Games With Gold: Too little, too late
- Thread starter hooksashands
- Start date
I belieeeve that the way it works is there's a roster of games, like 12 PS3 games and 6 Vita games. As the newest offerings come in, the older ones leave, keeping the number steady. However, (going to see if I can find confirmation) IF you previously downloaded an offered title that was free, you can continue to download it even after it has left the official roster.Bat Vader said:
Here, from their FAQ.
"If a game rotates out of the collection, can I still download it free with my Plus membership?
If you did not download the game when it was in the collection, you will not be able to secure your free download. However, if you downloaded when it was in the collection, but it's no longer on your hard drive, you can visit the PlayStation®Store and re-download it anytime, as long as you're a member."
So, yeah, if you downloaded X-Com, and deleted it later to make room, then you can re-download it any time, even once it is no longer part of the available 12 game roster as long as you remain a PS+ member.
Edit: On another note, you guys couldn't use the console to go on the internet until LAST YEAR?
There's no time limit for the games. You get to keep them forever. Games you download are stored to your account (PS3 and 360), so even if your console breaks or you accidentally delete a game you can re-download it whenever.Bat Vader said:
tippyk2k was pointing out that the offer is only good until the end of this year... Which means anyone who just ran out of Gold won't be able to participate. Also, Dryk was saying each game has a two week time window to be downloaded, not that the games themselves will expire after two weeks.
You're roughly spending about 60 a year in bread over the course of time.hooksashands said:
And no dude, it's not mandatory. No one has a gun to your head and forcing you to buy Gold. You're making the CHOICE to purchase Gold.
And it's still free. Like a little prize inside a box of cereal. But I suppose you feel like buying a box of conflakes is "mandatory" as well, and you just want to tare apart every box in the aisle to get the pretty pink pegasus toy.... and then you'll submit a complaint to the company that the toy didn't satisfy you.
Even if they're not good games or old games many people already played but one should be happy you're actually getting games now for buying gold as opposed to no being given games at all.
The PSN+ ones are no longer playable if you cancel your PSN+ subscription; however, you can resume your PSN+ subscription any time and get them back again.hooksashands said:
The Live Gold ones are supposedly "yours forever", but I haven't seen any word as to whether or not that includes if you keep them if you drop gold. Knowing MS' PR Department, they may have been intentionally misleading in their terminology.
Just clarifying.
By comparison, my refrigerator only costs $158 a year to run. Which do you think pays for itself more? Hint: The one that preserves food.SaneAmongInsane said:
I think you're confusing 'mandatory' with 'blackmail'. No, nobody forced me to sign up for Gold at gunpoint. However, seeing as I've already mentioned my desire to play games with friends (who also have Xbox and Gold accounts), I'm not left with much of a CHOICE. This is a CHOICE in the same sense that a broken bottle between two pieces of bread is a SANDWICH.SaneAmongInsane said:
Ha ha ha ha! You might struggle with certain word definitions, but I see your imagination is healthy. I just envisioned myself at a grocer ripping open cereal boxes screaming "WHERE'S MY PRETTY PINK PEGASUS?" Anyway, no. Not free. Free entails that I wasn't charged or didn't have to exert any mental or physical effort to obtain the item/services rendered. Since I just demolished all those cereal boxes not only have I already used my time and energy, but now I'll have to pay for ruined merchandise. And of course "mandatory" in your example doesn't apply since you just got done presenting the third alternative (flipping out). By contrast, since I want to play online and there's literally no other way to do that except pay Gold membership, it's a mandatory cost. "You're making the CHOICE to purchase Gold" is like telling someone hooked up to a ventilator "Well, you don't HAVE to keep breathing. You could just die." Gee, thanks for highlighting my options.SaneAmongInsane said:
Ah. See, I didn't know that. I'm not 100% sure but I think Xbox Live lets you download your game library even if you're still a Silver member.JEBWrench said:
Everything I used to play on my old hard drive shows up in the buy screen as "Download Again", so it seems to keep a history of what you purchased on a cloud server. Whether said cloud is dependable, only time will tell.JEBWrench said:
Something I'm curious about is whether Microsoft's going to keep the same paywall restrictions when it comes to ancillary functions, when going towards the Xbox One. A gander at their Live Gold page suggests that Netflix, internet browser, etc, etc, etc, all require membership to Gold to access anyway, literally making the matter not just about multiplayer. In fact, buying Gold technically wouldn't allow you access to Netflix anyway, as you'd need to purchase a proper subscription through their company; it just lets you use the service on the 360 in particular.
cause playing online with your friends is like a life or death thing.hooksashands said:
and I'm not struggling with any word definitions. You feel you are owed something else for your 60 dollars rather then getting simply what was advertised. They're doing a cool little promotional bit, but it's not good enough for you. You want more. This is why we can't have nice things.
This is the inherent issues with sales after the fact, and other free promotions. The issues becoming "I payed full price for this, why is everyone else getting it for free?" And "If they get something free, why don't I get something too? I'm paying for this service just like they are". This argument is simply a more prevalent issue in this case because the game in question is a much older, cheaper, and more mainstream game. This all breaks down to a simple fact: This promotion at its core is NOT targeting their already existing customer base. This is targeted at gaining new subscriptions via offering more tangible and long term benefits to the service. For established members this leaves a bit of a sense of neglect, as they want to feel more like this was as much a loyalty play, as a grab for new members.
However, due to the fact that this is in direct competition with another service, they need to provide a much better reason. The big complaint about this seems to be that it feels like it is a halfhearted tack on, whereas Sony's selection seems to be more diverse. (This was supposed to be a more complete thought. I got distracted, ADD'd and forgot where I was going with it, and just couldn't seem to pick it back up. Sorry!)
In the end, yes, it is a free game that was not a part of the original reasons that you payed for the service. This is something that people should be happy over in the end, as it is an added perk. It's just that the amount of "Tacked on" this all feels like, is making people feel that the company has no real love for the people that have supported it in the long run. The fact that these are all tried and true sellers, really helps to hammer in the fact, that they are trying to draw on the name of the titles as selling points. Not a promotion with any level of heart.
Now, I'm gonna experiment with this, and see if I am able to keep downloading these free games through my downloads history. If so.. My Xbox Gold account (That I don't actually pay for. MAUAHAHAH INFINITE XBOX LIVE) might have just netted me a few bucks.
However, due to the fact that this is in direct competition with another service, they need to provide a much better reason. The big complaint about this seems to be that it feels like it is a halfhearted tack on, whereas Sony's selection seems to be more diverse. (This was supposed to be a more complete thought. I got distracted, ADD'd and forgot where I was going with it, and just couldn't seem to pick it back up. Sorry!)
In the end, yes, it is a free game that was not a part of the original reasons that you payed for the service. This is something that people should be happy over in the end, as it is an added perk. It's just that the amount of "Tacked on" this all feels like, is making people feel that the company has no real love for the people that have supported it in the long run. The fact that these are all tried and true sellers, really helps to hammer in the fact, that they are trying to draw on the name of the titles as selling points. Not a promotion with any level of heart.
Now, I'm gonna experiment with this, and see if I am able to keep downloading these free games through my downloads history. If so.. My Xbox Gold account (That I don't actually pay for. MAUAHAHAH INFINITE XBOX LIVE) might have just netted me a few bucks.
It seems that people aren't taking the advice given when they're told not to forget, the Microsoft apologists are out in force, and they're possibly more obnoxious than the Nintendo Defense Force. Microsoft is not a poor company, they have a monopoly when it comes to computer software, but they are stingy as fuck - they want to get as much money out of people as possible, they're essentially the Mister Krabs of video gaming. To explain that analogy further: some people think the secret recipe is worth it (it seems like a lot of people are disagreeing with that lately, gee, I wonder fucking why?) but there's an acknowledgement that the man behind the great food is a money-grubbing asshole.MeChaNiZ3D said:
Sony is not some great moral paragon, in fact treating corporations like people in any regard is absolutely retarded. There is an understanding, customers pay for X, they receive Y and Z. This gesture on the behalf of Microsoft is meaningless, it's the fat Roman noble throwing scraps down to the plebs. To all of you who evidently have poor memories and a very short sight when it comes to gaming, a blatant half-assed attempt to replicate someone else's service should be criticized, would you still be chanting 'BUT IT'S FREEEE!' if the freemium item in question was a turd?
Hey SAI, I don't remember the part where i said it was life or death. you're the one who brought guns into the scenario. >=/SaneAmongInsane said:
I don't feel I'm owed anything. Be for real, are you in charge of Xbox Live? Because the level of offense you've taken to me badmouthing Xbox Live far exceeds what I would expect from a Live customer. Oh no, I've insulted the sacred Ecksbawks God's generosity! Now they're going to give us even less games. PLAGUE, A PLAGUE UPON US ALL!!! =(
By the way, that's the funniest thing anyone has ever said to me on here. It's even funnier when you read that last part out of context.SaneAmongInsane said:
...Jesus christ, it ishooksashands said:
And my nephew just asked me what I was looking at that made me laugh so hard.
Tossing gas on a fire.....
OK so let me see if I got this straight...
Microsoft is basically giving water to drowning people, or passing out sand in a desert. People are complaining... understandable since the promotion is kind of a trick-loop (business thing here folks... offer a service that requires a full timed payment such as for a year, knowing full well that the new customers won't actually use the service for that full time length)
Then some other folx got mad at those who were complaining about the free swag ¿ why ? Especially as those who are saying "stop whining, its FREE" aren't actually benefiting from this anyhow ? (Btw at my local gamestop... Fable 3 is a dollar, Halo 3 is less than $2, and Assassins Creed 2 comes in a bundle with 4 other games for $5 so its a dollar, because every single last person with XBL Gold accounts for 20 miles around got free copies and took their physical ones to gamestop and traded them in for a quarter to be used as store credit)
I can see both sides of the argument, and think you all need to relax a bit.
Again, Microsoft, like Sony, are giving drowning people water.
OK so let me see if I got this straight...
Microsoft is basically giving water to drowning people, or passing out sand in a desert. People are complaining... understandable since the promotion is kind of a trick-loop (business thing here folks... offer a service that requires a full timed payment such as for a year, knowing full well that the new customers won't actually use the service for that full time length)
Then some other folx got mad at those who were complaining about the free swag ¿ why ? Especially as those who are saying "stop whining, its FREE" aren't actually benefiting from this anyhow ? (Btw at my local gamestop... Fable 3 is a dollar, Halo 3 is less than $2, and Assassins Creed 2 comes in a bundle with 4 other games for $5 so its a dollar, because every single last person with XBL Gold accounts for 20 miles around got free copies and took their physical ones to gamestop and traded them in for a quarter to be used as store credit)
I can see both sides of the argument, and think you all need to relax a bit.
Again, Microsoft, like Sony, are giving drowning people water.
I think it's a tad bit more exaggeration than anything; it can be frustrating to promised a promotional item, then later to find out you already either have it or can't use it. That's why, for example, I find the current set of offerings (released and announced thusfar) on Games With Gold more interesting than the ones on PSN+.Vylox said: