Xbox 360 Almost Gets Installs Right: Using Discs Is So Xbox 360 1.0
One of the interesting aspects of the recently announced “New Xbox Experience” is that gamers will now be able to install/copy their games onto the hard drive. This will be a welcome feature for many people, and I really commend Microsoft on making installs optional (as they should be), however they just missed the mark on making it perfect. The lowdown on it all and how they can make it better after the jump.
The Benefits
There are three major potential benefits to installing games onto the hard drive. As it stands now the Xbox will realize two of them: speed and noise reduction. Microsoft has said that their own internal testing showed approximately a 30% improvement in loading times. This does come at the cost of having to install the game at some point. Although Microsoft told reporters than it only takes ten minutes to install Devil May Cry 4, which is half as long as the PS3 version’s install takes. In my book, a 30% improvement in loading times is easily worth a ten minute install.
The noise will be greatly reduced because of the DVD drive. Most users don’t realize this, but most of the noise of the Xbox 360 is caused by the very fast DVD drive, not the fans. With the game on the hard drive, the DVD won’t need to spin. No spinning, no noise.
The Third Benefit
There is a hitch to all this though, and this is where Microsoft misses perfection. The third potential benefit is not needing the disc to switch games, and the Xbox 360 will still require your game to be in the drive. This is of course an anti-piracy measure, and would be understandable for all games that have already been produced.
I’m suggesting that Microsoft should change how their games are sold. Every game should come with a code that, when entered during an install, would allow gamers to play without inserting the disc. These would be one-time use codes similar to the codes you can already buy at brick-and-mortar stores for Xbox Live subscriptions and Xbox Live Arcade games.
To make this user friendly the game would have to still be playable in the drive without ever using the code. Of course that would open up the opportunity to buy the game, install it, and give it to a friend or sell it used. To combat that they could make it ask for the disc on some regular interval, say somewhere between one to three months, to verify ownership.
This would really make for a seamless experience of getting an invite to join another session in a game you aren’t playing and/or don’t have in the drive. It may be a small thing, but I hate it when I get an invite to Halo 3 only to realize that Guitar Hero 3 is in the drive. :)
Digital Distribution
All of this is of course baby steps toward digital distribution. There really shouldn’t be anything stopping Microsoft from selling me my games via Xbox Live especially with the new 60GB Xbox 360 on the horizon. They already do it for classic Xbox games, and a lot of free demos are well over one gigabyte. Microsoft will also let you re-download anything you have already purchased if you are worried that you may need to delete the game for space too.
What do you think Microsoft? You still have time to include this in the “new Xbox experience”. Using discs was so Xbox 360 1.0.
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23 Responses to “Xbox 360 Almost Gets Installs Right: Using Discs Is So Xbox 360 1.0”
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Hmm… I’m all for the change you suggest (from the consumer point of view) but will need brainstorm more on how it might be handled. Your ideas aren’t bad, but I think they could still be circumvented fairly easily.
Great read Paul,
I offer this in response. Microsoft would make a TON of money from me if their storage media wasn’t so highly priced and limited. I’m the type of person/consumer that buys and keeps a lot of stuff (games, movies and such). But by forcing me to limit my desires, to these offerings, keeps me from exercising those desires completely. I could fill an Elites hard drive with HD movies alone. I say all DLC is the true next gen, forget the disc (sorry game store employees). As it is I have to decide what I can live without when I see something new that I want (I only have the 20g pro). I mean really, why not just allow me to plug external drives up to my 360 and let me have at it. I’m not the most technically literate guy in the world, but that shouldn’t be too much to ask for.
You guys all bring up valid points, Microsoft should encode all multi-disk games(RPGs, maybe Forza 3) so that you can install 1 disk and have another one in the drive for example.
Piracy cannot be stopped so the worry of keygens and such should be if anything more protection since it gives pirates even more things to crack.
For Vic B, Having to delete items shouldn’t be that cumbersome. Xbox Live remembers what you purchased and is a short download away. Yes Xbox dropped the ball on choosing a more expansive 2.5inch harddrive and then overcharging them too, but its the size decrease that helps. Sadly harddrives weren’t mandatory like the original 360 was, which helps developers and consumers, I mean Microsoft spend a billion dollars on the RROD! My point is the hard drive issue is overblown, You can easily get them online more half the price and when the 60 gig becomes standard go switch them out at a store for free and shove the savings in Microsoft’s ass!
I think your idea on replacing the disk in the drive is overly complicated and very anti consumer.
Broadband providers have a long way to go to provide the necessary infrastructure for digital distribution.
This is ridiculous, you’re saying they almost got the installs right?! what the fuck? you sound like an idiot that is always looking to complain about something. It’s a good improvement for the Xbox and you forget another benefit, not needing to spin the DVD in the drive results in the fans being less strained and less cooling required for the DVD drive also resulting in less overall heat issues that lead to the RROD. Just shut the fuck up and take it as it is you fucking whiner. It’s an excellent idea and stop whining with but this and but that.
@Bob
Yeah, some details would need to be ironed out for sure, but I think they could pull it off.
@LC
I’m curious, how is the option to use the disk or not anti-consumer? I think there is enough infrastructure for many consumers to move to digital game distribution. Steam already does it, and the PS3 did GT5:P digital. Sure, it wouldn’t work for some people yet, that is why discs would still be an option.
@Brian
Turn it down a notch. I’m a fan of the 360, it just could be better. If you don’t like my take, leave.
@Paul:
I’d love to see this happen. I’d upgrade my HDD in a heartbeat if they’d allow you to swap between games without needing the discs.
@Brian:
Damn, dude. Chill. The man said he was all for the benefits provided by this current plan of action; he just said there was more that could be done. Is there anything wrong with that? Grow up.
Your single use code is anti-consumer and a horrible idea with a number of potential problems limiting the resell and even the playback of your legally owned software, examples include bioshock activation and xbox live dlc with the drm license being restricted to hardware and the high failure rates.
I also dislike your idea that a maybe every once in awhile put the disc in activation, it seems utterly pointless.
As for digital distribution I am aware of many options including those you listed and others, the point I was making is that broadband providers are not moving to increase bandwidth, more, rather to choked whats available and charge those who use it more.
Here where I live your going to pay $80 for an 8 meg connection through qwest or comcast (yes I know they offer such great deals if you buddy up with phone and tv packages, what a great deal, there doing a me such a favor) even 1 to 5 gig files take awhile to download on those connections and now with ps3 and blu-ray games being 20 plus gigs I just don’t see current broadband options as an alternative.
I also do not see what anyone’s doing to increase band width availability, there are two entirely fiber optic networks although out of my area but close by that still only offer 10 meg connections for about $40.
So all this digital distribution replacing physical media is utter nonsense from my point of view.
I hadn’t checked in awhile but the utopia fiber optic network isp providers seem to now have 50 meg options available, though my city still hasn’t signed on so a moot point still.
50 megs for $60 vs comcast or qwest rape, i have to stop looking, this makes me want to cry.
Hello, I think your arguments are sound but personally (I’m a software developer) I don’t like the proposed solutions
a) one-time codes are expensive to propagate and what if you run out of it?
b) ownership verification from time to time (lets say every month or so) would mean you have to have online access – which is unrealistic for everybody – let alone all the privacy issues that arise with that.
c) inserting the disc to prove that you own the game is IMHO the only logical way to go for Microsoft in the moment. I see no technical alternative at this point.
I am chill just like Jim has just said, it’s a logical way so why complain and complain and nag? Think about what you are saying and how lazy you sound that “oh no I actually have to get up and switch a DVD from time to time” who the fuck cares look at the bigger picture and the benefits instead of the 3 seconds of actually getting off your chair or sofa as though you need to change DVD’s every 5 minutes. This subject should have started and ended this way: Holy crap what a great addition to the Xbox 360, benfit 1,2,3 less RROD etc… Great work guys and thanks for continuing to update and support us that have made this investment, we made the right choice afterall. Do I sound angry? or do I just sound like jeez quit complaining and take it instead of looking at newer things to nitpick at. If it’s so easy why don’t you work as a programmer for microsoft and make millions.
I think Microsoft went as far as they could go with the installations of disks on the 360 hard drive. To allow people to not use their disks even with some sort of code is way too fallible. I can already think of the code for a program that would allow me to circumvent such problems as a input code to run a game without a disc. So, no I don’t think Microsoft got it almost right, I think they did get it right. Now I will excitedly await my faster load times.
The one-use code this is actually a decent idea. It will provide:
a) a benefit to users so they won’t need to use the disk once they put in the code
b) a benefit to Microsoft and all publishers because you could re-sell the game, but the 2nd person who purchases your game will have to leave the disk in as the code is invalid.. . Thus making the purchase of a ‘new’ disk more enticing.
It may limit us as second generation consumers, but I know I WOULD still buy the game used, and I’d still have the benefit of a download, but I know I’ll have to use that original disk.
b) from eStrongBad
that’s actually a interesting point that I haven’t thought about.
yet as a customer I’d rather like to have full control even over 2nd hand bought things.
BUT a very interesting point!
Goods: Less noise, More speed, More convenient on HHD
Bads: Put it on the HHD, and then give the CD to a friends house or sell it even o.O. The friend may not have xbox live.
[...] PseudoSavant Tags: arcade, Discs Xbox360, installs, xbox 360, xbox live, xbox live arcade This entry was [...]
@ DreDay
My point is I don’t want to delete items. I want to create a library that I can call up at my leisure and not have to wait for re-downloads. Microsoft is already capable of delivering the content, the roadblock seems to be the fear of piracy. I believe most of us are basically honest consumers. As long as we don’t feel like your limiting our access to something we paid for we’re happy. For instance, ITunes allows me to authorize up to five computers on my account, so I feel no need to burn and re-distribute my content to my other devices or locations. The last time I checked that model is working pretty well for Apple. If Microsoft linked my DLC in a similar fashion (more to my account instead of a single machine), making it more consumer friendly and worth the price of admission. As I posted earlier, for what I envision, 120g only scratches the surface. The fear of piracy is putting a stranglehold on the possibilities of their market. There will always be people out their that will choose to steal and will go to great lengths to do it. But Microsoft could reduce the appeal of pirating by making it less worthwhile. The savings on producing hard copy content and all that it entails would be enormous to them, the developers and in the end, hopefully, to us. Tell me if this sound feasible? Please everyone feel free to chime in, I’m really curious as to why this wouldn’t work.
I can’t believe I’m saying this, but Microsoft should totally copy Steam’s method of distribution. After all, that’s working wonders for them, isn’t it? Link the games to your account (and nobody else’s), then allow you to download that game anywhere but not play it unless you’re using your own account.
Granted, this would mean that people could share accounts, but if you don’t let more than one person use it at a time then you’d solve a lot of problems.
Hey, that was a good idea. I’m just sad I didn’t actually think of it.
Microsoft should read this thread.
I disagree – I think having to put the disk in to prove that you own it is a good way to verify authenticity. I’m sorry if people are lazy and don’t want to take the time and effort to put a disk in for verification. How long would that take, a whopping 15 seconds?
As far as a totally digital delivery vehicle, no, no and no. Number one, the infrastructure’s not there yet. Neither is the customer base. The average internet connection speed is still only 33.6k I believe. I have DSL and it takes a good hour and a half to download a 1 gig file. Now if you’re talking about the average retail game you’re looking at almost 8 hours to download a game. Again, not everyone has high speed internet and not everyone has internet access at all. As a matter of fact the last time I’ll be online with my 360 will be in November when the new User Interface update comes out. I simply refuse to deface my 360 with that abhorrent excuse for an interface and then what would users like me (and there’s a lot more of us than you would think out there) do to get our software? Download it on our PC’s and transfer it to our 360’s? That’s just ridiculous and besides Micro$oft would never allow it. The day is fast approaching when I and gamers like me won’t even be able to play games anymore and I just as soon postpone that as long as possible.
i really need to no if i can put halo 3 on my hardrive so i dont need the disc to play and how????
Its not that people are to lazy to get up and put in a disc or swap discs, its that what if you lost the disk? or something happened to the disc to make it unusable? accidents happen and not everyone is perfect and keep absolutely everything in theyre house organized and neat, i think the ideas are solid and im all for it…