X-BOX ONE

[Shepp]

Originally Posted by SpikeNard

...You don't need an online connection to play a single player game. It's a restriction. And I can believe people don't want to use steam either for that very reason(when it comes to single player games). It doesn't mean people don't have online connection. It's even more of a restriction to disable a system to play games forever if you don't do a certain online check. Online is the future of them of restricting people (their future, for their personal gain). Not the future of someone owning a console just to play single player games.

You can play Steam offline, there's an offline mode. Login, enable the offline mode, and logout.

Only catch is that you can only play on that specific system until you log back in again.

So if you (for some insane reason) went into offline mode, then formatted your system, you'd be a bit screwed when trying to log back in. I'm sure there are ways to resolve that, but it'd be a pain in the ass.

I can understand why Steam does this: to prevent piracy. I could go to Friend-Dude's place, load up my Steam account on his PC, and download all of my games. Then enter into offline mode. Go back home, login and BAM! I still have all my games, and Friend-Dude has them too for free. Repeat this at Friend-Guy's house, Friend-Amigo's apartment, etc. and then there's a huge number of people playing without paying. Single player games, but still play without pay.

So I understand where Steam is coming from with how they handle their offline mode. I'm glad it is there, though.

Imagine being able to bring a laptop on a business trip and still be able to play some of the Steam single player games without internet access in the remote jungles of Peru. You could teach some pygmies all about Portals and Cake.


Microsoft seems to be taking a weird direction with their handling of XB1. It seems they're really focused on business and marketing aspects as opposed to technological ones. I mean, the system will be capable of an enormous amount of stuff, which Microsoft will be able to turn on and off or adjust as they see fit.

Imagine Nintendo shipping the N64 with the memory expander installed, but being able to activate or deactivate it remotely (and you can never use the system disconnected) depending on what sort of account you have, or even what their current terms of service deem enforceable. Pretty shady stuff.

I assume that XB1 will have some neat hyperthreading or multi-core or whatever the latest processor buzz-word entails, and that Microsoft will be able to activate/deactivate it remotely whenever and whyever they want in the future.


edit: I forgot why I popped my head in this thread.... I have no intention of ever buying any console. :/

[Beechy]

HEATHEN!!!!! OFF WITH HIS HEAD!!!!

[SpikeNard]

Originally Posted by Shepp

You can play Steam offline, there's an offline mode. Login, enable the offline mode, and logout.

Only catch is that you can only play on that specific system until you log back in again.

So if you (for some insane reason) went into offline mode, then formatted your system, you'd be a bit screwed when trying to log back in. I'm sure there are ways to resolve that, but it'd be a pain in the ass.

I can understand why Steam does this: to prevent piracy. I could go to Friend-Dude's place, load up my Steam account on his PC, and download all of my games. Then enter into offline mode. Go back home, login and BAM! I still have all my games, and Friend-Dude has them too for free. Repeat this at Friend-Guy's house, Friend-Amigo's apartment, etc. and then there's a huge number of people playing without paying. Single player games, but still play without pay.

That's pretty much suicidal for me then. If I buy a game from the store, I own the physical disc. I have the hardware for it. Plus, this game doesn't require an internet connection because it's a single player game. I should have the rights to install that game anytime I want without having to go on the internet to login an account to do it. I'm still relying on an online system. I should be able to uninstall, reinstall the game all I want. If this offline mode is activated by logging into my steam. Then what's the point? The game should install as offline to begin with. It's making something so simple into something really complicated.

By the way, they already prevented piracy(not even entirely thanks to hackers) with no offline mode. They could have no offline mode, so you would need to be logged in to an account, all the time to play a single player game. They have to prevent their offline mode from being abused. Hence, they made this offline mode, so people won't be annoyed that you have to be online to play a single player game. But it's the same problem, I have been describing, because then you aren't relying on the physical disc anymore. You are relying on your online steam accounts. Because if your hard drive or hardware goes out, and you wanted to install the game 5 years down the line, it still goes through their online system, you need to redownload(or install it from disc) it on their steam account and login to play it. Where as you can't just install it from the physical disc, and just play it right away. So what's the point of having a physical disc? I don't really own it anymore. And I need to ask permission from steam to install my game every time I want to use it. I rely on their servers and online accounts to play single player games. It makes no sense.

They only did it to prevent piracy. Otherwise it would install offline and wouldn't require a connection, or an online account. It's just very unreliable. It's coming to the point, where people need hackers to play their own physically purchased games. They need a new method of stopping piracy if that's the case.

Originally Posted by Shepp

Imagine being able to bring a laptop on a business trip and still be able to play some of the Steam single player games without internet access in the remote jungles of Peru. You could teach some pygmies all about Portals and Cake.

Seriously? Imagine myself playing my own single player game that shouldn't require an internet connection to begin with in a different country, on a portable laptop. Yeah, imagine that. Because I could do that 10 years ago, if I own the hardware and purchased the physical disc for the software.

And I'm not trying to being rude when I say that statement to you, you didn't make steam, but I'm just being sarcastic at the notion that we have to imagine now us playing our own single player games on our hardware without an internet connection? That's a little bit silly to me.

Originally Posted by Shepp

Microsoft seems to be taking a weird direction with their handling of XB1. It seems they're really focused on business and marketing aspects as opposed to technological ones. I mean, the system will be capable of an enormous amount of stuff, which Microsoft will be able to turn on and off or adjust as they see fit.

I don't care if the system could teleport people through space at this point. Through statements from Adam Orth, their interviews, and them defending their own crap. They have come off as greedy, lying, and arrogant people. And they insult people's intelligence. It's like they don't know what a gaming system is. And it really shows when they back slid and decided to take away their great cloud drm sharing internet technology plans, shows that technology isn't so great, (family plans, etc). But it was implemented when people got mad at Adam Orth's statements, to make people less mad, and they wanted to make people think the restrictions don't matter, because it has more advantage of lending out of physical discs. When in reality it's the same setup, the only difference is they control it. And they control to render a system not to play games permanently.

Think about it, I don't care that they took it away. But I just realized the reason they had all those drm plans because it was all to make people less upset about having restrictions. But it didn't work, people didn't play into it. So they decided to take away the restrictions and also throw away the drm family plans, etc. Otherwise they would have kept the DRM family plans, etc if it was so great and throw away the restrictions also. If they wanted to make people happy, and they care about their consumers, they would have kept both. But the drm family plans, etc was to let consumers fall for the restrictions.

There is nothing great about having an internet connection and downloading games onto the system. There is nothing technology advanced about it. And how they control that or how they are doing that, isn't technology advanced either. So you are right on about what their focus is not on technology.

[FEZaid]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WiLmo8IZ1M

Online is required to play the games for both consoles

[Shepp]

Originally Posted by SpikeNard

...

I will give you +3 internets for that response.

And yes, looking back, that offline Peru trip thing was pretty damned stupid for me to write.

I'd rather own stuff than license it too.

Either way, in my opinion the benefits for Steam outweigh the drawbacks for me.

While X-Box One's drawbacks seem to far outweigh it's benefits.

But that doesn't really matter to me because I never intended to get an XB1 in the first place :/

[SpikeNard]

Originally Posted by Shepp

I will give you +3 internets for that response.

And yes, looking back, that offline Peru trip thing was pretty damned stupid for me to write.

I'd rather own stuff than license it too.

Either way, in my opinion the benefits for Steam outweigh the drawbacks for me.

While X-Box One's drawbacks seem to far outweigh it's benefits.

But that doesn't really matter to me because I never intended to get an XB1 in the first place :/

Yeah, I guess I'm just old fashion, and I want things to never change. I don't think this is a change for the better.

Enjoy your steam. And I'm sure even you would still appreciate the benefits of being able to do anything you want with your game. Everything doesn't need to be online to have a good time. I remember people having LAN parties without having an internet connection.

It's funny how I can complain about the XB1, even though I never planned to get one either. I just don't want people to get screwed one way or the other. And I'm sure you are the same way.

[Shepp]

Originally Posted by SpikeNard

Yeah, I guess I'm just old fashion, and I want things to never change. I don't think this is a change for the better.

Enjoy your steam. And I'm sure even you would still appreciate the benefits of being able to do anything you want with your game. Everything doesn't need to be online to have a good time. I remember people having LAN parties without having an internet connection.

It's funny how I can complain about the XB1, even though I never planned to get one either. I just don't want people to get screwed one way or the other. And I'm sure you are the same way.

LAN parties were awesome. I think BroodWar still has LAN support. So does Neverwinter Nights, Baldur's Gate, and a few others spring to mind.

[Beechy]

Nothing beats the LAN party My co-workers and I had at the theater with 4 xboxs playing Halo on 4 different screens..

[Mike]

Im all for getting rid of the physical disc, its annoying and not needed. I have many 360 games, pc games, tablet games, music and movies, all with no physical copies.

[Mighty_Galvatron]

Originally Posted by Mike

Im all for getting rid of the physical disc, its annoying and not needed. I have many 360 games, pc games, tablet games, music and movies, all with no physical copies.

Shitty.