Gamespot says XBox Live is garbage compared to PS+ and should be dumped next gen

[cmdrdredd]

I did select the floating box for the sale, but it just put me at the store's main menu.

It worked for me when I was checking out the holiday sales. It is supposed to work but there are a lot of things that are supposed to work and don't.

I'm a PC gamer just as much as I'm a console gamer and it'll never be the same. PC game market is infinitely smaller than console market so of course you can get games cheaper than for consoles. Plus sometimes I'll buy a game for consoles even if it's more expensive just so I can play with friends or relax on the couch.

Well...seeing as steam has more users than xbl the community is larger. So I wouldn't say its smaller at all. If anything PC gaming is more accessible because many games can be played with a basic laptop. Its not the topic of the thread though

 

[smackababy]

Well...seeing as steam has more users than xbl the community is larger. So I wouldn't say its smaller at all. If anything PC gaming is more accessible because many games can be played with a basic laptop. Its not the topic of the thread though

While Steam may have more users than XBL, games released on both platforms sell much better on console.

I don't see XBL crumbling any time soon. It would be nice if they offered perks like PS+, however, they don't have to as of now. People buy it for the experience of a consistent online experience and party / private chat. While some games do limit that, most of the time you are free to chat with friends while playing. Also, the pay requirement keeps trolls from constantly making new accounts.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

I haven't had xbox live in years. I just resent the idea of it on principle. As such, my xbox is incapable of multiplayer, netflix, etc.

This.

I refuse to pay for XBL Gold, whether it is $60, $40, or $4 per year. I shouldn't have to pay a fee to use Netflix or play multi-player games.

 

[RagingBITCH]

Boy genius, that was no more of request for a physical fight than your forum name is a reflection of who you are. Read a few posts after that if you need an explanation of what was meant with that statement. It was a debate invitation and nothing more.

Arrogant still, you are. Bet you are a true winner in life.

 

[Aikouka]

I thought about mentioning Steam earlier, but one reason why I held off is that Steam might be a good platform, but it isn't integrated very well. Why? Because using the Steamworks API isn't a requirement to exist on Steam. Games that use Steamworks can work extremely well when it comes to connecting with friends. I think Borderlands 2 is a great example of how well it can work, but other games may rely on third-party services. Torchlight II is an example of how I would prefer to not see it done. With that, you have to log into the game (can't save your login info) and import your Steam friends into your Runic account. It's messy. As much as Diablo III receives flak for some of the design decisions, Battle.Net is implemented fairly well!

 

[ProchargeMe]

I like xbox live, and of course it has its problems, but both of these systems were outdated before they were even released, and i have to say microsoft has come a LONG way with the limited ability of the xbox hardware. I don't understand why sony would brag about more TV streams, you made a game system, people should be GAMING on it. I've owned both the ps3 and xbox 360, and only one remains in my collection, the xbox. In my opinion, paying the $40-$60 for a year is completely manageable.

 

[Todd33]

I like xbox live, and of course it has its problems, but both of these systems were outdated before they were even released, and i have to say microsoft has come a LONG way with the limited ability of the xbox hardware. I don't understand why sony would brag about more TV streams, you made a game system, people should be GAMING on it. I've owned both the ps3 and xbox 360, and only one remains in my collection, the xbox. In my opinion, paying the $40-$60 for a year is completely manageable.

Am I in some bizarro world now? If I recall the last few years, MS has concentrated on Kinect and media apps while Sony has pushed exclusive games and PS+ (more games). So who is about the games?

Let's look at 2013 titles, Sony has Last of Us, God of War Ascension and Beyond Two Souls in the next few months. MS has....?

 

[ProchargeMe]

The next generation is on the rise, i honestly don't expect Sony or MS to continue pumping out games. I just think for outright customer satisfaction, xbox delivers. Everyone's got their own opinion though.

 

[cmdrdredd]

I like xbox live, and of course it has its problems, but both of these systems were outdated before they were even released, and i have to say microsoft has come a LONG way with the limited ability of the xbox hardware. I don't understand why sony would brag about more TV streams, you made a game system, people should be GAMING on it. I've owned both the ps3 and xbox 360, and only one remains in my collection, the xbox. In my opinion, paying the $40-$60 for a year is completely manageable.

Well...when you have no exclusive games to play...

 

[rudder]

if people had a problem with xbox live they simply would not pay for it. since people do pay for it, they obviously can afford it and don't have a problem playing with it.

.

If I had known xbox live was required to view netflix... I may have considered another platform. That just pisses me off.

And $9.99 a month is outrageous. I have xbl... but usually end up paying about $3-4... which I would find reasonable if there were some real benefit.

Also kind of lame you have to pay more if you want more than one profile to play online. Well at least I can keep an eye on the creepers trying to hit on my 15 year old daughter.

 

[psoomah]

Xbox Live Gold is an antiquated dinosaur that no longer fits within this industry. It's an exploitive service that takes advantage of people's innate desire to connect with others, charging significant money ($59.99/year, or $9.99/month) for features given away for free on competing platforms. As the next generation approaches, it's time for Microsoft to shelve this nickel-and-diming venture once and for all."

Right, Sony will have such an advantage when Microsoft's low down + extended Live subscription model not only undercuts the upfront cost of the PS4 by $100 or more, but also sucks the subscription payers into spending more time on their consoles because they want to extract their 'value' from their subscription and Microsoft has more chances to upsell them in various ways.

Real 'antiquated dinosaur' business model. Bozo.

 

[arredondo]

If I had known xbox live was required to view netflix... I may have considered another platform. That just pisses me off.

And $9.99 a month is outrageous. I have xbl... but usually end up paying about $3-4... which I would find reasonable if there were some real benefit.

Also kind of lame you have to pay more if you want more than one profile to play online. Well at least I can keep an eye on the creepers trying to hit on my 15 year old daughter.

Yeah, it's crazy how much otherwise free stuff on every other platform (Steam, PS3, Apple wares) costs you your hard earned money to access with XBox Live. Access to online play in games you bought and your subscribed video streaming services should cost absolutely nothing, but Microsoft takes them away to force a lot of people to pay who otherwise might not do so.

But it isn't all take take take with Xbox Live. They are focused on giving to their subscribers as well. Here's a new article that shares how excited they are to give you guys a lot more 30 second video ads:

Microsoft touts NUads success, notes that "you can expect more investment from us"

Xbox Live users may not be thrilled with the presence of more ads on the popular online service, but the results have been very encouraging for Microsoft and the company has indicated that it intends to ramp up its video advertising on Xbox Live.

Microsoft specifically said that it's seen "double-digit engagement results of the first NUads experience," especially when the company created interactive polls for Xbox Live users to vote in. The company kicked off NUads in the fall of 2012 in North America and the UK and saw participation from firms like Subway and Toyota.

"When we launched NUads, we redefined the 30-second spot," said Ross Honey, general manager of Xbox Live Entertainment and Advertising. "These results show that NUads is a real breakthrough in TV advertising, and you can expect more investment from us when it comes to this new ad format and video advertising in general."

It's clear that Microsoft will be seeking to implement more ads with more partners, and advertisers seem to love the engagement they're getting with consumers whether through polls or Xbox Kinect.

You pay up the wazoo for the right to your own stuff as described above, and you get MORE commercials in your gaming console??? How does the XBL Defense Force (tm) justify that?

Let me guess.

 

[Pr0d1gy]

I think ATi makes faster cards!


^_^

 

[Aikouka]

I actually don't mind the ads too much. I do think it's somewhat lame that they take up one of the few tiles that actual content could inhabit. That's especially true when one screen maybe only gets about 6-9 tiles. The reason why I don't seethe hatred when I see the ads is because they don't make noise nor really annoy you. It's been awhile since I paid attention to them, which is not what advertisers want to hear , they don't auto-play nor make noise unless you highlight them.

However, I do think that if you're going to post ads all over your service and charge us, that's just wrong. I pay for Live Gold, so I shouldn't see ads... end of story. How about also presenting a cheaper option for Gold that comes with ads... sort of like Amazon's Kindle? However, that's like telling Microsoft, "Hey, how about you make less money." Yeah, I'm pretty sure they teach that philosophy in Business 101.

 

[Skel]

Two questions have popped into my head after reading this thread..
1. Does the OP hate Xbox Live's sub fee, or just Microsoft themselves?
2. What's the draw for PSN+? I'm seeing you get "free" games but haven't seen anyone really talk about them, which normally tells me they aren't worth it. Is there something else they give you?

 

[CVSiN]

phew, good thing i can make my own decisions for myself and don't need a big corporation to tell me how to think and what i should like.

if people had a problem with xbox live they simply would not pay for it. since people do pay for it, they obviously can afford it and don't have a problem playing with it.

didn't read the whole article, but i'd guess they did not mention that online play on ps3 is a shitty experience compared to 360 for the most part.

+1 I'll take Xbox live over crappy PS network any day of the week.

 

[CVSiN]

This.

I refuse to pay for XBL Gold, whether it is $60, $40, or $4 per year. I shouldn't have to pay a fee to use Netflix or play multi-player games.

guess you wont play MMOs either then..
sorry that stuff cost the companies money.
that infrastructure is not free.

60 bucks a year? pfft I spend more on soda.

 

[American Gunner]

Two questions have popped into my head after reading this thread..
1. Does the OP hate Xbox Live's sub fee, or just Microsoft themselves?
2. What's the draw for PSN+? I'm seeing you get "free" games but haven't seen anyone really talk about them, which normally tells me they aren't worth it. Is there something else they give you?

As far as I have seen, all the free games given are older games. I have the service and have gotten a few games, but they were games that I wasn't compelled enough to buy when they came out, so I have a hard time going and playing them when I have the games that I spent money on.

 

[Todd33]

As far as I have seen, all the free games given are older games. I have the service and have gotten a few games, but they were games that I wasn't compelled enough to buy when they came out, so I have a hard time going and playing them when I have the games that I spent money on.

Because if you spent money on them they must be better. Even if you buy lots of games, there are plenty of additional ones that are a nice surprise to get free.

I recently got Uncharted GA, Wipeout and Gravity Rush for the Vita, I didn't own any of them and they are all from this year and highly rated.

Sure some of the games I have got free I owned already (LBP2, Infamous 2, R&C A4O), but there are plenty more I didn't have and the discounts made new games that much cheaper.

Compare this to paying for playing online and access to Netflix, both are free on all other platforms, it is a no brainer.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

guess you wont play MMOs either then..
sorry that stuff cost the companies money.
that infrastructure is not free.

60 bucks a year? pfft I spend more on soda.

Ooo, you sure told me.

It is absurd to have to have a gold membership just to be able to use things like Netflix on a 360. Microsoft is the ONLY vendor to my knowledge with such a stupid requirement.

It really isn't relevant that you spend more than $60 on soda per year. I spend more than $60 on frivolous things in a year too and XBL Gold won't be one of them. It is useless to me and frankly, I get nothing from it.

 

[Veliko]

It is absurd to have to have a gold membership just to be able to use things like Netflix on a 360. Microsoft is the ONLY vendor to my knowledge with such a stupid requirement.

It really isn't relevant that you spend more than $60 on soda per year. I spend more than $60 on frivolous things in a year too and XBL Gold won't be one of them. It is useless to me and frankly, I get nothing from it.

The Netflix argument keeps being brought up as if it's the main selling point of the console.

If playing online is useless to you that you get nothing from, then of course XBL will be useless and you won't get anything from it.

 

[BD2003]

Gamespot isn't wrong.

 

[JackBurton]

Ooo, you sure told me.

It is absurd to have to have a gold membership just to be able to use things like Netflix on a 360. Microsoft is the ONLY vendor to my knowledge with such a stupid requirement.

It really isn't relevant that you spend more than $60 on soda per year. I spend more than $60 on frivolous things in a year too and XBL Gold won't be one of them. It is useless to me and frankly, I get nothing from it.

If you are paying for XBL to only watch Netflix, you're doing it wrong.

 

[purbeast0]

If you are paying for XBL to only watch Netflix, you're doing it wrong.

yeah. netflix is a newer feature that was added to xbl. it isn't something that came with it originally so it is an extra feature so to speak. so in a sense, it is a "freebie" to those who use xbl. i first used xbl back on xbox days before halo 2 came out, when it was absolutely nothing more than paying to play online. so in a sense, all of the extra features it now has is simply a bonus for those paying to product.

and i know some people won't agree with that and that it won't change anyones mind, but that is just the history of xbl in general. whereas ps+ was just a totally different product from the get go. it really is pretty stupid to even compare the 2 products since other than being a monthly fee product, they really weren't meant to be the same thing.

psn being free online play is what is really a competitor to xbl. and as most of us who use both on a regular basis can attest to, it is night and day differences when playing online in both ecosystems.

 

[AstroManLuca]

guess you wont play MMOs either then..
sorry that stuff cost the companies money.
that infrastructure is not free.

60 bucks a year? pfft I spend more on soda.

Wow, not playing MMOs! What a huge loss! Oh wait, MMOs are all shit, every last one, and are not fun. More like work simulators. I wouldn't play an MMO if you PAID me to.

I do not pay monthly for ANY gaming product or service. I do pay for Netflix but I bought a WDTV for that, which works better than the Xbox and doesn't cost an extra $40-$60 per year.

Yeah, so I let my XBL membership lapse a year and change ago. Haven't missed it. We had a baby last August so I rarely have time for multiplayer games where I can't pause. When I do have time and want to play multiplayer, rather than paying MS for the privilege of P2P matchmaking, I just play a PC game. I've definitely bought more PC games and fewer console games because of the cost of Xbox Live (not to mention the cost of the games themselves, <3 Steam sales).

So you can break it down into a single year. $60 isn't bad, right? Even $40, or $35 if you can find deals on subscription cards. Then you realize that you've owned your Xbox for 5 years and have paid for Live that entire time, and have spent at least $150 over that time period for it. Could have bought like 3 more games instead.