Nextbox 1080: The Reckoning

[Twig]

I'll just be mad and anti-vote for it. ):

[toblix]

Oh, everyone will be mad, but as release day nears, everyone's eyes will glaze over and people will start lining up.

[I_smell]

This is a tangent from about 6 pages ago, but does anyone else think press conferrence bingo cards are a weak-ass granny joke?

 

If you are ready to take a shot when they announce the ILLUMI-ROOM then you belong in A STRAIGHT-JACKET!!!

WHAT PLANET AM I EVEN ON???

[Frenetic Pony]

Sadly, MS isn't interested in those people because they're not making digital purchases.

 

It's not interested in A LOT of people or business. "No self publishing for indies" *takes a look at the top 10 selling game on Steam currently "Oh look 8 of them are indie titles!"

 

And considering Nintendo's strategy for console dominance:

 

I think Sony has to be feeling at least somewhat confident in its position at the moment.

[Roderick]

Best Jif of the week!

[Thrik]

Haha the Reggie flash just makes it perfect.

[melmer]

used games shit explained

 

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/publishers-to-receive-cut-of-xbox-one-pre-owned-sales-at-retail/0116137

 

not too shabby

 

although i guess that means game rental is out the window, unless they create a different system where the rental company would have to check in each game before and after each rental

[JonCole]

Seems fair to me, I just imagine that under this model there really won't be any room for the deep cuts that I'm accustomed to from browsing Cheapassgamer all day. No big worry this generation, though, as I'm sure I can get my budget gaming on the PS4/Vita/Wii U/3DS without too much trouble and paying for Xbox One games at retail every few months won't be so bad.

[I_smell]

If Sony react by setting up a more worthwhile relationship with retail shops, they're gonna be all PlayStation all day.

Also this stuff's all unconfirmed, but assuming Microsoft are, in some significant way, discouraging trade-ins.

[tegan]

And considering Nintendo's strategy for console dominance:

 

The saddest part is that it's actually demonstrably working.

 

lthough i guess that means game rental is out the window, unless they create a different system where the rental company would have to check in each game before and after each rental

 

I would be all up in arms about this, but then I remembered that I haven't actually rented a game since I worked at Blockbuster, and even then I barely rented them. I think game rentals are kind of dead.

[pabosher]

Well, it's not really. It just so happens that Amazon very recently (last couple of days) reduced the price of their Wii U units.

 

EDIT: And I think Gamefly, Lovefilm etc. would disagree with the second half of your statement.

[JonCole]

All I can hope for is that with Microsoft measurably reducing the position of used game retailers in the space, they'll much more aggressively pursue promotional sale windows on their digital content. I feel like in the latter years of the Xbox 360's life, Microsoft really began to get aggressive with GoD and XBLA sales to the point where they were actually competitive with retail. I know that their sale on El Shaddai at something like $4, Metal Gear HD collection for almost $15, and Rayman Origins for $10 was ridiculously compelling. It's a pipedream to hope Xbox One's store will be as good to me as Steam is, but I'm still willing to have a little hope.

 

 

Well, it's not really. It just so happens that Amazon very recently (last couple of days) reduced the price of their Wii U units.

 

EDIT: And I think Gamefly, Lovefilm etc. would disagree with the second half of your statement.

 

Yeah, and I believe a major retailer in the US has reduced the price of the Basic version to $230 for a couple weeks, can't remember which.

[Merus]

There's been some interesting thoughts coming out of this whole shemozzle:

 

* RPS pointing out recently that we don't actually own a goddamn thing any more. I know I've felt this keenly with Steam, particularly since I've started using two computers and Steam freaks out every time I switch and denies me access to everything. It has shattered my illusions of Steam being an entirely helpful piece of software that can accomodate reasonable needs.

 

* The argument that turned up on the Wider Internets that for the past couple of years most Americans were using Netflix on the 360 anyway, so they build all this media stuff in to show how they're making the way you use the Xbox now even better, and now suddenly no-one wants any of that.

 

Also also Nintendo can do what they like, the Wii U will still be a great bit of kit that's a pain to develop for due to lack of good development software.

[youmeyou]

* The argument that turned up on the Wider Internets that for the past couple of years most Americans were using Netflix on the 360 anyway, so they build all this media stuff in to show how they're making the way you use the Xbox now even better, and now suddenly no-one wants any of that.

 

Except there are plenty of cheaper options like Roku and Apple TV for streaming television. It doesn't make sense to make that the selling point for a several hundred dollar high-powered gaming machine.

[Merus]

Except there are plenty of cheaper options like Roku and Apple TV for streaming television. It doesn't make sense to make that the selling point for a several hundred dollar high-powered gaming machine.

 

I think the idea is that the selling point is "this is the new Xbox" and "here is the thing you are currently doing with the Xbox, now better". It also is a somewhat flippant argument, there is no shortage of boxes you can put in front of your TV to manage your entertainment options. We have a Raspberry Pi with XBMC installed, which at $15 or so is a good deal cheaper than most of the other options.

[Roderick]

 

I can watch this all day.

 

OK. I have.

[Zeusthecat]

It's funny, none of the online requirements or used game/rental issues would likely ever be a problem for me. Once in a while I might borrow a game from a friend to try it out but it happens infrequently enough that this really wouldn't have that big of an impact on my gaming experience.

 

But for some reason I still have a problem with it as a matter of principle. I know there are a lot of people out there that do buy used games, do rent games, and don't have internet and I have a hard time justifying putting my money behind something that will alienate those people. It is probably inevitable that this model will take over eventually anyways but as long as I can speak with my dollars I will put those dollars behind systems that don't implement these kinds of measures.

 

It will be interesting to see what requirements Sony puts in place. If they do the same thing then I guess I'll just have to accept it and move on. But then again there's always the WiiU which is bound to gain some momentum and could win me over. In the end, me playing video games trumps everything.

[Ucantalas]

I currently live in a house with 3 other gamers. We usually alternate who purchases a new release, and then everyone plays it. (Currently there are mass scheduling problems with who gets to play Fire Emblem: Awakening)

That would make this a bit more difficult, because we each have our concoles set up with our own profiles and everything.

[Dewar]

Have big tech companies always been into intentionally restricting their possible user base in the name of theoretically greater profitability, or is this a new development? I'm asking in all seriousness.

 

It happens all the time. PS3 and X360 consoles are sold at a loss (as is the WiiU I think, but Nintendo was the only company making an actual profit off the console for a long.) Thus, if a user buys an X360 and doesn't purchase a certain number of games and other content, MS is taking a loss on the deal. Add to the that the MS's profit margins are larger on digital sales than disks, and you start to get to a situation that users that only buy a few disks a year and don't have the internet to pay for a Gold subscription aren't valuable anymore.

[Dewar]

used games shit explained

 

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/publishers-to-receive-cut-of-xbox-one-pre-owned-sales-at-retail/0116137

 

not too shabby

 

although i guess that means game rental is out the window, unless they create a different system where the rental company would have to check in each game before and after each rental

 

That seems way too complicated to be worth it for most game stores. Just sell a new copy instead if the profit margins are going to be the same.

[elmuerte]

And yet, an iPhone is still more expensive than the PS3 was.

 

MS would be smart to sell the xbone for $50 with a 2 live year contract

[SecretAsianMan]

It's funny, none of the online requirements or used game/rental issues would likely ever be a problem for me. Once in a while I might borrow a game from a friend to try it out but it happens infrequently enough that this really wouldn't have that big of an impact on my gaming experience.

 

But for some reason I still have a problem with it as a matter of principle. I know there are a lot of people out there that do buy used games, do rent games, and don't have internet and I have a hard time justifying putting my money behind something that will alienate those people. It is probably inevitable that this model will take over eventually anyways but as long as I can speak with my dollars I will put those dollars behind systems that don't implement these kinds of measures.

 

It will be interesting to see what requirements Sony puts in place. If they do the same thing then I guess I'll just have to accept it and move on. But then again there's always the WiiU which is bound to gain some momentum and could win me over. In the end, me playing video games trumps everything.

 

I'm constantly torn between my sympathy for developers and my sympathy for consumers.  When I was in college, I couldn't afford to buy a new game all the time so I had a Gamefly membership.  It let me play a ton of games while costing significantly less than the total cost of all those games.  I got rid of it when I started working and could afford to buy things myself.  But even when I used Gamefly, I wondered if I was hurting developers since they essentially only sold a few copies of the game and yet many times that number were playing it.  So even when I had Gamefly I would still buy the games I really felt were worth the money.  I want developers to get the money they deserve, but I also want people to be able to play games and I know not everyone can afford to buy new games all the time.  I've seen speculation that restricting the used game market could lead to lower prices for new games because it would mean more copies are sold without fear of losing money to resales.

[Twig]

I can watch this all day.

 

OK. I have.

Yeah it's fantastic. And makes me want to play Mario Party.

[Nachimir]

That seems way too complicated to be worth it for most game stores. Just sell a new copy instead if the profit margins are going to be the same.

 

Yes, so: The publishers and platform holders win either way. Also, bricks and mortar games retail shrinks or dies. 

[Argobot]

The accompanying argument to this is that the death of GameStop and the entire rest of the second hand market will save publishers all that money they’re losing to used game sales, which will enable them to charge less for games. The problem with this theory is that corporations are incredibly reluctant to pass their savings down to consumers, and generally prefer to use those savings to pad their profit margins instead. To believe that game publishers will benevolently reduce the cost of games thanks to our brave used game sacrifice is to ignore several decades of economic history. Furthermore, this theory completely ignores the fact that development costs have been steadily increasing, and there’s no way in hell publishers will be able to afford to sell next-gen, triple-A games for less money than they do now. Let’s move on, shall we?

 

This whole article is a direct response to the PAR post, but I wanted to specifically highlight this passage, since it points out why getting rid of used games won't lower the overall cost of new games: http://www.gameranx.com/features/id/14918/article/why-preventing-used-game-sales-is-bad-and-why-you-should-feel-bad/