A failure waiting to happen?

Microsoft's Xbox One hasn't had the greatest of starts - the announcement has been clouded by news relating to blocked second-hand sales, "always online" requirements and a complete absence of backwards compatibility.

With second-hand software sales potentially at risk, many retailers will lose out when Microsoft's console hits the market — retailers like eBay.

eBay's German arm has seized on this opportunity to stick the boot in, and has posted a promotional listing on Facebook for the Wii U which features the following selling points:

  • Keine Gebraucht-Spiel-Sperren (no used games blocking)
  • Keine Online-Pflicht (no mandatory online)
  • Kein Gedöns (no fuss)

This creates an interesting situation; sites like eBay (not to mention dedicated video game retailers which offer part-exchange deals on software) could potentially throw their collective weight behind the Wii U and PS4 — both of which will allow second-hand sales — while treating the Xbox One as a second-class system. A similar situation occurred when Sony launched the ill-fated PSP Go, a handheld which didn't play physical software and therefore denied retailers the chance to make a profit on games. Could the same thing happen with the Xbox One? As ever, we'd love to hear your viewpoint.

[source gonintendo.com, via neogaf.com, facebook.com]