@exkon: I could send you at least 3 links of Kotaku articles about Live crashing down, but too tired. I'm actually enjoying GTA4 right now and I really don't have time to inform arrogant misinformed people.

@eastx: Well all of this will eventually come to PS3, it's just a matter of time. Will XBL be free then? Nope, thanks to cheerleaders like you, who will keep on dancing for MS. And by the way, I just spent an hour in line waiting for GTA, and I already gave my impressions on the game, so trust me, I'm happy. I'm not the one trying to diss any service for no reason, just stating facts.

slomo788

@Luke Plunkett:

oh come on, you asked for it :D

infi

wait... don't all major releases on Xbox come with this???!! I got one for Gears and one for Lost Planet. Really? We're going to make a deal about this now??

BornToFlail

@Luke Plunkett: I've been good, Luke! :two thumbs up:

Xiedo

@slomo788: I think he was referring to the in-game dashboard, cross-game invites, universal voice chat, and such, but thanks for being a negative Nancy. It's very important that people talk crap instead of just being happy about a game's release.

eastx

@slomo788:

When you speak of "seasonal" crashes do you mean the ONE time it happened this last Christmas?

What "forced in-games ads" are you talking about. Don't see any coke or pepsi ads playing Halo 3 or COD4.

exkon

Enough with the trolling. Especially you new kids.

Luke Plunkett

"know you can buy this game and at least squeeze four weeks of free online gaming from the man"

or you could buy the PS3 version and have like at least a gazillion weeks of free online gaming.

infi

@eastx: From my perspective, nice would be making the whole service free, like it should be.

In the end i dont really care. Good for everyone who gets it free, but i hope it doesnt lead to having "pay per online" in all the next next gen systems.

mishakoz

Weird... for a sec I thought "Will it stack?" was the new "Will it blend?"

I was thinking what a boring, yet somehow brilliant concept...

Xiedo

You pay for XBL because MS takes care of all the servers and back-end stuff.

PSN on the other doesn't handle any of that, Sony places primary responsible on the publisher itself. So if you can't play on PSN, it would be Rockstar/Take-two for no providing the adequete bandwidth.

But at least it's on both consoles, great year for gaming!

exkon

@That Boy Baked: You mean seasonal crashes and forced in-game ads? Or no mod support? Or size limit for games? How about talking about something you actually know about?

slomo788

@mishakoz: Well dude, they do something nice for us - give us a free month - and all you do is complain. If you were the only one it'd be no big deal, but there could easily be 10 more people spreading the same negativity. I don't appreciate it.

But if you're not a fanboy, I apologize for mistaking you as one.

eastx

There is a reason XBL is a paid service, if you really cant understand the quality and feature set compared to PSN, then your just not opening your eyes. Thank you MS for having the single greatest console online service, ever. Much appreciated.

That Boy Baked

This is probably the best game I've ever played, but I have to admit that I'm lost. This is not GTA to me. Too cinematic, too real, too serious. The missions, dialogues and characters smell GTA, but the gameplay (and graphics for that matter) are not GTA (not a bad thing by any means). Also, multiplayer is inaccessible on PSN so far...

slomo788

I called Rockstar and they said that have been getting alot of calls about the 60 gig unit being primarily effected. Though I was checking on Xbox forums and have seen a couple threads there too. Rockstar said they didn't have an answer right now because they just found out them selfs.

cloudtm2

@eastx: So do i. But you sure were quick to judge. I dont mind live, but i kind of find it funny people are making a big deal about a month of service that has always been free ever since old PC games.

Live may be good, but its still not free. :)

mishakoz

@SofaKingHI: It has and still is a free 48 hours for any game with prominent online features... or is that just UK?
Any word from UK peeps whether the UK GTA4 comes with the free month too? No folks I've talked to who were at midnight openings have pointed it out, but they may just have not noticed.

Pombar

@eastx: remember what they say: "thou who smelt it, dealt it."

bangbangblah

@Manny88: it* >_>

@cloudtm2: it froze on me once on single player on the Xbox 360 version. Can't say i'm surprised though...

Manny88

@sexyj: Sorry dude. Disliking fanboys or assholes in general does not make me a fanboy. I own all 3 systems and love 'em.

eastx

@josh924: Yes, it definitely stacks. Everybody gets a free month, whoo hoo. :)

eastx

@eastx: lol fanboy on top of fanboy

fantastic

sexyj

Is any having freezing issues with the ps3 version? I am and there is a lot of other people too.

cloudtm2

i stacked for me, it added an extra month to my one year.

Manny88

Unless its somehow different than a regular 1-month membership, it does indeed stack. I know because I have a 1-month card and, on the back, it says that you can use it to extend your membership.

josh924

Remember when most xbox games game with a free month?

SofaKingHI

@Narcosynthesis1: I actually do. Its hard to appreciate Live, though, when i hardly play MP games.

mishakoz

@mishakoz: We certainly don't need you on Live, fanboy.

@Mendorian: Are you sure it doesn't stack? I just used it on my own account over the PC and these trials have always stacked before...

eastx

Mine didn't. :(

I was thinking while I was standing in line what a great move it would be; it might persuade me to pony up for another year if I can taste the sweet, sweet multiplayer. My Gold account lapsed a while ago.

But, I guess some of us don't rate a free month.

underwhelm

I have GTAIV but I haven't played it yet. I doubt I'll play it online for awhile or at all. Maybe Free Mode if my friends are up for it. As much as I like XBL, I wouldn't play with 80% of its userbase anyway, so it's all good. I'll stick with single player for awhile. I love nostalgia.

Sigma-D

PS3 version has a better deal.

silkylove

Yeah, hook everyone onto the online so they pay for it when the month runs out.

It's as close to the general concept of selling drugs as you can get.

Smart move.

BlackDove

So xbox is one year free but ps3 is forever free, hmm fishy. microsoft is a cheap bastard they should have done this years but not. Its going to crash on day 1 so its all your fault for crashing the server.

Maaxxx

@akilshohen:
Nope, doesn't stack. Used it on a secondary account for my brother.

Mendorian

I wonder if you'll get the same in the PS3 version.

Kidding.

FIRST!!!

@mishakoz: goood thing you don't own an xbox. If you did, you might like this free month.

Narcosynthesis1

Wow that couldn't have come at a better time. I just ran out of membership.

CrimsonShin

Wow, a month is all they could squeeze out for a service they dont even have to charge for?

Im not playing GTA4 online, but i would rather have lifetime free. Thank you PSN.

mishakoz

I wonder if it stacks....

akilshohen

Here's the thing about console online fees:

Those that have PS3s generally think it's retarded to pay for online support.

Those that have Live! generally find the fee negligible for the service they receive.

justhesh

the price is so small for live that its really a none issue, also i like that now angd again when my friends want to play an older game i can pop it in and play it over live with them. you cant do that on psn, servers get shutdown.

look at how long they had mgo on ps2 that shut that shit down after a few months.

im not saying psn is inferior, im just saying that we actually do get a service for paying

kommanderk

@BornToFlail: I remember Futurama had a cute joke about 'em in their Armageddon parody episode. Yes, those AOL discs were annoying.

eastx

@Vistrix: Solid point. LIVE has those achievements and in-game communication.

PSN is just... well... free.
those bastards.

BornToFlail

Anyone remember those AOL discs they would send out with one month free?

BornToFlail

Over in the UK, my preorder came with 3 months of Gold membership...

My PS3 copy came with nothing.

Microsoft is really going all out on this one.

Vistrix

@mishakoz: Besides what Xiedo said, I'm pretty sure this is a thread about getting a free month of Xbox Live service, which is as good a time as any to talk about Xbox Live. But not be a dick.

eastx

Is this a real month of Gold or it it one of those stupid sort of Gold trial cards which let you play online multiplayer but not in ranked matches?

RykinPoe

@mishakoz: You advertised PSN's free-to-play model in the 2nd comment. Was there a need there?

Xiedo

@mishakoz: Admittedly I was a late adopter but there was a card in there for one month free.

BornToFlail

@Not-Witzbold:

Dude chill. A lot of people dont care about the bells and whistles and just want to be able to play whenever. It probably is worth the money (not to me, i dont do MP), but you dont need to convince anyone of that. I dont know why you feel you need to advertise or promote XBL. You enjoy it, and thats what is important.

@BornToFlail: I never got free XBL for either of those games... wtf?

mishakoz

I just don't understand why it is post worthy. If I got the free month with Gears and then Lost Planet after that... how is this post worthy?

Xbox live does this all the time. Over and over and over and over and over again...
You might think that someone who's job it is to write about the thing would realize that their one month promotion has been par for course for almost a year.

BornToFlail

Jesus H Christ this comment section reeks of Sony fanboys-ism. We get it. PSN is free but you know what the service on XBL is worth the whole $3.07 I pay a month. Thats like 1/5th of what I used to pay for WoW and I been using it just as much between COD4 & R6 Vegas 2.

Not-Witzbold

@kojirodensetsu:

I know right! We never see anyone bashing the PS3 or Wii here

LittleBigPlaneteer

Wow people sure like to bash the 360, even when they try to be nice.

kojirodensetsu

@exkon: And nice play on semantics. I was referring to the ads of the dashboard itself and I'm sure you know it.

slomo788

i didnt get one in mine. just the map and the manual.

NinetySeven97

Really I cannot overstate my dissatisfaction with this post. I'm pretty sure Microsoft has pulled this shit with EVERY semi-major release they have EVER done.

No offense kids, but remember that PSN is FREE ALL THE TIME.

Oh those sweet sweet ball enhancing achievements!!!! If it weren't for those I might think this was a non-meaningful comment! You win again microsoft!!!

BornToFlail

I know I'll be forcing myself to read the manual before playing GTA IV.

M

i hear the ps3 version comes with a magical free card for infinite years paid subscription to PSN, starting before the game was even announced, and works on every ps3 even if you don't buy the game, and works automatically without entering any codes or information to get the deal.

sweet right?

joelface

Point still remains. For those of you who have 360 and gotten games besides Halo in the past year(especially Gears or Lost Planet), have you really not seen one of these "1 month free cards" come through with new releases??!?
I was under the impression this was standard operating procedure.

BornToFlail

@eastx: Sweet thanks for the update on stacking I have a reason now to go home and input my two other cards.

ThatsMrOffDutyNinja

@justhesh: Don't know about PS3 users but thats true for the 360 the users I know.

Shinryoma

Sigh... ah well. woo 360! woo woo! Doing what you've been doing for months!

Awesome.

BornToFlail

Sounds like good fun, I just ordered a X-box 360 wireless adapter yesterday, for my first X-box. Hopeully the X-box live free or a month is happening in Ireland.

Anto103

@joelface: theres nothing sweet about being a dumb fanboy

kommanderk

I buy my 12 month Live cards from PlayAsia, I end up paying about $55 AUD including postage.

$4.58 AUD per month? Bargain. PSN online games do not use Sony servers - developers have to take responsibility for that themselves. Live is centralised, this means years down the track my games will still work online. Sony can afford to allow free PSN membership (and they should).

In terms of dashboard advertisements.. totally justifiable. The marketplace is integrated tightly with the 360 dash once you go online, whereas the PS3 XMB clearly separates the store from the rest of the system. Just compare an offline 360 dash to the PS3 XMB..

Passa

I'm deeply troubled. Am I really the only person that has gotten that "Free one month Gold" card in like... every game?

Or is this some fan joyousness that I'm not actually supposed to mention in public. Like the time your drunk uncle ran off with that tramp of a waitress. Wait... what?

BornToFlail

@BornToFlail: As someone who's picked up over 30 games in the last year, no, most games do NOT come with one of these.

Luke Plunkett

@Pombar: My mate's did

brooza

@joelface: I'm pretty sure somebody asked you guys to stop trolling, but maybe I am mistaken.

@slomo788: I live in the now, dude. I'm enjoying my 360's awesome online features right this very minute, as I have for two years now. You can live for the future if you want; I don't care. I like many things about my PS3 too, but none of them keep me from enjoying the Live service.

@BornToFlail: No, they don't call come with free months of Live. I can see how somebody who owns like 5 games might think that, but I have 20 or so, and only a couple came with a free month. Two-day trials are much more common, but even those don't come with every game.

eastx

PSN is free for a reason, and does not in any way match up to LIVE. £40 a year isn't that much either.

Winterbringer

@Luke Plunkett: SHAZAM!

ThatsMrOffDutyNinja

Microsoft press release touting "record number of XBL gold members" coming in...

El-Suave

@slomo788: Well, if you'll recall, at least one of those crashes happened when millions of people tried to play a game on Live! at the same time. That's called an overwhelming success, not a disastrously lousy service.

justhesh

I'd be excited if I was getting GTAIV right away, I always get em later on.

Anyway, I'm holding out for DNF. or if that never comes Ninja Gaiden II.

SkutSkut

@Luke Plunkett:
Agreed..I don't think I've seen but maybe one and I've played probably that many or more this year.

Can anyone actually confirm it will add a free month if you already have a year? Thanks

enewtabie

@Winterbringer: PSN offers dedicated servers... Once Sony sorts out the patent problems with ingame XMB & soundtracks, Xbox Live wont have anything PSN wont have...

Vistrix

@Lov3: Yeah, and they also have stupid friend codes and an absence of any way to communicate with each other, not to mention the myriad other features of XBL that Nintendo's online games still lack. That's a silly comparison.

eastx

my subcription ran out a while ago was gonna buy 12 month today. No need now :)

wellsie_eng

Amazon.de has a new deal up: Buy any Xbox Console and get GTA IV, 3 months of live and the HD DVD drive for free.

Zant

The arguments aren't really about 360 vs PSN. I've been playing online since the Dreamcast, and i've never had to pay a surcharge for the matchmaking service. I have no problem paying for server time - I pay for WoW on the same principle that I pay for my web server. But MS does not host the games itself - it picks one random guy from the list of people looking for games, and makes him the server. Now all the extra load goes to that random guy. If that guy is in america, and you're in europe, it sucks to be you cos you'll be lagged to hell.

Nintendo host servers for their first party online games for free. Think on that.

Lov3

@That Boy Baked: I tried "realizing the quality" of xbox live, but I couldn't find almost anyone to play Gears of War with, and everyone who did quit before I could finish a match.

In essence, Live is a rip-off. But, such is life.

Scuba Steve

I got gta at the midnight opening at GAME UK and got 500 microsoft points and a giant poster as well a this.

kenjara

you guys are right,5 bucks a month is pretty tough to pull off :( i own a 360 and to be honest running an hdtv :O a pc and a console cost alot of power,plus consider how much food costs nowadays and 5$ is like gold...and you get what you pay for,psn is nothing compared to xbl and everyone knows it,i have the luxury of being able to pay 5 bucks a month (rofl) and i will .

vig0r

@eastx:

Sorry for the late reply:
I guess the code would work with any silver account, but at least on the European card it says
"The free 1-Month trial membership is valid only for use with XBox 360 and may only be used by persons, who don't already have an Xbox Live Membership" (translation may be a little rough)

(German:
Die kostenlose 1 Monat-Probemitgliedschaft gilt nur zur Verwendung mit Xbox 360 und darf nur von Personen genutzt werden, die noch nicht über eine Xbox Live Gold-Mitgliedschaft verfügen)

Mendorian

@Flawless101:

Yes, online gaming sergvices that are 10x better than XBL have been free for over 15 years now.

XBL has nothing worth charging for when the standard for online gaming is still higher than what XBL is now and still free.

Viet0ne

Where do people get the concept that online gaming should be free? It wasn't free before consoles was it?

Flawless101

There is no any 1 Month Gold card in my GTAIV? Is it only in Special Edition or am I missing something?

flappy

@Luke Plunkett: i was just thinking the EXACT same thing.
learn2postplz

Naif

@mishakoz: And thank you as well Play Station, for giving us the ability to have rumble... Ya know, seeing how it was only introduced on N64 and all...

seym0ur caKe

@Viet0ne: my point was, Online FPS's lets take Counter strike, ALWAYS needed someone to foot the bill for you, to play. Those servers just didn't pay for themselves.

Flawless101

On one hand, that's nice of them. On the other, it's like when you buy an MMO and get a free month of play... how generous... now I can play my $60 game... for a month.

@seym0ur caKe:
Are you implying Nintendo pioneered free online service? Or just digging that one up on a whim because "Sony vs MS, Nintendo wins" or something?

fuchikoma

@BlackDove: Oh noes, I pay$50 for 13 months of LIVE. I'm getting so ripped off. Seriously, I have no problem with it. Would I like to see MS actually host servers, sure it would be nice, but I would rather pay for a year of LIVE than get back into WoW or some other P2P MMO and spend three times that much.

The match making services are decent, and the ability to access new demos and content before silver accounts is quite nice. Voice chat is great, except for this one Scottish f'er I play with every now and then on GRAW 2. I can't understand a thing he says, which is strange because I can understand the other Scottish guy he plays with just fine. Damn accents.

I've been playing games online on my PC for years, and personally LIVE doesn't bother me one bit.

MantisDragon

Kick ASS! My live sub just lapsed, and I was trying to figure out how to afford a new sub and GTA IV today, problem solved, Thanks R*!

Hexidecimal

HELL YES! I don't have Xbox Live Gold -yet- and this is just... oh god, I have such a boner right now!

eskimo-bob

I'm not gonna lie I didn't get one in my copy...

AnTi PRO

This just keeps getting better and better. I'd weep with joy if I wasn't in school right now.

Americo

Yeah, not all of them come with the one free month. I work at a Hollywood Video in San Diego and we got 20 copies for Xbox 360 and when I was processing them for merchandise, only 2 out of 20 had the free month of XBL inside.

jspeed04

Whaaaaa? Mine most definitely did not come with that. Just a map and a manual. Not cool. :c

thelivingrobot

@slomo788: Sony has had almost three years to copy these features and STILL hasn't been able to do it. In the meantime, I'll gladly pay $50 a year for a unified online service until Sony can get their act together..

rotcepsurt

@rotcepsurt: PS3 came out in November 2006. And it would be fine if they tried and failed (for me). MS, on the other hand, CAN but WON'T allow free online play, mods and full-fledged downloadable games. It's easy to boast Live's features missing on PSN but I guess it's easier to overlook what PSN has that Live hasn't, right?

slomo788

I don't know... $4 a month for a critically agreed better online experience isn't too shabby--but yes, I'd obviously love it more if it was free. No biggie.

Doug