What is Microsoft's deal with Xbox Live Gold?

Xbox live gold is an abomination to both gamers and developers.

Why do I have to pay 60 dollars a year to us MY internet to reach MY game's servers? Why can't online play be free of charge? If Microsoft REALLY cared about its customers rather than just its profit, we would see an infinitely better system.

I mean really, look at the free games we get each month! I haven't even heard of these games! Meanwhile, Playstation users get great titles such as Dishonored, Hitman and others! Not to mention Playstation users DON'T HAVE TO PAY to use their own internet!

I can't even use YOUTUBE on the xbox without Xbox live Gold! YOUTUBE! I can just pull out my COMPUTER and use it for free! I can't even talk to my friends without this greedy service!

If Nintendo allows you to play online for free, and Playstation does the same, then what is the point of owning an Xbox? Who am I kidding?These guys are Microsoft! These are the creators of abominations such as Internet explorer 6 and Halo 4! Greed drives
them!

:)

 

What is Microsoft's problem?

I believe the servers are down, you will need to wait for Microsoft to fix this issue.

 

What is Microsoft's problem?

Get off your duff and get Bingo fixed!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Naive. Things cost money. Game servers, support for game servers, developers to make games for said game servers. I think you have MS confused with the Salvation Army... MS does nothing for free. It all costs in once form or another. If you don't like it
or cannot afford it, don't buy it. I think PS has started charging to access games too. I pay little attention to PS but they now have a pay service too. I agree on all the other things (youtube etc) but for the games that money has to come from somewhere.
$5/month (if you cannot find it on sale somewhere) is cheaper than any MMO monthly fee I have found. Point here is if you don't like it or cannot afford it, don't buy it. After all this I realize this is probably a troll...

Troll on brotha!!!! Troll On!

 

Okay, so, where to begin.

[quote user="Spartanpuff177"]I mean really, look at the free games we get each month! I haven't even heard of these games![/quote]

I will admit there are a couple games I've never heard of nor would have been interested in but you've never heard of assasins creed 2, Dead Island, Gears of War, Halo 3 etc.? I already owned a couple of those games along with the current game, civilization
revolution.

[quote user="Spartanpuff177"]Playstation users get great titles such as Dishonored, Hitman and others! Not to mention Playstation users DON'T HAVE TO PAY to use their own internet![/quote]

They don't really GET them as they more or less rent them. With microsofts free for gold the game is yours no matter what, gold account, silver account... As long as you have a 360 and your account, no matter what, the game is yours. Even if you get a new
360, lose all your games, all you have to do is download your profile from the internet (you don't need a gold account for this) and redownload your games and play them. The reason I'm making such a big deal out of this is because you need to have a playstation
plus account to play your "free" games

[quote user="Playstation Plus FAQ"]Once downloaded, the games are yours to keep and play as long as you are a member of PlayStation Plus. If your subscription lapses
and then you re-subscribe, the games you have already downloaded will reactivate, so you still have access to them[/quote]

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So let's take a look at this, a year of xbox gold costs around 60$ which is around 5$ a month in the US. Civilization revolution costs 30$ in the US. If you download the game and enjoy it you've already made half your money back in less than a month. You
get 2 games a month for a year... And you get to keep them if you don't decide to keep paying after that year.

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One last thing, over the 5 years that I've had Xbox Live I can't recall one time that I couldn't get online to play with my friends except, one time the messaging system wasn't working so I had to click join session in progress rather than sending an invite.
On the other hand, I got to make fun of my PSN friends when credit card information was stolen from PSN and leaked onto the internet, or when PSN spent (I think it was) 3 weeks down with no online. It might not have been 3 weeks but it was definitely more
than a week.

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That is why I don't switch and that is why I am perfectly fine with needing to pay gold.

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Oh yes, nintendo... I don't really pay attention to them all that much and let's face it, the Wii U hasn't been doing all that well and is falling far behind the Xbox One and PS4.

 

Ahh yes, I see we meet again, thread.

 

For Xbox ONE, paying for Live is absolutely stupid. There is nothing there except a few apps which you can access elsewhere free. There is nothing to justify that cost...

 

Chomsky: I would have to disagree with you. Back when the 360 first came out, it didn't have ANY apps nor did it have hardly any games and yet you paid for XBL then as well. If you don't think it's worth it to you, then don't bother with it.

Spartanpuff: you may not think PS doesn't charge for their online play, but they do. While online play for the PS3 is still free, it's not for the PS4. Furthermore. The "free" games you get for PS3's PSN+ sub are not yours to keep. Get rid of that PSN+
and all those games go away. The games for gold may not appeal to you, but they are at least yours to keep even if you decide to go silver in the future. Which in my opinion is way better than the "free" games you get from PSN+. Saying you have free games
from PSN+ is like saying you have 100,000 movies when in fact you have a Netflix subscription.

 

I feel your frustration but PS4 owners do need to pay for playing their games online like XB but the value is greatly on Sony's side. Since the November launch PS4 owners have gotten Resogun (one of the top PS4 games), Outlast (a PC Port) and last week Dead
Nation (a PS3 port) for free. Any one of these games would be a value at $15. From XB1 what we get? I don't know but I'll put Resogun up against that Spartan game any day. The mobile revolution has conditioned most people to want instant gratification of
thru free content. Consoles do'nt work that way but the least one can expect is to get value from what you pay. I fully expect to see massive changes in the way Games for Gold works as more and more success falls into Sony's lap.

 

SparkStormer: You are correct that the free games on PSN come with the cavat that if you drop your membership, you lose access to those games. As a retro-gamer I enjoy playing older games from time to time. However most people now just play it and move
on in a short time. So the fact the game is "free" while a member is not a bad thing unless you haven't finished a game and it lapses.

 

Also for people who want a little more info regarding games for gold need to read this article. Some goood reading: www.totalxbox.com/.../microsoft-explores-the-constraints-of-the-free-xbox-games-with-gold-scheme

 

I think that I shouldn't have to pay to play MY games. If that is too hard to understand then don't waste my time by replying. I DON'T want your free games, Microsoft! I don't want your apps! I don't want your Deals! I want to PLAY MY GAMES that I PAID FOR
with MY FRIENDS without having to pay you!

 

But you do have to pay to play , end of.

 

We all have to make sacrifices in this world, Spartanpuff. By your Gold account, I'm going to assume you have no heat in the apartment? Month-long diet of Ramen? The world isn't fair, but at least for the month you have Gold status.

 

Here here. I agree. Xbox live is a complete and utter joke of a paywall system. I mean really, Netflix not being included in the silver account despite the fact you'll already be paying for it..?

Xbox live gold is just a lot of tat and rubbish tied in to make the gold account look attractive.

"SparkStormer: You are correct that the free games on PSN come with the cavat that if you drop your membership, you lose access to those games."



Yet the games they sell are usually worth far more than the subscription cost, and are easily gotten back if you revert from PSN + to the "normal" PSN.

"