Xbox None: An internet connection is now required to do anything.

This will definitely be a topic for an upcoming podcast episode, but I wanted to take a second and comment on the Xbox One. There's a great article on Wired.com that features an interview with Phil Harrison, a VP from Microsoft.

Of course, there are all kinds of fancy things that the new console will be able to do, but it is taking such a giant leap backwards in the most important ways. I'm not even going to discuss the way that the system will attempt to destroy the used game market, although that is a problem- I think the even bigger problem is that the console is going to require an internet connection.

Phil Harrison attempts to pretty-up the concept of this, hoping that people won't be smart enough to see through the massive problems with it:

"So, there is a lot of anxiety about “what if my Internet connection goes down” and you don’t have connectivity for a period of time. There are a host of features which will be usable without an Internet connection — watching movies, playing certain single player games… all of which will operate offline. We expect most of the more advanced experiences, like online multiplayer games, or games which have a lot of connected features… those games won’t operate if you don’t have an Internet connection. We designed the system to take advantage of a connection to the cloud, and all that that means. But no, it’s not required that you are connected all the time, every second of every day."

I was hoping with all my heart that the rumors weren't true; having a system that requires you to have an internet connection is so problematic. For one, what if you don't want one? What about if your internet connection is down? I guess you can't play. Wait, you can play "certain single player games." What does that mean? I'm assuming it means your Xbox One is worthless if you don't have internet. Maybe there's a game of Snake or a Tetris knockoff built into the system that you can play! What happens when the console gets old and the servers are down? Wonderful, you now have an unplayable game library! Microsoft just got too greedy this time.

Normally, when a new console is about to launch, it is a super exciting event that showcases giant leaps forward rather than giant leaps backwards. I hope Sony is watching and taking notes because if they follow suit, the Wii U will be the only next gen console in my house until the others drop in price dramatically.

http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2013/05/phil-harrison-xbox-one/