As per the thread title, Microsoft's output has been quite atrocious these past years. They've spent billions buying up new studios and multiple years into the generation they are starting to reap what they sowed... and it's been bad. Gamepass is a fantastic service (I've been subbed to it since Day 1) but the first party output, what actually distinguishes a console's output, has been quite poor.
2020 was the Halo Infinite debacle
2021 again was soured by Halo Infinite being an underwhelming experience to most (I freaking loved the campaign though). Edit: Yes, 2021 had some great releases. Sorry i didn't add them here, honestly forgot about the year those games released!
2022 was a dry desert of nothingness.
2023 started with a bang.. HiFi Rush is seriously a GOTY contender. Then... crickets. Redfall is obviously being rushed to the market and for having the self-proclaimed "strongest console" it's a shame that the game, a FPS at that, runs at 30 frames. Like wtf? Other third parties have had subpar experiences, like RE4. I bought RE4 because of the Atmos sound and because initially it was the best looking/running version... but it had the deadzone issue. The PS5 IQ issues were fixed the SX IQ went downhill (albeit with better performance).
I fully understand that this is not a Microsoft problem and it was a Capcom one, but seemingly more third parties are coming out which run better on the PS5. I am actively waiting on Digital Foundry's Jedi Survivor coverage to determine where to buy the game because I want to have a good experience, and PC gaming has been having a myriad of issues with games so I have crossed it out of my "go-to" gaming environment until things calm down. It's a freaking shame though, on paper the SX is a superior console spec-wise and supports a lot of nice things like larger VRR windows, Atmos sound and Dolby Vision. I have a nice Atmos home theater system and a nice OLED screen... so I like getting the benefit of all these things.
The Series S has been a great little box for those who don't care about high-end experiences and I like it since it's a great entry point for the ecosystem. Still, I can't feel but be disappointed with Microsoft as a whole. Redfall's potential problems, and other previous first party experiences, have soured me on the ecosystem quite a bit. At this point I may just use it my Series X a Gamepass box, subscribing when something cool is out in there, and just buying all third parties on my PS5 while the PC world gets their shit together. This gives me flashback to the Xbox One days. I got an Xbox One after they dropped Kinect and I was so disappointed by it that I sold it. I bought a One X afterwards and felt "this is it, Microsoft is going back to the glory 360 days". With all the acquisitions and movements I was sure they'd nail the Series X days but more than two years in and it's just... oof. Mind you, I know games aren't created in the blink of an eye. It takes years to get them out but then I look at the apparent mess they are having with titles like Perfect Dark, Fable, Everwild (I was so hyped for this...) and others and it's just... what the fuck are you guys doing? I am hyped for Starfield as well but I don't trust Bethesda to release a game with no game breaking bugs and stable performance, and even though I was confident Microsoft wouldn't let them fuck it up, one look at Redfall and I basically lose all that confidence. Here's hoping Avowed and future Gears are not disappointments. And yes, I agree this thread may be an overreaction since we don't know what's going on with many of those games, but I can't just be the only one disappointed with the output Microsoft is having right now, right? Hell, even the Switch is more exciting and that's on its last legs. The PS5 is just steamrolling them when I expected a more even competition between these two platform holders.
That's it, that's the rant. I am frustrated with Microsoft basically, not because I am a fanboy but because I wanted new franchises and a stronger competition to Sony's amazing first party output.
2020 was the Halo Infinite debacle
2021 again was soured by Halo Infinite being an underwhelming experience to most (I freaking loved the campaign though). Edit: Yes, 2021 had some great releases. Sorry i didn't add them here, honestly forgot about the year those games released!
2022 was a dry desert of nothingness.
2023 started with a bang.. HiFi Rush is seriously a GOTY contender. Then... crickets. Redfall is obviously being rushed to the market and for having the self-proclaimed "strongest console" it's a shame that the game, a FPS at that, runs at 30 frames. Like wtf? Other third parties have had subpar experiences, like RE4. I bought RE4 because of the Atmos sound and because initially it was the best looking/running version... but it had the deadzone issue. The PS5 IQ issues were fixed the SX IQ went downhill (albeit with better performance).
I fully understand that this is not a Microsoft problem and it was a Capcom one, but seemingly more third parties are coming out which run better on the PS5. I am actively waiting on Digital Foundry's Jedi Survivor coverage to determine where to buy the game because I want to have a good experience, and PC gaming has been having a myriad of issues with games so I have crossed it out of my "go-to" gaming environment until things calm down. It's a freaking shame though, on paper the SX is a superior console spec-wise and supports a lot of nice things like larger VRR windows, Atmos sound and Dolby Vision. I have a nice Atmos home theater system and a nice OLED screen... so I like getting the benefit of all these things.
The Series S has been a great little box for those who don't care about high-end experiences and I like it since it's a great entry point for the ecosystem. Still, I can't feel but be disappointed with Microsoft as a whole. Redfall's potential problems, and other previous first party experiences, have soured me on the ecosystem quite a bit. At this point I may just use it my Series X a Gamepass box, subscribing when something cool is out in there, and just buying all third parties on my PS5 while the PC world gets their shit together. This gives me flashback to the Xbox One days. I got an Xbox One after they dropped Kinect and I was so disappointed by it that I sold it. I bought a One X afterwards and felt "this is it, Microsoft is going back to the glory 360 days". With all the acquisitions and movements I was sure they'd nail the Series X days but more than two years in and it's just... oof. Mind you, I know games aren't created in the blink of an eye. It takes years to get them out but then I look at the apparent mess they are having with titles like Perfect Dark, Fable, Everwild (I was so hyped for this...) and others and it's just... what the fuck are you guys doing? I am hyped for Starfield as well but I don't trust Bethesda to release a game with no game breaking bugs and stable performance, and even though I was confident Microsoft wouldn't let them fuck it up, one look at Redfall and I basically lose all that confidence. Here's hoping Avowed and future Gears are not disappointments. And yes, I agree this thread may be an overreaction since we don't know what's going on with many of those games, but I can't just be the only one disappointed with the output Microsoft is having right now, right? Hell, even the Switch is more exciting and that's on its last legs. The PS5 is just steamrolling them when I expected a more even competition between these two platform holders.
That's it, that's the rant. I am frustrated with Microsoft basically, not because I am a fanboy but because I wanted new franchises and a stronger competition to Sony's amazing first party output.
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