Major Nelson updated his post announcing the one week delay of Destination Arcade with the following message: "I have learned that the Destination Arcade app will only be available for the duration of the Summer of Arcade promotion which ends August 18th."
Look, we're going to come right out and say it: We have no idea what's going on in Redmond. First, they redesign the entire Dashboard to fix UI problems ... only many of those same UI problems still exist (try finding the latest XBLA release any given week in three actions or less). Next, they announce "Destination Arcade," a "brand new recommendation engine & visual browser app" that promised to deliver a more powerful, dedicated XBLA browsing interface. And now, as communicated by Major Nelson's update, Microsoft only plans to deliver that application for one month.
We've asked the good Major to clarify if the application will simply not be available for download following the 18th or if it will cease functioning as a service entirely after that date. We're not sure we understand either scenario.
Update 1:10pm: Major Nelson told Shacknews, "If you have downloaded it, it will continue to work." But that still hasn't answered the question of why it will only be available for a month.
[Thanks, Johnathan]
Reader Comments (42)
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 10:48AM Ezio Auditore da Firenze said
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 10:48AM chex said
surely they are just beta testing it or something for the summer and then at some point later are going to roll it back out to the US and to the rest of the world. if they keep this thing US only i'm pretty sure all of the non-US residents that always comment on major nelson's blog site about things being US only are going to riot.
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Posted: Jul 13th 2010 10:51AM Chief Oddball said
@chex That is the only scenario that makes any sense whatsoever.
Regardless, it's a lot of needless confusion and that fact that Major Nelson only just now found out about this himself is a testament to the apparent cacophony of miscommunication at Microsoft's Xbox division.
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Regardless, it's a lot of needless confusion and that fact that Major Nelson only just now found out about this himself is a testament to the apparent cacophony of miscommunication at Microsoft's Xbox division.
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 10:52AM chex said
@chex
also i 200% agree with the entire second paragraph of this article even if destination arcade does become a permanent thing. i use the dashboard LESS for things now because everything is a separate app, takes longer to load and is not user friendly. i thought they wanted to make things easier to find, have people use their 360 for more things and add more functionality. but to me, if i want to watch a game trailer, for example, i'm not going to wait for the zune app to load. i will just go watch it on my computer.
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also i 200% agree with the entire second paragraph of this article even if destination arcade does become a permanent thing. i use the dashboard LESS for things now because everything is a separate app, takes longer to load and is not user friendly. i thought they wanted to make things easier to find, have people use their 360 for more things and add more functionality. but to me, if i want to watch a game trailer, for example, i'm not going to wait for the zune app to load. i will just go watch it on my computer.
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 10:54AM symmetryx said
@chex Yeah, I agree. From the previews I've seen, I'm guessing that they're just giving us a taste of it, and will probably put it back under wraps until Kinect comes out. That's my guess.
The shots of the interface look like it would benefit from that controller-less stuff.
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The shots of the interface look like it would benefit from that controller-less stuff.
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 1:17PM Nick Spacek said
@Vcize I did this too. And then after I had deleted it, I couldn't remember how to actually get to the Game Video section of the Marketplace. Pretty stupid, eh? Except that the new dashboard is so cluttered and full of irrelevant junk that's it's getting harder and harder to navigate, especially for "casual" gamers (I would now consider myself part of this category).
For a company that is all about UI/OS design they have done a poor job with the Xbox dashboard. And all the "apps" they are releasing suck. Being in Canada, I can't use some of the new ones, but the Twitter/Facebook interfaces are so slow, if they exposed this dashboard application API they would have tons of people building way better apps.
But, they don't want that, because they want to make people buy Gold. Gold so you can browse Facebook on your Xbox, using a crappy interface that they probably spent hundreds of man-hours developing. Anyways, I'm done the rant, hah.
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For a company that is all about UI/OS design they have done a poor job with the Xbox dashboard. And all the "apps" they are releasing suck. Being in Canada, I can't use some of the new ones, but the Twitter/Facebook interfaces are so slow, if they exposed this dashboard application API they would have tons of people building way better apps.
But, they don't want that, because they want to make people buy Gold. Gold so you can browse Facebook on your Xbox, using a crappy interface that they probably spent hundreds of man-hours developing. Anyways, I'm done the rant, hah.
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 1:19PM baby sea tuna said
@chex
Are you seriously that ADD that you can't wait 30 seconds for the Zune Marketplace to load? Doesn't it take longer than that to walk to/open/wake up your computer?
"NOOOOO! I NEEDED TO WATCH THE NEW 30-SECOND SPOT FOR CALL OF DUTY 9,000,000 RIGHT NAO! WHYYYYYY?!"
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Are you seriously that ADD that you can't wait 30 seconds for the Zune Marketplace to load? Doesn't it take longer than that to walk to/open/wake up your computer?
"NOOOOO! I NEEDED TO WATCH THE NEW 30-SECOND SPOT FOR CALL OF DUTY 9,000,000 RIGHT NAO! WHYYYYYY?!"
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 2:52PM CrashTunoku said
@baby sea tuna
The dashboard has gotten slower and slower as time passed after the NXE update and there's no excuse that MS keeps ignoring these flaws as they add more and more apps to the dashboard. Hell, you can even delete the Zune Marketplace in your memory and get the old version video library back that was much more efficient and concise than the Zune Marketplace. As paying customers, we deserve upgrades to the interface itself to make it as good as it can be, not more crap that makes it harder to use.
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The dashboard has gotten slower and slower as time passed after the NXE update and there's no excuse that MS keeps ignoring these flaws as they add more and more apps to the dashboard. Hell, you can even delete the Zune Marketplace in your memory and get the old version video library back that was much more efficient and concise than the Zune Marketplace. As paying customers, we deserve upgrades to the interface itself to make it as good as it can be, not more crap that makes it harder to use.
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 10:53AM Dance Love Pop said
This was commented by Major Nelson on the third page of the comments:
"My understanding is that it will only be available during the Summer of Arcade. After that, you will not be able to use it."
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"My understanding is that it will only be available during the Summer of Arcade. After that, you will not be able to use it."
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 10:59AM FredFredrickson said
As mentioned above, they could be just testing the waters, laying down a release on a handful of people and seeing how they react to it before they make it the only way to access arcade games.
They need to get their story straight though - all these odd / conflicting explanations about what Destination Arcade is, how it will be available, etc. just makes the whole operation look bad.
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They need to get their story straight though - all these odd / conflicting explanations about what Destination Arcade is, how it will be available, etc. just makes the whole operation look bad.
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 11:23AM chrisgrant said
@Vcize I suppose I shouldn't have said "clicks" but rather "actions" – you need to go up twice to get to Game Marketplace, and then over x amount to get to either of those menu options. And then you need to find the game, open it, and press another button to download the demo.
Why not have the latest XBLA releases right on the home screen (make it an option for some people!) and offer a "Press Y to download and play" option? Seems strange to bury that stuff when the same Alan Wake Verizon ad is still easily cilckable even though some of that content isn't even around anymore.
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Why not have the latest XBLA releases right on the home screen (make it an option for some people!) and offer a "Press Y to download and play" option? Seems strange to bury that stuff when the same Alan Wake Verizon ad is still easily cilckable even though some of that content isn't even around anymore.
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 11:37AM Vcize said
@chrisgrant
Fair enough I guess. New XBLA releases do show up right there on the front page pretty often though. Obviously they can't always have them there because there's limited space and lots of stuff. Then we'd just have "why aren't new avatar items right there when you log on?" and "why aren't hte newest game add-ons right there when you log on?", etc. It rotates, and it's still quicker to get to those demos as it is on PSN, or basically the same as it is to get to them on Steam, etc.
It sounds like you basically just want it to work the way that fits your personal workflow, which is kind of ironic because every time a company tries to collect information to do something like this everyone freaks out.
Granted, a customizable layout would be cool (where you could basically say XBLA releases are more important to me than game add-ons, so put them in slot 1 when I log on).
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Fair enough I guess. New XBLA releases do show up right there on the front page pretty often though. Obviously they can't always have them there because there's limited space and lots of stuff. Then we'd just have "why aren't new avatar items right there when you log on?" and "why aren't hte newest game add-ons right there when you log on?", etc. It rotates, and it's still quicker to get to those demos as it is on PSN, or basically the same as it is to get to them on Steam, etc.
It sounds like you basically just want it to work the way that fits your personal workflow, which is kind of ironic because every time a company tries to collect information to do something like this everyone freaks out.
Granted, a customizable layout would be cool (where you could basically say XBLA releases are more important to me than game add-ons, so put them in slot 1 when I log on).
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 11:08AM Tuxy79 said
They could have just said it's a beta test of up in coming Dashboard redesign. Anyways I'm not a fan of this thing anyways. Doesn't look good and it's just another app (like Zune marketplace, Facecbook & Twitter) that pulls me out of the XBL Experience.
I liked the look of the Kinect hub though. I hope the impending redesign borrows heavily from that.
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I liked the look of the Kinect hub though. I hope the impending redesign borrows heavily from that.
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 12:27PM ytilanigiroon said
@Padilla7921
If they aren't, they should be. I liked the look of the "Destination Arcade" layout, but I want to see video of how it performs. I get the gist,, but can you use Kinect to navigate? Why is it a separate app like the Zune Marketplace?
I get the separation of facebook/twitter from the OS, but integral parts like Zune Marketplace/XBLM shouldn't have to run through what looks like a launcher when you navigate to them and you certainly shouldn't have to install them.
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If they aren't, they should be. I liked the look of the "Destination Arcade" layout, but I want to see video of how it performs. I get the gist,, but can you use Kinect to navigate? Why is it a separate app like the Zune Marketplace?
I get the separation of facebook/twitter from the OS, but integral parts like Zune Marketplace/XBLM shouldn't have to run through what looks like a launcher when you navigate to them and you certainly shouldn't have to install them.
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 11:22AM Padilla7921 said
Seriously, Microsoft? If this whole Destination Arcade thing was only for the Summer of Arcade, you've succeeded at wasting a ton of time and money. If DesArc's one-month window is to offer us a tease (a "demo" of sorts), you've succeeded at not only pissing a lot of people off, but not maximizing the potential sales of XBLA titles, too.
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Posted: Jul 13th 2010 11:22AM jumpshot said
So, it's releasing mid July but closing mid August? How odd. I suppose it would be more of "a month of Summer of Arcade" type of destination.
I hate when they add things like the zune portion that takes forever to load, but forces you to watch all your videos there. Maybe it's just my machine that loads it slowly, but it was working fine before. And I don't have a zune
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I hate when they add things like the zune portion that takes forever to load, but forces you to watch all your videos there. Maybe it's just my machine that loads it slowly, but it was working fine before. And I don't have a zune
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 11:30AM GQ1980 said
It might be worth mentioning somewhere in the posts about this app that it is US only and there is zero information regarding a worldwide release (or that's what Aceybongos is saying).
You have to assume this is a regional beta with perhaps a view to release in a fall update. This would make sense in terms of it being an app rather than part of the dash itself. Who in their right mind would want to browse the marketplace in order to find an app that allows you to browse part of the marketplace more effeciently. It almost seems a test :)
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You have to assume this is a regional beta with perhaps a view to release in a fall update. This would make sense in terms of it being an app rather than part of the dash itself. Who in their right mind would want to browse the marketplace in order to find an app that allows you to browse part of the marketplace more effeciently. It almost seems a test :)
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 12:15PM chex said
@GQ1980
lol well actually they already have an app that helps you browse the marketplace more efficiently. its called the music store and is under the music marketplace section of the dashboard. it actually does make looking for dlc for any of the music games a lot easier.
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lol well actually they already have an app that helps you browse the marketplace more efficiently. its called the music store and is under the music marketplace section of the dashboard. it actually does make looking for dlc for any of the music games a lot easier.
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 11:56AM Gemini Ace said
The pictures in the posts used to link to the source of the news. Now it just links to the Joystiq article. What gives?
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Posted: Jul 13th 2010 6:38PM chrisgrant said
@Gemini Ace
That was because our old source function was, well ... crappy. With Futurestiq we can include the name of the source and a link, hard-coded in one spot so you're not playing "hunt the link" in the post. Users were mostly confused that clicking on the image took them off the page, so now it just takes you to the video or to the permalink or to the gallery, if it's a gallery post. Make sense?
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That was because our old source function was, well ... crappy. With Futurestiq we can include the name of the source and a link, hard-coded in one spot so you're not playing "hunt the link" in the post. Users were mostly confused that clicking on the image took them off the page, so now it just takes you to the video or to the permalink or to the gallery, if it's a gallery post. Make sense?
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 12:19PM Ashkental said
I wonder why nobody EVER said those things about PSN, or XMB at all...
Some people say that Sony need to do a XMB makeover just like NXE, I disagree, they did that because that interface sucked ass, and it still sucks (yeah, it's prettier) but XMB is smooth, fast and you can find everything in a matter of seconds. Same for PS Store
Guess microsoft can make pretty things that are not so usefull. They should've learn from apple by now that interface design is the thing that will make your software prevail, look at the iPhone, even a 1year child can use that.
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Some people say that Sony need to do a XMB makeover just like NXE, I disagree, they did that because that interface sucked ass, and it still sucks (yeah, it's prettier) but XMB is smooth, fast and you can find everything in a matter of seconds. Same for PS Store
Guess microsoft can make pretty things that are not so usefull. They should've learn from apple by now that interface design is the thing that will make your software prevail, look at the iPhone, even a 1year child can use that.
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 12:23PM Fata1Stryke said
I'd thought initially that this was gonna be part of the next dashboard update. If they're using the summer release as a beta test for that update then this makes a lot of sense.
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Posted: Jul 13th 2010 12:37PM Red Son Rising said
im less interested in this now than i was GameRoom before it launched and if this is just a preview i might pass. plz confirm this Joystiq
i search XBLM from my computer most of the time, theres no substitute for real searchs and tabbed browsers. i doubt DA will help at all
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i search XBLM from my computer most of the time, theres no substitute for real searchs and tabbed browsers. i doubt DA will help at all
Posted: Jul 13th 2010 3:06PM double D 215 said
You guys should quit complaining about the Zune app. Even if you have it downloaded, you don't have to use it to view game trailers. Go to game collection and game videos will be on the bottom. Do it this way and Zune is bypassed. Now cease on the whining. Thanks! =]
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Posted: Jul 13th 2010 10:07PM GlassAgate said
I hope that they add support for indie games at some point.
There are some gems buried in there, which no longer
are listed in the "top 20". One example: Platypus.
Reply
There are some gems buried in there, which no longer
are listed in the "top 20". One example: Platypus.
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