New Features:
-Appears in Game Explorer
-New Marketplace skin
-Now has a In-game Marketplace
-Add MS points in-game
-Links games to peoples accounts, making it so you can have it on as many PCs as you want. I believe it will lock the CD-key to the gametag to help pirating but I could be wrong since I don't understand it.
-Zero-Day pirating, can't play the game before its releasedPosted at 2:08PM on Aug 5th 2009 by TheWax

And leave it to Big Download to once again look down at the concept of Games For Windows Live in a backhanded way.

You wonder why you were not informed about this? Maybe you should go back and re-read some of the GFWL articles you guys post here. It has been noted that this site always seems to take their shots at GFWL/MS - and todays article was doing that from the FIRST SENTENCE. Even when I would submit articles and tips on here myself about GFWL, I would have to come back later and read the article and grimmace slightly because there usually would be a cheap shot at GFWL/MS tucked in it somewhere.

Seriously, put a sock in the GFWL/Microsoft smack please. Bad enough you guys are obviously favored towards Valve, but could be decent enough to be professional to other companies as well? Especially the one who makes the OS THAT RUNS MOST OF THESE GAMES.

GFWL - I can not wait for the 18 part series on the new L4D DLC on PC (THIS IS SARCASM)- and long time readers know this site WILL do it because this place just loves the Gabe Knob.Posted at 2:30PM on Aug 5th 2009 by SidearmS

@SidearmS: Well, you seem perfectly able to shell out the Valve-hate.

Quite frankly, Microsoft should be taken to task for not even being able to put out a press release for what seems to be a pretty significant version of GFWL, and treating it as if it were a security update. Particularly when it comes in light of the next major Xbox Live update that was announce like a trumpet from the heavens.

I'm not one of those people that have the crackpot view that MS is trying to destroy PC gaming, but they sure don't seem to care enough about it to properly promote it. Not announcing something like this, or even making it widely known leading up to it is straight up ridiculous. I know I wouldn't have know about it coming if I hadn't read the interview done by this very site.

I suppose you can continue to wield the GFW flag, defending various criticisms leveled against them. After all, Its not like Microsoft deserves them (this is sarcasm ;) ). Posted at 3:17PM on Aug 5th 2009 by ChimpWithAHandgun

@ ChimpWithAHandgun:

"I suppose you can continue to wield the GFW flag..."

Yeah, I do wield it well. In fact, I already know this. Just like I know this place has it hot and heavy for all things Valve.

As for your comments, go back and RE-READ the above article. Look at that first sentence - if that is not a backbiting style of writing, please tell me what is. FIRST. SENTENCE. Any editor with a sense of management would have already pulled this writer aside with questions about what he is trying to say in his writings.

"Well, you seem perfectly able to shell out the Valve-hate."

Because this place DESERVES IT. It is always praising the mighty Valve, and the writers here (and one in particular if you follow this site, hint - he wrote this article) just LOVES to stick in those smart alec comments about anything GFWL/MS does.

Even when the whole L4D2 situation happened, this place did not even attempt to have a critical view of the situation. Even Shacknews, which could be called Valvenews if it wanted to, had the balls to question Valve's practices. This place? HAH.

I am glad you are not one of those with a "crackpot view". That means you are completely capable of searching this site to see that I am NOT blowing smoke here. The pattern is pretty evident - just put "Games Windows Live" in the search above and do some research.

I do not hate Steam or Gabe per se - what I hate is this supposed "we use Steam therefore we are the chosen" BULLSH1T that Steam users seem to have in spades. If I fly the flag for anything, it is for the fact that there are other options in PC gaming besides Steam, and that there are other places to get your PC game on besides Steam as well (Stardock is a good one, so is D2D).

As for not annoucing it - two things you should know:

1)GFWL/MS, even when the news is good, is usually met with scorn based on the bias people have for MS. So why would you expect something HUGE about the annoucement when past annoucements have been met with disdain and outright negativity? Maybe if the communties would grow up, MS might feel more relaxed in their annoucements....

2)This WAS submitted, by another GFWL Forum user, to all the sites I used to submit to - I know this a fact, as the user is on my friends list and posted his about his efforts on the GFWL forums this afternoon, just like I did for a while. So my question is where are the rest of the "news" folks? I did not see this on Joystiq, or Kotaku, or Destructoid, or anywhere else.

News CAN be submitted, but what places like this do with the news itself is unpredictable. I certainly did not expect to have to post like this today, but someone just DOES NOT SEEM TO LEARN when they write utter garbage like that first sentence.

GFWL - Really, just stop it man, you make PC gamers look primitive and petty. Just let it go...
Posted at 4:04PM on Aug 5th 2009 by SidearmS

Uh I've had nothing but trouble with GFWL, it's a piece of shit buggy unnecessary software and the only positive I can see to it above other online gaming services is cross platform achievements... for those who care about that, I sure as hell don't.

EVERY game that has used it, I have had to jump through hoops for. When GTA IV was released, I couldn't even play the damn game because of it (the game was pretty much unplayable because of being a shitty port, but that's beside the point).

Games that use it as their platform for DLC, mean I cannot buy that DLC ala Fallout 3. I use Paypal, I do not have a credit card... if I did have a credit card I still would not pay for things through GFWL because of the bullshit Microsoft points system where you'll find yourself paying for more then you need (and it is designed that way FOR THAT PURPOSE, they designed a feature to rip us off!)

You can't even access most of its services unless you're already in game as well, unless they've changed that recently.


Basically, it's an inferior system in every way to something like Steam and that's why you'll see people call MS out on it for trying to push it down our throatsPosted at 5:26PM on Aug 5th 2009 by Ihavepants

Did you miss the quote from the Microsoft executive who said something like "If we released a game for the PC at the same time as the Xbox, it would be like shooting ourselves in the foot." This was referring to PC-heavy Germany and this statement, not to mention their many actions (such as Gears of War 2 not coming out for PC) make it quite clear where their priorities lie. The botched launch of GFW still weighs heavy in a lot of people's minds, and I personally had a lot of problems with it when playing Gears of War. To sum up my rant, I think Microsoft has earned the scorn it gets from the PC gaming press while Valve actually publicly supports PC gaming (although I think the quick L4D2 release is pretty lame).Posted at 5:29PM on Aug 5th 2009 by lokar82

@Ihavepants: Yeah, because the THREE patches Rockstar themselves put out within the first two weeks of launch was COMPLETELY because of GFWL.

Get a grip dude. GTA IV was a nightmare because Rockstar rushed the title. I ought to know, I was knee deep in it when it launched, and my SP/MP was horrible too. AND THAT HAD NOTHING, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH GFWL. One patch from Rockstar required a small slight update from GFWL, and that issue was fixed in under eight hours. Stop whining.

As for Paypal being your only way to buy stuff online, you should really look into the Points Cards that they sell. I do not use a CC either, and I use codes for everything I do on GFWL/XBox Live. Also, there are also pre-paid CCs if you are that out of luck. Really, unless you live in a third world country, there is no excuse for not being able to find a workaround. So, do you live in a third world country?

As for your complaining, RIGHT ABOVE my posts is the new feature set from TheWax that pretty much solves your issues with out of game/in game access. READING IS FUNDAMENTAL.

As for your "hoops", let me state something for you - I OWN EVERY SINGLE GFWL title out now (all 20, including the Japanese GFWL title), and I have very few issues, most of which were user error. If you are having so many issues, I am willing to bet the wallet in my pocket that your PC is in need of a look over. Because usually when I run into people like you, one of three usually occurs:

1)They are NOT configured correctly. (network, firewall, anti virus, etc.)

2)They are running illegal copies with noDVD cracks or just plain pirated copies (which comes to a SCREETCHING HALT if/when Batman: AA, Section 8, and Red Faction, and September's RE5 PC port come out. You can bet at least two of those titles will be using the 3.0 zero-day and CD-key lock features). Expect it, and be ready for that.

3)Their own OS setup is so bogged down with processes and "other programs" (I will leave it at that...) that something else is causing issues.

There are over 11,000 users on the GFWL forums, and the old guard there has seen users like you since day one. And since day one, we have been figuring them out.

Sorry your experience is so bad, but if it is anything like your posting style, you and your system could use a check up.

@lokar82: PC-Heavy Germany, where PC game maker Crytek is about to pull up stakes. Germany has more issues with their games than just MS. You can blame your own government for the censorhip rules they have in place.

As for GOW2, this update is mainly for developers and some cosmetic and request fulfullment. But if the 3.0 anti-piracy stuff works the way it should, you might see GOW2 yet because PIRACY was the reason Epic has said no... so far. And let's not forget - Epic stated GOW1 would not be from them - and they were right, PEOPLE CAN FLY ported it. Just like they would if GOW2 for the PC ever sees the light of day. Epic themselves will not do it, but that never takes their other companies out of the picture, now does it?

As for "scorn", yeah, there have been some issues, just like Valve has had theirs (Earth 2160 anyone?). If you line up the timelines together, so far into its life span, GFWL has had about as many problems as Steam in its infancy. FACT. Even the Steam users on the GFWL forums concede this point. But unlike Valve, even when MS is DOING THINGS RIGHT, people will still complain. That is lack of maturity on the user end.

To which I say, if you hate MS so much, drop the OS then. Put it completely out of your mind. Oh wait, 80% or so of the games you might want to play require the OS that MS makes. So which means more to you - your scorn for MS or the hope that games you might want will show up? Because even Steam needs MS' OS to work. Without the OS and without MS, Valve would not be a third of the company it is today. Without games to sell, Steam is just another client.

The debate is good, and you guys are at least trying to explain your dislikes, unlike this article which cheap shots the concept from the first sentence.

GFWL - Congratluations BD, you have the most active thread this site has had in over two months. You are welcome...
Posted at 6:22PM on Aug 5th 2009 by SidearmS

@SidearmS:

Criticism is due where it is due. No service is immune to it- not Valve when Steam was initially released, or during times when there are problems with their service- or when Microsoft stumbles out the door with a product that they seem to barely acknowledge.

Praise is also due where its due. Even with its lumps, GFWL is a decent service. With a few of the games that I have that use the service, it works quite well, and many people that have used it find that it isn't so bad. That is all the more reason why its frustrating when they don't seem to take much care in presenting their support for their own service. Now, you may chafe at hearing all the Steam praise, but by and large, its because its deserved. You probably remember that when Steam first appeared, nobody wanted it. It took them time to be what they are now and they made everyone aware they were getting better. Whatever issues that Valve tends to currently have, you get that they care about their service. This goes just as much for Gamersgate, GOG.com and Impulse.

As for Steam users thinking of themselves as "chosen", I'm not sure I see that. Gamers being more likely to use Steam to get their games over other services is due to a number of things. As I said before, you get that they care about their service. Along with Direct2Drive (Which is no slouch either), its one of the oldest services. Also, it is simply one of the best services around. There are of course other good services out there as well, but very few of them offer all of the things Steam offers in one package.

Regarding your points on the announcement itself:

1) Its not Microsoft's problem if their news is met with scorn, and again, criticism is due where its due. If anything, its lack of news is more to the case one of the reasons it gets such criticism. The more public Microsoft is with these significant announcements...even not so significant ones, that can go a long way towards changing some of the opinions leveled towards them.

2) A forum user is not a substitute for MS. Nothing is more official that it coming from the company or one of its representatives. Having a community member submitting this is fine, but holds much less weight.

We can rally behind and service we choose, but if you are unwilling or unable to see what the problems are with the one you stand with, well, that's too bad. You don't have to like a service any less while admitting it and its owners are far from being the best.

Oh, btw:

"GFWL - Really, just stop it man, you make PC gamers look primitive and petty. Just let it go.."

I might be wrong, but I don't think this came out the way you intended :PPosted at 7:18PM on Aug 5th 2009 by ChimpWithAHandgun

Well at least Kotaku seems to have made a page for this.
http://kotaku.com/5331004/welcome-your-new-version-of-games-for-windows-live
The users comments there isn't very favorable to GfWL either.

@SidearmS
Even if MS can't move third party games from X360 to GfWL, like Gears2 (they don't really seem that interested to do anything about it though), they should at least release some new first party games to GfWL. Only Halo comes to mind right now, so if MS releases Halo ODST I think it will show PC gamers that MS do have an active interests inproviding first party games to GfWL (plus it could help move Win7 as agaming OS as well).

Also, do you own an Xbox?Posted at 7:32AM on Aug 6th 2009 by Unknown

Ignoring this crap.Posted at 4:10AM on Aug 9th 2009 by ztwmz

Why am i supposed to want this? The messaging system in GFWL sucks, the voicechat amazingly manages to be both super low bitrate AND inaudible, and the usability in general is so half-assed it's like it was made by people -- who themselves use keyboards and mice to create and test it -- that the PEOPLE USING IT HAVE KEYBOARDS AND MICE BY FUCKING NECESSITY.

This? Great, it makes it easier to give them money for a point system that's designed to get you to pay ever more or waste money, ostensibly so i can buy shit i mostly don't need and largely shouldn't have to pay for. Thanks for caring, MS.

As far as SidearmS, there are simply people wired to be that frothingly idiotic, generally because their lives are so utterly pathetic and desperate that they have to cling to GFWL, of all things, to feel like they're a part of something. SidearmS is one of those people.

-- Jon R.
www.qualtality.comPosted at 12:13AM on Sep 6th 2009 by Jon R.