Xbox live price going up !

[function]

The most important part of Live for me is being able to play games with with my old chums. This is worth more than £30 a year to me.

The times when you see a friend's online on Live, or they see you are, and so you message or chat, and so you end up playing an unplanned but completely awesome "worth more than £30 a year" gaming session are what makes it. And it's seamless from the point you make contact.

The "added value" is that I get to do some gaming - and the kind of gaming I value most these days - that I wouldn't get to do otherwise.

On a free alternative like PSN I would actually be being robbed of these precious and all too-rare-as-an-adult gaming moments. To be fair to Steam a lot of the potential is built in there, but most of my old friends gave up PC gaming long ago.

So there you go. Live lacks lots of things (most games have no dedicated servers, matchmaking is often out of your control etc) but I'm not paying for those things. I'm paying to enjoy games with other people.

 

[patsu]

On a free alternative like PSN I would actually be being robbed of these precious and all too-rare-as-an-adult gaming moments.

I know what you mean. I'm in the same situation.

To date, I have joined friends/relatives, GAF and B3D folks in ad hoc PSN gaming or Home time wasting without issues. Also went into Shifty's MAG game to try to assassinate him (but got pwned by his clan mate before I found him >_<). [EDIT: I only had 5 min free time, had to abort mission; but I was able to get into Shifty's game quickly and hassle-free]

The scheduled sessions would be best for large party to avoid disappointment. Once the rapport is built-up, I'm more than willing to change my schedule to accommodate the team even if we started as strangers. ^_^

Occasionally, these new (and sometimes young !) friends may throw virtual parties (e.g., "Get all your friends to pile into my XMB Chat Room !". It lasted for 2-3 days straight, round the clock, while new people streamed into the Chat Room continuously. That was an eye-opener for me. ).

To me, PSN is as vibrant as any other web communities.

What sucks is the clumsy UI. They should fix it.

 

[egoless]

Delete

 

[BRiT]

Do you guys ever get tired of pissing matches?

Oh come on, this is semi-entertaining to pass the time until we're all on XBox Live gaming in Halo Reach and using Cross-Game Party Chat to coordinate the festivities.

 

[Arwin]

Oh come on, this is semi-entertaining to pass the time until we're all on XBox Live gaming in Halo Reach and using Cross-Game Party Chat to coordinate the festivities.

Ha ha good one, though I strongly doubt there will be much Cross-Game in that Party Chat ...

 

[Scott_Arm]

Ha ha good one, though I strongly doubt there will be much Cross-Game in that Party Chat ...

Only when the B3D guys are trying to pry me away from NHL, and vice-versa.

 

[KongRudi]

* Demon's Souls shut out convenient/easy MP support to deliver a lonely online experience. That's something I didn't expect. It also uses PSN's User Data service to show other players' action in real-time (without them appearing in the game).

I loved Demon's Soul..
Definately the most groundbreaking online (I've seen) in a RPG for a very long time. :-/
I didn't think the online were inconvenient, and I don't think I would change a single thing about it, it all fits perfect with the game.

Lay down stone were you need help, or pick up a stone where you wanna help someone around there, or invade someone.

But I can see that some people might find it abit hard to get far enough to get far enough to get the various stones you need. :-/
And I can also see how it would be hard to play with whoever you wanted since you can only invade or play with people +/- 10 levels of yourself.

What do you mean with the PSN's User Data?
Do you mean the ghost of other players?
I've heard that they used the same code that Polyphony's been using on ghost-cars, realtime ghost-record for live players, running around in your area, or abit long replay saved at server for all dying players.

 

[patsu]

What do you mean with the PSN's User Data?
Do you mean the ghost of other players?
I've heard that they used the same code that Polyphony's been using on ghost-cars, realtime ghost-record for live players, running around in your area, or abit long replay saved at server for all dying players.

http://kotaku.com/5497677/pixeljunk-expansion-channels-demons-souls-of-all-things

Dylan Cuthbert, chief of PixelJunk studio Q-Games, told Kotaku at a recent live showcase of the add-on that PixelJunk Racers: 2nd Lap takes advantage of a PlayStation 3 "user data" service. The technology, he said, popped up on his radar last year. His team wanted to use it in one of their games. The user data service can pull player data from anyone playing a PS3 game programmed to support it.

The other game that uses the service, Cuthbert said, is the sword-and-sorcery role-playing game Demon's Souls, which records to the game's servers the lives and deaths of all of its players' characters. Ghostly renditions of those deaths are then transmitted to other players, who will see them as they play Demon's Souls.

...

I didn't know GT5 will use it too. I wonder if it's possible for GT5 to pull Demon's Souls user data over. That would be cool.

 

[egoless]

Delete

 

[BRiT]

I don't play any of the Halo series or Gears in ranked matches. I have more enjoyment in co-op campaign, or cop-op firefight / horde, or social matches. This usually lets me play recklessly, completely opposite from how I or anyone-else would play in ranked matches. I'm too old to be dealing with the 12 year olds kicking my butt in the multiplayer games.

The third party services that exist by wrapping/mining xbox live seems extensive and always manages to find a way to surprise me.

 

[Scott_Arm]

Just as a point regarding Demon's Souls leveraging user data, Fable 2 did the same thing in a much more primitive form with the player orbs showing up inside your game. You could talk to eachother within proximity and watch the orbs move throughout your world, and trade items, or invite another orb into your game. It didn't have accurate ghosts, invasions or notes, but in essence Fable 2 was very much a simplified version of the same thing. It might be possible to do the same things, especially now that Live seems to be allowing games to take advantage of higher data rates now that the legacy system is out.

 

[AzBat]

So you can use your existing flash drives, up to 32GB on your 360

Just a note that the dashboard only allows a max of 16gb per USB drive. So in order to access the max of 32gb you would need 2 16gb USB drives.

Tommy McClain

 

[AzBat]

RE: Valves issues with patching games on 360.

Valve has a long history of supporting their games long after release with free content. MS won't let them do this on Live! as only the first patch is free. This means that all of the balance patches and added content that has been done for the PC version past that initial patch is missing on the 360. Therefore Valve doesn't believe that they are able to deliver the quality of experience on the 360 that they would like.

BTW, there is a difference between a patch and DLC. The former is free and latter is not after their first free release. Also realize that DLC also add extra achievements and gamerscore. Patches just fix bugs.

Tommy McClain

 

[specwarGP2]

I could just as well complain that Sony's 3DTVs are overpriced to use the upcoming 3D functionality of PS3, even though nothing stands in the way of buying a cheaper 3DTV.

Ok look I'm not complaining, in fact I dont even care, I was just making a point. I originally responded to brit's post that 360 overpriced accessories (yes live is an accessory) has nothing to do with sony's pricing. If PSN gained feature parity with XBL tomorrow, do you think MS will make live free? Of course not. Case in point: Sony lets you use any compatible HDD, while MS still charges you $150 for an HDD upgrade.

Oh and while I do agree that Sony 3DTVs are horribly overpriced, your analogy doesnt work because as you suggested, you have the option to use any compatible 3DTV. Sony isn't making you buy an overpriced bravia to use that functionality.

 

[AzBat]

Microsoft isn't requiring you to buy a hard drive period. Almost every Xbox 360 game will work without one. Granted you won't get all the features & perks, but you can get online with just a generic 1gb USB thumb drive to store you Live Gold profile if you don't have the built-in memory. BTW, the 250gb drives are $130 a piece(for both console versions). If you can find 120gb & 60gb drives they're anywhere between $50-$100.

Tommy McClain

 

[mrcorbo]

BTW, there is a difference between a patch and DLC. The former is free and latter is not after their first free release. Also realize that DLC also add extra achievements and gamerscore. Patches just fix bugs.

Tommy McClain

This is (was?) not as much the case in PC gaming, especially in competitive online games. In addition to bugfixes, patches in the PC world often add or tweak functionality and also make adjustments to improve competetive balance. In MMOs specifically there is a distinct difference between patching and expansions. This is Valve's background and it would be more appropriate to apply the PC concept of a patch than how it has come to be defined in the console world when dealing with Valve's issues specifically.

 

[NRP]

Perhaps Valve should do a better job with balancing prior to release? Being a PC dev, they may be a little too used to sending something out the door and patch it later.

 

[patsu]

Just as a point regarding Demon's Souls leveraging user data, Fable 2 did the same thing in a much more primitive form with the player orbs showing up inside your game. You could talk to eachother within proximity and watch the orbs move throughout your world, and trade items, or invite another orb into your game. It didn't have accurate ghosts, invasions or notes, but in essence Fable 2 was very much a simplified version of the same thing. It might be possible to do the same things, especially now that Live seems to be allowing games to take advantage of higher data rates now that the legacy system is out.

The scenario is somewhat reversed here. The User Data service is a common PSN feature. Now that I think about it, KZ2 may have used the same service to implement their website replays.

EDIT: Also, it is just sad that a kid could throw a viral XMB Chat Room party that lasts 3 days 2 nights round the clock with practically nothing, while Sony management still hasn't recognized the power of easy UI and fast access speed in Home (Get a 2D version ready already ! XD).

 

[Scott_Arm]

The scenario is somewhat reversed here. The User Data service is a common PSN feature. Now that I think about it, KZ2 may have used the same service to implement their website replays.

EDIT: Also, it is just sad that a kid could throw a viral XMB Chat Room party that lasts 3 day 2 nights round the clock with practically nothing, while Sony management still hasn't recognized the power of easy UI and access speed in Home (Get a 2D version ready already ! XD).

I'm just wondering what exactly the user data service is, and whether Live has something similar considering Fable 2 seems to do some of the same things as Demon's Souls.

 

[specwarGP2]

Microsoft isn't requiring you to buy a hard drive period. Almost every Xbox 360 game will work without one. Granted you won't get all the features & perks, but you can get online with just a generic 1gb USB thumb drive to store you Live Gold profile if you don't have the built-in memory. BTW, the 250gb drives are $130 a piece(for both console versions). If you can find 120gb & 60gb drives they're anywhere between $50-$100.

Tommy McClain

I never said that an HDD is required, and in fact I said its an accessory. But fact of the matter is that IF you want to upgrade your hard drive, MS will rip you off because you have no other choice. $130 is a ripoff for 250GB and a 60 or 120GB HDD at $50-100 is even a bigger ripoff.

Why does MS rip you off? Because they can. You already bought the console, so you're stuck, unless you get ditch your 360 for a PS3 instead. Same thing for live. It's $60 because you have no other option to play online. I'm sure if MS charged $100 for live almost everyone will still pay it.