Removing DRM has only added to what the console can do
First the Xbox One was an always online DRM restricted console, then it wasn’t. Fans booed and cried until Microsoft realized that the practicality of having an always online system just doesn’t work for everyone in this day and age. Now some patrons are petitioning forit back.
From day one things have been a mess. There was the “deal with it” Twitter incident, executives telling the public if they want an offline console to buy an Xbox 360, and never really a clear message on how Family Sharing was ultimately going to work.
One thing is for sure: Microsoft has left many of its fans scratching their heads over the past few months.
In a recent interview with IGN, Xbox One chief product officer Marc Whitten, speaking in regards to the recent petition, admitted that the company has more work to do conveying what the Xbox One is all about.
“What it tells me is we need to do more work to talk about whatwe’redoing because I think that we did something different than maybe how people are perceiving it,”Whittensaid. “When I read some of the things like that petition, from my perspective we took a lot of the feedback and, while Xbox One is built to be digital native, to have this amazing online experience, we realized people wanted some choice. They wanted what I like to call a bridge, sort of how they think about the world today using more digital stuff. What we did, we added to what the console can do by providing physical and offline modes in the console. Itisn’tabout moving away from what that digital vision is for the platform. It’s about adding that choice. Frankly, I think we need to just do more to let people see how the console works, whatthey’regoing to be able to do for it. I think a lot of the thingsthey’rewishing for are frankly there.”
It’s nice to see Microsoft knows they’ve royally screwed up branding the Xbox One. I just wonder if the damage control is too little, too late. We’ll see how they do over the next few months. I personally pre-ordered an Xbox One, but as of right now I don’t think they’ve earned my $500.