First of all, they ”don’t know what the final policies are.” People are going to buy the console, accepting its DRM, so why shouldn’t they offer the RPG to those who don’t mind it?
Microsoft has erupted something of a furore over mandatory check-ins that have to be completed every 24-hours for Xbox One. Then there’s the ambiguous used games policies.
Put simply; Microsoft has completely screwed up delivering any coherent message on the matter.
”A lot of people on forums are saying, ‘No, but you guys are anti-DRM,’” Marcin Iwinski said in an interview with RPS. “And we really are anti-DRM. But at the same time, there are people who’ll be fine with it. They’ll buy the console and just want to play. Why should we not give them this option?”
“That’s our approach, but at the same time, we don’t know what the final policies are. Things might be changing. There’s a lot of heat right now. From our perspective, we’ll always choose the most gamer-friendly solution. And on the platform where we have control – which is PC – we’ll release on GOG day one and DRM-free.”
Microsoft controls the Xbox platform and are mandating these forms of DRM, which is causing the stirs among the community and industry. Sony meanwhile is letting any form of DRM on the PlayStation 4 be left entirely up to studios and publishers to put in place and enforce.
This is great news for the PC crowd of course as CD Projekt RED will continue their proud tradition of thumbing their nose at Digital Rights Management. Unfortunately for Xbox One gamers, while they may swallow the inconvenience of daily check-ins, any DLC updates to The Witcher 3 may well come at a price.
”It’s too early to talk specifics, but definitely all the DLCs and updates will be free,” continued Iwinski. ”Of course, we’ll see what the platform holders will allow – what we can do for free” on them, he added. ”I mean, there are different business models on consoles. From our standpoint, we’ll definitely do everything we can to deliver the same experience across all platforms.” Microsoft tends to not allow free content updates unless part of some special promotion.
“Should we decide to do some big expansions or something, we’ll expect gamers to pay for it. But again, it’s all value for money. I think $15-$20 for new gameplay is a pretty honest and fair deal. But additional weapons and fixes, those of course come as part of the package.”
Check out the full interview between Marcin Iwinski and Rock, Paper, Shotgun.