From PC to Console

Closedbox

We saw it coming. There is a reason why so many PC gamers out there view Microsoft’s Xbox and other consoles as potential threats. While the PlayStation 2 and GameCube are still considered strict game machines, we all know that the Xbox is just a closed-box PC. The Xbox being a closed system gives developers a very stable environment to optimize for, and thus yielding double the power one may expect from a 700-MHz CPU, 64 MB of RAM, and a GeForce 3.5. It is easy to see how PC developers could be easily lured away, if not for the luxuries of working within a closed system, then by Microsoft’s influence.

We’ve seen how Xbox gamers still laugh in the fact of PC-only gamers at how those willing to up with the gamepad got to play Halo almost two years ahead of the keyboard and mousers. Nevertheless, the PC-only gamers still had their day.

Theftbox

Then there are the other games which the Xbox shamelessly snatched away from the PC. The Mech series became the Xbox-only affair MechAssault. Midtown Madness is Only on Xbox for its third outing. And now, Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge is the latest reason for those beige-box owners to cry, “Why have you forsaken us?”

Yes, Microsoft Game Studios air combat game has left the PC and has landed on Xbox’s landing strip (which might actually be physically possible, given the console’s dimensions).

For those of you who can look past this latest PC theft and perhaps actually own an Xbox, you’ll be interested to know that Crimson Skies is one of the very best action games of the year. Read on for our review.