Microsoft: Next Xbox will work even when your Internet doesn’t

The wheels on the bus go round and round! Ah well, only two weeks til we can get some actual information about the console and not just rumors and whatnot. I personally don't care too much about always online but I of course see it's a hot topic, so a definitive answer will be very welcome on the 21st.
 
Alx said:
Among the many rumors we had, some claimed that MS had very tight NDAs, even within its own teams, so that some employees couldn't even tell their supervisors what they were working on. I suppose few people got the whole picture, so everybody else may not know or understand everything about it.
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So who's giving these employees tasks to work on?
 
BRocknRolla said:
So you're thinking there was previously a policy that it would be always-on, and this was altering that? That would be news in and of itself, though I don't think there's any evidence for that.
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That theory has the same evidence as everything else posted in this thread:

Information leaked to journalists from unnamed inside sources. You might as well ask why someone would choose to put stock in this leak but not previous ones.
 
HeroInGreen said:
Came to say what has already been said:
I find highly disturbing that Microsoft has to explain this kind of information to their own employees working on the Xbox.
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As mentioned, I saw this more a "This is how you communicate functionality to the outside world" email not a "hey, this is how the system you're working on works".

PR message is different from tech details. Tech-wise, it may very well be an "always online" console in the sense of all those other fancy online benefits they want to highlight. But since some people interpret "always online" as "DRM requiring a persistent internet connection so your console would be bricked if your internet goes out for 10 seconds", less PR minded folks may need to be reminded of that.

So the message may now be "say it's always online for live updates, fast boot up times, etc., but also that single player games and blu-ray movies are safe." as opposed to just saying "Xbox is always online! Welcome to the future of entertainment!"

Of course, plenty of other devices are "always online" by that definition, and have even used that same phrasing, but those devices existed in a pre-SimCity, pre-Diablo 3 world, and they also aren't heavily anticipated new consoles where people are starving for information about them :P

Salaadin said:
I dont know why Paul Thurott RTing this means anything as he was one of the guys saying that online was required. Unless this is him admitting he was wrong.
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Paul Thurott contradicted himself within the same article when he posted that original news. "It'll be always online...just like Windows 8! Even though Windows 8 allows you to do plenty of things offline! But it's always online!" So I don't think he ever really understood what the complaints were about.

This always happens because "always online" is a vague phrase. Some people think of background downloads, sleep mode, automatic patching, and other cloud services. Some people think of SimCity and Ubisoft DRM.
 
I never really cared about the always-online thing, that's not an issue for me. But I do rent a lot of games.

Does this latest news clear up anything about no used games?
 
Fantastic news. Having Cable and Gaming not being affected by internet/server outages is how it should be. HDMI input is also confirmed with the mention of Live TV.
 
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Hix said:
He took it back later and said he actually didn't know.
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Exactly, so him RT'ing it, means nothing.

Kyoufu said:
You're so ready to believe negative rumours. Why are you so reluctant to believe positive ones?
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If they were true, then it would be pretty hilarious that Microsoft would do that, yes. Still a rumor until people get their hands on the device, and this one is no different. Wouldn't be funny, would be good for gamers in general (barring that Ars left out parts of the email for -who knows what reason-). No point in censoring the email and selectively choosing parts to put in your article (if there even was an email).
 
Alright, good. Maybe now we can all just focus on the games and features. May 21st is so close, but yet so far. I hope MS shows off an exciting new IP, sort of like Mass Effect once was.
 
I think at this point their announcement could be Balmer walking onstage and shouting NO CONNECTION REQUIRED NO CONNECTION REQUIRED NO CONNECTION REQUIRED for an hour and some people would still urge 'caution' in believing it.
 
I am very glad. Hopefully not even publishers have the balls to do this kind of shit. Specially Capcom, they seem to do that with some PSN games.

DocSeuss said:
Uh...

EDIT: Seriously, beaten again? I am off my game today.
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But Sony is in that list, wouldn't they get royalties?
 
and yes playing a single player game
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Now let's see how many games include a forced simcity-like "always multiplayer, no single player" just to justify an online requirement.

This applies to PS4 also.
 
HigherLevel said:
People are mad lol. The next Xbox is doomed crowd has less to talk about now.
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Much of the negativity surrounding Durango was tinged with the defeatist observation that, despite all rumored malice, the uninformed masses would make the console sell like hotcakes.
 
Baleoce said:
so the question now is, who is lying, the "trusted sources" or this email?
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Everyone could still technically be right, depending on what aspect of the still unannounced system people are talking about. That's the problem with "always online" phrasing being somewhat open-ended, dealing with devkit info vs. retail info, depending on whether you're talking about digital downloads or retail disc games, and so on.
 
The console will work buy how many of the will be playable?? hopefully it's up to the publisher if they can or cannot be.
 
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