heading, sometimes the whole thing gets a bit chaotic for him as well. “I do have a general storyline in my head,” he tells The Verge. “What is the most confusing is that, because there are so many characters in this storyline now, it’s hard to keep track of who actually met who already,” he says. “I’m always like, 'Okay, so who knows who in this situation, and who’s meeting this person for the first time?’ And that always gets really confusing.”
Click to expand...
Tetsuya Nomura is fucking confused by Kingdom Hearts' story.

HOW THE HELL CAN ANYONE DEFEND THIS SHIT?
 
figmentPez

figmentPez

Staff member
If you thought randomizing one game was crazy:



Super Metroid / A Link to the Past Randomizer
Items are scattered across both games, with certain doors in each that take you between games. There's no crossover of characters or mechanics, Link is always in Hyrule, Samus is always on Zebes, but Link may have to collect the morph ball for Samus to use, or Samus get the Hookshot to unlock it for Link.
 
figmentPez

figmentPez

Staff member
The other day I saw this video on YouTube, and thought "What? But, Rainbow Road is Mario Kart's most infamous track, right?" Well, by the time I finished watching this video, I saw there was a lot more to Choco Mountain than I would have expected, and it might indeed be the most infamous as far as the speed running community is concerned.

 
figmentPez

figmentPez

Staff member
Get out your popcorn, because the current owners of the Atari name are in the process of a train wreck with the Atari VCS.

The Register wrote an unflattering article, and "Atari" bascially called it fake news, so the Register published audio clips from their interview, showing just how little the COO Michael Arzt knows about the product he's selling.

And here's a video about "Atari's" history with scamming people via crowdfunding, and just how many different crap products they're trying to sell right now, because the VCS is just one of their current scams.
 
PatrThom

PatrThom

I can’t articulate how much I WANT the name to mean something again, but keep being disappointed because they seem to keep missing the point.
At least they’re not EA, I guess.

—Patrick
 
figmentPez

figmentPez

Staff member
Why motion blur has a horrible history of sucking.... but also, why per-object motion blur can be used to good effect, and why even camera motion blur might have it's place.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top