Like grief or a forbidden love affair driven by destructive lust, the response to any major videogame console launch tends to develop in a series of predictable stages. After a brief saunter around the key US news sites and forums this morning it's clear that the US premiere of the Xbox 360 is progressing in the familiar age-old manner.
First, of course, there's the unguarded excitement: the queues of young men, the hyperbolic news stories, the initial showing off, the amusing 'my nightmare trying to get hold of one' anecdotes, and an hour or so later, the inevitable Ebay story. But, no doubt to the chagrin of the marketing men who have spent months stage-managing the event, this stage never lasts long. As soon as off-message members of the hoi polloi actually start trying to use the hardware, reality begins to seep into the carefully purified hype resevoir like foul-smelling effluent.
The subsequent more chaotic stage begins with early reports of hardware problems (systems crashing every 10-15 seconds, strange flashing lights..). Then the launch games start malfunctioning and quickly, mere hours after launch, the backlash begins in earnest, with forums, blogs and news sites everywhere rushing to get a piece of the critical action.
And then finally, inescapably, somebody smashes one, and puts the pictures on an hilarious website with anti-consumerist leanings.
This draws a line under the launch process, and allows the videogaming community to return to normal.
Roll on PS3!
