Earlier this week you might have heard and seen that content regarding the upcoming Gears of War remake for the Xbox One has been leaked. No doubt the studio behind it, VMC Games, and Microsoft aren’t too happy about it and it seems that as punishment for those who leaked the videos, Microsoft will be officially bricking the Xbox One units of the perpetrators.This is according to an email that VMC sent out to testers and obtained by the folks at Kotaku. According to a portion of the email, “This being said, as per that agreement with the testers in fault, Microsoft also permanently disabled their Xbox LIVE accounts (as well as other suspected accounts present on their Xbox One kits) and temporarily blocked all of their Xbox One privileges – meaning that for a period of time which Microsoft decides on depending on the severity of the offense, their Xbox One is entirely unusable.”
If it seems a bit harsh, it’s because it is. According to VMC, they try to justify the punishment by saying, “One screenshot, message or even conversation shared with someone else can easily snowball into a situation that goes out of control.” That being said it’s interesting to note that Microsoft actually has the power to remotely stop users from using their Xbox One units. We have to wonder if other console makers such as Sony have the power to remotely brick PlayStation 4 consoles as well.
In any case what do you guys think? We reckon leaking confidential material is a no-no, but do you think the punishment fits the crime? Or do you think that maybe it was a bit too severe?