Xbox Game Studios + Bethesda + ABK |OT30| Why So Series X|S?

[ThereAreFourNaan]

That's a legendary leak now. It had so much accurate information and nobody knows where it came from.

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I'll go to my grave denying it tbh. This is my white whale.

The 3rd party consoles that run xbox games still don't make sense, the kojima movie thing was already public info, the troy baker voicing jones had been posted on neogaf months earlier (and in the same thread people were all speculating about it being mostly 1st person).

I find it very unlikely that someone would know all about Xbox's future hardware roadmap and all of Zenimax's plans (all games now multiplatform) plus games like Flight Sim going muti, but not know any of the 4 games that were actually imminently being ported. Particularly when one of the games was even from Zenimax, which seems to be what most of the info is purportedly about.

 

[SoulReaver91]

Bang on with everything and I wanted to add that a co-founder, Tameem Antoniades, has recently left as well. I really hope Hellblade is a major critical darling that boosts the studio, but if not I'm really not confident such a profit-margins-hungry Microsoft will want to be nice about it all.

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Tameem wanted to leave after the first hellblade, he said so himself. And the farewell is not recent, just look at his Instagram profile.

 

[Mr Evil 37]

I'll go to my grave denying it tbh. This is my white whale.

The 3rd party consoles that run xbox games still don't make sense, the kojima movie thing was already public info, the troy baker voicing jones had been posted on neogaf months earlier (and in the same thread people were all speculating about it being mostly 1st person).

I find it very unlikely that someone would know all about Xbox's future hardware roadmap and all of Zenimax's plans (all games now multiplatform) plus games like Flight Sim going muti, but not know any of the 4 games that were actually imminently being ported. Particularly when one of the games was even from Zenimax, which seems to be what most of the info is purportedly about.

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Random Discord posts are invariably sketchy. Just because some of the things turned out to be true doesn't mean they actually knew or had any real information.

 

[Kopite]

Ninja theory were an independent studio before acquisition so if things go tits up I hope they end up like TfB instead of the Zenimax studios. Xbox will probably want to keep the Hellblade IP though...

 

[Mr Evil 37]

Tameem wanted to leave after the first hellblade, he said so himself. And the farewell is not recent, just look at his Instagram profile.

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Yeah Tameem left forever ago.

 

[Mr Evil 37]

Ninja theory were an independent studio before acquisition so if things go tits up I hope they end up like TfB instead of the Zenimax studios. Xbox will probably want to keep the Hellblade IP though...

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Maybe this is naive of me but I really do think the XGS studios will be treated differently, at least for a while. So far the limited integration studios have had zero layoffs (as far as we know), which suggests to me that there may be clauses preventing layoffs and closures for X years in the acquisition deals. But obviously I'm just guessing/hoping.

 

[Clippy]

I know but Psychonauts, Deathloop and Ghostwire were never going to be exclusives. Psychonauts and Deathloop especially were both GOTY contenders and I think they should still be counted even though they aren't exclusives. They are still big first party games.

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They weren't making a random list though, it was games that would have an impact for the platform. Deathloop and Ghostwire were PS5 timed exclusives, doesn't make sense to put them on the Xbox side.

 

[Knight613]

I'll go to my grave denying it tbh. This is my white whale.

The 3rd party consoles that run xbox games still don't make sense, the kojima movie thing was already public info, the troy baker voicing jones had been posted on neogaf months earlier (and in the same thread people were all speculating about it being mostly 1st person).

I find it very unlikely that someone would know all about Xbox's future hardware roadmap and all of Zenimax's plans (all games now multiplatform) plus games like Flight Sim going muti, but not know any of the 4 games that were actually imminently being ported. Particularly when one of the games was even from Zenimax, which seems to be what most of the info is purportedly about.

Click to shrink...

Were you not around for the legendary ntkrnl leak that leaked all of Microsoft's E3 plans in January 2014 for what was announced in June that year?

This stuff absolutely happens.

 

[Kerberosorthos]

Even if Hellblade 2 doesn't match expectations of MS in terms of success I don't think they will consider a closure of the studio but instead let them work on one of the many IP's MS owns. The talent is there so they would rather use them instead of dismissing them.

 

[Mr Evil 37]

Even if Hellblade 2 doesn't match expectations of MS in terms of success I don't think they will consider a closure of the studio but instead let them work on one of the many IP's MS owns. The talent is there so they would rather use them instead of dismissing them.

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Or get them a licensed IP.

Daredevil.

 

[Mr Evil 37]

They weren't making a random list though, it was games that would have an impact for the platform. Deathloop and Ghostwire were PS5 timed exclusives, doesn't make sense to put them on the Xbox side.

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That's fair. I just don't like discounting very good first party games that were released under Xbox because they had already agreed to be multiplatform prior to acquisition.

Not-exclusives can still impact the platform, too. The Outer Worlds for example definitely pushed Game Pass in 2019.

But I acknowledge there are different views here.

 

[Super]

Were you not around for the legendary ntkrnl leak that leaked all of Microsoft's E3 plans in January 2014 for what was announced in June that year?

This stuff absolutely happens.

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Yeah a lot of this stuff is known in advance.

 

[meenseen84]

New Xbox first party exclusive games since start of gen:

Flight simulator
Forza horizons 5
Forza "8"
Halo infinite
As dusk falls
Pentiment
Grounded
Hi fi rush
Starfield
Redfall

That's 10 so far. 3-4 of those are "big"
Did I miss any? Not including the Xbox one -> series X touch ups unless they were true remasters. Killer instinct anniversary edition might* count

Vs Sony's exclusive first party output since the start of the gen:

Demons souls
Sackboy
Spider man remastered
Spider-Man Miles morales
Spider-Man 2
Astros playroom
Destruction allstars
returnal
Ratchet & Clank RA
Ghost of Tsushima directors cut
Death stranding directors cut
God of war ragnarok
Gran turismo 7
TLOU part 1
Horizon FW
Rise of the ronin
Helldivers 2
TLOU pt 2

Does Nathan drake collection or astros playroom for ps5 count?

Then you add exclusives like
Nioh remastered
Stellar blade
Ff7 remake integrade
Ff7 rebirth
Ff 16
Forspoken
Foamstars

Etc…

2-3x the "big game" and overall output…

It just feels like Microsoft hasn't given the generation a "fair shake" and came ill prepared with first party output despite all their studios, and this change of direction is in part self inflicted. I wish they'd get their act together - Sony being the only player in the high end space without any competition will not be fun

Competition has always brought out the best in both companies

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I don't believe exclusives will significantly impact the direction of the market. Many people consider them crucial to success, but that's not the case. Xbox has many promising games coming up, but they won't drastically change the landscape. While exclusives are important to some, particularly those on this forum, they matter less to the broader audience. Most console gamers aren't focused on exclusives; they're playing games from the previous generation and sticking with familiarity and their existing libraries.

I believe Xbox's long-term success lies in fundamentally changing the game, rather than just trying to outdo Sony. This could mean opening the console to other storefronts and incorporating PC-like benefits or introducing unique, flexible hardware. On the Xbox 2 + 1 podcast, Jeff Grubb mentioned an intriguing theory: Xbox might be playing a long game that could result in regulators requiring other stores, including an Xbox store, on PlayStation. The further ahead Sony gets the more pressure they will get to open up.

 

[Witchcraft]

Are you talking about that random guy ages ago who spoke about them going Multiplatform? In hindsight, that leak was crazy.

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Yup. I know it was downplayed quite a bit but it's legitimately an all timer leak. It was bang on.

 

[ThereAreFourNaan]

Were you not around for the legendary ntkrnl leak that leaked all of Microsoft's E3 plans in January 2014 for what was announced in June that year?

This stuff absolutely happens.

Click to shrink...

I was a moderator on gaf when it happened.

Ntkrnl was not shy about naming and detailing just about everything to extraordinary specificity. Leaked photos of box art, detailed marketing plans, exact release dates, numerous unannounced projects.

Here, we just get "id software's next game" which they don't share the name of or what it's about. Or allusions to "the next few projects.

The Xbox going third party rumours (or at least this round) actually started in Dec 2023 when another person on neogaf alleged that numerous Bethesda games had started port work months earlier along with a variety of XGS projects. They didn't name them, although the discord person did (and failed to name the ones that had ports being worked on).

So the only truly original information that couldn't have been just this person pilfering stuff they'd read on neogaf was the OEM devices that all play Xbox games part. Which is the least believable bit to me.

 

[Mr Evil 37]

Here, we just get "id software's next game" which they don't share the name of or what it's about.

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I find it kind of weird that we only recently got confirmation that id's game is Doom. I know we could have assumed but we've known about other projects before announcement for way longer and there was still debate over Doom and Quake up until very recently.

Maybe people did know and just didn't report on it.

 

[ThereAreFourNaan]

I find it kind of weird that we only recently got confirmation that id's game is Doom. I know we could have assumed but we've known about other projects before announcement for way longer and there was still debate over Doom and Quake up until very recently.

Maybe people did know and just didn't report on it.

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Especially odd imo because we had it called Doom Year Zero in ftc leaks in q4 2023, and while things could change, it has now turned out to be a doom game. So I would expect a super leaker with access to strategy to probably be able to find stuff like that out

 

[Knight613]

I was a moderator on gaf when it happened.

Ntkrnl was not shy about naming and detailing just about everything to extraordinary specificity. Leaked photos of box art, detailed marketing plans, exact release dates, numerous unannounced projects.

Here, we just get "id software's next game" which they don't share the name of or what it's about. Or allusions to "the next few projects.

The Xbox going third party rumours (or at least this round) actually started in Dec 2023 when another person on neogaf alleged that numerous Bethesda games had started port work months earlier along with a variety of XGS projects. They didn't name them, although the discord person did (and failed to name the ones that had ports being worked on).

So the only truly original information that couldn't have been just this person pilfering stuff they'd read on neogaf was the OEM devices that all play Xbox games part. Which is the least believable bit to me.

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Fair enough but as with all leaks, only time will tell whether they're true or not.

The OEM devices thing I feel like may not even make it past whatever recent changes have been going on.

 

[Mr Evil 37]

Especially odd imo because we had it called Doom Year Zero in ftc leaks in q4 2023, and while things could change, it has now turned out to be a doom game. So I would expect a super leaker with access to strategy to probably be able to find stuff like that out

Click to shrink...

Yeah, after what happened with Dishonored 3 and Blade, I was sceptical about Year Zero (and Klob heard it was never actually in development) but clearly there was some truth to it. Although maybe it's not Year Zero and it's a completely different Doom game.

 

[Kolbe1894]

New Xbox first party exclusive games since start of gen:

Flight simulator
Forza horizons 5
Forza "8"
Halo infinite
As dusk falls
Pentiment
Grounded
Hi fi rush
Starfield
Redfall

That's 10 so far. 3-4 of those are "big"
Did I miss any? Not including the Xbox one -> series X touch ups unless they were true remasters. Killer instinct anniversary edition might* count

Vs Sony's exclusive first party output since the start of the gen:

Demons souls
Sackboy
Spider man remastered
Spider-Man Miles morales
Spider-Man 2
Astros playroom
Destruction allstars
returnal
Ratchet & Clank RA
Ghost of Tsushima directors cut
Death stranding directors cut
God of war ragnarok
Gran turismo 7
TLOU part 1
Horizon FW
Rise of the ronin
Helldivers 2
TLOU pt 2

Does Nathan drake collection or astros playroom for ps5 count?

Then you add exclusives like
Nioh remastered
Stellar blade
Ff7 remake integrade
Ff7 rebirth
Ff 16
Forspoken
Foamstars

Etc…

2-3x the "big game" and overall output…

It just feels like Microsoft hasn't given the generation a "fair shake" and came ill prepared with first party output despite all their studios, and this change of direction is in part self inflicted. I wish they'd get their act together - Sony being the only player in the high end space without any competition will not be fun

Competition has always brought out the best in both companies

Click to shrink...

Stop counting remasters and re-release

 

[BeigeShark]

I think that Starfield fully updated should arrive in PS5. That could help to show that Xbox tax is real, Bethesda would make more money to make a better TES VI (exclusive one year or two) and Bethesda could fully recover his image after the backslash of the "failed" release of Starfield only on Xbox.

 

[SoulReaver91]

These conversations will also be made when Avowed, South of Midnight, the Double Fine game, comes out. In my opinion these are speculations that lead absolutely nowhere, they only spread even more negativity (as if the current one wasn't already enough). Ninja Theory has a series of advantages: it is located in the UK (where many other Xbox teams are located), it is not a huge team with related costs, it has considerable technical know-how (I am already thinking only of the rooms built specifically for motion capture and experience with Unreal). Tango was the only studio located in Japan and needed to hire new staff to develop the next game. Furthermore, none of his previous games have been sales hits. And very sadly for all these elements it was decided to close them. If and when there are layoffs I expect they will hit studios like Turn 10, rather than NT.

 

[Kolbe1894]

Bang on with everything and I wanted to add that a co-founder, Tameem Antoniades, has recently left as well. I really hope Hellblade is a major critical darling that boosts the studio, but if not I'm really not confident such a profit-margins-hungry Microsoft will want to be nice about it all.

Click to shrink...

He left in 2021, not so recent

 

[Vico]

Well I became aware of it when a few weeks ago Giantbomb were bringing up all the games they were looking forward to still to come out, and Hellblade 2 wasnt mentioned once. On Nextlander the same; no one mentioned Hellblade 2 for ages. And it's not because I think no one wants to play it, it's because no one was aware it was coming out so soon.

We can argue all day about how effective marketing is and how much a title actually needs, but I think at a bare minimum I would expect there to be enough so actual gaming media is aware. They are aware now, a lot of that due to all the Xbox news recently ironically.

I don't know, bringing up marketing gets a few judgemental responses in here. Which is fine, it's such a hard thing to quantify. But I truly think they have done a terrible job with Hellblade 2. At least making people aware of the release date.

We can talk shit about Redfall all day, at least people knew when that was releasing :p Same with Starfield. I suspect Bethesda is just better at this, they still have separate marketing teams I am pretty sure.

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Oh Redfall absolutely felt like a bigger event. Which might sound normal when you think about what Redfall was supposed to be, but when you compare the quality of both games... It's crazy. And no matter what Xbox says, one year before launch they should be fully aware if they have a bad or good product on their hands. That's usually when polish starts and it's content complete.

The launch of the game that was announced with the Series X (specifically picked because Xbox wanted something different than Halo, Gears, Forza, Fable, something highly cinematic like what they were missing to attract certain gamers) should feel like a massive event. It's still possible at release, with reviews and videos praising the graphics, but it's a lot more calm beforehand compared to even my most pessimistic expectations. Hellblade 2 is niche, but it also would have been a super important game for Xbox, being the first game to release in seven months, and the first to really cater to the crowd of the competition.

If anything, people are starting to realize Xbox's biggest sin this generation is their overall marketing efforts. Can't grow a business if you only talk to your existing consumers. That was always going to shrink if you do nothing to bring in new people.

Series S was a good idea, but it needed a big push to make people aware.

 

[Kopite]

I was a moderator on gaf when it happened.

Ntkrnl was not shy about naming and detailing just about everything to extraordinary specificity. Leaked photos of box art, detailed marketing plans, exact release dates, numerous unannounced projects.

Here, we just get "id software's next game" which they don't share the name of or what it's about. Or allusions to "the next few projects.

The Xbox going third party rumours (or at least this round) actually started in Dec 2023 when another person on neogaf alleged that numerous Bethesda games had started port work months earlier along with a variety of XGS projects. They didn't name them, although the discord person did (and failed to name the ones that had ports being worked on).

So the only truly original information that couldn't have been just this person pilfering stuff they'd read on neogaf was the OEM devices that all play Xbox games part. Which is the least believable bit to me.

Click to shrink...

Anything you can share about cboat? Were they actually an MS insider or was it GAF mods aggregating info from multiple insiders?

 

[Kolbe1894]

Honestly, from the way some people are talking, it's almost like they want it to be bad.

Click to shrink...

That's the main reason of the "concern" from some people
Otherwise why would embargo time matters, BG3 doesn't even give people enough time for review before official release, and it's a GOTY

 

[Kerberosorthos]

Honestly, from the way some people are talking, it's almost like they want it to be bad.

Click to shrink...

That's online concern. It's best to ignore it entirely. Focus on the good things happening and the next thing is Hellblade 2 release.

 

[Kolbe1894]

Well I became aware of it when a few weeks ago Giantbomb were bringing up all the games they were looking forward to still to come out, and Hellblade 2 wasnt mentioned once. On Nextlander the same; no one mentioned Hellblade 2 for ages. And it's not because I think no one wants to play it, it's because no one was aware it was coming out so soon.

Click to shrink...

The release date is set since January's direct event, and there are large media preview in April with mentioning the release date, again
If an average Joe doesn't aware Hellblade 2 release date or even exist, fine because I do think the marketing is not good enough, but if a game journalists doesn't aware when it release, it's their incompetent, no excuse

 

[BetterGraphics]

He left in 2021, not so recent

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Didn't realise.

 

[jungius]

Speaking of controllers, I'm ready for that new rumored controller with haptics. Is that rumored for this year?

Click to shrink...

im also waiting for sebile, and brooklin console

but is there chance they cancelled it?

 

[ThereAreFourNaan]

Anything you can share about cboat? Were they actually an MS insider or was it GAF mods aggregating info from multiple insiders?

Click to shrink...

It was not a shared staff account. I am not sure if 100% of Cboat's info came from their own work or if they were supplementing it with things their friends and contacts also knew, but they were a person, and they worked in the industry. I'm not going to specify where exactly they worked for obvious reasons.

 

[Kerberosorthos]

im also waiting for sebile, and brooklin console

but is there chance they cancelled it?

Click to shrink...

If it's not part of the showcase next month we should expect it's cancelled.

 

[jungius]

If it's not part of the showcase next month we should expect it's cancelled.

Click to shrink...

sadge 🥲

 

[SoulReaver91]

Oh Redfall absolutely felt like a bigger event. Which might sound normal when you think about what Redfall was supposed to be, but when you compare the quality of both games... It's crazy. And no matter what Xbox says, one year before launch they should be fully aware if they have a bad or good product on their hands. That's usually when polish starts and it's content complete.

The launch of the game that was announced with the Series X (specifically picked because Xbox wanted something different than Halo, Gears, Forza, Fable, something highly cinematic like what they were missing to attract certain gamers) should feel like a massive event. It's still possible at release, with reviews and videos praising the graphics, but it's a lot more calm beforehand compared to even my most pessimistic expectations. Hellblade 2 is niche, but it also would have been a super important game for Xbox, being the first game to release in seven months, and the first to really cater to the crowd of the competition.

If anything, people are starting to realize Xbox's biggest sin this generation is their overall marketing efforts. Can't grow a business if you only talk to your existing consumers. That was always going to shrink if you do nothing to bring in new people.

Series S was a good idea, but it needed a big push to make people aware.

Click to shrink...

I want to crack a little spear in favor of Xbox this time. They organized a launch event in Milan for Hellblade. I don't think this has happened since Halo 3 ^^

"HI, On the occasion of the release of Senua's Saga: Hellblade II, on May 21st at 7.30pm, Xbox Italia will organize the launch event of the new Ninja Theory game at the Anteo Spazio Cinema, in Via Milazzo, 9, Milan. "

 

[Vico]

I want to crack a little spear in favor of Xbox this time. They organized a launch event in Milan for Hellblade. I don't think this has happened since Halo 3 ^^

"HI, On the occasion of the release of Senua's Saga: Hellblade II, on May 21st at 7.30pm, Xbox Italia will organize the launch event of the new Ninja Theory game at the Anteo Spazio Cinema, in Via Milazzo, 9, Milan. "

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Sounds cool, but if I'm being pragmatic, such a launch event would mostly be targeted to you and me, people already deeply aware of the game.

I think Xbox has done a great job talking to the industry and the people who follow it.
But that's not what moves the needle.

I just saw a Paper Mario ad on a bus stop. Paper Mario for god's sake. Sure Switch is much bigger than Xbox in France, but PC is probably even bigger in France and Hellblade 2 is on that platform so...

 

[Kerberosorthos]

sadge 🥲

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To be honest it would be just a plain refresh. No "pro" version like the xbox one x. Not sure why anyone would looking forward to it if already an xbox series owner but maybe it's just me not being interested in it.

 

[jungius]

To be honest it would be just a plain refresh. No "pro" version like the xbox one x. Not sure why anyone would looking forward to it if already an xbox series owner but maybe it's just me not being interested in it.

Click to shrink...

my xbox was gifted by someone but they played on it a lot so I need another one 😂

 

[Kerberosorthos]

my xbox was gifted by someone but they played on it a lot so I need another one 😂

Click to shrink...

Not gonna lie the cylinder form factor looks neat and I can understand you wanting it now.

 

[jungius]

Not gonna lie the cylinder form factor looks neat and I can understand you wanting it now.

Click to shrink...

yeah and also rumored 2tb storage seems legit great deal, if the ugly white fridge without disc mouth one that leaked on january is real I will cry lmao

 

[MCD]

View: https://twitter.com/playspine/status/1790838284635062667?t=hG5Mjtg7jRbC9D6idqoNlA&s=19

Hope it's good.

 

[MCD]

View: https://twitter.com/1000xResist/status/1788588402721300484?t=I6CflZ8aNN7y4pZ66XBHig&s=19


View: https://twitter.com/1000xResist/status/1789836273978401142?t=N5owOlOWqTgT4ykPCq4vbw&s=19


View: https://twitter.com/1000xResist/status/1789852087146131771?t=6lGCq3G5Xca1UWxuhaDq_w&s=19

1000xResist potential Playstation and Xbox versions

Granjinhaa 👀

 

[YozoraXV]

Jeff Grubb mentioned an intriguing theory: Xbox might be playing a long game that could result in regulators requiring other stores, including an Xbox store, on PlayStation. The further ahead Sony gets the more pressure they will get to open up.

Click to shrink...

This is something I could see happening not because of MS but other 3rd parties like Take2, Epic or EA complaining. I am sure once Tim is done attacking Apple and Google, Sony will be his next walled garden to tear down and without MS around it will be a lot easier to convince regulators due to less competition.

But at the same time by the time MS officially leaves consoles, I have a feeling consoles will likely have an extremely small share of the market anyway and regulators will probably not even care.

 

[Rychu]

.

 

[Kerberosorthos]

.

Click to shrink...

And call of duty is yet to come...

 

[SCUMMbag]

I believe Xbox's long-term success lies in fundamentally changing the game, rather than just trying to outdo Sony. This could mean opening the console to other storefronts and incorporating PC-like benefits or introducing unique, flexible hardware. On the Xbox 2 + 1 podcast, Jeff Grubb mentioned an intriguing theory: Xbox might be playing a long game that could result in regulators requiring other stores, including an Xbox store, on PlayStation. The further ahead Sony gets the more pressure they will get to open up.

Click to shrink...

AFAIK (and I don't know a lot), Microsoft as a whole, their strategy is to get their storefront onto as many platforms as possible. They have the lobbying power to push for closed boxes which they've lost (mobile and game consoles) to open.

They also have the financial capital to offer a better cut to developers than many of their rivals (they can afford to take a 12% cut compared to the industry standard 30%).To take gaming as an example, you could see a scenario where buying vBucks or COD Points through the Microsoft store would give you a better conversion than buying through PlayStation, Apple, Steam or wherever.

I do think we see a new iteration of Xbox in the short term with the ability to side load other storefronts on it. Don't think we'll see Steam but I'd imagine we see Epic there fairly quickly with Tim Sweeney championing about how this is how things should be done.

Personally, I'm not sure the strategy will work but this is Microsoft's last chance to remain truly relevant in the Mobile/Console space. Failure probably ends up with them spinning off Xbox unless they're happy with the money the division is making on software alone.

 

[Azuos]

I'm not sure which 'out of hand' examples you're referring to but personally I'm worried about Ninja Theory and I don't think that's hyperbole.

Since being acquired 6 years ago, they released a multiplayer live service game that was a critical failure and unfortunately flopped immediately. They've spent 5 years working on Hellblade 2 which, while certainly very pretty, is similar in scope to the original - a 6 to 7 hour game, no retail presence, barely any noticeable marketing, caters to a niche audience. Even if it's critically acclaimed, it's something I bet likely won't sell all that much or get a ton of people subbing to GP.

Their other projects are experimental in nature and don't seem to be rooted in any sort of mainstream appeal, and who knows what state those are in. If a studio like Tango gets chopped after delivering a banger and "meeting all their metrics", I'm doubly concerned for NT. And they're a bigger team with bigger costs. They're sadly exactly the kind of studio I'd expect Microsoft to look at and go "do we need them? what have they done for us really?"

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As I mentioned above, I'm worried too. Who knows what Microsoft will do?

I was talking about how some people are already saying that Hellblade 2 will be a failure before it even comes out.

 

[Kill3r7]

AFAIK (and I don't know a lot), Microsoft as a whole, their strategy is to get their storefront onto as many platforms as possible. They have the lobbying power to push for closed boxes which they've lost (mobile and game consoles) to open.

They also have the financial capital to offer a better cut to developers than many of their rivals (they can afford to take a 12% cut compared to the industry standard 30%).To take gaming as an example, you could see a scenario where buying vBucks or COD Points through the Microsoft store would give you a better conversion than buying through PlayStation, Apple, Steam or wherever.

I do think we see a new iteration of Xbox in the short term with the ability to side load other storefronts on it. Don't think we'll see Steam but I'd imagine we see Epic there fairly quickly with Tim Sweeney championing about how this is how things should be done.

Personally, I'm not sure the strategy will work but this is Microsoft's last chance to remain truly relevant in the Mobile/Console space. Failure probably ends up with them spinning off Xbox unless they're happy with the money the division is making on software alone.

Click to shrink...

They have lost the storefront war. So opening them up is a play.

 

[Sikamikanico]

How's everyone doing?

 

[Gavalanche]

How's everyone doing?

Click to shrink...

I am great! Just had a kangaroo burger. How are you?

 

[Mr Evil 37]

I know they won't do it because they have to save stuff for TGA and the DD and next year's showcase, but I kind of wish they would show everything at this showcase. Maybe not Blade and TES VI (although even then, why not show 5 seconds of environment footage lol) but every other announced game (plus Gears and Doom). Just reveal the whole 2025 and 2026 lineup.