: My grandfather has internet- he doesn't game. He falls into 'everybody'.

I may have slipped into hyperbole, but I still feel my point is valid. Gaming is a hobby which is pervading every demographic.

: Yes, they are.

: You don't need videogames to live.

: It's not mandated that you must have videogames in life to function.
: Videogames do not help me earn income, they spend it.

: If I'm struggling financially, the first thing that goes is discretionary
: spending. Video gaming, would be one of the first things to go. Maybe I
: was fortunate to pay enough of my subscription ahead- great! I can still
: play online for a while. But gosh darn, thats gonna mean I need to be
: happy with the games I already have because I don't have the funds to buy
: new ones for now. If by the time my online gaming subscription expires and
: I am still in financial struggle, I don't renew it.

: I also never had cable TV growing up. I still don't have it now. It too, is a
: luxury item. I don't need it to survive. My girlfriend pays for it on her
: TV though. You can bet your ass if we were in financial hardships I'd shut
: that service off in a heartbeat.

Footballs aren't luxury products. They're not necessary to live but they are also far from difficult to acquire. Same for Monopoly and Half Life 2. I have misused terminology and I apologize, but my point is that videogames are not, cannot be, on a level with a luxury sedan or a maid. You can get a junker car and clean your home yourself for a price mind-bogglingly less than what it would cost for those other two options; the closest thing to that we have with games was Steel Battalion, and we all saw how well that worked. It's not incredibly expensive to game these days, and it gets cheaper all the time.

: Steam is great. I love what they do. It's true that PC gamers enjoy a degree
: of freedom that console gamers don't. Not everyone wants to PC game
: though. Some like having a separate console experience from it. This
: subject has been beaten to death over the internet, there is no need to
: get into it here. It a matter of preference. People go to the platform
: that has the games they want to play, that has the majority of their
: friends, that best meets their needs, that they can afford.

: I never said it wouldn't be a hassle for everyone . I clearly said in my
: personal experience, it won't adversely impact me. My current gaming
: habits, environment and lifestyle are not affected by any of whats been
: revealed so far (assuming its true, mind you).

I can appreciate that. My concern is that the features which don't bother you also don't add anything meaningful for you, while at the same time they negatively impact the experience of other users.

: Look, I respect your opinion on this. I really do. I know full well that
: everyone situation is different in its own way. For some, the changes MS
: wants to make will be great. For some it will be worse. For others like
: myself, it won't make a tangible difference.

I cannot conceive of that group of people. I realize that's not something very strong to use as a basis for argument, but I haven't seen anyone express in what way the new features will benefit them. I'm interested in hearing that, though.

Re: my internet: I'm in the armpit of Virginia. I live on the side of a river beneath a strip mine. Decent internet ends two streets up the road, and we're stuck using some extortionist company based out of a similarly isolated Kentucky hollow. I wish to God we had options, but what can you do? :)