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Do Not Buy the Xbox One - A Call to Arms

Ricard Julianti has an urgent message for all gamers. Do not buy the Xbox One. 

Let me preface this by saying that I own an Xbox 360, have paid for Xbox Live for years, and have quite enjoyed it overall. It has allowed me to keep in contact with my closest friend who now lives in Canada, play franchises that I missed out on because I didn’t own the original Xbox and experience some excellent games. However I cannot, and will not, support the Xbox One with what Microsoft is doing. Neither should you.

I remember a time when gaming was simple. You went to the store, bought a game for the system you had, went home and played it. End of story. Then, along came internet connected consoles. At first it wasn’t too bad, and was actually fun. You could connect to the internet and play games with friends who weren’t in the same room, the same city, or even the same country. Also, any game you bought was still considered a finished product since patches were not implemented on consoles like they were on PC’s.

The advent of Xbox Live, and more substantially the Xbox 360, changed all of that. Developers were now allowed to patch games after release in order to clean up the experience and root out any bugs. For a while the typical paradigm stuck around, with developers putting out very polished experiences and only issuing a patch if the game really needed one. As development budgets continued to grow, the envelope was pushed further and further to see what they could get away with. Now it seems like most games only have some of the worst bugs fixed pre-launch and the consumer is being used for quality assurance testing.

Downloadable content has taken a similar path. In the beginning, it was relegated to map packs long after a game released and full-blown expansions with few pieces of content that were just ridiculous; Oblivion’s “Horse Armor” DLC comes to mind. However, other developers priced such superfluous things at a more reasonable level and people ate it up. It has since been pushed further than we could have ever imagined…

Day 1 content that was obviously pulled from the game in order to earn a quick buck, map packs and expansions planned and paid for before the game even goes “Gold”, On-disc “DLC” which is content that has already been paid for but is locked away purely to squeeze money out of the consumer, blatant overpricing, and in-game microtransactions have all been implemented. We bitch and moan about it, but ultimately we throw our money at the games. We are the cause of all of this and with the Xbox One, it stands to become even worse. Microsoft has even said that “The super core guys, they will buy everything” because that’s just what we do and to an extent, it’s true.

 This needs to change.

As you have probably heard, the Xbox One is implementing all kinds of restrictions on the content you will be paying $60 for. No more loaning out games to friends, game rentals, gaming offline without connecting once a day (or once an hour on a different Xbox), you can transfer the game license ONCE to a person who has been on your friends list for 30 days and no one else. From what I understand, that particular game can not be sold again privately, it is theirs forever unless they decide to sell it to a “participating retailer.” If you live in a smaller town that doesn’t have GameStop or a large chain that sells used games, you are out of luck as smaller local stores will likely not be willing or able to opt in to Microsoft’s proprietary system.

By buying the Xbox One, you are telling Microsoft it is okay to implement such things. Just like we did with game patches, and with DLC. What’s next? Ensuring every game uses the cloud as much as possible so online is required, 100% digital content not regulated by the First Sale Doctrine due to EULA’s (which is essentially what we have now), digital only movies also behind the online wall, games locked to a single account, persistent online connection required, no ability to trade in games for cash, no used games period? Don’t think it’s outside the realm of possibility either. Publishers have proven time and time again that they will try to get away with as much as possible, with Microsoft leading the charge.

On top of that, Microsoft will most likely be continuing to charge for online through Xbox Live. They have said that your Xbox Live account will carry over to the Xbox One, so unless they plan on making all of Xbox Live free expect to continue to pay $60 a year. Yes, that would mean that this internet required console also requires an additional fee in order to access 90% of the content. Microsoft already charges you to use your paid services such as Netflix and HBOGO, so they have no qualms about charging you unnecessarily.

One (very flawed) argument is that the used game market will crumble and the Xbox One will have Steam-like sales where old games are sold for dirt cheap. The difference is that the PC is a completely open platform and developers can sell the games wherever they want. They can even sell the games directly from their website, sometimes for free with encouraged donations only. On the Xbox One every game, including Indies, have to go through Microsoft in order to get the game on the system. Microsoft controls the pricing of all digital content as well. They have problems letting go of old titles at low prices as it is, even though they are digital and cost nothing to distribute.

Go look at XBL’s Games On Demand section; you can buy Fable 3 for $20, and you can also buy Fable 2 for $20, or you can go on eBay and buy both plus shipping for less than $20 total. Bomberman: Act Zero is STILL $20, and it was a launch title that was critically panned from the start. There is absolutely no reason there can’t be those types of sales now other than pure greed. Microsoft isn’t going to change what earns them boatloads of cash and thinking that Steam-like sales will come to the Xbox One is simply naive.

Keep in mind, Sony will also enable publishers to have some sort of DRM on a hardware level in the PS4. It isn’t mandated by Sony as it is with Microsoft and we don’t know exactly how it will work, but it is there. There might still be the opportunity for Sony to remove this function, that is a discussion for another time however. Then of course there is the whole, NSA spying/PRISM thing. Microsoft can tell me eight ways to Sunday how they don’t collect or send personal information with Kinect, but I’ll believe that when Nintendo goes third-party. That’s just the government too; a console that must connect to Microsoft’s servers daily, has a webcam that’s “only” listening for a certain phrase but is still accessible, and runs on the familiar computational architecture of the Windows kernel code is a hacker’s wet dream. Microsoft has essentially placed a big “Hack Me” sticker on the console with all of the anti-consumer features..

There has to be a point where we stand up and say, “Enough is enough.” E3 is mere days away and Microsoft believes they have the games that will convince people to buy the console, no matter what. I am asking that no matter what they show, do not buy the console. No matter how cheap they make it, do not buy the console. Having that kind of self-control is hard I know, but the lack thereof is what has gotten us into this mess in the first place. Microsoft could announce a new Banjo-Kazooie (one of my favorite franchises from my childhood) and have it return to its roots as a collection heavy platformer, but I still won’t be buying the Xbox One. That game could be available at launch, and the console could cost $99 flat with no subscription and I wouldn’t buy it with how much you have to give up. I would return it to the store if someone bought it for me as a gift, something I have never done.

No matter what; if you have ever bought a used game from a friend or a local store, like to trade games with friends, rent games from Gamefly or what have you, game offline, if you enjoy the game industry as it is right this very moment, or simply hate anti-consumerism, please…for the sake of gaming…

Do not buy the Xbox One.

-By Jonathan Suedmeyer a.k.a. “Ricard Julianti”

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Author: RicardJulianti (14 Posts)


  • Pingback: 6 Reasons You Shouldn’t Forgive Microsoft And Xbox One | Fire & Ice()

  • http://e76JDSuWGcmJNSs.eu 0pJiQR4YFW

    688963 166231It is a shame you don

  • http://freexboxlivemember.Blogspot.co.uk/ Nydia

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  • z0rk zer0

    I agree with the sentiment in this article and the community posts. I've owned an Xbox since Halo first came out, and I've been on Live since (actually a week before) it was launched. However, as of now I cannot see myself purchasing the Xbox One, nor the PS4 if it follows a similar path.

    The main reason for me is hinted at in the article, but especially in koopzilla's post. I'm not going to spend that much money on hardware and games and then not be able to play them at all someday down the road. A lot of the other crap I could deal with, but not that.

    If Microsoft wants me (and several of my friends) to even consider the Xbox One, they'll at least modify their DRM so that it can operate via the disc-check method (like the 360 does). If I won't be allowed own my copies of the games, then I don't want the system itself either.

  • AJ34
    • Titan64

      I don't even have to look at the videos. The title of each one says it all, especially the second vid. Microsoft has proven to be that they can't win over gamers.

    • Maestro

      For the 2nd video it's supposed to be rumors, but now due to rumors being true today, I believe that it happens in some way, holy god damn fucking piece of dump of diarrhea vomit and shit (I think AVGN can go strong on insults with this one), Microsoft just DIE please.

  • Dougal Rod

    Only if you promise to fix the proportions on your header image. I'm not saying it look amateurish, but …

    • Furious Francis

      What are you talking about? It's google image.

      • RicardJulianti

        I think he means how many header images are a little bit squished. Instead of being cropped to fit the header space, the images are being squeezed into the space available.

        It doesn't bother me personally though.

        • Furious Francis

          hmmm….I don't want to say I don't care, but a squished image is not a big deal, It's a written article not a screenshot gallery.

          • RicardJulianti

            Exactly.

  • Rpx

    So what the likely projected installed base of the XBONE? It is going to be impossible to be zero. Maybe between 5-10 million installed base worldwide, that my guess.

    • koopzilla

      Well, if you take Microsofts word for it, it is 1 BILLION! lol. I kid you not, that is from their own mouth.
      Honestly, I would guess they get at least orignal X-Box sales (24 million). Some will buy it no matter what, and others will buy it clueless to what they are doing, and judging from Microsofts past there will be many replacement consoles. I just hope it doesn't go much further than that.

      • RicardJulianti

        Minor correction on the whole….1 Billion thing. They were saying that the console generation as a whole would sell 1 Billion lifetime….which is still batshit crazy. Everything being equal, MS would have to sell 333 million plus….that's 80 million more units than this entire generation has sold to date.

        Suggesting the whole market will grow almost 300%…when it has normally grown 30%…and amass more console sales than all generations starting with the NES combined…..is absolute insanity.

        I agree with your sales prediction though….hopefully it doesn't even reach that much. Just as long as it doesn't succeed, I'll be happy.

        • PlywoodStick

          Talk about exploitation of the industrial military complex… guess what has to happen to maintain such an enormous amount of electronics production… WAR…

  • koopzilla

    I agree with everything you said.

    I have been saying for years the ability to patch games has just lead to them putting out unfinished games and saving the money for game testing. I believe patches can be good if a bug just happens to slip through the cracks (like something that takes a very specific series of events to trigger that probably is never going to happen). Otherwise the game should be very thoroughly tested and finished before release. Same goes with DLC, I want a finished game without stuff purposefully taken out so they can sell it to me separate later. When I buy a new game I expect a finished and complete product (not to mention one I own, and is mine to do whatever I want with it). This stuff is even more important to me since I love collecting and playing retro games I missed out on. I still buy NES, SNES, etc games regularly, games I would never have played (like I just got Three Stooges for NES at a yard sale last week). I didn't own a Genesis until after the Saturn had been out for a while, so literally all but 4 or 5 of my Genesis games have been bought second hand. In time these patches will be unavailable, all this DLC will be unavailable, so if I come across a great deal on a game I always wanted to play but never had the chance at a rummage sale or something, what I will be getting is a broken, glitchy, unfinished, incomplete mess.

    I have absolutely no problem not buying an X-Bone, and I will not be buying it. I guess I'm stubborn like that or something, but if I disagree with what a company is doing, or don't like the product or whatever, I have an unlimited amount of self control to keep me from buying it (I literally went like 8 months without a computer at all because I refused to buy anything with Windows 8, until I could find a good PC with Windows 7). I don't care what incentives they try to trick me with, or what games are shown (I honestly have zero confidence in RARE anymore regardless of how much I loved them in the past, it's an entirely different company now), I will never ever buy the thing. I wouldn't even buy it for a few dollars at a yard sale (not that it would do me any good since by that time servers will be shut down and it will just be a large ugly doorstop incapable of even playing games). Hell, I wouldn't even take it for free, because it wouldn't be free after Microsoft is done with you.

    It actually worries me quite a bit that this thing will sell well enough to make other companies think all this crap is okay. I tell everyone who doesn't know anything about X-Bone all about it.

    • RicardJulianti

      I almost want to get a job at Gamestop so I can tell people how crappy it is for a living. Give them the hard sell on the Wii U, saying that they can lend out games, trade in games, play offline, play off the tv and so on. I absolutely hated working there before though….so I don't think I'll be doing that. I'll just hang around and talk people out of it, haha.

      That's a great thing you'll notice about Nintendo. The Wii had the ability to patch games, but only Skyward Sword needed one, and that was only if you did things in a certain way. Digital games have to pass Nintendo's certification process before being released, so they are unlikely to need lots of patches. Runner 2 had that weird system lock bug that didn't happen to everyone and didn't happen every time….but that was really it. NSMBU and Nintendo Land haven't needed a patch….NSMBU is getting one with the DLC for pro controller support….but that's a bonus patch, not a fix. Monster Hunter got a patch to include off-tv and cross region….again, bonus patch…not a fix.

      Once I make up my mind on something, it is very hard for something else to change it. Peer pressure has always rooted me deeper in my stance and any attempts to get me to change have been met with a cement wall of NO. Microsoft can suck it in general…I didn't want Windows 8 either….so I fixed up my old PC, got it running again using an old case with a newer motherboard, 2 different old hard drives, bought a new power supply for $40 or so, and didn't want to use Vista either….so I "acquired" Windows 7. I have also cancelled my auto-renew for XBL so I don't get forced into another year of that bullcrap.

      This thing needs to fail. Hard.

      • Titan64

        My weariness of Steam is kept being brought up, especially with the "GreenLight" system when brought about DLC and such. And Ricard, you and I have to same philosophy: We don't take shit from no one that tries to change us. Now windows 8 is not internally bad but its externally bad (I.E. The Tablet like design, THE MISSING START BUTTON, etc.) and the fact they are trying to force us to change really irks me. Its like phones with me. I don't get a new phone until it breaks or until I am ready to get a new one. But why am I talking about products that are not gaming. Thats a bad sign when the article is about the Xbone and yet I want to talk about anything other then itself lol.

  • mark

    the xbox1 honestly repulses me. my hatred of microsoft is palpable right now for what they are trying to impose on my chosen hobby. i will never buy an xbox1, no matter what they do to sweeten the deal. xbox is officially dead to me.

    • RicardJulianti

      The funny thing is….almost none of this actually affects me. I have an almost constant internet connection at around 10mbps (at least that's what my ISP tells me it is), I rarely buy used games, I never borrow them from friends….of which I really only have 1 that really games, I am still signed up for Gamefly but I haven't traded a game in a long time (I need to do something about that)……..but I cannot support this level of lock down on a console. It's the principle of the thing.

  • fpssteve1

    When the Xbox One gets released, Anonymous is going to make the PSN outage look like a tea party.

  • Liquid-Sun

    This is a great read!

  • Eyesac

    I want to hug you. Great article man. I will be spreading it around.

    • RicardJulianti

      Haha, thanks. If you are able to post on neoGAF or know someone who can…..getting it on there would be much appreciated. There's an entire thread dedicated to all of the articles that say basically the same thing. I'm glad to see so many places speak out against the Xbone…..maybe something will change after all.

      Here's that thread: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5799

      • TheBrothersRogue

        From what it looks like, a lot of those articles are Europe based. It seems the Europeans are even less happy with it than Americans. That's a huge install base they are losing. The PS4 will seem like a Knight in shining armor because of this and they had to do nothing.

        • RicardJulianti

          Aside from the fact that developers will still be implementing DRM stuff there too. People think for some reason that Sony's silence on the issue means they are changing things. Microsoft had a garbled message and talked of "potential scenarios" and went silent for two weeks…..then they confirm just about everything.

          If the DRM stuff is too deep in the hardware, it might be too late to change things for Sony. It won't be mandated by Sony, but why would developers allow one system free use of used games when the same game on a different platform does not without heavy restrictions? This could possibly be why Nintendo isn't getting as much third party support as people would like. They don't want to have to implement their own method, so they are just not bothering at all.

          I think one of the major blows to the EU market is that the live TV stuff won't be available at launch, so if their internet goes out for more than a day or they go on vacation or something, it basically becomes a $400 DVD/BluRay player. That and the whole…..First Sale Doctrine and the lack of distinction between digital and retail over there as opposed to the US.

  • corniliuss

    I hope sony will do the same with PS4 so Nintendo will be the supreme winner of the next gen. The Wii U will be the next SNES.

    • Maestro

      I hope that it doesn't happen….. for the sake of gaming and gamers. Or Nintendo will have to kick everyone ass like always :P.

      • *NormalGamer*

        Or to put it a better way: Uphend the tea table.

        • RicardJulianti

          (ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻

  • Ogya

    Great article as always Ricard.

    Unfortunately i think MS are right. Their "core gamers" will buy anything that is thrown at them and i don't think Sony are far behind from treading the path that is being laid by MS. If they provide the games that their "fans" want, they will sell.
    We always say games sell systems and MS are aware of that and also know their market. I will not be surprised if it sells, how well, well i cant tell :).

    Personally i wont buy "The one" or the PS4 just because i am a one console man and the Wii U meets my needs.

    Cant wait for E3.

  • Legobbles126

    Great argument and excellent points as usual. I fully support this, and will NOT be purchasing the XBONE myself, regardless of what flashing lights Microsoft has in store for it. We have gotten ourselves into this mess, and it's time to hit the brakes.

  • Rpx

    Good article, Ricard.

    Just a worry of mine; Nintendo WiiU might in danger regardless of the fallout from gamers’ rages toward the next-gen DRM consoles. Heck, people might skipping buying new consoles including WiiU and go purely PC or stick with their current consoles (360 & PS3) until all support is gone.

    • NS3210 (NGX159)

      What are you talking about? Wii U is gonna have games, fans and people to buy the console, and it's gonna do just fine. Don't count your chickens before they hatch.

    • timg57867

      And that's why Nintendo's getting back to marketing to the masses and honestly, I hope they stick that from now on. They aren't trying to win over hardcore gamers. They're vainly trying to appeal to a bunch of dudebro babies. These people are going to crash the industry, and you know what? I welcome it. Nintendo will be just fine anyway and third parties don't even make the kinds of mass appealing games Nintendo fans like anymore. Nintendo now knows the mass audience is the audience to go for. This industry is too corrupted to be helped. So what if they get dubbed kiddy and family friendly? That's fine by me. They were always a family friendly company and should stop pretending they aren't.
      http://gengame.net/2013/03/nintendo-fans-are-too-

      If this article is anything to go by, a lot of Nintendo's mass fanbase won't care for all this crap and would rather Nintendo stop bending over for this rotten industry.

      • Rpx

        @Timg

        Your link is not working for me, sorry.

        • timg57867

          That's weird. It should work, even on a phone.

        • RicardJulianti

          I'm not having any issues with it…..????

      • Titan64

        Which again, I question the integrity of some Nintendo fans. Particularly from the website that shall not be named. So what if Nintendo is kiddy. If being a hardcore gamer means accepting anti consumer practices, then no thanks.

        • timg57867

          Speaking of THAT SITE, I just to a quick look there, and you won't believe the Talking Point they wrote.
          http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2013/06/talking_

          • Titan64

            ……Are they……I don't…….:D. You know. Lets ignore the contriubtions of Nintendo like introducing (I believe) The first female character. Lets bring up the Legend of Zelda and say that its a kid story. Lets not forget the Mario Rpg series which introduce funny humor even though it has some dark moments. I mean come on Timg. Its not like Nintendo can pull off mature stories like Disney and still appeal to mass audiences. No, they have to introduce blood and gore in order to be called mature. Honestly, Nintendolife is the best place for opinionated articles that contribute to the industry and that all Nintendo fans should listen to them. Wouldn't you say that Timg? 😀

          • timg57867

            Literally speaking: NEVER.

          • RicardJulianti

            I just had to comment on that article…..didn't even read it to be honest. The title says all that I need to know. There is no justification.

            Feel free to read my comment there, haha.

          • PlywoodStick

            I wrote this there:

            There’s an elephant in the room that I haven’t seen too many people mention… My mother noticed this about recent media trends, too…

            Why are people so fascinated with zombies? The Walking Dead made sense with how it handled zombies, and so did Resident Evil, but in general, the whole zombie idea is now overdone and pedantic. Why do people like zombies so much these days? I don’t understand that…

            When I first read about The Last of Us, it looked very interesting. When I found out that it was going to be yet ANOTHER zombie story (except this time caused by fungus instead of bio-engineered viruses), I lost all interest. It wouldn’t matter to me what system or console it came out on.

            At least in similar types of gameplay oriented games, there are different mechanics which set each game apart. For storytelling, once you’ve heard one story of it’s kind, you’ve pretty much heard them all.

            If that The Last of Us image featured Lee and Clementine from The Walking Dead, I wouldn’t be any the wiser for it being a different title. There was a father-daughter story mechanic going on there, why do we need another title which does that?

          • RicardJulianti

            I would love a game about vampires, werewolves, mythical Greek creatures and so forth. It could be absolutely incredible…….big ass battlefield all sorts of monsters and stuff….Athena comes down from the heavens and starts kicking ass…Zeus just goes "NOPE." and lightning bolts the hell out of a Ttian…..maybe in a modernish setting.

            There was "Legendary: The Box" but that game was terrible

            I do enjoy TLoU zombie things a bit more than regular zombies….because that fungus is totally a thing. There are different types that are all specific to certain animals….ants, birds, etc. If that decides to mutate and develop a type specifically for humans…it could totally happen. Maybe not exactly like in TLoU, but it's a bit more plausible than "the dead shall rise and feast on the flesh of the living"……corpses decompose far too quickly for the typical zombie apocalypse to happen. Remember that time there was a dog on your street that had rabies…and a week later every other dog on the planet had it? No? Oh that's right….because it never happened. Fungal spores released into the air however….is a fairly viable way to spread a thing like that.

            But, I agree that it will most likely be like a book. A really good book maybe…but a book. Experience the story once…..don't touch it again for years because it's no longer exciting when you know exactly what's going to happen.

          • PlywoodStick

            One of the most mature themes for any game I’ve ever played is Breath of Fire 2 for the SNES. How many other games are there which have the guts to be so blunt about discussing genocide, mentalities of industrialized nations, and the foibles of organized religion competently?

            Most game stories really play it safe with their stories, and The Last of Us seems to be no exception. Rarely is the bar pushed for honestly discussing and expressing along the boundaries of real issues, even if it must be done in a fantastical environment.

            If you’re looking for “mature” themes in computer games, then you usually need to look at PC games like Planescape: Torment and Wing Commander. PC games are much more likely to tell straight up competent stories than console games. That being said, if you know where to look, there are some hidden console storytelling gems.

            Historically, I feel that Japanese designed titles tend to be more competent storytellers than Western designed titles.

          • RicardJulianti

            Pikmin has a disturbingly dark story when you break it down. This guy is out exploring space, crashes on an alien planet and only has 30 days of oxygen left….before he DIES. If he doesn't leave the planet at night, the native wildlife will chew him to pieces. Doesn't collect the necessary parts to his ship….and he crashes back to the planet….and either runs out of oxygen, or is eaten alive by the native wildlife. o.O

            Pikmin 3 is also a bit disturbing. 3 captains land on this planet (crash…right?) and they are gathering fruit to bring back home. Why do they need the fruit? Because their home planet is no longer fertile and the people are STARVING TO DEATH. Messed up.

            Zelda is particularly dark and handles death in quite mature ways (some spoilers): http://www.linkshideaway.com/2012/4/29-death-in-t

            Mature being the operative word….Nintendo handles it in the opposite way of other games. No excessive blood or violence….truly deep, thoughtful experiences.

            Even Mario Sunshine is a bit messed up really. Baby Bowser is led to believe that Peach is his mother…after going to great lengths to kidnap her and fighting Mario and such…..he is told that she isn't. How would you feel if you saved your mother, fought to keep her….and then were told that she wasn't, in fact, your mother? That's just screwed up.

          • timg57867

            You think that's dark? TRY THIS ON FOR SIZE! You know Kirby? You know, that cute little cream puff (love his games to death BTW) who was made for beginners and is supposed to be nice and kid friendly. Yeah. Tell yourself that when you get to the final bosses of Kirby Dream Land 3 and Kirby 64:
            http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Zerohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zqq3hyvDeT0

            Those bosses are crying blood. BLOOOOOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!! T0T/

          • Titan64

            Don't forget about the Mario RPG series, including paper mario series. Oh and lets not forget Metroid……you know…..where a boss literally struggles to death in lava and to have its skeleton comeback…

          • RicardJulianti

            That and he swallows his enemies with an inescapable vacuum ….and absorbs them. The Pink Menace.

  • NS3210 (NGX159)

    Like I've said several times already, Don Mattick is in complete denial and has become the worst thing to have ever happened to the Xbox brand. Before he joined the Xbox branch in 2009 then shortly afterwards Project Natal at the time was shown at E3. Since the Kinect reveal in 2010, Xbox has been on a path to destruction. I got a 360 for Christmas back in 2007 and I must say I'm one of the few that did not get the RRoD with the first model and at the time I figured with just a 360 and a Wii, that I would be happy until the next wave of consoles, in 2011 with all the Kinect stuff in full force compared to 2010, I figured "hey it's just this one time I'll give em another chance" but then 2012 comes and the next day I sold my 360 and all the games for a 3DS best decision I ever made. Fast forward to today and now I'm ready for the Xbox brand and the western market to crash and burn any moment now! Fuck western gaming media, the two illuminati puppets Michael Pachter and Geoff Keighley, and most of all fuck the stupid, ignorant, wannabe hardcore, fake fanboys, trolls, and graphic whores!

    • NS3210 (NGX159)

      oops double posted

  • TsUaS

    I'd like to say I have faith in gamers but… This gen I've lost all faith. I've never seen a group more willing to bend over and take it up the ass like gamers do. Gaming is one of my passions, but hell no would I ever willing allow a company to tell me what I can and can't do. Fuck MS and EA and whomever else decides to go along with this shit. I have no problems not buying your games.

    • The_Meth_Badger

      I think you've lost faith in 'consumers.' The folks that just buy and not care about their rights being trampled along with being forced to go through hoops that they shouldn't have, just to play a game on what's supposed to be a gaming console.

      I think alot of gamers like myself, along with you aren't willing to take this crap lying down and most of us, yourself included, I'm sure will be doing whatever's necessary to curb this horrible trend we see steamrolling onto us and our favorite pastime.

  • jesgrad07

    Well, you most certainly don't have to tell me twice. I didn't buy the 360 because of what my brother went through with the RRoD. I couldn't bring myself to put down that kind of money for a faulty system. And now with the Xbox "One" being anti-consumer, I refuse to give Microsoft a cent for that glorified cable box. I like Halo, but not that much. And I like Rare's IPs, but I would have rather any other company buy them except Microsoft (and EA) at this point.

    After listening to some rants on youtube something concerns me about Sony. They did say they won't require DRM and all that jazz, but if you have 3rd party developers making games for the Xbox "One" and PS4, and they decide to implement DRM on the Xbox "One" version wouldn't they also then have the DRM on the PS4 version? With Sony's systems being mainly 3rd party machines, developers could really just bring down Sony in to the same hole Microsoft is digging itself into. I do hope that Sony gets rid of the possibility of DRM on their system altogether. The PS4 needs to be a success and having anti-consumer crap in place will only drive fans away. They really need to just squash that crap and tell these greedy 3rd party developers to suck it.

    Nintendo seems to be the only one with a spine in the industry now. It is annoying that they get so much hate, yet they seem to be the only company that is pro consumer. I keep hearing people saying that Nintendo is doing business like we are still in the 90's. You know what didn't exist in the 90's? All this anti-consumer crap that Microsoft is enforcing and Sony is glazing over. Quite honestly that is a complement to Nintendo. Keep acting like this is the 90's Nintendo. Don't conform to these ridiculous industry standards.

    • Liquid-Sun

      Today's gamers are sheep. Looks like it's up to Nintendo to deliver us from gaming hell.

  • timg57867

    Funny how the big websites NEVER right articles that even so much as give the impression that the consumer matters like this. I haven't searched but I bet many disgusting articles are being written to damage control this. Even worse, journalists are writing with the impression that this thing will surely be a success. Really? The funny thing about all this that prior to the unveiling of the PS4 a lot of articles were written that talked about how having an always online console would lead to disaster and how gamers would LOATHE the idea of not being able have control over the very software they buy. But now that it has been confirmed, a lot of people are now trying to justify Microsoft's actions and/or are giving them the benefit of the doubt, saying "We must wait until E3!" While at the same time, dooming the Wii U before 3D Mario U hits and writing as if Nintendo is the worst company ever. A lot of gamers are just as bad. Just shows how far the Western segment of the gaming industry has fallen since HD was implemented and Call of Duty became a hit. Good job Ricard. THIS is was journalism should be like. PS: Is that your real name you have written up there?

    • RicardJulianti

      Double standards all around. Wii U is doomed because it has slow sales and EA, Deep Silver and Epic are not fully supporting the console….but Sony and to a lesser extent, MS will be just fine even though they have anti-consumer features. I've seen people say "Well that's not too bad" as if they only thing saw was that there won't be an extra fee (unless of course you simply hand the game to someone who hasn't been on your friends list for 30 days) and MS seriously believes they will sell 334m consoles (their share of the supposed Billion Console Generation all things being equal)

      Yes, that is my real name. On my first article I didn't include it, and some people I know were asking why. Best to have proof it was me if I intend to include it in a portfolio if I decide to make a career out of it instead of a hobby.

  • Ray01

    Exellent article!
    Unfortunetly, there will ALWAYS be idiots who will buy the Xbone regardless, but hopefully it will be at a minimum.

    I have a gut feeling that Sony will implement similar practices with DRM but i'm not sure to what degree.
    They already said that Publishers(The same Pubs who apparently want to maximize profits any way possible & want used games to die) will have the option to implement ridiculus DRM, and yes, THEY WILL USE THAT OPTION TO THE FULLEST.

    This could very well lead to another gaming crash if Western Publishers insist on restricting their consumers' rights, however, I also I think we need one.
    We need a crash to weed out all these money-grubbing fat cats that continue to take advantage of gamers world-wide *cough*EA*cough*Microsoft*cough*.

    And guess who will be this industry's only savior from all of this Anti-Consumerism? Yep, like it or not, it will be Nintendo. The only console manufacturer that refuses to implement any form of abusive DRM into their hardware. It's also a very big reason many western 3rd-parties such as EA aren't supporting it, but are supporting the PS4 & Xbone with a 0 install base.

    • Ray01

      If western Publishers' greed won't allow them to make games for the Wii U because they can't abuse the fanbase like THEY WILL DO with the Xbone's & (very likely) the PS4's fanbase, so be it & GOOD RIDDANCE.

      It's really sad that Nintendo is being bashed & hated even though they will most likely be the ONLY console maker that stands up for their consumers' rights this gen.

      Many people say that Microsoft is just the underdog & they just need to impress us at this year's E3. They're wrong. (Like Ricard said, No amount of games will erase these anti-consumer practises).
      Microsoft is NOT the underdog, they are the VILLAIN.

      Just by looking at all of the over-exaggerated doom articles & bias against Nintendo, even though they're the only ones that have put their foot down to all the arragant & greedy Pubs and actually know how gaming should be, they are hated by the Western media & many of the western audience.

      They are the true Underdog…..

  • TRUEG

    I totally agree with this article. If anything gamers (xbox gamers especially) should be blaming themselves for supporting this machine, because they've created this monster. I think the perfect phrase for this happening is "you give a mouse a cookie, he'll ask for a glass of milk". Not only did people tell Microsoft that it was okay to put things like online play, the XBL Arcade, and NETFLIX behind a paywall. They kept supporting a console that was rushed out of the gate to maximize profits, and because of that there were massive amounts of hardware failures. Which told Microsoft that as well as not having to make reliable hardware, they didn't have to care about the problem because people KEPT buying Xboxes to replace their broken ones.

    I honestly wouldn't be surprised if the XB1 was a hit with the "core" gamer. All you have to do is throw in "dark photo realistic" graphics, ignore gameplay, and slap on the Mature rating, and they'll eat up whatever they are fed.

    • Liquid-Sun

      This is a very dark time in gaming… :(

  • RicardJulianti

    I only have a slight morbid curiosity about MS's E3 press conference. I might watch the highlights so I can stay informed, but there isn't a single thing they could announce that would make me buy this. Their entire launch line up could be filled with games that get perfect scores from literally everyone….and I would not buy it.

    Share this anywhere that seems appropriate….even some places that aren't. N4G, comments sections of other sites, Facebook, Twiiter, neoGAF, Reddit, VGChartz….anywhere else you can think of. If we don't do something, nothing will change for the better….it will only get worse.

    • NS3210 (NGX159)

      Like I've said several times already, Don Mattick is in complete denial and has become the worst thing to have ever happened to the Xbox brand. Before he joined the Xbox branch in 2009 then shortly afterwards Project Natal at the time was shown at E3. Since the Kinect reveal in 2010, Xbox has been on a path to destruction. I got a 360 for Christmas back in 2007 and I must say I'm one of the few that did not get the RRoD with the first model and at the time I figured with just a 360 and a Wii, that I would be happy until the next wave of consoles, in 2011 with all the Kinect stuff in full force compared to 2010, I figured "hey it's just this one time I'll give em another chance" but then 2012 comes and the next day I sold my 360 and all the games for a 3DS best decision I ever made. Fast forward to today and now I'm ready for the Xbox brand and the western market to crash and burn any moment now

  • Titan64

    #DownwithMicrosoft

    • http://senran-international.boards.net/ TwinTails

      #DownwithMicrosh-t. ^_^

  • Matthew Wesley

    I'm with you 100% sir, although it was the memberships and paying for stuff twice that prevented me from buyibg the original xbox and 360.

  • Matthew Wesley

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vuQwi8N1wlw This guy breaks it down in youtube vid form… It's very informative!

    • Liquid-Sun

      That was a good vid!