Comments on: Vintage game downloads will only work for Nintendo

Microsoft may be planning on offering Xbox game downloads for the Xbox 360. And while some are heralding this move as a smart one, Don Reisinger thinks it's a mistake.

[logicbus]

SMB1 or Halo?

I'd choose Halo. Twenty-year-old games were good ... twenty years ago. Every time I download the trial version of a classic game on Xbox Live, I play for about five minutes. Then I get bored with the 2D graphics, the limited control schemes, and everything else that makes people buy Wiis instead of GameCubes, 360s instead of Xboxes, and PS3s instead of PS2s.

About a year after I got Halo 2, I traded in Halo 1. Ever since then, I've waffled over whether to re-purchase it. Additionally, Fable and Psychonauts are games that I never played, but that I'm one impulse purchase away from getting.

Why must the retro game market be limited to games outside of a certain recent range? Why can't we appreciate the full spectrum of old games?

[blsith]

Hate to bring bad news

Microsoft Live Arcade already has vintage games for sale - you can get many original Sega Genesis titles cheaper for the 360 than you can for the Wii, and you can preview the game to see how it looks before you plunk down the cash.

On top of that, they went the extra mile on many of these to include smoothing so they look better than they originally do, because looking at 16-bit graphics on a 1080 screen can be more painful than you remember.

As a rebuttal, the ability to purchase a digital download of a last-generation title is relatively cool. Missed out on Fable? Can buy it new for $20, used for $10, or digital download for $15. The pricing isn't that bad for what it is, and gives you access to some okay games. And the digital downloads are rumored to have some level of updated graphics, gamerpoints and XBL support, which cannot be guarenteed for the actual XBOX DVD versions.

And it opens the door for downloadable 3rd party games that are larger than what XBL Arcarde allows. There has been rumors of this so that episodic games, like the HL2 series, can start being offered via download without the size limitations that are on the Arcade.

[Xbox_Live_Fan]

Original Xbox Game Downloads

Like you, when I first saw this my reaction was why eat up HD space for a game I already own? Unless it was a game that I had not started, even if it would play on the 360, I continued to play them on the original Xbox. In fact, my original Xbox only got pushed out of the family room by the Wii (maxed out the inputs on my TV) about six months ago; it had a spot under the TV with all of my other game systems.

However, if it is true that the downloaded versions will have gamer points and XBL support that changes everything. I would consider replaying some of my old games to unlock achievements.

I am going to hold off upgrading my 360 HD until this shakes out a little more. I have a feeling the 120 GB will only be a middle tier HD.

[benh57]

Vintage game downloads already work for Microsoft

As the poster above mentioned, Vintage games are some of the most popular titles on Xbox Live Arcade.

That simple fact destroys the entire premise of this article.

[_douglas_]

I think you are missing the long view.

Microsoft does not care about making money off its old games. Microsoft wants people to get used to purchasing their games over the network.

The next generation of xbox will doubtless have a larger HD. Microsoft will be able to release games faster, while barely out of beta, fix the bugs over the network, and make a higher margin on sales than by selling packaged games.