Zero use of the One?
Microsoft’s next-generation console is called Xbox One, and is aimed at being the centre of your living room.
It supports live television, Skype video calling and a full suit of voice commands and gestures thanks a to an improved Kinect.
Following these major announcements, questions were asked and certain rumours started spreading. We take a look at what it means for Indian audiences.
Hulu, Netflix and voice commands are just a few examples of the services available on the Xbox 360 we don’t have access to. With Microsoft confirming that Live TV will first launch in the US, there is little evidence to suggest that it’ll be coming to India anytime soon.
On the subject of always-online, as it stands, Xbox One will require you to sign-in to Xbox Live once every 24 hours. Although internet services have tremendously improved in the past couple of years, there are many people who don’t have access to a constant internet connection. Also, after the conference ended, many questions were asked on the issue of used games. Microsoft has not confirmed or denied anything, but they gave us a general idea. Xbox One will not actually block used games, but all games will require mandatory installs and will be locked to your console. If you want to sell or lend your game, the buyer needs to pay an additional fee to play it. Games are expensive and you average person cannot afford to buy new games every month; and this scenario is especially true for Indian audiences. Even though the used games market isn’t that prominent in India, a majority of people rely on lending or borrowing games. However, going down this road will definitely increase sales as pirating next-generation games will become more and more difficult.
Some of these announcements aren’t surprising, as publishers and developers are losing money due to piracy and the extensive used games market. At the same time, charging players every time they play a second hand game is not a good idea. Hopefully we’ll get more answers at E3.
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