Except you have the news of the last year and a half to actually convince you now.
-
Ever wanted an RSS feed of all your favorite gaming news sites? Go check out our new Gaming Headlines feed! Read more about it here.
GameSpot: Phil Spencer Is Exactly Who You Think He Is
- Thread starter ManaByte
- Start date
I don't understand this, they have actually put out a lot of new IPs this gen. They have just been mostly duds. What Xbox has lacked is a new AAA IP that acts as a new flagship franchise like Halo and Gears were. Is that in the cards or just a lot of AA, mid-sized IPs that were really implied by the many studio acquisitions?
It's going to be a lot of the AA titles, with the marquee ones thrown in too, just not as frequently. There will be Gears, Halo, Forza, but also Fable, PD, some other stuff...
Look at Netflix and replace the movies with games. That's the model.
Thanks for the insight. I kind of thought that they would limit their AAA games per year because they are giving them out on Game Pass, but then again, they have slowed down considerably with the high caliber releases this gen anyways.
I do they think they need a new IP that makes a big impact early on though since they have been sporting the same major series for too long now.
give him some credit, geez... obviously they are making money with it available on all platforms, but they could've made the decision to remove it from PlayStation just the same.
Is this an educated guess/assumption or something you know of?
Because the impression I've got is that they want to increase the AAA output. Yeah, there'll no doubt be AA stuff like ReCore but they're words and actions lead me to believe they want to up their AAA output.
Seems like a lot of the studios they acquired excel at AA.
Depends on the studio, Coalition, 343, The Initiative, playground games, Rare, Obsidian and turn 10 yes AAA
But Double fine, compulsion, undead labs, ninja theory and inxile more AA but also lots of these studious are staffing up now so their aspirations could change
Yeah, Undead Labs and Compulsion are definitely going AAA. I don't think InXile will in the foreseeable future, but they're doing things which will definitely cause them to continue to grow.
So a new PD is in dev. Any idea when we'll see or hear something about it? Any other details? I know it's bad form to ask you for insider goods, but I'm a huge PD fan and have been waiting for something new since Zero.
To maintain the output volume a Netflix for games model demands, MS can't just make AAA games. And they know that, which is why (almost) all the studios they bought excel at making smaller, faster, cheaper games. That's what attracted MS to them, not the desire to change them all into AAA powerhouses.
There will certainly be more AAA games than MS put out this gen, but most of their new studios will be focusing on AA+ (AA with a little more money).
It's the right strategy.
They're going to let the studios do whatever the hell they want to. For some of their new studios, like IneXile and Compulsion - they'll likely continue to make AA games since their studios are set up for it and that's all they've ever done. Microsoft is pumping resources into all of these studios, substantially bolstering their staff, which puts some of them within the threshold to handle AAA development. For studios like Obsidian and Ninja Theory, who have AAA in their DNA but transitioned to AA titles out of necessity - I think they'll organically end back up where they started over time.
So which developers do you see doing AAA games then? Rare, 343, Coalition, Playground, Mojang, Turn 10, and the Initiative?
Then Obsidian, InXile, Double Fine, Compulsion, undead Labs, flightSim, AOE, & Ninja Theory are AA+?
Is that the layout you expect?
Yep. But they're also all staffing up and now have bigger budgets.
Glad Phil is in charge. such a great exec. he really does deserve all the praise. Next-gen gonna be good.
Cuphead and Ori are new, console exclusive IP on Xbox that are worth mentioning. Sea of Thieves too, if you consider the state its at right now.
That said, while I agree that MS has been playing a distant 2nd fiddle when it comes to new IP or blockbuster AAA first party games this gen, I'm not sure I'd swap GamePass with one or two new IPs. So yes, he's done well with that. Your value drivers may differ, of course.
Milestone tracking is a critical tool for checking progress, and in the race to add more good game content to the Xbox ecosystem, buying multiple studios and staffing up existing first party studios is a great milestone.
Oh god...
It's really going to be Halo, Gears, Fable and Forza again? Those 4 will (again) suck up all the big budgets (maybe we're lucky and get one new big AAA ip?) and the new guys can make smaler titles to fill the Game-Pass ranks with fodder (some games will be fantastic i'm sure).
If this is the internal strategy i'm sad that they don't have the balls to tell their fanbase this. Don't beat around the bush, be honest.
I'm quite sure the backlash from their own fanbase will be quit big if the new studios don't make big games that can battle with Breath of the Wild or God of War.
New ips for the indies - AA games and established franchises (the big 4 again, because people were so happy with them in the end of the 360 era) get the big bucks to create AAA+ games.
And then nobody will understand (again) why people still prefer Nintendos or Sonys games...
On the whole AAA and AA thing, most the new studios are probably making at least one AA game to start off. Get the process going, be comfortable working under MS, and figure out what you can do now with more budget than you could get from crowd funding.
After that, I wouldn't be shocked when studios like Obsidian and Ninja Theory go AAA.
343i, Coalition, Turn 10, Playground, Rare, Obsidian, and Ninja Theory look to be the long term AAA studios.
A few of these bouncing around with multiple teams also releasing AA games would help diversify for Game Pass. Time those switch offs with a studio like Undead Labs, InXile, or whatever new studios they buy also releasing a AAA game.
That's stuff for late next gen but there are things to look forward to and speculate on, unlike this gen where we knew that barely any new games started development after like 2016.
After that, I wouldn't be shocked when studios like Obsidian and Ninja Theory go AAA.
343i, Coalition, Turn 10, Playground, Rare, Obsidian, and Ninja Theory look to be the long term AAA studios.
A few of these bouncing around with multiple teams also releasing AA games would help diversify for Game Pass. Time those switch offs with a studio like Undead Labs, InXile, or whatever new studios they buy also releasing a AAA game.
That's stuff for late next gen but there are things to look forward to and speculate on, unlike this gen where we knew that barely any new games started development after like 2016.
I'm not entirely sure why a new God of War or Zelda is interesting, while a new Fable wouldn't be. The last decent Fable game was released 9 years ago.
Meanwhile they will be making a lot of new IP's. Studios like Rare, Ninja Theory and Obsidian will create games nearing that 'AAA' feeling. Just how Hellblade did. More focused and compact games.
Meanwhile The Initiative will be building something new. You just can't expect MS to triple their AAA output. That's not sustainable. If Game Pass really becomes a success, I could see that happen. Two or three triple A games per year seems fine to me. Fill it with 3-4 'AA' games and a bunch of indies and Game Pass is looking to be an enormous value.
I have faith in playground games delivering a good take on Fable. I hope they will refresh the franchise and make people very happy. If gears is gearing up for a bright future we're going to see in a few weeks. I'm hoping for it. Loved Gears 1-3 but after that it wasn't anything special imo.
And that's fine but it's just a fact that people didn't applaud MS buying Ninja Theory because they thought they'll be getting the same stuff from them as if Ms didn't lift a finger. What has the gaming-world gained in MS buying these smaler studios if they'll make the same games as if they're still independent?
If i can't expect MS out of all companies in gaming to be able to triplle their AAA output then who? Why is that not sustainable. Do you really think people wouldn't buy a big AAA+ game from Obsidian or Ninja Theory? Especially if it's exclusive?
Good and great games come in all sizes and scope. If the frequency of games is greater, they don't need to be giant open world games. Games like Demon Souls and Splatoon fit AA by today's measures. The idea that games are either massive AAA or Indies is a gap in the industry. We've lost those smaller, riskier games with AAA production values for the most part. The types of games that From Software, Classic BioWare, Classic Bethesda, Classic Blizzard all became famous making initially would've fallen into AA status...except most people never talked about those sorts of things in the past.
The people leading these studios doing "AA" projects are some of the most talented and experienced leaders in the industry. Seeing Hall of Fame industry talent like Feargus, Sawyer, Nina Kristensen, Fargo, Parker and Schafer get creative autonomy and support to make high quality games is exciting as a long time gamer who knows his gaming history. It's something gaming enthusiasts should be rooting for to work out and become a trend.
I'm currently playing Spider-Man and Persona 5 and will upgrade my PlayStation the day that option becomes available...but I'm most excited for the future of Microsoft's 1st party next gen. Stop speaking for "people". People prefer different things and the industry could use less copy cats to remain healthy.
We gained that a team as NT has financial security and can stay making games. They dont have a part of their team working on work for hire stuff to keep the lights on and that with every game its a gamble for them if they make enough money for it. Now the whole studio can work on games they want.
It gives Ninja Theory security. They don't have to do contract work anymore, they can fully focus on making their own games now. So I expect a larger output from them. And more new IP's.
Because Game Pass needs to grow too. What MS is currently doing is already a decent investment. I don't think Amy Hood and Satya Nadella would agree if MS would churn out 6 triple A games per year with the amount of Game Pass subscribers they have now. That doesn't seem sustainable. And I'm not sure if MS is willing to take the same risks Netflix is taking with their content.
Did we just get a low key tease that Perfect Dark is coming back? Dont play with my emotions like that.
The first thing that the gaming world has gained from those acquisitions is the fact that those studios will keep making games for the foreseeable future, instead of folding up. Thanks to Game Pass, they'll also be able to experiment with concepts that might not appear to be the most commercially viable at first glance. They'll be able to pour all of their knowledge and resources into games that they actually want to make, and not the ones that they have to make to keep afloat. And of course, the studios will grow, Undead Labs already said that now they'll be able to hire more capable animators. But the growth will be organic, the studios themselves will decide when it's best for them to expand.
I doubt Compulsion is going AAA. They are still the smallest studio atm MS has. Going from Happy Few to AAA is also a big step. I liked Happy Few as the story and world are great. But the technical side of things is atm far away from AAA. Dont see them make the leap. Studio wise and technical wise. They need to grow still.
I don't understand this notion of AA games being a problem. The reason everybody is sitting here debating AAA games from MS is because this gen most of them have missed the mark whereas Sony has hit big on pretty much all of them. AA is where more risks are taken and can lead to the creation of new IP that becomes AAA in scope for the sequel. If you look at Sony they have at maximum four AAA teams (ND/Guerilla/SSM/SP). MS now has something similar (343/COA/T10/PG/Rare). Having more AA studios means that the big guns are not required to pop out a new game every 2-3 years instead allowing them to deliver one or two large high quality games per gen. IT helps with not having the brand of these IPs feel diluted because they come around so frequently. Hopefully it means more dev time with potential for a superior game. With MS they are probably looking at 1xAAA and 2xAA per year once the first party group is settled.
IMO the big thing that MS needs to focus on aside from this is to stop having defacto Sony and Nintendo exclusives from third party developers. In the last three years i can think of lots of games like Yakuza, Dragon Quest, Nioh, Nier (1 year exclusive) and Persona 5 all missing the platform for no reason other than that the devs/publishers do not think there is an audience there.
IMO the big thing that MS needs to focus on aside from this is to stop having defacto Sony and Nintendo exclusives from third party developers. In the last three years i can think of lots of games like Yakuza, Dragon Quest, Nioh, Nier (1 year exclusive) and Persona 5 all missing the platform for no reason other than that the devs/publishers do not think there is an audience there.
It's Phantom Dust, let go of Perfect Dark...it's lost to the sands of time.
While Sony has some fantastic new IP this gen, do you think they are abandoning their big hitters? The Last of Us? Gran Turismo? God of War? Uncharted? Sony's big four will be just as present as MS's big four.
The problem MS has is they haven't had enough good titles to fill the gaps, so people focus on those big four. With the newly acquired studios, that should change. We also don't know what Initiative is cooking up.
While I really enjoy it but also enjoy being able to buy films....So why not both?
Options are a good thing :)
I used the Phil is a nice guy line ironically before
Now I think he's doing a good job. Life is strange
Now I think he's doing a good job. Life is strange
They are starting the gen with Halo Infinite, a game as big as those other IPs you cite.
There will be between 5 years between Halo 5 and Infinite. Forza games are usually very well received, and the horizon series are typically some of the best racing games ever made. But that on its own isn't just the problem with your post.
Fable - which you rope in - hasn't had a release this generation, and is being made by Playground games, one of the best developers in the world right now. For you to dismiss this as 'stale and boring'...that's basically borderline brainwashing at this point.
Furthermore, Nobody on this site knows how this next gen will play out, or how the cadence of game releases will stack out.
And yes, anyone who likes good games will damn well hope for more entries in the Halo, Gears and Forza lines, along with other new IP, of course.
I'm sure you and the five other Phantom Dust fans would welcome a new game, the vast majority of us are praying and hoping that Joanna makes a triumphant return :)
That doesn't contradict what Matt said tho. Most of their recent studio purchases aren't AAA, and don't want to be AAA, and despite internal investments it doesn't seem that MS is pushing these studios to suddenly move up a weight-class and deliver AAA titles. If anything they all seem determined - and even encouraged by MS - to continue at their current niches, whilst utilising MS' superior resources to bolster production values and ease/shorten development times.
People are being disingenuous to say that they thought these new studio aquisitions were going to turn out AAA games.Obviously they are there to pad out Gamepass with enough content to make people invest in it,and that means smaller games with a quicker turnover......that's the strategy and given the shit state Xbox was in not too long ago they really needed to find a proper direction for Xbox and go all in on it.....that's what they have done....not sure why anyone would be upset with it tbh.
The double whammy of first/third party AAA games will keep me invested in Playstation next gen.....but if Xbox can build up a good portfolio of stuff from these new studios then I might start to give Xbox a sideways glance as the gen goes on......not really ever gonna want to invest in the whole game subscription thing though.
Also......it must really fucking suck to be an Xbox fan around here these days......this thread is nuts,lol.
The double whammy of first/third party AAA games will keep me invested in Playstation next gen.....but if Xbox can build up a good portfolio of stuff from these new studios then I might start to give Xbox a sideways glance as the gen goes on......not really ever gonna want to invest in the whole game subscription thing though.
Also......it must really fucking suck to be an Xbox fan around here these days......this thread is nuts,lol.
Games like Ori and Hellblade are prime examples of great games that don't need 200 million dollar budgets. Yes I get it, new IP's with big budgets are awesome and we will still see that but how many does Nintendo output in new IP's with big budgets? Bleeding Edge is just as comparable as Arms from Nintendo. I expect Rare to make new games and Ninja Theory will continue to get better. The people that make State of Decay will benefit now with bigger bidgets as well.
Obviously it's very risky making new IP's with big budegts and that are single player only and that is exactly what many on the forums want. Sony has done a remarkable job with that and Nintendo kind of takes familiar IP's and changes things up and have had great success as well. I'd love to see Microsoft do both.
As for what benefit was there for buying those studios? They have ssecurity now and have access to Microsoft technology. They already said they do not want to chaneg the culture and for those who continue to be upset with thsoe acquisitions, they did not go in there heavy handed. These studios needed help but again it just shows the bias against Microsoft.