I'm disappointed to report that Microsoft's
fix for the Xbox 360 DRM
fiasco still seems to be broken, at least
the process that accompanies console
replacement. (I won't be using their new DRM
tool until I can determine if I'm buying a new
HDMI-capable 360 - otherwise, I'd have to wait
up to a year to migrate all of my purchases
again!)
Call me naive, but I honestly thought after nearly three years that Microsoft would have solved this by now.
The way it's supposed to work is that if you send in your console for service and it gets replaced instead of repaired (as mine was recently), they'll transfer all of your purchased content licenses from your old Console ID to your new one. Helpful tip: You need to boot your console to see your Console ID; it's not one of the numbers printed on the back of your 360.
Alas, there are still a few bugs in the system.
Call me naive, but I honestly thought after nearly three years that Microsoft would have solved this by now.
The way it's supposed to work is that if you send in your console for service and it gets replaced instead of repaired (as mine was recently), they'll transfer all of your purchased content licenses from your old Console ID to your new one. Helpful tip: You need to boot your console to see your Console ID; it's not one of the numbers printed on the back of your 360.
Alas, there are still a few bugs in the system.
- You have to redownload everything again to restore the licenses for use offline and by other gamers on the same console. If you still have the content on your drive, this should only take about 5-10 seconds per item. But with some 800+ items, it took me about 2 hours the first time, and that was with skipping all promotional videos (more on that in a bit).
- Sometimes Microsoft screws up and your console ID won't work. Before you spend 2+ hours (or even 20 minutes) redownloading your files, pick a few to test first. I don't know whether there was simply an unexpected lag before someone entered my new console ID into the database, or if there was a typo when they did it. (My guess? Transposed numbers!) All I know for sure is that I followed their directions and it didn't work. I immediately called 1-800-4MY-XBOX and they escalated it to the appropriate team, promising a fix in 5-10 days. It only took 5, but then it wasn't a perfect fix.
- After all of that, some content may still not work. Once I tested and confirmed relicensing worked the second time around, I went through a did everything again. I had one Rock Band song out of about 60 fail ("Brass in Pocket," for the record). One video just won't play, even when I'm online with the gamertag that licensed it originally (it's the first episode of "Skyland"). And, after careful scouring, I have 50 themes, 277 gamer pics and 25 videos that still won't work offline or for other gamertags (and the one video that won't play at all). In addition, I'm a little concerned about several of my Oblivion add-ons, which don't seem to work offline (at least, I've been unable to confirm that they do.) To give Microsoft it's due, once they finally corrected the Console ID issue, all of my 35 Xbox Live Arcade games worked just fine offline. I even managed to recover the one game that my wife bought on my console (Doom), using her gametag to do the recovery.
- Do a quick test before you redownload all of your files. A purchased Xbox Live Arcade game or two will do the trick. Simply redownload it from your history as instructed and then either yank your Ethernet cable or sign in as another user (creating an offline only Guest account can you save you time if you'll need to go back and forth a lot!). If the test works, go ahead and move to game add-ons and any purchased content. Then get your free themes, gamer pics and other promotional crap.
- If you have any Rock Band downloads, you'll know if the songs are working for an alternate or offline gamertag if you select them from the track selection list and get audio previews. No music on the menu and the song will hang when you try to load it.
- To check themes, you will need to write down a list of all that are available for use when your primary gamertag is logged in. Then go back offline or login as Guest and circle any on your list that are missing after redownload. Gamer pics are even harder to verify since they take a long time to load and don't provide any descriptive data on the selection screen. The best I could do was to count how many rows were available online vs. off, multiplying the row count by 4 and then subtracting one for my active picture (which is repeated at the top) and any from the last row if it had fewer than 4. I then spot checked for some that I suspected were missing, but couldn't really create a definitive list. And why should I? It wasn't my fault my console died. Truth be told, I probably spent more time on this than I should have.
- Skip any demos and trials; these should all be licensed for offline use and you can always get them again later if they prove necessary. Videos are another matter altogether. You'd think all game and movie trailers and other marketing videos would be license free, but many of these required redownload (even some that said they'd "never expire"!) and a few wouldn't work for me at all. I even found some videos (like the Ninja Gaiden II "Ask a Ninja" series) that didn't appear in my history though I know I only downloaded them just a few weeks ago.
- Most content will download in a few seconds since redownloading verifies the content is on your hard drive and then restores your license. It's worth noting that ONLY the console you received as a replacement can get your licenses for offline/shared use. If something has been updated on the server since you downloaded it (for example, a few Rock Band songs received meta data updates, and the Penny Arcade CTS theme was updated shortly after launch to be faded lighter for improved readability of menus) then they will redownload. I personally prefer the darker CTS theme, so I backed it up to a memory card so I won't lose it - though now it will probably never be available again for offline use.
- If you go fast, the menu may get stuck from time to time. Don't back out or you'll have to scroll all the way back down to where you were. Instead, move the thumbstick to the right and you'll jump to the Videos list. Then press it to the left and you'll be back on Games, right where you left off. (Reverse this if you're working on the Videos side.)
- When testing games, be prepared for a lot of patching. Some games I hadn't played in a year or more, and a surprising number that had only sat inactive for a couple of months needed updates. In fact, out of some 20 games I put in one evening, only two didn't need patches.
- If all else fails and the content you're grappling with is both free and still available, you may need to create a free Silver account to relicense it for your new console. When you're done, verify which version works if you can and then delete the broken one.
For the record, when it works the Xbox 360 is my preferred console. I love the mostly consistent and intuitive interface and sense of accomplishment when I unlock a new achievement. Alas, when it fails it hurts so bad it makes me want to play Pain on my PS3. Which, at the moment at least, certainly hurts less than the pain with my Xbox 360.
-=Gamewatcher
NOTE: If you're interested, the full list of problem content is in comments.
Here is the full list of Xbox 360 content I've documented problems with. The number of videos was originally more than 100 including many that claimed to have "never expire" licenses, but through redownloads either through history or the store I brought it down to 25:
Rock Band:
"Brass in Pocket" by The Pretenders
Oblivion (seem to only work online, but hard to confirm):
Fighter's Stronghold
Mehrunes Razor
Themes:
10000 BC
24 - S6
Adidas +10
Adidas Football
Adidas Team Geist
Axe Neutron
Axe Theme
Balls of Fury
Battlestar Galactica
Best Buy (Halo 3)
Blades of Glory
Borat
Bungie Day 07
Bungie Day 08
Burger King Games
Discovery
Disturbia
Family Guy
Game Fuel
Gears of War Emergence Day
Gold Member
Golden Compass
Halo 3 Legendary Map Pack
HP Blackbird
Live Free or Die Hard
Live Halloween
M:i:III
Mr Woodcock
Ocean's 13
Old Spice Experience Challenge
One Missed Call
Pathfinder
Rambo
Rush Hour 3
Shark Week
Sidekick LX
Silver Member
Sprite SubLYMONal
T-Mobile
The History Channel-Ax Men
Tokyo Game Show
Torchwood
Unlock Xbox
Verizon Action Hero
X-Men: The Last Stand 1
X-Men: The Last Stand 2
X-Men: The Last Stand 3
X-Men: The Last Stand 4
X06
Plus, the Penny Arcade CTS theme as it was originally released (I saved it to memory card and it only works online even though I downloaded the license for the updated version)
Gamer pics:
Estimated at 277 including the companion pictures when offered with the above themes and possibly others (hard to catalog)
Videos:
Won't play even online; gives status code 94-803C0008:
Skyland S1 E1 "Dawn of a New Day (Part 1)
Will play online, but not offline or for other gamertags:
The Matrix: Neo and Trinity Fight Their Way In (HD promo clip)
The Matrix: Opening Scene (HD promo clip)
SpongeBob SquarePants S5 E14 "Blackened Sponge/Mermaid Man vs Sp..."
Attack of the Show S1 E6 "Best of Olivia Munn"
The Middleman S1 E1 "Pilot"
NGII Episodes 1-7 "Ask a Ninja" series
Code Monkeys S2 E4 "Dave's Got Boobs"
Voltron: Defender of the Universe S1 E1 "Space Explorers Captured"
Witchblade S1 E1 "The Beginning"
Heroes S1 E1 "Genesis"
Yo Momma: College Park vs. Union City
Foxworthy's Big Night Out "Kenny Rogers"
Clark and Michael S1 E7 "Premium Milkshakes"
Jericho Pilot
Flavor of Love Girls: Charm School Starring Mo'Nique S1 E1 "Meet the Ladies of Charm School"
Criss Angel Mindfreak S3 E1 "Luxor Light"
Clips: Axe Neutron
Clips: The New Tek Jansen Adventure
I spent about 90 minutes on the phone with Xbox support today. They are escalating it, which will add another 3-5 days to this debacle.
I figured out some interesting things from the call:
With the exception of my beloved darker Penny Arcade CTS theme, the missing themes and gamer pics are NOT in my download history (or my wife's). That's why I can't use them offline. I could painstakingly seek out and redownload them from Marketplace (as I did with a few videos) but some can never be restored such as the Old Spice Challenge materials I "won" and some limited time offerings such as Bungie Day, Emergence Day and Live Halloween.
If Microsoft can fix my Download History, I should be able to get everything back except for the things that fail even after redownload: the lone Rock Band song, the videos and possibly my Oblivion mods (still not sure what's up with offline use of Oblivion add-ons - I may have to start a new offline game and play through the full tutorial again to find out!).
Up until now, I'd been overall reasonably happy - and sometimes ecstatic - about my Xbox 360 experience. Grumpy about DRM and a few other things like original Xbox game saves, but still really enjoying the experience.
For now, I have put a hold on about $60-100 worth of downloads until I can have confidence that my purchases will work for the long term. I also was considering buying an HDMI 360, migrating all of my licenses to it (again, I need that trust that it will work!) and then moving my wife to the replacement console we just received. We'd then get Microsoft to repair our other 360's DVD drive door, which they broke last year when repairing it for the frequent freezing issue and then pass that one along to my brother - who REALLY wants a 360 but can't afford it on a cop's salary with alimony.
We'll see what happens. I have my doubts that I'll ever be as happy with the 360 as I once was.
-=Gamewatcher
Oh Gamewatcher… My heart truly bleeds for you. I know you love gaming and electronics but between this and your iTunes fiasco I am not sure she loves you back. I know some people that game more than I do and their old boxes are still rolling problem free. My launch Xbox needed the DVD drive replaced but that took around 2 weeks total and hasn't had a hiccup since. I always had trouble with copy protection especially for the PC and music. I wonder how much it deters people, seems like it's more of a hassle for the honest. I guess that question is left to the business actuaries.
To date I have 2 downloads on my 360: Penny Arcade RPG, and Mass Effect Expansion. I hope your strife helps future fixes, perhaps I will actually subscribe to Xbox live, when the next console ships and they have improved these problems. They would not be as big as they are if they had engineered the 360 properly.
What's interesting about this situation is that I am an expert user. If I'm having trouble with these issues, imagine what an everyday person goes through and I think you can understand the haters. As for the actuaries, I suspect they hope that most people don't notice (and, I'm sure, many don't). Truth be told, if it weren't for that one Rock Band song it might have been days or weeks before I stumbled across the full extent of the problem. I actually had some hope and trust that all of my licenses would be converted and relatively easily redownloaded.
Now, if Microsoft gave the licensee more control, they wouldn't have these hassles - and could probably cut support costs as more and more people run into this problem. I don't see why I can't revoke the licenses myself more than once a year and move them where I want them. I can see how they wouldn't want me to give all of my friends free access to my games, but I should have a certain degree of freedom to use them legitimately in my own home.
iTunes is another matter altogether, and it comes down to how stupidly the application manages its library. I do have the option to take control and not allow iTunes to reorganize my library, and that seems to have been a wise move. It's a little more work for me when my drive fills up to relocate some of the bigger files, but it's worth it. If only my 360 had a similar flexibility.
i just figured out how to over come the drm issue
go here http://www.xbox.com/en-US/support/systemuse/xbox360/licensemigration/
and it will transfer all the rights to the console ur currently using. i just found that out this morning minus the xbox support. i had 14 arcade games that i purchased on my console b4 i sent it in and when i got the replacement they didnt work but i confirm that after you follow the steps it will work. also, you need to delete the game and redownload it or it will still tell you to unlock the full version
now with he movies, you may have to delete and redownload them also. idk i didnt have issues with the movies, yet.
Thanks for the tip, but there are a few flaws with that approach:
1) You can only use the tool once a year. In case of a console replacement, Microsoft is supposed to do the transfer for you so you don't waste the transfer credit. So if you, like me, are considering an upgrade to an HDMI capable 360 this fall, you'd be out of luck if you did it yourself.
Alas, as I was walking through the steps requested of me during one of my 4 Xbox support calls to date, I think I accidentally triggered the license transfer online - I can't get a straight answer from support on any of these issues, including whether I actually burned my transfer credit for the year.
2) I'm sure the tool replicates the process used by Microsoft support, so if the process failed for some content when Microsoft support did it, then I don't think you'll have any more luck using the transfer tool. It seems like the transfer process works fine with Arcade games (I had 100% success with those) but may fail with other content types such as the 1 Rock Band song that refuses to work for me, some of the videos and the themes and gamer pics that appear to be missing from my console download history.
This is like week 3 for me and I'm becoming very disillusioned by the experience. I had planned to buy another 20-30 Rock Band songs and several Arcade games totalling $60-80. But not until I have faith that my purchases won't get screwed up by some digital DRM hiccup.
-=Gamewatcher
Gamewatcher,
Thanks for the very informative blog posts. I've sent them to my Dear BF, who purchased a bunch of arcade games for me because I don't play shooters. (The only disc game I play on the Xbox is Overlord-all other gaming for me was arcade games.) We recently got our Xbox back and unfortunately, I can't play games at all unless I want to play them on his gamertag. It's a load of BS. I sent him your posts-hopefully he can pull us back from the abyss. But, you're right-it's still broken and needs some help. Coincidentally, our Wii died at the exact same time and even though we had owned the Wii longer, Nintendo fixed it for free and had it back to us in a week flat. The one game we had downloaded onto it? Worked perfectly, of course. *sigh* I agree that I loved the Xbox, but I may never have the same level of love I once had for it.