You're probably correct on that, as Amazon is already saying they can't guarantee delivery date for the Standard but, as far as I know, have not made a similar statement about Launch?

Yeah, if anyone wants a PS4 I'd say buy one now as it could end up being a few months after release date if you don't :)

Oh and I had to laugh, Microsoft, along with all the other crap attached to the XBone, is now making purchasers sign an agreement saying they won't sue them in a class-action lawsuit (sure, CA lawsuits are a waste of time, but it's funny Microsoft is already planning for when they get sued :)

You're exactly right, however I also think there is a fair amount of them wanting to be always online and pushing it on the consumer either way. They just got rid of disc checks to help push that along, I suspect.

Yet another of many nails in the Xbox One coffin, namely that there are rumours (yes, rumours for the time being) that imports of games within the European Union are going to be banned on the basis of your Xbox One country. So basically, if there is any truth to this, there will be no more importing games from the UK into Germany.

This isn't entirely implausible. Steam pulls similar shit on a regular basis (Modern Warfare 2, Black Ops, Inversion, Saints Row 2, Saints Row: The Third), quoting fictitious legal concerns, and Microsoft already provided similar functionality with Games for Windows Live, which rendered Dead Rising 2: Off the Record unplayable in Germany. Not to mention that in the case of censored games, gamers will almost always go for the uncensored alternative with the censored version ending up in the bargain bin in no time at all.

A lot of people seem to be perplexed that Microsoft "can be this stupid", but I really don't think they're being that stupid. I think they have a pretty grand plan in the works here.

Used games ban: Not surprising that consumers are sharpening pitchforks over this, but I think their goal here is possibly to reduce the price of new games to the consumer while securing more of the profit for themselves. With an open used games market, you actually pay more upfront to reduce the risk publishers and developers face when people choose to buy second-hand games (leaving no profit for either). It would also help lessen the big retailers position in the market, so perhaps we don't need to have 5 different pre-order exclusives from five different joints anymore. Basically, more power to the consumer, publisher, and developer, in time. Additionally this scheme further supports all-digital distribution of games, which, hopefully, is the future. No, you don't NEED those plastic boxes in your living room, no matter how bad your collector syndrome is.

Always-on: I bet you can configure what to have turned on and not, such as the Kinect and internet connectivity. It will also be possible to turn the console entirely off, like off off. If they didn't, they couldn't have sold it in parts of EU (like Norway), that requires all electronic equipment to not have vampire loads. That would obviously power down the Kinect as well (so you can masturbate in peace). So it's not AS big of an issue as it's being made out to be. Just pull the plug when you want to like any other equipment.

Online requirement: Yeah this one is just dumb no matter which way you spin it. I can understand that they're doing an analysis around the fact that many people have relatively stable internet connections today, and even more people will have in the future. So, not that many consumers will be affected by a phone home mechanic as long as they have at least a flicker of internet every day, which most people admittedly do. They're riding the bet that this will be an issue that basically decreases over time (remember, they're planning for the next 10 years here) as technology and infrastructure advances. Added bonus for them is that it ties in heavily with their desire to reduce retailer power, and publishers really love them some dee errr emm. However, selling it solely as an online requirement pretty much makes the interweb twitterbook of today degenerate into a raging, seething anti-DRM, fuck Microsoft and fuck EA, mass.

TV stuff: They want to take over your living room. It should have a TV and a XbOne in it. That's it. I don't think they really expect to succeed but at least they're trying to get that ball rolling.

Seriously, Microsoft are the alien overlords of long-term business strategies. Think about the changes they made to Windows 10 years ago that everybody just expects today, but didn't like then, such as the complete severing from the underlying DOS environment.

So no, I don't think Microsoft are being exceptionally dumb. They could stand to hire a couple decent PR guys, though. The way they've sold this is atrocious.

Cue the downvotes!

i am speechless

Even EA at least let you play your games offline on Origin if you were "Banned"

ok ill take that if you make the console £50 and all games free for a week after release, and then every game is £5 to buy outright...
then its fine to impose that!

As bad as this system is turning out to be, the support person got it wrong here. They clarified later on that this was referring to the 360.

https://twitter.com/xboxsupport1/status/345775684045660160

Even then they aren't correct as you can still play offline if your account gets banned. It has been this way since from the start I think as I looked into it before buying a 360 and got that answer.

I'd hope for the Xbox One they would do the same, but we likely won't know for sure until the system is out and someone gets banned.

You do realise that your oh so precious GOG works the same way, right?

Are you talking about losing access to your games when you get banned? If so, you're wrong. TheEnigmaticT has stated that although some people have been banned from the forums, no GOG user has ever lost access to the games they've paid for.

I was referring to the actual account that holds transaction and purchase records and similar crap. For example, if I use a stole CC to buy games from here, pretty sure the whole account will be banned, and not just the forum one.

But even if that happen nothing will happen to the games you already downloaded, they won't stop working 24 hours later. That kind of make a huge difference.

EH, I just got a 360, so, I'll wait a little while. Besides, Unless they fix the whole "Not being able to play used games without paying to play used games", and the "always on", and "the kinect watching you while you sleep" things, I might not get it at all. Those are all very poor design choices. Wii U or PS4 the whole way.

Also, MEGAMAN IN SMASH BROTHERS! WINDWAKER REMAKE. Both Reasons why I might get a wii-u.

People are just overreacting and jumping on the bandwagon because that's "cool" to do. Fast forward a dozen or so years, and just like the concern with phones having cameras, or the laptops having cameras and "hackers" spying on you through them... this concept will become a standard and nobody will really care that much about privacy concerns as they won't exist.

Besides, since this is Microsoft we're talking about, any developer that has made an application or game using Windows Runtime APIs, or reasonable and sane person that has used Windows 8 or Windows Phone 7/8 will tell you that everything that an application requires... microphone access, camera access, push notification services access, contact list access, location services access... requires an approval from the user and it doesn't work until the user has specifically given that application an access.

This is built-in into the OS and the APIs, and developers cannot work around this restriction.

Take a look at the screenshot: