onLIVE: it could rock your world

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risk
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onLIVE: it could rock your world

Post by risk »

http://www.gametrailers.com/player/47082.html

Im split on this...do we buy a game like in in the current point in time, or do we pay a monthly subscription that could cover base connection, and then add on games to that...

still, this could be a nail in the coffin for the PS3...its struggling as it is in terms of selling in the black (as it were), but if I am able to plug in this little unit and play crysis, no hassles, on my bravia, or on my laptop, or anywhere that has an internet connection greater then 5mb...

...but that could be the catch. Here in australia we do not have internet plans that cater for the sheer amount of download this thing may introduce. Speed is limited to less then 20mb/s (it gets much much worse, believe me) and for over 40gb download the prices skyrocket/month.

So, plug and play aside (that sounds awesome, to play brand new next-gen games on meagre hardware), for it to be a threat to the consoles it has to cost less to buy then a standard ps3, and less to maintain in terms of buying games/subscription. And since its reliant on the internet...demand could cause break downs or lagging...

But as the guy said, no-one has tried this before. The closest thing on a PC would be steam, where you can buy games outright and download a soft copy.

opinions?
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Re: onLIVE: it could rock your world

Post by Ekuryua »

While I admire some of the innovations they're talking about (spectating, brag clips, lagless cloud computing), I doubt this service will revolutionize the gaming industry. I'd rather spend the money to build a high-end gaming PC than pay a subscription fee for both OnLive and hyper-fast internet. It seems like the latter's cost would add up over time, like an MMO subscription does. Additionally, my fiber optic internet connection is taxed enough by bittorrent, VOIP and low-bandwidth games like Guild Wars and Battlefield. i doubt it could handle streaming HD video. I'm also afraid that this service will be another tool for greedy game companies like EA to impose their draconian DRM, like they did in the Spore fiasco. I prefer to own my games, not rent them from Big Brother. For these reasons, I don't think OnLive will be well received among established and hardcore gamers.

We should get our local gaming expert, Stilts, to weigh in on this. *pokes Stilts*
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Re: onLIVE: it could rock your world

Post by Stilts »

Hmm? It seems I've been summoned. Very well, then, here are my thoughts on the matter:

onLIVE seems to have an identity crisis. By giving gamers a "one-console future", it caters to the hardcore, who tend to buy multiple consoles (including a computer) so they can play all the games they want. On the other hand, it has inherent problems that those same hardcore gamers are going to care about. For example, you need a REALLY fast internet connection if you want to play games in HD; the hardcore are not going to be pleased if their only modestly fast connection prevents them from seeing Killzone 2 or Resident Evil 5 in all their glory. Also, there's the multiplayer lag. Since you're downloading from the "cloud", there's already risk of lag built into the system, so going into multiplayer would probably multiply those risks. I'm not really knowledgeable with servers, though, so maybe it wouldn't make much of a difference in this instance. Also, there are such things as bandwidth caps. If you're going to play the latest console RPG for two or three hours every day for a month ('cuz those things can be LONG), how much bandwidth is that going to use up? This is especially a problem if you are also prone to using torrents, as a sizable portion of hardcore gamers are.

So what about the casuals? They probably won't care too much about playing in just 480p, and they won't have to worry about choosing the "right" console. Okay, so it might be good for them, but consider the subscription fee. It's unspecified right now, but you can be sure that it will be AT LEAST $15 per month (my personal prediction is around $20 per month). So, you're paying at least $15 per month to play games that you don't own; this isn't a big problem for the hardcore, because they finish games quickly and move on to the next one. Casuals, though, tend to play just a handful of games for a few hours a week for the entire life of their console(s)--and play free browser games like Bejeweled and Peggle the rest of the time. They might actually spend MORE money than they usually do because of the fee.

Long story short: It's a really cool idea, but it's a little too far ahead of its time and suffers from conflicting goals.
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risk
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Re: onLIVE: it could rock your world

Post by risk »

It probably is another ploy by the companies to regain control of the market and reduce pirating to an extent. Steam, on the pc, introduces the appeal of gaming online against peers and competition but only if you have a legitamate copy. If the games sold on steam turn out to be as endearing as they have so far (HalfLife series, Left4dead, TeamFortress 2 etc) then hardcore gamers will have no qualms shelling out AU$80 for a game, because of the bonus of the online community. This type of anti piracy through marketing was probably aimed directly at people like me, who enjoy games and are intensely competitive to the point of bouncing on their computer chairs while killing zombies, shouting out slogans down a skype microphone to your fellow survivors...
However, with steam you still own either a hardcopy of a game, or the rights to one on your HDD. oneLIVE, like you guys mentioned, will focus on streaming games out. This removes the risk of losing game profits via the torrents. Now that I have time to think about it, I have decided I dont like this streaming idea, namely because I still go back and play games that I bought 6 or so years ago (fallout 2 springs to mind). Hardcopies are everything, they represent your investement, just like a dvd set or novel series. You could have them electronically on your computer, but that isnt the same is it?

and it did occur to me that steam is integral to my half life games, one day steam will not exist, and therefore I probably will not be able to play...but I will worry about that later. Right now I have to worry about left4dead chewing so much of my puny internet download allowance that there is a week left in march, and only 2gB of data left...
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Re: onLIVE: it could rock your world

Post by Ekuryua »

So, basically... this is one of those ideas that sounds really awesome at first; but the more you think about it, the worse it sounds?
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risk
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Re: onLIVE: it could rock your world

Post by risk »

exactly. ive gone cold on the idea. ill stick to PC's.
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