Jimquisition: Xbox One and the Death of Ownership

theApoc

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Oct 17, 2008
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I generally like your videos Jim, but you are way off base on this one.

People need to understand one thing. Digital media has no inherent value. Let me repeat that. DIGITAL MEDIA HAS NO INHERENT VALUE. Anything that can be duplicated an infinite amount of times at no additional cost for production can not by its very nature have any true monetary value.

So then, what are we paying for?

Simply put, usage rights. We are paying for the right to use/view a given piece of media content. We do not gain ownership of that content when we buy a piece of media, we are simply given access to it for our entertainment. Can you charge someone to watch a football game? Can you charge someone to listen to someone else's music? Can you charge someone to watch a movie? The answer is no. Theaters, venues, stadiums... They PAY to show movies, play music, hold sporting events, you PAY for the ability to experience the content, you do not gain ownership of that viewing experience just because you were there.

Games are no different. Just because the medium has changed, that does not mean that we have any more or less "ownership" than we did before. Could you have opened an arcade and charged people to play XBOX? Specifically set prices for certain games, consoles, etc? No. You may open an internet cafe and allow people access to machines, but in the end you are selling bandwidth and time, NOT the game in an of itself.

The problem with the upcoming generation is not always being connected(try watching PPV on your DVR without an internet connection and then tell me how ridiculous MS is). The problem is not the limiting of who has the right to resale/redistribution. No.

The real problem with the games industry, the thing that is truly screwing consumers, something you touched on briefly, is the fact that there is no distinction being made between the cost of "ownership" and the cost of obtaining usage rights. Publishers are charging people the same regardless of who ACTUALLY owns that copy of Halo.

However, consider mobile gaming. Games are priced to sell, with a clear understanding of the limitations. Clearly no one expects Angry birds to transfer from their iPhone to a Galaxy? No one worries about buying another copy for their iPad. Why is that? Because it costs $.99, that's why. People do not see it as a purchase, they see it as access. Sure maybe they think the "own" it on their phone. But no one balks at the idea of it being linked to their phone and ONLY their phone.

Why make that assumption about games on a console? The answer is simple. Because we see $60 as a significant investment, thus we perceive that to denote ownership. Unfortunately, we are mistaken, and you know what, if we could get the prices of games more in line with their actual "value", that wouldn't be such a bad thing.

Online connection allows for updates, DLC, co-operative gaming, patches, etc. You cannot in good conscience decry the negatives of this type of system without also mentioning the good. Less reliance on hardware, more flexibility in terms of bug fixes.

No, the system is not perfect. Far from it. But the reality is that our expectations of what purchase actually means needs to change, as does our willingness to pay full price for something we are only "renting". The responsibility falls as much on the consume as it does on the game companies.

Consider another point of view...
 

Lightknight

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Nov 26, 2008
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canadamus_prime said:
In other words idiots, frat boys, and kids.
So then, anyone who plays a game that they enjoy and you don't must be an idiot? Man, I wish I had that world view, it'd make disagreements with people so much simpler. "*gasp* you prefer chocolate to vanilla? You must be an idiot!", "*gasp*, you prefer historical fiction to bibliographies?! You must be an idiot!" If only I could get planetary bodies to also revolve around me then I'd be all set.

To anyone who enjoys COD, and there are a lot of those people, more than the ones that enjoy pretty much any other game (as far as gamers' wallets indicate), please note that it's also sold on the ps4 which is looking to be a promising system.

On the other hand, people who only play COD have to connect to the internet anyways. So this wouldn't be such a problem for them.
 

sadmac

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Sep 18, 2011
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Getting real sick of Jim talking about corporations needing to put the consumer first. Why does it matter if a corporation is shitty to its consumers? How does it affect you? It's not like you're doing business with them, because surely you wouldn't actually pay someone to treat you this way, right? Right?

The problem with Jim getting upset about EA or Microsoft or whoever is the same as the problem with people who get angry because other people are gay: all of this "corporate abuse" is happening between two consenting parties in the privacy of their own homes. It doesn't involve you unless you not only consent to have it involve you, but CONTINUOUSLY PAY MONEY to be involved.
 

PunkRex

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Feb 19, 2010
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Please release some freaking games Nintendo... I think we could all use abit of fun.
 

Amir Kondori

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I know this will offend some people and for that I apologize in advance.

The launch of the Xbox One for me, in a small way, feels like 9/11. I feel like I am witnessing something that will change the video game world forever, that it will never be the same.

The physical media is now nothing but a handy carry case for the code, the right to execute said code is handed out or taken back by Microsoft and the publishers. Something I have not seen many people mention is that if you get banned from Xbox Live, if your profile gets suspended or banned, it seems to me like you will lose access to ALL your game.

This is the brave new digital world we live in. Hopefully ten or twenty years down the line the GOG.com's of the world will win out against the closed platform Microsofts.
 

Demolition_Human

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May 11, 2013
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Great video today Jim! Love it! Now on to the subject of the Xbox (N)one, I hope this thing flops harder than a freshly-caught trout in the Sahara Desert! >_> This thing does not deserve to sell well, it represent everything wrong with the the Video Game Industry and Industry in general in a small box of misery. But hey there's TV, that sells right? Right!? :D
 

themilo504

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I get the feeling that the Xbox one will be a important moment if gaming, if it succeeds it publishers will start making games even more consumer unfriendly.

If it fails and I mean truly and utterly bomb, the industry will finally learn that they can?t get away with everything, and maybe stop or at least diminish their anti consumer behavior.

if it simply does okay, Microsoft will most likely blame its okayness (is that a word?) on pirates and game stop.
 

I.Muir

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canadamus_prime said:
I.Muir said:
Justin Smith said:
How could the Xbox One possible sell!?
Idiots
Frat boys
Kids

People so desperate for call of duty and madden they will sign whatever the hell they are asked to without thinking twice
In other words idiots, frat boys, and kids.
Very succinct
 

hentropy

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Feb 25, 2012
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I sort of wish I could be outraged about this, but I haven't owned a console since the original Xbox. I can't really say I would buy it if it was completely free with no BS restrictions. Consoles in general are more or less obsolete and in the end the Xbone will only sell as much as people are willing to buy into it. It doesn't hail the end of gaming, not if gamers don't want it to.
 

synobal

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Jun 8, 2011
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Seriously I imagine we can expect to see continued growth in PC game sales this year. Also with the Xbone, Ps4 and PCs all using the same hardware I imagine us PC users will be seeing better ports and fewer console exclusives. It's a good time to be a PC gamer.
 

Barciad

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Apr 23, 2008
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See you down the 19th Jim! That was excellent. My opinion, just ignore these cretins, don't buy their stuff. Okay, easy for me to say, I'm a PC man through and through. However, just keep on with the old generation of games and platforms and refuse to buy a thing until a year or two after the thing has come out. By that time the following will have occurred:-

A reasonable games library should have built up on that particular platform
A initial prices should have dropped
They should have cottoned on to the outcry that has emerged and thus dropped some of the less reasonable features.

However, these are all assumptions and all include the key word 'should'. They all assume that Microsoft et al are a sensible firm that runs a sensible business model and does not take its customers for granted. It also assumes that your average consumer has a reasonable amount of critical thinking skills and thus is aware if and when it is being taken for a ride.
Thus, this generation will be a test of the consumers more than anything. Will their common sense outweigh their vanity or visa-versa? That, in my opinion remains to be seen.
 

alvaro barcenass

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Mar 28, 2013
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The barring of games, way to kill what first started the game industry. to screw up so bad to cause physical harm bad design and bad thoughts remember games get better with liberty as in fallout 3 the access to change from 8 weapons that's a simple step forward, the original XBOX controller had two spare buttons to get odd jobs however the odd job was switching weapons activating combos or stuff that that YOU the player could chose!
 

Jenny Jones

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Jun 10, 2013
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So does anyone else have concerns about the newly disclosed NSA prism information and the fact that the XBone is essentially a full surveillance system?

As for the topic in general, not too bothered, one look at fatuglyorslutty.com turned me off ever migrating from my PC games. All this other stuff just re-enforces that notion. At least steam has bouncing off the walls crazy sales at least twice a year to justify it's little DRM and need to be online to download the game then play offline for months on end.
 

GamemasterAnthony

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Kuilui said:
If only this video could be shown on screen at the E3 conference while Microsoft is up on stage trying to convince everyone that being treated like a criminal and not being allowed to own the things they buy is really super awesome we promise because ummm, TV!
Well, you never know. Perhaps some well known hacktivist group known for standing up for the First Amendment and the rights of individuals could POSSIBLY see this and figure out a way to play it while Microsoft is trying to do its schpiel. *grins interestingly in Anonymous's direction*

Seriously, though...I think the only way Microsucks will get the hint is if the One becomes one of the worst flops in the history of everything. Personally, I feel this generation of consoles is a wash. Just look at what Yahtzee said in his last video and you'll get the idea.
 

Doug

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Apr 23, 2008
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sturryz said:
The Xbox Two will require you to wear an ankle brace that has to connect to the internet every 12 hours or the the ankle brace blows your leg off.
That's very mild. I'm pretty sure they'll require you to have a locking device around your balls every moment you sit within visible range of the XBox (Kinnect -will- see you trying to hide or remove it), which will explode on the mere thought of not giving microsoft all your cash.

Don't have balls? Sorry, you need them for our console - you'll either have to have a pair installed (at your expense), or just piss off and die.

Zachary Amaranth said:
Additionally, you will need special dispensation for Microsoft to leave the general vicinity of your Xbox. If you are vacationing, you may transfer your license to a different Xbox 2 for a fee, or use a limited number of annual "offline vouchers" if you won't be near one.

Microsoft will laud these options as generous" and 80% of the consumer market will say they "don't mind" and it's "not that bad."
Or not notice until they buy the XBox and realise all too late their mistake.
 

MB202

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Sep 14, 2008
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It's funny, I was just at GameStop, and the cashier I was talking to (I typically like to drum up conversations with these guys) said he actually WAS excited for the Xbos One, because of Halo 5. I didn't get a chance to talk to him anymore because there was someone behind me, but I'm sorry, I don't care WHAT games you're excited for, if they're on the Xbox One, they're not worth it... Or rather they are, they're just being held ransom, as Yahtzee puts it.

Oh, and I say this one funny YouTube comment that I had to repeat here:

"Xbox One? More like Xbox LOST!"

Edit: After seeing the video, I am now no longer surprised that the GameStop cashier didn't seem that upset by what the Xbox LOST is doing.