Next Gen: 5 Ways It’s Going To Rip You Off



The Mouthby TheMouth


Next gen is coming… soon. Are you rich enough?

We all know the next generation of consoles will be arriving. ‘When’ appears to be the major debate, but what concerns us most is a question of a different kind altogether. What we want to know is ‘how much is it going to cost us?’

We’re not talking the price of the console, nor the doubtlessly ludicrous pricing of its first round of titles. No, we’re talking about the ways in which Microsoft and Sony are likely to go about doing a Sam Fisher on your cash – a stealth-kill to your anxious wallet.


Both Microsoft and Sony have wheeled out all sorts of excuses as to why full backwards compatibility wasn’t available on either console this generation. ‘People don’t want it/need it’ they said. ‘We can reduce production costs if we take it out’ they said. ‘Lots of games work for the last generation, just not the ones you want to play’ they said.

The truth of the matter is that backwards compatibility was cut down in its prime so they could monetise all that content and sell it back to you once your disc copies had turned to dust. Probably. It’s for that reason that those expecting backwards compatibility may be in for a rude awakening.





With the way things are going, there’s no doubt that the industry as a whole is united in its attempts to stamp out the second-hand market. Taking away our multiplayer on traded games is just the start. The logical progression is discs, or whatever media format next gen will arrive with, will come with unique signatures imprinted onto them.

Once ‘paired’ with your console, they will not be useable anywhere outside your profile. The technology for this already exists. The platform holders are unlikely to change the rules mid-gen, but with new machines on the market, they’re in a position to make it so right from the off.

All Side-Quests Are DLC

Let’s face it, a lot of people just buzz along to the end of a game without stopping to take in the view, let alone indulge themselves of a game’s many other distractions. If this is you prepare to not be ripped off. Games for you will be cheaper; you’ll pay twenty bucks for your side-quest-free campaign experience. Those who like to explore, complete and indulge in a game’s many distractions, however, look out. Moneys are likely going to be incrementally charged you for everything. You’ll probably have to pay money for an in-game NPC to give you directions.

Sports games are going to charge you for a new ball when you lose it or kick it out of bounds. Driving games are going to charge you real money for new tyres. Think about it; we’re really not very far off this model now and we’re all sitting idly by while we slowly boil like the proverbial frog in the pan.
£500/$700 Minimum

With truly epic graphics technology on the cards (nVidia’s Project Denver the current conjecture of choice), PS4 and Xbox 720 are going to cost you an absolute fortune, but then, you knew that, right? What’s money compared to realistic skin on an NPC’s knee?



All your saves and other data will be stored on the cloud. With a mind for fairness, the amount of space you occupy on said cloud will be subject to tiered pricing. Oddly, this means that those who play the most (the most loyal) will be charged more.

Note: This article may or may not have been entirely made up because the author liked the title. Thanks for your time.





Video// Youtube


Article,photographs and video taken entirely from the web 360 magazine