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Games for Windows Marketplace Merging With Xbox.com

Posted by Soulskill on from the uniting-against-the-steam-juggernaut dept.

Microsoft announced today that on July 11th, their Games for Windows marketplace will be merging with its console equivalent. According to a spokesman, "All of the same content from GamesForWindows.com will be available on Xbox.com so members of communities across Xbox 360 and Games for Windows can purchase and get details on their favorite games, all in one place. All account information will remain the same and community members can still take advantage of their Xbox Live profile in their Windows games and stay connected to friends who are playing on the PC."

45 comments

  1. I had no idea that either of those existed. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Wow. I have learned something today.

  2. Xbox 360 vs PC by cgeys · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The Xbox 360 marketplace works great. But the Windows version is really not that good. They should just forget about the Games for Windows name, pick something good and make it Steam-like with the social interactions, communications, groups, easy purchasing and fast in-game overlay (seriously, the GfW in-game overlay is really shitty).

    1. Re:Xbox 360 vs PC by Dan667 · · Score: 0

      they should just use Steam and drop consoles.

    2. Re:Xbox 360 vs PC by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I've never used GfW myself but every time I read about some other person's experience with it becomes more clear that I do not want anything to do with GfW. Games that require it are simply off my list of games I'm willing to pay for.

    3. Re:Xbox 360 vs PC by SunnyDaze · · Score: 1

      I was just assuming that this would be deleting all my saves for the games I'm forced to use GfW for.

    4. Re:Xbox 360 vs PC by PwnzerDragoon · · Score: 1

      For what it's worth, I have never had an issue with GFWL. Maybe I'm the lucky one, or maybe all the people who do have problems are the loudest. I don't really have a point, I'm just throwing that out there.

    5. Re:Xbox 360 vs PC by FunkSoulBrother · · Score: 1

      I've never had a problem with it either. I like getting achievements on my PC games :-)

    6. Re:Xbox 360 vs PC by Xest · · Score: 1

      None of that makes sense, because GFW allows all that, and the overlay is certainly no worse than the Steam one at least although I agree, both could be much better.

      The whole point of GFW was to bring XBox friends list, voice/text chat, achievements and so forth to Windows so I don't really get your point about social interactions, communications and so forth? That was one of the main reasons it was built. Are you sure you've actually ever even used it?

  3. how many users will be impacted? by cheeks5965 · · Score: 1

    both of them! /zing

    --
    -- Flame me and I will happily flame you back. Bring it!
  4. Marketing names by MrEricSir · · Score: 3

    Microsoft: Games for Windows Marketplace
    Apple: Game Center

    Microsoft: Windows Live Hotmail
    Google: Gmail

    Microsoft: Windows Live Photo Gallery 2011
    Apple: iPhoto

    What's going on here? When did Microsoft stop using simple names like "Paint" and "Write" and come up with ridiculously long marketing names that have more syllables than I have fingers?

    --
    There's no -1 for "I don't get it."
    1. Re:Marketing names by robmv · · Score: 3, Insightful

      The obsession to add Windows to every product name, and that obsession is killing the few good products they make because people associate them with Windows and the problems they have suffered using it

    2. Re:Marketing names by stms · · Score: 1

      I think it was around the time of the Microsoft iPod.

    3. Re:Marketing names by hairyfeet · · Score: 0

      Uhhh...I take it you haven't seen this video it may be a parody but sadly anyone who has held MSFT packaging in their hands knows it is sadly funny because it is true. I swear their marketing guys must be paid by the bullet point or something.

      As for TFA while I'm glad they are doing SOMETHING to make GFWL suck a little less if there are any MSFT devs here? Please, please for the love of puppies and kittens and great sex with your GF/wife, for the love of all that is good and decent in this world...DON'T FUCK UP WINDOWS 8!

      You finally, after all these damned years, finally get a UI that is fricking awesome. It is easy for the clueless like my dad, while breadcrumbs and the library and integrated search makes it easy for old hands like me. you already have something that works on ARM, it is called the WinPhone. If you try to shoehorn Windows onto ARM all you are gonna do is royally piss people off when they find their games and software won't run on the damned thing. Believe me I know, the local Craigslist is filled to the brim with those that bought WinMo ARM netbooks and found it won't run their software so they shitcanned it.

      So please, i know the Sweaty One is running around in a mock turtleneck and wanting to copy all things that fruit company run by the other Steve does, but just throw something shiny to distract him and let the Office guys take care of Win 8. Want a feature to get folks to buy old Hairyfeet will give you a killer one: make a simple homegroup style app that will let anyone easily connect to their work PC from home, or connect to any PC in their house. it needs to be simple, just plug in a USB dongle, put in your password, and have Win 8 do the rest. Allow seamless sharing of files, printers, all as simple as plug in a USB stick, what could be nicer?

      Look I know its tempting to try to rip the fruit company, after all it has worked for years right? But your market and the fruit buyers market in this case are just too different. The fruit buyers don't care if their programs from last year don't run, they get the latest and greatest every refresh anyway. So please, you are seeing now integration is good, and you finally have a platform to build on that doesn't suck. So from a guy that had to spend two years wiping Windows Vista to put on WinXP because people hated it just.....just don't okay?

      --
      ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
    4. Re:Marketing names by shutdown+-p+now · · Score: 1

      That brings some painful memories. When Office 2003 installed, it labelled all shortcuts like "Microsoft Office Word 2003" (before - and, in fact, after - it was just "Microsoft Word ####"). Which was longer than fits in an icon label on XP desktop, and so it trimmed them all with "...".

    5. Re:Marketing names by MrEricSir · · Score: 2

      Are you familiar with Ritalin? Ask your doctor about it ASAP, please.

      --
      There's no -1 for "I don't get it."
    6. Re:Marketing names by Ihmhi · · Score: 1

      Mic-ro-soft: Win-dows Live Hot-mail

      How's you lose the two fingers? Blogging accident?

      --
      Random Thoughts From A Diseased Mind (Not For Dummies)
    7. Re:Marketing names by tlhIngan · · Score: 1

      Uhhh...I take it you haven't seen this video it may be a parody but sadly anyone who has held MSFT packaging in their hands knows it is sadly funny because it is true. I swear their marketing guys must be paid by the bullet point or something.

      That video was produced by Microsoft's packaging design team, actually. It's a parody yes, but the reason it works so well is because it literally is what they go through doing the box designs.

      That's the reason why the design in the end was very Microsoft-ish - because if they had to do the iPod packaging, that would be how they would be commanded to do it!

    8. Re:Marketing names by Hal_Porter · · Score: 0

      I got the complete works of Mozart off PirateBay and loaded it onto a 16GB iPod. Somewhat bizarrely the iPod didn't actually attempt to scroll the long song names. iTunes took ages and ages to import the files too. Basically it was completely useless, even though on a PC Winamp played the same files really well. I could even type j[Köchel number] to navigate around.

      So I guess if you're a Apple product user you have small collections of songs with names like "Sex", "Violence", "Titties" and so on which you bought off iTunes because your friends told you to. And yeah, I'm sure they're ironically stupid songs rather than just really stupid songs.

      --
      echo -e 'global _start\n _start:\n mov eax, 2\n int 80h\n jmp _start' > a.asm; nasm a.asm -f elf; ld a.o -o a;
    9. Re:Marketing names by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes, people who listen to yesterday's equivalent of corporate Muzak are better than other people. You heard it here on Slashdot!

  5. Not enough HTPCs for that to happen by tepples · · Score: 0

    [Microsoft] should just use Steam and drop consoles.

    Two and a half years ago, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer talked about three screens in a home: PC, TV, and smartphone. True, modern TVs can display PC video, but there isn't yet enough of a home theater PC user base for Microsoft to drop consoles. I can cite several comments from CronoCloud and others stating that most people have no desire to buy another PC to hook up to the TV.

    1. Re:Not enough HTPCs for that to happen by hairyfeet · · Score: 2

      But I would argue that this is because so few people know how easy it truly is. Lately I have been building quite a few HTPCs, why? Because I had one customer who wanted a new PC but couldn't afford a new screen and I said "You have that nice new 37 inch, why not just use that?" so I built him a nice AMD quad and put a nice cheap HD4830 in it, along with getting him a wireless keyboard and mouse and the next thing I know he is bragging about it to everyone who will listen and i'm getting calls "Hey, are you that guy that was able to hook Brian's PC to his TV? Can you do that for me too?"

      It just goes to show despite my best efforts to be a "voice for the common man" that sometimes I can geek out too as I thought being able to hook a PC to a modern TV was common knowledge but apparently not. But with a wireless X360 controller and his keyboard and mouse wireless frankly he sees no need for a console now and the games are soooo much cheaper on PC. Now the only problem the guy has is trying to actually get to use his new PC, as his wife wants to do her Farmville on it, the kids of course love the picture for all their kid shows on Netflix, and now that there is wireless HDMI honestly if you have a PC less than three years old you can just wirelessly stream the HDMI straight to the set, no need to buy another.

      But when people see how cheap I can build them a new triple most are just opting to have me build them one. Hell Tigerdirect is selling 8Gb monsters for just $300, add in another $100 for Win 7 HP X64 and $50 for a nice GPU and for less than $500 you have a machine that will easily last you a decade or more as an HTPC. Just rip all your movies to the Tb HDD so you don't have to fiddle with discs and away you go!

      But I'd say TFA shows MSFT is FINALLY getting a clue that folks want integration. They want the PC, the X360, the WinPhone, all of this stuff to talk to each other while being "clicky clicky" simple. The only real stickler they have now is GFWL which frankly blows ass. They really do need to make it more like Steam as the last time I tried dealing with it (over Bioshock II) I ended up downloading the cracked version even though I bought the game because I was fighting GFWL more than the splicers! damned thing would lose connection, would say I wasn't hooked up when I was, just a royal PITA and about 180 compared to my experience with Steam. And is there an easy way to back up your games yet? One of the things I love about Steam is when I get a bigger drive I can just drop my steam folder onto it and tell Steam where it is and BOOM all my games work perfectly.

      So let us hope that this means MSFT is finally getting a clue about what folks want. They have good separate components..Win 7 is good, the X360 is good, from those that I've talked to the WinPhone is nice if not an iPhone killer, so if they can tie everything together with a pretty little bow and make it all simple it should be sweet. but never underestimate MSFT's ability to cock things up so I'll wait to pass judgement.

      --
      ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
    2. Re:Not enough HTPCs for that to happen by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      When I made the leap to HD-TV's back in 2005 (32" Samsung, cost $1600 and that was a cheaper one LOL) I noticed that there was a VGA connection, and on a whim, hooked my PC up to it.

      Haven't looked back since (although now I'm running a 52"). With the Wireless Xbox Controller, a mouse, and keyboard, there's really no reason not to. With emulators I have access to every legacy game I want up to, and including, the Wii, and even better, if you have bluetooth and a wireless sensor bar you can sync the Wiimote to your PC and using some freeware (GlovePIE) turn it into a Gyration style motion sensitive aerial mouse.

      Whenever people come to my house, they're always amazed at how integrated it all is and how easily it all works together.

  6. App Store® by tepples · · Score: 1

    When did Microsoft stop using simple names like "Paint" and "Write" and come up with ridiculously long marketing names that have more syllables than I have fingers?

    Part of it might have something to do with Microsoft's competitors registering trademarks on arguably descriptive names such as "Game Center" and "App Store".

  7. future path by statsone · · Score: 0

    so is the xbox platform now going to be the main channel for gaming for microsoft? If so, you will see less support for windows based games from microsoft.

  8. It isn't just Xbox... by Spicerun · · Score: 0

    I got a notice to upgrade my Skype to add Games for Windows there as well. Anyone else get that notice? So the demise of Skype begins....

    1. Re:It isn't just Xbox... by Kalriath · · Score: 2

      No you didn't. Skype games is something completely different and nothing to do with Microsoft. But don't let that ruin your hating.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
  9. well MS does make the software for U-verse by Joe_Dragon · · Score: 2

    well MS does make the software base for U-verse and other systems that use the same tech.

    Directv media share lets you play some content from your pc on your TV.

    As for cable. Cable card has been mostly a bust with the cable co's doing a poor job and they push you to use there box and even if you get a cable the lack of VOD and then need for SDV tuners add on's for SDV systems.

  10. dont care by Osgeld · · Score: 1

    wont use it as long as "games for windows" requires me to log in for a single player game, and then freezes my computer the instant my internet connection has a long ping

    1. Re:dont care by Xest · · Score: 1

      That's not GfW, that's some game building DRM around it.

      It's also unfortunately not a GfW games problem, more and more DRM does this type of thing.

      The real problem here is bad DRM (or, well, DRM in general).

    2. Re:dont care by Osgeld · · Score: 1

      yea its DRM tied to Games for Windows, that wants to track every single pixel and bullet fired to hand you out retard acheivements

    3. Re:dont care by Xest · · Score: 2

      No, it's not. Trust me, I've developed with this API, the GfW DRM does not do that, that's external DRM implemented by the company who made the game.

      Achievements are triggered by simple API calls that do not require anything like that kind of invasiveness.

    4. Re:dont care by Osgeld · · Score: 1

      SO your telling me if I fire up a games for windows without my network connected it will not tell me I need to sign in to be able to save my single player game? false

      or if your in that game and I yank network the very first thing that happens after the game freezes that games for windows will not pop up asking me to sign back in before continuing?

      again false, I own 4 GFW and they all do this, and it was very fucking annoying when we were out in the country with radio based internet so I stopped buying the shit things

  11. Dear Game for Windows LIVE, by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Please die in a fire.

  12. Don't ever, ever, ever give them your credit card by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    You've been warned.

  13. How is this news? by ChromeBallz · · Score: 1

    How is this news?

    The Xbox and GFW marketplaces have technically been the same anyway (the entire services have been), Microsoft simply let the GFW service run after the xbox service instead of letting it develop on its own which caused a lot of the initial problems (and still does for some). GFW also doesn't have dedicated support, the Xbox crew does that all.

    I guess they just wanted to make it official, at least as far as the marketplaces are concerned, that the PC service is just a peripheral 'thing' of the Xbox service.

  14. I'm not a huge gamer, but by Joe+Snipe · · Score: 1

    I had no idea Gamesforwindows.com was even a place...

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    Sometimes, life itself is sarcasm...
    1. Re:I'm not a huge gamer, but by xhrit · · Score: 1

      That's nothing. I *am* a huge gamer and I had no idea Gamesforwindows.com was even a place.

      --
      Dungeon Tactics : Free Open Source SRPG
  15. Microsoft and Games by ooh456 · · Score: 2

    Gaming is the only clear advantage that Windows still holds over OS X and Linux. That's why it's so surprising that MS has been trying so hard to kill its own PC gaming lead. What do they really expect to happen after that? I still love Windows gaming and I love XBOX, but for all other uses I will go for my Mac or Linux computers. How do I mean MS is trying to kill gaming on Windows? Easy. MS doesn't even release it's own games on Windows anymore! No recent Halo games on PC. What? No Gear of War 2 on PC. Why? Add to this lack of any serious innovation in Direct X besides prettier water in every release. Then MS allows themselves to be curb-stomped by Steam. IMO Windows Live always felt like more of a bug than a feature. It just crashed and annoyed more than it worked.I guess they are really giving up now. It's other companies that are really keeping PC gaming alive now. MS you really blew it you losers.

    1. Re:Microsoft and Games by pandrijeczko · · Score: 1

      I think Microsoft started making bad decisions over games when they decided not to release DirectX 10/11 for Windows XP.

      With console gaming already accelerating at a huge rate at that time, forcing people to buy Vista or Windows 7 just to play new games with the latest graphics technology just forced a lot of people who probably wouldn't normally console game to scrap gaming on Windows completely and just buy a PS3 or X-Box.

      Still, the one good thing that may come from this for gaming is that if gaming on Windows still continues to decline, then Microsoft will probably stop with DirectX altogether because it won't be profitable - that will open the door more for OpenGL and cross-platform gaming.

      --
      Gentoo Linux - another day, another USE flag.
    2. Re:Microsoft and Games by kevinmenzel · · Score: 1

      Yes, because if there's any crowd that has a reputation of being adverse to spending obscene amounts of money on the latest and greatest everything for their PCs it's PC gamers...

      XP was old when Vista came out. XP is archaic now. Move on. Fight other battles.

    3. Re:Microsoft and Games by Elbart · · Score: 1

      Apple has PPC-whiners, Microsoft XP-whiners.

    4. Re:Microsoft and Games by pandrijeczko · · Score: 1

      It's probably time for your medication, by the sounds of it.

      For your information, my comment was a "tell it like I see it" comment rather than "I've got sour grapes" comment - personally, I could care less about DirectX 10 or 11 because I probably buy no more than 1 or 2 "hot off the presses" PC games a year. I'm actually 80% Linux user to 20% Windows user, I tend to enjoy older and retro games these days, and therefore I have found no good reason to move from XP because it more than happily copes with the stuff that Linux doesn't do or that it does better.

      Please do NOT tar everyone with the same brush of an OS zealot - to me an OS is a productivity and entertainment platform, and I just use the best tool for the job when I need to.

      So go try and goad someone, else, I'm immune to trolling.

      --
      Gentoo Linux - another day, another USE flag.
    5. Re:Microsoft and Games by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Gears is made by Epic, not Microsoft. Gears 2 is not on Windows because no one bought the first Gears for Windows.

    6. Re:Microsoft and Games by ooh456 · · Score: 1

      My point still stands. MS paid Epic and was the official publisher of Gears. No one bought PC Gears because it came out a year later with no marketing or improvements. MS was for a while, trying to kill its own PC gaming lead in order to support XBOX sales. Want to play Gears? Want to play Halo? Get an XBOX. Otherwise stfu. The verdict: MS PC gaming strategy is run by a bunch of XBOX marketing choads.

  16. Wow... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I remember reading this kind of thing back in the day when XBL was launching at E3. Buy games/content once on PC or Xbox, get it on the other free. Good to see Valve kina lit a fire under someones ass with mac & pc compat with many games.