Xbox 720 Will Not Play Used Games
The next generation Microsoft gaming console currently known as the Xbox 720 is rumored to have a feature that will prevent it from playing used games.
And unnamed source revealed to Kotaku that the next Xbox will feature a Blu-ray optical drive and will have some kind of anti-used game system in it. However, there is no concrete evidence that this is a fact.
The source admitted that this type of feature would be extremely difficult for Microsoft to implement into its next Xbox. One way to do this would be to tie and register all games purchased to a specific Xbox Live account.
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When the games are passed off to friends or sold back to Game Stop, they will become locked or unplayable, or have a locked multiplayer component.
This would virtually put retailers such as Game Stop out of business since much of their profits come from the buying and selling of used games. It is unclear whether other companies are planning to take this same route such as Sony and Nintendo, but this type of maneuver seems like bad business for companies that spend so much time promoting releases.
However, publishers and developers who seem to loathe the second-hand gaming market will enjoy this type of a feature since sales are likely to increase. Electronic Arts have recently been working to squash used game sales by locking the multiplayer component. Secondary customers must purchase a pass to gain access to the content.
It would also hurt the segment of the market that relies on the low price of used games in order to build up their libraries.
The Xbox 720 could launch as soon as early 2013 and is expected to be six times as powerful as the 360 unit. It is also slated to have 20 percent greater performance power than the Wii U.
