Xbox One FAQ

[BettiePage]

So the media (Wired via BBC) trumps Microsoft's statement above? Umm, okay.

And Major Nelson (your quoted statement) was asked about being able to play games on someone else's Xbox, that's where that came from. That was NOT about used games at all.

The information in the article comes from Microsoft's director of programming, Larry Hryb.

That vs the twitter account of MS support who is reading off a prepared list of talking points.

 

[Viper87227]

The new xbox is not competing against Steam, it's competing against Playstation 4. If Sony allows used games on their system without charging anything, then people would expect the same from Microsoft.

I'd disagree, I think they are competing with Steam [PC Gaming]. Not in the same capacity as the PS4, but it's still a gaming platform that can take sales away from the Xbox. This is especially relevant as Steam continues to push to new operating systems and the living room.

Furthermore, just because one system works one way doesn't mean the other has to. They will each trade blows with different features, and it's up to the customer to chose which features mater. Also, all Sony has said is that the PS4 will play used games. Technically true of the One as well... maybe Sony still has some hidden terms up their sleeves also. It's all speculation at this point. Regardless, it still doesn't seem like something to be angry about. Whether the PS4 has any limitations or not, it's still something that's been embraced on the PC, and the same should apply to consoles.

Can you say console games get cheaper as quick as PC games does too? That's an important point too. Not everyone wants to sell their games, I personally don't either. But then I don't buy them at full price. There are people out there who buy games at a full price knowing they could resell it. So if they can't do it here, then this is a huge turn off. If Playstation 4 allows them to trade or exchange games freely, there's no reason why they would put up with these restriction on xbox.

Honestly, this remains to be seen. The last gen didn't adopt DD until later in their life, and it was half-baked at best. This time around, DD is a huge point of focus. Every game will be available digitally on the retail release date, and probably heavily promoted to try and help show it as a viable option for the non-PC gamers who aren't familiar with DD. Maybe with a DD focused platform, Steam-esque sales will follow? Everyone will be quick to say that Microsoft and Sony wouldn't do that, but I think it's possible. Steam has certainly shown the value of having regular sales. They may go the other way and continue to charge $60 for games far longer than they should. No one can say for certain, but at the very least I think we can assume that the previous generations DD rules don't apply this time around.

I do have another concern too. Do the game company get a cut? I think they should because if anyone can claim a loss of sales, its the gaming company. (Not that I think it's right, but I don't see how Microsoft fits into the equation here.)

Get a cut of what? The rumored re-license fee? I'm quite sure they would. What I'm guessing is that when a person attempts to play a game tied to another account, the system will give the player one of three options. 1.) Sign into the account associated with that disc, 2.) Transfer the discs license to a new account and remove it from the previous account, or 3.) Purchase the game digitally on XBL.

 

[HardOCP News]

Depends on the Microsoft statement you pick. One guy says no, 10 other Microsoft guys say there will be a fee. One guy even says there will be a fee "as much as the first player pays".

Links to those statements from "10 other Microsoft guys" please. No worries, we'll wait.

The information in the article comes from Microsoft's director of programming, Larry Hryb.

That vs the twitter account of MS support who is reading off a prepared list of talking points.

Major Nelson IS Larry Hryb

 

[zero2dash]

Links to those statements from "10 other Microsoft guys" please. No worries, we'll wait.

I already linked to the VP of the company saying there's going to be a fee.

If you want to act like that's not proof enough, that's your prerogative.
Bloggers, magazine editors....I could care less what they say about this particular issue. When the VP of the company says it, I take him at his word and assume he actually knows what is going on.

Major Nelson, meanwhile, is in full damage control on Twitter trying to calm everyone down. Great job Larry....but sorry, not paying attention to you.

VP > blogger

 

[Rahh]

Q: Will Xbox One be backward compatible with my existing games?
A: Xbox One hardware is not compatible with Xbox 360 games.


.....fail!

 

[Dekoth-E-]

Q. Will you be buying an Xbox One?
A. LMFAO, no.

 

[cocheese256]

It's a monthly fee to do anything really online. So play multiplayer games, or use most online applications (like the internet, or to use services such as Netflix [you still have to pay monthly for those obviously]).

As Microsoft has charged that for every console, in increasing amounts, it seems unlikely they'll stop it now.

Really. Well that makes no sense to me. Especially since I can use my PC, Roku, or PS3 to go online. That is horrible. I can not believe anyone pays extra for a feature that is "built in" to every other device out there.

Is there another feature that is included with the price that makes it more appealing?
This is not a question to create an angry debate. I am genuinely curious, why do any of you pay the fee for that service? Do you like the Xbox that much more than a PS3? I have a PS3 but I do not play that much on it. I primarily game on the PC. I use the PS3 mainly for a Blu Ray player, Netflix, and Amazon Prime. The only reason I bought the PS3 over the 360 back in the day was because of the Blu Ray player. I could buy the PS3 for the same price as a high end Blu ray player so I figured it was a better deal.

 

[DeathPrincess]

Really. Well that makes no sense to me. Especially since I can use my PC, Roku, or PS3 to go online. That is horrible. I can not believe anyone pays extra for a feature that is "built in" to every other device out there.

Is there another feature that is included with the price that makes it more appealing?
This is not a question to create an angry debate. I am genuinely curious, why do any of you pay the fee for that service? Do you like the Xbox that much more than a PS3? I have a PS3 but I do not play that much on it. I primarily game on the PC. I use the PS3 mainly for a Blu Ray player, Netflix, and Amazon Prime. The only reason I bought the PS3 over the 360 back in the day was because of the Blu Ray player. I could buy the PS3 for the same price as a high end Blu ray player so I figured it was a better deal.

No special features (other than artificial ones like ability to use a browser). It's peer to peer gaming too, so it's not like you are paying for dedicated servers. Basically you pay for the games, the console, the internet connection and host the games yourself, then pay Microsoft $60 a year to play on "their" network.

It does get you some early access to demos or something ridiculous, but nothing like for example the PlayStation service, where you get free games and money off games for around the same cost. It runs off the same provider as Origin (see: Sim City).

I still don't get how anyone falls for that crap either. But then you have to remember how silly the average person is.

 

[DeathPrincess]

Links to those statements from "10 other Microsoft guys" please. No worries, we'll wait.

Already provided. Microsoft's media machine has two faces and both say the other are liars, it's really up to personal bias who you pick.

But seriously. No new games, focus on TV (the thing everyone is sick of), weaker hardware than the competition, around the same price, no head start, terrible relations with developers, same ugly hardware, focus on gimmicks like the Kinect, and to finish it off an awful, awful name.

You know this thing is going to bomb and bomb hard, stop giving the few remaining fanboys on their atoll hope.

 

[Ashbringer]

The new xbox is not competing against Steam, it's competing against Playstation 4. If Sony allows used games on their system without charging anything, then people would expect the same from Microsoft.

Considering how many developers now claim to make games for PC first, over console, it's pretty clear that services like Steam will play a huge competitor to Xbox. Also, they are going to release the Steam Box console. So in a sense, it's console vs console.

Can you say console games get cheaper as quick as PC games does too? That's an important point too. Not everyone wants to sell their games, I personally don't either. But then I don't buy them at full price. There are people out there who buy games at a full price knowing they could resell it. So if they can't do it here, then this is a huge turn off. If Playstation 4 allows them to trade or exchange games freely, there's no reason why they would put up with these restriction on xbox.

The whole point of preventing resale is to gain bigger profits. I mean they are a company.

#1 People will have to buy new games. This is an obvious net profit gain, as used games don't profit for companies.

#2 Used games force new games to drop in price quicker. This is odd since PC games tend to drop quicker in price, but it's probably too quick for their tastes.

#3 This supports quick games that you can beat in a day. If you could finish the game in 7 hours, then wouldn't you just rent it? This would support the decision for developers to create quick cash cow games. Games you would otherwise just rent.

I do have another concern too. Do the game company get a cut? I think they should because if anyone can claim a loss of sales, its the gaming company. (Not that I think it's right, but I don't see how Microsoft fits into the equation here.)

Microsoft, Sony, and Steam get 30% of all game sales. So if a game is rented, exchanged, or bought used then they are screw out of profit as well.

 

[SBSuperfly]

Why does everyone keep stating it needs an always on connection it doesn't:

Another Microsoft representative, UK marketing director Harvey Eagle, has confirmed that the Xbox One doesn't require a constant internet connection. "The answer to that question is no. You do not require an always-on connection to be able to use Xbox One," he said. "It is clearly designed to be connected to the Internet, and hopefully from what you've just seen you realize some of the benefits that brings. But if your Internet connection drops, you will still be able to play games, still be able to watch Blu-Ray movies, and still be able to watch live TV."

This.

It's no more "always connected" than your PC. It's really a non-issue.

Its my understanding yhat while it doesn't require an "always on" connection, it does require connection before you can play anything. So if your internet is down and you reach for your console controller, it likely won't work unless you connected earlier and updated that day. If you buy a new game from Target or Walmart, you can't play unless you connect first.

 

[DPI]

I don't understand why everyone is so butt hurt about this, particular on [H]. The PC gaming community has embraced Steam with open arms - a platform where once a game is purchased it is yours forever, no exceptions. You can't sell it, you can't lend it to a friend. I've never seen a single bitch about this on PC.

So why then is a console having restrictions on second-hand sales the end of the damn world? Per rumor... You can still play your game on a friends console (albeit on your Live account), and you can still sell it, choosing to have it deactivated on your account or have a duplicate license given for a fee. It boggles my mind that these reasonable restrictions are somehow received worse that the significantly more restrictive PC market.

Just because Steam exists and has been successful if not the savior of PC gaming doesn't mean console gamers care, they've got different expectations and have enjoyed the ability to pop a disc in and play without all sorts of convoluted strings attached. Its not rocket science here.

 

[Ashbringer]

Already provided. Microsoft's media machine has two faces and both say the other are liars, it's really up to personal bias who you pick.

When rumors came out that the Next Xbox was going to require an always on connection, there was a lot of back lash. So Microsoft said no it doesn't.

Which is technically true, but in a deceptive way. You only need to connect once per day to play your games. So that went from an always on connection, to a mostly on connection. Which is just them being total ass hats.

Now that they have all this negative attention, they're like chickens running around with their heads cut off. They have no idea which way to bullshit the media.

You know this thing is going to bomb and bomb hard, stop giving the few remaining fanboys on their atoll hope.

It probably failed long before they had their announcement. But one thing to learn about Microsoft, is they've become a delusional company. Long before Windows 8 went public, people warned Microsoft that nobody would want it. They did it anyway, and Windows 8.1 is doing mostly nothing to address the issues.

Now Xbox One had rumors of it's always on connection, and Microsoft changed it so you didn't need a 100% always on connection. So they're still fucking with consumers. Only except that unlike Windows on a computer, you have choices. Did Microsoft forget about the PS4? I mean the specs are identical on paper. Lets not forget about the Wii U or PC. With Windows it's either that or Mac, and Mac is only on Apple computers.

Xbox One is going to bomb harder then hard. Harder then Infinium Labs Phantom.

 

[DPI]

In other news Sony has got to be laughing their asses off over this debacle. And that's coming from someone that at one point owned and played 3 x 360's while a PS3 collected dusted.

Microsoft's arrogance continues to dumbfound me. As usual its not that they don't have a right to their consumer-hostile, DRM laden intentions. Its that they're executing poorly, cart before horse style. They really should've planned this transition more slowly and eased off on all the new restrictions until a year after launch since all they've done is given the the technopress unlimited ammo for the next 6-12 months

 

[HardOCP News]

You know this thing is going to bomb and bomb hard, stop giving the few remaining fanboys on their atoll hope.

You haven't provided anything. I was calling you out because you are trolling. You said 10, I wanted to see the 10.

I'm a barrel of laughs too, wait until you see what I do next. Mmmmm, trolbaiting is fun.

 

[Snowdog]

In other news Sony has got to be laughing their asses off over this debacle.

I am betting it will effectively be the same thing:

http://kotaku.com/5985874/ps4-will-not-require-an-always+online-connection
"Sony's game studios chief, Shuhei Yoshida, told reporters that any requirement for users to register a game online in order to play it would be left to game publishers. Sony won't require that."

I am betting that it will just so happen that every game publisher requires it, so in the end there is no real world difference.

The era of game locking on consoles has begun.

But consoles are long dead to me anyway.

 

[Outamyhead]

Wait so I have to pay $4.99 to watch live TV via the box I'm paying $80 for?

 

[rivacom]

Q: Will Xbox One be backward compatible with my existing games?
A: Xbox One hardware is not compatible with Xbox 360 games.


.....fail!

You do realize they both are this way correct?

And toward the whole crowd.. Why are all these requirements a surprise? We already deal with them in other areas of our life.

Internet requirement - How many people, don't have some soft of always on internet in their homes? My guess would be very few.

Backwards Compatible - How often do you play a really old game? Daily? Monthly? Maybe 1 day to remember the gold old times? My guess again, very very few people would really "need" this.

Used Games - Now don't get me wrong, I see this as kind of a bad thing as well. In a already hurting economy, were just looking to hurt some more entertainment businesses like gamefly. But at the same time, I'm more of a pc gamer anyway. I haven't traded in or bought a used game for probably more then 5-6 years. Have I borrowed games? Yea. But really I'm use to having to buy it all anyway. So not really an issue for me.

 

[Ashbringer]

And toward the whole crowd.. Why are all these requirements a surprise? We already deal with them in other areas of our life.

I deal with toll roads, but doesn't mean that every road should have a toll fee. Imagine driving around, and every road you get on requires a toll fee?

Nobody likes toll roads. We deal with it cause we have to, but nobody likes it.

Internet requirement - How many people, don't have some soft of always on internet in their homes? My guess would be very few.

It's like asking, "who doesn't have running water in their home?". That's not the point. The point is Microsoft is using this system to fuck over customers. We like to resale our games, and we like to borrow games.

I don't like something designed to screw me. Especially a machine that I had to pay for. That's like screwing me twice, with no lube.

Backwards Compatible - How often do you play a really old game? Daily? Monthly? Maybe 1 day to remember the gold old times? My guess again, very very few people would really "need" this.

That's kinda contradicting isn't it? If you'll never pick up the game again, then why not sell it? Oh right, you can't.

But honestly, my Android phone is full of old Sega Genesis, Super Nintendo, NES, and etc games from the past. I usually only play them when I'm bored somewhere.

I'm more of a pc gamer anyway. I haven't traded in or bought a used game for probably more then 5-6 years. Have I borrowed games? Yea. But really I'm use to having to buy it all anyway. So not really an issue for me.

#1 Most games for PC have far more replay value then on console. Just take a look at all the mods for Skyrim on PC. You really can't compare.

#2 Most games for PC are dirt cheap. It's not uncommon to pay for games half the price compared to console. Which really gives you little reason to seek out used games, let alone borrow one.

#3 If anything, you can at least move you games from PC to PC with no issue. As long as services like Steam and Orion are still around, what does it matter? Plus, PC users can enjoy hacks which can fix the need for an online connection. We even have things like DOSbox, which allows us to play old Dos games on modern PCs.

 

[rivacom]

It's like asking, "who doesn't have running water in their home?". That's not the point. The point is Microsoft is using this system to fuck over customers. We like to resale our games, and we like to borrow games.

How is it screwing you if you already have it? The only people I see this being an issue with is people who can't afford Broadband based connections, or live far enough out of reach of any carriers. Otherwise, having your xbox update your games while your at work? I don't know, doesn't seem awful. The idea is to always have up to date content for you. Exactly what the Wii does now.

That's kinda contradicting isn't it? If you'll never pick up the game again, then why not sell it? Oh right, you can't.

Like I said, I'm all for the companies out there like gamestop,gamefly, etc. But people are slowly moving to digital media for everything. they don't want more clutter. MS just decided to move a little further forward with it. Why don't I sell me games? Well really, why I don't try to trade my games in because the instant drop in a game value has fallen so much over the course of the last 5 years that it just isn't worth it anymore. Same reason I have xbox 1 games.. .05 cents ? Of course I could try selling it online. But once again, it's supply and demand, does anyone even want this game I paid 60 bucks for?

#2 Most games for PC are dirt cheap. It's not uncommon to pay for games half the price compared to console. Which really gives you little reason to seek out used games, let alone borrow one.

But there is a reason why games on the PC are dirt cheap. I'm also hoping too that we would see a lot more Console sales as well, I just think the Used game market made it harder for retailers to discount games that users would just pick up cheaper used. Not to mention digital downloads being a huge cost savings in the long run. I wouldn't doubt maybe MS will pull a Steam and have the seasonal sales on various games.

#3 If anything, you can at least move you games from PC to PC with no issue. As long as services like Steam and Orion are still around, what does it matter? Plus, PC users can enjoy hacks which can fix the need for an online connection. We even have things like DOSbox, which allows us to play old Dos games on modern PCs.

You can move a PC Game from Your PC to Another PC of yours yes. With Your xbox live account, you can move it from one Xbox, to another, as long as you are on your xbox account. This is no different then how Steam runs now. Sure I can download the game on a friends PC, but if he doesn't have a CD key for that game, if he signs in under his name. He won't be able to use it(in most cases). So really like I said, I'm already involved in a similar scheme with my PC, the xbox would really be no different.

 

[Viper87227]

Just because Steam exists and has been successful if not the savior of PC gaming doesn't mean console gamers care, they've got different expectations and have enjoyed the ability to pop a disc in and play without all sorts of convoluted strings attached. Its not rocket science here.

Yeah... I get what your saying. But [H] is a community of PC enthusiasts, and everyone here is just as butt hurt about it. My point is... I think people are hating just to hate, despite the fact that for most of the community, here practices like this have been commonplace for several years now.

 

[Viper87227]

Q: Will Xbox One be backward compatible with my existing games?
A: Xbox One hardware is not compatible with Xbox 360 games.


.....fail!

This is another gripe that just doesn't make sense to me... why is BC such a big deal to everyone? I'd rather see them create the best possible platform, regardless of it breaking compatibility with older games. The majority of consoles throughout history have not had this, and no one ever cared.

Sorry, but it just seems like one of those things that [most] people chose to bitch about just because they can. When Sony openly removed BC from the PS3, everyone made a stink about how the new systems were inferior. However, a few years ago when Nintendo silently removed Gamecube support from the Wii, I honestly don't recall a single complaint. Why? Because Nintendo didn't say much about it, and no one actually gave enough of a crap to even notice it was gone.

 

[Trimlock]

This is another gripe that just doesn't make sense to me... why is BC such a big deal to everyone? I'd rather see them create the best possible platform, regardless of it breaking compatibility with older games. The majority of consoles throughout history have not had this, and no one ever cared.

Sorry, but it just seems like one of those things that [most] people chose to bitch about just because they can. When Sony openly removed BC from the PS3, everyone made a stink about how the new systems were inferior. However, a few years ago when Nintendo silently removed Gamecube support from the Wii, I honestly don't recall a single complaint. Why? Because Nintendo didn't say much about it, and no one actually gave enough of a crap to even notice it was gone.

Pretty much this.

The only BC I can think if was ps1 to ps2. The rest was iffy, our if you got the ps3 with the emotion chip.

I doubt anyone raged that NES games couldn't be played in the super NES, our any iteration of console in history.

 

[rivacom]

Pretty much this.

The only BC I can think if was ps1 to ps2. The rest was iffy, our if you got the ps3 with the emotion chip.

I doubt anyone raged that NES games couldn't be played in the super NES, our any iteration of console in history.

I'm glad there is a few people who get the big picture. Were too focused on what it can't do and not what it can do. Plus, all the stuff that people are complaining it can't do, or requires us to do... Were already doing it with other electronics already.