Onlive - expensive

triptoy2002

triptoy2002

Dalayan Adventurer
Been waiting to see what this service called Onlive was going to become. It seemed to be marketted as an alternative to console gaming that would allow you access to the same games.

I am not the kind of guy that buys new consoles. I have played, and like, games on 360, ps3, and other less recent systems. I owned a ps2 once, had a ps1 too. I still have a NES and SNES, and play the games on them fairly often (at least once a month or so).

I also don't have a super nice PC, it could play some of the recent games with the very lowest settings, but I don't generally buy new games anyway. Heh, I play a private server of a decade old mmo :D

My point is that I had hoped this Onlive service would allow me to enjoy some of the newer games, without the prohibitive price (For $70, a game had better damn well do the dishes too), not to mention the price of upgrades to play it on my PC or the price of a console.

Here are some quotes for game prices from Onlive, and don't forget to add the $5 per month subscription fee:

AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!! – A Reckless Disregard for Gravity
$9.99

Assassin’s Creed II
Unlimited pass: $39.99

Batman: Arkham Asylum
5 day pass: $6.99
3 day pass: $4.99

Borderlands
Unlimited pass: $29.99
5 day pass: $8.99
3 day pass $5.99

Brain Challenge
Unlimited pass: $4.99

Colin McRae: DiRT 2
Demo only

Defense Grid Gold
Unlimited pass: $13.99
5 day pass: $6.99

F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin
Unlimited pass: $19.99

Just Cause 2
Unlimited pass: $49.99

Madballs in Babo: Invasion
Unlimited pass: $9.99

Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands
Unlimited pass: $49.99

Puzzle Chronicles
Unlimited pass: $9.99
3 day pass $3.99

Red Faction: Guerrilla
Unlimited pass: $19.99

Shatter
Unlimited pass: $8.99

Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction
Unlimited pass: $59.99

Notice not all of them have an unlimited pass. At 50 bucks for a game I don't actually even own, It's not happening for me. It may be cheaper than console + game, or PC upgrades + game, but still not in a price range I feel comfortable paying. Any one else disappointed in Onlive's price?
 
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triptoy2002 said:
Notice not all of them have an unlimited pass. At 50 bucks for a game I don't actually even own, It's not happening for me. It may be cheaper than console + game, or PC upgrades + game, but still not in a price range I feel comfortable paying. Any one else disappointed in Onlive's price?
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From what you posted, all of the $40+ games seem to be unlimited passes. The prices seem reasonable to me for what it is. The 3-5 day passes pretty much amount to rentals and if it's a game you'd beat in a week anyways and never touch again, it'd probably be better to spend $10 on it then $20-$50. I actually think that $5 a month is very reasonable as well, I expected like $15 or so... basically how much a MMORPG subscription is.

I love the idea of OnLive, but because you HAVE to be online and connected to play any game is the reason I think it won't do as well as it should. Maybe in 10 or 20 years when even the most secluded island can get a stable wireless signal, but probably not now.

And the fact they don't currently support wireless connections is another thing keeping me from it, only support people who can wire their computer or the OnLive console up to the internet directly. For now anyways...

Cyzaine said:
Haven't really checked out onlive yet, but will certainly investigate a bit.
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OnLive is a streaming video that you control, to put it very simply.

You connect to the service either via the OnLive client on your PC, or through their special console-esque version that plugs into the TV. You start up the game and it's actually loaded and run on hardware somewhere else and what happens is sent to you. As you press buttons on the controller, the input is sent to the OnLive servers and what essentially is a video of you doing stuff in-game is sent back to you. A few other interesting features are the ability to watch your friends and other gamers as they play live, and other community oriented things as well.

That's just my understanding of it, I've never used it so I could be wrong. In my opinion, it sounds like a Netflix for games.

The usefulness of this...
- Never have to upgrade your PC or buy a new console again (all you should ever need is something capable of streaming decent quality video).
- Very fast and to the point, you can buy/rent games in the blink of an eye and be playing seconds later. No downloading or installing.
- I could be wrong, but logically, it may someday allow you to play console only games on your PC?
- I'm guessing watching friends play live and whatever else they plan on adding is pretty cool.

The criticism of this...
- Even single player games require you to be connected due to how it's set up, so you're out of luck if you ever lose your internet or the service ever goes down or you can't pay the monthly fee.
- Lag, or having a slower connection, can seriously impede your ability to play.
- You're limited to whatever games they're offering (I would assume as many as they possibly can, but still).
- Some people probably won't like the idea of spending a monthly fee and nearly full price for something you can't physically hold or back up onto some kind of media.
- No modding or general file tampering, since you don't have access to any of the games files.
- I don't think you can change the resolution in-game.


I personally think it's a very innovative idea if they could somehow make it work. I'd give it a shot for a month or two maybe if they supported wireless.
 
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I have to agree, the idea is really cool, it is mainly the price that puts me off. $4.99 a month is very reasonable to play demos, watch others play to see if you might be interested, etc. And I realize that the ones that don't have Unlimited Pass on them are probably the result of this being a new service, and they are contending with copyrights that were negociated prior to this service's existence. My main issue is the price of Unlimited Pass.

With no Onlive, a Developer makes a game, another company burns the DVDs and packages them in the cases, another company ships them in bulk to distrubutors, who then ship them out to places like best buy and stuff, who then stock and sell them. This means roughly 3 middlemen minimum, thus higher prices.

With Onive, there is one middleman, Onlive itself, between us and the Developers.

So I guess I was expecting the price of the unlimited pass to be lower than the price of buying the game from a store brand new, especially considering the fact that I cannot trade it in for the next game I want, or own it till the end of time (i.e. the first Zelda :D)

Also, I assumed a more competitive price, due to the fact that this is new, and has yet to gain a solid footing in the industry, where thier competitors are fully established companies with long standing reputations (i.e. Microsoft, ****). I figured they would try harder to undercut the competition, to make more people consider a service that is new.

I would pay $30 for Unlimited, plus the subscription, I think. Just not $50, $60, etc.
 
New infos, I happened to check back on this service recently. I'm not sure if it is a temporary promotion or a permanent feature, but currently the subscription fee is waived as long as you aren't playing any games. That means you can go on for free and watch other people play, rate them, and get a feel for what games you may or may not want to try.

This was a good move on Onlive's part, and something I had assumed they would do from day one. Basically this works out as a form of promotion. I sat and watched a few people play, and I have to admit, after a few minutes of watching I found myself considering subscribing so I could try out some games (I'd like to think my willpower to resist advertizing and promotions is slightly above average, so I didn't subscribe).

Also while I was there, I checked out some of the price list. I only saw 2 games that had an unlimited pass price of $40+, most were closer to $30, which was one of my big complaints when they first released pricing. Maybe the majority of the games are a few months+ old, and so have a cheaper price, I don't know. I'm not really up on what games are coming out and when. But the prices definately looked more competetive, which is important for a new and not well established service that needs to compete with big names in the console game industry.

Finally, I noticed that more of the games listed had Unlimited play as an option, showing that they are starting to get past some of the issues with the recent-but-older games, and are making a place for themselves in the market.

Overall, I think they have made many of the changes needed to make themselves a worthwhile service, and though I am still not prepared to crack my wallet open for them, I think it is interesting, and a step in the right direction. I'd like to hear any thoughts other people might have.
 
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I understand what you saying Trip at the same point not everyone has Gamestop nearby them.. $5 is relatively nothing as that even buy you a 6 pack of beer anymore unless it is Natty Ice or Pabsts or some crap beer.

I do stream all the time and wait for them to run deals on games as sometimes you can buy $50 dollar games for half price and it is yours to own.
 
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