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I'm a dissenter. A non-conformist, if you will. When I'm passionate
about something you're not going to hear the end of it until shit gets
done to my satisfaction. If you give me the right and reason to argue
about something, know that I will oblige to do so. Among my favorite
debates as far as gaming goes concerns Xbox Live. To me the fifty
smackolas a year has been a rip-off for features as inexpensive and
basic as what Microsoft has offered. There was no service that
Microsoft provided that required $50 from the average consumer in my
mind, and they only have charged us because they had enough lackeys
(myself included) willing to pay.
That was until yesterday.
You've heard the news by now: Xbox Live is getting a make over come
Fall. Netflix support is integrated into the dashboard, giving Netflix
subscribers access to over 10,000 movies and TV shows that can be
streamed instantly. You and your buddies will be able to stay together
with Live Parties, a feature which lets you and a group of people move
from game-to-game and chat among one another with ease. Xbox Live
Primetime, the modern equivalent of the family board game as our own
Beau King put it so eloquently. You can now compete with others for
achievements and real prizes in virtual game shows. Did I mention that
you can play Primetime games and share your Netflix content with your
party?
Then, of course, there's the much talked about inclusion of Avatars.
Like everyone else, at first I was unimpressed and taken aback by how
blatantly and shamelessly Microsoft had ripped Nintendo's Mii concept.
The longer it's marinated in my mind though, the more I'm beginning to
like the idea. The one issue I have with Miis is that there isn't
enough customization. Once you craft your splitting image there's not
much to do with or add to it to convey your style. The demo of Avatars
shown at the press conference gives me the impression that developer
Rare's sole purpose was to improve on the Nintendo formula. Now that I
think about it, it's really not a bad idea, and it appears they have
outdone the big N.
I hated paying for Xbox Live because I felt I was being forced to do
so. The fact that I was paying an annual fee just so I could access the
multiplayer portion of games I had already purchased frustrated me. My
critics ( A group so numerous it still baffles me. I can't believe how
many people enjoy spending money these day.) would tell me that $50 a
year isn't a lot, then proceeding to break down the monthly cost.
Still, free is a lot less (like the competitors offer), and most
peopley pay that 50 bucks all at once anyway. Breaking it down is as
meaningless as calculating the cost of watching of a movie per minute
in the theater.
This was the old Xbox Live. The new Xbox Live has me excited as I can
finally pay for the service without feeling annually raped. Now it's
the opposite, really. I'm now getting bang for my buck. Instead of
paying for features that should have been free in the first place like
friends lists (Hello there Steam.), online multiplayer (How's it going
PS3?), and a video store (What's poppin' iTunes?), I'm now paying a
premium for great, premium service: Netflix sharing, Live Parties,
Primetime, and Avatars. You've done me right MS.
All is not perfect. I still feel that as a consumer it's weird that I
have to pay for DLC and the video store content, but I'm slowly getting
around. I liken Xbox Live to Costco. While you could go to Wal-Mart and
pay nothing to enter the store, Costco offers enough advantages to
justify that membership. Same goes for Xbox LIVE; it's now worth it. So
you got me Microsoft. As much as I love letting my thoughts and
complaints be known, what pleases me even more is someone solving that
issue and making me shut the hell up, and you did. This is the last
you'll ever hear Jaleel Boone complain about the pricing for Xbox Live.
Source: xboxfocus.com
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