XBOX Live: Worth the money?

If you own an XBOX 360, you are well aware that xbox live costs money to play. Despite that fact, you all most likely fork over the cash, and enjoy the online gaming glory that Microsoft has given you. But some people, such as PS3 fans, argue that you shouldn't have to pay...this raises the question: is xbox live worth the cash you fork over?

in short:
yes

in long:
explain later

XBOX live is worth the money. There is a reason why PS3 is so expensive (it's not just the bluray). I mean sure, you get free internet but, you are paying an extra $200 for the system itself. XBOX live is only $50 a year, that's only $4 a month, and only 13 cents a day...

I hate X box so....

Is Xbox 360 worth the money?
no
Is Xbox live worth the money?
Only for Star Wars Battlefront games

you bring up a great point skye. 4 dollars a month really is nothing, and since the 360 is only $199 now...i would say it's a steal! I think the only downside is remembering to renew your subscription, and the fact that you have to pay a different fee for each profile.

xbox live worth the money??? hmmmm right now its a little to early for me to make the call. i already pay for the internet to my computer i may not like paying for it again for the xbox but i can forget all the great offers that do come with xbox live like downloadable content for games, the arcade game that i can download, or the many new demos for game that i can try out and not waste my money on a worthless game cough mirror's edge cough (dont get it or the demo!) well i guess i could make a call and say that it is worth the money

yeah, i think a lot of people forget about the downloads...I just downloaded extra content for Bioshock the other day, and it gave you all kinds of new options...for free!

360 has a few features that ps3 doesnt like being able to play your music and talking to buds while playing and you got netflix just to name a few so ya id say its worth it

oh, i forgot about Netlix, that's a pretty good reason....but doesn't PS3 have something similar? I could have sworn i saw a PS3 commercial for some sort of movie rental, but I bet you have to pay some sort of fee...

pugs didja know they had to cancel battlefront 3? i dont know cory i know u can purchase movies on psn but havent heard something like netflix quite yet

Xbox live is worth the price imo. Your paying less than five dollars a month for a lot of content. I would have Xbox live, but the wireless adapter is too expensive. I don't play online games that often so I'm not in need of of xbox live right now. However, I would like to get it soon so I can download demos and picture packs. :3

Actually, I haven't played much live myself...but it really is nice to have the download option. The picture packs are really a great feature, as are trailers and stuff! And of course, Downloadable content. Actually, until just recently, I didn't realize whole new parts of games could be downloaded! For example, i was thrilled to get all new plasmid options in bioshock...but then I was even more stunned to discover that games like CoD5, Beautiful Katamari, and GTA4 had new stages, challenges, and even new games which could be added. For that reason, Live is a must...

SilensCaelum wrote:

XBOX live is worth the money. There is a reason why PS3 is so expensive (it's not just the bluray). I mean sure, you get free internet but, you are paying an extra $200 for the system itself. XBOX live is only $50 a year, that's only $4 a month, and only 13 cents a day...

$50 a year at 4 years and you've paid $200. Assuming you bought the cheapest model available of the XBOX 360 at launch, you spent $299 back in 2005. We are now in 2009, meaning you're approaching that $200 mark. Now, assume you bought the least expensive PS3 at launch. You'll have spent $499, and been having free Internet access. Come November 2009, the 360 + Live is officially more expensive than a PS3. And that's if you buy it by the year, a lot of people don't and are paying a monthly recurring fee around $8 a month, or $96 a year. If you're one of those people, and you've had the 360 since launch, you've already sunk in almost $300, bringing your sad, hard drive-less console's total to $599, for which you could have gotten the most expensive version of the PS3 with a 60 GB hard drive. Of course, this is all based on terms of what was available at launch... I can continue on, but I'm sure everyone has already stopped reading this.

In short, I don't believe that an online service should be charged for. Microsoft makes a killing off of Live, and I don't think that it's right. If you're paying for the system, the games, and your own Internet connection, you should be afforded the right to play the games you purchase online without having to pay anything else. You don't get any content for your XBOX Live subscription price, you pay more for it. Map packs and DLC is all charged to your account. The Live fee is solely to be able to play with your friends.

From a business standpoint this is genius, as obviously gamers(myself included) have coughed up plenty of money for this service...when looked at it in that regard, you make the PS3 a bit more appealing. Psychologically of course, it is much more difficult to make a huge payment at one time than it is to make smaller payments over a longer period of time, hence the 360's success.

At the same time however, I still feel the PS3 had slim offerings for games, and to a certain extent, I still feel that way. Sure most of the very best games are bi-platform, but the 360's library is far larger...is that enough to justify the extra cost? That's debatable...but to the average gamer who would rather spend $199 up front, it certainly tips the scale in the 360's favor...

I've gotta say that its worth the money 100 times out of 100 because of the experience of actually gaming with other players from around the world and and also leanring new tips and tricks that you would never have figured out on your own. the games that they are coming out with now are almost all online interactive and that makes it even better. and if anyone wants to get schooled in halo 3

xXbeastmode09Xx - My xboxl live gamer tag

CHAOSblade wrote:

I've gotta say that its worth the money 100 times out of 100 because of the experience of actually gaming with other players from around the world and and also leanring new tips and tricks that you would never have figured out on your own. the games that they are coming out with now are almost all online interactive and that makes it even better. and if anyone wants to get schooled in halo 3

xXbeastmode09Xx - My xboxl live gamer tag

although i do not play online much in halo it would not be a bad idea to learn a few tricks

You know, the more I see and hear of PS3's online network, the more I'm beginning to agree with TrueDestroyer...sure Live has some great exclusive DLC, but is that really enough? I don't dislike Live by any means, but it's getting to the point that paying so much for a service which should be free is just a bit ridiculous...and the sad thing is that it probably won't be changing anytime soon.

Ugh, this is so difficult for me to decide on, a year ago, most certainly, YES! After owning a PS3 for a year, not so much, I've played plenty of live and plenty of PSN, so I've got experience with both, a lot, trust me. If you're looking for a plain old, online multiplayer vs online multiplayer, they're on par with each other, really no difference. Special features I've read people give to the 360 on here so far are as follows:

SilensCaelum wrote:

XBOX live is worth the money. There is a reason why PS3 is so expensive (it's not just the bluray). I mean sure, you get free internet but, you are paying an extra $200 for the system itself. XBOX live is only $50 a year, that's only $4 a month, and only 13 cents a day...

Um, sorry but no, it's in no way $200 more, unless you're comparing the arcade and the 80 GB which then you need to spend an extra $100 on a HDD for your 360 just to get online. Before I get any further, not trying to make anyone seem dumb or be a jerk here, I'm just trying to be honest and back up everything I say.

ForsakenLament 04 wrote:

you bring up a great point skye. 4 dollars a month really is nothing, and since the 360 is only $199 now...i would say it's a steal! I think the only downside is remembering to renew your subscription, and the fact that you have to pay a different fee for each profile.

For the Arcade, you need to pay for the HDD to play online so that's another $100, so yeah. BTW I really like your amount by month and day, that made me laugh, seems like something I would do.

headbanger201 wrote:

360 has a few features that ps3 doesnt like being able to play your music and talking to buds while playing and you got netflix just to name a few so ya id say its worth it

This doesn't really apply to online, but I can play custom soundtracks for MLB 09, KZ2, and Burnout Paradise, those are the only games I have that I know it works for. "talking to buds while playing" I don't get that, because I have a headset and talk to people all the time, so I'll leave it alone. And Netflix, well, you got me, PS3 does not have Netflix, but it has tons of movies and videos for download from the PS Store, it just doesn't have a really big popular name. Love you name btw.

Ki-No-Ko wrote:

Xbox live is worth the price imo. Your paying less than five dollars a month for a lot of content. I would have Xbox live, but the wireless adapter is too expensive.

Well this only helps my side, $100 for wireless on the 360 is insane, when it's built in with the PS3.

CHAOSblade wrote:

No offence, but I'm skipping you, your argument made no sense, everything you said I can do on PSN except get schooled in Halo, which I would because I suck at that game, I'm horrible.

ForsakenLament 04 wrote:

sure Live has some great exclusive DLC, but is that really enough?

Like what? GTAIV Lost and Damned, what else am I missing, that's all I can think up off the top of my head. At least that's really big, since all of the Fallout 3 stuff is going on PSN pretty soon.

Ok, here you go, this is why you pay for Live, this is the one true reason, and it's actually a pretty good one, not going to lie [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] This really is the truth, but it's not worth $50 imo, considering I haven't really had any problems with my online, it's ran great, lags been low, really nice. And since then updates have added almost every feature Live has. But here's my final verdict, yes, ha didn't see that coming did you. It's completely worth $50 a year, just because Sony doesn't charge for there's doesn't mean that's what you should base it off of. I'd be willing to pay $50 for PSN, it would only make it better, and it's already worth $50. Sorry for such a long decision but I had to back it all up, plus it was kind of fun. Please forgive me if I offended anyone or if I made anyone angry.

nice
I loved have you gave unbiased opinions since you already own both systems
And i didnt see the last part coming at all

koopa_under_fire wrote:

Ugh, this is so difficult for me to decide on, a year ago, most certainly, YES! After owning a PS3 for a year, not so much, I've played plenty of live and plenty of PSN, so I've got experience with both, a lot, trust me. If you're looking for a plain old, online multiplayer vs online multiplayer, they're on par with each other, really no difference. Special features I've read people give to the 360 on here so far are as follows:

SilensCaelum wrote:

XBOX live is worth the money. There is a reason why PS3 is so expensive (it's not just the bluray). I mean sure, you get free internet but, you are paying an extra $200 for the system itself. XBOX live is only $50 a year, that's only $4 a month, and only 13 cents a day...

Um, sorry but no, it's in no way $200 more, unless you're comparing the arcade and the 80 GB which then you need to spend an extra $100 on a HDD for your 360 just to get online. Before I get any further, not trying to make anyone seem dumb or be a jerk here, I'm just trying to be honest and back up everything I say.

ForsakenLament 04 wrote:

you bring up a great point skye. 4 dollars a month really is nothing, and since the 360 is only $199 now...i would say it's a steal! I think the only downside is remembering to renew your subscription, and the fact that you have to pay a different fee for each profile.

For the Arcade, you need to pay for the HDD to play online so that's another $100, so yeah. BTW I really like your amount by month and day, that made me laugh, seems like something I would do.

headbanger201 wrote:

360 has a few features that ps3 doesnt like being able to play your music and talking to buds while playing and you got netflix just to name a few so ya id say its worth it

This doesn't really apply to online, but I can play custom soundtracks for MLB 09, KZ2, and Burnout Paradise, those are the only games I have that I know it works for. "talking to buds while playing" I don't get that, because I have a headset and talk to people all the time, so I'll leave it alone. And Netflix, well, you got me, PS3 does not have Netflix, but it has tons of movies and videos for download from the PS Store, it just doesn't have a really big popular name. Love you name btw.

Ki-No-Ko wrote:

Xbox live is worth the price imo. Your paying less than five dollars a month for a lot of content. I would have Xbox live, but the wireless adapter is too expensive.

Well this only helps my side, $100 for wireless on the 360 is insane, when it's built in with the PS3.

CHAOSblade wrote:

No offence, but I'm skipping you, your argument made no sense, everything you said I can do on PSN except get schooled in Halo, which I would because I suck at that game, I'm horrible.

ForsakenLament 04 wrote:

sure Live has some great exclusive DLC, but is that really enough?

Like what? GTAIV Lost and Damned, what else am I missing, that's all I can think up off the top of my head. At least that's really big, since all of the Fallout 3 stuff is going on PSN pretty soon.

Ok, here you go, this is why you pay for Live, this is the one true reason, and it's actually a pretty good one, not going to lie [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] This really is the truth, but it's not worth $50 imo, considering I haven't really had any problems with my online, it's ran great, lags been low, really nice. And since then updates have added almost every feature Live has. But here's my final verdict, yes, ha didn't see that coming did you. It's completely worth $50 a year, just because Sony doesn't charge for there's doesn't mean that's what you should base it off of. I'd be willing to pay $50 for PSN, it would only make it better, and it's already worth $50. Sorry for such a long decision but I had to back it all up, plus it was kind of fun. Please forgive me if I offended anyone or if I made anyone angry.

What he said

im a little confused... so on Xbox you have to pay to go online?

you know the more i use live now the less and less i dont care for it. see here is the biggest thing for me i have netflix and have it downloaded on all systems (wii, xbox, and PS3) i can watch it on ps3 and nintendo no problem but i have to pay to see it on xbox....why? now there is a higher price for it. 'o but jordan that was for the added service' yea i know that but i dont use ANY of that. maybe it would be better to have like a way to just pay for what you want like online play only, or online plus ESPN, or something like that.

Wait, so you don't have to pay for Netflix on the other systems? Pardon my ignorance, I've never tried...either way, if you have to pay a higher price on Live, that's crap.

I have to agree with Roy, buying it in small doses IS the best way to go...especially as it's the closest you'll get to buying what you use...I payed for a whole year of live, but scarcely used it. What a rip, if you ask me. Btw, I've seen Silens use the PS3 network, and it seems fine compared with Live...and it's freakin' free!