Wouldn't it be somewhat prophetic if the infamous video games crash of 1983, largely attributed to the failure of A-list titles like Atari's hilariously awful E..T, was to rear its head once again 30 years later? An online-only console could have a knock-on effect that would instigate another one, and it's all down to one thing - preventing the sale of used games. As consumers, we can only buy so many games - I trade titles in and sell old games just like anyone else, and sort of rely on it to be able to play everything I want to. If I had to buy every game I ever wanted to play in a given year at £35 a pop, I would be broke, or more likely, I would have to severely cut down on the games I play and consider value for money above all else. If Microsoft are short-sighted enough to implement a permanently-connected console and then use it to block used games, expect to see new game sales take a nosedive; players will have to be more careful about which games they buy, they will err more on the side of caution, waiting for reviews to come out before picking up games they might've bought without hesitation beforehand, content that they could trade it in for another one. This drop in sales would likely be dramatic, and if catastrophic enough, could signal another video game crash, as several A-list titles in development would not make their money back, causing studios to close and the face of gaming to change as we know it forever. Am I just scaremongering or is this all a viable possibility? Let us know in the comments below.