Microsoft "360s" on its DRM policies. No more 24 hour check in, Used games ahoy

[Windcaler]

While Im happy about these supposed changes to Microsofts anti-consumer practices I am also extremely wary about them. You see the kind of sweeping changes they mention requires significant hardware and software changes so I question the legitimacy of their claims about these drastic changes.

To be fair, some of their ideas like the family and friend sharing a digital library were pretty cool and are even ideas I hope steam adopts one day. So I wonder whats going on with this stuff with these changes?

Perhaps this is just my conspiranoia talking but I really wonder if Microsoft is saying they'll make these changes to get us to stop talking about their system like its one of the signs of the anti-christs coming only to go back to the original plans when the console is out or after release.

I guess what Im saying is while I like these changes I think we still need to remain vigilant. Without a tech demo or something like it detailing how the console works Im not sure we can trust what theyre saying

 

[Seracen]

If you lend a friend a disk only one person can play it anyway...

That's down to a limitation of the media. Playing this up as something ten people can play despite the restriction that they can't access a NON-PHYSICAL game at the same time is a joke, especially the way they tried to sell it to us.

Plus they said that they don't even have to be family members!

Which is a fairly minor point, as they still have to be one what was being called a family list.

It's funny to consider how this will screw over EA, considering how they said "no online passes" due to XBONE's DRM.

I still can't believe people think this, given they'd still have to market to the Ps4 crowd. No timed exclusive was going to change that, and EA wasn't going to cut its audience in half (or by a third, in this case) just to stick to DRM.

The fact is, online passes were losing them money. That's the only reason they needed to drop them. Drop the conspiracy theories, people.

I'll own the fact that this may have been conspiracy theory. I'll even own that EA caved to bad PR and consumer hate (like the ME3 ending) from the "vocal minority."

However, until EA can prove itself back into my good graces, I won't stop considering it. The fact that EA has consistently hopped on the worst of anti-consumer policies does not help their case.

As far as the shared library is concerned, I totally figured that we'd have groups of people doing shared libraries across the nation that WEREN'T family. As it would be difficult to police such a system, it's probably just as well anyways.

The point is moot for me in either event, as I'll likely wait a year before buying either platform. However, the statement stands that for the first time ever, I am actually considering buying a console at launch, and that system is PS4.

 

[Windcaler]

So, what, in this case, is the bloody point of even releasing a new console, then, if they're not changing a bloody thing? Is it just to jam in more pointless non-game bullshit and to make it so you can only play games released after this year if you dont happen to own an xbox 360?

The problem with the current console generation is its lacking the hardware and processing power needed by developers to do more complex games or ones with a tighter theme. For example theres no way the devs of warframe could get their game to function as is on the PS3 and Xbox 360. The hardware is just not up to specs so you couldnt have the smooth slidy, jumpy, slashy, shoot them in the face fun that the game has right now on PC. With the PS4's hardware they can achieve similar (maybe identical since we dont know the exact specs for the PS4) smooth gameplay with equal graphical fidelity

That said there are some changes coming out like a move toward digital distribution. Even though Im mostly a PC gamer Im not a big fan of DD services for a variety of reasons and I dont believe that console players are ready to move to that format either. However whats good about the move is its not relying solely on DD. Unlike PC where we basicly have no option outside of DD. Even if I buy a physical copy in a store its usually tied to steam for someidiotic reason.

 

[spartandude]

Why is it that anyone who makes jokes about the Xbox forgets basic maths.

360 means they face in the same direction, they spin all the way around. a 180 means the face in the opposite direction. god this annoys me so much


capcha Gathers Moss

So, what, in this case, is the bloody point of even releasing a new console, then, if they're not changing a bloody thing? Is it just to jam in more pointless non-game bullshit and to make it so you can only play games released after this year if you dont happen to own an xbox 360?

so you would rather have the drm? and the reason to release a new console is new hardware

 

[CaptQuakers]

Did this many complain about the PS3 price ? I don't remember this sort of backlash over a price.

Also if you're buying a console because it's cheaper I think you're making a mistake,Choose the console you want because you will be getting your monies worth from either over time.

 

[Prince Regent]

Well I for one am going to take a more forgiving attitude toward microsoft. Negative reinforcement did its job, so now it's time for some positive reinforcement.

 

[Nadia Castle]

"Well, if you actually stop and think about it instead of just whining maybe you will get it?

I live on the west coast, my brother lives on the east coast. We cant exactly trade disks back and forth to play each others games, this would let me play games he bought and vise versa where as if we wanted to play a game we each had to buy a copy.

I also have a friend who isnt as well off as me, he could just save up and buy the console, and play games off my library if its not one he has, instead of driving to my town (A couple hour drive) dig through my shelves of games to find one and then drive home, only to have to repeat it to return it.

And downloading a game doesnt take very long, a modern tripple A game takes maybe one to two hours to download and play on MY internet connection, which is pretty damn shitty at 2mb/s (Pro tip: The world average is right around 13 mb/s)"

If you are on a 2mb/s then an Xbox 360 game on a 7GB DVD disk can take upto roughly 58 hours to download. Xbox One games will be coming on Blu-ray as standard, so that may be upto 50gb, which would be 34 days. Of course it will vary from connection to connection, download limitations etc, but anything AAA will be cripplingly large. You could send the disk so it installs off that quickly, but that defeats the point.

It all depends on if you think the trade off is worth it. I don't think the ability to share your games using the internet compensates for giving Microsoft control over who you can loan to, and the fact that your average internet speed is nowhere near strong enough to quickly share games media.

 

[Ham Blitz]

"Could you share games with people across the world instantly?"

No, you could choose 10 family members, one of whom could access the games library of a main console on any system provided no-one else was playing it. Unless they had some super cloud computing as yet unseen this would presumably involve downloading and installing the game which would have taken a hell of a long time even with decent internet speed. So it was exactly the same as just lending someone an xbox 360 disk you aren't using, but with added inconvenience and restricted to ten people from the same household.

Seriously, how the hell could anyone call this a revolutionary feature with a straight face?

I just want to point out on this that it didn't have to be ten people from the same household, and they didn't actually have to be your family. You chose up to ten people in your list of friends (only requirement being they had been in your friends list for more than 30 days) and they became your "family", which meant you could share your games with those ten people.

 

[Elemental]

Nope, M$ fuck you the damage is done.
Sony here I come!

 

[barbzilla]

Not true, if you are having this issue you need to transfer the licenses to your current Xbox. If the licenses are tied to the xbox you are on, you can play your games offline with no issues.

That was one of the first things I did when I replaced my Xbox a few months ago.The games on demand titles I own still don't work offline for me

In that case, the transfer didn't work. Call customer support and let them know. They should be able to help you with your license transfer. Sometimes the transfers fail (really sucks since you can only do it so often), but they can usually get it taken care of with T3 support.

 

[Something Amyss]

I'll own the fact that this may have been conspiracy theory. I'll even own that EA caved to bad PR and consumer hate (like the ME3 ending) from the "vocal minority."

However, until EA can prove itself back into my good graces, I won't stop considering it. The fact that EA has consistently hopped on the worst of anti-consumer policies does not help their case.

Are you familiar with Occam's Razor? The simplest solution is usually the most correct. That is, the solution with the fewest extraneous steps or assumptions. You're free to believe the extra steps of EA's Machiavellian scheming, but the fact remains it's far simpler to believe a business who enacted these schemes to get more money out of the consumer would drop them when it turned out they were not profitable.

And to clarify, it wasn't "hate" that changed the policy in either case. It was numbers in motion. Microsoft saw the Bone being outsold in pre-order 2-1 and caved. Online Passes were initially a success when the people were screaming the loudest; when business returned to usual, it turned out they just weren't effective. EA was initially impressed with Online Passes, which is why they lasted so long.

The only way that price is going to go down is if they remove the mandatory Kinect. Which they are very unlikely to do.

It's also why I'm unlikely to buy a One still. A hundred extra bucks for something I probably CAN'T use is just bad consumerism.

I'm not sure you know how many degrees there are in a circle.

852. I know my geometry!

Im happy theyre reversing the decisions and it seems to me that if they really want to start a digital distribution system they should build that kind of store into the xbox.

They did. It's gone now, because of the reversal on the rest. There was literally no reason to change their DD method because of this, except maybe as a "screw you."

If you have relatives or friends abroad then yes, its a good idea (not that I would trust Microsoft not to ruin it in execution).

What puzzles me about this mentality is that Microsoft's system was going to be region locked, so a lot of these examples seem like they wouldn't work. Maybe not LA to NYC or UK to France, but the guy who's in AUS and has family in the UK...What makes them think this would allow them to share?

The other puzzling part of this is the mentality that Microsoft was going to keep 10 people forever. If Sony taught us anything this last generation, it's that removing features and imposing new restrictions is quite easily done (We'll set some bleachers out in the sun, and watch them burn the Xbox One). When I first picked up a PS3, downloaded titles could be shared amongst 5 registered consoles. Now it's 2. And Sony made it annoying to de-register if your console breaks, for example. This is one of the reasons I'm still not sure I want a PS4. but more importantly, the trust that Microsoft is going to remain this generous is just...Naive. This is moot NOW, but people who think this was going to be a charitable and abusable system are missing something big.

 

[MetalDooley]

In that case, the transfer didn't work. Call customer support and let them know. They should be able to help you with your license transfer. Sometimes the transfers fail (really sucks since you can only do it so often), but they can usually get it taken care of with T3 support.

If the transfer had failed then I wouldn't be able to play any DLC I'd previously purchased.All my DLC works fine though.It's only games on demand titles that give me any trouble

 

[AzrealMaximillion]

The price, the Kinect requirement, and the lack of interesting exclusives still hold me back.

 

[Mike000]

Did this many complain about the PS3 price ? I don't remember this sort of backlash over a price.

No - even more people complained about the PS3's price. Even when you needed spend more money to get the optional hard drive, optional wi-fi, and optional HDMI out for the XBox360 to match its specs.

 

[Seracen]

I never once claimed that EA was stupid, however anti-consumerist their business structure is. Still, the "hate" thrown at them culminated in a downturn in sales.

They've simply proven themselves to be greedy, which is fine in a company, to a certain extent; as long as it doesn't get out of hand. There's a difference between turning a profit and scuttling your own economy for perceived gains.

I don't believe for a moment that EA doesn't chafe from having these restrictions removed, Occam's Razor or not.

Speaking of...

I think we've found the answer to how Superman shaves...

 

[barbzilla]

In that case, the transfer didn't work. Call customer support and let them know. They should be able to help you with your license transfer. Sometimes the transfers fail (really sucks since you can only do it so often), but they can usually get it taken care of with T3 support.

If the transfer had failed then I wouldn't be able to play any DLC I'd previously purchased.All my DLC works fine though.It's only games on demand titles that give me any trouble

You can still play your DLC and Games, provided you are logged into the account that purchased them. It doesn't matter if the licenses have been transferred to the console. I worked as a T3 rep for MSFT for 2 years. Give them a call, it can be resolved. If they say they can't do a transfer more than once a year, request to speak to a supervisor, they will get you transferred to a T3 agent (the ones that can actually help you). Be warned, they will try to talk you out of talking to a supervisor, and will likely say they can't do anything that they can not (which is true, the supervisors are generally just T1 agents who were promoted). Just tell them you "insist" on speaking to a supervisor.

 

[MetalDooley]

You can still play your DLC and Games, provided you are logged into the account that purchased them. It doesn't matter if the licenses have been transferred to the console. I worked as a T3 rep for MSFT for 2 years. Give them a call, it can be resolved. If they say they can't do a transfer more than once a year, request to speak to a supervisor, they will get you transferred to a T3 agent (the ones that can actually help you). Be warned, they will try to talk you out of talking to a supervisor, and will likely say they can't do anything that they can not (which is true, the supervisors are generally just T1 agents who were promoted). Just tell them you "insist" on speaking to a supervisor.

Thank you very much for the info.I was starting to think I just have bad luck with getting stuff working offline.I've never been able to get Steams offline mode working properly either

 

[barbzilla]

You can still play your DLC and Games, provided you are logged into the account that purchased them. It doesn't matter if the licenses have been transferred to the console. I worked as a T3 rep for MSFT for 2 years. Give them a call, it can be resolved. If they say they can't do a transfer more than once a year, request to speak to a supervisor, they will get you transferred to a T3 agent (the ones that can actually help you). Be warned, they will try to talk you out of talking to a supervisor, and will likely say they can't do anything that they can not (which is true, the supervisors are generally just T1 agents who were promoted). Just tell them you "insist" on speaking to a supervisor.

Thank you very much for the info.I was starting to think I just have bad luck with getting stuff working offline.I've never been able to get Steams offline mode working properly either

Steam I am not so sure about, you would have to look into it. If you find out, let me know. I have a buddy with that issue.