Games for Windows Live ending July 2014 – report
Although it withdrew the notice almost immediately, Microsoft reportedly today announced the long-anticipated demise of Games for Windows Live, its much-derided DRM and community features suite for PC games.
Polygon reports Microsoft posted and then withdrew this statement on the Xbox Support website for Age of Empires online today:
“Games for Windows Live will be discontinued on July 1, 2014. Although it is available through Steam, Age of Empires Online requires features of the Games for Windows Live service. You can continue to enjoy all the features of Age of Empires Online as the service will remain 100% operational until July 1, 2014 when the server will shut down.”
Although many Master Race members are probably turning backflips, it’s not all good news, unfortunately; in addition to the apparent closure of Age of Empires Online, there’s no word on how the service closure will affect first- and third-party games which rely on it for activation – or online features like multiplayer. While some, like Batman: Arkham City, will likely go activation-free or switch to another service via an update, others, like Fable 3, are so raddled with GFWL features that the possibility of patching it out seems near impossible.
The Games for Windows Marketplace is closing next month, and Microsoft may be preparing to launch a successor; it’s managed to woo former Steam champion Jason Holtman to its side.
Throughout its lifespan, Games for Windows Live has never managed to win over gamers the way Steam has; of all Valve’s rivals, including the oft-criticised Uplay and Origin, it is far and away the most derided.
http://www.vg247.com/2013/08/19/games-for-windows-live-service-ending-july-2014-report/
In other MS news
In 14 years, your average video game franchise has a fairly decent shot at hitting a double-digit sequel number. It’s not really in vogue to go back and simply keep adding content to an older game—so who ever thought that, a decade and a half after its original release, Age of Empires 2 would receive an official expansion? It’s true, and it’s happening courtesy of Microsoft Studios, which is supporting the team behind the fan-made mod Forgotten Empires to bring new content to the classic strategy game’s HD release.
This was announced by a developer post on Steam, where it’s revealed that SkyBox Labs is currently working with Forgotten Empires LLC to bring the mod to “official” status. It’s a pretty swank success story for a team of amateur developers—why aren’t my custom TF2 hats getting this much attention?
Anyway, Age of Empires 2 HD—The Forgotten will allow us to explore five forgotten civilizations and their technologies, four new campaigns, a bunch of maps, new AI, and more. And, hauling the ancient franchise into the modern age will be Twitch.tv integration. It’s roughly scheduled for a Steam release next month; follow Forgotten Empires on Facebook to keep up with their updates.
http://www.pcgamer.com/2013/08/19/after-14-years-an-aoe2-fan-mod-becomes-an-official-expansion/
Also
GOGlight: Good Old Games launch new indie-friendly submission process
The guys at GOG have renewed their efforts to defy their name and attract ever more new indie games to their service. Developers will submit forms via a new portal and have their entries sifted through by staff who are “always ready to openly discuss your game”.
“We are not machines,” say the distributors. “We talk.”
The form is a simple affair with just enough room to accommodate a brief description of the game in question, alongside details of its platforms, DLC, release status and use of microtransactions (have GOG ever had to deal with those?).
“We’ll tell you exactly what we think about your title,” say GOG. “We know our users’ tastes, and we do our best to present them with a selection of DRM-free games they’ll enjoy. We review all submissions and pick those that offer the qualities our users value most, such as gameplay depth, originality, and a high level of polish.”
Whether the game is accepted or not, GOG pledge to write back within two weeks: “We will never leave you without feedback!”
The distributors plan to entice indies with the guarantee of a social media campaign - which includes the potential to be caught up in one of the site’s kerr-azy marketing pushes - and a featured spot on the service’s home page when their game is released. Plus, they’re offering an advance on royalties.
“This way you get some extra budget to put the final polish on your game and feel more confident about us as your business partner,” they write.
There’s a catch: GOG will take a 40% cut of the money made on the game until the advance is recouped. Beyond that, they’ll revert to the usual 70/30 developer/distributor split, consistent with Steam.
Then there’s this series of gushing endorsements from To The Moon’s Kan Gao, The Real Texas’ Calvin French, Defender’s Quest’s Lars Doucet and Driftmoon’s Anne & Ville Mönkönnen:
I’ve only played one GOG-exclusive indie game to date, and that was the somewhat special Signal Ops. Buggy as all heck to begin with, mind, but since fixed.
Anyway, onto more important matters: can we please get a consensus on the pronunciation? Is it ‘gee-oh-gee’ or ‘gog’?
Thanks to @LewieP for this one.
http://www.pcgamesn.com/indie/goglight-good-old-games-launch-new-indie-friendly-submission-process
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