Bizarre Creations says they wanted Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved to be FREE over Xbox Live, but Microsoft wouldn't let them do this. They ultimately reached a compromise and charged the lowest amount Microsoft will allow, 400 points ($5).
Back in November Pat Wilson, developer at Garage Games, announced that their team had just finished making a FREE downloadable update (that featured bug fixes, 11 new multiplayer maps, and new gametypes) and that it was in Microsoft's hands for certification. Weeks later in his blog, Pat explained to fans why the free content will NEVER be made available. (The site he blogged at, angrydev.com, is no more, but you can still find the info he posted on numerous sites) On the record, Garage Games says "...we are unable to come to an agreement with our publisher for the Marble Blast Ultra update." Seeing as Garage Games is both the publisher AND developer of Marble Blast Ultra, you need to read between the lines. The gist of Pat's blog says Microsoft won't allow them to release free content for their game, but he doesn't go into what their motivation might be, but allow me to.
Reasons allowing publishers to release free content is BAD for Microsoft: 1.) Microsoft gets a cut of all microtransactions, and doesn't make anything from free content, the Xbox division wants to make profit this gen 2.) It makes publishers who make pay content (something Microsoft wants to encourage) like EA look bad. Why would I want to buy stadiums for Madden or cheats for Tiger Woods when other publishers make kickass content like map packs for free? Consumers would begin to question the value of the Marketplace.
Reasons why releasing free content is GOOD for publishers: 1.) Builds goodwill between the publisher and gamers, example: Epic 2.) Gives online multiplayer longer life without fracturing your user base
Ok, I might be the only person who liked Marble Blast, so I didn't bring this up when it happened. But now this policy is affecting Gears of War. Multiple sources, including today's 1UP Yours podcast (1 hour 12 minutes in), support a rumor that Microsoft and Epic are currently fighting over the new Gears of War content. The content is basically finished, they are just fighting over pricing. Epic wants to make all the new weapons and maps 100% FREE. Epic doesn't want to fragment their online community, and frankly we've come to expect these gestures of goodwill from Epic. Microsoft, as you might expect, is not letting Epic do this. Mark Rein, as you can imagine, is PISSED about this. Gears fans, lets all pray Epic wins this fight.
I'd like to thank Luke Smith for encouraging me to "think critically" about this issue.
EDIT: Excellent Game Informer article where they take Microsoft to task on this issue.
Developer Team 17 complaining about Microsoft not allowing them to release the FREE content they want in order to protect the "value" of other companies' (EA?) pay content.
Also added the stuff about Geometry Wars and tweaked some wording. I'd also like to add that the two free maps Epic released were sponsored downloads. This is pure speculation on my part, but I think Microsoft may have seen these free maps as a compromise to satisfy a.) the gamers that would remember Mark Rein's promise of free Gears content, and b.) Epic, which loves to support their games with free content after release. Microsoft and Epic just don't share the same philosophies, but let's all support Epic because they are looking out for themselves AND gamers.
Nintendo makes a 150% profit on every console and charges $10 for emulated games that have a zero dollar development cost. It sounds like Nintendo is even meaner than MS or Sony.
Not sure why everyone is just now making a fuss about this. I mean they have been charging for DLC since the original Xbox. Is it the right thing to do? Depends on who you ask. Everyone has their own opinion about it. But as for me, this is old news.
Nintendo makes a 150% profit on every console and charges $10 for emulated games that have a zero dollar development cost. It sounds like Nintendo is even meaner than MS or Sony.Berserker_2
Not sure why everyone is just now making a fuss about this. I mean they have been charging for DLC since the original Xbox. Is it the right thing to do? Depends on who you ask. Everyone has their own opinion about it. But as for me, this is old news.CAlNlAC
The Sheep are just concerned for the Lemmings. They are watching over us so that we may not get cheated by big bad Microsoft. Which company has made the most profit? Nintendo.
[QUOTE="Berserker_2"]Nintendo makes a 150% profit on every console and charges $10 for emulated games that have a zero dollar development cost. It sounds like Nintendo is even meaner than MS or Sony.Hammerofjustice
this is true It is also true that Nintendo is the most difficult in terms of working with the media. MS and Sony are humble and helpful. Nintendo brushes the media off. This was stated by Shoe of EGM in a podcast and the other editors agreed with him.
I will also add that Gendo Takeda brushes off the consumer. He stated that he doesn't want to meet the demand of the consumer. This is a fundamental error in good business. Here's a quote from Takeda (big man at Nintendo):
"It must have been about a year after we started developing Wii. After speaking with Nintendo's development partners, I became keenly aware of the fact that there is no end to the desire of those who just want more. Give them one, they ask for two. Give them two, and next time they will ask for five instead of three. Then they want ten, thirty, a hundred, their desire growing exponentially. Giving in to this will lead us nowhere in the end. I started to feel unsure about following that path about a year into development."
[QUOTE="CAlNlAC"]Not sure why everyone is just now making a fuss about this. I mean they have been charging for DLC since the original Xbox. Is it the right thing to do? Depends on who you ask. Everyone has their own opinion about it. But as for me, this is old news.Berserker_2
The Sheep are just concerned for the Lemmings. They are watching over us so that we may not get cheated by big bad Microsoft. Which company has made the most profit? Nintendo. Yeah, good for Nintendo. Making profit is a good thing after all..
[QUOTE="Berserker_2"][QUOTE="CAlNlAC"]Not sure why everyone is just now making a fuss about this. I mean they have been charging for DLC since the original Xbox. Is it the right thing to do? Depends on who you ask. Everyone has their own opinion about it. But as for me, this is old news.CAlNlAC
The Sheep are just concerned for the Lemmings. They are watching over us so that we may not get cheated by big bad Microsoft. Which company has made the most profit? Nintendo. Yeah, good for Nintendo. Making profit is a good thing after all.. True. Some people think that businesses print money. But the truth is that they could go bankrupt any day. It is a matter of survival. Whether it is Microsoft or the local flower shop, you need to sell a product to people.
[QUOTE="CAlNlAC"][QUOTE="Berserker_2"][QUOTE="CAlNlAC"]Not sure why everyone is just now making a fuss about this. I mean they have been charging for DLC since the original Xbox. Is it the right thing to do? Depends on who you ask. Everyone has their own opinion about it. But as for me, this is old news.Berserker_2
The Sheep are just concerned for the Lemmings. They are watching over us so that we may not get cheated by big bad Microsoft. Which company has made the most profit? Nintendo. Yeah, good for Nintendo. Making profit is a good thing after all.. True. Some people think that businesses print money. But the truth is that they could go bankrupt any day. It is a matter of survival. Whether it is Microsoft or the local flower shop, you need to sell a product to people. We're talking about downloadable content in which the DEVELOPERS THEMSELVES wanted Live users to be able to download for free. Please stay on topic.
Nintendo makes a 150% profit on every console and charges $10 for emulated games that have a zero dollar development cost. It sounds like Nintendo is even meaner than MS or Sony.Berserker_2
Did you just say they make $325 for every wii they sell? Please, go back to school.
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