In official word that should clear the air, Microsoft’s Games for Windows – LIVE service will run on Windows XP. Initially, we hinted at this back in July, but today on the official Gamerscore Blog, they’ve confirmed the news. GFW – LIVE is basically Xbox Live, but for PCs; PCs can hop on Live, enjoy some multiplayer and nab a Gamertag (well, among other things too).
"You should all breathe a sigh of relief and know that Games for Windows — LIVE will work on Windows XP. When the development team was working on Games for Windows — LIVE, they focused on a single platform to ship the first iteration of online play, and that platform was Windows Vista. Now that Halo 2 and Shadowrun are out and available, the team has been able to go back and finalize the work done to make sure Games for Windows — LIVE works on Windows XP. Which means that not only Gears of War will connect to LIVE on Windows XP, but so will the other games we announced that will support Games for Windows — LIVE, like Universe at War from SEGA (which, incidentally, will also enable cross-platform play between Xbox 360 and Windows PCs)."
So if you folks decide not to upgrade to Windows Vista in the future, you can still enjoy Gears of War on your Windows XP PC, along with other fine games like Universe at War too.
As for comparisons to Steam? Here’s what they said about it:
"Also, as to how G4W LIVE works in relation to Steam, all I’ll say is that we’re looking at Steam, we really appreciate what they’re doing, and stay tuned. Games for Windows — LIVE has a long way to grow, and even Steam wasn’t the stellar experience it is now when it first launched."
