Rob Browning wrote:

> On Sat, 16 Dec 2006 15:26:48 -0500, "sanjian" <sanjian@widomaker.com>
> wrote:
> 
> I really should just tell you to read my earlier posts again, but I'll
> be nice and do some copypasta:
> 
> "What's the point of playing something with a tiny screen and an
> unergonomic design at home when a console or PC is much more
> comfortable?

How is a console more comfortable? I can play my PSP on the sofa, or in
bed. Every console game I've played required you to sit in front of the
TV, looking up at it. I suppose that you could play on the couch, if it
was 2 feet from the TV. Funny, I've never lived in a house with that
setup.

> "Portables were meant to be played when circumstances keep people from
> playing with larger, more powerful devices.  Because of this, portable
> games are supposed to be quick to play and enjoy during the time you
> spend on the subway or a ten-minute coffee break."

What about Pokemon? It's been around on portables for over a decade.

> "Sorry, but it's physically impossible to make a system that's both
> portable enough to fit well in a pocket and at the same time is as
> comfortable to manipulate as a console controller or keyboard/mouse
> setup or as easy on the eyes as a moderately sized TV or monitor. I've
> tried the DS and it doesn't break those rules."

OK. I'll give you that the controls on the portable aren't as good as a
console or computer. But it's pretty close to a console. Both are blown
away by a mouse/keyboard, and a TV (even HDTV) sucks compared to a
computer monitor. So, if you're not going to play a RPG on a computer,
like God intended, does it really matter what lesser machine you use?

> "What makes you think I'm talking about the location?  That's only one
> part of the comfort equation, and a relatively minor one at that.  If
> I have to hunch over the thing and contort my hands to play it, it
> doesn't matter if I'm in a frigging meadow; it's still not going to be
> comfortable."

I don't hunch over my PSP.

> ">But that's nothing that a save file can't fix.   
> 
> "It is if you don't allow the player to save where ever he wants,
> which is the case with console RPGs.

It's simple. Shut it off when you're done. Turn it on when you want to
play again. You really only need save games for when you want to do
something else with it.

> And besides that, save files
> still don't fix the problem of not feeling like you've accomplished
> anything after your ten minutes of play.  Not many console RPGs can
> give you that sense of accomplishment in that short amount of time."

  What about daily commutes?

-- 
Mike Swaim swaim@hal-pc.org at home | Quote: "Boingie"^4 Y,W & D
MD Anderson Division of Quantitative Sciences
mpswaim@mdanderson.org or mswaim@odin.mdacc.tmc.edu at work
ICBM: 29.763N 95.363W|Disclaimer: Yeah, like I speak for MD Anderson.