Fallout 3: The Game for Windows Live Has Been Thrown Out With a Patch

Fallout 3 receives a surprise update, with only two new features in its patch notes: improved performance and stability, and the game is no longer available for Windows Live. Both can be seen in a causal relationship.

Games for Windows Live is out

With the new version 1.7.0.4 it is now possible to start the game for Windows Live without installing it. Cumbersome, because the hidden creation of a Microsoft-specific, offline account is no longer necessary, as are possible causes of crashes and sources of error. Since the service was discontinued in 2014, role-playing games can now be replayed without any workarounds. Fallout 3 is the last of the big “GfWL” titles to expand subscribers. Recently, Rockstar removed Relic from GTA IV because no more activation keys could be generated after it was discontinued.

Ironically, Microsoft acquired Bethesda to remove the Microsoft service from the game. However, this move does not seem at all illogical. On the one hand, Microsoft keeps classic games fresh and thus enhances the GamePass offering, on the other hand, the reference to a critical failure is erased, which was a red rag for gamers. In theory, it’s a question of cultivating a dual image, with the service now completely left in oblivion. In any case, only Steam and the Microsoft Store draw level, as GOG has been without service for a long time.

failure from the beginning

Games for Windows Live 2007 must connect Xbox 360 and PC, but also install the paid Live service on the PC. Windows Vista as a prerequisite and an annual fee of US$50 – which was quickly dropped – were difficult to implement on PCs. There was hardly any cross play, no high-profile offers, and no vigorously adopted strategy. In contrast, Games for Windows Live was perceived as a nuisance, which was expressed, among other things, in petitions for games such as Dark Souls, which still use it.