There’s been a lot of talk as to whether Microsoft needs to aggressively target movie or comic-book licensed games. I dug up some data on the top-selling games of all time. Does that information change your opinion or reaffirm it?
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Good video! I happen to agree with what I think it concluded: what we need are great games, and those aren’t necessarily brought about by use of an existing IP. It’s not a “chicken or the egg” situation. The examples of good licensed games listed in the video aren’t great because of the license, they would be perfectly good without it. They’re enhanced by it to be sure, and it’s very apparent from playing them that the developers were absolutely devoted to the IP in question.
MS needs good games, absolutely maddeningly good games, games that haunt you when you’re going to sleep, with worlds that call to you when you’re trudging through the tedium of life. Xbox is very much in a distant second place to PlayStation in terms of market share and I’m sure that the value of these deals takes that into account. If it would take Sony 25 million dollars to secure a license and Microsoft 50 to secure that same license, I think that money would be better spend acquiring talent, making themselves an attractive place to work, improving their services, and brokering deals that benefit us more directly, like Game Pass day 1s.
Let them build themselves up. The licenses will come later.
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Is it gettin’ heavy? Well I thought it was already as heavy as can be.
Tell everybody, Waitin’ for Superman, That they should try to hold on best they can
He hasn’t dropped them, Forgot them or anything, It’s just too heavy for Superman to lift
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Scroll down from here for Ruthwik, Me and Mort’s responses cause Im too lazy to repost.
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Don’t care who makes it but Anthem has made me realize how much I’d love a good Iron Man game.
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Batman and The Incredible Hulk.
No
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I still feel Microsoft needs to discuss with their studios about licensing IPs. If there is a passionate team that wants to tackle it then Microsoft should go and get it for that studio. However, I am not in favour of forcing a studio onto a licensed IP. I feel like forcing a studio onto a licensed game can get you mixed results like the Squre Enix Marvel games and other superhero games of the past. Anyways, if a Microsoft studio wants to tackle it and they feel they can do a good job then I feel its a no brainer because quality licensed IPs move units.
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God, I wish we could have finished off Deus Ex instead of this Guardians of the Galaxy thing 
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Even though game is not out it doesn’t seem like its a passion project compared to stuff like jedi fallen order, spiderman, arkham, etc. Also I had the same feeling with Square’s Avenger game, and you can tell these games may have been forced on them.
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I am honestly getting sick of hearing this lol, no they don’t need to make a superhero game. This is a reactionary viewpoint because Sony announce 1 more superhero game, they only make two. No they don’t need to make a superhero game to attract casual players or non games because just look at what Pokemon Go did, people who played no games or knew what that was played it. I’d argue Series S and Game Pass is big enough to attract a casual gamer or non gamer because they can market it like Netflix but for gaming.
Would it be cool if they had one, sure but I don’t want them to chase for it just to get one and react to Sony. Superhero games aren’t even good most of the time, Sony has only made Spider Man which was good according to those who played it.
If they did get one who would even make it, are we gonna have to sacrifice one of the 1st party studios to make it and take them off a new ip or 1st party ip? because if that’s the case I don’t want it at all.
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I agree. It feels very… mediocre. I can’t think of anything that really stands out from what I’ve seen.
I would think if a studio was as passionate about an IP as it takes create a quality game based on one, they would be the ones proactive in pitching one.
Microsoft having a discussion about it would just be a passive way of pushing studios in that direction.
No. MasterChief 117 is the Superhero. Just give us more games with MasterChief. After Infinite why not a 3rd person RPG or action adventure etc. There are plenty of ways to explore the Halo universe and push 117 into the spotlight.
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B-Man would be perfect as a Xbox Superman.
No
Is that what you meant?
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LOL Nah This
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Lol. Ok but only Batman for this time. Cause superhero based games are generally pretty mediocre & laughable tbh.
Batman AK was good but really disappointing on some aspects (boss fights ugh & dlcs). I played all games of the Batman Rocksteady trilogy for info.
Imho Spiderman ps4 for me is just a bad ubisoft ac in disguise with a sony cinematic flair to attract people. Good graphics but that’s all. Plus I only like Batman. The truest superhero with no powers.
So if they get Batman it has to go above & beyond expectations to show the exemple.
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I’m gonna be somewhat of a dissenting voice here, but I just want to start off my remarks by praising the work you put into these pieces OBM. It truly is wonderful and has a ton of detail, supporting arguments, etc. That said, I can’t say I see eye-to-eye with you here and this is why.
I do not think that Xbox quote-unquote needs a Superhero game in order to survive or anything. They have a good gameplan as is.
However…
Xbox has said time and time again that their goal is to tap into the 3 billion gamers out there in the world, and doing so involves a reach outside the confines of the console install base. This is where stuff like XCloud, Touch Control, Game Pass, Play Anywhere, etc. really come in handy. But frankly, very few games in Xbox’s arsenal have that kinda reach. Very few games in PlayStation’s or Nintendo’s do either. Some of the biggest brands are in gaming, but many have reached out into other media to reach these levels. Case in point: Pokemon.
If Xbox really wants to reach more players, the way they can do so can be boosted particularly in two ways. The first is to expand their brands into other media. They have done this with Halo and are doing so with Fallout, and I suspect more will come. Sony is doing this as well.
The second is to license some key IP to bring in interested users. These do not have to be frequent and they sure as hell should not be the only thing a studio does. But having a major headliner to bring in a more casual audience can go a long way. The case in point are the Marvel shows on Netflix. Those helped bring in a ton of interested fans, myself included. However, once the shows were done, we stayed for the great catalogue of existing and exclusive content.
Similarly, a Hulk game or a Mandalorian game or whatever can go a long way into bringing players into the ecosystem. The Forzas, Halos, Redfalls, Starfields, Rain on Your Parades, etc. is what will keep them, but expanding your horizons is important, and licensing is a cheaper and easier way to do it.
As for your point on creative control, I agree. A crummy game with a license is still a crummy game. Case in point Avengers. But if you can match a team that is genuinely passionate with a license, be that in house or through Global Publishing, that can go a long way to creating great games and bringing more in.
Ultimately, growing and leveraging their existing IP should absolutely be Xbox’s main goal, without a doubt. However, licensing can be a key card to play in expanding their reach into more casual markets. One need only look at Fortnite to see how lucrative it can be.
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