I Bought Your Game, Let me Play it!

Negative Gamer writes:

Microsoft's money-grabbing antics are starting to irk me and have prompted this rant. It's gotten to the point where I'm expected to pay through the teeth just to be able to play the game to its fullest extent.

[qface64]

i agree with you man
i mean personally im not a fan of the halo series at all its boring at least story wise anyways my friend convinced me to buy it and its real fun to play online

i just hate the fact that i have to buy some of the DLC just to play some of the better game modes online
not being able to play everything i get bored of it kinda fast since i end up playing the same bomb arming thing all the time

[sunil]

You have paid for the game and its online components. You get to play the game and its online components (not all but atleast some).

Expansions are being charged. I dont see the problem here :)

[HarukoHex]

Umm >.> seeing how you it would be unfair to the people who actually paid. Cod does that. WoW does it as well. everygame does it now that I think of it. if it has DLC its usually required to play certain game modes. I wonder why. IDK maybe because its something that adds to the game.

*below*

IDK the fact I don't have to use skype to comunicate withsome one, the fact that (on a personal level) I have less lag on my live then i do on PSN, The fact its just so much easier to talk with and communicate with people to make friends as well. to hold custom partys because you can go to your recent players list and just invite people. there are loads of reasons why, the only reason you don't know and insult it is because you don't have a live account. get one actually try it and you will see why so many people pay that bit of money every month.

its the same reason why would someone pay for cable when they get channels threw the air. BECAUSE ITS BETTER.

[Chubear]

It's just crazy how anyone supports MS. I just don't get it.

So PS3 gamer gets CoD4: Can play SP and MP online all year round and paid $60 for game.

360 gamer gets CoD4 but has silver service: Still pays the same 60bucks but can only have access to half of the game. To get all game he/she paid for, an additional 50bucks has to be charged (more if they like the game to play it for years)

... WHY DO YOU SUPPORT THIS?! No, I'm serious here. I'd really like to understand the rational behind having a 360 as your primary gaming entertainment console and having silver service.

[Blaze929]

Why is Microsoft the one at question here? Activision does this, hell EA has been doing this for YEARS when they deactivate servers for online games.

[AhemZasan]

Let me lay it out for you from my perspective.

I enjoy video games and I'm willing to pay for whatever experience I wish to enjoy. If the PSN weren't free I'd pay for it too. If I had to pay $50 for every single game I play over XBL I'd probably be a little less inclined to support MS, but $50 a year is not the financial rape that so many people attempt to make it out to be. Good lord, look at WOW's monthly charges for example, and that's just for one single game. Oh yeah, I forgot, the PC is the greatest gaming system of all time so I shouldn't be making such statements. My bad.

It's pretty simple really, if I want it I buy it. I apologize if it irritates you, it's just how I am. That's why I'm willing to spend $60 on some games on day 1, while others would say I'm an idiot because they want to wait a few months for the price to drop.

Rather than hating on business models maybe you should just count your blessings and enjoy gaming the way you choose.

[danthaman15]

1. Because all my friends are on Xbox

2. All I do is ask for a 1-year supscription every christmas from my family. BAM, problem solved for me.

3. Say what you want about PS3 being better (I have one) but Xbox also has a lot of great features , just like PS3. $50, not the end of the world.

I don't support paying for it, but hell, I don't care so much that it changes my purchase. By purchasing it, we don't support it- we never said we did (well, the fanboys, but not all of us are fanboys, don't stereotype). But we're able to put up with it, because the Xbox is FUN. Saying it sucks is an opinion, nothing more. I have fun with it, that's all that matters to me. I love all 3 consoles, and no angry nerds typing in all caps in an internet forum will change that.

I know everyone is gonna just spam "Disagree", but hey, you asked, I gave my reason without being a fanboy.

[--joshua--]

you said you don't support paying for it, i guess because your family pays for it as a chrismas present. If they didn't, would you pay for it yourself? Those statements just seemed odd to me.
I agree $50 isn't the end of the world, it might hurt you at first but say 4 months down the road one wouldn't miss that $50 and then you would still have another 8 months to go. That's how I look at it anyway.

edit: just read your comment a little deeper, and just wanted to add that if I didn't support something, I just wouldn't buy it. Anything. You stated you don't support paying the fee, but you put up with it anyway, because it's FUN. And maybe also because there is no choice in the matter and you don't actually pay for it out of your own pocket. Well that's my view of it. I must respectfully disagree. No spamming involved ;)

[danthaman15]

I support what Xbox Live is, I don't support what you must do to access it= pay. But I respect your disagree. At least you're intelligent and don't rush to "Disagree" as soon as you see "Xbox" and "like" in the same sentence.

[--joshua--]

bubbles up

[wardrox]

I don't play that often, but it really sucks when I want to play some Halo, only to find half the fun game types have become unavailable because I don't want to pay even more.

[Trebius]

But I agree they're much more blatant and severe with the way they overcharge...

But to be honest they've been overcharging from the beginning with their crap peripherals...Hard drives, HDMI, battery chargers (wtf), online gaming, so on so forth...

No matter what though people out there will buy and continue to feed this dirty habit. Im one of the few that dont support DLC or hard drives that sell for 150 bucks when they should be just 50.

[Karum]

Genuine question here. why do you mention HDMI in your list? I mean I agree with the rest of it because I think MS are extortionate with some of their accessories but not sure what you're getting at with the inclusion of HDMI. Do they make their own branded cable that is also ridiculously priced?

[Golfcoachh]

like the ps3 one I saw at best buy for 100 bucks?
Edit: That was a sony brand PS3 cable, I would never do that I have all the hdmi I need, but it was a reference to the above statement about msoft charging too much for hdmi. Who would spend that much on a cable.

[Godmars290]

Is that a specific Sony brand HDMI cable that only works with the PS3, or is it a third party brand that works on anything that needs one?

If so, could I recommend monoprice.com? You can get cables for $5.

[nostalgic_noob]

The story is non existent.
Online sucks hard
Reused sounds from other games.
etc etc etc
Only sheep would buy that game.

[sack_boi]

So... you've played the game right; coz you seem to know a lot about it?

If not, then you're just as retarded as the people that hate on Killzone without even playing it.

[nostalgic_noob]

Infact I bought it at launch and I have the T-shirt,Key chain and Poster it came with to prove it. My Gamertag is Kavkazip check it out for yourself. well After i Beat the game i returned it because the online sucked. Why do i have to wait 30 minutes to join one match. The community for Halo sucks the gameplay is boring and there is nothing good or fun about it. Maybe my Standards are too high because I come from a backround of old school gaming.

[HarukoHex]

no wonder you hated halo, XD you sucked at it.
http://www.bungie.net/stats...
less the a 1.0 KD ratio. rofl.

as well you only beat the game on normal man, just because you suck at a game is no reason to hate it. XD how childish.

but heres what i don't get generic games as you say, are usually really easy because they play like other games.why do you think there generic. XD your just falling and falling. man like i said just because you suck at a game is no reason to hate it. XD as well if your loosing to some kids you really suck, ive yet to run into a kid whos even slightly good at halo.

[nostalgic_noob]

Halos Main Game sucked ass so there was no point in going back to play again.

Second the online was sh1ttastic, you got little kids screaming at you from left to right and the gameplay is so generic and boring that you have no motivation in becoming an expert at it. I really wanted to like that game but it failed on every level possible.

[AhemZasan]

Oh my bad, I was too busy being a sheep and actually playing a game to have fun. Were you saying something about a game that you hate on a system that you hate? Maybe something with absolutely zero objectivity? Yeah, I thought so. Now please share some more irrelevant banter in the form of fan-douchery and haterocity.

[AhemZasan]

"Only sheep would buy that game."

"Infact I bought it at launch"

[nostalgic_noob]

I had a Xbox 360 before the PS3, But after my system RRODd on me twice and Microsoft Customer Support was telling me its my fault cause I played Gears of war for 4 hours straight I had enough. I sold my Xbox they sent me and bought A PS3 and I never looked back. The PS3 made me see how bad the 360 really is. Halo is the worst game this Generation and anyone who thinks its remotly good needs to be banned from Gaming cause its those Xbots that are Killing gaming.

[AhemZasan]

You have just proven your objectivity beyond any shadow of a doubt. My apologies for believing in a world where every console has it's purpose. I will now bow before the altar of fanboyism and choose one specific console as the creator of all fun.

[mrv321]

And on top of that you have to pay for live. It's like with Battlefield 1943 it has it's own servers (EA ones) yet your gold free goes to Microsoft.

6 out of 15 is pretty limited I must say but then again people buy it I won't I'll guess I'll have to suffer playing Resistance 2, Battlefield Bad Company and Burnout Paradise... what a shame.

[ZEEBO4LIFESTFU]

Microsoft is the only company who does this , oh that's right,it's n4g that thinks that.

[mrv321]

Last I checked Microsoft are the only console makers to charge for online.

[Mwaan]

They need to have some kind of an incentive for people to buy the map packs. If they don't sell they'll quit doing them. If you're going to spend a significant amount of time online then they're well worth the money.

[STK026]

true, but CoD:WaW does it in such a fashion that it's downright cheap and frustrating.

I rented the game a few weeks ago, not a big fan of WWII shooters, but I loved CoD4, so I thought, let's give it a try. So yeah, when I rent or borrow games, I obviously don't go aroung buying map packs for it. So I go online, notice that there's a playlist for those with a map pack, so I think to myself, that the other ones are for those without. Oh how wrong was I.

Out of like 30 games I did, I was kicked out like 10 times due to not having a map pack. When trying to join a game with quick match, I was sometimes kicked out for not having the map. I can understand me being kicked after a game because I don't own the next map, but can't the matchmaking system not make me join games I can't play.

[ZombieNinjaPanda]

Ya know..referring to the title, I say that about Cod4 every day. I paid 60 dollars for it, yet Infinity Ward Won't let me play online.

Off topic I know:

Back On topic:

Aren't all the map packs basically free now except for the newest one? I do agree thought that they shouldn't make the game modes require DLC to play.

[Kushan]

Why are Microsoft the ones being called out on this? Sony are just as bad, but really it's the publishers that are to blame.

[sack_boi]

at least PSN is free, so you can't really complain.

[SevWolf]

I'm not defending, but I'm curious, I bet sony does do this, but with what games, I've been playing KZ 2 online, which is a blast, for a while now and even though two maps and DLC are out, and a third is coming, I was still playing regularly despite the fact that I dont own either one..yet, I would appreciate a reply from someone discussing this, and when I say someone I don't mean you sackboi you're the last one I want to discuss anything with *ducks behind cover before getting disagrees for sackboi's multiple accounts*
EDIT: when you say we have to blame the publishers, you're talking about multiplatform games, right?? Like COD and such, cause I thought we were talking about first party exclusives

[Kushan]

sack_boi: Completely different matter, try reading the article for once.

[KillerPwned]

I agree with you sev im not gonna get really into it but Killzone 2 works well with people like you and me that dont have the newer maps. Every company does it when it comes to FPS especially. I will say tho their have been alot of facts show that microsoft does charge alittle to much for things. If your already paying 49.99 a yr you shouldnt have to pay for things that developers want to release for free tho its not their fault then its microsofts.

Im not bashing on microsoft i got more respect then that. This is just something we gotta get used to now its how the gaming industry has gone and theirs nothing we can do about it. Just put urself in their shoes these days even DLC isent cheap to make. You would do the same thing.

I would of expected tho by now for microsoft to at least drop the live price to at least 40 or 30 a yr. Alot of people that dont got Gold i bet would love to have it but just dont have the money at the moment.

We have bills and other stuff we gotta worry about first. I think the least some of these companies can do is at least put their selves in are shoes also. So they can see the side of some of those people that strugle with money but would love to have things like live.

Personally i see items in the PSN priced alright tho their are some things i dont agree with. Also the Home stuff is just dumb the fact you gotta pay $5 to own a new place for ur dude to live. Or to be able to create a club which its not like you can do anything major.

Im with all consoles at all times i stick with no ones side.

[HarukoHex]

SevWolf

its because the game is still new. just like when halo first came out the first map pack really didn't bother other players. but now there are what 10 additional maps. so Im betting at about the 6-8 new maps on killzone 2 they will start cutting players who don't have them out. why because the people who already played should not be limited to old maps all the time. this way the people who payed for there map can actually get the chance to play them. while telling the old people who haven't paid "hey get them there fun and worth it." not to mention how much it will add to your game. i mean if you can't afford 10$ for a expansion your less then 18 years old and really shouldn't even bother with the game. XD there ya go.

*edit right above me, you lost it when you said you have bills to pay. don't buy the extra expensive coffee put the 86 octane in your gas tank, don't eat at mcdonalds for 1 day. thats your xbox live payment for a month. real simple using bills as a excuse for that is pathetic. I have a 300 dollar a month car payment and a 200 dollar a month insurance payment plus the fact I have to spend 30 dollars every 2 days on gas because of my job. yet I don't complain about XBL being to expensive. thats just sad*

*below*
yes they do, do they not charge you to get a chair in home, for some clothes for you character, do you not have to pay for DLC and most of the Time your can't play certain things because of that DLC. like COD 4, CoD5, do you think just because you dont have the maps your okay no, if CoD5 you get kicked from the room if you dont have the map its on a sony system so its the same thing. you may not have to pay for PSN but everything is the same there you have to pay for DLC or you don't get to play.

[Chubear]

Sorry but Sony doesn't do ANYWHERE NEAR the same thing. If you have an example pls state it.

Sony lets you play 100% of the game you purchased. If you feel you want more of the game then there's an option for DLC. If you don't and what you bought with the game is good enough for you then you're all good.

[KillerPwned]

Someone had a rough childhood lol have fun argueing with people got nothing better to do. Thanks tho you made me chuckle

[Godmars290]

But if you don't have the packs, the worst that happens is that you can't play those maps. There's nothing stopping you from playing game modes.

@HarukoHex:
Sony is responsible for the COD series? If you buy DLC in HOME, other people who haven't bought it can't see it?

[SevWolf]

@ Godmars: yh I still play Warhawk with no DLC and it's still FUN AS HELL..lol
also that COD problem has nothing to do with Sony, its all Activision, man I hate that publisher, no not because they sell peripherals like it's the Christ second coming, and no not because they "threatened" Sony, I hate them because they're causing problems for one of my most anticipated games, BRUTAL LEGEND, I mean seriously what a bunch of dumbsh1ts

[HarukoHex]

hey if MS is responsible like you guys say so is sony. its thats simple you can't complain about one game and leave all the others out, thats just being a fanboy. =^.^=

[SevWolf]

@ Haruko: you're right when you complain about one and forget the others that's fanboyism, BUT we're talkin about publishers here, Activision published COD: DLC problem, Sony published KZ2 and Warhawk: No DLC problem, Microsoft published Halo: DLC problem( not that it's a bad game), get my point

[wardrox]

... because this article is about Halo, as that's what the author was playing recently that inspired it. Are you saying every article should mention every other offender?You're welcome to write one about a PS3 game :)

[Godmars290]

Wait,

You have to have an actual honest reason to write one of those?

[The Obvious]

Oftentimes, some games cost money.

[Toenado]

They should have a one time fee to get access to any future dlc of the game you buy.

[wardrox]

so you're saying it's totally fine for a game to cost $60, and to keep playing the things you used to play, an additional $20 every so often is fine? You have too much money my friend.

[Socomer 1979]

that was my first clue.
with the ps2, i remember paying $1.00 to play socom online.
it was a 1 time fee and it bothered me a bit but it was just 1 dollar and i figured i was helping the devs maintain thier servers.

then i bought a xbox360 when g.r.a.w. came out. I was excited to find out what xbox live was all about and it was awesome until map packs and the video store came out. I got so tired of figuring out the conversion of real money with MS points that i started to ignore it.
Then i got my bank statement. Not only does microsoft make nickels and dimes of your purchases online but they charge you for the privaledge too monthly. I was upset when i saw a chris brown video for 80 MS points. a music video!

They need to lower the prices of dvd games to $30 if the dlc for a complete game adds up to $30 more dollars anyways and with the bluray they should have it complete with all the dlc included on the disc for $60 dollars.

Only in a perfect world?

[Chubear]

.. you paid a dollar for SOCOM online last gen?... why? I've never heard about that at all. Nobody I know paided anything for online last gen unless you're talking about buying the HDD adapter or something.

Pls. explain cause I've never heard of that.

[KillerPwned]

I hope microsoft comes out with something like the PSN has i hate the point system.

[DevastationEve]

DLC is usually priced like it should be. There's a lot of premium content out there and pricing CAN vary, but there's also free stuff too! 2 of Halo 3's map packs are free, there's one map pack for each Gears game that's free, and one for Lost Planet as well.

It's true that having to buy this content increases the cost of the game. But you can't say it's not fair. You DID buy the game, and what you bought was on that disc. As far as the consumer should be concerned it was a square deal. If people believe that DVD 9 means that you're not really buying the whole game since they can't fit all of the game content like bluray can that's not true at all. If it irks you that you still have to buy DLC just to get the full experience then don't buy it.

I love how they pin it on Microsoft, all they did was provide the service and maintain the servers. In fact Microsoft doesn't charge you for things like service packs, hot fixes, updates, etc for Windows or Xbox Live and they've even got services and programs that you can download for free. Windows Live Essentials is offered free to download for Windows users. Xbox Live is offered free to Silver members, and you can view and download community and videogame events and news as well as game demos and DLC. There's actually quite a lot of free stuff on Xbox Live, you just have to not be so jealous of your paying friends :P

But I'll say it once again: you can't eat on free. Videogames are a business. Staff and management have wages to be paid, bills have to be paid, r&d needs money. By selling these little packages of content they have a way of extending the life of the game and making some extra change too, yet DLC will continue to be only mildly profitable at best.

[DJ]

Except for the fact that Microsoft gets a cut of all DLC sold on Xbox Live, and developers like Epic Games have openly complained that Microsoft has forced them to either raise the price of DLC, or put a price on DLC that was supposed to be free.

[DevastationEve]

Well that's theirs to do I guess, aren't they the host? You forget to mention that Sony charges for DLC as well, and how about Nintendo. They each own the console that their repective DLC would apply to so of course they'd like to make something extra if they could.

But here's some important notes for you:

DLC isn't where either Microsoft or anyone else makes their money. Even if Microsoft gets a cut off of the DLC sales it's still a very negligible drop in the bucket, even for the higher rated content. Only whole Xbox Live Arcade games actually make enough to be considered profitable.

Developers still offer lots of free content despite that little extra they could be earning if they charged you for it. But they'll eventually deem certain content to be premium and will charge for it accordingly. As long as you see that premium or not that all of this content is STILL optional...you shouldn't feel that you're entitled to it or being ripped off by it.

And sure, some developers are ridiculous with how they categorize content as being "premium" (like BlazBlue's color packs for its characters...WTF???). DLC generally falls into being either extra maps, weapons, costumes, vehicles, accessories, rare items, etc. However there are some games where ALL of that can be unlocked through achievements and just finishing the game! Soul Caliber IV is a great example of that.

And there are some games that are so big that you really don't need DLC to expand it at that point, like Grand Theft Auto IV.

[keysy420]

but i never thought i would hear a xbot complain about prices with 360 they are they most expensive system you know

[nostalgic_noob]

80 dollars for Xbox live
100 Dollars for a Harddrive
100 dollars for Wifi
100 dollars a year for batteries
70 dollars for a wired controller
10 dollars for a towel
400 dollars for the Hydro ( to wet the Towel)
3000 for a Bomb Disposal suit you will need to use in order to turn on the Xbox
ETC ETC ETC

[tha_meat_beater]

reminds me of the "Cowboy Butt $ex" song by Peter Griffin

"havin butt $ex, botboy butt $ex ....."

[sack_boi]

Actually, XBL is $150. And the only way you can get a controller is if you buy 3 Elite X360s, the third one come with a wired controller.

[terrandragon]

"80 dollars for Xbox Live"

say wut.

[IcyJoker187]

add $400 when you realize the huge mistake you made and buy the ps3

[HarukoHex]

199 for my system 140 for my HD plus transfer cable, and headset.
15 bucks for recharge cable and battery.

>.> so thats what like 355, plus XBL....so in the end I've spent less then a ps3 on my 360 and yet i still have more fun. ROFL.

[AhemZasan]

Priceless.

Edit: @noob below

I'll give you points for originality.

[nostalgic_noob]

Riding the D1cks of Microsoft and ruining gaming as we know it.
Priceless

http://img.photobucket.com/...

[joepenn18]

*Nostalgic Noob*
"80 dollars for Xbox live
100 Dollars for a Harddrive
100 dollars for Wifi
100 dollars a year for batteries
70 dollars for a wired controller
10 dollars for a towel
400 dollars for the Hydro ( to wet the Towel)
3000 for a Bomb Disposal suit you will need to use in order to turn on the Xbox
ETC ETC ETC"

I'll go ahead and fix this for you...
200 dollars for Console
50 dollars for Xbox live
100 Dollars for a Harddrive
100 dollars for Wifi
50 dollars a year for batteries
30 dollars for a wired controller(assuming you meant wireless, 40)
Ha Ha
Real Funny
Stupid Tool
ETC ETC ETC

Now for PS3

450 dollars for console
30 dollars for wired controller
50 dollars for batteries
50 dollars for buttplugs
50 dollars for dildos
50 dollars for ass cream
50 dollars for lube

[ArcticWolfUK]

ouch

that cod thing would seriously p!ss me off

[Socomer 1979]

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

10 reasons.

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

[sack_boi]

Why are you spending so much time on a game that sucks? Is it because you like sucking?

[RockmanII7]

Don't like it, don't play it. I admit I suck at Halo and It's still my favorite game because of custom games.

[Plague-Doctor27]

I was just thinking about this the other day. I popped Halo 3 in and was like "oh yeah, I can't play slayers anymore." I don't mind map packs and such, as they are usually worth it to the people who want them, but the fact that playlists are disabled for people who don't buy them is ridiculous.

And how did Sony get in this conversation? They don't do any of this stuff.

[DevastationEve]

Well it would make sense that you wouldn't be able to play in a mtach where all the other players have the expansion that you don't.

Speaking of which, just how many The Sims expansions were released back then ;) Oh and Everquest (wasn't that made by Sony...)! Oh and just about everything that has been released on PC!

Nobody complains about all that?

Expansions existed long before DLC, and it was just as strict and exclusive. At least on Xbox Live you don't need the entire selection of DLC just to play the game. To put in perspective let's just say that x number of DLC collectively adds up to being one WHOLE expansion. But with PC game expansion packs you didn't have a choice, you're getting that one mismatched pink striped outfit whether you like it or not!

[Scolar Visari]

"Ya it is
80 dollars for Xbox live
100 Dollars for a Harddrive
100 dollars for Wifi
100 dollars a year for batteries
70 dollars for a wired controller
10 dollars for a towel
400 dollars for the Hydro ( to wet the Towel)
3000 for a Bomb Disposal suit you will need to use in order to turn on the Xbox
ETC ETC ETC"

This is incredible. You make it seem that you have to purchase all of this stuff. Besides, why would you have to buy a new towel? Doesn't everyone already have those?