Thousands couldn’t gamble on the Xbox for days – player etches: “PlayStation and Switch don’t have the problem.”
Gamers couldn’t play games on the Xbox for days. Because Microsoft was struggling with server problems. Now there is criticism of the copy protection and the measures and the indication that the PS5 and Nintendo Switch should not have the problems. But is that really true?
Anyone who wanted to play games on their Xbox Series X or Xbox One last weekend (May 6th to 8th) could not start their games in the most annoying case. Thousands of players in Europe and North America were affected.
The reason for the problems was probably server problems at Microsoft. The problems are said to have been fixed in the meantime, but users are still dissatisfied. Above all, there is criticism of the copy protection on which the Xbox games are said to be based.
User claims PlayStation and Switch are unaffected
What was the problem? There have been problems with the Xbox Network since May 6th. A number of players in Europe and North America are said to have problems playing games from Game Pass as well as games purchased digitally. There are also conflicting statements as to whether disc games were also affected or not.
who dem Xbox Support Twitter account follows, was also able to determine that streaming services such as Netflix and Disney+ were also affected on the Xbox and not just games.
In the meantime, Microsoft had stated that the problem had been taken care of and that everyone should be able to play again without problems.
One of the most annoying problems of the Xbox Series X is finally solved – save your time and nerves
What was actually the cause? But a number of users are still angry and criticize Microsoft for its DRM policy. Because here one is sure that it must be due to the digital rights management of the Xbox. Microsoft did not specifically name the problem.
So had the Twitter account Does It Play? explains that most titles on Xbox require a “DRM check-in”. But he didn’t name any specific games and just wrote “Trust us, we’ve tested it.” But he didn’t give us a list of games.
The Twitter account goes even further, writing: “There is such a thing on the PlayStation and the SW [das Problem der Xbox] Definitely not.” And in another post he adds: “PlayStation and Switch don’t have the problem.”
The PS5 also uses a nasty Always Online copy protection
What about the competition? All three consoles, PlayStation, Xbox and Switch basically offer an offline mode. If you turn off the WiFi or don’t have internet access, you can still play your digital games. However, the prerequisite is that you have activated your console as the “primary console”. Because then the license of the game is saved on the console.
However, if you use your license on multiple consoles or share the Game Pass, you cannot play the games offline.
But other consoles are just as affected by such server problems as the Xbox. For example, if you want to gamble Diablo II: Resurrected on the PS4/PS5, you have to connect to the server so that you can then play offline. This makes Diablo II one of the first games to use such a “Check-In DRM”. And that goes for both the digital and retail versions. Many users don’t like that (via reddit.com).
The new Gran Turismo 7 on the PlayStation also relies on a special online DRM, so that a large part of the game is not available to you if you want to gamble offline or the server is not available.
Similar requirements apply to the Nintendo Switch. If you have bought digital games, you can also play them offline on your switch. Although the switch then tries to connect you to the server, it usually takes you directly to the main menu.
Basically, the developers behind the games are responsible for the protection measures they choose for their games. So if developers or publishers increasingly rely on such “Check-In DRM” technology, many games in offline mode will probably no longer work in the future.
You should activate the new function of the Xbox Series X now so as not to annoy you in multiplayer
Discussion about copy protection brings back memories
Is the discussion completely new? Microsoft had already attempted to integrate such a “Check-In DRM” on the Xbox 360 and Xbox One in mid-2013. So you would have had to reactivate your games every 24 hours to be able to play them on your Xbox at all. But there had been fierce resistance from players and the media, and Microsoft had declared that it had now decided against it (via news.xbox.com).
Many users had feared that the second-hand market would end with such a copy protection at the latest. And being able to resell used games has long been a thorn in the side of developers because they can’t make any money from it.
Copy protection is an ongoing topic in the community: Copy protection and its annoying side effects are always a huge topic among gamers. Because while developers want their software to be protected and take complex measures to do so, players just want to play their games:
Dying Light 2 brings controversial “feature” shortly before release, triggers huge discussion
Reference-mein-mmo.de