The “Always On” Xbox Durango

First, if you are unaware, the new Xbox codename is “Durango.”

Second, here’s a comic:

People are completely up in arms about the “always on” rumor surrounding the next Xbox. With the fiascoes that were Diablo and SimCity, why would anyone even consider an always on console? Gamers simply could not connect or enter a game that they had paid for simply because the game needed to be continually connected to the Internet and servers only have so much room. Don’t get me wrong, Diablo was an MMO, so it is kind of warranted that the servers would reach capacity, however, SimCity never needed to be always on. Maybe someone just wanted to create “DogShitLand” and not give their citizens any plumbing? Why do they need to be on the SimCity server to do so? I can understand the appeal of going to view other people’s cities, but really, isn’t that just a bonus? I couldn’t have cared whether I saw someone’s Zoo Tycoon. I just wanted to breed dinosaurs and unleash them on the AIs. Don’t think twice, go watch Zero Punctuation take down SimCity.

Gaming journalism outlets are working hard at pinpointing and validating rumors. A great article from Kotaku says, “No one has been able to say it’s not true (that the Xbox is always on) and some have speculated that this is required at the operating system level and therefore isn’t something Microsoft has to tell all developers or retail partners. Microsoft also has the ability to change this type of requirement seemingly at a moment’s notice through changes in firmware or networking infrastructure.” Neither games nor apps will start unless there’s an Internet connection and if connection is lost, after three minutes a troubleshooting process will begin.

Users of The Verge have posted a forum speculating on what “always on” might mean for Durango along with the secondary killer rumor “no backwards compatibility” (meaning it won’t play used games). User endejas says, “Always-on isn’t terrible, but a pretty large blow. If, however, I cannot play used games, then that is a deal-breaker for me. If I can’t go over to a Redbox and try out a game, I won’t be buying a Durango.” I think my favorite part about the Xbox 360 is that I could play all my old Xbox games AND they released Quake II. Despite the red-light problem with 360, it was overall a great product for the money, especially as an upgrade from Xbox. Durango kind of sounds like I’m just buying all new things instead of upgrading my current console. If it isn’t going to play old games, why would I even consider getting rid of my 360? I like playing my old games and it seems a couple thousand other consumers do, too.

One user on the Verge, Forge, actually had some rumored specs for the Durango. “It’ll have ALMOST the same processor as the PS4, a mediocre AMD one. Therefore no backwards compatibility at all, no matter what → no consumer pc can emulate a Xbox 360 right now, and if it’s rumored to have a 1.6ghz 8 core Jaguar, there’s no hope. A i7 3770K at 3.5ghz sweeps the floor with the 8 core AMD FX8350 at 4.2ghz, and the Jaguar is very similar to the current Vishera 8350. Therefore it’ll be outdated on arrival, and far too slow for any emulation.” (Hope you read my components series because if so, those terms should be easy to figure out.) I’m curious as to why these consoles are using AMD processors… Seems like a cheap idea for such expensive gadgets.

I also like what user latunza has to say in response to Durango becoming less of a gaming machine and more of a movie-playing machine: “Entertainment box under The TV was Microsoft initial goal.” After the Kinect, Microsoft has gone kind of quiet with releasing games and Sony is really releasing a lot of exclusives.

Back at the Kotaku article, the writer sums up the rumors and speculation. “Every person we’ve talked to about the always-online connection, internally and externally, has been incredulous. They predict a fiasco. […] But they also detect, as I have, an intensified interest in Microsoft’s part to position the next Xbox as an entertainment device, to not emphasize games as significantly as they had with past Microsoft consoles.”

Personally, I’d rather drop $1500 on a nicely built PC that will last and have internet there while also being able to play (and possibly emulate) games instead of a $700 “entertainment box.”

Also, turns out “The PS4 will not require an online connection to start or run games, Sony has confirmed.” Playstations have always been where my heart lies.