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Microsoft Studios' creative director has some choice words about always-online

educator

Member
Why not announce it then? Wasn't that how 3DS or Wii U was first announced? As a direct response to major Japanese news networks spilling the beans?

Because they probably dug deep down their pockets to fund a huge reveal sometime soon.
 
They can't comment on a console/system that hasn't been announced yet. What'd you think they would say?

Nope. They can't confirm or deny anything because the next Xbox doesn't even officially exist.

Expect your denial of always online when they actually announce/unveil the console and not a tweet earlier.

And let the shitstorm, potentially (read: will) get WORSE?!

Anyone who's not a fucking moron knows that the 720 exists and one of their guys just potentially killed any interest from a LOT of users based on a)always online being so anti-consumer and b)the guy who confirmed it acting like a jackass causing the perception that the entire company is this way.

This is PR 101 type shit.
 
when you really get down to it arthur gies is probably the worst person in the world

a narcissistic coward of a man who unironically toes a company line and literally sees no problem in pledging to change gamez jurnolism while receiving $750k to do a masturbatory documentary

just awful
 
The sad thing is that this is actually building his reputation. Next thing you know he's that "controversial" dude with "challenging" opinions that get gamers talking and more people start listening to what he says. We're helping build that future :(
Michael Pachter 2: Electric Boogaloo?
 
D

Deleted member 17706

Unconfirmed Member
GiantBomb hasn't, but they usually don't wade into stuff like this on their front page. They're more interested in entertainment and actual news (as bad as this thing is, I don't necessarily think it's "news" - it's one dumbass employee saying something stupid).

Giant Bomb isn't a typical "news site," so I don't think they really count. They aren't like the IGNs and Polygons and Kotakus that typically post anything and everything. When you have places like Yahoo reporting on this, Polygon's lack of reporting on it (even when their parent site--the Verge--did) appears to be highly suspect, especially considering their special relationship with Microsoft and their employment of Arthur Gies, who never fails to appear in Microsoft's defense.

Also, you are trying to downplay this by calling the guy who made these comments "one dumbass employee." He is the creative director for Microsoft Studios. An executive at a pretty high level. Someone who has their hand in the creation of games for the next platform. He's not just "some employee."
 

MormaPope

Banned
All they needed to say was some bullshit about how Microsoft always has consumer's interests at heart and they can't wait to talk more about their plans moving forward.

By flatly refusing to even hint at a denial of always-online they have pretty much confirmed it.

They say this exact same robot PR thing for everything.

We're still on the same path we were yesterday, except as things have been pointed out and elaborated on, the always online requirement for the Durango is still probable but there's a small chance always online isn't a requirement. Or the always online design is something completely different than what we think it is.

Microsoft's PR statement doesn't add weight to always online being a requirement or it not being a requirement.
 

LuuKyK

Member
I thought I saw something too that went "we have no current plans/announcements for always-online requirements."

No it was something like "yes, you will be able to enjoy your PS4 old shcool style with offline play". Its in this thread but I cant find it. :(
 

jtb

Banned
And let the shitstorm, potentially (read: will) get WORSE?!

Anyone who's not a fucking moron knows that the 720 exists and one of their guys just potentially killed any interest from a LOT of users based on a)always online being so anti-consumer and b)the guy who confirmed it acting like a jackass causing the perception that the entire company is this way.

This is PR 101 type shit.

It's all hypothetical at this point. They shouldn't apologize, they shouldn't even acknowledge the shitstorm. They put out exactly the statement they needed to put out.

That way, when they announce their console, it's a clean slate. Fresh start. and if it is still always-online then, then they'll have to deal with the real shit-storm.
 
My dad even knows of this always online stuff now.

(He's a casual-hardcore gamer... IE. he plays "hardcore games" but doesn't follow shit regarding the industry.)

He probably learned from Yahoo, he's old so that's his go to.
 

Foffy

Banned
Because they probably dug deep down their pockets to fund a huge reveal sometime soon.

Again, couldn't they do what Nintendo did? Confirm the successor, give a basic idea of what it'll be, but leave the system reveal and various other facets to the reveal. Playing it as if all news about this new system simply doesn't exist until they actually show it off is currently doing more harm than good.

I see nothing alarming about confirming Durango, making a comment on this stuff, and then talking about an event they have in the works for it unless they really don't want to make a comment on this matter. They're not fooling anyone for a reveal. Not wanting to deny this right now really points to them hoping they have something to show to counterbalance this element.
 

Nibiru

Banned
When the Nextbox DOESN'T have always online, and trust me after all this it won't. Don't be tricked by Microsoft when they say for us to not believe everything we read on the internet because it is certain that at one point always online was happening.
 
D

Deleted member 17706

Unconfirmed Member
grudges? really now?

I have no idea what Microsoft will do with their console, but internet grudges will have zero influence on whether it succeeds or fails.

I think you are significantly underestimating what public opinion and word of mouth can do. This isn't just something relegated to NeoGAF and Twitter. Normal people read sites like IGN and Yahoo.
 
And let the shitstorm, potentially (read: will) get WORSE?!

Anyone who's not a fucking moron knows that the 720 exists and one of their guys just potentially killed any interest from a LOT of users based on a)always online being so anti-consumer and b)the guy who confirmed it acting like a jackass causing the perception that the entire company is this way.

This is PR 101 type shit.

Sure, but MS is going to control the conversation and expose things on their terms, not yours or mine. They paid a lot for analysts and strategists to craft their next-gen plan. MS isn't a speedboat, they can't turn and change strategy on a whim. They're a lumbering carrier and it takes a lot of approvals from different fragmented channels before they can commit to anything.

I'm just wondering how many folks had to touch that stupid 2 sentence response before Edelman was allowed to publish it.
 

Interfectum

Member
Anecdotal but a few people I know that don't even follow video games mentioned the always online next-gen Xbox today. That shit spread like wildfire!
 

jtb

Banned
Again, couldn't they do what Nintendo did? Confirm the successor, give a basic idea of what it'll be, but leave the system reveal and various other facets to the reveal. Playing it as if all news about this new system simply doesn't exist until they actually show it off is currently doing more harm than good.

I see nothing alarming about confirming Durango, making a comment on this stuff, and then talking about an event they have in the works for it unless they really don't want to make a comment on this matter. They're not fooling anyone for a reveal. Not wanting to deny this right now really points to them hoping they have something to show to counterbalance this element.

what difference does it make? Microsoft couldn't give less of a shit whether the hardcore are salivating over the console, because they know that they will buy the console anyways. Not like Nintendo's strategy is paying dividends anyways.
 

CPS2

Member
I don't know of a single large hotel, especially one that would accommodate a tournament, that doesn't have WiFi.
That really limits the amount of useable venues and pushes the price up for organisers. The PS4 is just a smarter option.

How are they connected together if there is no "wifi"?
Did you mean "internet"?

You can have wifi without internet and you can have internet without wifi.
It's just a matter of whether or not there's a cable running from the box to the router.
If you're at a venue and setting everything up in a couple of hours, you're not going to run a cable to every box just so that the games will work. Chances are you won't even have access to the router.
 

Mifune

Mehmber
They say this exact same robot PR thing for everything.

We're still on the same path we were yesterday, except as things have been pointed out and elaborated on, the always online requirement for the Durango is still probable but there's a small chance always online isn't a requirement. Or the always online design is something completely different than what we think it is.

Microsoft's PR statement doesn't add weight to always online being a requirement or it not being a requirement.

Yes, but this is not a response to an isolated article speculating that the console requires an internet connection.

This is a steamroller of bad PR. You don't just let that beast plow through all your best-laid plans. Unless there's truth there.
 

railGUN

Banned
Is Polygon seriously like the only site that didn't report on this?

Orhu4lP.gif
 

Boss Man

Member
Can we just stop talking about Gies please?

We all realize he's a joke, but in his own world he's just rationalizing it as "haters" or whatever. There's no good in it. And Polygon might as well be a banned site here if they seriously aren't reporting on gaming news that is big enough to be on NBC. It's become more and more obvious that they have a vested interest that makes the site disreputable.

 

jtb

Banned
I think you are significantly underestimating what public opinion and word of mouth can do. This isn't just something relegated to NeoGAF and Twitter. Normal people read sites like IGN and Yahoo.

This is a hypothetical. A hypothetical! It could very well turn out to be true, or they could fix it in time for the reveal, or it may just be complete BS. i think the former is the most likely, but that doesn't change the fact that nothing is confirmed, nothing is in the consumer's hands.

Compare this to something that was tangible and a real, true fuck up of epic proportions: the RROD. They released a console that was DEFECTIVE and most people still didn't give a shit once they fixed the problem and 360 has solds loads and loads of consoles since then.

No one gives a shit about this. They will give a shit if it's always online, but this mini-shitstorm? It'll blow over. It always does.
 
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