With Microsoft’s Xbox One, we’ll all live in a room with a large television that shows adverts from Microsoft’s partners and TV shows based on their games. It will be connected to Kinect, a camera and microphone that is always listening and can even monitor your heartbeat.
New content, the almost limitless possibilities of an internet connection and what ‘the cloud’ can offer, and a powerful, sensitive device with which to control our entertainment future.
Xbox One sounds brilliant.
In George Orwell’s 1984, Winston Smith lives in a room with a large telescreen that shows propaganda and approved messages. It also listens to him and acts as a kind of surveillance camera that is so sensitive, it’s thought that it can detect a heartbeat.
Constantly being monitored, listened to, watched. Being served entertainment and current affairs coverage that’s pre-approved and tightly controlled. Our own living rooms reporting back to a central location about our habits and that information being used against us. Doesn’t sound so good now.
The Xbox One does not have a requirement to be always online. That is, as far as we know just now, a fact. So it doesn’t need a constant internet connection. Well, some games might, but that’s up to the developers of those games. Actually, it’s probably up to the publishers of those games.
It’s my experience that a game developer just wants to make his game and for lots of people to play it – a game publisher is more concerned about getting people to pay for it and then making sure nobody is playing it for free. So it’s the publisher that wants to make sure you’re authentic – by checking over the internet, if they can.
The Xbox does not require a constant internet connection but it does require a regular one. At least once every 24 hours, it will need to be online so that it can check that you still own the license for the game you’re playing. That’s exactly like the digital rights management Valve pushed on PC gamers with Steam, except there it’s a 30-day limit rather than 24 hours.
30 days gives much more leeway for people moving house, people on inconsistent connections and people who might not be able to count on their domestic connection and need to use some form of mobile internet to authenticate (many university halls, for example).
So, at some point as-yet-undefined, when Microsoft or their third party partners decide to switch off their authentication servers, all of your Xbox One games will expire. They’ll cease to work. Videogames now have a finite life.
And don’t get too complacent, PlayStation fans. This sounds like something Sony is considering too – they’ve said that they won’t have restrictions for used games but they’ll allow publishers to set their own rules for that stuff, to an extent. Microsoft’s own ‘clarification’ stipulated almost precisely that – except that they also defined the timings of checking on it.
In exchange for this frequent monitoring, Microsoft is allowing us to play our games on any console, as long as they can check our right to do so every hour instead of every 24. They’ll allow us to give away a game to someone who has been on our Friends List for more than 30 days and up to 10 people (‘family’ members) can be authorised to play a game on a different console via the cloud. So it’s not all bad, it’s just that what is bad is very bad indeed.
Kinect can be switched off. Microsoft confirmed that, at least. It can be deactivated completely and you can choose the option of never sending any data back to Microsoft. They’ve also said that, although it’s possible, Kinect won’t record you and send that data to them. It’s almost like they’re saying “We could be really, horrendously evil if we wanted to but don’t worry, we won’t. Promise!” I’m sorry, that’s not really enough for me.
Call me ‘conspiracy theory Pete’ but I’m not sure the word of massive, rich corporations is really all that dependable.
And perhaps more interesting than whether this most recent ‘clarification’ is actually terrible news or not-quite-as-bad-as-all-that news, Microsoft still hasn’t really managed to find a consistent, clear message in what is rapidly becoming an utter embarrassment of a PR disaster. There’s still confusion.
For example, and it’s only one example in many – for the sake of brevity – what’s the difference between a ‘friend’ you can gift a game to and a ‘family member’ who can play your games anyway? My guess is that the difference is a group Xbox Live Gold subscription for families but that’s only a guess because we simply don’t know.
Another point of confusion, and I quote: “Loaning or renting games won’t be available at launch, but we are exploring the possibilities with our partners.” So what about all that stuff about people being on my friends List for 30 days? Doesn’t that mean I can’t lend them a game? Does this mean they can’t return it to me when they’re finished?
It’s okay though, you’ll be able to trade in games, at a publisher’s discretion, as long as it goes to a “participating retailer”. So, as long as you’re trading in games in a way that someone with lots of money can make a bit more money, that’s fine. Sticking your own games on eBay to make a few quid to fund your next purchase? No chance, you grasping prole scumbag!
In the wake of the Xbox 360, there was an accidental consumer rights furore based around what became known as the Red Ring of Death. It looks like the consumer rights furore that will come in the wake of the Xbox One launch isn’t going to be accidental at all.
In 1984, Winston and Julia had a love affair that was illegal. Winston hired a room in which to conduct their meetings – a room that he thought was without a telescreen. In that room was a picture of St. Clement’s Church, a scene of simple joy that inspired the couple to sing the song about its bells. But the telescreen was hidden behind it, watching.
Will Forza 5 be our St. Clement’s Church?
Will we invite Big Brother in, to hide behind the next generation of entertainment media?
blackredyellow
Long live the PS3! If this is the sort of behaviour that comes as standard for the next generation then I am not in the slightest bit interested.
xdarkmagician
thats what I’m thinking too. I’ve stopped trading in my PS3 games because I truly believe that the PS3 will be around longer than the PS4, and PS3 games and accessories will fetch a nice premium in the future.
Nocure-fd
From a pure consumer point of view. MS have made it so there is effectively no difference between console and PC gaming.
That being the case, what exactly are they offering to make me choose their system over a PC? I can upgrade my PC anytime I want with components that suit my needs, the games cost half as much, the control method is superior and can be customised on the fly, and I can chose what software I want installed, as there is often a shareware version of any comercially available program. I can already connect my PC to my TV and sound system for all my HD/music needs…
I’m seeing literally no reason to buy an XBone.
hazelam
chrometophobia might be one reason. ^_^
hazelam
i can’t help but think there are going to be legal challenges to some of what ms wants to do with this thing, particularly once it reaches europe.
especially the preowned and always on kinect things.
E8_BALL_
I have one Games retailer in my town, after HMV & Game closed, Grainger Games. Grainger have a high volume of pre-owned on their shelves. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were to close next. Thank goodness for my local Asda.
E8_BALL_
They will surely need to adapt & go more, if not fully brand new. Otherwise the whole company may go under, being as pre-owned is the corner stone, of their current buisness stratergy.
hazelam
am i the only one feeling the urge to slap that picture of don mattrick?
double-o-dave
Looks like he’s already been slapped.
stueeeee
I do hope Sony avoids all this.
Surely if they Just say No! to publishers etc (whoever is supposed to be pressuring them to do all this) and go ahead and make ps4 as “open” as ps3, then everyone will flock ps4 and publishers will know that’s where the customers will be and go along with it.
Then Xbox will go down or do a U turn!…. If Sony do this type of thing as well, I think a lot of people will say bye on principles!
ron_mcphatty
Exactly, and the revenue lost to piracy could be made up for in actual sales to the happy masses.
yogh_wayne
Microsoft can say “we won’t do anything evil with the always connected Kinect 2” as long as they want, if the technology exists, there will be someone who tries to exploit it. For me, this is the main deal-breaker.
The more I hear about the XB1, the more I got the impression that “Deal with it” was really part of the design concept. And the one poor guy who dared to speak it out loud, was given the opportunity to resign his job.
What I don’t understand is all the pre-emptive Sony bashing now. If they actually do announce something similar, then I’ll start to get upset and grab my pitchfork, not earlier.
a inferior race
The silence from Sony is deafening
Paranoimia
“And don’t get too complacent, PlayStation fans. This sounds like something Sony is considering too – they’ve said that they won’t have restrictions for used games but they’ll allow publishers to set their own rules for that stuff, to an extent.”
There is – potentially – one very key difference. Michael Denny is on record as saying that “PlayStation 4 can be enjoyed old school, without an internet connection at all.”
http://www.officialplaystationmagazine.co.uk/2013/03/20/michael-denny/
Of course, that doesn’t mean that the system won’t use some form of DRM, but surely without an internet connection, it can’t be as restrictive as Microsoft’s?
xdarkmagician
Sony has a patent for locking disc based games without an internet connection. It would lock a game just like DRM except Sony would actually make money from leasing out the patent to publishers.
Paranoimia
A patent isn’t an actual working system, though.
If you’re referring to their patent for discs with RFID chips in them, there’s no evidence of them actually having that up and running. Using that would presumably require retro-fitting existing Blu-ray disc manufacturing plants, or building a new plant with the capability. As far as I’m aware, there have been no reports of any such activity.
TSBonyman
Either Sony are NOT doing something similar which is why they can sit back, relax and watch Microsoft seemingly paint themselves into a corner while cramming both feet repeatedly into their own mouth…
..or they ARE doing something similar in which case i would expect them to confirm as much at E3, during the post-show Q&A if not during the actual show, especially now that the cat is out of the bag so far as Microsoft are concerned.
The worst thing about the whole xbox one reveal for me is that my anticipation for E3 has been clouded by concern for the future of gaming.
Oh, and if you can disable all the kinect features – why the hell can’t you just plug it out? It makes no sense …unless they forgot to include a power button in the design… they didn’t do that, did they ..?
Broonba
As I was actually born in 2054 and having travelled back in time to 2013, I can happily say that Sony aren’t going down the same route as Microsoft & their nextbox.
Incidentally, If anybody is wanting a list of winners to every sporting event from now till 2082, then send a quick email to…….. [email protected]
Airiaen
Oh does Moyes get sacked a year after then?
Broonba
No. He’s sacked after 2 years and then goes on to manage the Bee Gees. :D