| Big News Network.com Thursday 20th June, 2013  NEW YORK - Microsoft has retracted two controversial policies for the Xbox One video game console. The console will no longer need to connect to the internet once every 24 hours and gamers will now be allowed to share, resell and lend their games freely. The news came from a blog post on the Xbox One's official website signed by Don Mattrick, the President of Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft. "Since unveiling our plans for Xbox One, my team and I have heard directly from many of you, read your comments and listened to your feedback, " said Mattrick. "I would like to take the opportunity today to thank you for your assistance in helping us to reshape the future of Xbox One. " "So, today I am announcing the following changes to Xbox One and how you can play, share, lend, and resell your games exactly as you do today on Xbox 360. Here is what that means: "An internet connection will not be required to play offline Xbox One games After a one-time system set-up with a new Xbox One, you can play any disc based game without ever connecting online again. There is no 24 hour connection requirement and you can take your Xbox One anywhere you want and play your games, just like on Xbox 360. "Trade-in, lend, resell, gift, and rent disc based games just like you do today There will be no limitations to using and sharing games, it will work just as it does today on Xbox 360. "In addition to buying a disc from a retailer, you can also download games from Xbox Live on day of release. If you choose to download your games, you will be able to play them offline, just like you do today. Xbox One games will be playable on any Xbox One console without any regional restrictions. "These changes will impact some of the scenarios we previously announced for Xbox One. Sharing games will work as it does today; you will simply share the disc. Downloaded titles cannot be shared or resold. Playing disc-based games will require the disc to be in the tray. "We appreciate your passion, support and willingness to challenge the assumptions of digital licensing and connectivity. "While we believe that the majority of people will play games online and access the cloud for both games and entertainment, we will give consumers the choice of both physical and digital content. "We have listened and we have heard loud and clear from your feedback that you want the best of both worlds," he wrote on the blog post. The announcement of the changes surprised many, with PCWorld describing the reaction on the internet as "largely euphoric", with the Facebook message announcing the changes gaining over 75,000 likes in three hours. Criticism against the Xbox One for its original restrictions on game sharing and its need to connect to the internet came not only from the public and the press, but also from Microsoft's rivals. The unveiling of the PS4 by Sony at E3 even included a 22-second spoof video entitled "Official PlayStation Used Games Instructional Video" showing two Sony employees simply handing a game from one to the other. However, the changes announced by Microsoft have also meant cutting some features from the new console. Speaking to Kotaku, Marc Whitten the vice president of Xbox Live stated that "There's a few things we won't be able to deliver as a result of this change. "One of the things we were very excited about was 'wherever we go my games are always with me.' Now, of course, your physical games won't show up that way. "The content you bought digitally will. But you'll have to bring your discs with you to have your games with you. Similarly, the sharing library [is something] we won't be able to deliver at launch."  via Technology - Google News http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&usg=AFQjCNHB4xiMNSL68KswEBteavGFwV08lA&url=http://www.bignewsnetwork.com/index.php/sid/215335122 | |||
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