Why Does Everyone Hate the Xbox One?

AOTF Staff

Published: Aug 9, 2013 03:07 pm

Kinect with Force

If you’re getting an Xbox One this year, the good news is you’re getting a Kinect with it. Unfortunately, that’s also the bad news for a lot of people. There is a vocal group of consumers who really don’t want to own a Kinect. From the privacy concerns that were levied against the device, to the simple fact that they it’s an unproven and unnecessary piece of equipment for many different types of gaming experiences, the Kinect just seems like an unnecessary waste of money.

Used games and the ability to sell them

Microsoft is the company that came out and tried to convince people that change is good. This never works. Especially if you don’t have a good argument, and Microsoft didn’t. By being the company to tell consumers that physical copies of games would essentially be going away, and they’d be stripped of the ability to sell them without regulation, they got themselves into hot water with not only consumers, but retailers as well. And while it’s inevitable that eventually the physical copies of games that we know and love will go the way of the dinosaur, no one wants to be the person to break this news. They will become extinct, it’s only a matter of time. So why all the hate? Well, people aren’t ready for it. It’s going to have to be a more natural progression to digital delivery, the reveal of the Xbox One used game policies was jarring to say the least.

Price

You get what you pay for. Repeat this mantra a hundred times and you still won’t feel comfortable about paying more for the Xbox One than you are for the PlayStation 4. A hundred dollars more to be exact. Consumers will have to be willing to fork up extra cash for the Xbox One when sitting side by side with Sony’s new console. The problem is, Microsoft hasn’t done a very good job of explaining why their console is so much more. Their best explanation has been that it has a Kinect. See reason number one, and you’ve beginning to see how this hate ball got rolling.

The Focus isn’t on Games

Microsoft is trying to sell a video game console. Trojan horse as it may be, the people they are looking to target are worried about video games. They want advancements in technology that will provide for bigger and better experiences. While the Xbox One is no doubt powerful enough to deliver these next-gen experiences that we crave, Microsoft didn’t do themselves any favors by focusing on the other entertainment options of the Xbox One at their reveal. It brought about some confusion about the new console. While they righted these wrongs at E3 2013, a lot of the damage had been done. Sony’s beefier raw power specs and explicit focus on gamers didn’t help them much at all.

Xbox 180

You know that old saying “You never get a second chance to make a first impression”? It’s true, you don’t. For many passive followers of video games, the damage has been done. Confusion is high, and Microsoft has no choice but to continually accentuate the positive. Fortunately, Microsoft is working tirelessly in an attempt to get it right. The great Xbox 180 occurred in June, and they basically reversed all of the policies that got people up in arms in the first place. DRM, gone. Used Games, here to stay. Exclusive Games, Xbox One has them. Headset, here have one on the house. And while it’s great that Microsoft has realized that these features or lack thereof could possible euthanize the Xbox brand, there are still fears that they will return. And these fears are warranted, because that’s the direction that gaming is heading. Regardless of what Sony or Microsoft say to sell you a console.

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