Rumor: More Evidence Suggests Always-Online For Next Xbox

[drisky]

It's officially confirmed now I think, as well as not playing used games. I sense this spelling trouble for them. Gamestop probably won't even want to sell the system.

http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/03/20/xbox-durango-requires-all-games-to-be-installed

 

[Roxas1359]

Spoiler: My reaction to this

Microsoft, I'll wait for your official response before jumping to conclusions, but if this turns out to be completely true then Sony and Nintendo will continue to get my love. During the past year and a half I have pretty much not used my Xbox and gone mainly to the PS3. The only reason I still have an Xbox is so that I can LP some games that wouldn't run too well on my laptop (I record with it) and my PS3 (I'm looking at you Bethesda). The 3D camera is what scares me the most to be honest, it would be a complete invasion of privacy and I'm sure it'd be abused badly. The last time I turned on my Xbox the Dashboard was filled with so many ads that I just set it up to where the game automatically loads up. Live is overpriced I think and if you're not a huge fan of shooters, like me, then it's a complete waste of time to even buy it. I've pretty much completely switch to my PS3 and Wii and I'm actually gonna get a Wii U because I've had fun with it before. Sure the Wii U doesn't have many good games right now, but the PS3 had a not so stellar launch and it is now my second most played console.
Goodbye Microsoft, your 360 was my first console of the last generation, and it looks like it will be my last one from you in general.

 

[BrionJames]

I hope not, it'd be sad to see things go this way but who knows. Maybe I'll finally make the switch to PC.

 

[Dumoras]

perhaps the simcity incident will make them think twice.

 

[A Raging Emo]

I don't think they'll seriously take the always online route. Especially because of our exact reactions to this; they'll lose far too many customers.

 

[Starik20X6]

Spoiler: Meanwhile, at the Xbox design facility...

 

[Adam Jensen_v1legacy]

More shit from Microsoft. If this is true then they are really fuckin' clueless. This is Microsoft wanting to be more like Apple. They think Apple's success is based on controlling every single aspect of their customer's experience, so obviously they should do the same in order to be as successful. Didn't they get the hint when they released Windows 8 that that kind of strategy isn't going to work?

So let's see what we got here.

-Always on
-no used games
-installing every game on hard disc
-requires Kinect spying on you to work
-probably subscription based online play like Xbox 360

What else? Self destruction mechanism with a blast radius of 10 meters if you try to unplug the Big Brother? Wouldn't surprise me.

Why would anyone get this over PS4 or a good gaming PC?


The sad thing is, this is the publisher's wet dream. And people are gonna buy it regardless. All you have to do is wave the next Halo or Gears of War in people's face and they'll run to their nearest shopping mall to buy the Big Brother console. And the publishers will support it because it gives them more control over their customers.

Of course, thinking that this kind of behavior can last is stupid. There is a very real chance that this, combined with some other aspects of gaming industry will lead to another crash.

 

[knight steel]

If this is true then this is my reaction:

 

[Terminate421]

Microsoft has the opportunity to do a fatality to the PS3 by just being Xbox. Not this.

Microsoft are smart, they aren't stupid, it sounds like fanboyism coming from me, but I know by fact they won't pull that shit.

Also, they'll realize always online won't work. Halo is one of the last split-screen multiplayer games that people still play. If that is gone, then boom, they shot themselves in the toe.

 

[MetaKnight670]

No, bad Microsoft! Bad, bad Microsoft! No cookie for you Microsoft, bad company.

But seriously I really hope this isn't true or else I certainly will not be buying it. I mean yes, I do already have Kinect. But, my internet is crap at home and sometimes it just shuts off for days on end. So what do I do when the net is off for fun? Play Xbox. (Or use Steam now).

Also I have never seen the need to install games to the hard-drive and my 60 gig one is almost full, despite not doing this. So why should I fill it up that much faster with less games for next gen?

No, just no.

Edit: Perhaps a Steam box if I really MUST have some sort of console. Not seeing it though.

 

[Wanderer787]

If true, this description of Microsoft's next offering sounds like something out of George Orwell's classic, 1984. If those truly are the requirements and this is the trend for future console gaming, I think I will have bought my last console with the Xbox 360.

 

[Madman123456]

Well that changes... nothing.
One could say that the more things change the more they stay the same.
Consoles: Companies screw with you and you have no way of doing anything about that.
PC: Companies are screwing you even more, but with long tedious work you may have a chance of getting the game you paid for to play without having to be online, making the DRM Software you most certainly didn't pay for explode your machine.

If you cough up enough money to pay for a machine that is three times as fast as a console you might even be able to play some shitty ports with decent speeds.
After it took you 12 hours or so to make sure it runs without telling anyone how many virtual drives you have installed or something.

 

[IamLEAM1983]

Looks like they're going to really try and slam the always online DRM hammer down.

This may be the great video game crash all over again. People BETTER not buy into this always online crap, I'm hoping everyone is smarter than these companies give them credit for.

You very badly underestimate people's tolerance for DRM. The only ones who will be wary are the ones with crap internet.

As long as they can not fuck up the launch with stuff like RROD like they did with the 360, will be a hit. Calling it now.

Pretty much this. The entire Western world seems to be giving the finger to anyone with dial-up, as of the last decade. I'm aware that dial-up is phasing out and broadband plans are becoming increasingly affordable, but the problem is that the tech isn't evenly spread out to all areas.

I live in the suburbs of Montreal, on the South Shore, for instance. I'm fine; broadband from Videotron reaches us easily. If you know anything about Quebec's terrain, you'll know that Lake Saint-Sauveur's region is very hilly and generally mountainous. It makes passing optic fiber cables or supporting broadband by cable or DSL fairly difficult. The only available option is a generally spotty satellite service. One of my uncles lives there, and his connection breaks down every so often. There, quite simply, are no readily available physical means to guarantee a decent always-online experience for anyone in this region.

Thankfully, most of the lake's population is made up of retirees or forty-to-fiftysomething couples who aren't very likely to give a damn about consoles, Durango or even SimCity's DRM fiasco. If there's ever any complaints towards Bell Canada for that region, I wouldn't know.

I have friends in Texas and Idaho, though, and I can confirm that pulling off a decent connection a couple miles away from any big urban centers is difficult. I don't know if that means a lot of people will complain about the forced connectivity, but some people *will* obviously complain. They'll have every reason to. The tech just isn't sufficiently spread out to allow for this approach to be democratic.

As is, Microsoft is basically going "Oh, you're living in Bumfuck Town? Well, sucks to be you, no Durango for you!"

 

[ObsidianJones_v1legacy]

wrong thread, sorry

 

[Bocaj2000]

I am very disappointed

Looks like this is one more console that I refuse to buy... all I have to look forward to is the OUYA

EDIT: (forgot about the Steam Box)

 

[dreadedcandiru99]

I am feeling like the OUYA will be awesome more and more jsut by comparison to everything else. I can't believe I am saying this but I have no interest in the WiiU and I still think it is the best choice between the main three thus far.

Seconded. That and the Steam Box (in whatever form it finally takes). I'm more pumped for those than the PS4, and now I'm way, waaaaay more pumped for any of the three of those than the DRMbox.

 

[Elijah Lee]

Let's wait to say until everyone has a high-speed internet connection "world-wide" before pulling any of these tricks.
If I wanted to be online all the time, I would be a PC gamer, which i'm slowly going back to.

I unplug my xbox at night sometimes, because i'm scared that it will slow down my internet connection for myself.

 

[MrBenSampson]

So their plan for next gen is to get rid of every benefit that consoles have over PCs? It's like they want to fail. With every announcement/rumour, it looks more likely that I won't be joining the next generation. I'm probably going to use this as an opportunity to go back, and play everything I missed during the 5th and 6th generations. The Gamecube and Dreamcast are looking far more appealing to me than Durango.