No Final Fantasy XIV on the 'closed' Xbox 360

[Chaos Raiden]

Here is the news about Final Fantasy XIV for Xbox 360.

Square Enix has said that Final Fantasy XIV is not coming to the Xbox 360, and blamed the decision squarely on Microsoft's own infrastructure. Claiming that the 360 is too "closed" for the upcoming MMO, Square Enix has confirmed that XIV will remain exclusive to the PS3 on consoles. For now, anyway.

"The main reason why we couldn't go with Xbox 360 was the Xbox Live system," explained game director Hiromichi Tanaka. "[Live is] different to the normal internet environment, so when we wanted to introduce this game in the same environment as Windows PC it had to be PS3, so that was our choice.

"Microsoft has a different point of view: they want to have a closed environment for Xbox Live. We're still talking to... We couldn't come to an agreement on Xbox Live."

That's our Microsoft, screwing its consoles and customers out of one of the biggest markets in this industry, just because it wants to act like a big grasping Fagin over the realm of online gaming. Keep on trucking!

"Closed" Xbox Live Blocked FFXIV [Eurogamer]

Source: http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/closed-xbox-live-blocked-ffxiv

This pretty much says that no Final Fantasy XIV for Xbox 360 players. In my personal opinion, Microsoft did the wrong move for not bringing Final Fantasy XIV for Xbox 360. By doing so, future Xbox 360 sales may dwindle, while PS3 and PC sales may raise exponentially.

On the other hand, Square Enix did not release Final Fantasy XIII for Xbox 360 in Asia, which has proven to anger Final Fantasy fans who own Xbox 360 in Asia countries (me included). Most of the Asians FF fans bought PS3 just to play Final Fantasy XIII, and this includes my friends in Malaysia.

 

[Dark Drakan]

Its an MMO and they always flop on consoles regardless. They will charge a monthly fee for it too and that always puts off console players who prefer to get a game put it in console and play it. All consoles are essentially 'closed' compared to PC's. I see what hes saying about people subscribing to Live so not everyone who owns an Xbox will buy it but Xbox Live users far outnumber PSN numbers so in contrast them just releasing on PS3 will hurt their sales.

In conclusion, if they had released it for PC/360 and PS3 it might have good sales and done quite well. However to release it on the smallest online userbase exclusively will see it flop like the rest of the console MMO's.

That's our Microsoft, screwing its consoles and customers out of one of the biggest markets in this industry, just because it wants to act like a big grasping Fagin over the realm of online gaming.

Its the companies that charge extra to play MMO's online that are screwing people. As Microsoft already charge for Xbox Live service they would be reluctant to charge people again to play an MMO online. So a deal must be done with the developers however i doubt Square Enix would let people play it for free so a compromise would need to be done. However i bet Square Enix werent willing to lose subscription money so just let people assume it was Microsoft that couldnt work out the deal.

Square Enix were also foolish to not release FFXIII on 360 in Asia and to stop sales of 360's in China (not Square Enix but the Chinese Government) as they are all damaging game sales.

 

[Chaos Raiden]

Its an MMO and they always flop on consoles regardless. They will charge a monthly fee for it too and that always puts off console players who prefer to get a game put it in console and play it. All consoles are essentially 'closed' compared to PC's. I see what hes saying about people subscribing to Live so not everyone who owns an Xbox will buy it but Xbox Live users far outnumber PSN numbers so in contrast them just releasing on PS3 will hurt their sales.

In conclusion, if they had released it for PC/360 and PS3 it might have good sales and done quite well. However to release it on the smallest online userbase exclusively will see it flop like the rest of the console MMO's/

Does Xbox Live users have more privileges in their account compared to PSN users, which makes more Xbox Live users compared to PSN users? I myself do not register an Xbox Live account, because of some weird law in my county, so I do not know the full details.

 

[Dark Drakan]

Does Xbox Live users have more privileges in their account compared to PSN users, which makes more Xbox Live users compared to PSN users? I myself do not register an Xbox Live account, because of some weird law in my county, so I do not know the full details.

Xbox Live users normally get Demos/DLC earlier and also get subscriptions like music streaming channels like LastFM. When my friends compared the content of their Xbox Live and PSN they also said that Xbox Live had more on its market. Also cross-game chat features and in game music menus. PSN have started a charged service that offers more than the free PSN themselves too. Less support from Sony with bug fixing and dashboard updates too (ive just read on hubpages.com). I havent used PSN extensively so cant give a 1st hand experience and only go off what ive heard mostly. Cant complain at a free service though.

Xbox Live vs PSN

Some differences can be found in list above for a better idea. Not trying to compare the two really as each to their own. However for people to constantly moan about paying £30 odd pound a year to subscribe to Live but pay to play a game monthly is just odd. I dont mind paying for a service thats stable, has good updates and good features.

 

[Chaos Raiden]

Xbox Live users normally get Demos/DLC earlier and also get subscriptions like music streaming channels like LastFM. When my friends compared the content of their Xbox Live and PSN they also said that Xbox Live had more on its market. Also cross-game chat features and in game music menus. PSN have started a charged service that offers more than the free PSN themselves too.

Oh, that explains it. Thanks.

Before I sold my PS3 on early 2009, the registration for a PSN account is free. Is it still free, or it has to be paid plus services? Does this apply to Xbox Live as well?

And when I compared both consoles' dashboard, to me, Xbox 360's dashboard looks stylish and nicer.

 

[Dark Drakan]

Oh, that explains it. Thanks.

Before I sold my PS3 on early 2009, the registration for a PSN account is free. Is it still free, or it has to be paid plus services? Does this apply to Xbox Live as well?

You can still get PSN for free but they now have a PSN Premium service (PSN Plus) which is a charged service which gets more features and better updates. Its the same price as Xbox Live and offers a similar idea with early access to things.

Xbox Live silver gets demos/patches & DLC etc but Xbox Live Gold has much more features and gets demos and DLC earlier and obviously gives you the ability to play online along with some exclusive offers every now and again. Of the 20 Million PSN users unfortunately most dont use it for online gaming according to data i was reading which is a shame for a free service.

 

[Chaos Raiden]

You can still get PSN for free but they now have a PSN Premium service (PSN Plus) which is a charged service which gets more features and better updates. Its the same price as Xbox Live and offers a similar idea with early access to things.

Xbox Live silver gets demos/patches & DLC etc but Xbox Live Gold has much more features and gets demos and DLC earlier and obviously gives you the ability to play online along with some exclusive offers every now and again.

I see. If that is the case, if somehow Final Fantasy XIV is released for Xbox 360, Xbox Live users will get demos, patches, DLC much faster than PSN users? Why do Xbox Live users get the demos, patches, and DLC much faster than PSN users? Exclusive rights or something?

 

[Dark Drakan]

I see. If that is the case, if somehow Final Fantasy XIV is released for Xbox 360, Xbox Live users will get demos, patches, DLC much faster than PSN users? Why do Xbox Live users get the demos, patches, and DLC much faster than PSN users? Exclusive rights or something?

I think Xbox Live is simply updated more frequently. In some cases its been because of exclusive rights but ive been speaking to friends about downloading demos on Live and they have gone home to check on PSN and they havent been there. Im not entirely sure why a lot of DLC is released on Live first but its been the case with a lot of big titles recently (Modern Warfare 2 and RDR for example).

I think because Xbox Live is a paid service Microsoft have to closely monitor it and make sure any errors and bugs are fixed quickly and content is there on time. Whereas for a free service things wouldnt be as urgent.

 

[Chaos Raiden]

I think Xbox Live is simply updated more frequently. In some cases its been because of exclusive rights but ive been speaking to friends about downloading demos on Live and they have gone home to check on PSN and they havent been there. Im not entirely sure why a lot of DLC is released on Live first but its been the case with a lot of big titles recently (Modern Warfare 2 and RDR for example).

I think because Xbox Live is a paid service Microsoft have to closely monitor it and make sure any errors and bugs are fixed quickly and content is there on time. Whereas for a free service things wouldnt be as urgent.

So, that means Microsoft is more attentive to their customers? Damn. Sony needs to learn that from Microsoft.

As to that FFXIV news, why exactly Microsoft said that they want their Xbox Live a closed environment? Afraid of competition with PSN and online users, does not have good relation with Square Enix, or other reasons?

 

[Dark Drakan]

So, that means Microsoft is more attentive to their customers? Damn. Sony needs to learn that from Microsoft.

As to that FFXIV news, why exactly Microsoft said that they want their Xbox Live a closed environment? Afraid of competition with PSN and online users, does not have good relation with Square Enix, or other reasons?

Well i wouldnt go as far as to say much one way or the other as im unsure what support is like with the new PSN Plus. However the same people who moaned for all the years about people paying for privilages online for 360 are soon jumping on the PSN Plus bandwagon which is essentially the same thing. Only difference between the 2 is you can still game online for free on PSN.

Its not that Microsoft want Xbox Live to be a 'closed' environment as such as that makes it sound like they are restricting companies. They like to be able to monitor things themselves on their own service. If Square Enix servers lag or there are any issues with connections their end Microsoft will recieve all the complaints as people will think its Xbox Live thats having the issues.

Microsoft just like to be able to monitor things so they can fix issues. MMO's are run totally independently so Microsoft wouldnt be able to do anything with regards to fixes or connection problems. Its had no issues with MMO's and other games running games on dedicated servers separate from Live before its just Square Enix that seem to be difficult to work with on the matter. They never seem to be able to reach a mutual agreement and the game is an age away yet so it would likely be resolved closer to release.

I doubt Microsoft are afraid of any competition in any of the markets as they are the ones with the funds. Overall i wouldnt be that bothered without an MMO on a console or the fact its Final Fantasy as i havent liked one since FFX. Just think its bad business to do what Square Enix are doing.

 

[Chaos Raiden]

Well i wouldnt go as far as to say much one way or the other as im unsure what support is like with the new PSN Plus. However the same people who moaned for all the years about people paying for privilages online for 360 are soon jumping on the PSN Plus bandwagon which is essentially the same thing. Only difference between the 2 is you can still game online for free on PSN.

Its not that Microsoft want Xbox Live to be a 'closed' environment as such as that makes it sound like they are restricting companies. They like to be able to monitor things themselves on their own service. If Square Enix servers lag or there are any issues with connections their end Microsoft will recieve all the complaints as people will think its Xbox Live thats having the issues.

Microsoft just like to be able to monitor things so they can fix issues. MMO's are run totally independently so Microsoft wouldnt be able to do anything with regards to fixes or connection problems. Its had no issues with MMO's and other games running games on dedicated servers separate from Live before its just Square Enix that seem to be difficult to work with on the matter. They never seem to be able to reach a mutual agreement and the game is an age away yet so it would likely be resolved closer to release.

I doubt Microsoft are afraid of any competition in any of the markets as they are the ones with the funds. Overall i wouldnt be that bothered without an MMO on a console or the fact its Final Fantasy as i havent liked one since FFX. Just think its bad business to do what Square Enix are doing.

I see. So overall, Microsoft likes to monitor any events going on just in case something bad happens? Like game bugs, lags while playing on Xbox Live or something?

I heard a very curious rumour. Don't know whether it is true or not. Sony has a lot of Square Enix shares currently, around 50% or less. Does this mean Sony can affect Square Enix's future game releases and prompt them to be released to only Sony's game consoles?

 

[Dark Drakan]

I see. So overall, Microsoft likes to monitor any events going on just in case something bad happens? Like game bugs, lags while playing on Xbox Live or something?

I heard a very curious rumour. Don't know whether it is true or not. Sony has a lot of Square Enix shares currently, around 50% or less. Does this mean Sony can affect Square Enix's future game releases and prompt them to be released to only Sony's game consoles?

Yeah thats pretty much it on the first point and Sonys shares in Square Enix are actually less than they were when they were only known as Square. The original Final Fantasy was published by Nintendo but then Square took over publishing themselves until Final Fantasy V where SCE had EU publishing rights until Square became Square Enix for Final Fantasy XII and they have published their own games since. Then they chose to release Final Fantasy XIII on a console that wasnt Sony for first time since Final Fantasy VII as the exclusive deal ran out in 2008.

So technically Square Enix are third party developers who can develop for who they like and although companies like Sony own shares they cant have exclusive deals unless they sign an exclusive deal like for Final Fantasy XIII Versus. However in the current market multiplatform games sell well and make companies a lot of money instead of restricting games to one platform.

 

[Kittn]

I heard the issue was that MS wanted to force the gamers to go Gold to play FFXIV. Since FFXI plays on both Silver and Gold Live subs right now, SE wants to keep it that way so that people don't have to pay for Gold's fee on top of FFXIV's monthly fee. Neither company are willing to budge it seems. I think MS should let this go, since XI already runs on both types of accounts, and PSN users as of the moment don't have to pay a fee for online play over their network. They're pretty much shootin themselves in the foot as far as I can tell.

I'm gettin' it for PC anyway, but if they had released it for 360, we were considering getting it for both systems. But I wouldn't of gone gold for it, either.

 

[Chaos Raiden]

Yeah thats pretty much it on the first point and Sonys shares in Square Enix are actually less than they were when they were only known as Square. The original Final Fantasy was published by Nintendo but then Square took over publishing themselves until Final Fantasy V where SCE had EU publishing rights until Square became Square Enix for Final Fantasy XII and they have published their own games since. Then they chose to release Final Fantasy XIII on a console that wasnt Sony for first time since Final Fantasy VII as the exclusive deal ran out in 2008.

So technically Square Enix are third party developers who can develop for who they like and although companies like Sony own shares they cant have exclusive deals unless they sign an exclusive deal like for Final Fantasy XIII Versus. However in the current market multiplatform games sell well and make companies a lot of money instead of restricting games to one platform.

I see.

Does the exclusive deal for Sony consoles applies only to the main Final Fantasy games, or it applies for both main and spin off Final Fantasy games? Because several spin off FF games are available on Nintendo Gamecube, and other game consoles previously.

 

[Dark Drakan]

I see.

Does the exclusive deal for Sony consoles applies only to the main Final Fantasy games, or it applies for both main and spin off Final Fantasy games? Because several spin off FF games are available on Nintendo Gamecube, and other game consoles previously.

It had only applied to main titles as it was originally a Nintendo series anyway.

 

[Chaos Raiden]

It had only applied to main titles as it was originally a Nintendo series anyway.

I see. There is a similar case happen to Capcom, where Shinji Mikami made an exclusivity deal for main Resident Evil games to be released in Nintendo Gamecube exclusively, which is kinda controversial to some people. Is that his decision, or Capcom's?

 

[Dark Drakan]

I see. There is a similar case happen to Capcom, where Shinji Mikami made an exclusivity deal for main Resident Evil games to be released in Nintendo Gamecube exclusively, which is kinda controversial to some people. Is that his decision, or Capcom's?

Id imagine its a bit of both as hes the creator of the series but Capcom fund its development and Publish it.

 

[Chaos Raiden]

Id imagine its a bit of both as hes the creator of the series but Capcom fund its development and Publish it.

Oh. Thanks for explaining, Dark Drakan.

 

[Dark Drakan]

Oh. Thanks for explaining, Dark Drakan.

No problem, nice to actually have a conversation with someone about the 2 platforms without any fanboy comments for a change I respect that.

 

[Chaos Raiden]

No problem, nice to actually have a conversation with someone about the 2 platforms without any fanboy comments for a change I respect that.

Glad to hear that. I can't stand when someone keeps comparing each consoles and being so protective of it. It is pointless, in my opinion. Each gaming consoles have their own pros and cons, and it is up to us to think which one is better, but not to exaggerate that the his/her console is the best out of all gaming consoles. That makes people to get annoyed and angry over this kind of stuff, and fights break out after that, in Internet and real life.

New update for Final Fantasy XIV. It will be released on PC worldwide on 30 September 2010, and March 2011 for PS3 version.

Are you planning to get it, Dark Drakan?