Microsoft confirms Xbox Live integration on Windows 8

Jos

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Microsoft has re-confirmed that the company's Xbox Live service will be built into the next version of its desktop operating system. There are few details about the integration at this point, but according to a blog post by Microsoft's Director of Programming for Xbox Live, Larry Hryb (also known as Major Nelson), this week at the BUILD 2011 conference they will be showing how easy it is for developers to integrate the service into Windows 8 applications.

"We are very excited about Xbox LIVE coming to Windows 8.  Xbox LIVE brings your games, music, movies, and TV shows to your favorite Microsoft and Windows devices.  Bringing Xbox LIVE to Windows 8 is part of our vision to bring you all the entertainment you want, shared with the people you care about, made easy," wrote Hryb.

He promised more information about Xbox Live on Windows 8 in the near future and posted the image above as a teaser. Microsoft has already brought Xbox Live integration to Windows Phone. Now, as the company tries to push Windows 8 to desktops, laptops, tablets, and other form factors, this could provide huge exposure for the service.

Earlier this year rumors started to emerge that Windows 8 would even let users play Xbox 360 discs on their PCs, though online gameplay would specifically prohibit cross-platform matchups to keep the playing field leveled. Microsoft hasn't commented on those rumors but we're taking them with a sizeable dose of skepticism for now.

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Great, now that you can play xbox games on a PC this will stagnate the gaming industry even more. Forget about ports when the thing will just run on PC. They don't even give you the courtesy of being able to crush your console opponents....

I wonder if you'd have to pay to use it. I don't like xbox and the xbox live integration into windows phone does not appeal to me at all. If I had to name one thing I don't like about WP7 is would be that I am forced to use xbox live for all my games. It will be interesting to see how gamers react to all this and what, if at all, effect it will have on valve. I'm in favor of steam, especially if I have to pay M$ to use live on my PC. Seeing as how they said you can't access multiplayer from your PC I can't imagine that you'd have to pay for it especially if it comes built into windows 8. I see it only as "complementing" the already horrible xbox live service.
 
Oh goodie - that's what I've always been dreaming for. To play XBox DVD's on my $3,000 hand-built gaming PC.

Just goes to show you how out of touch MS is to an important segment of their user base.
 
They never actually said that you would be able to play xbox games on your pc, just that xbox live is coming to windows 8. they did the same thing with windows phone, but you can't play Halo:Reach on your phone.

it will most likely just be the arcade and indie marketplace that is available to the PC version of xbox live.

I hope I'm wrong, but it seems to me like their trying to dodge the question of exactly what it means for xbox live to come to windows 8.
 
I think you guys misunderstand this, the "play xbox disks on the PC" is a rumour and septate from xbox live integration into windows 8 which has been confirmed. Microsoft have realised that the social aspect of gaming is one of the key future battlegrounds (play with ur friends, advertise directly to people already playing similar games, brand loyalty etc). Microsoft can see steam and want a piece of the action, why re-invent the wheel when xbox live already exists (actually its dangerous to link xbox to the PC as the xbox brand carries quite a lot of baggage with it but thats a separate issue). To be honest its probably the start of microsoft's answer to facebooks farmville by the back door, I will avoid it as far as possible - its not like microsoft make a lot of worthwhile PC games anyway which is no doubt where the xbox discs in your PC rumour came from.

You can already pawn console fanboi's with your PC on a real x-box, just get one of the adapters from ebay that allow you to control your xbox through ur PC - dont tell anyone though as you can get banned for doing it... funny how your average console fanboi wont compete with a PC player but will generally try and argue that the xbox is best ;)
 
I like the face that I can play xbox games on my PC. I have two set of friends, my xbox live friends and my pc gaming friends. Sometimes I had to buy two versions of the same game and that sucks. This is very good news for me. I just hope they do the same with the next gen Xbox console.
 
They never confirmed that you could play xbox games on your PC. Way to read nothing but the title guys.
 
In xbox live you have your avatar and friends list and gamer achievements. Now on my windows phone I can play xbox live games as well. They aren't cross platform but they do let me get achievements which add ti my gamer score. I can also see my avatar and
message friends. I can see if friends are on their xbox and what they are playing. I can send them messages and friend invites. This is the sort of integration that Microsoft are likely to offer on the pc. They may bring out games that have xbox live achievements available (for example the next age of empires or something) and may offer these services to game makers so they can make their own game and add achievements. This would have to be approved by microsoft as soft achievements will devalue the gamer score (but in the short term would sell loads of copies of the game with soft achievements - xbox players love those points).

I can't see them allowing xbox game to play on PC. For a start the piracy would be ridiculous even if you couldn't play online. Plus there is the added problem of cheating in games. Much easier to control with a closed Eco system like the xbox 360.
 
yRaz said:
Great, now that you can play xbox games on a PC this will stagnate the gaming industry even more. Forget about ports when the thing will just run on PC. They don't even give you the courtesy of being able to crush your console opponents....

I wonder if you'd have to pay to use it. I don't like xbox and the xbox live integration into windows phone does not appeal to me at all. If I had to name one thing I don't like about WP7 is would be that I am forced to use xbox live for all my games. It will be interesting to see how gamers react to all this and what, if at all, effect it will have on valve. I'm in favor of steam, especially if I have to pay M$ to use live on my PC. Seeing as how they said you can't access multiplayer from your PC I can't imagine that you'd have to pay for it especially if it comes built into windows 8. I see it only as "complementing" the already horrible xbox live service.
And the reading comprehension award of the year goes to... Mr. yRaz!
 
Doubt this has anything to do with playing xbox games on PC, more likely they just integrated the already existing service into the operating system. Games for Windows Live I think it's called and taken directly from their page:

"Log in with a single unified identity across Xbox LIVE and Games for Windows — LIVE. It’s the same Gamertag, friends list, achievements, and gamerscore regardless of platform!"
 
I was intending to hold onto Windows 7 until an upgrade was absolutely necessary.
This news does not change my decision.
 
They should just make it possible for us PC gamers and XBOX gamers to use the LIVE service to play online together! NOW THAT! WOULD BE USEFUL!
 
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