Next Xbox - No Disc Drive?

[Proton]

This came to mind:
Kinect
No backwards compatibility

When did that need a disc drive?
Granted, the games on disc wouldn't do much, but it'd be the same as every other game on the console.

That,
and peripherals aren't entirely known for being continued into another generation.
It wouldn't be any different from an eye toy or zapper.

[NICKtendo DS]

This came to mind:
Kinect
No backwards compatibility

When did that need a disc drive?
Granted, the games on disc wouldn't do much, but it'd be the same as every other game on the console.

That,
and peripherals aren't entirely known for being continued into another generation.
It wouldn't be any different from an eye toy or zapper.

I really see it more of a SEGA CD/32X kind of thing, which didn't make it into the following generation, I must admit.
But the lack of backwards compatibility alarms me when we're talking about the 21st century. I always thought of it as a bonus: You have the console, but no games. Luckily, you have previous gen games you can use. If you didn't have a previous gen console of the same series, there may be 1 or 2 games from said gen that you might want to play on the next gen console. Guess I can't play them, so why bother buy them?
Even if they have an online market for downloadable versions of the games, I have little hope for every single game being available.

What was compatible with the Gamecube is almost always compatible with the first released model of the Wii (GBP being one of the few exceptions), and the Wii-U will be backwards compatible aswell (correct me if I'm wrong).

Speaking of which, while Nintendo intends to revolutionize the market by adding more ways to play games, what's so special about not having a disc drive? It sounds like a home-console version of a PSP-Go to me, really.

[Kriven]

Wii-U cannot play GCN games and is only compatible with Wii games.

[NICKtendo DS]

Wii-U cannot play GCN games and is only compatible with Wii games.

I know. Still makes it backwards compatible, though.

[Dazz]

Microsoft are known for being shit with backward compatibility, granted. You can only play a select few xbox games, and those require downloads to run...

[Lilly]

You can actually run the original discs of those few games on the 360, but the ones that are compatible with whatever emulator the firmware was packaged with are few and far between. At least I can play Halo 2 on a 360 without buying it again digitally, but still...

If they're moving towards an SD-based media solution for installation disks, I'd be all for it personally. "Hardcore gamers" are so tortuous to their consoles that the lasers in their disc drives always die well before their time, from the PSX to the PS3. (I see "dead" Playstations and Dreamcasts at thrift stores all the time, when all they really need is a new laser.) To add even further insult to injury, most of them just throw their prized system away like trash and buy a new one instead of ordering a new drive. Maybe I'm just being frugal here, but seriously, where's the logic in that? D': This would be a godsend to a console's lifetime and guarantee that the system's ability to read our media will be the least of our problems in the years to come.

If not, it's a stupid move forcing everyone, even people who don't have a internet connection/wireless router, or at least a decent one, to download them all from an online store. Hell if I ever pay $60 for a game that I obviously can't refund if I don't like it.

Gamestop's bad enough for just compensating you with store credit instead of cold-hard cash, and not having a physical copy would be even more insulting, expecting us to paying full-retail for something we can't even put on our shelves. If all the hate about these rumors keep building up, something tells me they'll shove a disc drive in the darned thing anyway, or at least in a more expensive, "elite edition", while providing a cheaper bundle without it at all.

[DioShiba]

How do they expect to even succeed with this thing if there is not going to be a disc drive at all?

Yeah, what the fuck are they thinking.

Making your media distributed digitally would never succeed.


I mean, no one could ever even find an example of that succeeding once.

Like any other type of media would ever do this.
Unthinkable

Yes, because apparently completely relying on a digital service is a perfect idea.

After all, it's not like buying a used game is exactly like piracy. Or is it going to even remotely affect the sales of one console. Hell, even limiting your games by how many hard drives you own is a good idea.

No, the reason why I'm saying this is stupid is because complete digital distribution is going to do more harm than it would do good. Did you even read the article or original post for this?

[Dazz]

The main concern is a sort of monopoly of distribution - While Steam is a complete digital marketplace, they aren't running a monopoly on the games that they sell - it's just another place to get the products.

If Microsoft are the only company to sell Xbox games, then where is the competition in prices? It's of course their decision, but the point I'm making is that ultimately it's going to cause issues for them. The number of games going for £30 on Steam that you can buy for £10 if you actually buy the disc for it, it's just stupid.
Dead Rising 2 is £19.99 on Steam, £10 on Amazon. Why would you buy it on Steam for twice as much as a copy that you get more product for? Immediate access, sure, but ultimately I'll go with waiting 2 days.

While Microsoft already have XBLA games as a sort of monopoly, they are small value games that remain the same price - nobody is going to buy a game like Fifa 10 for £30 when Fifa 12 is also £30. They can reduce the price, but you'll never see Microsoft selling a game on their system for the £2 you can buy Fifa 10 for in a store.
It ultimately brings worse value to the consumer.

[puggsoy]

Dead Rising 2 is £19.99 on Steam, £10 on Amazon. Why would you buy it on Steam for twice as much as a copy that you get more product for? Immediate access, sure, but ultimately I'll go with waiting 2 days.

Personally I can see a few reason why people would get it on Steam rather than a CD. You can download your games on any PC, direct access (as you said), no need to protect your CD/DVD from breaking, and if your CD/DVD drive stuffs up (like mine is) then you're also OK. I also think that DRM is nonexistent. Not to mention achievements, which add replayability.

Maybe all these points aren't good enough to pay and extra £10, but they are some valid reasons, and some people would pay more for them. I'm just saying that it's not completely illogical.

[Butler]

I personally get most of my games second hand, and have no downloaded commercial games on my computer because my broadband will get stuffed if a try. I connected my wii to the internet to watch Nintendo TV. It crashed and i had to quit to the main menu. I like having a physical copy of games too, so that i actually own the software, instead of a license to access the software. And what happens if your hardrive gets hit by a virus or loses its memory? you've lost all your money.

a bit off topic here but, why would you want to get the new xbox. Graphics can't get much better, third party support will carry on for ages and the games bewing released for the 360 will just get better as studios are extremely familiar with the hardware and have a secure market, except for in Japan. This applies to PS4 too.

[Kriven]

And what happens if your hardrive gets hit by a virus or loses its memory?

This is where the XBL service is superior to WiiWare. Unlike Nintendo, which registers the software license to your specific console, the Microsoft service register that license with your personal user account, so as long as you can access that account, you can redownload any software you've purchased without having to fork over more money.

[Proton]

How do they expect to even succeed with this thing if there is not going to be a disc drive at all?

Yeah, what the fuck are they thinking.

Making your media distributed digitally would never succeed.


I mean, no one could ever even find an example of that succeeding once.

Like any other type of media would ever do this.
Unthinkable

Yes, because apparently completely relying on a digital service is a perfect idea.

After all, it's not like buying a used game is exactly like piracy. Or is it going to even remotely affect the sales of one console. Hell, even limiting your games by how many hard drives you own is a good idea.

No, the reason why I'm saying this is stupid is because complete digital distribution is going to do more harm than it would do good. Did you even read the article or original post for this?

Believe me, if I didn't read the thing,
I'd probably have the same overreacting opinion you have about a viable form of distribution that has only worked for every single media distribution service out there.



And it's no surprise that it's time discs take a fucking hike.
They were never as reliable as cartridges were.



Maybe read it again.

Like this part of the article:

Although the console will not include a disc drive, it will offer compatibility with some sort of interchangeable solid-state card storage, although it is not known whether this will be proprietary or a more standard format such as SD.

The whole,

this would be like the PSP Vita, which actually has a great idea of choice between digital and physical?

[Maxpphire]

Except with the psp vita that you only get one choice over what you get. I think if you own a game that you should be able to access it both physically and digitally, particularly if both are being handled by the same company, like with the vita.

[Rosencrantz]

Microsoft are known for being shit with backward compatibility, granted. You can only play a select few xbox games, and those require downloads to run...

This was the biggest "fuck you" Microsoft did to me when I first got my 360. I got it expecting to be able to play all my old games on LIVE with my buddies. Too bad, we were all on the Battlefield 2 phase, and guess what? X-Box BF2 did not work on the 360, as there was a separate BF2 release just for the 360 that didn't come out for another few months. That was outright dickish of them.

[Vipershark]

and peripherals aren't entirely known for being continued into another generation.
It wouldn't be any different from an eye toy or zapper.

I don't know if anyone replied to this already but i'm pretty sure it's been confirmed that the new xbox is shipping with a kinect as a standard part of the console
As in, in the box when you buy the xbox