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We'll take your average RPG game, Phantasy Star Online I and II as an example for this.
Using XBox Live, you pay £40 a year for the service plus £5.99 a month to play PSO. That's £111.88 a year just to play one game.
Using Gamecube, it's just £5.99 a month. That's £71.88 a year just to play one game.
It's not being released for the PS2 but the same would apply as Sony don't have a standing charge for their Networking service.
For your extra £40 a year on XBox live you do get some extras, like a consistent Gamer Tag and the ability to page others over the network no matter what game they're in (not sure if this will apply to PSO though because I think payments are made direct to Sega for the gametime). Is that £40 a year worth it when you consider that Sony and Nintendo still offer free online gaming for most of their titles?
Microsoft also take a large cut from game developers for allowing them to run games on their Live network, whereas the Sony and Nintendo network models give developers the choice of whether or not to support online service themselves.
In short, did Microsoft make a huge error on their choice of financial model for supporting their network?
Using XBox Live, you pay £40 a year for the service plus £5.99 a month to play PSO. That's £111.88 a year just to play one game.
Using Gamecube, it's just £5.99 a month. That's £71.88 a year just to play one game.
It's not being released for the PS2 but the same would apply as Sony don't have a standing charge for their Networking service.
For your extra £40 a year on XBox live you do get some extras, like a consistent Gamer Tag and the ability to page others over the network no matter what game they're in (not sure if this will apply to PSO though because I think payments are made direct to Sega for the gametime). Is that £40 a year worth it when you consider that Sony and Nintendo still offer free online gaming for most of their titles?
Microsoft also take a large cut from game developers for allowing them to run games on their Live network, whereas the Sony and Nintendo network models give developers the choice of whether or not to support online service themselves.
In short, did Microsoft make a huge error on their choice of financial model for supporting their network?
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Maverick42 wrote:
> Bloody hell. First I have to get broadband - £90 modem and
> £30 a month. Then I have to buy Xbox Live - £40. Then I
> have to buy Galaxies - £40. Then I have to pay a monthly
> subscription - £6?
>
> That's an estimated £592 for the first year..
That is totally ridiculous. May as well start adding in the price of your house, the rates, the TV, Xbox, electricity... etc... etc...
You'll use the modem, connection and Live account for other things - especially the first two. Look at it this way, £6 a month for how much enjoyment? What does £6 get you? Two pints and a game or two of pool?
Problem with the internet is that everybody expects everything for free. Running an MMORPG (or any on-line game) costs huge amounts of money. Buying, maintaining and generally running the game servers costs thousands per day - this is the reason most MMORPGs don't make money. It is a totally different ball park from user hosted, privately run, sporadic DM servers for Half-Life, or Quake or whatever.
But then I've typed about this until I'm blue in the face many times before. Really should see the doctor about that. Here, I'm a doctor... in the same way Top Score is a Lexus driver.
> Bloody hell. First I have to get broadband - £90 modem and
> £30 a month. Then I have to buy Xbox Live - £40. Then I
> have to buy Galaxies - £40. Then I have to pay a monthly
> subscription - £6?
>
> That's an estimated £592 for the first year..
That is totally ridiculous. May as well start adding in the price of your house, the rates, the TV, Xbox, electricity... etc... etc...
You'll use the modem, connection and Live account for other things - especially the first two. Look at it this way, £6 a month for how much enjoyment? What does £6 get you? Two pints and a game or two of pool?
Problem with the internet is that everybody expects everything for free. Running an MMORPG (or any on-line game) costs huge amounts of money. Buying, maintaining and generally running the game servers costs thousands per day - this is the reason most MMORPGs don't make money. It is a totally different ball park from user hosted, privately run, sporadic DM servers for Half-Life, or Quake or whatever.
But then I've typed about this until I'm blue in the face many times before. Really should see the doctor about that. Here, I'm a doctor... in the same way Top Score is a Lexus driver.
FM,
your comparison of the prices is along the same lines as..
'Let's compare the proce of an Acer laptop with a 12" Screen and no CD drive and a high-end VAIO with a 17" screen and DVD-R Drive'
Two completely different things :-D
your comparison of the prices is along the same lines as..
'Let's compare the proce of an Acer laptop with a 12" Screen and no CD drive and a high-end VAIO with a 17" screen and DVD-R Drive'
Two completely different things :-D
X Box Live comes down to whether you personally will get value for money from it.
For me, a PC user whose always wanted to download tons of music, movies, anime e.t.c and use the always on connection for my Ebay selling e.t.c Broadband is well excellent.
Also, the games I like on Xbox Live are ones I enjoy, recently I've started on Ghost Recon, at last (!), and it's great fun, and fast. Games like PSO might not interest me so I'm not worried about extra charges, and I think using PSO for comparison is pretty unfair, expecially when someone compares the prices with the GC on dial up, because there is no comparison to dial up and broadband gaming !
At the end of the day no one is being forced to play online, I'm only a student and I have no problem affording it, and new games, as well as going out e.t.c.
For me, a PC user whose always wanted to download tons of music, movies, anime e.t.c and use the always on connection for my Ebay selling e.t.c Broadband is well excellent.
Also, the games I like on Xbox Live are ones I enjoy, recently I've started on Ghost Recon, at last (!), and it's great fun, and fast. Games like PSO might not interest me so I'm not worried about extra charges, and I think using PSO for comparison is pretty unfair, expecially when someone compares the prices with the GC on dial up, because there is no comparison to dial up and broadband gaming !
At the end of the day no one is being forced to play online, I'm only a student and I have no problem affording it, and new games, as well as going out e.t.c.
Bloody hell. First I have to get broadband - £90 modem and £30 a month. Then I have to buy Xbox Live - £40. Then I have to buy Galaxies - £40. Then I have to pay a monthly subscription - £6?
That's an estimated £592 for the first year..
That's an estimated £592 for the first year..
Well I haven't seen an official word on the extra charge but I'd say its as good as definate with it being an MMORPG.
Of course.
Every MMORPG will charge you per month.
Every MMORPG will charge you per month.
Ah bollards. You don't have to pay a monthly fee for Galaxies, do you?
Personally I think XBox Live is a good price. As far as my opinion goes, online play can only really work with broadband as dial up is just too damn slow.
Of course this restricts it as an avenue for only a limited number of people, but its definatly a venture worth taking for consoles as it hold so much potential in bringing gamers of all levels of skill together, giving the option of huge multiplayers at any time and of course offering downloads to expand things in your favourite games.
I dunno if I'll go online with the GC or PS2 yet - I'll see how things go with the titles they bring out with online options, but one thing I can definatly say is that I won't take any online gaming service thats anything less than broadband.
The only things that could really sting are the monthly fees for certain games (mainly being RPG's) - this will soon add up if you like to switch between various games that require this payment. Star Wars: Galaxies will be a game I shell out the extra for, but its not going to be something I'll pay freely on other games. They'll have to be pretty special to warrent the extra cash.
Of course this restricts it as an avenue for only a limited number of people, but its definatly a venture worth taking for consoles as it hold so much potential in bringing gamers of all levels of skill together, giving the option of huge multiplayers at any time and of course offering downloads to expand things in your favourite games.
I dunno if I'll go online with the GC or PS2 yet - I'll see how things go with the titles they bring out with online options, but one thing I can definatly say is that I won't take any online gaming service thats anything less than broadband.
The only things that could really sting are the monthly fees for certain games (mainly being RPG's) - this will soon add up if you like to switch between various games that require this payment. Star Wars: Galaxies will be a game I shell out the extra for, but its not going to be something I'll pay freely on other games. They'll have to be pretty special to warrent the extra cash.
But I can see in time that Sony and maybe Nintendo if they get a proper service running, that games will be like PSO and be chargeable.
XBox Live is £40 a year and is centralised. Microsoft are the ones that host games and the service. Now I dont know how Sony work but if there not hosting games then what stops a developer charging a user for the right to use there online service for a particular game?
I see your point FM about Microsoft charging the £40 and with PSO you still need a seperate subscription. At the moment Sony arent charging for other games like SOCOM, but what about the future when say the developer is hosting the game and they want to charge people to use it. Then in time all developers are doing it, and you find that your paying £40+ to 8 different developers to play the games. Microsoft is all centralised so you pay your £40 and you know that you can go play Unreal, Mech Assault, Ghost Recon, Moto GP etc and not have to pay any extra.
Games like PSO always have seperate charges as they do takes more resources to host, as even PC MMORPG have charges.
I do hope Sony's network does stay free for most games with PSO. Or if developers start charging for every game, that they put a yearly sum on instead of having to pay for each game per month.
XBox Live is £40 a year and is centralised. Microsoft are the ones that host games and the service. Now I dont know how Sony work but if there not hosting games then what stops a developer charging a user for the right to use there online service for a particular game?
I see your point FM about Microsoft charging the £40 and with PSO you still need a seperate subscription. At the moment Sony arent charging for other games like SOCOM, but what about the future when say the developer is hosting the game and they want to charge people to use it. Then in time all developers are doing it, and you find that your paying £40+ to 8 different developers to play the games. Microsoft is all centralised so you pay your £40 and you know that you can go play Unreal, Mech Assault, Ghost Recon, Moto GP etc and not have to pay any extra.
Games like PSO always have seperate charges as they do takes more resources to host, as even PC MMORPG have charges.
I do hope Sony's network does stay free for most games with PSO. Or if developers start charging for every game, that they put a yearly sum on instead of having to pay for each game per month.
FantasyMeister wrote:
> For your extra £40 a year on XBox live you do get some extras,
> like a consistent Gamer Tag and the ability to page others over the
> network no matter what game they're in
K, that statment scares me!
Used MSN recently, stupid advert type messages are starting to crop up n stuff. How long will it be till something like that happens on this paging system on XBox Live!?!
You in the middle of a game and suddenly up pops "Get new viagra!" or sommin'!
eeee
Don't know anything about the paging system, but I'm sure sommin' like this could happen!
:)
> For your extra £40 a year on XBox live you do get some extras,
> like a consistent Gamer Tag and the ability to page others over the
> network no matter what game they're in
K, that statment scares me!
Used MSN recently, stupid advert type messages are starting to crop up n stuff. How long will it be till something like that happens on this paging system on XBox Live!?!
You in the middle of a game and suddenly up pops "Get new viagra!" or sommin'!
eeee
Don't know anything about the paging system, but I'm sure sommin' like this could happen!
:)
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