Microsoft has warned that early copies of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 are "not authorized" to be played online, and using them before street date could have dire consequences. This includes legally obtained copies bought from a store that sold them before release.
Xbox Live policy enforcer Stephen Tolouse embraced early players at first, saying, "If your copy is legit and obtained legitly [sic], have fun. It's a great game."
However, he would later get on Twitter and warn against his earlier encouragement: "Clarification: dblchk'd with Activision. Mw3 pre-release play not authorised. So pls be patient. Playing early may impact your account!"
It's a bit rich to hit people for playing games they bought, especially if they don't happen to follow Tolouse on Twitter. Nevertheless, the warning has been issued and while I doubt they'll instantly ban people just for getting online, it sounds like it could be a distinct possibility.
After all, punishing consumers for what retail does is what this generation's all about!
Play Modern Warfare 3 early and risk Xbox LIVE ban [Videogamer]
Jim Sterling serves as reviews editor for Destructoid.com, head of the Podtoid podcast, and produces a number of news stories, original features, one-of-a-kind videos. With his passionate argumentative style, controversial opinions, harsh delivery, and dedication to brutal honesty Sterling is a name that you can't help but recognize.
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Contest:
8:20 AM on 11.04.2011 | 
If someone is breaking street date, that's between the publisher and that retailer.
I can't believe how backward and fucked up game companies are when it comes to dealing with their customers.
I agree with Brad Nieder.
Activision: "you bought our game early, you gave us your money... but if you play it before we tell you to we are going to ban you from playing it."
Is this really the world we live in?
On PS3.
Your move, Activision.
Why are you always right?
chicken or egg?
If it's anything like past games so long as it's legit you can't really get in trouble, this is more of a empty threat.
If it's Activision doing the banning, Microsoft really needs to tell them to STFU, stop threatening paying customers and just count their money.
If Xbox is doing the banning, they really need to eat a big of dicks. Business partner or not, it's not their job to help Activision control the release, reviews and marketing of their game.
For Activision, it's not about creating a better environment for their players or preventing cheating, it's just about controlling perception of the game and not hurting release date sales/preorders due to poor word of mouth.
That's a laugh.
If you cant do that, then justr play campaign.
It sucks that players will be hit, but theres common sense involved. Frankly if they can manage to prove they don't know it was not legal then they should be hitting the retailers who broke street date with some sort of action -because its them that falsely lead them to believe their playing sooner was fine. If the publishers can go after retailers doing this, then customers need to have to right to also. They also --if they CAN prove they didn't know it wasn't legal-- should get some sort of slap on the wrist --at least-- instead of a full on ban.
Beyond that, many gamers read sites like this one -if its news on a site a person is proven to frequent then they probably know without access to dudes twitter account, so they're going to have a hard time proving they didn't know.
This is purely a distribution issue which should be taken up with retailers and that's exactly who should be punished for breaking the street date.
Multiplayer-only games not subject to above statement.
Nope.