Setting up some consoles (P4)

PS3:

Take the power cord (the one with a plug at one end) and stick it into the furthest right socket in the back of the PS3. The port has two prongs but lacks a clear indication of which way up the cord goes, however it works either way.

Take the HDMI cable and connect it to the TV, the HDMI port on the PS3 is to the left of the AV port, which is to the left of the power cable.

Next up you need to connect the controller(s), to do so take the controller cable, plug the USB end (the larger end) into one of  the rectangular USB slots on the front and plug the other end into the top of the controller. Plugging the controller into the machine charges it and sets it so that that controller will only effect that PS3 until it is plugged into another.

Open the machine and insert the game.

Turn on the machine at the plug socket and then press the power button (on the front right of the machine with a red light on it), you need to select your profile, if this is your first time then just select new user and follow the instructions on-screen with your information. Afterwards, cycle through the menus until you reach the game menu, then scroll down until you have selected the game and press 'X' on the controller.

PS4:

Plug in the power cable, it goes at the bottom left on the back of the console.

Next the HDMI cable, this is located up and to the right of the power cable, the second furthest slot to the left.

Next up you need to insert the game, press the eject button before attempting to insert the game. DO NOT attempt to force the game in, lightly press it against the empty disc drive and it should be pulled in. The eject button is located in the space between the two sections of the PS4 at the front, and is the lower down of the two buttons.

Next you would connect the controllers in the same fashion as with the PS3.

Once the system is switched on (by pressing the power button (above the disc drive and eject buttons)) you need to select your profile, if this is your first time then just select new user and follow the instructions on-screen with your information. 

Once on the main menu select the game you have inserted and play away.

Xbox One:

The xbox one power cable has two prongs and goes into the slot on the far left of the machine, it is identifiable by the xbox symbol on top, which also indicates which way up it goes, the same symbol is above the power cord slot.

The HDMI cable goes into the slot right next to the power cord, this cable has HDMI written on top of it. There are two HDMI slots but the one that is needed has 'HDMI OUT TO TV' written above it.

The sensor cable has an image of the Xbox One kinect on top and above the slot, the slot is the third from the right.

Next up you need to insert the game, press the eject button before attempting to insert the game. DO NOT attempt to force the game in, lightly press it against the empty disc drive and it should be pulled in. The eject button is to the right of the disc slot.

Finally just switch on the device,  you need to select your profile, if this is your first time then just select new user and follow the instructions on-screen with your information. Sign in, hover over the menus until you reach the game and then press the 'A' button to start the game.

PC:

First of all plug the computer in with the power cable, the cable has three slots in one end and a plug at the other, put the plug end into a socket and put the other end into the computer, the slot has a power switch above it and three prongs inside to mark which way the cable goes.

Next connect the video cable, for standard monitor use the cable has one oddly shaped end with many small pins inside and two 'screws' sticking out which are twisted and tightened to hold the cable in place after it is connected. The slot is trapezium shaped (the same shape as the end of the cable) with one nut either side for securing purposes. Make sure the cable is the correct way around else you could break the pins and leave the cable useless.

To control the computer you need to attach your peripherals, there are multiple USB ports, two at the front and at least two in the back, plug the keyboard and mouse (and/or any other USB devices you want to use) into any of the USB ports. 

Turn on the computer at both the plug socket and the power switch on the back, then press the power button at the front (the large round one), sign in to a profile (or create a new one) and then double click on the game you want to play from the desktop.

Software utilities (P3)

Software utilities presentation

Hardware technology for games platforms (P2)

Introduction:

There are many different types of hardware technology for games platforms, all of it important to making a functional and marketable console,

Interface devices: These allows users to interact with the machine, there are many types of controllers you could use with a game, including steering wheels, which contain rotation sensors to turn in the corresponding direction when they are tilted, cameras such as the eye-toy and Kinect, which observe an area and recognise movement to respond accordingly, and joysticks which would originally consist of the handle with a 4 pronged metal plate underneath which relied on electrical contacts, which was an unreliable, unresponsive, easy to break and utterly cheap system, they quickly changed to using 4 pressure sensitive micro-switches to alert the computer which direction the stick is in, which are slightly more costly, but are more reliable, responsive and durable. Controller developers are always considering ergonomics, because a more comfortable controller is more popular and sells more, for example, most arcade sticks would be symmetrical, so that they could be used by either left or right handed users.

The R.A.T computer mouse series is designed to be fully customisable, from spacing of the grips, to changing the weights to how sensitive the control wheel is and what sort of textures are on the individual panels for maximum comfort, as well as being available in either left or right handed models.

Not everyone puts practicality ahead of potential innovation, in particular Nintendo, with examples such as the largely unresponsive, rectangular easy to lose grip of Wii remote and the ridiculously useless power glove. The power glove was supposed to use a series of sensors that would be strapped onto a TV and register movements and actions made with the glove, it also came fully equipped with a keypad and D-pad so it was possible to play games by using it as a normal controller, albeit with great difficulty. Unfortunately the sensor would barely fit on any TVs, even if you could get it on then the controller would not transmit anything anyway.


CPU: The central processing unit is the brain of the computer, it takes all of the information being sent to it and interprets the data as something we could make sense of, by directing the commands it creates to display and audio peripherals.

Game platform types (P1)

Introduction.
There are many types of games platforms, all with advantages, disadvantages, limitations and unique strengths that give each one a reason to be around, gaming has come a long way, with old competitors dropping out and new blood becoming major console contributors.


PC: What many consider the 'master race' of gaming, PCs offer no additional charges for online play other than the cost of your internet connection, access to thousands of games, easy ways to find games online cheaply with services such as steam and the capacity to be upgraded with increased RAM, graphics cards, memory or any other specifications you may need, allowing one computer to be upgraded to run even the most taxing of games, without needing to buy a whole new console every few years. However powerful PCs are often more expensive than any console and require long installing times for larger games, although once installed a disc is not usually required. Another point in PC gaming's favour is that they can obtain theoretically any game from any system through the use of emulators, such as MAME the arcade emulator that can be used to play any arcade game from any arcade machine for free endlessly.

Consoles: There are two main types of consoles, stand-alone consoles and handhelds. The stand-alone consoles are often powerful and cheaper than PCs, which just require putting in the disc in order to jump straight into a game, however the latest generation of gaming is changing that, with long installation times before each game can be played which, unlike the PC, still requires the disc to be inserted to play the game afterwards. Stand-alone consoles didn't have online play until the generation which introduced the overlooked Sega Dreamcast and the more well known PlayStation 2, which Microsoft also took advantage of with the Xbox, online play was free, but on certain consoles now such as Xbox 360 and Xbox one you have to pay regular fees for the service. Handhelds meanwhile have free online play, portability, quick to access casual games and lower prices than home consoles. Handhelds in recent years however, have been filled with gimmicks which many see as problems, such as the Nintendo 3DS having a 3D feature which currently adds nothing to games. Also due to their small size handhelds have very low processing power in comparison to home consoles, limiting what kind of graphics and game sizes you could have.

Arcade: Arcade machines are often very low tech and rely on people constantly putting money in to play them, they have been around a while and have all sorts of variations, they rarely ever use a traditional controller, instead having setups that are based on real vehicles, point and shoot light guns or even card systems to control the game. In terms of multiplayer, most arcade games will either have the option to connect to another of the same machine if they are driving based games or multiple players will be able to shoot at the screen at once if they are shooting games They are essentially very low tech PCs with just one program installed which is the chosen game. If someone were to buy an arcade machine they would be very expensive and they are limited to a single game, making them a poor choice for frequent gaming. The last problem is that they require money every single time you want to play, making them costly to use often. Due to the limits of having only one game per system each arcade machine is customised by the manufacturers to show and promote the game inside, with fancy artwork on the wooden casing and silk-screened artwork on the bezel of the machine.

Mobile: Often overlooked as a gaming platform, mobiles are the most common gaming platform because they are so common, most of the population of earth own a smartphone or other android device which is capable of running games which can be easily downloaded, often for free, as long as you have an internet connection, there are no charges for online play and the games are quick and easy to start and play casually, however due to being specialised for other functions the games can be hard to control and are limited in what they can achieve due to the limits of the device, which aren't designed for playing large games, not to mention most games require being online to play. Also due to the incredibly diverse range of mobile models and operating systems, there are many games which won't work with all devices.

TV gaming: the least popular and least successful of all the forms of gaming, TV gaming usually involves certain shows or channels having an option to press a certain button on your remote, often the 'red button', to access simple features such as behind the scenes reviews and basic games depending on the situation. Most games are either multiple choice or just quiz games, that are simple because a TV is not designed to run highly powered graphics, just display video files which are smaller and far less taxing. There really isn't a lot to TV gaming and as a result not a lot to say.

Now it is time for a brief history of videogames, not every console will be included because it would take too long, but some of the more notable events and releases will be detailed:

1958: The first videogame is technically tennis for two, a game in which an oscilloscope was modified into a crude 2D tennis game.

1962: The next game is essentially the first arcade machine: spacewar!, it was a game in which two ships would fire at each-over, attempting to destroy the other before their own demise, it was made on a PDP-1 computer.


1967: The next major development was the brown box, by Ralph Baer it was designed to be the first home console for multiple players with multiple games to play. It was only a prototype that was never released commercially.

1972: The company Magnavox became interested in the brown box, and so with licensing and some modifications the first home console was released for the world; the Magnavox odyssey.

1975: Atari entered the console market with a home version of their PONG arcade game.

1977: Nintendo, formerly a playing cards company, released their color tv game series, which was never released outside of Japan.

1983: Sega revealed their contribution to what was becoming a console arms race; the Sega SG-1000. The same year Nintendo blew them away with what is one of the best selling games consoles of all time; the Nintendo NES, which announced to the rest of the world that Nintendo were serious competitors in the console wars.

1988: The Sega Genesis/Mega drive, Sega's most famous and successful console, was released as the first 16-bit console.

1989: The Nintendo Gameboy, the first handheld console which could support multiple games, unlike the game and watch series which had one game built into each, was released, offering portable gaming and in game communications through the link cable. It lacked colour, but this would be fixed a few years later.


1993: What is called the first 32-bit console, the Commodore Amiga CD32 was released, a bit obscure despite this title however. Atari revealed what would become their final console; the Atari jaguar, which was received by many as a terrible system, the jaguar seemed to seal Atari's fate to lose the war. Although it was the first 64-bit console, it was still pretty inferior to older consoles despite the supposed technological advantage, which just goes to show that having more bits wasn't enough.

1994: Sony became a household name with the release of the PlayStation, which was the first major console to use discs instead of cartridges to store games, allowing larger games at the cost of longer load times.

1997: The Sega genesis 3 was released, this would be the last console ever to use cartridges.

R.I.P game cartridges: 1967-1997

1998: Sega's final console was the Sega Dreamcast, which although not hugely popular, was actually considered revolutionary by those who appreciate it, with features such as online play. It was the first 128-bit console and although it shut down production in 2001, dropping Sega from the hardware business and becoming a third party developer, games are still being produced by fans even now in 2013! For what is considered a failure, this 15-year old console seems to still be kicking. The first console of the Sixth generation of consoles.

2000: The PlayStation 2 came into the world, which popularised online gameplay and is considered to be the best console of all time or at least having the best library of games of any console, with famous exclusives such as Shadow of the Colossus due to it's massive third party support. The PlayStation 2 has sold more units than any other console in history, selling over 150million in total worldwide, PS2 systems would continue to be manufactured for up to 12 years after it's initial release! It also had a feature called backwards compatibility which allowed it to play PlayStation 1 games.

2001: Microsoft decided that they wanted a piece of the action, unleashing the Xbox, a massively well known console, it followed in the footsteps of the PS2, with online play and the infamous Halo franchise, however the PS2 is considered more successful, due to it's head start and larger variety of games. Nintendo released the GameCube, the last Nintendo console to designed to try and be the most powerful, and as an assumed result best, console.
2004: The Nintendo ds, the best selling hand-held console to date and second best selling console of all time (beaten only by the PS2) is released worldwide. The ds features backwards compatibility with Gameboy advance games, online play, a built in microphone and a touch screen.  The PlayStation portable (PSP) is released in Japan. The PSP is the first hand-held to use disc based games rather than cartridges and features the first console network, the PlayStation network, which allows features such as internet access. The seventh console generation had begun.
2005: The rest of the world receives PSP releases and the Xbox360 is released just 4 years after it's predecessor. The Xbox360 has features such as an online games market and general internet access but now requires users to set their account up for a service called Xbox live and then pay monthly fees to play online.



2006: The PlayStation 3 is released, it has many of the features of the Xbox360 but while you do still have to make a PlayStation network account to play online there are no additional fees required, instead there is 'PlayStation plus' which provides discounts and access to certain games for free for as long as you pay for the service. The PlayStation 3, depending on which version you got also had backwards compatibility, original PS3 systems were compatible with PS2 games and newer ones had PS1 compatibility. Also released was the Nintendo Wii, a staggeringly underpowered console considering the PS3 and Xbox360, barely passing the GameCube, it's primary feature was it's motion controls which didn't really work very well, however it was relatively cheap and seemingly aimed at young children and families, although this was not actually the case, as a result it still sold well despite how much it is mocked by many gamers.
2012: The first console of the eighth generation of consoles is released worldwide, the PlayStation vita, it has a touch screen, two control sticks as opposed to one and access to the PlayStation network included, with an online games store. Nintendo releases two consoles, first is the hand-held Nintendo 3DS, an upgraded ds without the microphone and a unique built in 3D feature, which slightly backfired in that it could cause medical problems with younger viewers. The second console is the Wii U, which is a more powerful version of it's predecessor, with a new controller pad that has a built in touch screen and looks like a bloated PS vita and Wii remote hybrid, it still has the standard remotes available however.















2013:
The last entries for the eighth generation of consoles are upon us, the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One, both have online play which requires fees to use, PlayStation plus now being mandatory for online games, both consoles have similar internal components, although PS4 is cheaper, Xbox comes packed with a new Kinect sensor as standard, neither have backwards compatibility and they can connect together, however the PS4 runs in 1080p resolution while Xbox One uses 720p, the PS4 controller also features a built in touch pad. Also the networks, PlayStation network and Xbox live are the same as on the previous generation consoles, so you will not need to make a new account to go from Xbox360 to Xbox One or PS3 to PS4.