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[Mythoclast]

I have all consoles but honestly I end up using Xbox more because IMO the GamePass catalog is better than PS Plus.

It’s interesting to see Xbox keep trying and trying (acquisitions, creative games like HiFi Rush and Pentiment, marketing deal with Atlus, etc etc) and they still can’t seem to nail it down. Most games still keep selling better on PS.

I think their biggest sin was not developing big, exclusive games over the 2010s (when most people were building their digital libraries) and doubling down on not having true console exclusives on 2020s. Everything has been shared with PC for a while.

I am very pro exclusives from a business standpoint.

Now I’m not even sure if they can even make a comeback. Comeback as in late 2000s when people were pumped about Halo 3 or Gears 2 coming ONLY to Xbox 360.

Perhaps the only way is through a economic value proposition, which I think is what they’re trying to do putting COD on GamePass. Hopefully it works out to make the market share fight more even, it certainly seems they are trying.

 

[West Texas CEO]

Where did it go?

 

[I'm nobody]

They been trying for years so I think no
But good luck

 

[Represent.]

yes.

just force the publishers they bought to make games exclusively for xbox. pretty simple. COD exclusive, get rid of gamepass, no PC. would be huge.

of course they will never do this though, so no.

 

[Skifi28]

Of course, just wait for next year.

 

[Sethbacca]

Outside of the gamepass diehards, I doubt it.

 

[Bloobs]

 

[RPCGamer]

It's a shame, but unless they focus on games and not services, no. They hold so many franchises big and small but don't do anything with them. They didn't need these acquisitions. They needed to put the money into making games.

 

[Loomy]

In the short term, they need to have a consistent release of well reviewed Xbox/GamePass/Steam games. While Matt Booty is working on that(lol), they need to leverage Azure to get a jump on cloud gaming. That would be the long term play so that if they choose to stay in content delivery, they're the leaders in cloud gaming as viability improves.

 

[Jigsaah]

Depends on what you mean by "a comeback". If you are only speaking in regards to how they compare to Playstation, I don't think it worth trying at this point. It's better to rebrand themselves in other ways, which is exactly what they are doing.

 

[FoxMcChief]

Like to the height of the 360 era? Sure. But that won’t happen.

 

[Hookshot]

It's too late for them now. They should have used the 360 money to wait for the PS4 and make something much more powerful but sold at a loss to take the players and developers away from Sony. Instead they kept in the same generation as Sony while not making good enough exclusives and lost more and more market share. Now they are a subscription service....

 

[Bitstream]

With how they've been trending, I'm not sure they want to make a comeback.

1) Launch 'next gen' with a secondary, shitty console and force devs to develop for it = Results in many developers choosing to ignore their platform altogether
2) Launch games on PC day 1 = All things considered, most people would prefer to pick up the games on PC instead
3) Port games over to PS = PS gamers have no reason to switch, and will just wait
4) Try and fail to force gamespass subscriptions = Xbox gamers dont want to purchase games = Lower game sales = Developers choose to ignore the platform altogether

If the brand wants to come back they need to undo all 4 of these, and come out with a POWERFUL system, sell it at a loss, and deliver next gen gaming experiences that CANT BE HAD ELSEWHERE.

 

[Jaybe]

No. Xbox was acquired by Activision Blizzard. The new entity is more like ABK+Bethesda with some little hardware business on the side.

 

[RetroGamingUK]

Nothing’s impossible, I mean at this point it would take a miracle.

However, due to customers being locked into the PlayStation ecosystem with digital purchases, trophies and friends lists it would be harder than ever to beat them now.

I know I’m echoing Phil Spencer’s “we lost the worst generation” excuse, and while he’s not done a good job running Xbox over the last decade, he’s 100% right in this regard.

Nintendo seem to be making all the right decisions with Switch 2 too, so good luck competing with that.

 

[Evil Calvin]

Well, considering Sony has been stepping on more rakes than MS lately......it's possible. But both have been shit this gen really.

 

[ap_puff]

Can they? Sure. Will they? Not as long as Microsoft owns them.

 

[Puscifer]

They had the lead with the 360 and 599 us dollars incident and fumbled it with Kinect late in the generation combined their high price and low effort of the X1

The damages been done, PS5 is selling on a quarter of software the PS4

 

[Sanepar]

As a platform maybe when only cloud is the option but with so many studios as a third party they are fine.

 

[RPCGamer]

Depends on what you mean by "a comeback". If you are only speaking in regards to how they compare to Playstation, I don't think it worth trying at this point. It's better to rebrand themselves in other ways, which is exactly what they are doing.

I'm honestly not convinced that will even work. A lot of what they offer is fine, but I don't think the audience is there. Imo, Phil made the mistake early on in trying to make it the Netflix of gaming. It didn't need to be the best or different - I'd argue Sony has been inconsistent. They needed to be profitable and he could have done that by quietly ticking xbox over with game after game for their machine. The output for Xbox since he got there has been woeful.

Sure, these games may not be all hits, but if you keep producing a steady but consistent release of good games, I think he would have won people back with enough exclusives and different content to make it too hard to ignore.

 

[GHG]

Honestly, what for?

Even as a 3rd party publisher they are fast turning in to a glorified Ubisoft.

It's absolutely baffling that a company with their resources continues to find new ways to fumble the bag.

 

[FunkMiller]

As a hardware manufacturer?

Fuck no.

 

[PauloRoberto]

No.

Normally it's easier and cheaper to simply create a new trademark and invest in it instead of saving an old one.

Problem is: Microsoft is a specialist of abandoning trademarks and products, so... (Windows Mobile, Windows Phone, Zune, Metro, the list goes on...).

 

[TheTony316]

Next year!

 

[LordOcidax]

Nintendo came from selling 14 million to the best selling console ever (soon) in just one generation… Microsoft is already the biggest gaming publisher in the market and have more resources than any gaming brand… Is matter of time for the Xbox to skyrocket as a brand, they just need to figure out how, like Nintendo.

 

[RPCGamer]

No.

Normally it's easier and cheaper to simply create a new trademark and invest in it instead of saving an old one.

Problem is: Microsoft is a specialist of abandoning trademarks and products, so... (Windows Mobile, Windows Phone, Zune, Metro, the list goes on...).

This is my concern. When MS finally get tired of Xbox, will they just shut it down and bin all those big names with it.

 

[RetroGamingUK]

They had the lead with the 360 and 599 us dollars incident and fumbled it with Kinect late in the generation combined their high price and low effort.

The damages been done, PS5 is selling on a quarter of software the PS4

In hindsight they were doomed as soon as the whole RROD fiasco started.

Peter Moore probably lost his job over it and that lead to Don Mattrick taking the reins and the rest is history.

They had some real good momentum in the early 360 days, it’s pretty much impossible for them to ever get back to that.

It’s over

 

[Badlucktroll]

This is my concern. When MS finally get tired of Xbox, will they just shut it down and bin all those big names with it.

yes, and write off the losses and lay everyone off

 

[Bernardougf]

Not one fucking chance as long as that dufos is still in charge.

 

[Woody337]

Gamepass destroyed the brand. They trained customers to not buy anything, to only shut down companies when the games on gamepass dont sale.........makes zero sense.

 

[PauloRoberto]

This is my concern. When MS finally get tired of Xbox, will they just shut it down and bin all those big names with it.

IMO, this is a problem of mentality. For MS, is almost literally go big or go home.

 

[theStartupSound]

Use the Microsoft money to undercut PS5 at least by 100 Dollars/Euros.

Use it again and make so much marketing that everyone outside the US knows that there is something similar to a PlayStation which is calked Xbox, but costs less than a PlayStation.

Use all your studios and create a constant stream of short, but interesting, varying and sometimes experimental games for GamePass.
Don‘t try to be Sony, don’t try to be someone else. Your niche should be fun games which doesn’t take ages to make.

Wait 10 years until you are in a good position again.

Make money with that system/brand again.

 

[RPCGamer]

IMO, this is a problem of mentality. For MS, is almost literally go big or go home.

Like I said, Phil did not need to take xbox down this route. He just needed to quietly keep getting games made and build up the profile of xbox with content. Instead he focused on services.

 

[Fbh]

I doubt it. Screwing up last gen really hurt them as now on top of everything else they have to compete with the fact a big majority of the console market has a digital library on PSN that they will be able to carry forward. They'd have to offer something way more enticing than "a similar console with similar features and similar performance for a similar price".

People say they should just make all the activision stuff exclusive but I think the real question is if that's ultimately going to make them more money than what they get from keeping the likes of COD on Playstation, PC and possibly Nitnendo systems in the future.

 

[Kacho]

Nah. Microsoft wants Xbox to be this all-consuming service that you can access everywhere and it's been rejected at every turn. The hardware game is way too small-time for Nutella and Cook to be bothered with.

 

[dmaul1114]

I'll preface this by saying I couldn't give a shit less about any of these corporations.

But I strongly doubt it, at least as a hardware maker. Even the 360 was largely a fluke that lucked out by their launching a year early (and killing original Xbox at 4 years) working out because of the PS3's launch price and bad PR saying people will work two jobs to afford it etc. as Sony wanted to win the HD disc format war.

There's just not room in the market for two very similar, high-end consoles playing mostly the same third party games and Sony has won that market share war. It's much harder now for people to jump ship now with digital libraries built up the last couple of gens, friend lists, achievement/trophy scores.

They can definitely succeed as a publisher and subscription service provider though as they have a ton of huge brand IPs in house now after all their acquisitions.

 

[Topher]

Use the Microsoft money

 

[RetroGamingUK]

Use the Microsoft money to undercut PS5 at least by 100 Dollars/Euros.

Use it again and make so much marketing that everyone outside the US knows that there is something similar to a PlayStation which is calked Xbox, but costs less than a PlayStation.

Use all your studios and create a constant stream of short, but interesting, varying and sometimes experimental games for GamePass.
Don‘t try to be Sony, don’t try to be someone else. Your niche should be fun games which doesn’t take ages to make.

Wait 10 years until you are in a good position again.

Make money with that system/brand again.

Microsoft execs and shareholders have had enough of sinking money into Xbox though.

They want results now, hence MS games on PC and PS5.

 

[Rambotito]

I don't think so. As someone mentioned, people got locked into the Playstation ecosystem. All of your digital purchases and achievements become like a lifelong investment into a specific gaming brand. With Xbox having cross-compatibility with PC in every respect, so you can ditch Xbox and lose absolutely nothing by migrating to PC (which is what I did). When I migrated from Xbox to PC I kept everything except for a couple Xbox Gold games that didn't survive the trip over.
I dropped Game Pass Ultimate and got PC Game Pass. (half the price)
I still use the same controller
I still use the same applications
Same avatar, same gamerscore, same achievements, same friends list, etc.
Also fewer advertisements being thrown into my face
I just don't have to deal with restricting factors on console and now have more freedom to tune my games to the way I like

If Microsoft wants to have the same experience across all platforms, then why produce a specific one (Xbox) in the first place?

 

[Jigsaah]

I'm honestly not convinced that will even work. A lot of what they offer is fine, but I don't think the audience is there. Imo, Phil made the mistake early on in trying to make it the Netflix of gaming. It didn't need to be the best or different - I'd argue Sony has been inconsistent. They needed to be profitable and he could have done that by quietly ticking xbox over with game after game for their machine. The output for Xbox since he got there has been woeful.

Sure, these games may not be all hits, but if you keep producing a steady but consistent release of good games, I think he would have won people back with enough exclusives and different content to make it too hard to ignore.

It's left to be seen, but honestly it's the only play Xbox has. They lost the worst generation to lose. The Xbox One/PS4 era was when people were able to carry over digital libraries to the next generation. Had they won that generation there would be more people heavily invested in their ecosystem. An underpowered system and a late push in the generation to begin acquiring studios for first party output, combined with a repeatedly delayed output from those acquired studios put Xbox in a hole that has taken this entire generation to even begin digging out of. Even so, it's still not apparent this is possible.

So what do they do....they expand to other platforms (mainly PC and Mobile) to try and increase their customer base in other ways. They start competing with the likes of Amazon and Apple.

They have to get very creative at this point. Rumors of cloud integration into a handheld could coalesce their their player base, including PC, Xbox and Mobile, especially if there is Steam integration.

 

[Banjo64]

Nah not as a console. There will be no negative stigma attached to their games if they’re good, just look at FH and SoT.

Game Pass also has the ick attached now in my view. It’s associated with cheap in the bad way.

 

[PauloRoberto]

Like I said, Phil did not need to take xbox down this route. He just needed to quietly keep getting games made and build up the profile of xbox with content. Instead he focused on services.

But that's why i said 'its a mentallity thing'. You are absolutelly correct, big games bring audience and more audience brings games - PS3 comeback is a great example. Problem is: I cannot see MS with this mentallity because MS only knows how to dominate a market crushing its rivals. It's not just Phil's problem.

 

[theStartupSound]

yeah, maybe they should have used the Microsoft money better than buying Activision.

 

[Js562]

Yeah start releasing more games that are good. Stop porting it over to other brands. Maybe I don't shit lol I just play

 

[RPCGamer]

It's left to be seen, but honestly it's the only play Xbox has. They lost the worst generation to lose. The Xbox One/PS4 era was when people were able to carry over digital libraries to the next generation. Had they won that generation there would be more people heavily invested in their ecosystem. An underpowered system and a late push in the generation to begin acquiring studios for first party output, combined with a repeatedly delayed output from those acquired studios put Xbox in a hole that has taken this entire generation to even begin digging out of. Even so, it's still not apparent this is possible.

So what do they do....they expand to other platforms (mainly PC and Mobile) to try and increase their customer base in other ways. They start competing with the likes of Amazon and Apple.

They have to get very creative at this point. Rumors of cloud integration into a handheld could coalesce their their player base, including PC, Xbox and Mobile, especially if there is Steam integration.

I think this is also concerning for the console market then. Sony (imo) have been coasting largely with no real competition and it's been really dull to see. Even when they mess up, there's no real consequences as they have the market.

Update: They are all starting to look at the PC market, so maybe they're aware it's becoming dull

 

[digdug2]

They have been fucked since E3 2013 when they first announced the Xbox One. They never fully recovered due to three things:

1) Announcing the constant internet connection requirement
2) Mandatory Kinect installation
3) Severely underpowered console

While they rectified all three of these things (kind of... they made the exact same mistake twice in a row with the Series S), the damage was already done and it haunts them to this day.

 

[Sooner]

Sega CAN make a comeback. Will they? Doubtful.

 

[Parazels]

The got trapped with Game Pass. And Spencer Phil fanatically keeps praising this trap in every single interview!

 

[Parazels]

Sega CAN make a comeback. Will they? Doubtful.

No, Sega can't.

 

[mayham2199]

yes.

just force the publishers they bought to make games exclusively for xbox. pretty simple. COD exclusive, get rid of gamepass, no PC. would be huge.

of course they will never do this though, so no.

This is the only possible way they could do it and it's also something they will never do. It would cost them so much money to do this and it would take a long time before they even started seeing people come back. Also COD is multiplat for 10 years so they couldn't even do that part.

I think this is also concerning for the console market then. Sony (imo) have been coasting largely with no real competition and it's been really dull to see. Even when they mess up, there's no real consequences as they have the market.

Update: They are all starting to look at the PC market, so maybe they're aware it's becoming dull

To be fair though consequences for messing up take time to be seen. Look how long Xbox went saying "We know we need more games" before we even saw their console sales fall of the face of the earth. I couldn't believe people were still invested in that ecosystem when the Series X/S came out. The Xbox one generation seriously had like no notable exclusives. TitanFall might have been the biggest one.