Microsoft Defense Force

Bye!

Well well well, just what do we have here. This story hasn’t got the most exposure over the last few weeks… but if anyone knows just exactly what went into developing the Cell Broadband Engine, will be shaking their heads right now.

The Cell processor was being dubbed as the next big step in micro-processing technology… the big cheese of the computing world. It was going to be the game changer. The world wide web was filling up with all sorts of mythical, magical uses… it was going to be in your phones, your microwaves, your AM radio…

Then the bubble burst. For pretty good reason too. The super-processor, dubbed the “Broadband Engine”, had a foundation of extreme complexity. A serious amount of manpower went into the making of the Cell BE. The very best from Sony Computer Entertainment, Toshiba and IBM pooled their collective intelligence from 400 minds in Austin, USA to ultimately create a monster of a microchip… pretty understandable from that amount of intelligence on one product.

The Cell BE engine didn’t half shit up developers however. Many had re-occurring nightmares of developing for the PS2 and it’s Emotion Engine. In time, the Emotion Engines complexity was broken down (at a far quicker rate than the Broadband Engine) and before you knew it, games such as God of War was showing the world how to truly harness the power of the PlayStation 2. This time round… it hasn’t been so easy.

In theory, the Broadband Engine is capable of great, great things – when developers have learned how to unlock the power beneath the surface. It’s been 4 years… and the worlds finest game developers haven’t unlocked the power. But we all know it’s there.

“IBM was able to build the specialized coprocessor in high enough volumes to keep its price down because the company was successful in selling it to Sony as a game console chip; the degree to which Cell, which gives the PS3 higher peak theoretical performance than the Xbox 360, has worked out for Sony is debatable” – Jon Stokes, Ars

When it comes to the direct competition… Microsoft have clearly done the right thing. Comparable graphics and performance to date to the PlayStation 3, using only 3 cores in its Xenon processor. They kept the costs down, developers happy by using a familiar architecture, and the whole development process less complex than the PlayStation 3. Even today, the large majority of multi-platform games look better on the XBOX 360.

There have recently been talks about the PlayStation 4 using the same Broadband Engine that is found in the PlayStation 3. Wise decision? The way Sony’s finances are heading – yes. Will it actually happen? – Probably not, unless Toshiba take over the Broadband Engine fabrication. It will be interesting to see how Toshiba’s Cell TV turns out.

Sony will be learning lessons here boys and girls… that “too many cooks spoil the broth”. 400 of them to be exact.

Ars Technica – End of the line for IBM’s Cell