Topic: Games for Windows Live now free, gains Marketplace

[idolminds]

Link

All those features that were locked behind a "Gold" membership are now free. This is all retroactive, so previous games like Gears of War and Halo 2 now have it all unlocked. From the wiki, that means:

# Multiplayer matchmaking with friends
# TruSkill matchmaking
# Multiplayer achievements
# Cross-platform gameplay

In addition, they are adding a new marketplace similar to what the Xbox has. Trailers, demos, and other such stuff.

This might be a "too little too late" thing, but at least its a step in the right direction.

[MysterD]

Link

All those features that were locked behind a "Gold" membership are now free. This is all retroactive, so previous games like Gears of War and Halo 2 now have it all unlocked. From the wiki, that means:

# Multiplayer matchmaking with friends
# TruSkill matchmaking
# Multiplayer achievements
# Cross-platform gameplay

In addition, they are adding a new marketplace similar to what the Xbox has. Trailers, demos, and other such stuff.

This might be a "too little too late" thing, but at least its a step in the right direction.

Well, I guess nobody was using the Gold Memberships. GOOD.
Took Microsoft long enough to figure this one out.

[Xessive]

These bits of the Live Gold service are alright. It's good M$ finally acknowledged that charging for services that are free everywhere else is ridiculous.

[Quemaqua]

Funny, somehow I still don't care.

[MysterD]

Funny, somehow I still don't care.

Maybe b/c the words Microsoft are still slapped on it?
And b/c the games would be forced over their Windows Live program?
And b/c Win Live should've been free from the get-go?

[scottws]

Yeah Microsoft most certainly wasn't going to sell any subscriptions on the PC side.  I could see someone having gold on a 360 and being like "Cool, I get this stuff on PC too," but that's it.

It's been pretty much a disaster from the get-go.  It's debut with Gears Of War was marred by the fact that there was a Live patch before the game even released.  The game would download the update, say it failed and do this over and over.  There was some way you had to get around it, then it would think it had installed successfully.  It was pretty ridiculous and I'm sure Microsoft didn't win any hearts or minds with that one.

[Xessive]

Yeah Microsoft most certainly wasn't going to sell any subscriptions on the PC side.  I could see someone having gold on a 360 and being like "Cool, I get this stuff on PC too," but that's it.

It's been pretty much a disaster from the get-go.  It's debut with Gears Of War was marred by the fact that there was a Live patch before the game even released.  The game would download the update, say it failed and do this over and over.  There was some way you had to get around it, then it would think it had installed successfully.  It was pretty ridiculous and I'm sure Microsoft didn't win any hearts or minds with that one.

That was a real mess. On top of the G4WL problem with itself it was also causing GoW to randomly crash on so many systems and Microsoft's incessant response (on boards and the G4WL support site) was that the crashing issue had nothing to do with G4WL and it was all on Epic to resolve, "These crashing issues are usually the result of insufficient hardware resources, please make sure you meet the minimum system requirements for Gears of War PC..." only to be revealed later that it was in fact due to G4WL failing and M$ put a big foot in its mouth.

[MysterD]

Those who were Gold Members of Windows Live (Especially those since the beginning) can expect their $$$ to be refunded by Microsoft.

Refunds for early adopters

But that's not all. To reward those gamers who have been with the service from the beginning, Microsoft will be giving refunds to gamers who have been subscribing to the Games for Windows Live service specifically. "Yes, there will be a benefit for customers who purchased gold subscriptions on Windows," said Unangst. "Proactively, we will be offering refunds for those with Windows-specific Gold subscriptions. Customer service has already begun to get communications prepared."

[MysterD]

New G4WL Features outlined.
Sounds like it's going to be more Steam-like.

New GFWL Features
   
[Mar 24, 2009, 3:37 pm ET] - 18 Comments
Microsoft announces new features are coming to Games for Windows - LIVE, including an anti-piracy solution:

    LONDON – 24 March 2009 - Windows gaming took center stage today in San Francisco at the annual Game Developers Conference, as Microsoft announced new features coming to the Games for Windows – LIVE online gaming service and community:

    • Anti-piracy Solution: Zero-day piracy protection and server-side authentication help prevent game piracy before street date, and protect publishers and consumers by requiring authentication for online play

    • In-game Marketplace: New Marketplace APIs let developers create unique in-game store fronts and experiences surrounding the sale of additional content, providing developers and publishers with new revenue streams, and consumers with a seamless gaming experience

    • Roaming: PC gamers can now save their personal settings back to their Games for Windows – LIVE account in the cloud, providing access to their settings on any compatible and connected Windows PC

    “This update and other features currently in development represent a tipping point in the evolution of Games for Windows – LIVE as a leading online PC gaming network,” said Ron Pessner, general manager of Games for Windows – LIVE. “In the coming months, we will continue to deliver on our promise to provide gamers and publishers with the industry’s best connected gaming experiences through the LIVE service.”

[MysterD]

Microsoft will now start selling games "on demand" and have digital distribution directly through G4WL.

RFG, Res Evil 5, Osmos, and World of Goo will be some of the first games to buy through G4WL to download.

[MysterD]

A bunch of new games added to G4WL Games on Demand - including some which DO NOT even require G4WL.

Among the other titles added today: Age of Empires III, Assassin's Creed, II, Borderlands, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Max Payne 2, Splinter Cell: Conviction, and S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl.

I find it VERY interesting that some games added to G4WL don't even require it. That's one benefit of these digital versions over The Steam version of some of these games.

[scottws]

This stuff is getting too confusing.  I recently bought Red Faction: Guerilla on Impulse and it requires you to sign into G4WL.  Now there are G4WL games that don't even require it?

[MysterD]

This stuff is getting too confusing.  I recently bought Red Faction: Guerilla on Impulse and it requires you to sign into G4WL.  Now there are G4WL games that don't even require it?

Yeah, it's annoying to keep up w/ it all.

Just like how games use DRM - it really should say on the game page what OTHER 3rd party programs a game supports/requires and all.

[idolminds]

This stuff is getting too confusing.  I recently bought Red Faction: Guerilla on Impulse and it requires you to sign into G4WL.  Now there are G4WL games that don't even require it?

This is the GFWL Marketplace, where they sell games to download. Previously they only sold GFWL-branded games. Now they are expanding and selling games that don't make use of GFWL.

[MysterD]

This is the GFWL Marketplace, where they sell games to download. Previously they only sold GFWL-branded games. Now they are expanding and selling games that don't make use of GFWL.

Looking at the page w/ new games and all...

I was looking at same of the games and their pages on G4WL...
I really don't like how it doesn't say if the game is Live Enabled or NOT.
I really don't like how it doesn't state the DRM, either...