Xbox One Still Has Cloud Features for First Party Games, Committed to Digital in a "Big Way"

"Microsoft Games Studios head recently addressed concerns about the company's Xbox One policy, following the about-turn the company took two days ago when it announced that there would no longer be any periodic check-ins, region locks or restrictions on used games."

[Smoovekid]

So you HAVE to be online when playing first-party games.

THE CLOUD... lol.

[NYC_Gamer]

Where does it say that at?he is just saying that MS first party software will support cloud features.

[Blackdeath_663]

but to use those cloud features you need a constant online connection, which is fine when those features are mostly used to add to the multiplayer(because you need internet to play online anyways) but lets say for example "the cloud makes the xbox one more powerful" as MS claims this implies that the cloud will allow for games to be made on the xbox one that wouldn't be able to run without said "power of the cloud" that would mean those games will need a constant internet connection. so people with bad ISP's or internet connections are screwed. now then, will games that require that cloud be able to be traded in and bought used? i doubt it because servers are expensive to run and maintain especially ones that power the cloud therefore game+cloud=constant internet connection + possibility of drm.

so ultimately the claim that the cloud makes your console more powerful is either a lie or it is indeed true but with the possibility of drm now if MS came out and said this at the very start DRM doesn't sound so bad and people would accept it if they knew they would get better quality games but they didn't nor is there any proof that the cloud makes your games any better the two current examples are sim city and diablo3 both of which were disasters hence the backlash. if MS made this clear and gave examples of a game running better on the cloud they would have been the ones to carry gaming to the future instead they dug themselves a hole so deep they had to reverse their policies in order to make their way out

[shoddy]

That mean call of duty online will be lag free.

I can only dream for a lag free multilayer

[JokesOnYou]

Yeah give me the choice for sharing with DD games, it also sounds like alot of devs are going the route of tuning the game experience to perform better when you're online which is incentive enough for me to be always connected so I can reap any benefits of the cloud however small or large it might be. No new effort on my part since I'm already always connected.

[MWong]

@ shoddy

CoD is still 3rd party.

@ Blackdeath_663

Good points with Diablo III & SimCity

But when I read this it, sounds like M$ is using a slight of words again. Why does this console sound like it will have to always be online still?

I've read 4 different articles about "cloud computing" and it sounds like we are years off from it. I wonder which other developers are using "cloud computing" besides Playground and Turn10?

[GameCents]

It's not rocket science playstation fans.
Some games will have cloud features that enhance your gaming experience when you play online. In this case, cloud features will be auxiliary.
Other games will be cloud dependent and will thus require an internet connection. These games will most likely be online only games like TitanFall.

Where exactly is the confusion?

Some games use cloud. Some don't.
Some games will require cloud. Some won't.

[AlphaJunk]

@Blackdeath - people in areas with slow or no broadband connection get screwed when they can't play the multi-player portion of a game as well according to your reasoning; Guess what? That's technology advancing and not everyone always has access to the latest advances or feature and is DEFINITELY NOT a reason not to continue with it's production. It's like some smart phones that now have LTE radios that only have access to LTE speeds in major metrolpolitan areas - should they not produce this tech because everyone can't access it because they don't live in that area? Of course not and no one is getting screwed.

[awi5951]

Well titan fall developers said that their Physics and A.I was all done on the cloud.

[liquidhalos]

NYC_Gamer

How will you use the cloud if your not online?

[Kanzes]

fanboysm at is finest

[MariaHelFutura]

They have gone from saying the cloud will 'power up' your Xbox One by anywhere from 3-10 times (depending on the interview) to saying 1st party will support 'Cloud features'.

Cloud computing in any relevant way is a dream, not a reality.

http://www.eurogamer.net/ar...

[kennyg3739]

I think I rather trust actual developers then a euro gamer article. Many developers are using the Xbone One cloud feature already and just not first party developers.
http://www.oxm.co.uk/56771/...

[MariaHelFutura]

Digital foundry is probably one of the most respected tech analysis sites on the planet. They do almost all system and tech comparisons before anybody. Don't just get mad, read it. Our online infastructure cannot handle realtime 3D rendering in any relevant way, which is why PCs aren't even doing it yet. So you do you believe, Reality or Microsoft?

Another OXM article stating the cloud will increase performance of the Xbox One by 3x.

http://www.oxm.co.uk/54748/...

[dedicatedtogamers]

@ kennyg

You would rather trust actual developers?

I have a copy of Aliens: Colonial Marines to sell you. $59.99. Bargain price!

@ MariaHel

Yeah, cloud isn't even something viable on PCs which is where the tech started in the first place. Ironically, the actual advantages of cloud (like family sharing, play your library anywhere, etc) was removed when Microsoft removed the DRM features, so it's no surprise that now all they say is "some games will use Cloud to enhance the experience".

[kennyg3739]

@maria, first of all I'm not mad, second if you go up to ten people and ask them what is Digital foundry they'll look at you crazy: so for saying its the most respected on the planet is just ridiculous.And last like I said I'll put my trust in developers not some website. Cloud tech is just going to get better over years.

[Grown Folks Talk]

They aren't forcing 3rd party to use the cloud. They can, & some we know already are. You guys overblow every statement. Like 3rd party devs stop & call Microsoft every time to tell them they're going to use the cloud.

[baodeus]

@maria

Funny u just focus on the restrictions of cloud tech, while ignoring all the very interesting inovative potentials mentioned by digital foundry in the same article.

1. MS developers are aware of the restriction, and they at least have addressed half of the problem as mentioned in the article by df
2. For things that need up front hardware power due to bandwidth and internet speed limitation, Xbox one by itself is also very capable of handling those, it is just slightly less powerful than PS4 "in theoretical term" and people make it sound like it runs on 1980 Atari tech or something.

[NextGen24Gamer]

It will remain a dream for Sony fans like yourself. It is and will continue to be a reality for gamers who choose the xbox one console. Dev after dev has already said they are using it and their games greatly benefit from the cloud.

I can't wait for after November and people like you will change your stance to....Well Sony can do it too! LOL...They are waaaaaaay behind MS and Xbox One was built from the ground up to use their cloud system. And 300,000 servers is crazy...

[sic_chops]

^^this guy is about to get "had" and doesn't even see it coming. Good luck.

[YNWA96]

I'd wager maria does not like MS. I could probably find an article by a 'respected' site saying something good or bad too, but would say 95% of all sites on internet are biased in one way or another. Sure, a guy passing gamestop with his dog told me PS3 rules..... There ya go.... Reliable source, gamestop was mentioned in there....

[DigitalRaptor]

I don't mind this being optional in any form.

We will see the results of putting so much time and attention in to the cloud. I doubt it will pay off in any meaningful way though.

[rainslacker]

Disregarding digital foundry in this discussion, it's worth pointing out that multi-plat games wouldn't likely use the cloud if it wasn't available to use with Sony's cloud as well.

Since I've seen a certain MS gamer claim 90% of games are multi-plat, I'll go with that number. If 90% of games are limited by whatever they can do on one system, they aren't going to be much better on another system. System parity is pretty much par for the course. Exclusives may use it to better effect.

Or the more logical conclusion can be made that Sony's Gaikai can do the same thing. Sony admitted that their cloud could be used for the same purposes that MS is touting. But they were honest enough to say that it would be limited in scope, and pretty much just stopping short of calling MS full of sh*t. Sony didn't say, however, that they would allow such a feature to be used on their system. But that's another debate.

The 3x power increase is marketing spin. Cloud "features" are good for some things. Better for non real-time implementation, and limited in actual game play scenarios.

One day, when the internet goes all fiber, and bandwidth and latency issues are a thing of the past, cloud gaming will see it's day. Until then, the cloud is not going to be a major factor in vastly improving game play from the user perspective.

Also @ Elite
Once again, not all 300K servers are going to be used for Xbox. Azure runs hundreds of thousands of programs that offer services for over one billion users worldwide(quote from MS own video on their Azure website). The money spent on 300K servers just for X1 would make it the biggest money sink in the companies history.

[awi5951]

Titanfall developers already said the cloud lets them do their physics and A.I on the cloud and thats a huge deal. And you want to know why these APU cpus in these consoles totally suck they are slow and are so going to kill performance when heavy physics and A.I come in. If developers use it xbox would have better physics, particle effects, and A.I but i bet only first party will use it.

[CrimsonStar]

o look its Maria on another MS article saying nothing , but negative things about it .

We get it man you're not getting a Xbox one , and you hate it you don't have to remind us on every Xbox related article .

[fermcr]

@AaronSmooth

LOL, poor guy... you want to troll and don't know how.

[Smoovekid]

OK

[DonFreezer]

Shut your mouth and go play Knack.

[denawayne]

Yes, this is a console designed to be online. Wake up people.

[medman]

The cloud is a pipe dream folks. A crack pipe. In a perfect world, where bandwidth and bottlenecks weren't an issue, it would have a chance. But the infrastructure of the internet makes Microsoft's claims an impossibility. Everything that is offloaded to the cloud is subject to latency issues, which creates lag in games. That means that what is able to be offloaded will be minor details and processes that are not latency dependent. The vast majority of the grunt work will still have to be done by the consoles internals. When Microsoft claims it will be like having the power of 3 Xbox Ones in the cloud that is hyperbole at it's finest. Or at it's worst. You decide.

[Modi1984]

CLOUD, yeah sure

[dedicatedtogamers]

Confirmed = Power of the CLOUD is the new Power of the CELL.

Until Microsoft can show us tangible, noticable, non-bullshot advantages of using "THE CLOUD!" I'm going to treat this the exact same way I treated the Cell in the PS3's early years: prove it.

[creatchee]

Well, to be fair, The Cell wasn't the most important thing in regards to PS3 exclusives - it was the actual first party studios working on the games and the Blu-ray storage advantage. Talent is greater than tech any day of the week.

[CrossingEden]

i swear i've seen you boasting about how powerful the ps4 is -_-

[GameBanger]

Blu-ray didn't really even prove to be a major a leap in gaming capability anyways, unless using less discs which were used to render video sequences in game is considered an advantage.

[awi5951]

Titanfall is proof their physics and A.I are done in the cloud and that frees up system resources.

[giovonni]

I'm very interested in seeing how this all works and how it comes together.

[silvacrest]

but how man first party games will the one even have?

[True_Samurai]

15 exclusive from Microsoft studios alone and plus exclusives from third party so pretty much plenty

[silvacrest]

not trying to troll but how many are kinect titles?

we'll have to wait and see

[Urusernamesucks]

None, Usually Kinect tittles accend from microsofts first party devs. But so far only rare has made one kinect tittle.

[CrimsonStar]

lol who's disagreeing with you is some one really that upset , about MS actually trying this generation and making exclusives ???

[solidworm]

The cloud is simply gamings latest hype train. Everyone with half a brain knows this shit is years off being anything special. Get back to me in 2025 when when the world has super fast ultra broadband connections and even then it wont be as revolutionary as MS would have saps believe.

[Nicaragua]

i couldnt have said it better myself, although the number of disagree's you have show just how effective Microsofts PR machine is at spinning bullshit.

[CrossingEden]

that's a copy and paste -_-

[solidworm]

If you want a copy and paste go to Digital Foundry, they explain it perfectly.

[rainslacker]

By then, if the internet gets up to par for the technology, all processing will be done on the cloud, likely rendering the console obsolete. Technically that's possible today, although would be limited by resources.

I hate to say it, but that is probably the true digital future, and it puts firm control into the content providers hands. That is what they want, and that's how they'll obtain it.

DD is really just a stopgap.

For the time being though, and for the near future, the internet is the biggest bottleneck in computing. I doubt that will change by 2025 though. That's only 12 years away.:)

[chamber]

Please don't use the cloud for single player games.

[creatchee]

Why not? If it can make an experience better, I'm all for it. But if it is using the tech for the sole purpose of the tech, I do agree.

[Soldierone]

Because not all of us want to be online 24.7.

It's not that complicated. Not attacking you, but MS just dug themselves out of a hole, hope they don't go jump right back in.....

[CrimsonStar]

Why not man? if it can make the gaming experience better then why not apply the cloud ?

[Genuine-User]

"An internet connection will not be required to play offline Xbox One games"

Any first part offline games for launch or next year?

[FrigidDARKNESS]

Microsoft and Samsung did collaborate to build the worlds fastest most efficient cloud servers. You can bet that these servers will be part of MS cloud network.
http://www.youtube.com/watc...

[EasilyTheBest]

Cant wait to see the games that use this...

[solidworm]

Dont hold your breath.

[No_Limit]

Can't wait for the cloud to play a role in games like Dead Rising 3, Forza 5, Titanfall and Sunset Overdrive.

Glad MS is investing heavily in cloud gaming, implementing smartglass, and including a Kinect in every console. Rather than just a supped up Xbox360 with more power, these features will only enhanced gameplay and offer something new and unique for next generation.

[FrigidDARKNESS]

I like now forza 5 takes advantage of the cloud.

Rumours out of e3 is that kojima is looking to do something with the xb1 cloud for MGS5 .

[SniperControl]

Haha Rumours?? Source??

[antikbaka]

Ohhh Me too!! I like sooo much when instead of quick access to game data on hdd, my game start to get it from da internet which is much slower.

Sooo cool! just like putting screwdriver throw nose to the brain to make lobotomy

[antikbaka]

It's jsut another 180 from Microsoft.

1) "we decided to get rid of 24/7 online connection"
2) But to play our games you need to be 24/7 online connected :3

GENIUS!!!

[AngryEnglish]

And you will on ps4 to play destiny.... Does that mean destiny is a pile of crap that nobody wants, does destiny have magic powers on the PS4 that make it still playable with zero connection..... I'm sure the site is a mixture of pre teens or retards who don't think things through before they open that trap

[Jazz4108]

Destiny is on one allready. Respawn are the ones that have state titan fall cant be done on ps4 due to its entire cloud infrustrjcture as itwon many best of show. Similar things ate coming crom the dead rising camp. Oh and im surd ms paid them. I just finisez a book on bow powerfull azure is. This is no joke. Well at least ms still can sbow it off and we still get to trade are retail games. All is good i guess but on this site with ms there is always something to complain about. This gaiki thing reminds me more of ms tv features how they are rolling them out in america then others.

[blackmanone]

Sigh, not only do people like Angry English fail to grasp the differences between playing an MMO and always online, or they does know and is just too much a fanboy to admit it.

[AngryEnglish]

Blackmanone.... Is x1 always online? Yes or no answe? Bet you can't and won't

You use the word fanboy because I'm pointing something out, answer this question... Is destiny online only?

Sigh...

[sic_chops]

@jazz respawn never said anything like that. Show us proof. Vince has said that he wants to develop for other platforms once he sees how the game does. This comes from his twitter account. Learn to spell and stop making stuff up. Good luck to you.

[antikbaka]

Ohhh so you believe in "MAAAGIIIC" how sweet. I'm sure one day you will get a letter from Hogwarts.

EA were saying the same things about recent simcity and uber fitures that are not possible withiout online. it appeared that to be a lie.

xbox one gonna be like diablo 3, all whis cloud bullsh** just to reduce piracy.

tired of naive kids...

[No_Limit]

@antikbaka, blackmanone
2 people didn't get the memo.

http://www.gameinformer.com...
"The heavy emphasis on cloud technology brings up the inevitable question: Do you have to be connected to the Internet to play Forza 5? The answer to that question is no -- with a slight catch. The game must log in to Xbox Live at least once, but when it does Forza 5 caches car and race data necessary for offline play. So, after that initial connection, you will be able to play Forza offline."

[AngryEnglish]

Antibaka, ive been around fior every gen of console, I'm almost 40 years old

It's amazing nobody can answer the question.... Is the X1 always online?

The only person who is a naive kid here is you bud, have you been living in a cave for the last few days? What has diablos always on game have to do with the X1 not always online hardware?....

And as I said before and going by your logic.... Then Destiny and any other MMO game will also be a pile of shit on the PS4

You can't say it about one and not the other

Stunning hypocrisy lol

[kennyg3739]

I guarantee if Sony was pushing/advertising this technology on the PS4, it would the greatest thing ever. But since its Microsoft cloud computing is not possible.

[Ayabrea123]

Wrong. When Sony bought gaikai.. there was the same major downplay. The story at the time was 'The world isn't ready for cloud gaming'. No difference here. It's all BS until we can really see the benefits. I for one know that not only MS invested in this but so did Sony... the difference is, they aren't talking about it because they don't have anything to share regarding its pros and cons. I appreciate that because they are learning to speak less and show. MS should learn to do the same. Throwing all these things out but having no proof or something concrete to support these facts are a negative in my opinion. MS doesn't have anything together and empty promises are not going to win me over

[GreenRanger]

How is this supposed to work on crap internet connections?

[rainslacker]

hush, you...you're supposed to ignore that part of the equation.

[SpideySpeakz]

Most of their first-party games, like DR3 and Project Spark, have said they won't be even using the cloud because it's not needed. I have a feeling this cloud nonsense is just a way to sell the system. Cloud is nothing significant. We went over this already. It's complete nonsense.

[solidworm]

Its a way to make your under powered and over matched machine seem competitive. Truth is Digital Foundry have already gone into detail with this and stated its a pipe dream. When things get desperate saps will want to believe this stuff. It will be used by both Sony and MS and will make less than 1% difference to your experience.

[A7XEric]

Thank god they didn't axe these features. The driveatar features, which were only possible through the cloud, they were talking about in Forza 5 sound incredible, and I'd be pissed if they let a bunch of ignorant kids on the internet take that away from me.

[KaMaHKaZiE]

People continuously complained about the online thing and what not. Yet publishers like Tom Clancy have already announced you have to be always online to play some of there new games. I am sure other will follow. Are you gonna go cry to each individual publisher? Cause I am sure they will give zero facks about what the flaming fanboys have to say.

on the bright side they will give you complementary Benadryl for the flaring acne you got going there. 😏

[slampunk]

Great Comment ^^^

[Soldierone]

I'll just go back to waiting then. I want to see how it plays out. I like playing single player games offline. My router sometimes decides to reset and I don't want to be in the middle of a no save point and be disconnected....

You can talk about how great it is all you please, it doesn't change the fact that the average person doesn't have a 100 percent reliable connection AT ALL. Why do you think the push to get rid of it was so strong? If it wasn't a massive issue, then that would have never happened.... "A few fanboys, complainers" wouldn't force an entire company to dramatically update their console. Why do you think Kinect is still involved?

Connections and speeds are still an issue. You have to think you will now not only be playing games instantly in multiplayer, but rendering them, loading them, and streaming them too. THAT will take a lot of bandwith, especially on routers. Now lets imagine a household with 2 or 3 consoles all playing different games at once. Dorm rooms, shared internet connections (if you have cable, you share your connection with the entire street, thats why it slows down in peak hours)

This isn't movies, it isn't a quick little "put the game on a stream" fix. There is A LOT more bandwith and required specs to get the job done. Not all of it is server side, a majority of the issues are user side. Heck even Netflix and other popular streaming services have issues streaming HDX, or even 3D.

[rainslacker]

Remember when, for the most part, we could just buy a game and know it would work. Remember when that was the greatest draw of a console.

God...those were the days. I remember it like it was just yesterday. Maybe because it was just yesterday, but I'm not one to play semantics.

Going into next gen I'm going to have to research the titles I buy just to see if I will be able to play it effectively whenever I want. Hope someone figures out early a good way to report these things so I know which ones to ignore. Good idea for the ambitious web site makers out there(hint hint).

Already Watch Dogs was called into question(although now said it can be played offline). AC4 had a rumor surrounding it which I can't imagine to be true. Then there's The Crew. The Division(not a big deal since I thought it was an MMO). Possibly others. I dunno. Should I just wait to buy any game until I know for sure? Hope these publishers put it in big writing on the box so all can see. SimCity should be a good enough example of why that is important.

[fracturedrich]

Be careful not to say anything positive about xbox on this site as you will be gunned down,the hate on this site has made my mind up about going for the one next gen.I own both at the minute and there is not much in it to be honest but i think with a digital future looming,ms is the way to go.I am a big forza fan and i believe cloud will push console gaming to be the best way to game.We ask for better ai and cloud will give us the best ai to play against.

[Ayabrea123]

I'm sorry but this makes no sense. I'm hype to see what the cloud can do but your making it seem as if other consoles don't have nothing to bring to the table. I'd rather take the console that is future proof in hardware that can improve more on output with integration with cloud computing than a system that is not future proof in terms of hardware but heavily relies on the cloud. The benefits of one will bring about bigger possibilities than the other. I'm just saying...

[DivineAssault]

cloud computing isnt even that good yet.. PS4 also has it too btw.. I wouldnt worry about cloud computing doing much for the rest of this year..

[captain_slow82]

there using the cloud to enhance online games none of this bull shit that games will look better for it.....

there just playing catch up to mobile games that use the same tech...

the question is why are they not doing it on current gen consoles? (because they could make the 360 10 times more powerfull with it rite? lol) there doing it with alot of pr crap to make it look like this is future tech lool

when infact its being done now on phones lol

[EasilyTheBest]

Please read 4kids comment WITH links.

Or his example below.

[captain_slow82]

or us grown ups that can see the bs lol

[Master-H]

"teh infinite power of da cloudzzz" the biggest and silliest joke i heard in 2013 Lol
even people with fiber optics internet connection won't be able to render data and move it as half as fast as in real time (aka with the system hardware) , they are probably capable of providing a better faster and more accurate match making servers with the clouds, sure . but graphics and stuff.. just forget it , *10 times more powerful* lOl just lol though kudos to their marketing people for trolling all the weak minds out there, they deserve a raise :P

[awi5951]

Just like the power of the cell and how your appliances in your house would boost the power of your PS 3 lol .

[SniperControl]

Is it just me, or is MS's "cloud" crap just another form of DRM, which these insanely blinkered MS fanboys fail to see.

[solidworm]

Jonny Blow already destroyed this whole CLOUD smoke and mirrors bullcrap.

[slampunk]

And yet others, such as respawn have said what MS have done is great....

Time will tell i guess but i certainly wouldn't be listening to Johnny Blow ATM....

[Swiggins]

John Blow is a man with a documented vendetta against Microsoft, I'd take anything he says about them with a grain of salt.

[Ayabrea123]

I think people need to stop bashing and really think realistically. I get it, the PS4 will be the next big thing since butter but not every single thing MS says must be taken with a grain of salt. Let's be serious, that same mentality was applied to Sony and they came back proving everyone wrong. MS is in that same predicament and people talking out their ass will feeling really dumb when truth comes to light. What everyone should be focusing on is how this cloud computing can make gaming in terms of online output better. The cloud isn't going to just make games look better because that's not it's intentions. It's to make crucial parts of gaming like AI, World output, etc easier to do things on its own without system limitations. that's awesome.. why hate on that. If your favorite company did the same thing, hardly the issue wouldn't be BS.. same goes to X1 supporters who act as if they wouldn't have said the same thing if It was coming out of the Sony camp before MS.. come on

[ThatsGaming]

By the end of this gen 85% of all shipped games will require online connectivity.

Ubisoft is all in, Bungie all in, Respawn all in...

It is just a matter of time...

EA Sports games will probably be all in soon, followed by all their releases...

Within 5 years always on will be a lame argument.

[mediate-this]

whn I first heard of this whole x-box online always drm, I thought boy this is not cool, but I was playing street fighter on my three sixty, and I also play on my ps3, and I look at my console and its hooked up to my modem/router straight connection to both, my ps3 and 360 are always connected to the internet, I don't get the big deal of always on? our my system is already hooked up 24/7 to the internet.