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[Chief Icaroc]

Not even the same. PS+ is more like a Netflix subscription than anything.

And playable offline

But it still has to check in initially..... every time you start a game...

I mean we technically do not know what "Always online" means yet.... If it is the game pauses and crashes your save and trolls you when your connection drops then yeah, obviously F that, but if it checks in like PS+ to allow you to play the game and isn't killing the experience then maybe it will be good for developers and bad for gamestop.

What effect does that really have on me? We really don't know yet. If it means NO USED GAMES then MS is likely in trouble....

 

[syko de4d]

This is exploding, isn't it?

over 5000 comments here, over 8000 comments on reddit, big news on many gaming related websites... yeahe this is exploding xD

 

[kaching]

Thing is they aren't going to make this choice if their research says there won't be a big payoff for it. Businesses sometimes take risks, but there's usually a pretty solid backbone of reasons why they'd make a big change like this. I'm sure the money they would lose by people upset by this choice enough to not buy their new system will be outweighed by what they get in return, and if not, well we'll see.

Businesses do crappy, self-supporting research all the time. $599.

 

[sflufan]

MS has absolutely no reason to respond officially at all to this.

Because this nonsense happened on a Thurday evening, all MS has to do is sit back and let it simmer down over the weekend and by Monday it will all be forgotten like so very many internet storms in teacups.

 

[sneaky77]

I also want to reflect on apologists earlier in this thread who claimed this Adam guy shouldn't be fired. He absolutely should be fired without compunction. He is personally responsible for MILLIONS of damage in negative publicity to Microsoft and should be held accountable. That's how the real world works. Period.

Millions? c'mon now.. the system is not even announced or on sale. By the time it is, this little twitter thing will be forgotten

 

[Vorg]

Lol, Chief Icaroc I can't believe you're serious. I hope you're not.

 

[Evoga]

Fine with me as I have truly unlimited internet. I can't see what the fuss is as if your internet connection is patchy change isp to a more reliable one.

 

[JB1981]

oh man that gif is fucking unbelievable LOL!

 

[Pennywise]

Holy shit at this thread. The way it blew up, God damn. The reveal is going to cause the GAF servers to melt

It was one of the funniest threads in my GAF history.
The twitter uproar which led to the meme explosion, more uproar, alot of trolls or viral marketing guys, bans, another source that almost confirms the always on strategy, and sweet billy...
The mass of articles and the Sunhi gif are the icing on the cake.

 

[ragincajun77]

Thank you for that, but my original response is here. Should help you understand the context more.

My apologies. Makes sense now, except for the legal disclaimer part. I agree with you that it is not an official statement of Microsoft, but it definitely lends credence to the widespread rumor about the always online requirement.

 

[Delusibeta]

I think MicroSoft will probably write this off as the "vocal minority". The casual core gamers will probably accept this without much push back.

They won't when the boxes refuse to work.

 

[Miles Quaritch]

Nothing follows that trajectory does it? I'd expect it will die down eventually. Especially without further comment/updates. Of course that'll only last until they confirm/deny during the unveiling.

I think it's double edged. They could just say nothing and allow this to eventually did down itself, allowing gaming sites, blogs to post various scenarios about how bad such a solution is, etc which will only serve to do lasting damage it will have done may be irreparable by that stage.

The other is to come out and deny it if it isn't true. That would immediately put an end to the story with the sites posting updates/retractions and they'll have hopefully limited the long term damage.

I don't envy their position, it's a tough one to be in. I'd personally release a statement denying the story if it was indeed false, you simply can't take a risk in the current climate where stories can blow up and become big news events within just a few hours and cause lasting, permanent damage to the service. You need only look at Instagram to see the effects of bad publicity when it spreads through the internet like wildfire.

 

[I'm an expert]

But it still has to check in initially..... every time you start a game...

No..it doesn't.. what the hell are you even talking about.. You're severely confused with something else.

 

[Deleted member 47027]

Businesses do crappy, self-supporting research all the time. $599.

I think that was a sobering wake-up call. We'll have to wait and see if it actually is crappy research they based it on or not. It's not something we can judge immediately.

 

[DaBuddaDa]

I can't see what the fuss is as if your internet connection is patchy change isp to a more reliable one.

There is one, single ISP available where I live. I have zero choice. 100% monopoly. A ton of people are in the same boat.

 

[Shao Kahn Brewing a Stew]

But it still has to check in initially..... every time you start a game...

I mean we technically do not know what "Always online" means yet.... If it is the game pauses and crashes your save and trolls you when your connection drops then yeah, obviously F that, but if it checks in like PS+ to allow you to play the game and isn't killing the experience then maybe it will be good for developers and bad for gamestop.

What effect does that really have on me? We really don't know yet. If it means NO USED GAMES then MS is likely in trouble....

What? I don't think you know how PS+ works. There is no "check in initially". It already knows when your service expires and doesn't need to be "Always online" to do so.

 

[Crimson_Gold]

But it still has to check in initially..... every time you start a game...

I mean we technically do not know what "Always online" means yet.... If it is the game pauses and crashes your save and trolls you when your connection drops then yeah, obviously F that, but if it checks in like PS+ to allow you to play the game and isn't killing the experience then maybe it will be good for developers and bad for gamestop.

What effect does that really have on me? We really don't know yet. If it means NO USED GAMES then MS is likely in trouble....

Actually it doesn't. I didn't lose access to any of my free games when I moved into a place and was without the internet for about a week. I can start my PS3 up and play my Free PS plus games if I have an internet connection or not.

 

[ironcreed]

Its not about always on, its about them taking away our FREEDOM.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54cNEsjPb4I

 

[RPGamer92]

Fine with me as I have truly unlimited internet. I can't see what the fuss is as if your internet connection is patchy change isp to a more reliable one.

...

 

[semiconscious]

MS has absolutely no reason to respond officially at all to this.

Because this nonsense happened on a Thurday evening, all MS has to do is sit back and let it simmer down over the weekend and by Monday it will all be forgotten like so very many internet storms in teacups.

again:

if this really is their game plan, yes, this's a bad thing for ms. the idea was to announce & fabricate/spin the 'positive narrative' (interactivity! convenience!) all at once. that this 'dark narrative' has risen up & gained a life of its own pre-emptively should, if it doesn't, trouble them a bit...

&, if this really isn't their game plan, they should simply fucking say so, & clear the air. whatever 'strategic' benefit they might've seen at one point in not doing so (& what that could've been i have no idea whatsoever) i'd say has been kinda superseded at this point by recent developments ...

 

[j-wood]

I just stumbled across this on twitter:

https://twitter.com/sweetbillyorth

Spreading like wildfire

 

[Raoh]

 

[Huff]

But it still has to check in initially..... every time you start a game...

I mean we technically do not know what "Always online" means yet.... If it is the game pauses and crashes your save and trolls you when your connection drops then yeah, obviously F that, but if it checks in like PS+ to allow you to play the game and isn't killing the experience then maybe it will be good for developers and bad for gamestop.

What effect does that really have on me? We really don't know yet. If it means NO USED GAMES then MS is likely in trouble....

As long as the ps+ game is downloaded to my hard drive I can play it online or offline with no verification required.

 

[toastyToast]

It was one of the funniest threads in my GAF history.
The twitter uproar which led to the meme explosion, more uproar, alot of trolls or viral marketing guys, bans, another source that almost confirms the always on strategy, and sweet billy...
The mass of articles and the Sunhi gif are the icing on the cake.

I was on when it got posted and though, "Oh, another one of these." How wrong I was to underestimate this thread

You know a thread is legendary when once its been blessed by Sunhi

Just, wow at everything

 

[3rdamention]

So now if you say stupid stuff online , basically bash two US cities, and poke fun at consumers of your products, you simply say you were trolling one person and call it a day?


That is the problem with people who are not very smart (to say the things he did shows he is not very smart in the realm of social media and communicating in public, you cannot argue that), deciding to use social networking tools. They feel they are in some little box having their playground fights except everyone is watching.
The comments can be taken within or out of context because they are being said so EVERYONE can read them. Here is a note to Mr. Microsoft Studios Creator. If you want to play silly online text games with your buddy, If you want to "troll" him to look cool on the Internet, if you want to encourage him to get into a spat with you, send him an email or a text. Take my advice and you do not look like a toolbox and nobody is talking about this today. Plus, your little boy war will remain private.

 

[x-Lundz-x]

I just stumbled across this on twitter:

https://twitter.com/sweetbillyorth

Spreading like wildfire

YES....YESSSSS.

 

[Shard]

Penny Arcade Report on the Durango silence and the Adam Ort affair.
http://www.penny-arcade.com/report/...e-tweets-arent-hurting-the-next-xbox-silence-

 

[Raoh]

Early contender for Gif of the Year.

I don't know. My money is on

 

[Shao Kahn Brewing a Stew]

Fine with me as I have truly unlimited internet. I can't see what the fuss is as if your internet connection is patchy change isp to a more reliable one.

Part of the problem right here.

"PFFT! Just cause I have it doesn't mean everyone else shouldn't."

Lets impose this shit on everyone so that people like you with unlimited internet can play with themselves.

 

[darkwing]

But it still has to check in initially..... every time you start a game...

I mean we technically do not know what "Always online" means yet.... If it is the game pauses and crashes your save and trolls you when your connection drops then yeah, obviously F that, but if it checks in like PS+ to allow you to play the game and isn't killing the experience then maybe it will be good for developers and bad for gamestop.

What effect does that really have on me? We really don't know yet. If it means NO USED GAMES then MS is likely in trouble....

let me guess, you don't have a PS+?

 

[Delusibeta]

But it still has to check in initially..... every time you start a game...

The "check" happens when you download the game: a killswitch is baked into the download timed to the end of your PS+ subscription. Hence, it works offline with no checks. If you're still in subscription when the killswitch triggers, you'll have to redownload the game AFAIK, but still that's not a terribly big deal.

I mean we technically do not know what "Always online" means yet.... If it is the game pauses and crashes your save and trolls you when your connection drops then yeah, obviously F that,

That is precicely what we're talking about.

but if it checks in like PS+ to allow you to play the game and isn't killing the experience then maybe it will be good for developers and bad for gamestop.

What effect does that really have on me? We really don't know yet. If it means NO USED GAMES then MS is likely in trouble....

Contradiction, much?

 

[SamuraiX-]

Fine with me as I have truly unlimited internet. I can't see what the fuss is as if your internet connection is patchy change isp to a more reliable one.

 

[CassidyIzABeast]

I don't think MS has anything to worry about at this point in time. We're still 6-7 months away from launch and the thing doesn't even have a name yet. If "always-online" is still the top story about the Nextbox the week before launch, then they've got problems. Until then this stuff just makes for entertaining threads.

 

[Minions]

But it still has to check in initially..... every time you start a game...

I mean we technically do not know what "Always online" means yet.... If it is the game pauses and crashes your save and trolls you when your connection drops then yeah, obviously F that, but if it checks in like PS+ to allow you to play the game and isn't killing the experience then maybe it will be good for developers and bad for gamestop.

What effect does that really have on me? We really don't know yet. If it means NO USED GAMES then MS is likely in trouble....

It gives you a "lease" like a DHCP would. The expiration being the date your PS+ ends. This is only for free games. All pay games (ones with discounts) are yours to keep. The only time it "checks" anything is when you buy the free game off the store and download it. Once its downloaded you are golden till the expiration date. Once you renew PS+ all "expired" games are active again.

 

[Karak]

Sweet mother christ that gif is perfection.

 

[DJ Lushious]

I have little tolerance for blatantly ignorant posts. You must be looking to get banned.

You have no relevant ground to hold up your ignorant post.

Good thing you're not a mod. I simply read it as him/her not completely understanding how PS+ works. Which, of course, should always lead to the "be an internet jerk" approach.

 

[Neko Mimi Mode]

MS has absolutely no reason to respond officially at all to this.

Because this nonsense happened on a Thurday evening, all MS has to do is sit back and let it simmer down over the weekend and by Monday it will all be forgotten like so very many internet storms in teacups.

More to the point, they can't respond to this. How do you respond to rumors your new console is always online without acknowledging said console exists?

They'll ride out the storm in the hopes that by E3 the drama will be contained to GAF and other marginal pockets of internet gaming fandom.

 

[slider]

I think it's double edged. They could just say nothing and allow this to eventually did down itself, allowing gaming sites, blogs to post various scenarios about how bad such a solution is, etc which will only serve to do lasting damage it will have done may be irreparable by that stage.

The other is to come out and deny it if it isn't true. That would immediately put an end to the story with the sites posting updates/retractions and they'll have hopefully limit the long term damage.

I don't envy their position, it's a tough one to be in. I'd personally release a statement denying the story if it was indeed false, you simply take a risk in the current climate where stories can blow up and become big news events within just a few hours and cause lasting, permanent damage to the service. You need to look at Instagram to see the effects of bad publicity when it spreads through the internet like wildfire.

With your "no comment" scenario I take it the background you'd paint to that hypothetical is that it is true? Working from the "third edge" (as opposed to double edged) can you see them confirming it prior to the official unveiling? Perhaps framed in such as way as it isn't as bad as we've taken it to be? So, "online only for game activation" or "online if you want to take advantage of x facility".

Edit: Meh, ignore. Nothing further to discuss really.

 

[Corran1138]

Fine with me as I have truly unlimited internet. I can't see what the fuss is as if your internet connection is patchy change isp to a more reliable one.

THIS is why most people can't change to a more reliable ISP. If MS really wants an always-on Xox, they should focus on making sure customers have a competitive ISP space first, so that their customers can actually AFFORD an always-on connection.

 

[Meelow]

Did I miss anything new since last night?

 

[Hero_of_the_Day]

Fine with me as I have truly unlimited internet. I can't see what the fuss is as if your internet connection is patchy change isp to a more reliable one.

As soon as another provider moves into my area...

Did I miss anything new since last night?

Just some apologists.

 

[Demon Ice]

I fucking love you.


Also does Orth really make people call him "Sweet Billy" in real life? What the hell

 

[test_account]

Just had a thought.....

How is always on any different than PS+? Is anyone upset about that? As soon as you are not paid up, you can't play the game right? Isn't this the same thing?

Love the discussion on this any way you look at it, it sure is going to be interesting

*gets popcorn*

PS+ "free" games got a time-set DRM to them, meaning that the games will stop working when that date is reached (when the PS+ subscription goes out). You can buy for example a one year PS+ subscription, then play the game for one year offline before you need to connect to online and renew the PS+ subscription. This is not like always-on.

 

[LittleJohnny]

The rumor is that the Durango will kick you if your connection is down for more than three minutes, and will not start at all if your connection isn't on.

There's also a rumor that it will prevent used games, but that's a different topic altogether. Based on what I've ready (Not speculated) Always on, always connected is about never having to boot up your console, will go into low powered state instead of turning off completely and leaving an active connection allowing the console to download and install games and updates while you're away. I can purchase and download a game from my phone and when I get home the game will be ready to play. Firmware updates will install over night so I will never have to wait for a download or install. Games will stream from the disc to the HDD as you play so you never have to wait for game installs but still enjoy the benefits of faster loads.

Maybe I'm looking at just the positives, but all the negatives are coming from speculation.

 

[VeryGooster]

Penny Arcade Report on the Durango silence and the Adam Ort affair.
http://www.penny-arcade.com/report/...e-tweets-arent-hurting-the-next-xbox-silence-

This could be fixed with Microsoft saying that they won’t require an Internet connection for the system to work, but this is a company that thinks breakdancing is the number one feature we’re looking for in tablet computers.

:lol

 

[-Amon-]

I would expect atleast some experience in social media usage from a Creative Director at Microsoft Studios, he tweets like he registered yersteday...

 

[Captain Tuttle]

Damage control, and besides, all those leaks/rumors and even devs posting implicit forum posts/tweets about it pretty much confirm this is most likely going to happen.

So it's still a rumor?

I can't see them doing this, at least how everyone is thinking. Something is being misinterpreted, like maybe you have to go online initially to register or something.

Who knows though, the third console curse and everything. Either way I'm leaning Sony right now and I only have a 360 this gen. We'll see.

 

[sflufan]

again:

Your "dark narrative" has a lifespan of about 24 to 36 hours and is rapidly approaching that mark.

By this time tomorrow, it will be a hazy memory that everyone will have a good chuckle over because of the GIFs -- nothing more.

 

[Subitai]

Wow, I don't know how these guys can be so unsympathetic...

I think always on should be optional for developers who can get away with keeping their games from being traded, but forcing it on all games is just a disaster.

Congrats to Sony for getting back to the top.

 

[LittleJohnny]

PS+ "free" games got a time-set DRM to them, meaning that the games will stop working when that date is reached (when the PS+ subscription goes out). You can buy for example a one year PS+ subscription, then play the game for one year offline before you need to connect to online and renew the PS+ subscription. This is not like always-on.

There's no official info that it won't be just like that, it's only a rumor that games will stop working.