According the FTC documents, top Microsoft executives wanted to build a hybrid Xbox that used the local hardware and the cloud to create a complete game experience.
Would something like that interest you, or would you prefer a more traditional console where the games can be played offline? I remember the backslash to an always online Xbox One wasn’t great. The landscape has changed since 2013, however.
I would first want to know what games are coming to that system. I bought a Series X because I wanted to play Panzer Dragoon Orta and Shenmue 2 among more modern games. If they want me to buy a cloud console, then they would need some really good software exclusives. Otherwise I would rather go exclusively with Nintendo to buy any good 3rd parties even if a theoretical cloud Xbox can run a new Yakuza or Sonic game better.
Definitely wouldn’t buy anything requiring always on internet. Would absolutely stop buying Xbox devices and stick with PC gaming. In most cases recently (Balders Gate 3 and Starfield) the games just run better on PC anyway, especially with Starfield only running 60fps on the PC version. Adding latency from having to have the game streamed from MS servers would only make my experience worse, not better.
This is awful, I hate online only stuff.
I really don’t get the outcry when most people as soon as they buy their new console, the 1st thing they do is hook it up to their Wi-Fi (let’s be honest) Nice to see that it looks like XBox is getting back to consoles having a separate CPU and GPU which should hopefully mean we have some serious room on the silicon for raytraying. Really don’t mind about the Cloud if it’s used for data under the hood or to help out with a game like Flight sim or even BC
I have more of an issue with cash going digital than games. What I don’t like, is how more and more single player games are needed to log into a server to play, which means that when the developer shutdown the server, it doesn’t matter if you own the game physically or digitally it’s unplayable
My main concern is from a preservation perspective. Other media, such as music and video, can be extracted and played locally fairly easily, even when there is DRM. But with video games we’re talking about software, code that runs on a server that cannot be extracted without access to that server.
If the company decides that it is no longer profitable to run the cloud servers, do we lose access to the game forever?
This I do not get at all. If a game is released digitally then it must be easier to be preserved, compared to some mega obscure cart game that no one heard of. It already has an online footprint.
I get the issues over a game needing a server to run (like Destiny, The Division) but then it doesn’t matter if you own the game digitally or physically when BUNGiE or Ubi turn off the servers.
We saw it happen with StarBlood Aera on the PS4
It depends if a crucial part of the game code is executed server side. If it is (which could be the case with hybrid games), then it’s up to publisher to allow/revoke access at any point - there isn’t a local copy of that code that can be cracked.
I like to have a physical game in my hands or at least know it’s digitally downloaded on the system and not going anywhere. Playing a game only on the Cloud to have the service disappear one day for whatever reason is unacceptable.
The days of the internet going down for hours or days on end are over for most people and then you also have one trusty smart mobile phone as a back up
I had to use my mobile to log into XBox when BT were upgrading my line to Gigabyte BB on the very day Halo Infinite launched LOL
I worry more about games that need a server to run, rather than a online check myself
Solo, games are cracked all the time and like we saw with the Goldeneye LIVE remake if there’s an online presence is far easier to preserved, even if it’s not officially released
Just look at how hard and expensive some of the Saturn games are at the mo and if most people are honest they’re playing their Saturn games via ROM downloads.