[game_preservation] Bad for archival? XBLA delisting rumblings

[Andrew Armstrong]

With these delistings, it's not the worst aspect - the entire service 
will obviously go caput at some point (10 years? less?) when the Xbox 
720 or the Xbox 1080 come out and Microsoft abandon the current platform 
(MSN Music tried to turn off their activation servers for music, heh. I 
wonder how long the original Xbox Live will continue to operate too) It 
makes it mute that specific games will be delisted if the entire service 
goes, right? :/

In any case, it's a similar situation with some other online download 
services - Gametap and so forth regularly delist games.

The only feasible way to collect these are to download all of them 
constantly (noting the single point of failure, since MS don't allow 
backups really). For an archive this is kind of unacceptable, unless 
multiple accounts and whatnot are brought - so no doubt the only other 
alternative is to contact the developers of the games for a copy (at 
least which is played on a development kit), or Microsoft themselves for 
some kind of workaround.

It's still only a rumour, I'm sure the "Live update" thing they have 
coming will be part of it if it is true.

Andrew

Devin Monnens wrote:

> There's the IGN rumor machine chugging away about Microsoft delisting 

> XBLA games (Microsoft is denying they're going to do it anytime soon). 

> That would be a serious problem for archival (even if they are crappy 

> games being removed). I also think this completely defeats the purpose 

> behind digital distribution. The problem isn't with there being too 

> much stuff, it's how it's organized.

>

> http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3170592

>

> -- 

> The sleep of Reason produces monsters.

>

> "Until next time..."

> Captain Commando

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