Play Anywhere feature and how it could RUIN XBL console gaming!

At first glance it sounds like a great thing to marry all platforms. It grows the community exponentially by allowing more to join the pool. Buy a game and get to play/own said game on any platform that has the ability to play it, amazing!

Here's the downside. We can all agree MK (mouse/keyboard) is way more accurate than a gamepad...right (or are you contrarians going to argue this, even though it is fact). If multiplayer is included in this 'Play Anywhere' it will be a disaster for console
gamers. The only way to be the best possible at things like shooters would be to play them on PC or using one of the various MK emulators for consoles (this is cheating IMO). There would no longer be a level playing field. Gamepad vs MK, the winner is assured...

Anyone else worried?

:)

 

Preordering a Digital Copy of SoT at Amazon gets Play Anywhere?

Gamepass works on any Xbox titles that are play anywhere. Why not just buy Gamepass and then play it on PC. That avoids the cost of XBL and the full game.

If you haven’t used it yet, Gamepass has a 14 day trial so you could try the game for free for 14 days. Any digital version of a game that is "Play Anywhere" retains the feature regardless of where it is purchased (digitally of course). Amazon, CDkeys, some random retailer, MS doesn't matter. Things like Cross Play And Play Anywhere are features attached to games not the retailers that provide the code.

 

Guest accounts on Play Anywhere/Gaming on Win10

I'm specifically curious about Play Anywhere for Forza Horizon 3 but this could be a question for all Gaming on Windows apps:

The Play Anywhere FAQ says the game owner can't be logged in at the same time on console and PC, but if the owner is logged out completely, can a guest account log in to their own Microsoft account on the owner's PC and play the game? Similar to how a guest
on a Gold-shared console can play a game they haven't purchased.

Xbox Play Anywhere | Xbox

 

There may be some truth to your concern. Agreed M/K is by far more accurate. However, from Microsoft's standpoint they are working very hard to reinstall in their fan base the commitment to games, period. This is a move in the right direction. From a developer
stand point. They get the best of both worlds as well. They develop a game to run on the Scorpio and also on the highest end PC (for some folks) and what they created / imagined is realized in the best possible way. This will garner support for xbox and Microsoft
exclusivity. that is round about your point, I realize. being a "new" feature and with accurate feed back from the community, xbox can work out this age long dilemma. Good post. Actually, I will add that there has always been a "battle" between console and
PC gamers anyway. Sort of like skiing and snowboarding - surfing or bodyboarding - so F the console gamers that can't hang with a D-pad. hahahahahaha

 

Don't get me wrong I really like this direction MS is taking. I actually have been saying they should do something like this for years now. It will give them such a leg up on the competition, can Sony or Nintendo do the same, NO, why? b/c they don't have
an OS, they would need to 3rd party with Steam and lose A LOT of revenue in the process. This is a big power play for MS, I don't think many people have realized how big it actually is. They could go on from here to having a PC gaming spot alike Steam and
Steam does need some realistic competition.

For certain games it would be fine pitting MK vs gamepad, but those types of games would be extremely limited. Any MP that requires being precise or maneuvering camera angles quickly would not be welcome. RTS...hell no lol, not even a second thought there.
MS might have to take this on a game by game basis to ensure the best experience for their online MP community not to mention most fair.

I think back to the game Shadowrun. Not sure how they balanced that game for Vista (at the time, this game was used to promote that OS) and X360 but it is one of the only games I know of that had cross-platform MP. To make this work I imagine they had
to gimp MK users...i dunno...

The reason I started this thread is to get people thinking of the potential issues that can arise from this union.

 

A bigger concern is the PC is MUCH easier to hack than a console. Just look at the Division to see how the console version is so much better in PvP than the PC version, because of extreme hacking on the PC, and they are the exact same game. Hackers ruined
the PC side.

My Nephew is a PC honk and plays mostly on his PC or PS4. It would be nice to be able to play with him but they have to do it right. It could be a can of worms they are opening.

 

Not really a great concern.

If someone feels the need to turn their game into a "Point and Click" adventure let them game on pc.

 

I can see your concern, but I'm not worried. I held my own very well in Shadowrun when we were playing that against PC users back in 2007 on the 360.

 

Ahhhh, the ol' keyboard and mouse is better than a controller discussion, you may actually find a lot of people will be using the X1 controller on W10 PC's anyway as it's all compatible. I seem to think it will attract more console gamers to those exclusives
who are using the PC as an alternative to the console as that might be taken up by the kids or wife.

In any case it doesn't bother me at all, bring it on.

 

Phil Spencer had a few things to say about Keyboard and Mouse support coming to XBox One --

link

 

Hmmm,

Xbox One superseded by the S soon to be superseded by an expensive Project Scorpio which assumes will be KB/M Compatible also. Mostly all AAA titles are now available on PC.

Are MS trying to bury console gaming? If E3 wasn't a advert to go and buy a PC I don't know what is...

 

MS approach is Game as a Service. Xbox will be treated like the Surface with the goal of supporting and driving sales to Windows Store. Very much the same strategy that Apple and Google is doing with their respective stores.

Gamers or us benefits because each game we own can be delivered on any devices within the same digital store. For example your Gears 4 can be play on your Xbox One, One S, Scorpio, Xbox 2 and so on.

You can also run the same Gears 4 on a PC. And depends on how your PC is customized you could potentially have the game run better then the Scorpio.

But forward thinking, the demand of Gears 4 you cannot play on a Surface 4 currently, but you might be able to run it in Surface 8.

You don't have to worry about console generations. Your games stay with you even after each phase of revision.

But if you like to sell back your games, you can still use the traditional method of buying discs.

 

Consoles overtook PC last Gen.

I don't dispute you can get the best specs on a PC.

You definately can't get the best experience though, and those that do have rigged their PC's to play like a console which says it all in and of itself.

 

If you are on the PC, playing a shooter especially , I don't understand using the controller over the keyboard and mouse especially if you have a very advanced K/M. There are so many hotkeys you can set to any or whichever function your heart desires. When
it comes to fast paced, twitch style shooters like Overwatch or Counter-Strike or Battlefield, the K/M 100% has a large advantage.

I also would never use a K/M on the console. The point of the console is to leisurely sit on the couch and play with my wireless controller. The K/M would be awful on the couch.

 

Because Crafty, some people prefer to use their own skill versus abusing some keyboard macro that makes dropshoting as even "nooby-er" "tactic".

Just because keyboard/mouse is "better", doesn't mean you're a "better player". Hell, using an aimbot is "better" than actually having to aim your weapon yourself but obviously that doesn't make you better.

But frankly, if people want to kill the entire concept and spirit of playing a shooter video game by using keyboard/mouse then that's their own business but please, keep them separated from the rest of us. Give them their own dedicated keyboard lobbies and
don't let them have yet another unfair advantage over others just because their preference of input is whatever is EASIER.

Keyboard plays with keyboard, controller plays with controller. Rant over lol