RIP Ouya and the downside of digital only consoles.

[Sonicx9]

I don't play my Ouya much, but we should never lose access to what we paid for. Companies should be forced to remove all drm if they are going to stop supporting a console and no longer offer downloads, updates, etc. That way, users can still access and back up their games. And, they can't really complain about piracy because the console will be dead, new hardware won't be sold, and only those who already own the console will be able to take advantage. It's not like piracy isn't inevitable anyway.

The irony with the Ouya is that it wasn't even popular enough for users to crack the drm, so now the console will either be severely limited, or flashed with the Google Play store, becoming an underpowered Android console.

The console I have a bunch of download only games for is my PS3 (games that didn't have a physical release that I still wanted). If I can no longer access those, I'll be beyond angry!

It true what you pay will still be playable post closer, but for future generations that want to play the systems games will need to get the system used with the software that interest them installed or their screwed over. Also for PS3 and Xbox 360 non backwards compatible download games. Those are next of being eventually removed and it the same thing except those systems are more popular so piracy is the only way to preserve discontinued download only stuff going forward.

[noah98]

It's really sad that piracy might be the only way to preserve these games...

[Sonicx9]

It's really sad that piracy might be the only way to preserve these games...

Sad but true, but only do it once the online services are 100% discontinued which can be whenever that time comes. Because that the only way to get Wii download games now.

[ASalvaro]

I am a little sad about this as I still fire up my Ouya every now and then but in reality, I haven't downloaded a game in a long time as my unit is rooted and I have the Google Play store available on it and can sideload games/apps.

Unfortunately, this is going to be an issue for any online/digital only console and TBH, this is where the industry seems to be headed. There is no guarantee that anyone who purchases the new "Xbox One S Digital" console will be able to use it in 5, 10, etc... years. It's a sneaky way of introducing planned obsolescence.

By comparison, I can pull out my 42 year old Atari 2600 and still play every single game I own plus new ones being developed to this day.

thats exactly what the industy wants..to kill the used game market

[MSR1701]

After full reading of the article linked above here's a quote from Razer

"Will I still be able to play games on OUYA?"

"You will be able to play games via the OUYA platform until June 25, 2019. Once it has been shut down, access to the Discover section will no longer be available. Games downloaded that appear in Play, may still function if they do not require a purchase validation upon launch. Contact the game developer for confirmation."

This sort of practice should be investigated and perhaps made illegal?

I wouldn't say it is illegal, as it is an anti-pirate method to make sure valid software is being used by the consumer (translation - that the seller is sure that they got the money from the purchase). Google and Apple use this trick all the time; my reading Tablet always forces me to validate my Comic Reader program every so many times to prove that I paid for it, otherwise it crashes.

Given the history of how companies loose to piracy and the neverending battle to fight it (Dreamcast, any given British micro computer in the late 80s and early 90s), can't say I blame them.

Would it be nice if they enabled all software to run without checking if the servers shut down? Yes. Is there a monetary reason to do such? Not as much, sadly.

[Sonicx9]

After full reading of the article linked above here's a quote from Razer

"Will I still be able to play games on OUYA?"

"You will be able to play games via the OUYA platform until June 25, 2019. Once it has been shut down, access to the Discover section will no longer be available. Games downloaded that appear in Play, may still function if they do not require a purchase validation upon launch. Contact the game developer for confirmation."

This sort of practice should be investigated and perhaps made illegal?

I wouldn't say it is illegal, as it is an anti-pirate method to make sure valid software is being used by the consumer (translation - that the seller is sure that they got the money from the purchase). Google and Apple use this trick all the time; my reading Tablet always forces me to validate my Comic Reader program every so many times to prove that I paid for it, otherwise it crashes.

Given the history of how companies loose to piracy and the neverending battle to fight it (Dreamcast, any given British micro computer in the late 80s and early 90s), can't say I blame them.

Would it be nice if they enabled all software to run without checking if the servers shut down? Yes. Is there a monetary reason to do such? Not as much, sadly.

True, they want to fight piracy, but at the same time DRM causes lots of problems.

[MSR1701]

True, they want to fight piracy, but at the same time DRM causes lots of problems.

I completely agree. Unfortunately, developers have to get paid to keep the roof over their heads, and DRM is one of the more successful anti-piracy processes.

Also unfortunately, as servers are shut down over time, digital/download/streaming only services will feel the biggest hurt. When the original Xbox Live support for the classic Xbox was shut down, most of the games were playable, but anything with downloadable content or updates was made unavailable.

Recently I repurchased a PS Vita and was able to redownload the previously bought games I had on my account. Had I waited another year or two, I might not be able to get the games onto such a system without hacking or jailbreaking the system.

[Sonicx9]

After full reading of the article linked above here's a quote from Razer

"Will I still be able to play games on OUYA?"

"You will be able to play games via the OUYA platform until June 25, 2019. Once it has been shut down, access to the Discover section will no longer be available. Games downloaded that appear in Play, may still function if they do not require a purchase validation upon launch. Contact the game developer for confirmation."

This sort of practice should be investigated and perhaps made illegal?

I wouldn't say it is illegal, as it is an anti-pirate method to make sure valid software is being used by the consumer (translation - that the seller is sure that they got the money from the purchase). Google and Apple use this trick all the time; my reading Tablet always forces me to validate my Comic Reader program every so many times to prove that I paid for it, otherwise it crashes.

Given the history of how companies loose to piracy and the neverending battle to fight it (Dreamcast, any given British micro computer in the late 80s and early 90s), can't say I blame them.

Would it be nice if they enabled all software to run without checking if the servers shut down? Yes. Is there a monetary reason to do such? Not as much, sadly.

True, they want to fight piracy, but at the same time DRM causes lots of problems.