XBOX: A New Generation Revealed, May 21st

[Ramza]

My take on Steam / DRM vs XBone crap.

I will "buy" (an individual license to) 10 games for like $3. I'll do this once a month and find tons of high quality games that I really, really enjoy.

On XBone ... well, let me know when they have a sale like that that even comes close.

Ideologically DRM peeves me too, but the pragmatist in me says it's all about the Benjamins.

[Yoda]

Its just a sign of the times. I really don't care. Hard copies will be a memory in 10 years.

This kind of attitude doesn't help anybody.

As long as we're promised that our game won't cease to exist in the next cycle of consoles .... That's the real gripe. In 5 years or so when the 360 is dead I won't be able to download and play Defense Grid or Shadow Complex...Games I paid for.

[pseudonym]

Valve projects an image of putting the customer first with constant game sales and free online play... people feel like they're getting great deals (and they do).  Microsoft has projected an image of putting the publishers and themselves first with charging for online play and creating an environment designed to extract as much money out of the customer as possible (games on demand prices are hilarious).  Microsoft emphasizing TV and sports with the debut of their new console was not endearing in the slightest.  They have a tremendous image problem, and I haven't the slightest bit of sympathy for them.  Most of my current gen game library is on my Xbox 360, but they have become repulsive enough to the point that I'm not buying their new platform, as much as I want to play Crimson Dragon which is undoubtedly going to be re-revealed as an Xbox One exclusive.

That's why I think people are more willing to accept Steam than Xbone. If the service is good and not a total rip-off, then I am more willing to compromise on some things.

[MeshGearFox]

How mandatory is exclusivity? Can companies back out of it?

[Lard]

Leaving this here.

http://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-positive-reddit-comments-2013-6

It just gets better and better for them.

[Ashton]

An account on reddit just made today that is making baseless claims?

Hmm... not sure if I trust the veracity of the article.

[Lard]

Yeah, I can see why, but the reason I posted it is that it's just one bit of bad perception after another for MS.

It seems like things are really starting to turn against them.

[Ashton]

I think a more than a bit of it is just people jumping on MS because it's MS. Nobody here has done that, and MS has made some serious missteps (to the point where I won't buy their next console), but some of the hate seems... well, unwarranted, or coming out of nowhere.

[Annubis]

I think those that are the most vocal are actually the people that are the most disappointed in MS.

[Yggdrasil]

@Ashtrot: Unwarranted criticism?

[Lard]

I think those that are the most vocal are actually the people that are the most disappointed in MS.

Possibly.

People went into the first MS conference thinking MS was going to have an easy victory walking into next gen.

Keep Xbox Live the same, get some good exclusives, ramp up the graphics and we have a winner.

I can't remember the last time I saw such a quick turnaround into hostility.

Maybe after the "you'll want to get a second job" moment by Sony.

[Eusis]

Well, I kind of expect many were at least dreading something multimedia/TV focused, and if it were kept just to that we'd have a bunch of internet crying which I'd find exasperating, but this sort of dicking around with game ownership? Yeah, this is a problem for not just Microsoft fans but non-PC game fans on a whole as something like this catching on can screw up Nintendo/Sony, at least if Sony doesn't have similar lined up already.

[Akanbe-]

Microsoft kills game ownership and expects us to smile -- Source: Eurogamer

"Almost exactly a year ago, at the end of an E3 press conference in which Microsoft heralded fitness software, Kinect, Internet Explorer, Bing and dying action games as the future of entertainment, I wrote that anyone who has paid attention to Microsoft's business over the years should not be surprised by its apparent lack of self-awareness.

"If we are entertained by what Microsoft chooses to do for its own gain," I suggested, "then that is simply a happy coincidence."

Guess what? The coincidence is over."

I have to wonder how many people who hate the Xbox One so much also think Steam is the best thing to ever happen. We can change those points ever so slightly and Steam would be guilty of the same thing.

-You do not own the games you buy. You license them.
-Discs are only used to install and then license games and do not imply ownership.
-People can play games installed on your computer whether you're logged in or not.
-Multiple people can be authorised to play these games on a different computer, but not at the same time, similar to iTunes authorised devices.
-You can't trade in your games
-You can't give games to friends
-Your account allows you to play the games you license on any computer.
-Your computer must connect to the internet a predetermined period of time to keep playing games.
-When playing on another computer with your account, you can't use your home computer.
-Live TV, Blu-ray and DVD movies are exempt from these internet requirements.
-Loaning and renting games will not be possible
-Valve may change these policies or discontinue them at any point.

I'm not saying that I LIKE the direction MS is taking; in fact, I hate it. The point remains, though. Steam is functionally identical, but people claim it's the best thing ever.

This is a decent reply to your comparisons I think, from VideoGameandTech

Steam on the PC and the XBO are different scenarios. Let's go over why:

Buying in. People owned PCs before Steam existed and don't pay Valve a penny to buy one. XBO requires you fork over $400 (or whatever the price is), the majority of which goes to MS.

Competition. Don't like Steam or how it works? Buy game from anywhere else. Don't like how MS runs their system? $400 paperweight. Competition has several secondary effects, like discounting, keeping business honest, etc. Steam has those; MS won't.

Sales. AAA, multi-million seller, Game-of-the-Year winners go on sale regularly. We know how Steam works with its pricing. Microsoft? Don't yet know. We have seen when the same game is sold digitally and brick-and-mortar that the digital version does not get comparable sales.

Trust. We trust Steam because we've seen how it works. MS has not earned our trust. And being our only XBO option, it's an easy position to abuse.

Offline usability. Your PC works perfectly fine without an internet connection. Steam will still play your installed games. XBO goes dead in 24 hours (if it won't play games, it's dead to me).

Value-added or taken away. Steam's introduction and existence does nothing to take away from our computer gaming experience. Some of us even like its features; the rest can ignore it. XBO and its online DRM are a major step backwards from the 360 in every ownership aspect.

So while they are both digital distribution platforms, Steam and XBO are very different beasts.

[Lard]

Well, I kind of expect many were at least dreading something multimedia/TV focused, and if it were kept just to that we'd have a bunch of internet crying which I'd find exasperating, but this sort of dicking around with game ownership? Yeah, this is a problem for not just Microsoft fans but non-PC game fans on a whole as something like this catching on can screw up Nintendo/Sony, at least if Sony doesn't have similar lined up already.

Well it was cringe worthy, but in a different way from the Frodo reveal of the 360.
You're right though, if it were just a TV reveal people could say "wait til E3".
This kind of anger I understand.
Sony and Nintendo would be insane at this point to try and replicate what MS is doing.
E3 really is Sony's to lose at this point.

[Yggdrasil]

I believe in you Sony.