This will kill any game that isn't a AAA franchise. Why would anyone drop $60 on a new IP, or mid-range title that has $0 resale value if it a)sucks, or b)has a short campaign?

Even proven franchises would falter. Would people have dropped $60 on Tomb Raider if they didn't have the ability to dump it later? If SE thought sales were bad now, wait until this new model hits.

Gamers will ultimately decide their own price of entry and just play the waiting game for a sale until their own magical price point is hit.

Kotaku is reporting two more "sources" saying that the next Xbox will require an online connection. This combined with built in Kinect...yuck.

I've already been playing with PS3 more due to all the great free games, I may just stay away from Microsoft if this is true.


http://kotaku.com/the-next-xbox-will...ium=Socialflow

It's looking more and more like Wii U and pc/steambox will be the way to go, this generation.

It looks more and more like I'll just stick with my 360 until they turn the network lights out. *sigh*, darn shame, but then again maybe this will give me the chance to explore other systems again. Even though I own about 8 or 9 other systems, I've pretty strictly played my 360 for the last 2 or 3 years.

Your link is censored.

Honestly, I'm still holding out hope that this "always on" stuff is BS. I don't care if my console has to be connected (because it always is anyway!), but I can understand the concern people have about it. I just think it's all a mis-representation of a policy regarding specific "online-only" games (like MAG on PS3 or that Final Fantasy MMORPG...)... or the rumored $99 Roku-like Xbox.
We'll know for sure what the deal is in May, I'm guessing, which is when the reveal is happening.

I cannot believe they would do that. It eliminates whole swaths of customers who don't take their consoles online (or can't).

There might be some online-only functionality, similar to Xbox Live now, but I predict the console will work if it's online or not.

I don't see how that could ever be successful but I'm sure Sony is hoping MS goes through with it.

I don't get why the constantly connected thing bothers you guys. I'm sure there are people out there without internet.....somewhere, but do any of you guys not keep your console connected already as it is?

So when your internet is out, you are up shit creek to play a game? I think it's more about the authorization that comes along with it, since many of the rumors persist that games will be tied to a specific machine.

I live in a condo building where the connection sometimes lags or cuts out for a few minutes. If it can handle a break of connection and keep the game playing, it wouldn't effect me much. If it kicks you out of the game a minute or two after a connection is lost, I wouldn't even consider buying one. Diablo III gave me all sorts of issues.

Constant connection+built in Kinect = Microsoft looking at me jerking off on the couch.

To further illustrate that point, I live in a small town (and work in the big city LOL), and while our power rarely goes out, our internet goes out all the time and with little reason. I can safely ignore it now and just keep on trucking but if I lose connection in the middle of a boss fight am I then screwed? Does not seem well thought out at all.

It's not even announced yet, let alone thought out. Just chill out everyone until there are actual facts to get pissed about.

I know it's the internet and all, but christ you'd think in 2013 we'd have learned to just chill the fuck out for a few weeks.

A few weeks? lol They will skip around the issue until the last minute. Just look at Sony and their used games policy. We still don't know wtf they're going to do.

Oh, okay then, bitch away.

What about people who don't have wifi? Yes, most do, but not all. Bedroom/playroom Xbox? How much data will be transferred with the always on?

Another advantage to used games is I can buy games older than three months. Yes, Best Buy still has Borderlands 1 and 2 new, but they don't have, say, Onechanbara new (forget the question of 'do I actually want that game'). Used games give the consumer more choice on when to buy and sell (trade) their games. I am by default against things that purposefully remove control from the consumer.
And I think used games are more beneficial to the consumer and the market as a whole than if there were no used games.

However, ultimately, if/when I buy a new console, as someone else said, it's mostly about the games. If the new system has got the best games (for me), I will weigh how inconvenient the other policies against the quality of the games to decide on a console purchase.

I think it's ok for people to comment on a story that Kotaku has been running with for months now. The internet in general and the forum in particular will survive, I'd wager, but I'm sure your concern is noted.

Even with the article, no one seems to come to a definitive consensus as to what "always on" even means. The problem is it seem self-evident so, given that, there's really no room for debate. If you believe it is truly "always on" and that DRM is prevalent, then you know what to expect and there's no point whining about it.

The absolute worst case is that you save several hundred or thousand dollars over the next 7 years.

since this is a thread about the next xbox...I am going to speculate on rumored specs...
My gut feeling on two rumors

1 being you must install.
2 being always online

Must install=cdkeys on games

Always online=no used games because you can't install them without a key

Or course this is all speculation...and if it is true they will spin it a million different ways as to why this is great for us....but if that is the case I already have a powerful gaming pc...why do I need a weaker one called xbox 720?...

Exactly. I get a much better value for my money on software on Steam. I have no problem spending money on a new gaming rig instead of a console just for a few exclusives. I don't have a WiiU and I adore many of Nintendo's core franchises.

anymore, only Halo stands as a must have for me from Microsoft...not enough for me to buy a system for..

That's what I've been thinking for a while now. It already works that way on the PC. I guess I can't put anything past them, what with all the bad decisions they've been making as a company lately, but the always online thing sounds unreasonable. Some games on the PC have done it, and it has been very unpopular.

I'm also probably going to be sticking with the PC for this generation, but I am considering a Wii U at some point for Nintendo's games.

About the next Xbox, I'm very curious about the controller and if it will work on the PC. The Xbox 360 controller has become the de facto standard and is supported by lots of games that will not be updated if there is a new standard.

It seems unlikely to me that they would make the new controller compatible OOTB with 360 consoles, since they'll naturally want you to buy new controllers. I wonder if it will still work with PC games via a new driver (and even have the same layout, so that button prompts within games will match). Or, will they just continue to produce and market the 360 controller for PC games?

Since switching from DSL to cable years ago I can only remember 1 time when my internet went down and I live in about as small of a town as it gets. From the sound of you guys responses, I should consider myself lucky I guess.
Thinking about it more though, I do see where it would be a problem for people wanting to use a console in other rooms and situations like that.

The always online thing is perplexing. The only reasoning I can wrap my head around is that for the first year or two most early adopters are the kind of people that will have a persistent connection, which gives the general public a couple more years to catch up.

So always online = bad for 360 but okay for Steambox?

fixed.

With the news that it's similar to the 360 pad, it would be nice to have backcompat with 360 controllers.

Xbox 360 does have some form of Always online DRM with the indie games. You need to have an internet connection to launch any Indie game. I was without internet for a week two months back and could not access any of my games. XBLA titles worked fine though. It makes you wonder if the indie games are a Beta test of some sorts for next gen.