Topic: An Inconvenient Truth by Cesar (TEAM XBOX)

[Pugnate]

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AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH
By: César A. Berardini - "Cesar"
April 19th, 2007

Xbox Live Gold is overpriced.

I said it.

Back in the Xbox days, online multiplayer on a console could be considered a value-added proposition—but in this generation, it is just a commodity. The PlayStation Network is vivid proof of that.

It is also worth highlighting that, with this new incarnation of the service, Microsoft is getting lot of money from Xbox Live, thanks to its Marketplace. The success of TV shows, films and other downloads have exceeded Microsoft’s expectations, so it’s not like Uncle Bill is losing money this time around.

But it is easy to criticize without proposing solutions and alternate options.

To prove I’m not the typical make-it-free whiner who is demanding Microsoft to make Xbox Live completely gratis, I’m instead proposing that the two-level memberships should exist as it does now, but with online multiplayer gameplay (as we know it) being free for everyone, while a paid membership incorporates new features. What features, you ask?


Server-Based Online Multiplayer

Xbox Live online gameplay sucks. A weapon like Halo 2’s energy sword or Gears of War’s shotgun offer strong evidence that the user hosting a match—which translates into having no lag at all—has a terrible advantage over the other players.

Paying for peer-to-peer online gameplay is a scam. If we are paying to play online, the least we deserve is a server-based system where matches are hosted on a server provided by Microsoft.



Clan and Party System

Everyone cheered when Microsoft announced that on the Xbox 360 you’d be able to listen to music while playing games without developers having to program such a feature (as they had to with Xbox games). It was a feature that became universal when it was incorporated into the Xbox 360 dashboard.

So, how about also throwing in there a Clan and Party system that lets you play every Xbox 360 game on Xbox Live like in Halo 2? Bungie (which is owned by Microsoft) has already developed the technology, so it shouldn’t be a big issue for Microsoft's Xbox division to implement this technology across the entire platform.

What benefit should Xbox Live Gold subscribers get over Silver users? Well, Silver users should only be able to join one clan, yet have no option to create one, while Gold subscribers should have the ability to create their own clans and be a member of as many clans they want.



Dedicated Download Servers

Have you tried to download a big file from Xbox Live? You can leave the Xbox 360 on, go to have breakfast, lunch and dinner, then read “War and Peace” and maybe the download will be completed. Granted, Microsoft is saying that the soon-to-arrive Spring Dashboard Update will help this process in a couple of ways, but…

If we are paying a monthly fee for Xbox Live, the least we deserve is to have dedicated download servers similar to those offered by FilePlanet (which, by the way, is a sister service of TeamXbox).

Furthermore, even if you are an Xbox Live Silver user, paid content should always be pulled off from a dedicated download server differently from those hosting free content. If you’re paying for the content, you deserve a better bandwidth!



Microsoft Points Program

Another thing that is totally unfair for paid subscribers is that paid content costs the same for Silver and Gold users. There should be some advantage for those who are paid subscribers and there should also be some benefit for those who buy more content.

I think Xbox Live needs a “Microsoft Points Program,” something similar to credit-card services or airline-mileage programs, in which loyalty to a service rewards you for buying content. Obviously, only Gold subscribers should be eligible to enter the program—and it could be an addition to the Xbox Live Diamond Card.

That way, even if you pay the same as a Silver user for a TV show, a film or game content, you will get some Microsoft points in reward.



No Ads

If you are paying for your online-game service, why do you have to see ads on those Xbox 360 blades? Furthermore, if you are paying for a game, why you have to see ads in games? I’m cool with ads making content free, but, conversely, paying for content should remove any ad.

It’d be great if Microsoft could a develop a technology that enables game publishers and developers to know if the user playing the game is a paid subscriber. That way, the game will automatically know if it should display an ad (or not) in its single-player campaign or online multiplayer modes.

Microsoft has already acquired Massive Inc., which (along with the other big in-game advertising companies, Double Fusion and the recently-acquired-by-Google AdScape) already has deals in place with most major game publishers. You’d think if they wanted to remove ads for a specific group of players, they could easily do so by signing an agreement and developing the necessary technology to identify Gold subscribers from Silver users.

Wait... there are no Microsoft dedicated servers despite having to pay for the service?

[iPPi]

Yea there are some problems with Xbox Live that need to be addressed, but in the end, it translates to $5 a month, which is really reasonable.

The big complaint is obvious lag sometimes when playing, but it's nearly nonexistent in most cases.

What I really don't like is how expensive some of the XBL Arcade games cost.  800 ($10) points for new games, and 400 ($5) points for remakes.  The problem is that most Arcade games are very simplistic and only offer a couple of hours, even minutes, of mindless fun and that's it.  The games have no longevity and you may never play them again, so $10 for some games is quite hefty, especially when a lot of them end up sub par.  The good news is that there are always demos to try.

In terms of download speeds, I have no problems with it.  I find it fast and responsive, and I use the Wireless Network Adapter as well.

The MS Dedicated servers comment is a little outrageous though.  Every game for Xbox360 is Live enabled and very likely to have online multiplayer.  The cost of running multiple game servers for every single game would be too expensive.

[Pugnate]

I think maybe the key is selling in points and not dollars. Maybe people don't realize how much they are paying.

[Quemaqua]

I think the whole thing is fucking bullshit and want no part of it.  But I've said that before.

[Xessive]

Well, the way I see it I'm already paying for my internet connection, why should I have to pay an extra $5 or so just to play? What if I don't play at all but my account is still active, do I still have to pay?

I agree with Cesar though. If I did play online with an Xbox, I'd expect some premium service if I was paying.

Well, anyway I like my PC, and it can offer me so much more than any console-based online play for no extra cost.

[angrykeebler]

I came in here expecting to find "An Inconvenient Truth- The Game" but was sorely disappointed.

[Cobra951]

Whiners, whiners.  No one forces anyone to pay anything.  That they do just means the business model works.  $10 too much for a good new arcade game?  Are you kidding me?  Every one of them comes with a trial.  There's no way you walk blindly into a scam here.

I'm the last one here who is going to praise Microsoft about anything.  But things don't get any easier than this for console content.  I've had more good time with free stuff than I've had on all my previous consoles combined.  Didn't need the paid subscription for any of it either.

[Xessive]

I don't think anyone's really complaining about paying in general.. It's the idea of paying for something you'd normally get for free. If you pay for it you expect worthy service. Kinda like a massage. You can get a backrub for free from your girl (or not), but if you go a parlour and pay you'll get the scented candles, the oils, the atmosphere, and a professional masseuse.

In the case of online play, I'm already paying for my internet why should I pay extra just to use it. Imagine you had to pay just to make a PC to PC call.

[Pugnate]

I think Cobra was referring to paying $10 to download arcade games. I am pretty sure (from his past posts) he is against having to pay to play multiplayer, especially when the service is crappy.

But I think $10 is too much because you buy even 5 arcade games it adds up.

[Cobra951]

You pay $10 for the same kind of games you're supposed to buy for $20 on PCs.  (Have you seen the list of games on XBLA?)  I know piracy gets a lot of people past that hurdle, but it's not the honest way to do it.  Whatever you may think of bang for the buck, it's well within a longstanding price context.  In other words, it's not as if the price points were jacked up artificially because of the captive audience.  There are some worthy $5 bargains in there as well, and I don't mean straight-ported/emulated 80s arcade games.  Then there are the exceptional releases, such as Castlevania SotN.  For anyone who didn't play this game before, and can't even find it now for PSX/PS2, $10 for a near-perfect port with the added achievements incentive is unreal.

You're right that I could give a shit generally about paying for multiplayer.  People used to getting this for free may well have a point.  Still, it's Microsoft's show, and it's $5 a month.  It's up to console buyers to vote with their dollars.  If everyone stops paying for Gold, you can bet MS will make adjustments. Otherwise, people will get what they wanted for what they decided it was worth.

[scottws]

Who says Gold is $5 a month?  I was paying $8 a month until I spent 30 minutes arguing with a guy in India to get it cancelled.

Xbox Live Gold is just not worth it.  The whole reason I got my 360 is to play online with people I work with.  Well, we played like once and that's it.  I thought it was going to be fun with the voice chat, but it was a huge bitch.  If you happen to not be on the same team, you can't talk to your friends.  When the match ends, you can't talk to your friends.  You can get in a private chat through the Dashboard and always hear them, but then you can't hear your other teammates in games.  It just wasn't cool at all.

[Quemaqua]

Yeah, I say your philosophy is bullshit, Cobra.  Just because people are willing to pay for something doesn't make it right.  People throw all kinds of money at Microsoft for stuff and that's just because they're idiots, not because the service is worth what it costs.  Though I don't disagree with you about the prices of the games.  I think that's all fine, and I think the marketplace is pretty slick overall.  But Live Gold is a total ripoff and I think it's criminal.

[Cobra951]

I'm sorry.  If I put a pencil for sale at $200 on eBay, and someone buys it, I did not rip him off.  Pencil, lead on one side, eraser on the other, gets smaller every time you sharpen it, throw it away when it's too short to use.  $200.  Yeah?  Thanks!  No crime.  Just a dumb buyer.

You're doing exactly what you should be doing about something you consider way overpriced, which is not buying it.  That's all you can do, really.  It's up to the whole buying public whether or not it fails or succeeds, not just you, and definitely not the criminal justice system.

In this case, I just don't care, because I don't care about online multiplayer.  I've always thought it's silly to pay monthly to play games like WoW.  To me, this is no different.  It's a subscription service for a proprietary commodity.  Buy it, or don't.  It's not bread, butter, or milk.

[Pugnate]

The thing is that when you buy a 360, you don't have much of a choice. Even without a 360, if you desperately want to game online and are a console only person (cause you suck), then you end up putting up with the higher price.

[Quemaqua]

Yeah, I continue to disagree.  Again, just because people are stupid enough to buy something doesn't make it right.  Live Gold is a ripoff, and while I certainly can't fault Microsoft for taking money people are willing to pay, that doesn't mean I think they should be offering such a shitty service.

But like you said, all you can do is not pay it.  Fortunately for me, online gaming isn't anything I'm very interested in.  I have a few PC games I play with friends, and that's it.  But on principle I still find Live Gold insulting.