XBOX ONE revealed

[maybee]

Xbox One to perform online checks every 24 hours, every hour if playing on separate console | Polygon

Holy trout.

Talk about a Horror console. I'm going to rename this scary ass console " It " and if you don't get the reference then shame on you. ):

[Bolivar]

Considering this is the most blatantly anti-consumer console I've ever seen, if you don't have a problem with it, at the very least in principle, then you're probably a Microsoft employee.

I know, and I do dislike this trend. That's partially my old-school sentimentalities, though, in that I like physical media and I hate to see it disappearing in favor of an alarmingly increasing cast of competing services that are fragmenting and isolating themselves. I like having one disc I can save and transfer to all my devices rather than worrying about which ones can and can't access the services I bought the content on.

At various times over the years I've been offline for 1-2 weeks when moving or changing ISP's and the like. I've also got a netbook I put Steam on to play some older titles on the go, and I could count the number of times I've had that netbook online in the last five years with one hand and still not run out of fingers. Guess what I've never had to do to play any of my Steam games? Now, if there are actually games on Steam that require me to be online every now and then to keep playing, then I have a problem with that as well. But it's not hard to see that if I've never come across this ever in my entire life that the requirements aren't nearly as stringent as requiring me to be online once every 24 hours. That sort of restriction will fundamentally lock out millions of potential customers, including people who bought a 360.

And don't even get me started on their basically handing publishers the keys to the kingdom on used games. And before you reply with the predictable "well you can't resell games on the PC either," that's true and that is a problem. But the difference is that companies like Valve at least recognize that really good sales benefit consumers and the industry and engage in them often. Microsoft, on the other hand, rarely discounts their digital games, even long after release when prices on other platforms have dropped significantly. And that's what they do when there's already a lot of price competition from used games and other platforms. I don't even want to think about how bad things would be with them including the ability to remove one of the major sources of price competition.

Well, a lot of the big multiplatform games, quite a few I bought on PC in the last year, are implementing these authentication requirements and we'll see a lot of them do so going forward. I guess I just don't think the frequency is meaningfully different, because it would be equally painless in either case, assuming this console can authenticate in its standby mode. Again, I totally agree that it's unnecessary and slightly offensive, but I can't say it would pose any real practical problem for me at all if my devices/services had something similar (again assuming they could authenticate in standby mode).

They've already stated you can't play your games until you log in again. How much more clarification do you need to recognize it's a stupid idea?

Well, I don't expect clarification to improve my perception of how brilliant this is. I just feel like there's a lot of ambiguity, I'm still incredibly confused as to how all this works. How will they qualify who the "family members" are that can access content anywhere? Is giving the game to a friend a permanent copy that both can always access or does it have to be traded back? And the whole trading in system has almost no definiteness to it at all.

[Psychotic]

I hope to god this console nosedives and then when Microsoft inevitably releases the streamlined version of it they have the good sense to remove all of these stupid smurfing authentication "features" and then sales immediately pick up. Just so they and all future console developers get the smurfing message loud and clear. Because god damn.

Yeah, I know, it won't happen like that. Just let me dream.

[Elite Lord Sigma]

I went from unimpressed immediately after the reveal to very miffed once the first news of the used game restrictions came out. Now, after Microsoft PR's most recent attempt to sugarcoat their restrictive anti-consumer policies, I'm dead set against getting one. The 24 hour check-in, inability to rent or loan games, and allowing publishers to decide used game policies is yet another attempt to exert complete control over the entire gaming experience. That they canceled all of the post-conference interviews with the press at E3 tomorrow should tell you that they're trying to cover their asses.

Also, their PR seems to revolve around trying to disguise restrictions as new features. In particular, since European courts are supportive of the first sale doctrine, it might very well be that the Xbox One's restrictions will not be allowed over there. I'm a longtime 360 gamer, but there's no way in hell that I could buy the Xbone in good conscience. I guess this is the generation where I finally become a PC gamer; the Wii U will suffice for my console needs.

Also, it would be stupid for Sony not to capitalize on this, but I suspect that they might have some of the same policies in store, judging by their noncommittal response to questions about used games.

[Setsu]

Xbox One dream is to be the NEXT TivoBox/VirginBox/Skybox with Voice commands
(NO MORE REMOTE OMGGGG!!1111)
but with Internet incompatibilities only?

Now my Xbox mates will probly jump onto Playstation so therefore i can give this one a miss.

This console has everything in a console which i wish wouldn't exist.
Maybe E3 might make me change my mind. but until then, it stands that this has to be the worse console in history, imo

Hell i'd even take up a NES over this,
least you can swap games with mates.

[Mirage]

Assuming the batteries in the cartridges aren't flat yet.

Really though, I'd never want to play NES games instead. All I really want is a PS3 with better performance.

[Loony BoB]

Really though, I'd never want to play NES games instead. All I really want is a PS3 with better performance.

Yeah, pretty much this. Any added useful features that aren't restricting me are a potential added bonus.

[I Don't Need A Name]

It's now been announced that, on launch, X-Box Live will only be supported in the regions shown in the map below (and listed in the spoiler tag). As we already know, no X-Box Live means no online, which means no game activation, which means no playable games. After Don Mattrick's blunt statement saying that if you have no internet then you better stick to the 360, now they're disadvantaging the people who have internet. Someone take the spade off Microsoft?

EDIT: It seems that the One will only be released in the regions given below, with the rest of the world given 2014 releases when they get XBL support for them. Even so, with Day One release in anywhere out of the US having virtually none of the TV features shown at the conference then it's a rather poor show from a company that should know better.



Regions
Australia
Austria
Belgium
Brazil
Canada
Denmark
Finland
France
Germany
Ireland
Italy
Mexico
Netherlands
New Zealand
Norway
Russia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
United Kingdom
United States

[Loony BoB]

I wonder what the Japanese developers making games for the Xbox One think of that.

[Aulayna]

What's more amusing:

The Witcher 3 - one of the big titles during MS's E3 conference, being developed by CD Projekt Red in Poland.

XBOX One services not available in Poland at launch.

GG

[I Don't Need A Name]

What's more amusing:

The Witcher 3 - one of the big titles during MS's E3 conference, being developed by CD Projekt Red in Poland.

XBOX One services not available in Poland at launch.

GG

What's even more amusing, X-Box managed to win over Hideo Kojima to have him show off the debut gameplay of Metal Gear Solid V over what was expected to be a PS4 exclusive game.

X-Box One unavailable in Japan

[HasteInTime]

It's now been announced that, on launch, X-Box Live will only be supported in the regions shown in the map below (and listed in the spoiler tag). As we already know, no X-Box Live means no online, which means no game activation, which means no playable games. After Don Mattrick's blunt statement saying that if you have no internet then you better stick to the 360, now they're disadvantaging the people who have internet. Someone take the spade off Microsoft?

EDIT: It seems that the One will only be released in the regions given below, with the rest of the world given 2014 releases when they get XBL support for them. Even so, with Day One release in anywhere out of the US having virtually none of the TV features shown at the conference then it's a rather poor show from a company that should know better.



Regions
Australia
Austria
Belgium
Brazil
Canada
Denmark
Finland
France
Germany
Ireland
Italy
Mexico
Netherlands
New Zealand
Norway
Russia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
United Kingdom
United States

2014 sounds right, Japan is getting more support from Microsoft and vice-versa this time around. The big M'soft even promised to give a better try at it this time. Japan just struggles with Microsoft there cause they 'think its too western.' (a comment I remember an employee from SE had said in a Mag I have and I wont be surprised if it still so but just say it ain't so!)

I just hope we can all get along. That way everyone wins! :3

Articles:
Microsoft Promises More Japanese Support For Xbox One At E3



Xbox One Japanese Release Delayed Until 2014?

[Shauna]

Can Microsoft do anything right? .__.

[Loony BoB]

Can Microsoft do anything right? .__.

[Quindiana Jones]

Thank Christ I'll be able to play the next Call of Duty in Si-smurfing-beria, though. Phew.