Microsoft Exec on Always Online Consoles: "Deal With it"

[destroyer2k]

Look like this generation will be a ps4 for me.

 

[Ryan Hughes]

Microsoft is a tremendously insular company that has found success by ignoring their customers. This is simply because they have had very little competition, and often they would buy-out and competitors that dared get too close to their territory. So, why would any company like that not have a DRM-based console?

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

d)There has never been a vacuum cleaner that didn't require being plugged in.

yes there was, it was called a broom.

Hate to point out some inconsistencies, but...
A. A broom sweeps, a vacuum sucks, two totally different concepts (I realize vacuums have sweepers, but thats not their function as they are called vacuums for a reason.)

B. Brooms don't work well on carpet or rugs.

 

[Andy Shandy]

Oh, you silly, silly man. With that fucking ridiculous attitude alone you've probably made some people decide to go with PS4 this gen instead of the NextBox.

You know, as someone who spends most of their time gaming on the Xbox, I've defended them before but this guy is just so fucking stupid.

This guy, plus the rumours surrounding the console itself are definitely making me consider the PS4, or just simply becoming part of the "PC Master Race"

 

[Epitome]

I just can't fathom the chain of thoughts that led him to think any of his responses to his initial tweet were a good idea. I mean when you're in a hole stop digging, don't make stupid laboured analogies. For me sure I'll be disappointed if the Nextbox is "Always online." I've had 3 Xbox 360's so far and 4 years of Xbox Gold so more fool me I suppose for continually reinvesting in it but hey all my friends were on Live and a PS3 without them wouldn't have been as enjoyable.

Still I'll just wait for Microsofts official stance on always online, if it indeed is as all the speculation points to be. Then I'll either get a PS4 or finally build myself that gaming rig I've always promised. I will not buy that console. I'm pretty sure from talking to friends of mine a migration over to the PS4 will be in order for a good nummber of us.

Still I suppose the one thing we can all look forward to is much less of the "Console wars" fighting we all saw for years. Don't see how you could defend an always online camera in your bedroom/living room that monitors your content consumption outside of 1984.

 

[MrBenSampson]

For me, having access to the internet is not an issue. That said, the availability of servers is a BIG issue. At this moment, I can hook up my N64 and play a few rounds of Mario Kart. If the N64 had an always-online requirement, those servers would likely have been shut down by now, so the console would be useless.

When the day comes that Microsoft is no longer making money off of Durango, they will shut down the servers, bricking the console for everyone. Many of those people will have spent thousands of dollars on the hardware and software, which they would no longer be able to use. The thought of that is offensive to me.

If this rumour turns out to be true, there is no way I would consider buying it.

 

[the_green_dragon]

Here's my two cents:

A) My internet is spotty
B) I don't want to chew up my bandwidth and download/upload limit with useless crap and updates
C) What the guy above me said.

 

[Nazulu]

Someone this thick is creative director? Wow. He's going to find out how unpopular his opinion is and then learn to shut up. Deal with that you selfish jerk.

Considering this story is being picked up by...everywhere... this guy dug his own grave

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=52760187&postcount=4354

And you know its bad when even the official xbox magazine starts to cover it

http://www.oxm.co.uk/51901/microsoft-creative-director-defends-always-online-consoles-trades-blows-with-bioware/

Yeah, that looks like it's going to bite him in the ass.

Even though he's stupid I don't think he deserves that much publicity. Though, the publishers/developers should have come out awhile ago to say the rumors aren't true. What the hell are they waiting for?

developers have come out and said it IS true, it will require an online connection.

"Given that legally I cannot confirm or deny if this information is true, nor can I comment on rumor or speculation, all I can say is be sure to pay your ISP bills ."

Info on the developer who said it:
http://www.evilavatar.com/forums/showpost.php?p=2200505&postcount=46

That certainly seems like they want to push it, and I reckon they're just waiting to see peoples reactions.

I really hope our community doesn't give into this shit. This is just sick. I've been saying for awhile now that every time the technology becomes more advanced, the more they force it on us and limit our options. It should be the other fucking way around! Where the hell is our standards!?

I'm crossing the next Xbox of the list regardless for leaving it this long to tell us their plans.

 

[the_green_dragon]

Well at least now I wont consider getting whatever their console ends up being. My PC doesn't care if it's offline and neither do I.

Except you can't play Diablo 3 or Simcity single player.....

I think the issue is that only a couple of games on PC have the always online DRM problem but one day in the not so distant future all your PC games might not work without internet.

 

[Adam Jensen_v1legacy]

Even if my internet connection was perfect, always on is not a feature. It's an inconvenience. It's a limitation. It's isn't there to provide me with the best possible experience. It is there to control my experience. Goodbye Microsoft. You had a good run, but now it's over.

 

[the_green_dragon]

d)There has never been a vacuum cleaner that didn't require being plugged in.

yes there was, it was called a broom.

Hate to point out some inconsistencies, but...
A. A broom sweeps, a vacuum sucks, two totally different concepts (I realize vacuums have sweepers, but thats not their function as they are called vacuums for a reason.)

B. Brooms don't work well on carpet or rugs.

Ohh Ohhh... I have a little handheld vacumm cleaner for my car. Doesn't require an always online electricity connection.

if electricity goes out, you dont clame the cacuum creator, but if YOUR INTERNET goes out, you blame microsoft? double standarts FTW?

Here's the thing, if I had a good solid internet connection that was cheap and reliable and multiple internet plugs in every room of my house, then maybe it wouldn't be an issue but as it is, I have my modem next to the ONLY telephone jack in the house (in the kitchen) and the only way to get internet to my living room which wireless, which sucks.

 

[Nazulu]

Well at least now I wont consider getting whatever their console ends up being. My PC doesn't care if it's offline and neither do I.

Except you can't play Diablo 3 or Simcity single player.....

I think the issue is that only a couple of games on PC have the always online DRM problem but one day in the not so distant future all your PC games might not work without internet.

A little bleak don't you think? I doubt all gaming company's want their games to always be online, plus those always online games won't have servers running them forever and will probably be cracked eventually.

 

[Andrew_C]

Did a little googling and discovered vacuum cleaners that don't require electricity:

http://www.vector-vacuums.com/gas-powered-vacuums-c-69.html

http://www.industrialairsolutions.com/industrial-vacuums/Vacuum_Sweepers/Power-vac-propane-sweeper.htm

Now granted, these are industrial vacuum cleaners, but there is no particular reason why you couldn't build a small, fairly quiet, LPG powered vacuum cleaner.

Also, whenever people talk about NextBoxes, I'm always reminded of NeXT, the company Steve Jobs set up after he was fired from Apple in 1985, which failed miserably despite creating several really good computers and the version of Unix that OSX is based on.

 

[the_green_dragon]

Ok Ok, I didn't know Diablo 3 could be played offline, I stopped caring after they announced always online DRM shit so I did't pay attention.

A little bleak don't you think? I doubt all gaming company's want their games to always be online, plus those always online games won't have servers running them forever and will probably be cracked eventually.

My every game will be online statement is merely something which COULD happen.... one day. maybe, but the point is a lot of games which I like are starting to incorprate crap like this.

Dead Space 3 with their micro transactions.
The countless games with online passes, ect

ALSO I would like to mention back in the day I could buy a PC game and install it on all my computers and when I was done I could give/lend/sell it to a friend, now all my PC games are digital downloads and I can't do that anymore. I miss those days

 

[Longstreet]

Well, he just fucked it up pretty bad.
I almost feel sorry for the marketing / PR department there, good luck spinning this guys!

Rule 101 of sales guys, have empathy with your customers. It matters fuck all if YOU find their complaint useless or 'drama', if they (think) they got a valid complaint, you treat it as such and solve it. (FYI, talking in general here)

Also since i do not own a Xbox, any xbox owners may correct me on this but;
Since you need Xbox live (or, the being able to go online thing) and this new one is always online. Don't they FORCE you to use XBOX live? Especially since Xbox live is a subscription model (what? 15 euro's a month or so?) i can't see that go over too well either

Or am i completely missing the board and is the online they talk about different from Xbox live?

 

[coldfrog]

You know, I've always been on the fence about this in some games. I think it was a bad idea in Simcity, but I can understand some of the rationale behind Diablo 3.

However, there is a more serious problem with an entire console requiring always online. What happens 10[5] years from now when XBox 40k comes out and they now need new servers to handle that system's always online functionality? Do they lower available bandwidth and make people deal with it? Do they run twice as many servers, doubling the cost of it all and possibly having to squeeze more money out of the consumer for it? And more importantly, what happens 20[10] years from now when they stop producing games for it altogether? Do they shut down the servers? Is there a potential firmware upgrade that will let the system run on its own? Will a single game available on the system be playable in the future? Do they even care if it is?

Obviously these are all pure speculation, but I'm 30 and I still have my original NES which still is in perfect working condition over 20 years from when I got it. I've seen the beginning and end of the PS2. It lived a long and full life, and I still use it because I enjoy games for it. Hell, I've only ever owned one vacuum cleaner, lovingly pushed along many a carpet. There is basically no way they can assuage my fear that any game I play on that system will eventually become obsolete and unplayable. I can't think of any way they can assure us that they would support any kind of way to archive those old games (aside from the obvious re-packaging as download-only on a new system, forcing you to re-buy, since obviously backwards compatibility is a thing of the past). It's a gamble I am not willing to take.

(Here's the vacuum comparison by the way. If there is a possibility that in ten years, you will HAVE to buy a new vacuum cleaner because they no longer support it, would you buy that vacuum?)

 

[the_green_dragon]

Snip

Totally agree with you, I'm not why Strazdas is trying to defend always on DRM or insulting people with dial-up modems.....

I think that anyone who says stupid crap will look like a stupid ass and whatever company they work for will look stupid for hiring the stupid ass in the first place.

 

[the_green_dragon]

Well, he just fucked it up pretty bad.
I almost feel sorry for the marketing / PR department there, good luck spinning this guys!

Rule 101 of sales guys, have empathy with your customers. It matters fuck all if YOU find their complaint useless or 'drama', if they (think) they got a valid complaint, you treat it as such and solve it. (FYI, talking in general here)

Also since i do not own a Xbox, any xbox owners may correct me on this but;
Since you need Xbox live (or, the being able to go online thing) and this new one is always online. Don't they FORCE you to use XBOX live? Especially since Xbox live is a subscription model (what? 15 euro's a month or so?) i can't see that go over too well either

Or am i completely missing the board and is the online they talk about different from Xbox live?

Xbox live GOLD is paid, Xbox live SILVER is free. You can't play games online with Xbox silver but you can still do other basic junk.

 

[the_green_dragon]

I'm 30 and I still have my original NES which still is in perfect working condition over 20 years from when I got it.

Its ok, NO XBOX will ever last that long without breaking.