Virgin announces 'iTunes for video games'

Game Domain International and Virgin Games have partnered to create a new 3D online gaming platform.

A World of My Own (AWOMO), a joint project between Virgin Games and Game Domain International, is expected to "revolutionise" the way games are sold, the two companies believe.

Promising rapid download speeds--claiming to enable play within minutes--greater security, and ease of use, the virtual world is expected to see "downloading of video games to grow rapidly."

Game publishers including Koch Media are said to have already registered their support and are "enthusiastic" about participating in the project.

Virgin's chairman, Sir Richard Branson, commented, "This is a really exciting development for us, as it gives us the opportunity to do for PC games what iTunes has done for music. The GDI technology will revolutionise how the mass market will play games and will give them more choice for less money."

The AWOMO platform is due to launch later in 2007, with "a large selection of games available." The companies are expecting international demand to be high.

123 Comments

  • thefjk

    Posted Feb 13, 2007 6:29 pm PT

    Virgin owns everything! My internet, cable tv and telephone operators have been aquired by virgin. And its all like one service, including their mobile phones and stuff.. craaazey, coool!

  • Scammeleon

    Posted Feb 13, 2007 6:00 pm PT

    iTunes of gaming = Wii VC/Xboxlive/(whatever the PS3 equivilent is called)
    Simple.

  • G_W_X

    Posted Feb 13, 2007 3:15 pm PT

    So first they take over NTL: Telewest to from Virgin Media(which am a sub to0 by the way) and now they are into somthing like GameTap from Turner?

  • yanyatkai

    Posted Feb 13, 2007 11:57 am PT

    Right move for Sir Richard Branson!

  • Merl57

    Posted Feb 13, 2007 11:38 am PT

    paying for downloading games is stupid. Plain and simple. They take way too long and you don't have a hard copy to reinstall whenever you want.

  • high_flier429

    Posted Feb 13, 2007 10:28 am PT

    people who want to DL games will do so and not with this service.... how many torrent clients are out and about these days?

  • FrankieLA

    Posted Feb 13, 2007 9:50 am PT

    this is iTunes for Gaming idea number 233,325,020

  • LION90

    Posted Feb 13, 2007 9:23 am PT

    sounds interesting

  • theKSMM

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 11:57 pm PT

    I'm not sure I understand the concept. But if this somehow translates into cheaper games, then I'm all for it. Many people seem to think that's what advertising in games will/should do for us (it won't), but maybe this news will allow me to get big budget games at bargain bin prices.

  • TryMe01

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 10:57 pm PT

    didnt nintendo promise to to this with their VC? what happened to that?

  • DominusSabathan

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 7:52 pm PT

    worst idea ever , get the game with manuwal disc and everything way better than download , no joke

  • GoldenSurfer

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 7:25 pm PT

    P.S. Also with a boxed copy I like the idea of getting printed instruction guide/manual with my games. Hate to have a huge digital collection and limited HDD space. People with slow connections can face potential chore downloading the digital copies of the games they want.

  • ElectrolightSH

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 6:02 pm PT

    lame!

  • hhh44_2000

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 5:51 pm PT

    Virgin...video games...nerds....

    This is so awesome! (the irony. virgin records can go to hell)

  • drgnstr13

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 5:40 pm PT

    What if your computer mysteriously gets a glitch and it disappears? Computers aren't the best thing when it comes to that and other things. Plus what if you get a really bad game, you probably can't refund it!

  • jeebs213

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 5:34 pm PT

    here's the two crucial things that a game download service NEEDS to do if it ever hopes to succeed:

    1) offer lower prices than in retail (like $40 VS. $50)
    2) make it very clear that even if they delete the game it can always and easily be re-downloaded

    if they don't have these two things implemented they'll never have a chance.

  • matrixman2k

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 5:01 pm PT

    Imagine running out of disc space, could be disastrous. Also the hdd technology has this flaw where things do readily become corrupt when these bits on the platters loose their Ns and Ss...I've had this situation on many occasions where you have a, fairly large, movie file. Only after a few weeks or even month 'glitches' tend to find their way onto it. And sometimes the player crashes!

    Flash drive is better...but then they have a write cycle and limited space...hmmm...But once you get the stuff on a cd/dvd then its permanent.

    Whenever i order apps. online, i always request a disc - even paying the little extra is better for 'piece of mind' as it were.

  • cubeman

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 4:24 pm PT

    I still prefer physical copies of my games. However if they give proof of the download than I wouldn't mind too much. As if something happens there goes all your games, unless backed up.

  • GoldenSurfer

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 4:01 pm PT

    OneWingedAngeI : i don't like this because you cannot sell your games when finished with them.

    Yeah that is another thing I do not like about having a digital copy only, what if you choose to trade in a game you no longer desire to keep in your collection. You won't able to do so as with a physical copy.

  • Auron_X2099

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 3:53 pm PT

    I prefer having a physical copy of the game oppose to having a digital copy.

  • GoldenSurfer

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 3:49 pm PT

    M4NI4K wrote:
    man.. i remembering being upset about games not being sold in them cardboard boxes anymore. Now they wanna get rid of a case all together?
    I for one like the retail boxes and I hope they will always be there.__________Same here. I like to see the retail boxes continue to stay. I prefer the the disc format for my games. Also I hate for the whole HDD to crash and have to spend time to redownload your whole collection of games on the new HDD. It's not a total lost as with the disc copy of the game. I just like the retail boxed verison easy to trade and exchange if there is a problem with the game.

  • racerx737

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 3:49 pm PT

    while this would make it really easy to get high-demand games (if their publishers joined in on something like this), I'd still rather get a physical copy of the game and maybe have to wait a few weeks if I have to. idk what it is, but it just feels right to have the physical copy sitting up on the shelf.

    oh, and revolutioniZe is spelled with a "z" not an "s"

  • cybergooch

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 3:48 pm PT

    All this talk about "gotta be cheap". Cheap, cheap, cheap...you sound like birds in the nest! How about, "This service should be highly functional, easy to use, and full of value"? Why not pay for a good service instead of getting an awful service for cheap? Am I the only one that will pay for quality? Are your budgets THAT stretched that you wouldn't pay $15 for a title that runs and looks good? Sheez, guess nobody saves money for what they want anymore, it's all about "What can I spend my lunch money on?"

  • Zapjon

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 3:26 pm PT

    I'm generally gonna buy my new games from the box (More reliable, in case you say want to return it or it doesn't work.) but, if they could actually sell old, hard to find games (See: Monkey Island, Grim Fandango, Other Old PC games that generally don't work/can't buy anymore)

  • topraman517

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 3:10 pm PT

    "Am I the only one seeing irony in "Virgin" and "games" in the same sentence next to each other?" -AJMon13 LOL.

  • mark_unix

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 3:03 pm PT

    lets hope they
    1: use click&buy like iTunes in Europe.
    2: update the software.
    3: is 9.99 per game.
    4: works better then steam.
    5: new games $15 cheaper then retail.
    6: cheaper.
    7: cheaper.

  • josephmadde2005

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 2:58 pm PT

    I agree, If the games aren't cheaper online then there really is no point. Besides I can't sell or trade in a downloaded game.

  • skywalker333

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 2:43 pm PT

    i hate downloading a game. retail is the best. ok offer it in download form too, but in 2/3 of its retail price maximum. or else, its worthless.

  • GrayHalo

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 2:43 pm PT

    clearly their biggest competition is the brotherhood of NOD

  • mailbox2112

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 2:37 pm PT

    Steam rip off

  • WR_Platinum

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 2:36 pm PT

    blah.... nothing revolutionary about this. Now the Wii is REVOLUTIONARY! I prefer gettin a physical copy of a game, I'm not lazy to go outside and buy a quality game.

  • HuxleyHobbes

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 2:35 pm PT

    Am I the only person who's amused by "GDI" more than by "Virgin Games"?

    ... guess you can guess whether or not that applies to me, huh? xD

  • imortiferus

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 2:34 pm PT

    This is bound to fail. The politics of gaming will make sure of that. Nice idea though.

  • PackersRock

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 2:21 pm PT

    Steam, TotalGaming.net, um.... yeah... these "virgin" guys are creative geniuses.

  • RaiKageRyu

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 2:09 pm PT

    Uh huh...

  • Neo9898_98

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 2:05 pm PT

    wait, isn't that called steam?

  • weeeoops1520

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 2:01 pm PT

    i already have a steam account and am considering gametap, prove ur worth in games and ill consider but as it stands...meh...

  • comthitnuong

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 1:57 pm PT

    I don't really like the sound of this but it may work

  • Stoejer

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 1:55 pm PT

    Who said Phantom Gaming Service (phantom.net) who got owned big time by HardOCP.com? I ask, you answer.

  • R3V3N4N7

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 1:53 pm PT

    This will fail. That is all it's going to do.

  • SilverGuy999999

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 1:51 pm PT

    I feel much more secure when I have the game in my hand in a physical format. It seems far to risky to have only a digital copy of it cause what if your PC goes down, you've just lost your digital copies. When you have it physically in your hands, all you have to worry about is losing it, but if you're responsible and know where your stuff is, you should be just fine. In the end, I feel so much more secure knowing I have the game in a physical format as opposed to just a digital format.

  • tk1080

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 1:51 pm PT

    @Rodertod:
    since when could one put games from other download services (such as steam) on to torrents? the games would be built into the service, generally meaning you would need to have the service running to play the game, you would need to log into your account etc. While yes, people will find a way around it, like people can still un-DRM music files, but it generally will be too much off a hassle and i believe that less copies of the game would appear on torrents, especially if compared to games say on retail?

  • diablo_del_bano

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 1:51 pm PT

    Virgin video game system... our target audience is in the title

  • Metamorphos1s

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 1:51 pm PT

    i love virgins... idea for games...

  • Robotic_Roll

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 1:48 pm PT

    Oh wow, didn't another company try to steal Steam's thunder?

    Whatever happened to them?

    Oh right, they went under.

  • AJmon13

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 1:45 pm PT

    Am I the only one seeing irony in "Virgin" and "games" in the same sentence next to each other?

  • Shad_Zero

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 1:42 pm PT

    the graphics of there games don´t look great

  • rockybob

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 1:38 pm PT

    I don't see why people are comparing this to GameTap. GameTap has old games that people basically play for nostalgia. You also don't own the games you play on GameTap, you just rent the permission to use them. The more appropriate comparison would be Steam or Direct2Drive. I for one, would download a game off Steam well before I'd go buy it in a store. It's easier and on top of that I don't have to find discs to play/install. If it functions half as well as Steam with a wider selection of games, it would be a godsend. However, as they didn't announce any major publishers, the selection probably won't be as wide as it should be. Downloading games is the way of the future, I think. I don't think this service is the future, but something more like Steam. As for the post a ways below me claiming you can't download games after you've had a drive crash, or the games are locked to one machine, absolutely none of the major sites do that. Steam, Direct2Drive and Ebgames all allow you to redownload at will.

  • thisisjosh

    Posted Feb 12, 2007 1:37 pm PT

    it all sounds "a little vague" to me.

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