Right, so don't get an Xbox One. Also, a PS4 may not be a good idea since it will also have cloud enabled games in the future. WiiU ahoy! If you don't have the requirements, your options are to meet the requirements or simply not upgrade your console. At some point in the near future, Internet connection will be a requirement for more than just consoles. Microsoft is jumping the gun and making people mad, but it's a reality we'll all face sooner or later.

[quote]Right, so don't get an Xbox One[/quote] Exactly.

Yeah, this post wasn't saying everyone should buy an XB1, just saying that their online requirement isn't as outrageous as everyone says it is. :)

You know, I had formulated a good argument against this a couple days ago and now I just can't put it in words. So until I can, I'll just say this: What I agree with: If you don't like the connected policy of the XB1, it's not the console for you. What I disagree with: Always-connected is the way of the future. I see way more power and meaning in a device that is [i]capable[/i] while offline (in any sense of the word) than a device that isn't. The way of the future... the way of the future... the way of the future..

That's a fair opinion, but it simply doesn't reflect the way that technology is changing and advancing. The world is becoming more connected, and products are reflecting that. Hell, nowadays you can buy washing machine and refrigerators that are connected online! As internet fidelity improves, more technology will start relying on it. Am I saying this is a great idea? Not at all. It's just the reality of the world we're living in.

Well that would be the basis of my argument; just because technology is heading in that direction does not mean that it's the direction it should head in, nor is it reasonable. It paves the way for having sets of tech that only work under very restrictive criteria, and quite frankly that's just -blam!-ing lame. It makes sense for a cellphone, because it's a damn cellphone. But other tech? Not necessarily. Obviously I'm not in charge of the companies that are in the position to make such changes, but someone's power as a consumer is to be intelligent enough* to recognize bad decisions by those who ARE in charge and not buy their products. It's less of an issue of not buying it because "I don't like it", but more of an issue of not buying it because "it's not the direction this tech should make." This boils down to opinion, as always, but I firmly believe that online-only is not a smart idea outside of communication and MMOs, in the long-term. * yeah right.

How is it "highly restrictive" if it's a readily available technology that soon almost everyone in the world (at least in 1st world countries) will have access to? Again, with a cell phone, it is "restricted" to being used on a cell network, which is why network coverage is growing rapidly. The Xbox One is "restricted" to an internet connection, one that is generally readily available in homes where it is meant to stay. Sure, someone can take their cell phone out of network coverage, but it won't work. Sure, someone could choose to take their Xbox One to some remote area without internet, and yeah, it won't work. Both situations are not common, and not preferable, so why would someone do it? All technology has limits, and as a society we have learned to live within these limits. Just because something has limits doesn't make it "restrictive". I guess to me I see your argument as the mountain from a mole hill type. Most people have internet at home. The Xbox One is a device meant to be in your home. I don't see this is as restrictive for the vast majority of people who buy and use consoles.

I meant restrictive in the sense that if something happens to your internet connection you now have a useless device. For a cellphone or smartphone, whatever, fine; they're communication designed to require an active network of sorts [i]because[/i] that's how you communicate efficiently. For a console? It just seems like "hey, this works offline!" is becoming an [i]extra[/i] feature, and that shouldn't be the case. One thing I should be able to do offline for an all-in-one home entertainment console (because it's not just games anymore, clearly) is [i]install and watch movies[/i]. DVDs may go out of style, but locally-played media? Do you really think that the direction technology should go in should get rid of such features? I actually really enjoy not having to log onto my XBL account when I watch a DVD on my xbox. MS can put as many online features as they want in the console, but it should still maintain flexibility in some sense...

Again I understand where you're coming from, but the reality is technology advances, whether or not people think it "should". I'm sure lots of people thought that they should still be able to use their VHS tape libraries when DVDs came out. I'm sure lots of people thought that cable shouldn't have switched to digital because of all the TVs out there that don't support the signal yet. Whenever technology progresses, there are those who wish it wasn't so. In this case, you believe devices shouldn't require an active internet connection to work. Sadly for you, that's the way things are going. All that said.... [url=http://kotaku.com/microsoft-is-removing-xbox-one-drm-514390310]WTTTFFFFFF[/url]