The next generation consoles from both Microsoft and Sony are rumoured to include technology that’ll limit – and possibly even downright abolish the sale of used games. In the process, it’ll also nix the ability to swop games between friends.
Platform owners might ostensibly accomplish this by forcing customers to activate games over the internet – tying them to a single account. This is pretty much how PC games operate – so it’s nothing new for PC gamers. The difference here is that there’s a pretty big price gap between the cost of PC and console games. That extra cost has usually been offset by the ability to trade games in, or by purchasing them second hand.
Should this lock on pre-owned games take place in the next generation – and judging by the proliferation of complete bollocks like online passes – it quite possibly could, I think I’d be pretty driven to ditch console gaming for good and stick to playing on my PC – unless the price of console games comes down significantly.
What about you? would you buy a console that forced you to only buy new games – especially if they still come at a $60 premium?
Last Updated: March 30, 2012
