In an update to our main Microsoft E3 summary article, it appears the software giant is set to put some added pressure on retail chains, announcing they will start “on-demand” downloads of games for the Xbox 360 through Xbox Live.
It’s as simple as that. If you want to buy the game, simply log into XBL, search it, buy it, download it, and play.
The service will begin in August and will start with 30 games including Assassin’s Creed, BioShock, Call of Duty 2, Crackdown, Mass Effect, and Oblivion. You can purchase the games using a credit card, or using Microsoft Points, and although the pricing isn’t clear yet, it appears it will be similar to retail, only slightly cheaper.
It may be time to upgrade your HDDs as well, as these games will certainly eat up a 20GB or 60GB hard drive in no time.
Result for: bioshock
According to a post on the official Ubisoft forum, it appears the French game publisher is looking to not fall into the same traps that Electronic Arts has with their hit game Spore which has been slammed for using restrictive SecuROM DRM.
For the upcoming expected blockbuster Far Cry 2, Ubisoft has admitted they will be using DRM, but with much less restrictions then Spore or Bioshock.
According to the Ubisoft Manager,
* You have five activations on three separate PCs.
* Uninstalling the game “refunds” an activation. This process is called “revoke”, so as long as you complete proper uninstall you will be able to install the game an unlimited number of times on 3 systems.
* You can upgrade your computer as many times as you want (using our revoke system)
* Ubisoft is committed to the support of our games, and additional activations can be provided.
* Ubisoft is committed to the long-term support of our games: you’ll always be able to play Far Cry 2.
The clear difference is that of the “revoke” feature. For an EA game, you never get any installations back, and you certainly don’t get up to 15 installations. You will lose one if your hard drives crash, but that is not as likely as someone wanting to upgrade, or reformat their OS.
