Microsoft Rumored to Be Planning the End of the Xbox Brand Name.

Microsoft already has a brand name. It's called MICROSOFT.

MotionNight

unlike Nintendo or Atari tho, Sega/Sony/Microsoft's actual names have never been synonymous with gaming

nobody ever said "i'm going to go play the NES" or "play the 2600" they always said "play the nintendo" or "play the atari"

similarly, nobody ever said "i'm going to go play the Sega" or "play the Sony" or "play the Microsoft"

Sony is more synonymous with tv/stereos/cameras, hence why they plaster Playstation on everything gaming-related

similarly Microsoft is more synonymous with Windows or Office, that's where most people first learn of the company

so yeah... if they dropped "Xbox" they HAVE to come up with a new name that people can easily recognize (sort of like how Sega did "Genesis" and "Dreamcast")

[QUOTE="MotionNight"]

Microsoft already has a brand name. It's called MICROSOFT.

88mphSlayer

unlike Nintendo or Atari tho, Sega/Sony/Microsoft's actual names have never been synonymous with gaming

nobody ever said "i'm going to go play the NES" or "play the 2600" they always said "play the nintendo" or "play the atari"

similarly, nobody ever said "i'm going to go play the Sega" or "play the Sony" or "play the Microsoft"

Sony is more synonymous with tv/stereos/cameras, hence why they plaster Playstation on everything gaming-related

similarly Microsoft is more synonymous with Windows or Office, that's where most people first learn of the company

so yeah... if they dropped "Xbox" they HAVE to come up with a new name that people can easily recognize (sort of like how Sega did "Genesis" and "Dreamcast")

You make a great point here. I'm in my 30s and have been gaming my whole life...since home consoles first came out. I still do that. If someone asked me what I did, and I was playing some Mario, I say, "I played some Nintendo." But I've never said I've played some Sony. Instead I say that I played some Playstation.

That is a very odd business move and I personally think they are wasting their time with Natal. Motion controls are out there for $250, why would people run out and buy a $300 console and then a $100+ controller that isn't used in most games?

This whole Natal thing is a bad joke in my opinion. The videos of people playing it are very sad (people jumping around and looking like fools), the games so far that I've seen have been nothing more than enhanced Playstation Eye games that I played back on the PS2, and to top it off the prices are going to be way to high.

Microsoft should stick to their strengths. An increadibly powerful online network. Use that to their advantage even more. Get some more R&D money going to 1st party titles and really use the strengths of the 360 to make some AAA quality titles that sell.

Wasdie

[QUOTE="Hahadouken"]That's silly, Xbox name has great brand recognition. I hope they don't rebrand it to whatever "Natal" is going to be called.MotionNight

I don't think you know who the casual gamers really are. Sorry, but they aren't the people buying Wii Fit and Wii Sports. Those are a whole new market altogether. The real casual gamers are the new market that prettymuch makes up the majority of console sales for, yes, the Xbox and PS3. The teenager crowd who plays GTA and Forza and pretty much any FPS game out there. THOSE are casual gamers and the majority of any console audience is casual gamers.

So the Xbox is already well known by casual gamers. If you are saying the XBox is trying to go after the people who buy the Wii...well, I think that is just a bad idea on MS's part because I don't see these people moving up the gaming ladder. I say this because my parents bought a Wii recently and they have ZERO interest in playing anything other than Wii Fit and Wii Sports Resort. I even bought my Dad Tiger Woods Golf because he likes the Wii Sports golf so much...and I don't think he's played it more than once because it is too complex and takes too much time. He still keeps playing Wii Sports.

Sony and MS would be stupid to go out of their way to attract this new audience. This audience isn't going to buy a ton of games and Sony and MS rely heavily on heavy game purchases to subsidize their console loses.

[QUOTE="MotionNight"]

Microsoft already has a brand name. It's called MICROSOFT.

88mphSlayer

unlike Nintendo or Atari tho, Sega/Sony/Microsoft's actual names have never been synonymous with gaming

nobody ever said "i'm going to go play the NES" or "play the 2600" they always said "play the nintendo" or "play the atari"

similarly, nobody ever said "i'm going to go play the Sega" or "play the Sony" or "play the Microsoft"

Sony is more synonymous with tv/stereos/cameras, hence why they plaster Playstation on everything gaming-related

similarly Microsoft is more synonymous with Windows or Office, that's where most people first learn of the company

so yeah... if they dropped "Xbox" they HAVE to come up with a new name that people can easily recognize (sort of like how Sega did "Genesis" and "Dreamcast")

Nintendo built a brand around gaming over decades with the NES, Super Nintendo and Nintendo 64.

Neither Sony nor Microsoft, in and of themselves, are brands that people would associate with gaming.

People suggesting that the Microsoft 720 or whatever would have the same marketing pull without the XBOX brand, simply because Nintendo is able to name their consoles things like GameCube and Wii, are fooling themselves. They're entirely different situations.

Wii haz killed xbox?

So MS spent billions getting worldwide brand recognition and now they're going to ditch it for an add-on? Yeah, right. Sorry, but this isn't even remotely believable.

[QUOTE="MotionNight"][QUOTE="Hahadouken"]That's silly, Xbox name has great brand recognition. I hope they don't rebrand it to whatever "Natal" is going to be called.ZIMdoom

I don't think you know who the casual gamers really are. Sorry, but they aren't the people buying Wii Fit and Wii Sports. Those are a whole new market altogether. The real casual gamers are the new market that prettymuch makes up the majority of console sales for, yes, the Xbox and PS3. The teenager crowd who plays GTA and Forza and pretty much any FPS game out there. THOSE are casual gamers and the majority of any console audience is casual gamers.

So the Xbox is already well known by casual gamers. If you are saying the XBox is trying to go after the people who buy the Wii...well, I think that is just a bad idea on MS's part because I don't see these people moving up the gaming ladder. I say this because my parents bought a Wii recently and they have ZERO interest in playing anything other than Wii Fit and Wii Sports Resort. I even bought my Dad Tiger Woods Golf because he likes the Wii Sports golf so much...and I don't think he's played it more than once because it is too complex and takes too much time. He still keeps playing Wii Sports.

Sony and MS would be stupid to go out of their way to attract this new audience. This audience isn't going to buy a ton of games and Sony and MS rely heavily on heavy game purchases to subsidize their console loses.

Well the people who play GTA, Forza, and excessive FPS I call "mainstream" gamers. I refer to Wii Fit, Wii Sports audience as casual.

But even so, Microsoft has something that could potentially appeal to those casuals. Microsoft I'm sure wants the success the Wii has, and they can pull off massive console sales if Natal hits right. That's why they're showing it off to celebrities, have Speilberg or whoever backing it. I'm sure they can do it in a way where they make profit and don't need to rely on huge software sales.

I mean they can make a virtual puppy game that could out-do games like Nintendogs easily.

Bull****.

BS. There's no way this happens.

There going 100% casual :lol:

[QUOTE="MotionNight"]

Microsoft already has a brand name. It's called MICROSOFT.

88mphSlayer

unlike Nintendo or Atari tho, Sega/Sony/Microsoft's actual names have never been synonymous with gaming

Why the hell are so many people automatically believing this?

Just for kicks, I'm going to spread a rumor that Nintendo are taking over the Grand Theft Auto series and watch as only a few people take it with a grain of salt.

Why the hell are so many people automatically believing this?

Just for kicks, I'm going to spread a rumor that Nintendo are taking over the Grand Theft Auto series and watch as only a few people take it with a grain of salt.

GreySeal9

[QUOTE="GreySeal9"]

Why the hell are so many people automatically believing this?

Just for kicks, I'm going to spread a rumor that Nintendo are taking over the Grand Theft Auto series and watch as only a few people take it with a grain of salt.

bigM10231

Well, in my rumor, R* has nothing to do with GTA anymore. It belongs solely to Nintendo. Would you still believe it?

I think that's a great idea. Never did like the name "xbox" in the first place.

I dnt believe that their making too much money on the xbox

There going 100% casual :lol:

Mestitia

I think that's a great idea. Never did like the name "xbox" in the first place.

Bigboi500

Man i cant get NATAL since i live in an apartment and i wont be able to jump around, jump around, jump up and down.

Maybe their next console just won't be called Xbox? I really don't see why they would stop

good idea

xbox just seems too hardcore gamerish (if that makes any sense)

microsoft knows it needs to do what nintendo did, and appeal to a broader audience than just gamers, and to do that they'll have to consider a name change. "Xbox" is a bit too much.

This would be the stupidest move ever. You spent all this gen and took tons of losses last gen to get XBOX a household name, and now that it is, you want to ditch it?

That is a very odd business move and I personally think they are wasting their time with Natal. Motion controls are out there for $250, why would people run out and buy a $300 console and then a $100+ controller that isn't used in most games?

This whole Natal thing is a bad joke in my opinion. The videos of people playing it are very sad (people jumping around and looking like fools), the games so far that I've seen have been nothing more than enhanced Playstation Eye games that I played back on the PS2, and to top it off the prices are going to be way to high.

Microsoft should stick to their strengths. An increadibly powerful online network. Use that to their advantage even more. Get some more R&D money going to 1st party titles and really use the strengths of the 360 to make some AAA quality titles that sell.

Wasdie

Same old Microsoft. Its gonna go down just like what they did to the last xbox. Your water is about to be cut off literally. I wonder if they will still run live for the xbox though?

This one reason why I bought a ps3 because I wanted to continue to play online after they release their next console. MS doesn't do that with their consoles as they are constantly looking for a way to drive more money out of the consumer but I really think this time its going to back fire on them.