I don’t think it’s a terribly bad idea, but it certainly has flaws.

I actually sent a suggestion to the Halo people that Halo Reach come with a code you have to enter in order to unlock multiplayer. In other words, if you buy the game new, don’t have LIVE or don’t plan on playing multiplayer, then you don’t need the code. But if you DO want to play multiplayer, which implies that you do have LIVE, then you enter the code and you get access.

So who couldn’t do it? People who bought used or rented the game. Only the people who bought new copies could play it. If you buy used, or if you’re borrowing a friend’s copy, or if you rented the game and you want to play Multiplayer, you could always purchase access for 800 MS Points.

If you don’t have LIVE, you’re not going to buy any additional content anyway, so Microsoft isn’t losing anything.

There are two problems with your suggestion that aren’t problems with mine.

First, your idea for entering a code for every new game means that only people with access to LIVE can play. And if that’s going to be the case, then they might as well make the game Direct Digital Download, which you are against.

Second, your idea would penalize people who bought used, borrowed, or rented, which is something that you say the market should allow. If your idea is to reward earl;y adopters, you can’t reward used buyers, renters and borrows just so you can stick it to people who buy the game new later on.

I addressed numerous points in your article (articles, actually), and yet the only one you responded to was the one where I DIDN’T address a point in your post. Does that mean the rest of my issues with your article are okay? Groovy.

Next time get a clue!

From their end, they can’t tell an early adopter from any schmuck who bought the game used, rented it, borrowed it or stole it. Why should they give a free copy of the DLC to all of those people? They didn’t pay anything for it. The publisher didn’t make a dime from them, and now they should throw in some free content to go with it? You think when it comes out on the GOTY edition, that they should also throw it up on Xbox LIVE for free. Why? Because early adopters would get butthurt?

The early adopters that give a damn BOUGHT IT already. What the hell would they want another copy free for? And the early adopters that DIDN’T buy it, didn’t care then and don’t care now.

Should the guys who buy the game a year late for a third of the price get the cool stuff I got at the game’s release, like the stuff in the LE, or the shirts or codes or soundtracks or whatever?

The buyers at launch, and the buyers a year later who pay $20 are entirely different people. You don’t need to cater to them in exactly the same manner. The launch buyers have enjoyed the game for a whole year. THAT’S their perk. THAT’S why they bought it Day One – because the game means more to them.

Excuse me, this wall over here wants to get into the conversation.

I want you to imagine that you’re a writer. (lawl c wut I did there?) You just wrote a book, and you go to Barnes & Noble to see how it’s doing. There’s a large crowd of people there who bought the hardback version of your book. They even bought a Mikewarrior bookmark and a Mikewarrior Trapper Keeper binder to take to school.

And then there’s this guy. You see him looking at the shelf with your books on it. He picks one up… and while you’re there at the store, he stands there and READS THE ENTIRE BOOK. Then he calmly sets it back on the shelf, maybe even comes up to you and congratulates you on the great book, and walks out of the store.

According to you, I should chase him down and give him a binder and a bookmark.

Or, conversely, a year later when all of the stuff is on clearance because sales have dropped to zero with the release of the new Twilight novel, we should hunt down the people who bought your hardback and the binder and the bookmark… and give THEM a binder and a bookmark?

I SERIOUSLY don’t think you’ve thought this through.

To not think so is asinine.

when the GOTY of Oblivion came out, my friend got the game. and shared the goty material with me. and THATS also something you can’t do with dlc atm. so thats a little bright spot on the whole down side of it.