Console malfunctions anger gamers
This past weekend, my PlayStation 3 decided to stop functioning. The problem was the disc drive refused to read any of my games, or in some cases, it read the discs, but the game froze at some point. However, after a day of rest, the console started to work again, but this little incident has sparked an old complaint that I have about the newest generation of consoles: their vulnerability to numerous breakdowns.
In the era of the PlayStation 2 and Xbox, the two systems were almost invincible to problems. They could be stored in a closet for a year and gather dust, and could still function properly. The only issue would be the gather of dust inside each console, which could be solved through a quick purge with a high-pressure air can. Other than that, the systems never overheated, the graphics card never fried and the laser disc reader could always read the disc. In other words, if a game was not functioning, do not blame the system, but blame the multiple scratches on the disc.
One would assume the newest game consoles would solve any internal problems to make them completely problem-proof, but apparently the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 have only become worse than their predecessors in system failures and constant internal issues. The first incident from the new generation was the Xbox 360’s “Red Ring of Death,” which resulted from multiple technical difficulties that arose within the console. This became the symbol of the lackluster performance of the 360 and many gamers had their consoles replaced multiple times. The issue still occurs now, but at a lower frequency, thanks to multiple software upgrades and the release of a new version of the console.
The PlayStation 3 suffered the same issue with the only difference being the color of the light. In this case, PS3 owners called their problem the “Yellow Light of Death.” This problem did not occur as often as the “Red Ring of Death,” but another problem arose with the system. Last year, the internal clock within the system did not understand the concept of leap years, which caused the shutdown of the PlayStation Network and games stopped working after a few minutes. Of course, the problem was resolved, but the biggest issue of the incident was that the incident was not even thought to be possible. It would seem the development team did not expect this kind of issue to arise and merely brushed it away.
These are, of course, software issues, but hardware issues exist as well for these consoles. Discs become stuck inside the system, there is constant overheating, the graphics card will eventually burn out and in my case, the disc reader will fail to read the disc. This kind of issue should not be occurring in these consoles.
It is expected that if a new product is released, it will perform better and will be less prone to accidents than the previous model. Now, obviously, that is not the case for these two systems, and it is wrong. Gamers pay $200 to $300 for each console, and they expect good quality from their purchase. Instead, people pay $75 to $150 to repair them after a hardware or software malfunction. Hopefully, the research and development team for the next generation of consoles can fix these issues and finally give people a better, stronger and more secure gaming system.
