You can learn most of what you need to know about Microsoft’s PC game service from the fact that its website’s URL is on xbox.com. Games For Windows was built to be the Windows equivalent to Xbox Live, with integration between the two services for Gamertags and achievements. Games For Windows is a functional system, but there just isn’t enough support from other developers, and it’s a distant third to services like Steam (4.5 stars) and Impulse (3.5 stars). Games For Windows currently offers fewer than 200 full games, the majority of which published by Microsoft. There are many great games from last year, but the selection isn’t nearly as great as Steam’s.

More New Than Old
With a few exceptions, Games For Windows is strictly for new games. A few games from the original Xbox era like Fable and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas are available in the marketplace, but besides that there isn’t any classic game appeal.

Newer games, like Fable III and Bulletstorm, can cost $30 to $50, while older titles like Prince of Persia: Warrior Within and Assassin’s Creed are only $10 to $20. Games For Windows puts less emphasis on sales and bundle deals than Steam or Impulse.

Integration with Xbox Live
Online content integrates with Xbox Live, so achievements and information is shared between the services. Unfortunately, that’s it for usefulness outside of buying and organizing games. There isn’t any friends list, so you can’t quickly keep track of who’s playing what. There also isn’t any actual cross-platform gameplay, so you’re still dealing with fellow Games for Windows players in multiplayer and not the thousands of gamers on Xbox Live, even if you’re playing a port from the Xbox 360.

The Games for Windows Marketplace handles downloading and installing like Steam and Impulse. Everything is done through the program itself, and the game is installed locally.

Compared to the wealth of games and features in Xbox Live, Microsoft’s Games for Windows Marketplace is a disappointment. It feels like little more than a vestigial market, something Microsoft tried and then forgot about. If you want to download PC games, stick to Impulse or Steam, our Editors’ Choice online PC gaming marketplace.

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