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Microsoft Studios' creative director has some choice words about always-online

He is an employee of your company you dumb fucks, he represents you.

Agreed. Just like a sportsman represents his country when he's on tour, any bad behaviour by him reflects badly on that country.

Most companies know this and have strict guidelines about posting about your job online, or prohibiting psoting things that would "bring the organisation into disrepute". Which Orth has done and then some.

I'd be really surprised if he keeps his job.
 
the biggest game of 2004 is still online, and has always been always-online.

I think he just made reference to WoW....you know....THE MMO...

ft7nlbz.gif
 

seady

Member
If 'always on' enhances the gameplay experience (like automatic downloads, streaming new content during all gameplay etc), I am totally supporting it. My personal life is surrounded by always-on internet connection anyway - from home wifi to LTE & 4G everywhere outside.

But if it is only for Microsoft's security reason, then no for me too.
 
Hey everyone, I've updated my avatar and I've also provided one user with an edit as well. I'm waiting for requests! PM me if you like!
 

Beckx

Member
The only problem with this is that it's possible after this much backlash they could scrap it.

Too late for a major architecture change, realistically.

The real barrier is team names. Maybe we'd have to separate Team True into two separate camps, the ones who think the rumors are true, and the ones that think the rumors are true and like it.
 

Grief.exe

Member
If 'always on' enhances the gameplay experience (like automatic downloads, streaming new content during all gameplay etc), I am totally supporting it. My personal life is surrounded by always-on internet connection anyway - from home wifi to LTE & 4G everywhere outside.

But if it is only for Microsoft's security reason, then no for me too.

That's not what always online means.

What you are describing is known as 'features.'

Always Online means you have to be online in order to play your game, simple as that.

If there is an outage in your area, then you are out of luck.
If the servers go down, see: SimCity, Diablo 3, every MMO launch, you are out of luck.
If someone hacks the system, DDOS's it, or just a server outage, see: PS3, 360, you are out of luck.

Too late for a major architecture change, realistically.

The real barrier is team names. Maybe we'd have to separate Team True into two separate camps, the ones who think the rumors are true, and the ones that think the rumors are true and like it.

That wouldn't be an architecture change, more like just a software change.

An architecture change would be going from x86-64 to PPC right now, this would be much simpler.
 

R3TRODYCE

Member
I can just imagine the conference now...


"The Xbox 720 entertainment system brings you unparalleled social connectivity™ only possible through Xbox Live. With an always on connection, you and your friends are always connected all the time. Purchase new gamerpics, check out some new Doritos snack deals, or buy the latest horse armor DLC, all from the comfort of your living room."

0070_nqcgj.gif

It pains me to say this but this post is so accurate.
 
If 'always on' enhances the gameplay experience (like automatic downloads, streaming new content during all gameplay etc), I am totally supporting it. My personal life is surrounded by always-on internet connection anyway - from home wifi to LTE & 4G everywhere outside.

But if it is only for Microsoft's security reason, then no for me too.

You're missing the point. A gaming console is not a cell phone. That's exactly what Microsoft is positioning this thing as, however. They're wanting the next Xbox to be a cell phone in the living room that also functions as Nielson's rating box. I am disgusted how many people are shrugging their shoulders at this. Can you imagine if you wanted to pick up a game a year and a half later and the servers would shut down? Would you even be allowed to play it? What about next next generation when Microsoft WILL shut down the servers for Durango? Your console will be a paperweight. People are not thinking this through.
 
So Arthur wants someone to come up with a reason always online is a bad thing, but it can't be a tweet or forum post, It's almost like he wants a supposed game journalist to write an article on the subject. I wonder if he remembers that's what he thought he was before Microsoft gave the site that employs him $750k.
 

Sinnick

Member
You know that RROD fiasco is instructive, but I have a different takeaway.

Back then MS was the underdog in the console business. They had big ideas for multiplayer and Xbox Live, and while there was always talk of the 360 being a trojan horse for attacking the living room, their focus and creativity was directed to one thing above all else - the games.

They came up with probably the best damn controller out there, standardized a set of features across all games, including custom soundtracks, achievements, trials for arcade titles and integrated chat and party systems.

Back then they had to fight for their position, and they won it with advanced services, solid games, regular updates, and by swallowing their pride and charges from RROD.

But somewhere along the line they stopped and changed direction. Competitors now have comparable services, and have kept multiplayer free. How did Microsoft respond? They raised the price of Gold. They 'added value' to their membership by cutting features from Silver. They shut down their previous Xbox service, and yet we havent seen the service upgrades that was supposed to make way for. But we have seen them drop the family plan.

This isn't the same scrappy and creative Xbox team that existed at launch and for those first few years. Its seemingly been handed over entirely to the bean counters, marketing teams and casual/media entertainment group.

What they're seemingly forgetting, if the rumors are true, is that they still have to fight for every single customer if they want to succeed next gen. They have to continue to raise the bar - their competition has not been sleeping.

If this whole shitstorm acts as a wake up call, then maybe everybody can win here. I won't count them out until we have all the details, but they are fully responsible for their public face and perception and distrust right now.

I disagree somewhat. Microsoft's plan from day 1 (original Xbox - not the 360) was to go after the living room with games acting as a trojan horse. Consequently, they spent billions doing whatever they can to gain a competitive advantage. This included implementing various services, rushing a console to market, redefining what it meant to be "hardcore" (hardcore did not mean graphics focused before they arrived), and bending over backwards to secure content.

Because the end goal was ultimately about controlling the living room, everyone should have expected Microsoft to eventually shift their focus to other avenues of entertainment, locking people into their ecosystem, & pleasing the mass market (i.e. people who wouldn't care if the gaming industry vanished tomorrow). They haven't forgotten anything. This was going to happen sooner or later & folks have been predicting this from the beginning

The only thing I can understand people being shocked about is how quickly the transition appears (nothing has been confirmed yet) to be happening. However, think about it. The gaming industry heavily relies on unsustainable business models & 3rd parties that try to wrestle money/power from 1st parties. I don't blame Microsoft for trying to distance themselves from that crap. On top of that they have to worry about Apple or Google dominating the living room first. It's understandable for them to want to wrap everything up now rather than stretch this transition out for another 3, 5, or 8 years. They may not be able to afford to do that.

The way things are shaping up, I probably won't buy their next system. However, I see where they may be coming from & can't get mad at them for attempting what appears (again, nothing's been confirmed) to be a power grab. If we were talking about necessities here, maybe I could get a little bit more worked up about it. However, we're not.
 

semiconscious

Gold Member

simple, well-reasoned, non-snarky explanation:

'mandatory online is like forcing a variable into a formula that already works perfectly well...'

iow:

with consoles as they are right now, there's only one potential problem - hardware failure. but to the extent that it's the hardware that lets you play your games, it's a possibility you're willing to accept. so there's an upside (play games) & a downside (potential hardware failure)...

mandatory online offers no upside whatsoever. it only introduces a second downside - potential 'game over', owing to internet failure...

why would any reasonable person feel that it's a good idea, or no big deal, to introduce a feature that has absolutely no upside, but does have a downside?...


life's already full of unpleasant surprises. & it's reasonable people that prefer minimizing the chance of them happening :) ...
 

UberTag

Member
What about next next generation when Microsoft WILL shut down the servers for Durango? Your console will be a paperweight. People are not thinking this through.
Good way to motivate someone to upgrade to the next Xbox instead of playing their old one, though. Bet they wish they had put something like that in place for the 360.
 

kaching

"GAF's biggest wanker"
Just some reality check on the funny streetfighter.gif.

Could it not be possible to allow 3-5 min offline play, if your connection just happened to go down when doing a finishing move?

Just saying "what if..."
Sure, but why do we have to be trafficking in such exception-laden scenarios in the first place?
 
From the Major:
http://majornelson.com/2013/04/05/official-statement-on-what-was-said-yesterday/

I wanted to give you the official Microsoft Statement regarding some comments you may have seen yesterday::

"We apologize for the inappropriate comments made by an employee on Twitter yesterday. This person is not a spokesperson for Microsoft, and his personal views do not reflect the customer centric approach we take to our products or how we would communicate directly with our loyal consumers. We are very sorry if this offended anyone, however we have not made any announcements about our product roadmap, and have no further comment on this matter."

As frequent readers of my blog know, the moment we have news about our products I will be sharing all the details I can.

It took them that long to say this? Wow.
 

FyreWulff

Member
I swear there was a big game that came out in 2004. Had multiplayer and everything, with guns and stuff.

We should all get on that game right now and play it online.
 
I can just imagine the conference now...


"The Xbox 720 entertainment system brings you unparalleled social connectivity™ only possible through Xbox Live. With an always on connection, you and your friends are always connected all the time. Purchase new gamerpics, check out some new Doritos snack deals, or buy the latest horse armor DLC, all from the comfort of your living room."

0070_nqcgj.gif


I imagine it would go down exactly like this, yeah.
Sounds like the text-book PR 'dance around' confirmation.



Hopefully the audience responds with loud vocal displeasure, too.
 
Good way to motivate someone to upgrade to the next Xbox instead of playing their old one, though. Bet they wish they had put something like that in place for the 360.

Do you know how many people would be fucking pissed if their 360 stopped working due to servers being shut down upon the arrival of the Durango?
 
It took them that long to say this? Wow.

I suspect that won't be the only 'official' word from MS regarding this debacle. The typical response pattern is to throw a generic, three line reply out there with not much detail to see if that quells the contention. If it doesn't, they'll respond again in a more direct way. You watch. This story isn't going anywhere. We WILL hear from MS again regarding this.
 
dude there's nothing they can say,
it's
not
announced

This is Microsoft's fault. You can announce something or acknowledge something without unveiling it. They could have stopped every single bit of this bullshit, but their insistence on pretending like the Durango doesn't exist has bitten them on the ass big time.
 

Beckx

Member
That wouldn't be an architecture change, more like just a software change.

An architecture change would be going from x86-64 to PPC right now, this would be much simpler.

Sorry, what I mean is that their entire system (not just the box) is probably set up with this in mind. As the QWOP developer said, don't ask "what can go wrong with my internet connection," ask "why do they want the boxes to be always online?" So, for example, are they working on a robust ad sales business where they serve live ads with quick, reliable CPM numbers based on connected boxes? While that's just spitballin', it's the kind of model that would be baked into the P&L projections and very difficult to simply jettison.

Even though it might be trivial to change, changing their plans at this date (if they are doing it) would be a pretty quick pivot. Criticism and backlash changed nothing about Win8, too.

(For the record, I'm Team False, because nothing about this makes decent sense, and I'm an optimist.)
 
This is Microsoft's fault. You can announce something or acknowledge something without unveiling it. They could have stopped every single bit of this bullshit, but their insistence on pretending like the Durango doesn't exist has bitten them on the ass big time.

Bad press is press bro.
 

Arkham

The Amiga Brotherhood
ZST8Kr1.jpg


SEE THIS SHIT? PLAYING IN IRAQ, FUCK THESE GUYS

Seriously though playing Xbox on deployment was a big fucking deal for me. What else am I suppose to do? I not fucking reading books.

Sony should pull a combo-breaker and offer free PS+/
PS WORLD
to all overseas troops. (And free PS4s)
 
dude there's nothing they can say,
it's
not
announced

Sorry, that came across wrong. I'm not commenting on what they said - I knew that's what it would be - I'm just amused that it took them almost 24 hours to respond with anything. This could have been out this morning. It wouldn't accomplish anything, but at least it would look like they're paying attention.
 

jtb

Banned
Do you know how many people would be fucking pissed if their 360 stopped working due to servers being shut down upon the arrival of the Durango?

They already killed Xbox Live for the original Xbox so... there's (somewhat) of a precedent for this. This isn't a justification for it, but still.
 
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