Is it possible to play a Games for Windows Live game and use Xbox Live at the same time?

Question

I bought Dawn of War 2 for the PC I ran into a problem:

When I play DoW2 it logs me into my Games for Windows/Xbox "Live" account, the same I use for my Xbox. This is normally just fine, but my wife really enjoys using Netflix Streaming on the Xbox. So when she fires up the Xbox when I'm in the middle of a DoW2 match, I'm booted out. The same happens to Netflix if I boot up DoW2.

I've attempted to explain the issue to both Microsoft support (no answer) and Relic (didn't understand my question).

Does anyone know a solution to this, other than using a different Live account for one or the other (need Live Gold to use Netflix, I'm not paying for two, and want same live account to keep achievements in the same spot)?

Asked by Jonathan Mabe

Answer

Its like using the same account on two xbox. You can't do it.

Now there are obvious reasons why Microsoft doesn't want you to be able to use the same account more than once (which are compounded by DLC), but the bottom line is: you can only be logged into the same account in one location at a time.

Now you might want to consider the new Family Pack, which is coming soon. Or streaming your Netflix to a PC.

The short answer though, is: No

Answered by tzenes

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Entering Xbox Live redeem codes online (rather than on Xbox 360 console)

Question

Is there any way to enter those crazy 25-character alphanumeric Xbox Live redeem codes online instead of via Xbox 360 controller?

I have my XBL account linked with a Microsoft Passport account, if that helps....

Asked by Mike Fielden

Answer

Yes, you can login to xbox.com and redeem the code there. XBL Marketplace. Click the "Redeem Code" link under "My Account".

Answered by GShenanigan

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How can I perform an arbitrary search in the Xbox YouTube app?

Question

Admittedly I haven't played with the Xbox YouTube app much. I looked through various tabs and menus and could not find a way to perform a keyword search. Is there a way?

Asked by EBongo

Answer

In the current incarnation (March 2012), hit Y to be presented with the search interface (it's displayed at the bottom left-hand corner of the screen). You can use the controller to enter a search query, or use gestures to select characters with Kinect. It does not currently have support for voice control through the Kinect.

Answered by Doozer Blake

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So what's the catch with XBox live family memberships?

Question

I was thinking today that my father, my brother, and in fact various family members, all have XBox live accounts. I'm aware there is some type of discount for purchasing a family account, and I'm wondering why we wouldn't want to do that. I don't want to break any rules, and I would want to use the individual accounts concurrently and on different boxes. Sharing a password or something like that wouldn't matter though - they're family, I trust them.

It seems too good to be true - so who'll be the first to rain on my parade?

Asked by EBongo

Answer

Running the account on different consoles is fine, the only restriction there is that you have to be in the same country.

The biggest drawback of a family account, is that only the primary account holder can make purchases against their own billing account. So if you are the primary account holder, your brother will not be able to make purchases on the account.

The primary account holder will also be able to see the activity of the other members within the family, this can be a problem if you don't want to share all your gaming activity with whoever becomes the primary account holder. However as you've already stated this is probably not a problem for you as you trust your family.

For more information see the family pack faq.

Answered by Xenox

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Can Mass Effect 2 Saves and DLC be used on multiple Xboxes with the same Live Profile?

Question

I have one XBox 360 in my house, and plan to buy a second console for my office (across the country). I'm playing Mass Effect 2 (using Cloud Storage for Saves). I've bought all of the DLC and thus far have done all of my playing on my primary console.

I'm trying to determine if I will be able to download all of the DLC to the second XBox and continue to play no matter which location I'm in. Basically I want to be able to continue playing/progressing even as I travel from location to location.

I'm fairly confident that my Cloud based saves will work just fine, but it's very hard to pin down the policy on DLC and multiple XBoxes. Obviously I'll be using the same Xbox Live Profile in both locations.

Will I have to buy the Cerberus Network for the second Xbox? Will I have to re-buy all of the DLC?

Note: I also plan to use this same setup when I transition into ME:3.

Asked by bconneen

Answer

You should be fine in re-downloading the DLC to the second console assuming you can sign into Xbox Live with the same profile it's licensed to. The content is licensed to your profile as well as to the original console it was purchased/downloaded on, so if you can sign in on another console, then it will let you use it on that console while signed in.

Also, I confirmed that the Cerberus Network appears to load fine on a second console without having to download anything. I'm assuming it must be tied to the EA Profile which is linked to your Xbox Live profile, and doesn't require any sort of download.

Answered by Doozer Blake

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Was Dreamfall: The Longest Journey removed from Xbox 360 in UK/EU markets?

Question

I recently bought a new Xbox 360 and recovered my profile.

I started downloading games I hadn't finished before I traded my last console. One of them was Dreamfall: The Longest Journey.

When I tried to download it, an error code came up in Xbox live. I then proceeded to log in to the xbox.com site and attempted to add the title to my download list. That came back with an error saying "Not available in your region".

I've been away from Xbox Live a while. Have they begun to remove games from their catalogue? Is there any way I can get this game on my Xbox other than purchasing it again? I really wanted to finish it.

Edit: I'm in the UK

Asked by PasticheOfLife

Answer

Yes, it has been removed, but there has not yet been a reason given to explain why. A high possibility resides on weak sales of the title and the restructuring of Xbox live content since you originaly downloaded it but this is merely speculation - there's no definite answer for you.

If you still had the hard drive you originally installed to, you could still have it otherwise you'll just have to do without.

Hate to be the bearer of bad news.

Answered by blargh

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Flaming Ulitmate Sword

Question

I played with a Monk on xbox live that was doing 1.3Million dps with his giant flaming sword at level 12.

I am guessing this sword is the result of some quest or premium. The sword essentially maxed out his stats (he did not gain anything by increasing them more with other items) and one slash killed most monsters we faced.

Anyone know what it is or could be?

Asked by Chad

Answer

Mordenkainen's Magical Flaming Dragons is the sword title I believe you are looking for.

It is obtained via the monsterfest challenge on easy/med.

Answered by Foxtrot

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Xbox 360 de-friending someone

Question

How would I go about doing this? I can't find anything useful in the Xbox 360's wonderfully informative menus.

Asked by benhowdle89

Answer

I'm not sure how to do this on the console, but I know that you can remove friends from xbox.com. Log in using the Windows Live ID associated with your GamerTag, and go to the Friends Center. There is a "Remove" button by each person on your Friends List that you can use to remove them.

Answered by Adeese

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What is the format for Xbox LIVE member profile URLs?

Question

Previously, the format was http://live.xbox.com/member/[Gamertag], but this is no longer the case. For example, http://live.xbox.com/member/Xonatron no longer loads.How can I convert old format links to the current format?

Asked by Matthew Doucette

Answer

The format was changed to http://live.xbox.com/en-US/Profile?gamertag=[Gamertag]

So your example would now be: http://live.xbox.com/en-US/Profile?gamertag=Xonatron

Answered by Foxtrot

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How do you join two Xbox Live accounts?

Question

I made an Games for Windows Live account a few years ago using my Gmail address. Some time ago I also started playing on my friend's Xbox and subsequently made a new account with my Hotmail address (having forgot about my first account). I've recently started gaming on the PC again and also using Games for Windows Live.

You see, now I have two accounts which I would like to join, because both accounts have achievements and other such stuff, I'd like to have it all under one account.

Asked by olivervaga

Answer

Unfortunately, there is currently no way to accomplish this. Microsoft do not provide any function to merge gamertags.

Answered by TZHX

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Xbox Live Family Pack on multiple consoles

Question

If we have 4 xbox's in our house (three in bedrooms and one in the living room), can we buy an Xbox live Family Pack for 12 months (you get 12 months for 4 accounts) and use one account on each Xbox (we already have three xbox live accounts we want to combine and use the fourth for the living room). I know that it would work on one console, but i didnt know if you could recover one of the child accounts back onto the individual xboxs and still have the membership time for each account.

Asked by Rob_IGS

Answer

Yes, your Xbox Live membership travels with the account, not the console. So if you have a Gold Account signed into a console, you have Gold privileges on that console. You can recover that account on a different console and have Gold privileges.

This is also covered in the Gold Family Pack FAQ.

Q: I have multiple consoles in my family. Does my Xbox LIVE Gold Family Pack have to reside only one of those consoles?

A: When an individual is added to an Xbox LIVE Gold Family Pack, that person’s Xbox LIVE account must be on the same console as the primary account holder. However, once they are a part of your Xbox LIVE Gold Family Pack, that person could recover their account on a different console and still remain a part of the Family Pack, as long as they reside in the same country as the primary account holder.

Answered by Doozer Blake

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What happens when I remove an Xbox Live friend?

Question

I've got some "friends" on my Xbox Live friends list who aren't really that - they're people I rarely play with and who are more "friends of friends." Unfortunately, the friends list pings me every time they're online or doing something (ie, they start playing the game I'm playing) which is kind of inconvenient.

I'm considering removing them, but I don't want to "cause a scene" and offend them (or my other friends) by removing them.

What happens when I remove an Xbox Live friend? Do they get a notification? Does anything change from their perspective?

Answer

They get no notification, you will however get removed from their friend list as well.

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When I purchase a game on Xbox Live, will I get a copy on DVD as well?

Question

Will I get the option to order a "hard copy" (DVD) while buying the game on Xbox Live?

I've only ever purchased live arcade game, not a game you usually buy in the store. You know, something over 1GB.

I want to buy a copy of Dance Central 2, since the family is coming over for new years. And I want to buy it on Xbox Live to save myself a trip to the store, but I want it on DVD for safe keeping. I don't want to have to re-download the game over the net if I reformat the xbox HDD later.

Plus I have fears that somehow I will not have access to it later if Microsoft decides to revamp the Xbox-Live system. They did this with the Windows Media player stores, and we're still trying to get back the music licenses for well over 100 songs that my friends Mom purchased.

Answer

No, if you purchase a game via the Xbox Live Marketplace, there is no option to get that game on DVD. It's a digital download only. The prices also frequently don't align - especially if you're used to buying used, the game prices are typically marked up significantly to make up for the "convenience factor" of the digital download.

Microsoft controls what content plays on the console, whether it is on optical storage or digital download. If you use/connect to Xbox Live while playing, Microsoft can force you to sign out if you refuse a console or title update. This may lock you out of certain features (especially online/internet enabled features) of the game. The licenses are certainly harder to revoke when you own the physical media, but more and more the direction is towards licensed content, and not ownership in the traditional sense.

Recently Microsoft added support for connecting external storage devices, and it is possible to copy your content to these external devices. However, I don't believe the intent is for backup. The Xbox 360 will use a max of 16 GB of storage space on an external device.

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How can I store my saves in the cloud?

Question

Is there a way to enable the cloud storage option for Skyrim saves? Other games ask me where I want my save file.

Answer

Sure, in your system preferences, go to storage, and move the save file over there. When you load the game it will ask what storage device to use. Select "Cloud Storage" and it will use that.

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XBLive and Skyrim

Question

Is there a way to enable the cloud storage option for skyrim saves? for other games it asks me where I want my save file.

Answer

Sure, in your system preferences, go to storage, and move the save file over there. When you load the game it will ask what storage device to use. Select "Cloud Storage" and it will use that.

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If I shut down my console from in-game, will games saved to Cloud Storage be uploaded?

Question

Fiddling around under Storage settings, I noticed a new Cloud Storage Console Copy listing under System Items on my hard drive.

I'm assuming with this, that games stored in the Cloud Storage are saved locally here first and then uploaded, but when do the games get uploaded to the Cloud? I typically just shut down the console from in-game when I'm done playing, and am wondering if this will cause a problem. Is shutting down immediately after saving a safe option to take if saving games to the cloud? Are the games uploaded immediately or at some later time?

Answer

The Xbox 360 doesn't actually shut down when you ask it to - there's even an option in the Preferences pane where you can tell it to stay on to finish downloads after you tell it to shut down. I believe that the cloud storage saves work the same way.

Some people are reporting that their fans are running for an additional time after they tell the system to shut down. This delay reportedly went away when the cloud sync options were disabled.

When you're in this "network sync state" the LEDs on the box are generally off, and the display is blank, but sometimes the fan keeps running (depending on your Xbox revision, I believe).

So as long as you're shutting it down properly (via the Xbox menu or the power button) I believe your cloud storage items will be properly sync'ed.

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If I have Xbox live gold will others on my system be able to play Halo matchmaking?

Question

I have an Xbox live gold account. If I sign in and start a Halo online matchmaking game will my son without a good account be able to join in?

Answer

Yes, in Halo games on the Xbox 360, if you have one player signed in with Xbox Live Gold, up to 3 other people can sign in as "Guest" and play online at the same time in splitscreen.

Most multiplayer Xbox Live games allow for this mode of sharing Gold status.

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2 Xbox Live accounts signed into 1 console?

Question

I have an XBL account, have for awhile.

When my nephew comes over he is always playing on my account but he has his own account at his house on his xbox.

Is there a way for him to sign into his account on my Xbox? Can he bring it with him some how? Will his data sync to his Xbox or whats the deal?

Answer

Yes, he can either bring his profile with him on a Memory card or USB stick (assuming you both have updated your consoles). I do this regularly when going to a friends house.

He could also recover his account onto your Xbox, but that is a bit more of a hassle.

Achievements and other online stats are synced in either case (as long as you are connected to the internet), but saved game files won't be transferred if he recovers his account (or if he doesn't bring them on his memory card/usb stick).

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Can I purchase any Xbox Live Gold membership card for a family member if I don't know which region they're in?

Question

As per the title, my cousin has an unknown region gamertag/account on his Xbox (or at least, I'm not sure about it 100%).

I want to get him a 12 month Gold subscription so he can join me in online gameplay for Christmas (reason why I'm not sure).

How would I go about verifying the correct region for the prepaid card purchase? Or do you get ones that are valid worldwide?

Answer

Supposedly prepaid Gold cards are region-free, although Microsoft controls this and their stance is:

Some prepaid codes can be redeemed only in the country or region in which they were purchased.

... which is extraordinarily vague, likely on purpose.

You might want to contact Xbox Live customer support before spending any money - it's generally very hard to get your money back from these prepaid cards. Also, counterfeits and completely fake codes are extremely common from less reputable sellers, so beware any crazy deals or promises from vendors.

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After unsubscribing, should I still have access to Foxtel on the XBOX 360?

Question

On my XBOX Live account a while back I had Foxtel. I got over it / didn't have time for it after a couple months of paying for this service and I removed it from my account.

I haven't been charged for it since, so I'm considering it closed / null / void.

Last night out of pure being too tired to think properly I selected Foxtel from the main menu, which has recently been updated interface wise.

I didn't realize until about 20 minutes later but I was able to view quite a number of channels even though I didn't have a Foxel subscription.

I'm now concerned that this has automatically resubscribed me to my old plan and will begin charging me.

Is this the case, or are there just a few channels that are free? (Seems weird if so). I thought it might deduct Microsoft Points or similar per hour but that doesn't seem to have been the case.

Answer

Although it's unlikely that accessing the app resubscribed you to a former service level, it's probably best to double check and make sure. The only way to access the Xbox integration settings for Foxtel is via the Foxtel website.

Supposedly Sky News is free to anyone who has the Foxtel app on their Xbox, so if that's all you managed to access, you might have been just playing with a free preview.

Beyond that I'd suggest calling them during normal business hours, using one of the phone numbers on their website.

It's entirely possible that it's a mistake in your favor, but that's usually not the way these things tend to go, and getting any charges sorted out now is going to be easier than waiting to see if you ever get a bill.

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