@AK_the_Twilight @SirThaliard Absolutely, but I don't know anyone who'd pay $80 for a game outside of hardcore gaming crowds. Lowering the prices will encourage more people to buy their games. Publishers would be willing to do this because they feel safe with the used market effectively dead. Imagine Watch_Dogs for PS4 on shelves with a (best case scenario) $54.99 "used" sticker on it next to an Xbox One copy with a $39.99 "new" sticker. Which one looks better to the layman?

The only way I can see this working is if they can successfully put a price on people's convictions by making the Xbox One dirt cheap, along with its games. I'm talking the console being half the price of a PS4 with triple-A games that retail for $30-40, and they include an Xbox Live subscription model with perks better than PS Plus.

This is highly unlikely, but possible. Also scary.

@xolivierx @SirThaliard @bigrichbxx Two companies can't have a monopoly, for one. Microsoft's trying to get an edge over Sony and they're obviously not catering to consumers, but to publishers like EA, Activision and Ubisoft. It's a risky maneuver, but since Microsoft's primary source of income comes from somewhere else (software) they can make big risks like this if it has potential of giving them a clear lead in the console war.

@xolivierx @bigrichbxx What Microsoft is doing is very risky, and I'm guessing it's a risk they've calculated they can lose. Microsoft's rivals are going to be watching what happens very closely instead of jumping in with them. At least, not immediately. Why would they cross a rickety bridge blindly when they could watch someone else see if it's safe first?

I have a feeling that if the 'games' portion of this new machine fails, Microsoft will just make the other entertainment sectors the marketing focus.

@whayle The console after this one will just be a Windows PC.

@JumpyLuweegee We need more like you!

@nocturnalkisses I hope you're right. The thing is, Xbox is not even close to Microsoft's primary source of income, so they've probably calculated that they can take this kind of risk with the console. And even more frightening, they might find it profitable and will set the standard for the future of gaming.

@N4o7A It's not the same. They're selling you a license to play their game. Usually as defined by a End-User License Agreement, it is one-time use and non-transferable.

I really hope they're not going to budget themselves outside of their means. I would hate to see Dark Souls shelved just because another publisher doesn't know how to handle their money.