Get banned on your Xbox One? Say good-bye to your games!

[Woodsey]

Isn't this exactly the same with Steam and Origin? I don't see what's bad about it. It should help prevent hacking in multiplayer games and hopefully make the community more civil seeing as there is an actual risk in being an asshole.

Then there is also the point they didn't say what is necessary for a ban. It most likely wont be for small stuff like occasional swearing on xbox live but might happen if you act like a total ass to many people and it takes a significant reason (death threats or something).

Steam just locks you out of other Steam features, not playing the games you've paid real money for. Banning people from playing multiplayer on a game is one thing, banning people from all of their games for being a dick is another. And of course, mistakes happen.

 

[Requia]

Isn't this exactly the same with Steam and Origin? I don't see what's bad about it. It should help prevent hacking in multiplayer games and hopefully make the community more civil seeing as there is an actual risk in being an asshole.

It's worse on Origin because forum ban = account ban, on Steam bans are only usually handed out for large amounts of scamming or if you try a chargeback.

EA reversed that.

 

[conmag9]

While I'm all for a little less vitriol with multiplayer, this is NOT the way to do it. Especially since there's no way you're going to avoid all the false positives/hypersensitive mods/outright lies that can lock you away from things you paid for.

A simple mute function or perhaps a "vote to kick player" sort of thing from any given session would be enough, perhaps with a little option after the match to permanently avoid playing with that individual.

 

[somonels]

That's hilarious coming from a company with a history of wrongful bans. I hope they keep it up, hate to see them be successful anywhere.

Get reported for beating some kids and they claim you abused them with live chat? Not likely but still would be really really sucky

That will never happen. They save the audio logs on NSA servers to help clear the names of report-abused suspects.

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

Getting banned on Steam does the same, as does Origin. Don't do dumb shit to get banned. Plain and simple.

 

[xPixelatedx]

Ah well Microsoft does something right. This should reduce the number of hackers, and people throwing around racial abuse on vice chat.

Finally some good publicity for them, it may be too little, too late though.

This isn't good publicity, this isn't good publicity at all. There is a reason why people already upset with Microsoft are re-tweeting this everywhere.

As much as I don't like the children on XBL, I don't think someone should be scammed out of what could be anywhere from $60-$5000+ of games for "being a meanie". Having money stolen from you isn't a penalty they should be allowed to hand down. It's also stupid to call Microsoft's system for banning fair and/or accurate. I've met some pretty vile people on there that don't seem to ever get banned, while at the same time a group of friends can easily troll someone they don't like in a game by all submitting negative feedback for them. This could easily result in a worst possible outcome of an innocent person getting banned and loosing everything. I've seen several stories of innocent people in that same situation over 360 bans, and I myself have even been threatened by people over XBL saying they "know what to do to get me off of it; they've done it before".

Then there is hacking... which can be an even worse situation. I've known people banned for joining modded multiplayer maps before. They didn't mod them, they didn't even know they were modded. They just joined a friend's game. There is also game exploits, quitting games to much, etc. all kinds of very minor things that sometimes get people banned. It really sucks but the system is screwed up this badly, and that's not the kind of system you want always sitting there, with a loaded gun pointed at your head.

That's hilarious coming from a company with a history of wrongful bans. I hope they keep it up, hate to see them be successful anywhere.

Oh, like the guy who was banned from Xbox Live because they said he had "homophobic slurs" in his profile? He said he was from "Gayland".

He WAS from Gayland. There IS a Gayland. The friggin' MAYOR of Gayland called Xbox to let them know that, yes, the guy was from Gayland, so stop banning him from your service.

Plenty of people get banned by mistake, or for stupid reasons. They are a marginal percentage, of course, but they don't strip away ALL THE GAMES you've legally purchased.

Fucking this.

 

[AuronFtw]

That will never happen. They save the audio logs on NSA servers to help clear the names of report-abused suspects.

lol'd hard. THANKS OBAMA.

Anyway, yeah, this is a first-class asshole move on Microsoft's part, and quite possibly also illegal. Taking money for a product and then refusing access to the product is tantamount to theft - if they're serious about the bans, they should come with a full refund of every game in that account's library (at time of purchase). Anything less is unacceptable.

Even EA figured out they were being dipshits with the account/forum ban nonsense and stopped banning people for no reason. If EA is doing something you aren't, you really need to do some serious thinking on that topic.

Steam is leagues ahead, of course, and bans don't affect offline games at all and hardly affect the majority of online/multiplayer ones. That's how origin and XboneLive should work, but Microsoft is determined to make their console as much of a paperweight as possible.

 

[direkiller]

Isn't this exactly the same with Steam and Origin?

No, Steam forum bans are only for that area, games are not effected.
Multiplayer is per game basis(if banned from VAC your non-purchased in games items are removed,and steam dose not run the multiplayer for other games)
I think the only thing that will get you banned from all steam games is Credit card fraud, or if someone reports your account stolen(and this is only temporary till they sort it all out).


Origin has received flack over banning from all games as-well.

 

[Atmos Duality]

Buying a console and a game should not be seen as a contract. Either way, I won't be in the Xbone ecosystem.

But that's exactly the kind of environment AAA wants.
To turn gaming into an overpriced version of cinema; sans DVDs.

In their "perfect future", the customer pays for their proverbial "ticket", sits down and gets their "experience" then leaves when they tell them the experience is over. Maybe they sell some "concessions" to go with their "experience" on the side. At a premium of course; it's their "theater", not the customer's.

Then they crank out a new but extremely similar "experience" a year or two later and it repeats for easy money.
Perhaps if they do well, maybe they will be so bold as to require some sort of annual or monthly membership fee on top of the ticket price.

And should the customer have a problem with their "experience", so what? They have the customer's money already, and they certainly aren't legally obligated to provide a GOOD "experience" just an "experience".

Sounds grande doesn't it?

 

[faefrost]

The major difference is neither Steam nor Origin brick your PC when they ban you. They are competing services that you voluntarily enter into. And all they impact is the specific narrow pieces of software purchased from or through them. XBL will effectively cripple your hardware. That's a whole new level of third party control. Who designed this thing? The IRS?

I'm honestly starting to wonder if Balmer hates the video game business, truly loathes gamers, and this is his backwards plan to extricate Microsoft from it.

 

[AuronFtw]

The major difference is neither Steam nor Origin brick your PC when they ban you.

Well, Steam also doesn't lock access to your entire library either, which kinda removes them from the equation.

 

[Zenn3k]

Hey, this may end up being a beneficial thing i some way.

With that type of sword hanging over their heads, maybe it will dramatically cut back on the number of immature knuckle heads screaming "******" into their headsets?

Except that never gets anyone banned.

The only way to get banned is to hack your xbox.

 

[NKRevan]

The major difference is neither Steam nor Origin brick your PC when they ban you.

Well, Steam also doesn't lock access to your entire library either, which kinda removes them from the equation.

Actually, Steam did, at one point, changed their User Agreement to say that they can ban you and restrict your access to all your purchased games if they so choose.

I don't know about other countries...but in Germany, our government kinda suddenly stared at Valve really mean-like and Valve said "Sorry" and changed it again.

Assuming this will happen with this, too. XD

 

[Anti-Robot Man]

Hey, this may end up being a beneficial thing i some way.

With that type of sword hanging over their heads, maybe it will dramatically cut back on the number of immature knuckle heads screaming "******" into their headsets?

Except that never gets anyone banned.

The only way to get banned is to hack your xbox.

You can get banned for "offending" others, things like stating your sexuality in your bio, or things that sound like you might be gay, like coming from Fort Gay (source http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/11258407 ), or being called something like Dick Gaywood (which is unfortunate enough as is, source http://consumerist.com/2008/05/22/microsoft-confirms-gaywood-is-an-offensive-surname-mr-gaywood-responds/ ).

You've also got the problem of the "family sharing" or whatever it's called, the main account holder is going to be responsible for anything that happens on those shared accounts, up to 10 (regardless of who is using them - e.g. you're son's idiot friend).

Then you've got simple screw ups by Live's enforcement folks.

It's one thing to ban someone from spoiling other people's experiences online, it's another to basically brick their console and wipe their games so they can't even play the single player portion.

 

[Something Amyss]

Hey, this may end up being a beneficial thing i some way.

With that type of sword hanging over their heads, maybe it will dramatically cut back on the number of immature knuckle heads screaming "******" into their headsets?

Come now, it hasn't stopped them yet. Those knuckleheads will brag about having bought six consoles. What's a few games?

You do know that the only way to get banned on xbox live right now is for hacking right?

Even Microsoft doesn't claim that's the only way, and even if it were, I'd feel a lot better if there was actual disclosure from the people who make these decisions, rather than some super secret council that's got more immunity than a SPECTRE.

There is literally no reason they should have to be threatened with BBB complaints to be prodded into disclosing information on a ban, especially if they're as careful and certain and specific as they claim. Or as narrow in scope as you claim.

Isn't this exactly the same with Steam and Origin?

Crap, I'ma have to defend Steam.

Microsoft and EA are far more likely to ban you. EA will even ban you for accessing your games for comments made on their forum, even if the comment isn't horrendously bad, and Microsoft isn't exactly beyond reproach here. I'm not a huge Valve fan, but Steam is a far more innocuous service when it comes to banning you.

Do I agree with the capacity? No. Do I like the "sign our new TOU or lose all your old games" policy? No. But let's not put them in the same boat. They're not even sailing the same sea. And that's saying something. I think Valve's practices are bad. I think Microsoft and EA's are UTTERLY HORRIBLE.

 

[faefrost]

Hey, this may end up being a beneficial thing i some way.

With that type of sword hanging over their heads, maybe it will dramatically cut back on the number of immature knuckle heads screaming "******" into their headsets?

Except that never gets anyone banned.

The only way to get banned is to hack your xbox.

So you are willing to risk a $500 gaming console investment and probably $1000 in games on the fact that MS is generally lax on enforcement? It's not that they can't shut down your property, but that they probably won't because they can't be bothered?

 

[bliebblob]

Whoawhoawhoa hold up. You can get banned from xbox live? Implying sexual relations with someone's mother is like saying "hello" in this community! Just what exactly would it take for such a ban???

 

[Moth_Monk]

Every new bit of info about the Xbox One makes it sound worse and worse.

I bet next we'll find out that it's a nightmare for game devs to program for and/or the way the memory is optimised will be a mess. Something like that.

 

[Headdrivehardscrew]

Banning people from their games doesn't even seem legal, as much as some people deserve it, it is a very shaky business practice.

Well, that's what you get when you are no longer allowed to actually buy the games.

These days, we tend to only buy/lease a license to the software, so we are never the actual owners of the copyrighted and protected works in question. If you go about thinking this over from the perspective of the content owners, content providers and their hordes of hungry, hungry lawyers, it all makes perfect sense.

 

[Something Amyss]

Banning people from their games doesn't even seem legal, as much as some people deserve it, it is a very shaky business practice.

Software is now treated as a service in the US, so this is nothing new or surprising. This is the end result of digital rights (or the lack of).