The Anti-Consumer Direction of Xbox One: Thoughts from Gamers

[Ryan_m_b]

I'm not a gamer anymore (my xbox broke two years ago and I never replaced it) so I'm a bit out of touch. However I've read a bit about the new xbox one and I have to say I'm distinctly unimpressed by the direction modern consoles are going in. Any thoughts from gamers or otherwise?

For me the most disturbing feature is that the new xbox will apparently require games to be linked to an account. If you sell or lend a game to someone they will have to pay a fee to link it to their account. I can't imagine that this kind of anti-consumer tactic will do anything but alienate the market.

Some links covering the reveal:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-22613948
http://www.computerandvideogames.com/407912/microsoft-confirms-pre-owned-fee-for-xbox-one/
http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2013/05/xbox-one-analysis/

 

[WannabeNewton]

Yeah the online linkage is apparently a way to combat piracy although gamers always find a way around these constraints. But, like many others, I will probably buy the new xbox anyways, complain about how much I hate its terrible graphics capabilities, buy the onslaught of Call of Duty games, complain about how much I hate those, and still play them for hours on end. Hooray console gaming!

As far as the online linking thing goes, Ubisoft tried a similar thing with Assassins Creed 2, and IIRC their subsequent AC games, but that failed once people found a crack that overrides the lock.

I was never one to lend games to others anyways. I was too paranoid about the discs getting messed up. What I'm hoping is that Bethesda makes an insanely awesome Elder Scrolls game for the new xbox as soon as it comes out, just like they did with TES 4: Oblivion when the 360 first came out. Good times...

 

[jedishrfu]

I read an article where both Sony and MS plan to dump the CELL processor and use X86 based CPU instead. This mean a break in continuity where old games won't be playable on the new machines. MS has said it will be easier to write the same game for PC or for XBox.

Game companies have reserved their opinions on the change since now they must do rewrites to factor in the new graphics power presented by these platforms. This could be too risky/costly for some developers.

 

[WannabeNewton]

I would be happier if they just brought back the classics. I want to play a graphically revamped version of KOTOR, which is arguably the greatest game of all time. Heck just bring back all the good ol' Bioware games into the new xbox.

 

[Ryan_m_b]

As far as the online linking thing goes, Ubisoft tried a similar thing with Assassins Creed 2, and IIRC their subsequent AC games, but that failed once people found a crack that overrides the lock.

I wonder how easy that would be if it is inbuilt to the console, probably not very.

I was never one to lend games to others anyways. I was too paranoid about the discs getting messed up.

Lol. I was the opposite, I could never afford to buy games regularly and neither could most of my friends so we constantly borrowed to each other. We ask used to (and sometimes still do) have evenings where we all bring a game or two to someone's house to play. With this new system it seems that type of night would be difficult at best and impossible at worse :/

I hope the system isn't so stupid that you cannot play a game until it is registered. What happens if you have an unstable Internet connection or the servers go down? Sounds very anti-consumer.

What I'm hoping is that Bethesda makes an insanely awesome Elder Scrolls game for the new xbox as soon as it comes out, just like they did with TES 4: Oblivion when the 360 first came out. Good times...

A new fallout would be good!

I read an article where both Sony and MS plan to dump the CELL processor and use X86 based CPU instead. This mean a break in continuity where old games won't be playable on the new machines. MS has said it will be easier to write the same game for PC or for XBox.

Game companies have reserved their opinions on the change since now they must do rewrites to factor in the new graphics power presented by these platforms. This could be too risky/costly for some developers.

It seems they have indeed gone for that therefore no backwards compatibility.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

For me the most disturbing feature is that the new xbox will apparently require games to be linked to an account. If you sell or lend a game to someone they will have to pay a fee to link it to their account. I can't imagine that this kind of anti-consumer tactic will do anything but alienate the market.

I don't see how this is any different than how PC gaming has been done for years with digital copies. The fee is absurd though. Personally I've never sold and lent a game to anyone and I'm a fairly big gamer.

What kills me lately are the online only single player games. Games that I don't want to have to login to a server for. It's infuriating when the server is down. It's also concerning to think just how long that server will last. Games these days are just extended rentals.

 

[Ryan_m_b]

I don't see how this is any different than how PC gaming has been done for years with digital copies. The fee is absurd though. Personally I've never sold and lent a game to anyone and I'm a fairly big gamer.

True on the PC count but in my experience console games are more commonly lent out, sold second hand and taken to a friends because they are much easier to just put-in-and-go. PC games require more specific hardware, installation time etc. Taking borrowing out of this this seems to just be a ploy to damage/destroy the used game market (which is http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=18163) which is awful. Aside from the issues that many people rely on those cheaper prices it's a big stab at software applications of the first-sale doctrine. Any other good one buys is yours by right and you have the right to lend it, sell it on etc with no interference from the retailer/manufacturer/designer.

This fee system is as absurd as having to send money to IKEA when you sell an old wardrobe at a market. It also seems entirely unnecessary, why pay a fee? If you're going to have a system as convoluted as this (presumably to stop piracy) why not make it quick and easy to lend games e.g. if your friend puts that specific disk in then they have the right to play it and you do not. If it comes up on your account that someone has borrowed the game and you didn't lend it you can report it stolen. Best of all you'll have all the details of who sold it!

What kills me lately are the online only single player games. Games that I don't want to have to login to a server for. It's infuriating when the server is down. It's also concerning to think just how long that server will last. Games these days are just extended rentals.

I've read a few articles about always-on and I find it alarming. Aside from the issue of not everyone having a stable internet connection (or a cheap one, what does it do to a dataplan if your console/PC has to send game info constantly?) I wouldn't trust a games company to keep their servers working in order. What happens if a few years down the line the company goes bust or needs to cut back and turns off all their servers? It's one thing for an MMO where online is necessary for the mechanics of the game to work but for anything else it just seems to be an anti-piracy measure that punishes honest consumers more than anyone else.

 

[Ryan_m_b]

Seems like even Microsoft are confused
http://venturebeat.com/2013/05/21/microsoft-rep-we-are-designing-xbox-one-to-enable-used-games/

 

[Thomas1989]

What I'm hoping is that Bethesda makes an insanely awesome Elder Scrolls game for the new xbox as soon as it comes out, just like they did with TES 4: Oblivion when the 360 first came out. Good times...

I can't really add anything more to this and everything else you said, as you took the words straight out of my mouth. The bit about COD also cracked me up!

It seems we share the same hopes. I started replaying Oblivion yesterday for the first time since 2008, good times indeed! I am craving a new TES game though, and I wouldn't hesitate to pay for a Morrowind HD remake either.

 

[jhae2.718]

I still think it should have been the \text{XBox } 4\pi.

 

[wuliheron]

Last year video games made more money than all the Hollywood movies combined. If all you want is to play computer games you can play them on a computer, however, he who controls the distribution of entertainment controls the profits and the latest consoles are merely intent on monopolizing as much of the distribution as possible including TV programming now. Forget the cable company and other oligopolies, he who controls the distribution of the entertainment itself controls the profits and companies like MS will do whatever it takes to gain as much control over all the content as they can.

The latest video games in the works for consoles include games that are produced along with TV shows and movies and there are at least two efforts I know of to use the exact same computer graphics to produce both the video and video game. Merging the two together into a seamless whole where the player can choose at any point to merely watch or join in the fun. Interactive TV has been waiting all these years for the technology to catch up and the next generation consoles are merely the first to exploit the new SoC technology coming on the market this year with AMD's Kaveri. Google, Amazon, and other oligopolies are equally intent on grabbing their corner of the market and leveraging it into world domination as well and it should be interesting to see how the crap hits the fan.

 

[Number Nine]

KOTOR, which is arguably the greatest game of all time.

I've never seen Ocarina of Time abbreviated that way.