Xbox 360 Games on Demand -- Demanding for all the wrong reasons

I usually try to refrain from using (or abusing) internet memes whenever I'm writing something on the internet, professional or not. There's something about them that seems totally insipid, unnecessary, and, in a few ways, insulting. I feel a miniature chill run down my spine whenever I hear someone use the words "win" and "fail" as verbs, because of how awkward it sounds to someone not well versed in the, er, wondrous ways of the internet (and if you're not, believe me you're fortunate). Yet when I saw Microsoft's Games on Demand program, a service in which you'll be able to download full Xbox 360 games starting this upcoming Tuesday, August 11, I couldn't help but describe it as, like they say on the internet, full of fail.

But it's not the idea that's the problem, per se. Actually, when it was first announced during E3 2009, I thought it sounded like a pretty neat idea. Buying games from your own home without having to worry about the bother of traveling to a store to buy it? That doesn't sound bad at all. I thought it was OK that the service was being limited to older, back catalog titles instead of new games, because it's not like they aren't plentiful. The older though superlative titles are following the usual cycle, in that they're becoming sparse after quite a bit of time on the shelf. This will give anyone who missed out on them a chance to purchase them, and that's neat.

But it's after that when the plan begins to crumble, and extended thought about it reveals a few flaws. Even though they're older, these games are going to demand quite a bit of room on your hard drive. For a console whose proprietary drives don't exceed 120 GB, there aren't a lot of these you can purchase, especially if your console is already packed with Xbox Live Arcade titles. People willing to upgrade to the aforementioned 120 GB still have the problem of the drives being ludicrously overpriced. It's initially great for Elite owners, but silly for the owner of any other SKU who aren't willing to take it up the you-know-what for them. But wait, it gets worse.

The service won't be fully up until Tuesday, but some games are available on the marketplace for people who have been invited to test the updated 360 dashboard (also coming Tuesday). Kotaku has a list of what games have already appeared (along with all of the games that will be available on the service initiallly), and while some of them are being offered at a merely OK price -- meaning that it's still not a good alternative to buying the game at retail -- some of the prices are laughable.

Mass Effect initially seems OK at $20, but it's actually quite ridiculous considering that the currently sold retail "Platinum Hits" version includes a plethora of bonus content as well, including the "Bring Down the Sky" expansion pack. Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is being sold separately at $30, despite the Game of the Year Edition, which includes both expansion packs, being offered at retail at the same price. And if for some reason you don't want that version, you can also get the game packaged with Bioshock for $40 (which is also being offered with this program for $30). Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga is being offered at $30, the usual price for a Platinum Hits title. But said game is an exception to the rule, being sold at a $20 MSRP, meaning you're actually paying $10 extra for the digital version. Call of Duty 2, which released back in November of 2005, being offered for $30 is also hilarious.

If you think that's bad, overseas markets have it even worse, especially Australia. For instance, the Kotaku post points out that Mass Effect is being offered there digitally for 6000 Microsoft Points, or AUD$99. Absolutely insane, considering that a retail copy only costs AUD$30-$50. What a deal!

Yeah, as you can see that digital distribution on consoles has quite a ways to go, especially on Microsoft consoles. At this point, it's unknown as to whether these games will have to adhere to the inane DRM stipulations Microsoft still has in place on the 360. When I received my 360 back from Microsoft in the middle of last month, I was pretty surprised that I could no longer play my Xbox Live Arcade games offline. The refurbished unit came with instructions to redownload all of my games again so they would work offline, but they don't despite redownloading each one twice. My downloadable content doesn't work offline either, which would be a big hindrance if I was playing a game offline that requires it to run. If Games on Demand are similar to these, that makes them look like an even worse deal.

Right now, it looks like these games are squarely aimed at the "I don't know how to spend my money wisely" crowd. If you're reading this, I implore you: don't be one of those people. Please avoid them until Microsoft at least prices the game, and their accessories, sensibly.