Probably the case now considering you have to have Gold membership to watch Netflix on 360.  If anything the streaming services shouldn't require Live membership. 

Seems like a smart and sensible move.

JayWood2010 said: Wander_ said: Console are becoming less gaming. What a sad time we live in Not really.  They are just beoming an all in one media device which I like.

Me too. Kinda why I may get a neXtBox. lol

I made a thread at the beginning of 2012 talking about this and I knew MS would definitely make their stuff 100% a full media/entertainment hub... with strong gaming component. I figured Sony would do it to and possibly utilize Android to gain mass apps and such, however Vita's lack of this makes me 2nd guess myself. I had also hoped Nintendo would as it made the most sense for them to integrate a Adroid app system since they have the least compentency in OS and applications. However, they clearly went for a game system with some extended features. (bad idea IMO)

The smartest thing Microsoft ever did was acquire Skype. Literally every single person I know uses Skype.

superchunk said: JayWood2010 said: Wander_ said: Console are becoming less gaming. What a sad time we live in Not really.  They are just beoming an all in one media device which I like. Me too. Kinda why I may get a neXtBox. lol I made a thread at the beginning of 2012 talking about this and I knew MS would definitely make their stuff 100% a full media/entertainment hub... with strong gaming component. I figured Sony would do it to and possibly utilize Android to gain mass apps and such, however Vita's lack of this makes me 2nd guess myself. I had also hoped Nintendo would as it made the most sense for them to integrate a Adroid app system since they have the least compentency in OS and applications. However, they clearly went for a game system with some extended features. (bad idea IMO)

Games are still at the core of what the consoles are, as Microsft and the other two have giant development teams making first-party games, but all of these media/social services are just another way to get more people to buy their systems and expand the userbase, thereby selling more games to more people instead of just the hardcore fanboys.

kowenicki said: Wander_ said: Console are becoming less gaming. What a sad time we live in No they aren't. They are just becoming more other things. More other things doesn't need to mean less gaming. How does this, or multi media apects, diminish the gaming aspect in any way?

Because your family/house members will bug you to watch a movie on netflix, or skype with their grandmother in some forsaken region of the world or, god forbid, want to play on the Kinect. Keep a console for only gaming (while keeping the store, some form of chat to other players, etc), people who don't game won't take a second look at it. That's what Wander may have been gravitating towards or at least the general idea. Having a variety of functions obviously makes it more valuable of course and adding skype was a good move on their part.

Next gen consoles seems to be really arming them self up to the teeth to crush PC. I always use skype on PC or on Vita, it would be nice to use it on consoles too.

kowenicki said: Areym said: kowenicki said: Wander_ said: Console are becoming less gaming. What a sad time we live in No they aren't. They are just becoming more other things. More other things doesn't need to mean less gaming. How does this, or multi media apects, diminish the gaming aspect in any way? Because your family/house members will bug you to watch a movie on netflix, or skype with their grandmother in some forsaken region of the world or, god forbid, want to play on the Kinect. Keep a console for only gaming (while keeping the store, some form of chat to other players, etc), people who don't game won't take a second look at it. That's what Wander may have been gravitating towards or at least the general idea. Having a variety of functions obviously makes it more valuable of course and adding skype was a good move on their part. Then he wants a console nobody will buy in the future, from a company that won't survive.

Well, there is a fine line between Multi-purpose gaming console and your mother's fitness trainer and I think microsoft sometimes fucking stomps over that line hard.

This was a long time coming.