The Big ol' Xbox 3rd Party Releases Discussion Thread (HiFi, SoT, Pentiment, Grounded) (Part 1)

[Carpenter]

@KazDrg1

…Speaking of Capcom and relying on the same IP

Perfect timing Moral of the story, first get an established pipeline of your core IP and up the quality, This is one of the reasons why I’m optimistic of Microsoft upper management getting involved because they’ll actually start cracking the whip and keeping their studios in line Seriously…Bonnie Ross should NOT have been in charge of 343i as long as she was but Phil is too soft to be a CEO…if he wants to still be the public face of Xbox fine but they need someone else keeping things in check and NOT Matt Booty If I were the higher ups at Microsoft I’d mandate the studios provide milestones and updates every 6 months or else the leadership at the studios get replaced

I believe the problem at 343 was that the milestones/progress reports were being communicated to management, but that the actual game was in a worse state than was being claimed.

Obviously, it’s a problem that that is possible, but I think that it must be a really hard line to walk, managing but giving teams freedom.

It’s a strange situation because, most obviously with Redfall, Microsoft were criticised for being too hands off, but the time the game’s release rolled around, it was subject to an internal assessment before launch to try and predict review scores. That makes me wonder what the point is, Redfall was damaging to the whole Xbox brand, another very public failure. They must have known they didn’t have a polished game on their hands.

With that in mind, I would have to agree that the management would appear to lack some sort of agency. That process should have surely resulted in another delay or even cancellation, from where I sit.

So, essentially, I sort of agree, but there needs to be positive outcomes from whatever is being done.

[Staffy]

I was hoping they would wait with Starfield. Let’s at least first see the expansion on Xbox. I guess it all remains to be seen, but my wish for baby steps doesn’t seem too likely anymore. Time to accept it.

https://www.reddit.com/r/GamingLeaksAndRumours/s/E8ina4JlJR

That’s NateDrake.

And with Jez saying there is no red line, we shouldn’t be too shocked. But when Xbox did that interview I was not expecting them to hurry it. We’ll see what happens eh.

[Hue]

https://twitter.com/NextGenPlayer/status/1790911619888787493?s=19

[Staffy]

@Hue

https://twitter.com/NextGenPlayer/status/1790911619888787493?s=19

And here I thought Xbox had no games. That’s what the pathetic fanboys always say, yet they love SoT and I see the excitement for more games, funny how that works.

Seeing this SoT and similar games make sense, but the fact that there is no red line, this soon, I just fucking hate it. Sorry. MS and patience…nah.

[Kals_Els]

@Staffy

…Screenshot_2024-05-16-11-11-29-889_com.android.chrome1080×2400 140 KB I was hoping they would wait with Starfield. Let’s at least first see the expansion on Xbox. I guess it all remains to be seen, but my wish for baby steps doesn’t seem too likely anymore. Time to accept it. https://www.reddit.com/r/GamingLeaksAndRumours/s/E8ina4JlJR That’s NateDrake. And with Jez saying there is no red line, we shouldn’t be too shocked. But when Xbox did that interview I was not expecting them to hurry it. We’ll see what happens eh.

Honestly, no surprise if this does happen. My mind set has been Microsoft is going full 3rd party since the business update at this point. Hopefully things don’t implode and Xbox hardware just stops being a thing in the future.

[pip-boy3000]

@Kals_Els

Honestly, no surprise if this does happen. My mind set has been Microsoft is going full 3rd party since the business update at this point. Hopefully things don’t implode and Xbox hardware just stops being a thing in the future.

Yeah the only question is will stuff be timed exclusive or day one everywhere (or a mix of both). If they’re trying to maximise revenue then it’s probably day one everywhere.

[Kals_Els]

@pip-boy3000

Yeah the only question is will stuff be timed exclusive or day one everywhere (or a mix of both). If they’re trying to maximise revenue then it’s probably day one everywhere.

Probably any games close to release that don’t have a version for PS5 ready will be timed and any game far enough to develop one for it will be day one.

[FacelessSamurai]

@Staffy

And here I thought Xbox had no games. That’s what the pathetic fanboys always say, yet they love SoT and I see the excitement for more games, funny how that works.

Seeing this SoT and similar games make sense, but the fact that there is no red line, this soon, I just fucking hate it. Sorry. MS and patience…nah.

Except those people will never switch to Xbox to play those games, which is the point MS made long ago. Those games are not new and those people had all of that time to buy an Xbox to play them.

People decided their ecosystems last gen and aren’t going to switch, no matter how patient MS is. Those players want the Xbox games, but they’ll just wait no matter what since they have all those other games they can play anyway.

And it’s the same case with Xbox, which is what MS is banking on as well. People in the Xbox ecosystem most likely feel very similar and don’t feel the need to switch.

People like to think it’s because they are impatient and that it’s now over but that’s not realistic and it never was.

[Hue]

@Kals_Els

Honestly, no surprise if this does happen. My mind set has been Microsoft is going full 3rd party since the business update at this point. Hopefully things don’t implode and Xbox hardware just stops being a thing in the future.

I know people will jump on me for being a ‘doomer’ and repeatedly tell me that new hardware is coming but their new hardware seems irrelevant at this point.

IMO if they keep going down this route then the console hardware will cease and they will just be a 3rd party publisher (until potentially everything moves to cloud apps).

They are already struggling to convince people to buy consoles and by putting their games on more dominant platforms it will just result in even less demand and ultimately less incentive to buy Xbox hardware.

Presumably the main incentive will be GamePass but IMO they haven’t been able to market it properly, many casuals still don’t really understand what it is or how good value it is. Maybe that will change with CoD marketing but I doubt it. Based on how miserably they market their own first party games I suspect Bethesda and ABK marketing to eventually succumb to the same marketing fate.

I guess my point is: If the new hardware sells even less than the Series X/S do we really think they will invest in another console generation?

Ultimately once everything is a subscription on a App like Netflix and Disney it probably won’t matter because Xbox will own most of the most important IP’s (just like Disney did with Disney+), however they still need to keep relevant so people use their future app(s).

[FacelessSamurai]

@Hue

…Presumably the main incentive will be GamePass but IMO they haven’t been able to market it properly, many casuals still don’t really understand what it is or how good value it is. Maybe that will change with CoD marketing but I doubt it. Based on how miserably they market their own first party games I suspect Bethesda and ABK marketing to eventually succumb to the same marketing fate. I guess my point is: If the new hardware sells even less than the Series X/S do we really think they will invest in another console generation? Ultimately once everything is a subscription on a App like Netflix and Disney it probably won’t matter because Xbox will own most of the most important IP’s (just like Disney did with Disney+), however they still need to keep relevant so people use their future app(s).

So casuals don’t understand Gamepass and its value (although they all understand Netflix and Prime and Disney +), but they apparently care about studio closures and games coming out slowly on other platforms with no marketing?

[Hue]

@FacelessSamurai

Except those people will never switch to Xbox to play those games, which is the point MS made long ago. Those games are not new and those people had all of that time to buy an Xbox to play them.

I partly agree here.

Individually no, I don’t think there’s much incentive for people to switch, however it felt like Xbox was on the right path.

We finally started to see the fruit from their acquisitions, with what appeared to be high quality exclusives. For a moment we even started to see changes in social media and gaming media which acknowledged FOMO towards their games.

A few more years (maybe even next gen) I think we would have seen the tide start to shift again with people feeling like they’re missing out of loads of games (technically Xbox has more first party games in development than PS).

Instead it seems like they’ve gone for short term gains and destroyed any chance of now changing that…

[Vonterribad (Matt)]

@Hue

…Presumably the main incentive will be GamePass but IMO they haven’t been able to market it properly, many casuals still don’t really understand what it is or how good value it is. Maybe that will change with CoD marketing but I doubt it. Based on how miserably they market their own first party games I suspect Bethesda and ABK marketing to eventually succumb to the same marketing fate. I guess my point is: If the new hardware sells even less than the Series X/S do we really think they will invest in another console generation? Ultimately once everything is a subscription on a App like Netflix and Disney it probably won’t matter because Xbox will own most of the most important IP’s (just like Disney did with Disney+), however they still need to keep relevant so people use their future app(s).

The only reason I think they will is because they still make Surfaces. But really, it’s all guessing at this stage; I would have to exit consoles because a Sony-only world would be a disaster.

[Hue]

@FacelessSamurai

So casuals don’t understand Gamepass and its value (although they all understand Netflix and Prime and Disney +), but they apparently care about studio closures and games coming out slowly on other platforms with no marketing?

I didn’t mention studio closures? The Twitter bubble is probably less than 1% in reality.

Movies and TV is much more mainstream than gaming. Im very confident you could stop nearly anyone young or old in the street and ask them what Netflix is and they will know, the same can’t be said for GamePass.

A perfect example is my parents, which are in their 80’s as they have both Netflix and Disney+ (mostly for the grandkids but they do use Netflix lots). However I assure you they have no idea what GamePass is, they still call every single game console a “Nintendo”.

You have to admit what does “Play day one on GamePass” mean to anyone that doesn’t know what GamePass is? They use that catchy tagline but it’s effectively nonsense.

Although it’s not as catchy it would be better to say what it actually is, for example… Included at no extra cost in your GamePass subscription for $10.99 / month with hundreds of other games.

And yes if there is other games they are interested in playing and they know it will release on hardware they already own why would they switch?

[Hue]

@Vonterribad

I would have to exit consoles because a Sony-only world would be a disaster.

[Haven (Victor)]

@Hue

…Presumably the main incentive will be GamePass but IMO they haven’t been able to market it properly, many casuals still don’t really understand what it is or how good value it is. Maybe that will change with CoD marketing but I doubt it. Based on how miserably they market their own first party games I suspect Bethesda and ABK marketing to eventually succumb to the same marketing fate. I guess my point is: If the new hardware sells even less than the Series X/S do we really think they will invest in another console generation? Ultimately once everything is a subscription on a App like Netflix and Disney it probably won’t matter because Xbox will own most of the most important IP’s (just like Disney did with Disney+), however they still need to keep relevant so people use their future app(s).

I’d say relax let’s see how it all plays out. They have a lot of games to release and I doubt they’re thinking it will all sell on PlayStation. Though SOT and Grounded are on top it doesn’t mean they’re doing gangbusters as Chris Dring said there was a 47% drop in console sales. As for the console hardware I expect NextGen will be the final one as other devices start picking up the slack and as A.I grows. It won’t be long before TV’s smartphones and other devices start playing games natively. What I’m more interested in now is seeing how they adopt this idea where the platform is open to other stores, who knows they might just develop an Xbox browser to be used on any device.

[Vonterribad (Matt)]

Not the right thread, but I fired up Sea of Thieves with mouse and keyboard xcloud… It’s so good. I hope they roll this out to more asap.

[Widey85]

I know I keep banging the same drum, but everyone just relax a bit and see what happens.

Even if Jez is correct, he says Microsoft are pushing for no red line - he doesn’t say that Phil isn’t fighting back against it and offering alternative approaches.

And even if Xbox did start releasing more / all games on alternative platforms too, it may not be day 1, there might be so Xbox games coming out that a second box to play Game Pass may be attractive to some players, or most of all it might just not matter - given those exclusives haven’t made other gamers pick up an Xbox already.

Honestly, what exclusives would make you ditch your digital purchases and friendship groups etc. on a particular ecosystem?

I think only the biggest might - CoD, GTA, Fortnite, Minecraft and EA Sports (FIFA for the UK, NFL or whatever it is for the US).

Minecraft can’t be rescinded, and the others aren’t on offer - and CoD, the only one that could be used, has been tied up with a decade long contract specifically to stop it being used to entice PS gamers.

Given the cards are stacked so much against Xbox (PS is the default, CoD can’t be exclusive etc.) there’s really no move they can make that’ll properly move the needle as far as I can see - they’ve tried Game Pass, they’ve tried emulating PS, bought Bethesda etc. and yet the Series consoles are tracking even further behind the PS5 than the One vs the PS4.

Sony are winning by default as the PS4 was the most popular and many are just direct upgrading or getting what their friends have - in reality, Sony’s exclusives likely make little difference anymore, most gamers just have to pick one to play FIFA/CoD on and are buying the one everyone else has.

So maybe trying something new is the answer, particularly if exclusives aren’t moving the needle.

Maybe by putting more games elsewhere other platforms start to do the same (to avoid regulatory scrutiny over monopoly power), or by allowing PC stores onto Xbox we get the full gamut of games without developers having to specifically port to Xbox.

Or maybe by putting some of their games on other platforms, a few users do think “I like their games, Game Pass sounds a good deal, I might grab an Xbox too”.

So it could be letting go of some of those exclusives, we actually gain either more games or more Xbox players - and Xbox makes more money for more Game Pass deals…

Who knows? Let’s see what happens and how it plays out - but at the moment, nothing is confirmed either way so why not chill out and just enjoy the games?

[Haven (Victor)]

@Widey85

…g new is the answer, particularly if exclusives aren’t moving the needle. Maybe by putting more games elsewhere other platforms start to do the same (to avoid regulatory scrutiny over monopoly power), or by allowing PC stores onto Xbox we get the full gamut of games without developers having to specifically port to Xbox. Or maybe by putting some of their games on other platforms, a few users do think “I like their games, Game Pass sounds a good deal, I might grab an Xbox too”. So it could be letting go of some of those exclusives, we actually gain either more games or more Xbox players - and Xbox makes more money for more Game Pass deals… Who knows? Let’s see what happens and how it plays out - but at the moment, nothing is confirmed either way so why not chill out and just enjoy the games?

Exactly at the end of the day this is a business for Microsoft not a charity. However I do think they have yet to really show Game Pass. They did very well in 2021 with Halo Infinite, Forza Horizon and a few indies in Game Pass and got a huge boost in subs so I do think if they can market COD for Game Pass and have a steady cadence of quality games Game Pass could once again blow up which is their main play anyway. As for this multiplatform thing I think it will factor into the NextGen hardware. I’m thinking Xbox will have an Xbox store within PlayStation NextGen.

[Hue]

@Haven

I’d say relax let’s see how it all plays out. They have a lot of games to release and I doubt they’re thinking it will all sell on PlayStation. Though SOT and Grounded are on top it doesn’t mean they’re doing gangbusters as Chris Dring said there was a 47% drop in console sales. As for the console hardware I expect NextGen will be the final one as other devices start picking up the slack and as A.I grows. It won’t be long before TV’s smartphones and other devices start playing games natively. What I’m more interested in now is seeing how they adopt this idea where the platform is open to other stores, who knows they might just develop an Xbox browser to be used on any device.

I primarily play on Steam now so it’s not a major issue for me if the hardware goes away, especially as I know their games will continue to come to Steam anyway.

Just as a fan since the OG Xbox it’s sad to see what they’re doing to the platform, I also think next-gen will likely be the last gen too as they move to TV’s and Phone etc.

[Haven (Victor)]

@Hue

I primarily play on Steam now so it’s not a major issue for me if the hardware goes away, especially as I know their games will continue to come to Steam anyway.

Just as a fan since the OG Xbox it’s sad to see what they’re doing to the platform, I also think next-gen will likely be the last gen too as they move to TV’s and Phone etc.

I feel the sentiments as well, but I think the upcoming gen will be it for all consoles. Just looking at where A.I will be in the next 5 to 10 years. Somehow, I think Xbox next console will reset the whole industry even Steam. They’re certainly looking more into the future than anyone. However, I do agree Steam is it for most even me.