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Xbox One

Unread postby El Chaos » 26 Jan 2013 01:24

And of course the third Xbox console's specs have also been "leaked":

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/df-ha ... specs-leak

    Central Processing Unit:
  • x64 Architecture
  • Eight CPU cores running at 1.6GHz
  • Each CPU thread has its own 32KB L1 instruction cache and 32KB L1 data cache
  • Each module of four CPU cores has a 2MB L2 cache resulting in a total of 4MB of L2 cache
  • Each core has one fully independent hardware thread with no shared execution resources
  • Each hardware thread can issue two instructions per clock

    Graphics Core:
  • Custom D3D11.1 class 800MHz graphics processor
  • 12 shader cores providing a total of 768 threads
  • Each thread can perform one scalar multiplication and addition operation (MADD) per clock cycle
  • At peak performance, the GPU can effectively issue 1.2 trillion floating-point operations per second
  • High-fidelity Natural User Interface (NUI) sensor is always present

    Storage and Memory:
  • 8GB of DDR3 RAM (68GB/s bandwidth)
  • 32MB of fast embedded SRAM (ESRAM) (102GB/s)
  • From the GPU's perspective the bandwidths of system memory and ESRAM are parallel providing combined peak bandwidth of 170GB/sec.
  • Hard drive is always present
  • 50GB 6x Blu-ray Disc drive

    Networking:
  • Gigabit Ethernet
  • Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi Direct

    Hardware Accelerators:
  • Move engines
  • Image, video, and audio codecs
  • Kinect multichannel echo cancellation (MEC) hardware
  • Cryptography engines for encryption and decryption, and hashing

As the DF guys point out, it's odd that Microsoft would endow the thing with DDR3 RAM, it's much slower than the PS4's GDDR5, even if it's twice the amount. Hell it's probably slower than the 360's GDDR3...
Last edited by El Chaos on 09 Aug 2013 04:30, edited 3 times in total.
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Unread postby icycalm » 26 Jan 2013 02:06

They are saying that they might call it simply "Xbox", which would wreak havoc with gaming sites' hardware classification schemes and even general discussion. I will certainly have to figure out something for the thread tags and the archive...

Apart from that, my only important comment on this and the PS4's specs is that I don't see any multi-monitor support. This is a deal-breaker for me, and it means that these consoles will be obsolete for anything but console-exclusive titles from the get-go. Playing with a single monitor is almost like playing a different game compared to 3. It is even worth lowering the resolution to achieve this -- which the consoles will once again almost certainly NOT allow you to. Everyone's talking about how the target for the next gen is 1080p60, whereas RIGHT NOW my PC can easily do 3x1080p60 at full detail settings, and soon enough even 2x3x1080p60 (with stereoscopic 3D turned on for all 3 screens), or 3x1600p60 for anything but the most cutting edge stuff (Crysis 3 and Metro 2 or whatever).

So, color me unimpressed by these specs.
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Unread postby icycalm » 26 Jan 2013 18:05

Here's some interesting analysis of both consoles' specs by an expert:

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=510076

In short, only PS4-exclusive games have a chance of being technically outstanding, while everything else on both systems will be PC-level stuff that (and I am the one saying this) we'll be better off playing on the PC due to customizable detail settings, multi-monitor setups and the like.
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Unread postby dinopoke » 10 Feb 2013 08:46

Rumor: http://www.edge-online.com/news/the-nex ... ew-kinect/

Microsoft’s next console will require an Internet connection in order to function, ruling out a second-hand game market for the platform. A new iteration of Xbox Live will be an integral part of Microsoft’s next console, while improved Kinect hardware will also ship alongside the unit.

Sources with first-hand experience of Microsoft’s next generation console have told us that although the next Xbox will be absolutely committed to online functionality, games will still be made available to purchase in physical form. Next Xbox games will be manufactured on 50GB-capacity Blu-ray discs, Microsoft having conceded defeat to Sony following its ill-fated backing of the HD-DVD format. It is believed that games purchased on disc will ship with activation codes, and will have no value beyond the initial user.

Our source has also confirmed that the next Xbox’s recently rumoured specs are entirely accurate. That means an AMD eight-core x64 1.6GHz CPU, a D3D11.x 800MHz graphics solution and 8GB of DDR3 RAM. As of now, the console’s hard drive capacity is said to be undecided, but Microsoft’s extended commitment to online delivery suggests that it will be the largest unit it has put inside a console to date.

Though the architectures of the next-gen Xbox and PlayStation both resemble that of PCs, several development sources have told us that Sony’s solution is preferable when it comes to leveraging power. Studios working with the next-gen Xbox are currently being forced to work with only approved development libraries, while Sony is encouraging coders to get closer to the metal of its box. Furthermore, the operating system overhead of Microsoft’s next console is more oppressive than Sony’s equivalent, giving the PlayStation-badged unit another advantage.

Unlike Nintendo, Microsoft is continuing to invest heavily in motion-control interfaces, and a new, more reliably responsive Kinect will also ship alongside the next Xbox. Sony’s next-generation console camera system is said to have a similar set of features, and is expected to be discussed at the company’s PlayStation event on February 20.


http://www.oxm.co.uk/49969/rumour-next- ... ned-block/

The manufacturer has responded to our mails. "Microsoft does not comment on rumours or speculation," reads the statement. "We are always thinking about what is next for our platform, but we don't have anything further to share at this time."
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Unread postby icycalm » 22 Feb 2013 16:07

XboxEvent.com just registered by the same company that did Xbox's E3 presentations

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=515017
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Unread postby ksevcov » 25 Feb 2013 05:24

http://gematsu.com/2013/02/rumor-next-g ... n-april-26

Following Friday’s rumor about an early April reveal date for Microsoft’s next generation Xbox, CVG’s Rob Crossley has said on Twitter that a ‘trusted’ source has told him the event will occur on April 26.

“The next Xbox event is scheduled for April 26th,” Crossley said on Twitter. “I’ve been told by someone I trust. Microsoft may change date, obvs, but diarise tentatively.”

As always, take this with some salt until it is confirmed or denied.
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Unread postby alastair » 08 Apr 2013 00:44

http://gematsu.com/2013/04/rumor-next-x ... n-november

Rumor: Next Xbox to be revealed on May 21, cost $500 for base or $300 for subscription model, and launch in November. Always-on internet connection echoed, as well.
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Unread postby ksevcov » 25 Apr 2013 05:25

http://gematsu.com/2013/04/microsoft-to ... -on-may-21

Microsoft will reveal its next-generation Xbox during a press conference at their Redmond, Washington Xbox campus on May 21 at 10:00 a.m. Pacific, an invitation sent to press confirms.


The conference will be live streamed on Xbox.com, Xbox LIVE, and broadcast on Spike TV in the U.S. and Canada.

“On that day, we’ll share our vision for Xbox, and give you a real taste of the future,” said Major Nelson. “Then, 19-days later at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles, we’ll continue the conversation and showcase our full lineup of blockbuster games.
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Unread postby austere » 21 May 2013 20:23

The new machine from Microsoft has been officially unveiled as the "Xbox One" a few hours ago. Well, it looks more like a box at least.

xboxhardware1_1020_large_verge_medium_landscape.jpg
xboxhardware1_1020_large_verge_medium_landscape.jpg (66.58 KiB) Viewed 58418 times

BKz-jgJCMAAw7Wp.jpg
BKz-jgJCMAAw7Wp.jpg (14.32 KiB) Viewed 58415 times


http://www.forbes.com/sites/insertcoin/ ... wers-less/

Not much else was shown at the very brief presentation. I'm glad they finally decided to use the cross for the direction pad.
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Unread postby icycalm » 23 May 2013 21:02

Continued from here: http://culture.vg/forum/topic?f=1&t=4512&p=20468#p20468

I wrote:I went with ONE since the tag for the Xbox 360 is 360. It seems to me the most elegant solution under the circumstances. Like recoil said, it's a dumb name so it's a tough choice. Dumber in fact than Wii and Wii U put together.


I briefly considered dinopoke's suggestion, XBO, but then I thought, and what if they decide to stick to this naming scheme for once and named the next console Xbox Two? And then the next one Xbox Three? We'd have two consoles with the XBT tag! Which would mean we'd have to scrap the entire tag series, and I'd have to go back and edit hundreds of Xbox One thread titles! You see how the philosopher's mind works, always at least in terms of decades, if not centuries lol.

But seriously, XBO would have been a more elegant choice, if not for that little snag. ONE is less elegant but more futureproof. Because look at this:

Code: Select all
Xbox         XB
Xbox 360     360
Xbox One     ?


In hindsight, the most consistent tag scheme would have been: XB, XB360, XBONE. But it wouldn't have been a good one, because we'd have three 5-character tags, while the entire point of the tag system is to keep the tags down to 2 or 3 characters each. XBO would be the next most, let us say "consistent" solution, precisely because it's 100% inconsistent, combining the first and second parts of the names, unlike the previous two tags, but it would close off our options for future tags. And ONE is the next best choice, because it remains at least consistent with the previous console, while leaving more room for maneuvering for what to do with future consoles. [/PEDANTRY]

But what I find more interesting about MS's console naming conventions are the psychology they betray. With the first console they were happy to be in business and the only thing in their minds was survival, so they just came up with the flashiest name they could come up with: the XBOX -- and it was indeed a great choice. But they never gave any thought to follow-ups, because they were playing it month for month and year for year. Then with the follow up they were still not sure of themselves. The Xbox never turned a profit, and if this continued with its successor, they'd have to quit the business. So they brought in the marketing idiots, who spouted all this "lifestyle, zen" rubbish, etc., and came up with what was, at the time, the stupidest named console ever: the Xbox 360, while again not giving the slightest thought to how they'd follow it up one day. And finally, with the third console, you can clearly see how, now that they've obviously made it and are here to stay, they are FINALLY starting to think of the future properly, but their previous dumbass choices have made it impossible for them to do so while being consistent with them, so they had to scrap everything and start again.

The irony of it is that there's a good chance this will be the final console generation, so the One might well end up being the final one, lol.
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Unread postby icycalm » 23 May 2013 21:17

Basically, everything is the fault of the marketing gurus. If they had simply called the second console the Xbox 2, everything would have been as fine as they've been with every other console ever. Does anyone seriously think MS made a single additional sale by calling their second console "Xbox 360"?
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Unread postby icycalm » 23 May 2013 21:19

But see, they couldn't call it the Xbox 2 because then they wouldn't have been able to justify their fees, since you don't need gurus to come up with that name. The moral is, you bring in the gurus, you will pay for it, and in more ways than one.
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Unread postby ingolfr » 24 May 2013 03:18

I recall when they first revealed the name for the 360, people were claiming they couldn't have called it Xbox 2 when facing the PlayStation 3, because 3 is more than 2. lol
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Unread postby icycalm » 24 May 2013 03:28

I had forgotten about that! Sad as it sounds, it was a valid consideration, marketing-wise. Still, any number of alternatives would have been better to "360". Xbox Next, for example. Though, again, it would be very hard to follow it up... And they couldn't drop the Xbox name altogether, because apart from the fact that it's a bad move from the perspective of brand-building, it's the best console name ever. If it were me, I'd have called in the dudes who make the names for the Guilty Gear games lol.
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Unread postby bradinf » 30 May 2013 22:16

Some nice photos of the Xbox One:

one1.jpg


one2.jpg


one3.jpg


I like the gray on the controller here, but everywhere else I've seen it's all black.
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Unread postby dinopoke » 05 Jun 2013 18:06

http://www.digitaltrends.com/gaming/mic ... ion-locks/

Ryan Fleming wrote:As the details of the Xbox One continue to trickle out following the May 21, 2013 unveiling and the subsequent deluge of facts (some real, some not), we have one more piece of information to confirm about the console: the Xbox One will still feature regional locks.

“Similar to the movie and music industry, games must meet country-specific regulatory guidelines before they are cleared for sale,” A rep from Microsoft confirmed to Digital Trends. “We will continue to work with our partners to follow these guidelines with Xbox One.”
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Unread postby Bread » 09 Jun 2013 01:23

http://www.destructoid.com/xbox-one-gam ... 5542.phtml
http://news.xbox.com/2013/06/connected
http://news.xbox.com/2013/06/license

Both disc-based and downloaded games are tied to your Xbox Live account. This comes with some new functionality and new restrictions:

  • All games require an internet connection to play
  • You can play your games from any Xbox One, without the disc
  • Up to 10 family members can share a game library
  • You can give a disc-based game away only to a friend who's been on your friends list for at least 30 days. They can't give it away again.
  • Publishers decide if reselling their games is allowed, and they may charge for it.
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Unread postby El Chaos » 11 Jun 2013 01:24

The console will launch in November, the price for the single SKU will be US $499/€499/£429. http://www.gamespot.com/e3/xbox-one-lau ... 0-6409554/
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Unread postby icycalm » 11 Jun 2013 01:29

Great news and good price. I am "jumping in" at launch. Finally, a console I can use with one my 1080p screens full-time.
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Unread postby Texas » 15 Jun 2013 14:25

The Xbox One will initially only be supported in 21 countries, and it remains to be seen whether it will be usable in non-supported ones:

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2 ... r-xbox-one

Microsoft has revealed the list of 21 countries which will support the Xbox One at launch, intimating that the machine will not function at all in areas which aren't named. There are several notable absences, including Japan and Poland - home to some major developers.

Because of the console needing to 'check in' once every 24 hours to function, customers hoping to import a machine to an unsupported country may well find themselves out of luck. Previously, region-locked software meant that gamers would have to buy the appropriate discs for a machine, but could take that machine anywhere. Now, they'll have to wait until Microsoft decides to add their country to the list.

A list of requirements on the publisher's pre-order information page is somewhat ambiguous in its wording, claiming that users will require "a Microsoft account and an account on Xbox Live in an Xbox One-supported Xbox Live country/region", but requests for clarification to Xbox support staff seem to indicate that if your country isn't on the list, you won't be playing Xbox One.

The following exchange between an inquisitive customer and Microsoft seems to be pretty clear.

Q: "Does the Xbox One disclaimer imply you won't be able to authenticate a disc-based game if not in one of the 21 countries?"

"The Xbox One will only be available in the 21 launch countries."

Q: "But say someone from Poland, not listed, imports it from the UK. Will they be able to play disc-based games?"

"They would want to wait until the console is available in their region."

In an attempt to bring some clarity to yet another confusing stance on Xbox One, Microsoft has issued a statement.

"At this time, we have announced Xbox One will be available in 21 markets in November this year and additional markets later in 2014. Similar to the movie and music industry, games and other content must meet country-specific regulatory guidelines before they are cleared for sale - which means that games will work in the broad geographic regions for which they have been cleared, much as today with Xbox 360. While the console itself is not geographically restricted, a user's Xbox Live account, content, apps and experiences are all tied to the country of billing and residence."

The list of 21 countries, reproduced in full below, isn't final - Microsoft will continue to add new regions as part of a the Xbox One roll-out. Inquiries with various local Microsoft offices have indicated that missing European countries will start appearing during 2014.
  • Australia
  • Austria
  • Belgium
  • Brazil
  • Canada
  • Denmark
  • Finland
  • France
  • Germany
  • Ireland
  • Italy
  • Mexico
  • Netherlands
  • New Zealand
  • Norway
  • Russia
  • Spain
  • Sweden
  • Switzerland
  • United Kingdom
  • United States
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Unread postby ingolfr » 16 Jun 2013 11:24

An anonymous post on 4chan from a supposed Microsoft engineer:

1/4

>The thing is we suck at telling the story. The whole point of the DRM switch from disc based to cloud based is to kill disc swapping, scratched discs, bringing discs to friends house, trade-ins for shit value with nothign going back to developers, and high game costs. If you want games cheaper then 59.99, you have to limit used games somehow. Steam's model requires a limited used game model.

>The thing is, the DRM is really really similar to steam... You can login anywhere and play your games, anyone in your house can play with the family xbox. The only diff is steam you have to sign in before playing, and Xbox does it automatically at night for you (once per 24 hours)

>It's a long tail strategy, just like steam. Steam had it's growing pains at the beginning with all it's drm shit as well. [...] For digital downloads steam had no real competition at the time, they were competing against boxed sales. At the time people were pretty irate about steam, (on 4chan too...) It was only once they had a digital marketplace with DRM that was locked down to prevent sharing that they could do super discounted shit.

>Think about it, on steam you get a game for the true cost of the game, 5$-30$. On a console you have to pay for that PLUS any additional licenses for when you sell / trade / borrow / etc. If the developer / publisher can't get it on additional licenses (like steam), then they charge the first person more. [...] If we say "Hey publishers, you limit game to 39.99, we ensure every license transfer you get 10$, gamestop gets 20$" that is a decent model... Microsoft gets a license fee on first and subsequent game purchases, compared to just first now? That's a revenue increase.

>Competition is the best man, it helps drive both to new heights. See technology from the Cold War. If we had no USSR, we'd be way worse off today. TLDR: Bring it on Steam

2/4

>Yeah we passed that around the office at Xbox. Most of us were like "Well played Sony, Well played". That being said they are just riding the hype train of ZOMG THEY ARE TRYING TO FUCK US FOR NO REASON. Without actually thinking about how convienent it would be for the majority of the time to not find that disc your brother didn't put back... [...] just simpleminded people not seeing the bigger picture. Some PS4 viral team made them all "U TOOK R DISCS" and they hiveminded.

>Everyone and their mother complains about how gamestop fucks them on their trade ins, getting 5$ for their used games. We come in trying to find a way to take money out of gamestop, and put some in developers and get you possibly cheaper games and everyone bitches at MS. Well, if you want the @#$@ing from Gamestop, go play PS4.

>The goal is to move to digital downloads, but Gamestop, Walmart, Target, Amazon are KIND OF FUCKING ENTRENCHED in the industry. They have a lot of power, and the shift has to be gradual. Long term goal is steam for consoles. [...] If you always want to stay with what you have, then keep current consoles, or a PS4. We're TRYING to move the industry forwards towards digital distribution... it'sa bumpy road

>Publishers have enourmous power. Microsoft is trying to balance between consumer delight, and publisher wishes. If we cave to far in either direction you have a non-starting product. WiiU goes too far to consumer, you have no 3rd party support to shake a stick at. PS4 is status-quo. XB1 is trying to push some things, at the expense of others. We have a vision, we'll see if it works in the coming years

>Living room transformation. We want to own the living room. Every living room TV with an XBox on input one. It's the thing that gives the signal to your TV, everything is secondary. The future, where games, TV, internet telephony, all that shit happens magically on some huge ass screen with hand / voice gestures... That's our goal.


3/4

>Google TV + PS4 + Minority report level gestures, that combined with a sick second screen experience (which is really hot for TV, I know I know.. tv tv tv tv tv... but it's fucking sick when you have it). Games will be the same, there are more exclusives to MS then PS atm, and Kinect 2 makes Kinect 1 look like a childs toy.

>By default it's on, listening for "Xbox On". You can turn it off tho, and turn the console like OFF off. OFF off is required for Germany / other countries that require it (no vampire appliances) [...] It has to be plugged in for the console to post. You can turn off everything it does from the settings. Think of it like airplane mode for the iPhone. You can't just unplug the cellular radio, but you can turn it off.

>Instead of 10mins, is 24hrs for your console, and 1 or 2 at a friends house. Really the majority of people have a speck of internet at least once a day. And if you don't. Don't buy an Xbox 1. Just like if you didn't have a broadband connection don't get Live, and if you don't have an HDTV the 360 isn't that great for you either. New tech, new req. This allows us to do cool shit when we can assume things like you have a kinect, you have internet, etc.

>Current plan is basically you're fucked after 24 hours. Yeah... I know. Kind of sucks. I believe they will probably revist the time period and / or find a diff way to "call in" to ensure you haven't sold your license to gamestop or something... but there is no plan YET. I'm hoping the change it, but I don't work on that so I don't have much influence there /sigh

>If the power goes out you ain't playing shit. I'm assuming you mean the internet goes out but you have power for TV and Xbox. Yes, You're fucked for single player games. Again, that's the PoR (Plan of record), but I expect it to change after the e3 clusterfuck

>What fee? There is no fee to play your games at your friends house. Never has, never will. Even x360 digital downloads could do that.


4/4

>The cloud capabilities is the shit they like the most. We basically made a huge cloud compute shit and made it free. What people are doing with it is kind of cool. THe original intention was to get all the Multiplayer servers not requiring 3rd party costs (Like EA shutting down game servers to cut costs), as well as taking all the games that servers hosted by the clients (Halo, etc), and have all that compute done in the cloud allowing more CPU cycles for gameplay. That will really expand what developers can do. Anything that doesn't need per frame calculation and can handle 100ms delays can be shifted to the cloud. That's huge.

>SmartGlass + IE is going to be pretty freaking sweet. 1 finger cursor, 2 finger direct manip. Basically if you think of a laptop trackpad where your phone/ slate is the trackpad and the monitor is your TV... it's that. The tech is there, just needs to be applied. There is some really cool shit going on with Petra + controllers that pairs people with controllers. So if person with controller two trades controlers with controller 1, their profiles magically switch. It's sick. What does this matter? Now if you lean left/right it knows which person is leaning, even if 4 people are all int he same room. It's awesome.

>New service using Azure for cloud compute. Allows developers to not use clients for hosting multiplayer servers, or other tasks that do not require per frame calcuations. It's pretty sweet.

>Honestly, if you care about anything other then pure games AT ALL. Xbox 1 > PS4. If all you do is play games, and nothing else, PS4.

This was all from the Microsoft engineer that was on /b/ last night.

>It's not worth my time to prove it, or risk my Job. I work in Studio A, 40th ave in Redmond, Wa. The thai place in the studio cafeteria has double punch wednesdays. Go ahead and call them and verify if you want.
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Unread postby icycalm » 16 Jun 2013 16:43

There's no way that person is not who he says he is. No blogoroid or forumroid can think like that, even if they had all the facts right before them. I myself had thought of the lower price points that no-used-sales could bring, but hadn't connected them to Steam prices, which have basically proved that that's exactly what will happen with consoles too. The problem is exactly what the dude says: MS have botched the job of communicating their message, and they are coming off as the bad guy. The rest was done by the journalist churn mill/blowing-out-of-proportion machine and the ressentiment of the rabble for big corporations, and indeed for anyone or anything that's not poor and doing well for itself.

What reassures me about the current clusterfuck of the situation is that what MS is trying to do is inevitable in the long run. If they go down in trying to make it happen a little faster, Sony or whoever else comes out on top will eventually do it. (And in fact the other contender, Valve, has already done it.)
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Unread postby Tain » 19 Jun 2013 22:00

Microsoft announced some policy changes just now: http://news.xbox.com/2013/06/update

Last week at E3, the excitement, creativity and future of our industry was on display for a global audience.

For us, the future comes in the form of Xbox One, a system designed to be the best place to play games this year and for many years to come. As is our heritage with Xbox, we designed a system that could take full advantage of advances in technology in order to deliver a breakthrough in game play and entertainment. We imagined a new set of benefits such as easier roaming, family sharing, and new ways to try and buy games. We believe in the benefits of a connected, digital future.

Since unveiling our plans for Xbox One, my team and I have heard directly from many of you, read your comments and listened to your feedback. I would like to take the opportunity today to thank you for your assistance in helping us to reshape the future of Xbox One.

You told us how much you loved the flexibility you have today with games delivered on disc. The ability to lend, share, and resell these games at your discretion is of incredible importance to you. Also important to you is the freedom to play offline, for any length of time, anywhere in the world.

So, today I am announcing the following changes to Xbox One and how you can play, share, lend, and resell your games exactly as you do today on Xbox 360. Here is what that means:

An internet connection will not be required to play offline Xbox One games – After a one-time system set-up with a new Xbox One, you can play any disc based game without ever connecting online again. There is no 24 hour connection requirement and you can take your Xbox One anywhere you want and play your games, just like on Xbox 360.

Trade-in, lend, resell, gift, and rent disc based games just like you do today – There will be no limitations to using and sharing games, it will work just as it does today on Xbox 360.

In addition to buying a disc from a retailer, you can also download games from Xbox Live on day of release. If you choose to download your games, you will be able to play them offline just like you do today. Xbox One games will be playable on any Xbox One console -- there will be no regional restrictions.

These changes will impact some of the scenarios we previously announced for Xbox One. The sharing of games will work as it does today, you will simply share the disc. Downloaded titles cannot be shared or resold. Also, similar to today, playing disc based games will require that the disc be in the tray.

We appreciate your passion, support and willingness to challenge the assumptions of digital licensing and connectivity. While we believe that the majority of people will play games online and access the cloud for both games and entertainment, we will give consumers the choice of both physical and digital content. We have listened and we have heard loud and clear from your feedback that you want the best of both worlds.

Thank you again for your candid feedback. Our team remains committed to listening, taking feedback and delivering a great product for you later this year.
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Unread postby icycalm » 20 Jun 2013 00:48

They must have been getting pretty desperate to go ahead with losing so much face! It's just hard to force people to do something they don't want to do when you are at the same time facing direct competition. The key, however, is here:

In addition to buying a disc from a retailer, you can also download games from Xbox Live on day of release.


This is what they should have done half a decade ago. Games on Demand is a disgrace: why on earth isn't EVERY 360 GAME EVER on there? What is the justification for having such a tiny half-assed collection? If you force the publishers to put all their games online immediately on release, then you will gradually see players moving away from retail towards download on their own, accepting in the process all the rules that you were trying to force on them. And, if the prices are meant to fall, they will fall on their own, as publishers pass on the savings made from moving away from retail to their customers in order to undercut each other. Of course whether prices fall or rise will ultimately depend on many other factors, chief among them the costs of development and the size of the market, but at least from the distribution side of the equation, going online-only is the cheapest, most efficient option, so the sooner the entire industry moves there the better things will be for everyone -- except retailers, who are anyway not contributing in any way to the creative aspect of the artform, and hence can go to hell as far as all the rest of us are concerned and stop taking away resources that could go to developers instead in order to improve their games.
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icycalm
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Unread postby icycalm » 20 Jun 2013 00:57

The simplest, most efficient way to speed up the move to download-only sales is this: force all publishers to offer their games $5 cheaper online on release. This simple, tiny move will be more effective than all the threats and regulations in the world. The problem, I suspect, is that retailers will revolt and try to retaliate against any publisher wwho does this. And if MS forces ALL publishers to do this, then the retailers will simply retaliate against Microsoft, by giving more floor space to Sony. That is why everyone is playing the waiting game, and giving time to the customers to effect the change on their own. And the customers are naturally enough taking their sweet time.
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icycalm
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