PS3 Oblivion content will hit 360 too
by Richard Mitchell 
{ Oct 12th 2006 at 3:30PM }
Some of you may have heard that the PS3 is getting its very own version of Oblivion, the 360's premiere RPG. Having heard this, you may also have heard that the PS3 would be seeing some content that isn't available for the 360 version. Upon hearing this, you may have been somewhat, shall we say, bummed. Fear not, bummed out Oblivionites, for Bethesda has spoken and the news is good. When IGN asked if the PS3 content -- titled Knights of the Nine -- would be available for PC and 360, Bethesda's Todd Howard replied, "We always aim to have all our content available across all platforms, so that is our goal." So there you have it, folks. Expect to see Knights of the Nine available sometime in the not too distant future.
And since we can't resist kicking a little fanboy sand every once in a while, we'd like to point out that Bethesda is still in the dark concerning downloadable content on the PS3. Gotta love that Xbox Live.
[Via Xboxic]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
JJ @ Oct 12th 2006 3:37PM
Now what'll be the kicker is if they charge 360 users for it... if they do... they should be burned at the stakes or tarred and feathered.
I mean if the PS3 is getting everything the official PC and 360 downloads got for free in their purchase and THEN some, then the 360 should get some love and not be charged any points for the D/L
DA360 @ Oct 12th 2006 4:30PM
Well, not surprised by that, they don't seem to want any exclusivity for any of their content. But I wonder now, if any of the extra packs included in the 360 version are in the PS3 version, if they will make them free. Bungie eventually made the Halo 2 maps free, so why couldn't Bethesda do the same for Oblivion?
xfan @ Oct 12th 2006 4:33PM
It seemed logical they would offer the content to 360 and PC users. It's easy enough to download.
J.Goodwin @ Oct 12th 2006 4:35PM
EA also made the first map pack for BF Middle Earth 2 free, at least for a brief time. It was a preorder item, or you could pay a certain number of points for it, and I think they dropped the price at one point as well from some absurd number to 350 points.
And if EA, King of All Microtransactions can make stuff free, then that's some solid precedence.
I think we all suspected that this content would be showing up on 360, but it's really nice to hear it from the horses' mouths.
JameyT @ Oct 12th 2006 4:59PM
Any other eyebrows raised at the idea that a month from launching this, the developer doesn't have details about the online system?
stumpie @ Oct 12th 2006 5:45PM
Sony online is simply screwed. Who would be so silly to purchase a PS3 at this point yet alone wait in line for hours.
Chris @ Oct 12th 2006 8:17PM
As much as I hoping that it will be free I would be willing to bed money it's going to cost money.
I'll pay as long as it doesn't cost too much. I don't want to be left out.
JJ @ Oct 12th 2006 9:10PM
i'm getting a PS3 stumpie.
Not waiting in line either.
Getting a Wii too without waiting in like for that matter as well.
Why? Because i like my gaming trifecta... served me well last gen, why not this gen too?
Ninegauger @ Oct 13th 2006 12:27AM
Playing Oblivion about a year before I'd be able to on the PS3 is worth one, I'd imagine reasonably priced, DLC. In that interview you'll also notice that all the other content that hss thus far been released on the 360 won't be in the PS3 version standard... if I remember correctly.
JohnnySoprano @ Oct 13th 2006 1:42AM
It's not so much the content that I'm worried about. That's obviously easily added through our lovely little XBLA, but the minor upgrades to the engine that fix up shadows and help blend the currently harsh difference between near and far load zones is something that PS3 fanboys will be gloating about if it's only available on the PS3, obviously using it to argue the PS3's greater power. Hopefully bethesda can release THAT in some sort of update. I don't care if it takes up room on my HDD, I want my Oblivion to look every bit as good as the next console's.
Garrett @ Oct 13th 2006 4:28AM
I don't know that the 360 will get the PS3 tweaks, at least not yet. Bloodmoon and Tribunal gave Morrowind some extra interface refinements (map markers, better journal design, etc.), but those were only available with those expansions. I'd say if Beth does give the 360 these graphical tweaks it will be as part of the expansion (assuming there is one).
However the PS3's graphical prowess may amount to nothing. Blu-Ray discs spin slower, therefore theoretically hampering attempts to improve streaming. Beth aren't known for well-optimised code, either; Morrowind still runs badly on PCs that can run Half-Life 2 and the like smoothly.
These graphical tweaks won't be very effective cannon fodder if the PS3's non-unified content service prevents Beth from delivering DLC to players. For all the Xbox/360's faults (alleged or genuine), Live is a real winner.
Of course MS had time to perfect it when developing the Internet Gaming Zone. Live is clearly its spiritual successor: lobbies, ladders, gametype servers, simple arcade-style games--all have been present in the Zone's service since around 1998, and all Microsoft games provided full support for all applicable features.
Sony adopting Xfire was a good move (since they have no previous experience outside the PS2's shoddy online support), but making it non-unified wasn't. Xfire is solid enough to build a viable Live alternative from if they made it unified and evolved its codebase. As it is, the vague grab-bag of implementation options presented to third-party developers may make or break their online support.