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BlackTron
Member
Very difficult at this point, many options are better. The best thing they can do is kill Xbox and become a dedicated third party. But this is Microsoft, we have infinite resources to realize any vision, right? No matter how costly, or crazy. So uh...
1) Pull out of all publishing on Sony and Nintendo full stop. You didn't ask how to make money now, you asked how to make Xbox a success.
2) Fire the entire management team and find experienced gaming execs. Install some of these people in top studios. Get them all working on a slate of games that will take about four years. Hire people and make effort to retain the talent instead of cycling them and outsourcing work.
2) Offer a modicum of content on the existing Xbox/PC platforms without trying to make any crazy Starfield events. Just keep it on life support for several years. Halfway through this period, kill Gamepass.
4) Launch a new console when the game lineup is ready, and those games can only be played on that console.
5) Follow-through on this strategy over and over again with a focus on realizing your teams visions instead of getting sweaty over Playstation or Nintendo money
6) Finally, at long last, profit.
1) Pull out of all publishing on Sony and Nintendo full stop. You didn't ask how to make money now, you asked how to make Xbox a success.
2) Fire the entire management team and find experienced gaming execs. Install some of these people in top studios. Get them all working on a slate of games that will take about four years. Hire people and make effort to retain the talent instead of cycling them and outsourcing work.
2) Offer a modicum of content on the existing Xbox/PC platforms without trying to make any crazy Starfield events. Just keep it on life support for several years. Halfway through this period, kill Gamepass.
4) Launch a new console when the game lineup is ready, and those games can only be played on that console.
5) Follow-through on this strategy over and over again with a focus on realizing your teams visions instead of getting sweaty over Playstation or Nintendo money
6) Finally, at long last, profit.
you don't, but start with kicking moron in chief out.
its incredibly funny that sony and nintendo constantly rotates their management, while they are doing better than ever but these incompetent team of losers are stuck to their chairs like some third world dictators.
its incredibly funny that sony and nintendo constantly rotates their management, while they are doing better than ever but these incompetent team of losers are stuck to their chairs like some third world dictators.
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Alan Silvestro
Member
But... Why?. Gif
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Majima Everywhere System
Member
They missed their moment to turn it around.
Most of my better ideas were to drop the live fees and become an open platform to get the PC kids seeing it as a route to having a rig.
On the way, you expose them to your gamepass and marketplace. These are the customers PS5 is losing you can gain.
Most of my better ideas were to drop the live fees and become an open platform to get the PC kids seeing it as a route to having a rig.
On the way, you expose them to your gamepass and marketplace. These are the customers PS5 is losing you can gain.
LordCBH
Member
Easy.
I'd can the hardware division (as much as I like the SX hardware, there's just no market for it thanks to how they've operated the past decade) and go all in on pumping software out on as many devices as I can.
I'd also kill GP, which the are well on their way to doing.
And marketing the games? Shit I'd fire my entire marketing division and negotiate with PlayStation or Nintendo to handle marketing depending on the game.
I would probably also be fired within 3 years, but I will have made my mark.
I'd can the hardware division (as much as I like the SX hardware, there's just no market for it thanks to how they've operated the past decade) and go all in on pumping software out on as many devices as I can.
I'd also kill GP, which the are well on their way to doing.
And marketing the games? Shit I'd fire my entire marketing division and negotiate with PlayStation or Nintendo to handle marketing depending on the game.
I would probably also be fired within 3 years, but I will have made my mark.
OLED_Gamer
Member
Sell the Xbox division to Steam/Gabe. At least the rep is there to rebuild good intentions AND believe it.
Or.. spin it off as its own thing and hire executives with a proven track record of being consumer friendly.
Or.. spin it off as its own thing and hire executives with a proven track record of being consumer friendly.
PauloRoberto
Member
Kill it off. MS showed that it has no long term plans (hell, short term plans) for xbox brand and simply wants the most money possible in the least amount of time.
ValiantInstance
Member
- Fire all the executives. Escort Phil out of the building by force
- Make Call of Duty Xbox/PC exclusive. Fire Demonware, cull the store and end the yearly cycle
- Aggressive pricing - the 360 flourished because it was the cheaper option
- Take 343 off Halo and greenlight a spiritual successor to 3
- Sunset Game Pass
- Remove the age verification nonsense in the UK that makes Bill's peepee hard
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JohnnyFootball
GerAlt-Right. Ciriously.
I would say spinoff the Xbox division, bring in Peter Moore, Bobby Kotick and maybe Mike Ybarra, Jack Tretton, Shawn Laydon and as many unicorns as possible.
Get rid of Spencer, Bond, Greenberg and Matt Booty.
Have Jerry Lambert play a Kevin Butler like character.
It wouldn't work at all, since there would be no MS warchest to jumpstart them, but it's a nice thought
Get rid of Spencer, Bond, Greenberg and Matt Booty.
Have Jerry Lambert play a Kevin Butler like character.
It wouldn't work at all, since there would be no MS warchest to jumpstart them, but it's a nice thought
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RetroGamingUK
Member
Satya wants to maximise profits while closing the costly console division.
Phil Spencer's doing just that, and their new focus which is being a third party publisher is going quite well.
Phil Spencer's doing just that, and their new focus which is being a third party publisher is going quite well.
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JohnnyFootball
GerAlt-Right. Ciriously.
GoldenEye98
posts news as their odd job
Their strategy just seems all over the place and non-committal right. Sending a bunch of mixed messages to consumers. It's like they have one foot in the console space and one out the door in "hardware agnostic" land. They also just straight up seem to be half-assing the main way to do the ultimate hardware agnostic gaming,...streaming.
I just find it really odd that Microsoft's end goal is to just be a game publisher. Like everything for that company revolves around Windows.
I guess Apple sort of does it. A tech company with an even more locked down ecosystem that has a content service that is untethered. The difference is Apple can put Apple TV app on an Amazon Fire Stick or Google TV but Microsoft cannot just put GamePass on Nintendo or Playstation.
I just find it really odd that Microsoft's end goal is to just be a game publisher. Like everything for that company revolves around Windows.
I guess Apple sort of does it. A tech company with an even more locked down ecosystem that has a content service that is untethered. The difference is Apple can put Apple TV app on an Amazon Fire Stick or Google TV but Microsoft cannot just put GamePass on Nintendo or Playstation.
PurePlatinum
Member
Eliminate Series S and parity clause. Make sure Series X is always the same price as PS5. Offering one console is simpler and stronger.
Offer gamepass as one tier, the expensive one, and acknowledge it will just be a niche thing for hardcore players. The value is there but it's just pricey and that's okay. Make online play free for anyone that owns an Xbox.
You create a new studio from the ground up to focus on making nothing less than masterpiece level Halo games. 343 is gone.
Get your shit off of the other platforms. If you want to win you cannot be wishy washy with the exclusives. Maybe you keep cod on PlayStation while the brand recovers and you clearly need the money.
You need to create a culture of internal development studios where the XGS logo communicates "quality" because right now it does not. It should communicate "hey this game will probably be a 90MC" just like PS Studios. Sony has one or two games in GOTY discussions almost every year. Microsoft needs to do the same.
Essentially they need to be the green version of PlayStation again. Make it work nicely with windows and pc players. That can be your big differentiator. Maybe next gen they shoot for being slightly more expensive but totally worth it in terms of graphics just like the original Xbox.
Offer gamepass as one tier, the expensive one, and acknowledge it will just be a niche thing for hardcore players. The value is there but it's just pricey and that's okay. Make online play free for anyone that owns an Xbox.
You create a new studio from the ground up to focus on making nothing less than masterpiece level Halo games. 343 is gone.
Get your shit off of the other platforms. If you want to win you cannot be wishy washy with the exclusives. Maybe you keep cod on PlayStation while the brand recovers and you clearly need the money.
You need to create a culture of internal development studios where the XGS logo communicates "quality" because right now it does not. It should communicate "hey this game will probably be a 90MC" just like PS Studios. Sony has one or two games in GOTY discussions almost every year. Microsoft needs to do the same.
Essentially they need to be the green version of PlayStation again. Make it work nicely with windows and pc players. That can be your big differentiator. Maybe next gen they shoot for being slightly more expensive but totally worth it in terms of graphics just like the original Xbox.
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GoldenEye98
posts news as their odd job
It's interesting they have never tried to buy it. Seems like it would be a relatively small purchase for Microsoft. I'm guessing they know it would be difficult due to antitrust.
DeltaPolarBear
Member
Gabe was a former Microsoft Employee. He knows how the game is played. Further more he and his 300+ employees are already rich. Antitrust has nothing to do with it. Valve is not for sale.
Horseganador
Member
Xbox is no longer salvageable, even investing tens of billions of dollars in the division hasn't achieved anything, and people who already have their libraries on Playstation aren't going to buy an Xbox now.
hououinkyouma00
Member
This is my opinion as well. It will never happen though. Microsoft have given up.
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I Love Rock 'n' Roll
Member
No "Easy, just buy SEGA" in 3 pages? What are you doing guys?
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DrFigs
Member
I think you focus on PC gaming at this point. The handheld has potential if you can make it cheap. But yeah it's over for the console.
I don't think they need to drop gamepass, but they have to limit the day one stuff. At the very least, you have to incentivize people to buy games, and MS has done a lot of damage on that front.
I don't think they need to drop gamepass, but they have to limit the day one stuff. At the very least, you have to incentivize people to buy games, and MS has done a lot of damage on that front.
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Reizo Ryuu
Member
This is probably pretty close to the plan they had with buying activision, but that then imploded when they had to sign the 10 year deal for cod and give streaming to ubisoft. All of their insane pivots happened pretty much rapidly after their compromised deal closed.
Killer8
Gold Member
Lot of suggestions to eliminate the Series S. I'll go the other way.
Series S outsold the Series X by a lot according to several analysis. It was as much as 3:1 in the first few years of the generation. There was even a time when the Series S was managing to outsell the PS5 in Japan of all places (it's been Microsoft's second most successful console there since the 360). If Microsoft was to go in one direction, it should be that. Not wanting to be the biggest cock in the room with "the most powerful console ever made" (*which will be astronomically priced without subsidies).
I think there is a big market for a small, low cost and stylish device. Especially in today's shitty economy. During the Wu flu apocalypse, the Series S was capturing that niche for a few short years, but the problem is that its price isn't aggressive enough any more. There was even a time, shortly after MS raised the price of the Series S and before Sony raised their PS5 prices, where a Series S was not far behind a PS5 digital edition in RRP. That was a colossal failure on Microsoft's part, especially strategically. Even if the price rise was inevitable due to costs, Microsoft should've been playing chicken with Sony until the PS5's price increased first. They have lost that competitive pricing edge.
In terms of Game Pass, I don't think it's a bad idea per se. The problem is that you need a constant stream of content for it to work well and 4 games per year is frankly not going to cut it, no matter what the Xbox faithful say. People are realizing you can just subscribe for a couple of months, play everything released that year and get out. The other problem is you still need hardware sales, otherwise a subscriber base can't exist (most of the Game Pass subscribers are still on Xbox consoles).
The hardware strategy, what the first party developers are doing, and the Game Pass strategy, all need to be on the same page. Hardware needs to be aggressively priced to get people through the door and turn them into long-term subscribers. Their developers should be getting as many games onto the service as quickly and efficiently as they can. Scale down and stop chasing graphics. The world's most popular games are not the best looking. Microsoft are sitting on a mountain of IP just waiting to be tapped into. Imagine if they could do that at a rate quicker than the current development model of a studio making one game every 5 years?
Would-be customers should be thinking "wow there is something great coming out exclusively on Game Pass every month" and "there is a really big library of stuff I can only get on there..." and then "okay, i'll buy a Series S on the side to try all that out". As of right now that thought process stops at the very first step.
Series S outsold the Series X by a lot according to several analysis. It was as much as 3:1 in the first few years of the generation. There was even a time when the Series S was managing to outsell the PS5 in Japan of all places (it's been Microsoft's second most successful console there since the 360). If Microsoft was to go in one direction, it should be that. Not wanting to be the biggest cock in the room with "the most powerful console ever made" (*which will be astronomically priced without subsidies).
I think there is a big market for a small, low cost and stylish device. Especially in today's shitty economy. During the Wu flu apocalypse, the Series S was capturing that niche for a few short years, but the problem is that its price isn't aggressive enough any more. There was even a time, shortly after MS raised the price of the Series S and before Sony raised their PS5 prices, where a Series S was not far behind a PS5 digital edition in RRP. That was a colossal failure on Microsoft's part, especially strategically. Even if the price rise was inevitable due to costs, Microsoft should've been playing chicken with Sony until the PS5's price increased first. They have lost that competitive pricing edge.
In terms of Game Pass, I don't think it's a bad idea per se. The problem is that you need a constant stream of content for it to work well and 4 games per year is frankly not going to cut it, no matter what the Xbox faithful say. People are realizing you can just subscribe for a couple of months, play everything released that year and get out. The other problem is you still need hardware sales, otherwise a subscriber base can't exist (most of the Game Pass subscribers are still on Xbox consoles).
The hardware strategy, what the first party developers are doing, and the Game Pass strategy, all need to be on the same page. Hardware needs to be aggressively priced to get people through the door and turn them into long-term subscribers. Their developers should be getting as many games onto the service as quickly and efficiently as they can. Scale down and stop chasing graphics. The world's most popular games are not the best looking. Microsoft are sitting on a mountain of IP just waiting to be tapped into. Imagine if they could do that at a rate quicker than the current development model of a studio making one game every 5 years?
Would-be customers should be thinking "wow there is something great coming out exclusively on Game Pass every month" and "there is a really big library of stuff I can only get on there..." and then "okay, i'll buy a Series S on the side to try all that out". As of right now that thought process stops at the very first step.
playbignbox
Member
This is a very good way to kill the popularity of franchises like CoD, Diablo, etc. If Phil made Xbox lose 300 million dollars by releasing CoD on GamePass, imagine how much they would lose if they released these games exclusively on Xbox.
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Topher
Identifies as young
ShaiKhulud1989
Gold Member
If we talking about gaming platform... Oh just kill it behind the barn already. The dog is terminally ill and potentially rabid. Activison and Blizzard are both better trademarks for any worldwide game-related marketing than Xbox.
The only way to save the name in hardware is to go back to the roots and start making great peripherals again. Microsoft Sidewinder, MS Reclusa (still works btw!), IntelliMouse and x360 gamepad are all pretty significant pages in haming history. Just call them Xbox Sidewinder or smth, and sell them in a box with a huge X. Even Sony understood that the potential is there with their Inzone line.
The only way to save the name in hardware is to go back to the roots and start making great peripherals again. Microsoft Sidewinder, MS Reclusa (still works btw!), IntelliMouse and x360 gamepad are all pretty significant pages in haming history. Just call them Xbox Sidewinder or smth, and sell them in a box with a huge X. Even Sony understood that the potential is there with their Inzone line.
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Miyazaki’s Slave
Gold Member
They are merging their platform offerings (software/hardware) with Steam next year.
Their new consoles will run Xbox verified Steam software which will require verification through Xbox's software submission process.
They don't need to be salvaged, they are just changing what Xbox looks like "to better align with their focus on delighting customers with their offerings".
Dooooooooooom
Their new consoles will run Xbox verified Steam software which will require verification through Xbox's software submission process.
They don't need to be salvaged, they are just changing what Xbox looks like "to better align with their focus on delighting customers with their offerings".
Dooooooooooom
Zannegan
Member
I don't know, but... what if they made the next one a Wii? Put out something small, quiet, cheap AF, and built around a gimmick that gen alpha will love, like body tracking, not so much for gameplay, but for console-wide any time emotes and dances, especially in Fortnite. Maybe just put the whole console inside a Kinect and let them use phones as second controllers.
I know Kinect killed the Xbox One, but they were serving too many masters between the TV, TV, TV and hardcore gamerrr crowds, and it was launched in a pre-Tiktok world. They've fumbled most of their original audience, and there might just be an opening in the family market with Nintendo jumping to $450. Why not not push the OGs and the core to PC and have your next console go all in on low-cost, quirky, and new?
Market it to parents with Kinectimals 2 and a Wii sports knockoff starring people playing sports with foam finger hands, and sell it to kids with Fortnite dances on TikTok. Make weekly themed microgames and "challenges" in silo'd custom instances of Minecraft and release to capitalize on trends (like a chicken jockey racing game for the second Minecraft Movie).
In essence, stop trying to recapture the days of Halo 3-like epic cultural event launches, and try something new. If they crash and burn, at least they won't have lost much, and they'll be able to go back to big boxes and epic budgets fairly easily. If they succeed, they'll have a new generation of buyers that they can nurture for the next 40-ish years (or burn to the ground overnight the next time their executive team decides to meddle).
Or not. Lol. Probably a good reason I'm not a CEO.
I know Kinect killed the Xbox One, but they were serving too many masters between the TV, TV, TV and hardcore gamerrr crowds, and it was launched in a pre-Tiktok world. They've fumbled most of their original audience, and there might just be an opening in the family market with Nintendo jumping to $450. Why not not push the OGs and the core to PC and have your next console go all in on low-cost, quirky, and new?
Market it to parents with Kinectimals 2 and a Wii sports knockoff starring people playing sports with foam finger hands, and sell it to kids with Fortnite dances on TikTok. Make weekly themed microgames and "challenges" in silo'd custom instances of Minecraft and release to capitalize on trends (like a chicken jockey racing game for the second Minecraft Movie).
In essence, stop trying to recapture the days of Halo 3-like epic cultural event launches, and try something new. If they crash and burn, at least they won't have lost much, and they'll be able to go back to big boxes and epic budgets fairly easily. If they succeed, they'll have a new generation of buyers that they can nurture for the next 40-ish years (or burn to the ground overnight the next time their executive team decides to meddle).
Or not. Lol. Probably a good reason I'm not a CEO.
Ass of Can Whooping
Member
I can fix her
Dorfdad
Gold Member
Would take a collective HUGE Microsoft effort and hundred of millions of dollars in effort to regain loyalty. They burned to many bridges IMHO.
It would take them to long to recover and by then consoles would probably be irrelevant.
Best option for them is to invest HEAVILY in cloud, and drop price to 24.99. Innovate there, reduce latency, and make native apps for everything. Mac/pc/Tv/Linux and offer 4k/120
It would take them to long to recover and by then consoles would probably be irrelevant.
Best option for them is to invest HEAVILY in cloud, and drop price to 24.99. Innovate there, reduce latency, and make native apps for everything. Mac/pc/Tv/Linux and offer 4k/120
kevboard
Member
it's an insane concept that would never happen, but is 100% legal and technically doable:
so first of all, for PR reasons, we call it the Xbox 2, and because the concept behind it is that you create an Xbox that takes, what fans of the original liked and what the community around the original Xbox has done with the system over the years, to the next level. yes, we are going the nostalgia route.
this starts with exclusivity deals for sequels/reboots of the most cult classic titles of the original Xbox. Jet Set Radio 3, Crazy Taxi 4, Otogi 3, Dead or Alive etc. including a soft reboot of Halo called Halo 4. we don't give a shit if the name is confusing because we'll just act as if the old Halo 4 never happened, which is what it deserves.
secondly, what is the og Xbox known for these days? homebrew... even back when it was still in active production, I had friends that played PS1 games on their Xbox in ~2004
so we take that concept and run with it.
this means, the Xbox 2 ships with in-house (maybe created in cooperation with leading emu devs) PS1, PS2, PS3, Xbox, Xbox 360, PC Engine CD, Dreamcast, MegaCD and Saturn emulators, all of which can read original discs, and all of which will read games off of USB drives as well (wink wink).
for the controller, the black and white buttons are back as well. 1 due to nostalgia, and 2 because extra buttons are always nice to have... which is why it will also have 2 back paddles that are useable by devs and aren't just for rebinding other buttons... again, extra buttons are clearly needed these days, with how everything is double bound in every game now it seems.
lastly, it has to be the clearly most powerful system on the market. there can be no doubt about it.
this means we need Nvidia. and the recent Intel + Nvidia deal to create SoCs together actually makes this now a possibility.
a custom SoC that heavily leans on raytracing. raster performance will play second fiddle to raw rays per pixel and ray intersection throughput.
the system would be heavily subsidised to reach a price that actually feels like you're buying a console and not a high end PC, just like the good old days (some stealth nostalgia strategy right there).
but unlike the good old days, online MP will be 100% free.
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PatientGamer
Member
It's very easy to save Xbox:
- Release your next console before PS6 (12-18 months before), make sure it's cheaper ($100) even if graphically inferior by 5-10%, it's worth the hit
- Make all your first-party titles, same day release on Xbox, PC and Switch 2; bring them on PS5/6 later
- Eventually stop releasing your first party games on PS5/6 about halfway through the generation or at the end of the gen once you've rebuilt some trust with your audience again.
Xbox's biggest problem is they have no loyal fanbase anymore; they've basically told everyone who owned a 360; that they don't respect them; so they've all jumped ship. They can rebuild it, but it'll take a generation or two to get there.
- Release your next console before PS6 (12-18 months before), make sure it's cheaper ($100) even if graphically inferior by 5-10%, it's worth the hit
- Make all your first-party titles, same day release on Xbox, PC and Switch 2; bring them on PS5/6 later
- Eventually stop releasing your first party games on PS5/6 about halfway through the generation or at the end of the gen once you've rebuilt some trust with your audience again.
Xbox's biggest problem is they have no loyal fanbase anymore; they've basically told everyone who owned a 360; that they don't respect them; so they've all jumped ship. They can rebuild it, but it'll take a generation or two to get there.
poodaddy
Member
Sure, I have some thoughts:
I would focus on establishing the brand as a backwards compatibility behemoth, and I would announce that the backwards compatibility team at MS will be working in perpetuity from here on out and that the initiative would never wrap up.
I would commit to user's entire libraries from OG to Series being accessible in perpetuity moving forward with all Xbox hardware, including PC.
I would completely dump all DEI and inclusivity based programs, and I would make it clear that the mission statement of the company is quality above all else, across all products, and that if they want an overt message in their products, then that would take an absolutely massive back step to the games being fun and appealing to the demographic of people who buy the games, and that if that message is polarizing or alienating to our primary demographic at all then the game will not ship with said messaging.
I would make it clear that this is not an activist organization, and would offer all employees who disagree or dislike that an immediate release from employment with no negative consequences whatsoever with severance pay and the understanding that they can come back to work for MS owned studios but that the interview process will be conducted as if they were a new employee and it will be based completely on merit and portfolio, (watch how many don't leave and shut the hell up and get to work.)
I would make peace with the fact that competing with Sony and Nintendo moving forward is silly and it just leaves money on the table, so I'd make sure that all games release day and date on all platforms.
I would expand the mods on console platform.
I would do away with Gamepass, as it's been proven to be a failed model that even I genuinely loved at first, but I, and all Gamepass proponents, was/were proven wrong and it ended up being bad for the industry.
I would recognize that Microsoft essentially has unlimited budget when it comes to potential game development, which Microsoft realized but instead of putting it towards development, they decided to put it towards buying studios and publishers; priority for spending would shift towards development and hiring of top talent with the understanding that these projects will take time but must be adamantly managed with structure.
I would drop the GAAS push, as that doesn't distinguish you in the industry right now.
I would restructure 343 to the degree that they barely resemble the studio anymore in terms of personnel.
I'd spend whatever it takes to get several producers on every team that have proven track records of putting out fires and delivering on milestones and deadlines.
I would make it clear that anyone who causes mass dissent or upheaval during the development process would be immediately terminated without possibility for rehire.
I would make it clear that all MS employees are to have no social media presence in which they share personal opinions, and if they don't like that then they're free to leave or seek employment elsewhere.
I would stop using low bid proven shit houses like Virtuous and prioritize performance and competent porting procedures on all platforms, and make clear that every game we release should be treated as if the day 1 release should be good enough that we could never patch it and it'd be considered a good game.
I would prioritize the WRPG, multiplayer FPS, and cinematic TPS genres for our landmark titles, (gotta know your demographic.)
I would spend whatever it takes to secure top talent on a contract for MS studios, think Tim Cain, Chris Avellone, Warren Spector, Amy Hennig, etc.
I would ensure that all releases on the Xbox store have complete feature parity with Steam and GoG versions day one and maintain said parity moving forward.
I would maintain complete transparency with company culture, business operations, and game development milestones and progress with the community.
I would make abundantly clear that this company exists to make people smile and laugh, and that any effort towards something that isn't going to be a fun at some point is wasted effort and won't be rewarded in any capacity and certainly won't be tolerated.
All budgets would be released in stages, like how development was done in the 90's, and would require successful and timely completion of milestones, and it would be made clear that all projects must come to fruition within three years maximum and that the aforementioned producers will be with the team daily to ensure that the team works diligently to meet these goals to prevent ballooning budgets.
I would make clear that there will be no more multi-leader studios or projects; a director with vision will be appointed and final word on all decisions will go to him/her in order to prevent power struggles.
I would drop game pricing and budgets across the board to 60 for AAA, 40 AA, 20 smaller scale projects. Commit to no micro transactions.
DLC expansions max out at 15 and will typically be around 5 to 10, but pricing will be based on value of content, and that will be dictated by the following:
A MS studio consisting entirely of QC employees that work for MS but aren't tied directly to any MS studios, thus ensuring no biases, will be formed and they will work at their own building and answer directly and only to the head of Xbox and a producer that's explicitly hired to do nothing more than keep QC running efficiently and well. This will prevent fiascos like that awful vampire game from ever happening again, take the QC out of the game studio and keep it out, you need unbiased voices for that who don't fear subtle repercussions for voicing their opinions.
No more money will be wasted on outside consultants whatsoever, absolutely none with zero exceptions. You don't even need military consultants, as lots of devs are military veterans like myself, use the resources you have on your team. Wanna know a black lesbian would respond to this line of dialogue? If you've got one on your team, ask her, if you don't, stop worrying about it and write your fucking game or change the character, just stop wasting time and money, (millions), on shit that doesn't make the game any better.
I think that'd be a strong start....., but that's just my opinion and all.
I would focus on establishing the brand as a backwards compatibility behemoth, and I would announce that the backwards compatibility team at MS will be working in perpetuity from here on out and that the initiative would never wrap up.
I would commit to user's entire libraries from OG to Series being accessible in perpetuity moving forward with all Xbox hardware, including PC.
I would completely dump all DEI and inclusivity based programs, and I would make it clear that the mission statement of the company is quality above all else, across all products, and that if they want an overt message in their products, then that would take an absolutely massive back step to the games being fun and appealing to the demographic of people who buy the games, and that if that message is polarizing or alienating to our primary demographic at all then the game will not ship with said messaging.
I would make it clear that this is not an activist organization, and would offer all employees who disagree or dislike that an immediate release from employment with no negative consequences whatsoever with severance pay and the understanding that they can come back to work for MS owned studios but that the interview process will be conducted as if they were a new employee and it will be based completely on merit and portfolio, (watch how many don't leave and shut the hell up and get to work.)
I would make peace with the fact that competing with Sony and Nintendo moving forward is silly and it just leaves money on the table, so I'd make sure that all games release day and date on all platforms.
I would expand the mods on console platform.
I would do away with Gamepass, as it's been proven to be a failed model that even I genuinely loved at first, but I, and all Gamepass proponents, was/were proven wrong and it ended up being bad for the industry.
I would recognize that Microsoft essentially has unlimited budget when it comes to potential game development, which Microsoft realized but instead of putting it towards development, they decided to put it towards buying studios and publishers; priority for spending would shift towards development and hiring of top talent with the understanding that these projects will take time but must be adamantly managed with structure.
I would drop the GAAS push, as that doesn't distinguish you in the industry right now.
I would restructure 343 to the degree that they barely resemble the studio anymore in terms of personnel.
I'd spend whatever it takes to get several producers on every team that have proven track records of putting out fires and delivering on milestones and deadlines.
I would make it clear that anyone who causes mass dissent or upheaval during the development process would be immediately terminated without possibility for rehire.
I would make it clear that all MS employees are to have no social media presence in which they share personal opinions, and if they don't like that then they're free to leave or seek employment elsewhere.
I would stop using low bid proven shit houses like Virtuous and prioritize performance and competent porting procedures on all platforms, and make clear that every game we release should be treated as if the day 1 release should be good enough that we could never patch it and it'd be considered a good game.
I would prioritize the WRPG, multiplayer FPS, and cinematic TPS genres for our landmark titles, (gotta know your demographic.)
I would spend whatever it takes to secure top talent on a contract for MS studios, think Tim Cain, Chris Avellone, Warren Spector, Amy Hennig, etc.
I would ensure that all releases on the Xbox store have complete feature parity with Steam and GoG versions day one and maintain said parity moving forward.
I would maintain complete transparency with company culture, business operations, and game development milestones and progress with the community.
I would make abundantly clear that this company exists to make people smile and laugh, and that any effort towards something that isn't going to be a fun at some point is wasted effort and won't be rewarded in any capacity and certainly won't be tolerated.
All budgets would be released in stages, like how development was done in the 90's, and would require successful and timely completion of milestones, and it would be made clear that all projects must come to fruition within three years maximum and that the aforementioned producers will be with the team daily to ensure that the team works diligently to meet these goals to prevent ballooning budgets.
I would make clear that there will be no more multi-leader studios or projects; a director with vision will be appointed and final word on all decisions will go to him/her in order to prevent power struggles.
I would drop game pricing and budgets across the board to 60 for AAA, 40 AA, 20 smaller scale projects. Commit to no micro transactions.
DLC expansions max out at 15 and will typically be around 5 to 10, but pricing will be based on value of content, and that will be dictated by the following:
A MS studio consisting entirely of QC employees that work for MS but aren't tied directly to any MS studios, thus ensuring no biases, will be formed and they will work at their own building and answer directly and only to the head of Xbox and a producer that's explicitly hired to do nothing more than keep QC running efficiently and well. This will prevent fiascos like that awful vampire game from ever happening again, take the QC out of the game studio and keep it out, you need unbiased voices for that who don't fear subtle repercussions for voicing their opinions.
No more money will be wasted on outside consultants whatsoever, absolutely none with zero exceptions. You don't even need military consultants, as lots of devs are military veterans like myself, use the resources you have on your team. Wanna know a black lesbian would respond to this line of dialogue? If you've got one on your team, ask her, if you don't, stop worrying about it and write your fucking game or change the character, just stop wasting time and money, (millions), on shit that doesn't make the game any better.
I think that'd be a strong start....., but that's just my opinion and all.
memoryman3
Member
I actually heard someone say that Xbox should continue releasing their games on PS and Nintendo, but crucially, stop releasing their games on Steam. Steam is probably the biggest threat to both Sony and Microsoft and both are freely porting their first party libraries there before each other's consoles. PC owners would instead be served by Windows Store releases, or perhaps even Epic Games/Battle.net releases?
Valve themselves just collect the 30% fees for games in their store, and don't even have a large first party slate. Shouldn't Xbox be competing with them to ensure their store is the best ecosystem for third party games?
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yurinka
Member
I think it would be a good idea for MS to keep the game publishing and development business, but to sell the Xbox brand including their hardware and Game Pass.
I think Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Palantir or Kim Jon-Un would be open to buy that for a fair price.
I think Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Palantir or Kim Jon-Un would be open to buy that for a fair price.
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Nydius
Member
I wouldn't even try. Microsoft and Hardware are like oil and water. Every single hardware venture Microsoft has attempted has failed. I'm surprised they let Xbox have such a long leash when they wouldn't give anywhere near as long to Zune or Windows Mobile/Windows Phone. They pulled the plug on Windows Mobile and NOKIA after a failed, meager (by trillion dollar company standards), $7.8B investment. Microsoft Surface has seen a similar level of hardware implosion as Xbox since 2022 and they're not even advertising it anymore.
Microsoft spent ten times what they spent on NOKIA on acquisitions for Xbox in the last 8 years, a brand they've been losing money on since its inception. It hasn't created explosive growth for Game Pass, it hasn't created growth for console sales.
The only thing left to salvage are the game studios themselves. It's time to rip the band aid off, throw Xbox in the same pile as Zune, Windows Phone, and their various PC hardware endeavors, and simply stick to being the software company Microsoft has always been.
Microsoft spent ten times what they spent on NOKIA on acquisitions for Xbox in the last 8 years, a brand they've been losing money on since its inception. It hasn't created explosive growth for Game Pass, it hasn't created growth for console sales.
The only thing left to salvage are the game studios themselves. It's time to rip the band aid off, throw Xbox in the same pile as Zune, Windows Phone, and their various PC hardware endeavors, and simply stick to being the software company Microsoft has always been.
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