Over the Turkey-day holiday I managed to get some Gears of War 2 in (I really like what I’ve seen so far, just 2 Acts to go and I’m done!) After one of my gaming sessions, I meandered through the NXE interface a bit more trying to familiarize myself with the what’s and where’s of everything, when I noticed something that I couldn’t remember seeing before. A sale on downloadable games and content that was restricted to Xbox Live Gold subscribers only…
I’m not stranger to “paying a membership fee for better deals”, I’m a Costco member and I’ve been to Sam’s Club, but this struck me as a little odd. I’ve written before about the minor differences between Gold and Silver Xbox Live memberships and it appears Microsoft is finally testing the waters to make the difference more pronounced, although this isn’t exactly what I had in mind. You see, if you don’t play online multiplayer games (which I’m sure is a fair number of people) then Xbox Live Gold isn’t that attractive of a deal. It’s clear from the Black Friday deals that Microsoft is trying other ways to make it seem appealing.
How do you guys feel about this? The savings range from 28% to 37.5% on questionably worthwhile to very well received content. Would occasional discounts on DLC purchases factor into your decision to sign up for Live Gold? If you weren’t really interested in playing online multiplayer (I know that’s hard to imagine for some of you) would it matter? Membership-limited discounts could be a considered a slippery slope. Sound off, I’d like to hear what you think.
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I got a Gold Membership because a buddy gave me a three-day Gold Trial when I first got my xbox. I liked it so much I payed the $50 dollars to keep it for the year. I didn’t even know there was a Silver Membership until after the NXE came out. I feel like the current price of a Gold Membership is relativly low, so the benifits of a more “exclusive” membership outway the additional cost of the Gold package. It’s like getting a credit card with Airmiles or with cash-back bonuses. You sometimes have to pay an annual fee, but the reward you get is well worth the extra cost. You can get a regular credit card, but if you want the extra perks, you have to pay the price. (It’s not always fair, but it’s capitalism.)
I think that if you put it your way Roth, that there’s no point in getting Gold for just occasional deals. However I don’t think I’d call it a slippery slope, it seems that you just get more stuff for what you’re paying. Of course i think it’s a bad thing if they actually start increasing the price for Silver but not Gold.