*Hates on FF13 because I legitimately didn't like it*

Maybe because you want to send a message that this sort of erosion of consumer rights is unacceptable?

PSN still supplies the matchmaking, they simply chose to subsidize it with advertising and game sales (which MS could do, though it may be a bit more difficult as they have invested more resources into building features into their online experience). And EA is perfectly free to use the same matchmaking APIs as…

Unless we all stop buying games that do this.

You've missed the point: the online matchmaking also does not require continued service from the publisher. It is handled by the console manufacturer, which is why people pay for Live.

What I mean is, while I could research a new topic and learn about it and then write an essay on it, I couldn't just up and do it without any prior knowledge. Likewise, I could learn a new programming domain and start writing code for it, but I couldn't sit down and start churning out code for it without some prior…

Well, there's a lot more to programming than just the base language. It would be a lot like saying that just because I know the English language, I should be able to write an English essay on any topic out there. That said, good programmers are able to quickly get up-to-speed in a new field because our brains are…

You're forgetting that people who sell the games back to the store typically use that money towards buying new games. Also, game stores sell their new games at very narrow margins, which they can only afford to do because of used game sales. Ergo, used game sales mean that the publishers get more new game sales and a…

I'm glad to know I'm not the only one boycotting these games.

I was thinking about this the other day too. It reduces the value of the game as it is basically saying that the online component of the game is gong to be non-existent within a year or two.

Complications already have happened with Dragon Age 2 and games on the PS3 when the Playstation Store was down. People who bought the games legitimately couldn't play their games because of technical troubles beyond their control.

Well I think this explains perfectly why FF XIV was so poorly received. If you're at work that long, your brain doesn't have a chance to recharge enough for you to make proper decisions.

Yeah, I had to go back and read it again to make sure I hadn't just jumped back and read the same paragraph again.

Okay, so that was the resolution to the whole EA v. Microsoft thing a few years ago. In light of that, this all makes a bit more sense. But it also means I won't ever be buying any more EA games with an online component. It just isn't palatable to me to spend full retail on a game only for it to no longer be fully…

They do. It's called Live.

So I can understand them not hosing value-add services on their servers anymore (leagues, etc). But what is their justification for taking these games off of the Live matchmaking service? Microsoft hosts that matchmaking. It doesn't cost EA a cent to leave their games up there, since those costs are covered by the…

It sounds like a throwback to Link to the Past, which used the two world system expertly.

All of this would be solved if we didn't have regional monopolies as you'd be able to simply switch to a company with better service. I still don't understand how in the hell they're legal.

Penultimate = next to last.

Thank you! I thought this was a bad post - turns out that only the link to the article was lacking.