Saber Interactive CEO Says Xbox 720 Shouldn't Ban Used Games

After what seemed to be a flurry of developer support over rumors that Microsoft's next-generation Xbox console might prevent used games from being played, a second major developer has come forward objecting that idea. And it's a big one – Saber Interactive, the current developer of the Halo franchise. This comes after CD Projekt, developer of The Witcher 2, also slammed the anti-consumer idea.

CD Projekt said that if a game doesn't make a lot of money, it's the developer's fault. The guy who goes to GameStop to save a few bucks isn't the one to blame. Now, Saber Interactive CEO Matthew Karch is sharing a similar feeling. "I don't think we should prevent people from playing used games. I understand why they would want to do it, but I think the approach should be different," Karch said in a recent interview.

Under the rumored Xbox 720 infrastructure, every game would be registered to one and only one Xbox 720 unit. Then, if a customer tried to put that disc in another system, even if it was a second system that he bought or just wanted to play at a friend's house, it would not work. "$60 is a lot to pay for a game and if a player buys a dud and is stuck with it, then that's just not fair to force him to keep it," said Karch. He said the way to ensure developers and publishers still make money is to better encourage in-game purchases, so even someone who gets the game through GameStop or Ebay or whatever can still be a profitable customers.

[via CVG]