coresx Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 Link Microsoft has announced that on December 15th, Games on Demand comes to Games for Windows Live, which is a very fancy way of saying it's going to start digitally distributing PC games.It's really the next natural step in Games for Windows Live development. The Xbox 360 Games on Demand program has been doing well enough, and services like Stardock's Impulse and Steam have already proven the viability of the digital download store model, so now we're getting Games on Demand for Games for Windows Live. With Games on Demand, we didn't just want to create a cut-and-paste version of existing digital distribution services," said Mike Ybarra, general manager of LIVE Engagement Services. "We challenged ourselves to deliver an integrated platform that takes full advantage of the unique capabilities offered by the LIVE service. Our goal has always been to create a seamless online gaming experience for the Windows community, and Games on Demand is a great step toward that end." From the initial announcement, the main difference between Games on Demand and something like Steam is the use of Microsoft points to purchase games along with actual cash money, but it's certainly a start. If they can keep prices competitive, they could be on to something. Speaking of starts, the service's launch lineup will include Resident Evil 5, Red Faction: Guerrilla, and Battlestations: Pacific, along with Live-enabled versions of popular downloadable titles like World of Goo and Osmos. If those aren't enticing enough, there's also a free Live-enabled version of Tinker, the Windows Vista Ultimate Extra exclusive for those willing to download the Games for Windows Live client when the service goes live on the 15th. You can download the Games for Windows Live client at Microsoft's official website. Can't wait! :laugh: I wonder how it will compare to Steams way of doing things. It's out there for Microsoft to look at but I imagine it will be terrible given GFWL track record. They could seriously do with a name change as well. How can management go into work every day and be happy with GFWL. It can't be that hard to get it right. Only excuse I can think of is Xbox being the focus but when they harp on about Windows having the biggest gaming community, use it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McCordRm Posted December 5, 2009 Share Posted December 5, 2009 I hate these new services coming out... keeping track of them is going to become as a big a pain in the rear as looking for your CDs is now. I already use STEAM and bought a couple of games through D2D before they hit STEAM. Also have a game from EA's Digital Store. Arg. I wany my ONE service to rule them all, dammit! Or at the very least, if I purchase from one service and hate it... let me consolidate my games to a different service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaos mage Posted December 5, 2009 Share Posted December 5, 2009 Frankly I think they'll have a hard time getting anyone to care, unless they grow their offered games impressively fast. Microsoft doesn't have any exclusives. They don't publish PC games anymore, that I've noticed. They're a powerful force, to be sure, but their power has been focused elsewhere for so long that they'll need to prove themselves to a lot of people before anyone is interested. We'll see. Count me a cynic for now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Anarkii Subscriber² Posted December 5, 2009 Subscriber² Share Posted December 5, 2009 Frankly I think they'll have a hard time getting anyone to care, unless they grow their offered games impressively fast.Microsoft doesn't have any exclusives. They don't publish PC games anymore, that I've noticed. They're a powerful force, to be sure, but their power has been focused elsewhere for so long that they'll need to prove themselves to a lot of people before anyone is interested. We'll see. Count me a cynic for now. I think ure right, it will be VERY hard for M$ to even make a dent in what Steam can offer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr.biomech Posted December 5, 2009 Share Posted December 5, 2009 Yeah, they should have joined up with Steam to create... Ms. Steam!!!! I can see the steamy pin-up logo for that already :p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Gibs Posted December 5, 2009 Share Posted December 5, 2009 Frankly I think they'll have a hard time getting anyone to care, unless they grow their offered games impressively fast.Microsoft doesn't have any exclusives. They don't publish PC games anymore, that I've noticed. They're a powerful force, to be sure, but their power has been focused elsewhere for so long that they'll need to prove themselves to a lot of people before anyone is interested. We'll see. Count me a cynic for now. Really now? I guess Forza, Halo, Fable, Gears of war were all published by someone else then. http://www.microsoft.com/games/mgsgamecatalog/default.aspx Yes they're not as big as Activision or EA, but they're do publish a decent amount of games. Here's a more detailed list of games they've made/published/making: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Game_Studios I think ure right, it will be VERY hard for M$ to even make a dent in what Steam can offer. Using $ instead of S instantly gets rid of any credibility your post would have had. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unimatrix Xero Posted December 5, 2009 Share Posted December 5, 2009 whoo cant wait Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Audioboxer Subscriber² Posted December 5, 2009 Subscriber² Share Posted December 5, 2009 As I said in the stardock topic, unfortunately on a personal level I hate having multiple application front ends all running with different logins. I'd rather publishers/developers just all went through Steam and had their own store fronts - Dream scenario though, as it requires everyone to be happy working with Valve, which is not always going to be possible. And MS that's a fail if you still use the spacebucks on the PC, people are used to proper currency. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaos mage Posted December 5, 2009 Share Posted December 5, 2009 Really now? I guess Forza, Halo, Fable, Gears of war were all published by someone else then.Yes they're not as big as Activision or EA, but they're do publish a decent amount of games. I said PC games. Where's Fable 2? Forza 1, 2, or 3? Gears of War 2? Halo 3, Halo Wars or ODST? I know they publish a lot of games for the 360, but we're not talking about the 360 here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yusuf M. Veteran Posted December 5, 2009 Veteran Share Posted December 5, 2009 Really now? I guess Forza, Halo, Fable, Gears of war were all published by someone else then.http://www.microsoft.com/games/mgsgamecatalog/default.aspx Yes they're not as big as Activision or EA, but they're do publish a decent amount of games. Here's a more detailed list of games they've made/published/making: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Game_Studios Read his post again. He said "PC games", not console games. Anyway, I don't think Microsoft will even make a splash in the PC digital distribution market. It's dominated by Steam and Microsoft hasn't given much love to Games for Windows ?b> Live. It had so much potential to bgood i>too. I guess they paid a little too much attention to its older sibling, Xbox Live. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raa Posted December 5, 2009 Share Posted December 5, 2009 Unless MS is going to make their stuff REALLY cheap, I don't see this being a massive hit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acnpt Posted December 5, 2009 Share Posted December 5, 2009 Unless MS is going to make their stuff REALLY cheap, I don't see this being a massive hit. +1 They are(or were) charging far too much for old games, on the Xbox Games on Demand. People must have been really desperate to buy one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Omen1393 Posted December 5, 2009 Share Posted December 5, 2009 I said PC games. Where's Fable 2? Forza 1, 2, or 3? Gears of War 2? Halo 3, Halo Wars or ODST?I know they publish a lot of games for the 360, but we're not talking about the 360 here. What if their plan is to publish all of those as games on demand? Along with Halo 3 it will be a decently sized splash. There hasn't been a game published for the PC by Microsoft since 2007 according to Wikipedia, if they published 2 years worth of games that haven't been available for the PC previously it would be huge. Although, chances are we'd probably already have leaks about that if that were the case, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaos mage Posted December 5, 2009 Share Posted December 5, 2009 What if Mars were to crash into the Earth tomorrow? OH MY GOSH WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE! Just because something could happen doesn't mean it makes any sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Omen1393 Posted December 7, 2009 Share Posted December 7, 2009 There is absolutely no possibility of Mars crashing into Earth tomorrow, there is a slight possibility that they might start to publish those games for Windows though. There was a reason why I posted Although, chances are we'd probably already have leaks about that if that were the case, at the end as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaos mage Posted December 7, 2009 Share Posted December 7, 2009 No, there isn't. This late in the game they'd get barely any sales, making paying a team to port the games pointless. Hence why I said it wouldn't make any sense...I never said it was impossible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrunknMunky Veteran Posted December 7, 2009 Veteran Share Posted December 7, 2009 I wish MS had accepted Valve's offer all those years ago to colab on Steam :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lecter Posted December 15, 2009 Share Posted December 15, 2009 Is it out yet? It's been Dec. 15 for a while in Asia & Europe :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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