Xbox 720 Might Reject Used Games

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Xbox 720 Might Reject Used Games

Posted by timothy on Thursday January 26, 2012 @06:36AM from the insert-coin-to-continue dept.

silentbrad writes "Online passes are a recent staple in staving off used sales. Limiting what used buyers can access is a protective measure for publishers, much to the chagrin of parts of the gaming community. Chris Kohler of Wired argues that the death of used games is inevitable, and passes are the first step toward something exactly like a native anti-used game something integrated into consoles. He notes, of course, that digital is the future of buying games, but in the meantime we may be looking at 'an interim period in which the disc as a delivery method is still around but ... becomes more like a PC game, which are sold with one-time-use keys that grant one owner a license to play the game on his machine.' Also at Kotaku, the source for the Wired article (which is the source for the IGN article)."

45 of 543 comments (clear)

You know why they call it Xbox 720 by Anonymous Coward · 2012-01-26 06:38 · Score: 5, Funny

Because you should turn around twice and walk away.
1. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by Anonymous Coward · 2012-01-26 06:43 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  goddamnit if you started facing it you'd just turn around twice and walk into it.
2. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by tripleevenfall · 2012-01-26 06:52 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  Personally, the online keys were the last straw for me.
  The fact that used games were available at half price was the reason I was playing in the first place. I trade the first 6-12 months of a game's release for the discount. I wouldn't pay $60 to cram into Modern Warfare on release day with everyone else anyway.
  This is the miscalculation the game companies are making - they won't be able to force us into playing $60 and up for games we'd previously bought used for $30, we just won't play the games at all.
  They are also missing the point that the presence of a used market drives sales, because you aren't so skittish about blowing $60 on a game if you know you can recoup some of that later.
  This is a bad idea. I know that suits and PHB's think "Well, they can't get used games anymore - they'll buy the full priced ones instead!" but they've got another thing coming.
3. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by Anonymous Coward · 2012-01-26 07:04 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  Game companies don't care that you won't pay $30 for the used game anymore. Remember, THEY don't get that $30. They get NONE of it. To them, this is perfectly fine.
  I'm not saying that they should be doing this, I'm just saying they did think it through.
4. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by St.Creed · 2012-01-26 07:04 · Score: 5, Interesting
  
  You're very right. The automotive industry does its best to maintain the used car market precisely because of this reason: if buyers of new cars don't have an outlet for their cars, they stop buying new cars every 2-3 years but instead drop down to buying one every 10 (or even more) years. Not good.
  I'm guessing that any drop in sales will be blamed on piracy though, instead of the retarded policies of the gaming industry.
  
  --
  Therefore, by the (faulty) logic you're using, you're just a cow with a keyboard - osu-neko (2604)
5. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by Grishnakh · 2012-01-26 07:13 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  What you're missing is that, without a used market for buyers of new games to recoup some of the cost of their unwanted games with, they simply won't buy as many new games.
6. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by AngryDeuce · 2012-01-26 07:15 · Score: 5, Interesting
  
  Not to mention the other "used market" on The Pirate Bay.
  Well, unless they're going to create the first unhackable/unmoddable console in history. In that case, consider the gauntlet thrown down, Microsoft...
  You want to sell more new copies of a game? Have a non-insane pricing plan that actually decreases the cost of new games progressively as time goes on. Yes, I know they have the "Greatest Hits" line, but honestly most games they ever add to that are the ones that sold so many copies new that Gamestop won't even buy them due to having a dozen copies already they can't get rid of at $10 a piece.
  If these guys started giving the consumer incentive, rather than treating them as adversaries so often by locking them out of their own hardware/software, they would probably sell a lot more, but I doubt they'll ever try, so we'll never know...
7. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by bondsbw · 2012-01-26 07:16 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  It's not just about the cost. Today's games also focus on building up a community. Even games like Halo have a huge following of people who play just to have fun with their friends, and who would never play if not for that social interaction. (I am one of them.)
  If Joe Blow can't buy a reduced-cost copy of Halo, he won't be part of the growth of such a community. And if I can't sell my copy, I might not be willing to try it out to begin with.
  
  --
  All my liberal friends think I'm a conservative, all my conservative friends think I'm a liberal.
8. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by tripleevenfall · 2012-01-26 07:18 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  Without a used market they won't sell me a new console, controllers, etc.; they'll lose revenue on the few games I would actually buy new; they'd lose any money I might spend on digital purchases as well.
  There's also the risk I would be driven to a competitor's product, or lose interest in gaming altogether, which costs them down the road.
9. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by rogueippacket · 2012-01-26 07:26 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  Further to the point, they are going to wipe out brick-and-mortar distribution stores overnight - used games and warranties are the only things keeping those stores afloat today. These publishers better be ready for digital-only distribution the day they do this, but even then, they will have severely limited accessibility to their product. Weekend browsers, impulse shoppers, kids without credit cards, and parents shopping for their kids will all be impacted, and these are fairly large groups. Some consumers will adapt, but most will just move to platforms which provide greater value (99c iOS Apps, anyone?) for less hassle.
  Now, I'm not saying that cutting out the middleman is a bad thing - Steam did this quite well, and to the benefit of everyone through their legendary Steam Sales. But I can't see a market dominated by big players accustomed to $60 price points adapting before their agile competitors snap-up a good chunk of their alleged profit.
10. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by Anonymous Coward · 2012-01-26 07:32 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  Like St. Creed says below, the used game market helps drive the new game market.
  If Person A buys a game for $60 because they know they can sell it to "Used Game Store" for $20 when they get bored with it, then that's $60 in "Game Company Pocket". If Person A wouldn't buy the game for $60 if they couldn't sell it for $20, then that $60 that would have gone to "Game Company Pocket" never gets there.
  Person B will by the game for $60 anyway.
  Person C will buy the game for $30, putting $10 in "Used Game Store Pockets" and driving Person A to buy more games at $60. Person C may find new publishers/series, and may at some time buy a $60 game.
11. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by s73v3r · 2012-01-26 07:42 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  I would like to see numbers on how true this is. I don't think a lot of people buy games with the intent of trading it in later.
12. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by Translation+Error · 2012-01-26 07:47 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  Well, realistically, that's probably what most people will do--drool over the shiny new system, loudly proclaim they're not going to buy it if it won't play used games, turn their back for a while before drooling over it again a couple of times, and then go ahead and buy it.
  
  --
  When someone says, "Any fool can see ..." they're usually exactly right.
13. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by Grishnakh · 2012-01-26 07:51 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  It's true for used cars, why wouldn't it be true for games? You think teenagers and 20-somethings have tons of cash to buy games and then throw them away if they don't like them or are done with them?
14. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by tripleevenfall · 2012-01-26 07:58 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  Some of us want a more robust gaming experience than TuxSweeper, et al
15. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by ColdWetDog · 2012-01-26 08:03 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  It's true for used cars, why wouldn't it be true for games?
  Because cars cost lots more than games.
  
  --
  Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
16. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by Telvin_3d · 2012-01-26 08:11 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  Because the stores don't pay very much for used games. The used game that you bought for $30 (instead of $45 new or probably $20 on a Steam sale), the store paid $5. At most. Yes, the stores will occasionally pay as much as $10 for new and hot titles, but those get sold used for as little as $5 off the price of a new copy.
  The used games stores are bad for the industry. All the bad things that publishers say about games piracy? The loss of sales and money being diverted away from the people who make the games? The need to jack up prices to make up for sales lost due to alternate means of acquisition? All that shit is actually true about the used games industry. With the kicker that the people lost to the used games pawnbrokers are actually paying customers, which is something you can't say about the pirates.
17. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by localman57 · 2012-01-26 08:14 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  The sales that will be lost are not the initial ones but the subsequent ones where gamers are applying their trade-in value to lower the cost.
  Except that that's also the wrong way to thing about it. After Gamestop or whoever gives you that credit for your used game, they don't take it out back and set it on fire. They sell it to someone else, at a discounted price. Compare that to Steam, where you can go and buy old games for like $10 or $20 (Which I generally find to be a better value than the used console games at the Used Game stores). The publishers get a big hunk of that money. Consider If you trade in Awesome Game 2, and Get a credit for Awesome Game 3, from EA's point of view, vs if you just buy Awesome Game 3. They make the same amount of money on Awesome Game 3, but lose the ability to sell Awesome Game 2 at a discount to someone who would buy it via Steam or similar.
  
  Ultimately, the distribution cost via digital is almost negligible. Expect EA to price games based on formula P * Q = R where P is price per game, Q is quantity sold, and R is revenue. There's some P which results in a maximum R. Then, factor in the sales they'll make after release, where P decreases over time. These are where the real advantage for publishers come in with one-time buys, as this revenue is icing on the cake. Eventually, they then sell the whole thing to some 3rd party for a lump sum, like Microsoft does with its old Flight Sim / AOE titles.
18. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by localman57 · 2012-01-26 08:19 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  Also, cut and pasting an Amazon.com really long, annoying code into Steam or Origin is a heck of a lot less annoying than typing one in using a XBox 360 or PS3 controller. I don't actually see a lot of people putting up with this.
  These are easily solved technical problems. For instance, consider if the manufacturer printed the code as a QR code on a 5"x5" piece of paper that you just hold up in front of a Kinect.
19. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by GuldKalle · 2012-01-26 08:32 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  Depends.
  Old car: $2000 / 1000 kg
  Old game: $20 / 100 gram
  Games are worth 100 times more than cars.
  
  --
  What?
20. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by Pentium100 · 2012-01-26 08:37 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  The same can be said about used cars, PCs, electronics, almost any physical object, so what? The way I see it, the industry wants to have it both ways:
  When piracy is concerned, the industry says "a copy of a game is a product, pirating it is pretty much like stealing a DVD (or a car)". OK, so I guess my copy of the game is just another physical object and I should treat it like that (after all, I do not copy a lot of physical objects).
  So, selling a used physical object is perfectly fine - I can sell (or buy) a used car, a tape deck, a PC and many other things. I have bought a lot of used equipment, mostly because I cannot afford new one or it is no longer made. So, if a copy of the game should be treated as a physical object, then it should be perfectly fine for me to sell it or give it away, assuming, of course, that I did not keep a "backup". Except that the industry really does not like it and takes steps to prevent it and make it so when I buy a game, I'm stuck with it forever. When I buy a TV and it turns out I do not like it I can return it (within 14 days) or sell it at a lower price - taking a loss, but still recouping some of the money paid.
  You don't hear Intel bitching about all those used PCs sold to people. Or Mercedes bitching about used cars. Or just old cars, the way Microsoft is bitching about the fact that people still use Windows XP and *gasp* do not want to pay them money for a slightly better OS.
21. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by stevenvi · 2012-01-26 08:59 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  Because the stores don't pay very much for used games.
  Indeed, but you're forgetting that you can bypass used game stores and sell directly with sites such as Amazon, half.com, ebay, etc.
  So, for example, when I buy a used game for $30 -- because I never buy brand new games, and I don't care to play online anyways, I can sell it again in a few weeks for approximately the same price, minus the cost of shipping.
  
  The used games stores are bad for the industry.
  I disagree. If buying new were the only option I had, I would simply do without. It's the same argument for pirates -- if they had to pay full price, they'd simply do without. This isn't something that I personally lose any sleep over. It's very easy to stop consuming (overpriced) entertainment, and there are many alternatives in the world to occupy one's time with.
  Fair disclosure: I'm a software developer in the video games industry. (And I'm supposed to be writing some code right now. :-X)
22. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by Kjella · 2012-01-26 09:15 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  Yeah, that's stupid. They are both luxury items, especially when new. Or maybe you think the 75% of the world that doesn't own a car isn't getting by at all.
  Does not own a car != does not have access to a car. A couple with children that share a car have as far as I consider it all a car, so you can multiply the 1 billion plus cars with a pretty big factor. I don't own a car but it's because I live in a fairly big city with good public transportation so I only exceptionally need one and I have family I can borrow from and several leasing/pooling options as well. That does not in any way mean I consider cars as a luxury. I consider it a basic transportation tool that I happen to not have any need for on a daily basis. I think it comes down to your meaning of luxury, yes people lived before refrigerators, washing machines, dishwashers, microwaves, TV, radio, computers, cell phones and even electricity. Some people still do, but does that mean billions are living in luxury today?
  Standards change, 20 years ago having a cell phone was a luxury. Today there's over 5 billion cell phone subscriptions (july 2010) and it's the standard of living for all but the poorest people on earth, and even they typically share one in some form. Cars have long ceased to be any form of luxury in any sense I'd care to define it. It has become the backbone of society that let people get around and if you don't have one because you can't afford one even though there's not any good alternatives then you are poor, not missing a luxury. Society adapts too, when so many drive to the store it becomes longer between shops. Workplaces place themselves in commuting distances, not walking distances. In many rural areas it's now difficult to function in society without a car, it might not strictly be a necessity but your quality of life will be greatly diminished without one.
  
  --
  Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
23. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by KhabaLox · 2012-01-26 11:09 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  (after all, I do not copy a lot of physical objects).
  My wife and I made two little copies of me.
  
  --
  Ceci n'est pas un sig.
24. Re:You know why they call it Xbox 720 by SeaFox · 2012-01-26 19:25 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  Yeah. Teenagers should stop buying video games and instead save up for a car.
  When was the last time you heard of someone getting laid with their new video game, anyway?
Every new generation by FrYGuY101 · 2012-01-26 06:41 · Score: 5, Interesting

"Hey the PS2 is going to prevent you from playing used games!"

Oops, no, you can just fine...

"Hey, the PS3 is going to prevent you from playing used games!"

Nope, wrong again...

"Hey, the next Xbox is going to prevent you from playing used games!"

At this point, I'm convinced it's just a way for the hardware people to wrangle a little bit extra developer support before launch, where inevitably they aren't stupid enough to do something that would alienate their core market...

--
"If we let things terrify us, life will not be worth living."

- Seneca
Re:What about Sony et al? by rtfa-troll · 2012-01-26 06:44 · Score: 4, Informative

Why is the headline of this article focussed on Microsoft and the Xbox 720? Surely this is pure conjecture and can just as easily be applied to *any* PC or console game? I haven't RTFA as it'll be a load of made-up crap by the author.
Yes; it does seem that reading is a skill beyond many of the people stepping up to defend Microsoft from this accusation. From the fine article:

“I’ve heard from one reliable industry source that Microsoft intends to incorporate some sort of anti-used game system as part of their so-called Xbox 720,” Kotaku’s Steven Totilo wrote on Wednesday morning.

--
=~ s,(.*),<sarcasm>$1</sarcasm>,g if any_point_you_wish();
not too good for archiving by Trepidity · 2012-01-26 06:45 · Score: 5, Interesting

After some years of neglect, since the late 1990s some libraries, universities, and other cultural organizations have realized that videogames are an important cultural artifact, so are worth preserving just like films and other bits of culture are. There are now things like this at Stanford, and quite a few others. These are usually put together by buying used arcade cabinets, cartridges, CDs, etc., from anything from flea markets to eBay (in addition to donations from individuals and collectors).
Videogame makers seem to be doing whatever they possibly can to make this as difficult as possible, especially for organizations like libraries that need to follow the law. It seems like if videogames are actually documented/preserved as interesting cultural artifacts, it's going to be by less-official organizations that crack them.

--
10 PRINT CHR$(205.5+RND(1)); : GOTO 10
Kill Used Games? Say Hello to Piracy by decipher_saint · 2012-01-26 06:45 · Score: 5, Insightful

If the secondary market becomes impossible, piracy will spring up to take its place, if anything else to increase availability of hard to find titles.

--
crazy dynamite monkey
1. Re:Kill Used Games? Say Hello to Piracy by The+MAZZTer · 2012-01-26 06:58 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  I believe at least one publisher has stated used games are a BIGGER problem for them than piracy. They receive no money for either one, but used games are legal and you can just walk into a store and buy one so it's more accessible for more people. It would not surprise me if devs are trying to kill them, though obviously they have to be careful or else lawsuits will likely be thrown their way (perhaps legitimately so, I should be able to resell my own property that I don't use anymore).
no used games is less new games sold by alen · 2012-01-26 06:46 · Score: 4, Insightful

2010 bought x-box
bought Black Ops
played it, sold it and bought GoW new double pack
played it sold it and bought new copies of ME1 and ME2
if i have to pay $60 for games, and no resale then i'll buy a few games like ME or Dragon Age where you can replay with different characters to get some value
or just keep playing x-box 360 games. lots of GOTY and other super editions with DLC and add ones out there for CHEAP.
In related news by Lectoid · 2012-01-26 06:46 · Score: 5, Insightful

In related news, Gamers might reject the Xbox 720

--
Is it just me, or do you hate it when people say "Is it just me..."?
This idea they have is worthless by Howitzer86 · 2012-01-26 06:49 · Score: 5, Insightful

So in the future, lets say... 18 years from now, you won't be able to legally play that game that came out in 2013 because there are no more keys left and the servers are down. You might still have the console, and the disk, and perhaps you paid money for it, but with that game, with that anti-used-game protection, it's useless. And of course, going around the copy protection would be the only way to play it again, which is illegal.
Where is in modern times, you can play an 18 year old game without breaking any laws. Buy a Sega Genesis or a Saturn, buy the game, and so long as it isn't scratched up you can have a nostalgiagasm.
It stinks, won't stop anybody, and make criminals out of everybody, eventually. This idea is worthless.
Re:What about Sony et al? by bonch · 2012-01-26 06:52 · Score: 5, Interesting

Why is the headline of this article focussed on Microsoft and the Xbox 720?
Because the article is about Microsoft and the Xbox 720. Because the source of the article is about Microsoft and the Xbox 720.

I haven't RTFA as it'll be a load of made-up crap by the author.
You'd be amazed at what you can learn when you RTFA instead of posting a knee-jerk reaction.
Re:What about Sony et al? by tripleevenfall · 2012-01-26 06:55 · Score: 4, Insightful

You're beyond the pale of /. orthodoxy.
Microsoft is the enduring force for truth, justice, and the American way - in the console market. Sony is the devilish corporatist plutocrat outfit in this sector that we love to hate. If you want free mod-ups, you have to bash Sony in game threads, MSFT in PC threads :)
Not 100% the best way to go by Anonymous Coward · 2012-01-26 06:56 · Score: 4, Interesting

Limiting features based on not having a key is a better idea.
Such as limiting a certain number of weapons to be held, or certain number of AI bots in a game, or even limiting the game up to a certain point, removing side-quests, etc.
It would give more reason for people to want to buy the game first, or get a new key.
Getting rid of brick and mortar stores is a terrible thing for them and the industry, as is going entirely digital.
A lot of companies make a large chunk of money on limited editions and the like, such as coming with original artwork (or rather, scanned original artwork), some models, whatever.
Not only that, getting rid of them would be getting rid of a large chunk of your market because NO sane person is going to sit and download their double-digit gigabyte games.
What with bandwidth caps and slow speeds, and of course the triple digit numbers of people ALL DOING IT AT ONCE, yeah, come back in a couple decades when the backbones of most countries aren't made out of crap.
Better idea, CDN in each country. Each store signs up for a licence to have a hub installed in their store. This then downloads the games to them on release. People can come in with some memory device (SSD, HDD, flash, whatever), pop the game on, it gets copied, take it home, copy to console, done.
If they have no device, they rent a device from the store to take it home. (this could be an avenue for the stores to make a bit of money for those who have no memory storage)
You could also allow sync to be done via this method. They hop on over to the store, they upload their achievements and the like to the hub. It all gets uploaded at off-peak times at once.
Obviously there is a lot to workout with such a system, but it is better than telling your fans with no internet to beat it.
You now have the best of both worlds, people who can internet and people who don't have decent internet or none at all.
The fact that Steam, PSN, XBL all suffer bad times even with upper-average traffic, what makes you think it'd hold up against everyone ever on those services using it all at once?
They'd literally DDoS the poor servers, which I can't count how many times has happened when, say, a new huge game has came out on Steam. Switching locations like a madman to find something that will at least work, even if slow as hell.
They'd have to have an insane number of load-balancing at the front of the network to prevent it dying so hard.
note: I always buy brand new wherever I can.
What about game rentals? by lazycam · 2012-01-26 06:57 · Score: 5, Interesting

I know it's a small part of their business, but how will this decision affect a rental company like RedBox. The other day I noticed they rented out titles like Skyrim and Call of Duty. Moreover, what about companies like Gamefly, whose entire business model is based on the ability to share titles? Along with regular customers, I imagine these companies will not go down without a fight.

--
my mom posts on slashdot.
Killing Used Games Kill Sales of New Games by Jah-Wren+Ryel · 2012-01-26 07:00 · Score: 5, Insightful

KIlling the used game market is going to backfire because the sale of used games subsidizes the purchase of new games. A lot of people make the calculation that they can buy a ~$50 game, play it until they are tired of it and then sell it for ~$20 - making the effective price only $30.
If the publishers make it impossible to resell that game, that amounts to nearly a doubling of the price for a new game and thus a lot less people will be able to afford it. These game publishers should be care what they wish for.

--
When information is power, privacy is freedom.
Incorporate by PPH · 2012-01-26 07:10 · Score: 5, Interesting

Create a corporation*, purchase the XBox and games through the corporation. When you want to sell, you transfer the equity in the corporation to the new owner. The h/w and s/w never change hands.
Watch Microsoft fight a couple of hundred years of corporate law. Sit back. Laugh.
*Yeah, I know. This will be prohibitively expensive for something like a couple of games.

--
Have gnu, will travel.
Same for CDs by Anonymous Coward · 2012-01-26 07:13 · Score: 5, Interesting

I haven't bought a new CD (music album) in about 10 years. In that time, however, I have bought over 100 used CDs, averaging about $5 each, from online stores like secondspin.com. I simply unpack them, record each album to my FLAC archive, and put the disc/inserts away for storage. I keep a list of CDs I might want to buy and about twice a year I order a new batch of 10-15 albums. This has proven to be a great way of acquiring new music, and the best part is that I get the actual physical albums. I don't even care if they have a few scratches (most don't), as long as they record perfectly.
In conclusion, I feel damn good about sticking it to a corrupt industry backed by a corrupt government.
Next, ban old games by residieu · 2012-01-26 07:18 · Score: 4, Insightful

Next up. Madden 2014 will stop working when Madden 2015 is released. People who keep playing old games are picking the pockets of the developers. They're still playing old games when they could be buying the new versions and playing those.
Used game sales = new game sales by billcopc · 2012-01-26 07:26 · Score: 5, Insightful

How can these corporate dunces not understand that the used game market is what fuels new game sales ?
On the few occasions where I've sold a game, in my case it's because I didn't like it, and wanted to free up those funds to buy something else. My most recent example was last year's Splinter Cell game (which I dubbed "Gears of Splinter Cell"). I spent $60 on it, didn't like it, sold it to someone else for $45 or so. Then I turned around and spent another $70 on Black Ops. So far, the game industry has made $130.
If I were unable to sell the game, due to arbitrary restrictions enforced by the platform, the other guy would not have gotten his hands on my unloved Splinter Cell, and I would have had $45 less to spend on my next game. Restricting that private sale then directly results in one less retail sale.
Now, I only rarely sell games. I'm more of a collector, and I like to revisit old games every few years. I can afford it, so I'm not the typical used-game-market kind of guy. A lot of my friends are, though, and they rarely have more than 4-5 games in their possession at any given time. They beat one, sell/trade it, get a new one. That's the key factor: they keep buying new ones with the money from used sales!
The people who are buying used games ? They're not even on the radar. $70 for a video game is fucking expensive, considering most modern titles are hastily-polished turds. About half gamer guys I know in the 25-35 age range are broke asses, working retail jobs and having less than $200 left after rent and necessities. The used market is the only way they can afford any games, so they may not contribute directly to the game industry's bottom line, but it keeps them addicted. How often have I heard these guys go "Man when I get a 2nd job I am so buying a PS3"... but kill off the used game market and these folks will find other hobbies, and you lose them as a customer for life!

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-Billco, Fnarg.com
MS: still thoroughly evil by Teckla · 2012-01-26 07:51 · Score: 4, Insightful

Microsoft is still impressively thoroughly evil. This is just more of the same.
You can't even stream Netflix with your Xbox 360 without subscribing to Xbox Live.
There is no good reason for this, except Microsoft being greedy, evil bastards.
Should be illegal !! by fish_in_the_c · 2012-01-26 07:55 · Score: 4, Interesting

Attempting to keep control of a product you sell and prevent it's resale is bad for the economy and should be illegal, as it destroys whole ecosystems of commerce.
I'm sure cloth retailers would love to put used cloths stores out of business.
Do you think it would work if they started including a license with their cloth that required the item to be returned to them and not resold? I mean , just because you pay for it , is no excuse to think you own it or have the right to modify it , right?
How about care manufactures, do you think people would put up with having to sign a license agreement for that required you to always have your car serviced at the dealership and return it to the dealer rather then discard it so as to protect 'their engineering' .
Not that they haven't tired, there is all kinds of poor engineering that has cost car companies lots of rep and lots of money , in attempts to prevent people from fixing things themselves. Now with all the computers and key fobs etc they are starting to finally have some success. That should also be illegal.

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âoeTolerance applies only to persons, but never to truth. Intolerance applies only to truth, but never to persons.
Re:Steam ain't any better by grumbel · 2012-01-26 07:55 · Score: 4, Informative

To quote from the page you linked:

Does Steam Trading mean I can sell my used games?
No, only games that have been bought as a gift, and thus have never been played, can be traded. Once the Steam Gift is opened and added to your game library, you won’t be able to trade it again.