• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Chris Dring at GDC: Xbox sales flatlining in Europe, majority of Xbox games coming to PS5 at some point, MS putting less focus on GamePass

Shut0wen

Banned
Meanwhile, they broke a record during holiday 2023:


PS5 is also carrying the console-market hard.

Give it up. If it weren't for the restrictions, it would be on point to beat the PS4. And... it's still got a great chance to outsell the PS4.

To say the PS5 has underperformed is pretty stupid.
You took the bait
G9D00K6.jpg
of truth
 

Don Carlo

Member
"We're putting a lot of effort into creating an Xbox Series S/X version of a game where to be honest with you the market for us is PC and PS5."
Below is a photo of said executive getting interviewed by Dring.

eJjIiYc.png
Why does this look fake and real at the same time?
 

Woopah

Member
Well Nintendo got out of the console business because they couldn't sustain enough triple A games. The infamous Wii U draughts.
It was more that they couldn't sustain two seperate ecosystems (Wii U didn't just lack AAA games, it lacked AA games too).

So they made a product that could attract the console market and the handheld market with the same software ecosystem.
 

THE DUCK

voted poster of the decade by bots
They bought a dozen studios. And proceeded to mismanage them all. It's quite impressive in a way.

You make it sound like they ran into these companies when they bought them and slashed and burned budgets and canceled tons of projects, when most information indicates they basically left then to operate the way they had before successfully......
 
You make it sound like they ran into these companies when they bought them and slashed and burned budgets and canceled tons of projects, when most information indicates they basically left then to operate the way they had before successfully......
If the common denominator between all these unproductive studios is that they are operated by Xbox managers, then that is the real problem. The popular narrative coming out is that Xbox managers have no idea what a bad game looks like, so they couldn't notice an incoming disastrous release if it punches them in the face.

i am not saying that is a known fact, but this is starting to become an assumption to explain Redfall and Halo Craig. Game studios make games, but managers need to understand if what studios are doing is any good or not.
 

THE DUCK

voted poster of the decade by bots
If the common denominator between all these unproductive studios is that they are operated by Xbox managers, then that is the real problem. The popular narrative coming out is that Xbox managers have no idea what a bad game looks like, so they couldn't notice an incoming disastrous release if it punches them in the face.

i am not saying that is a known fact, but this is starting to become an assumption to explain Redfall and Halo Craig. Game studios make games, but managers need to understand if what studios are doing is any good or not.

Redfall is one game, any studio can have a dud. Things coming out of Bethesda are likely to be largely the same as they would have with or without ms. Same with Activision. As to Halo Infinite, the vision for the game was actually too large and not focused, and they still managed to actually deliver an excellent game. (At least in terms of single player, regardless of gaf bias against it)

Forza has also been excellent, Forza Horizon 5 fully delivered, and motorsport is still a fantastic game even if it's not perfect.
The metascores flush this out.
 
Last edited:
Redfall is one game, any studio can have a dud. Things coming out of Bethesda are likely to be largely the same as they would have with or without ms. Same with Activision. As to Halo Infinite, the vision for the game was actually too large and not focused, and they still managed to actually deliver an excellent game. (At least in terms of single player, regardless of gaf bias against it)

Forza has also been excellent, Forza Horizon 5 fully delivered, and motorsport is still a fantastic game even if it's not perfect.
The metascores flush this out.
The complaints are twofold;
1. The games that came out were approved for release. Thus managers approved it. So they get the blame for Redfall coming out.
2. There are all the MANY other studios that haven't released anything in ages. It is either because their output is so bad that Xbox managers blocked them from launch, or they were not being productive. The sheer quantity of them makes us wonder why they all are not doing anything. And as i say, the common denominator is they work for Xbox despite being different studios with different backgrounds.
 

THE DUCK

voted poster of the decade by bots
The complaints are twofold;
1. The games that came out were approved for release. Thus managers approved it. So they get the blame for Redfall coming out.
2. There are all the MANY other studios that haven't released anything in ages. It is either because their output is so bad that Xbox managers blocked them from launch, or they were not being productive. The sheer quantity of them makes us wonder why they all are not doing anything. And as i say, the common denominator is they work for Xbox despite being different studios with different backgrounds.

Well there is no doubt that they should nat have released it, but it is one game. They showed actually more restraint with halo and were roasted alive for that correct decision.

So now you want ms to rush the other projects though? Seems they are learning from the mistake. Modern big games take a ton of time to make these days, yes we know sony has a couple of studios capable of faster, but even think about naughty dog.....the last of us, uncharted 4, and last of us II in 11 years.
It's been over 4 years since last of us II, and nothing coming out soon.......we don't even know what the next game is.
 

Jerm411

Member
My big question is….why is MS allowing this leadership team to continue on?

What the hell has Matt Booty or Sarah Bond done to keep their jobs?

You want to argue Phil should keep his job? I 100% disagree but what ever….

I mean how much worse can it get? You’re seeing Hail Marys being thrown right now….and this is supposed to be good?

Get new voices in there, get them out…it can’t get much worse.

I’d actually be interested to see what a new leadership team could do with XBox. 🤷🏻‍♂️
 
Wow, shit... less focus on Gamepass. I wonder if they're going to wind that shit down to a form that is a farcry of what it is currently?
I mean, if they go the 3rd party route... I guess Gamepass could just be some kind of huge 1st party offering, with some 3rd party shit sprinkled in, here and there?
Just an idea, if anything.
 
My big question is….why is MS allowing this leadership team to continue on?

What the hell has Matt Booty or Sarah Bond done to keep their jobs?

You want to argue Phil should keep his job? I 100% disagree but what ever….

I mean how much worse can it get? You’re seeing Hail Marys being thrown right now….and this is supposed to be good?

Get new voices in there, get them out…it can’t get much worse.

I’d actually be interested to see what a new leadership team could do with XBox. 🤷🏻‍♂️
is really quite simple:

MS was/is not committed to this medium and industry. so, Xbox didn't get the proper budget and support; Phil and company were just doing what they could do, with what they had.

the issue with Phil is that he is a spineless company man. which makes him pathetic.
 

ADiTAR

ידע זה כוח
is really quite simple:

MS was/is not committed to this medium and industry. so, Xbox didn't get the proper budget and support; Phil and company were just doing what they could do, with what they had.

the issue with Phil is that he is a spineless company man. which makes him pathetic.
Welcome friend from an alternate universe where Xbox didn't get budget and support.
 

Skifi28

Member
Forza has also been excellent, Forza Horizon 5 fully delivered, and motorsport is still a fantastic game even if it's not perfect.
The metascores flush this out.
Motorsport is absolute trash. It's a decent driving game wrapped in a mobile f2p package you had to pay full price for. Some of the recent updates have even made the game worse, it's yet another series that's been sent out to die under Phil and all the marketing lies about "from the ground up" only made things worse.
 
Last edited:
What is the percentage of contract work vs. full time? every company has contractors, I don't think that's an example of no money. It's more an example of bad management.
is not about "no money" is about not being committed to the medium and the industry.

this MS's policy is meant for them to not paid devs what they should.

regarding management. everyone knows Xbox has it but MS doesn't give a shit about it. Because they don't understand this industry and what it takes to be successful, otherwise the investments on first party would have been made in the 360 era and wouldn't have let the Xbox business performance being so shit for many years.
 
is really quite simple:

MS was/is not committed to this medium and industry. so, Xbox didn't get the proper budget and support; Phil and company were just doing what they could do, with what they had.

the issue with Phil is that he is a spineless company man. which makes him pathetic.

Wow how do you say that he doesn’t get the proper budget and support while he got 70+ billion dollars to buy a crap publisher lol?

That money alone could fund lets see: 70 billion divided by 200 million. AAA budget, equals 350 frikkin’ quality games if properly managed. But no, master chess player Phil bought 1 publisher with 2 big games sort of past their prime for all that money.

All of this is to blame on Phil, he has been the CEO for forever now and everything he tries to do fails because he has no idea of how the industry works.

Also, he legit greenlighted Halo to be released and said it was looking great while the game was in a dogshit state only to walk back on it after the massive community backlash.

the mueller report see GIF
 
Last edited:

ADiTAR

ידע זה כוח
is not about "no money" is about not being committed to the medium and the industry.

this MS's policy is meant for them to not paid devs what they should.

regarding management. everyone knows Xbox has it but MS doesn't give a shit about it. Because they don't understand this industry and what it takes to be successful, otherwise the investments on first party would have been made in the 360 era and wouldn't have let the Xbox business performance being so shit for many years.
we can go back and forth on this. 360 and kinenkt showed MS how successful it can be and they did put a lot of money into Xbox One, they had top devs like Insominac doing exclusives like Sunset Overdrive, etc. I don't think they pulled the plug before Xone, it's just that it did so bad then they thought about it, and now they basically poured so much money into Xbox you can't deny that they are not given what they need to succeed.
 

THE DUCK

voted poster of the decade by bots
Motorsport is absolute trash. It's a decent driving game wrapped in a mobile f2p package you had to pay full price for. Some of the recent updates have even made the game worse, it's yet another series that's been sent out to die under Phil and all the marketing lies about "from the ground up" only made things worse.

Only a person who is completely jaded or biased would call a polished game with an 84 metascore and a 73 consumer score trash. You lose all credibility even if you had a shred of a valid point. That's just 2 points off Spiderman, and 3 from gt7. (Which by the way gets a 2.4 from consumers) Get real.
 

Skifi28

Member
Only a person who is completely jaded or biased would call a polished game with an 84 metascore and a 73 consumer score trash. You lose all credibility even if you had a shred of a valid point. That's just 2 points off Spiderman, and 3 from gt7. (Which by the way gets a 2.4 from consumers) Get real.
I don't care about meta scores of reviewers that might not even play sim games. Feel free to point at the score when everybody stops playing the game even though GT7 is still hugely popular. I'm a huge Forza fan since the first game and I've played over 60 hours of this shit trying to overlook all the major issues while focusing on the gameplay and I still can't. I eventually gave up regretting both my purchase and the time I spent hoping there might be something more to it. It's trash on fire, they spent 6 years to make something so much worse than Forza 7 it's not even funny.

Edit:

I mean, the game barely came out and it's already dead. GaaS and all. This is what the people that play these games actually think of it.

x9hqSai.jpg


B.. But the metascore..
 
Last edited:
Wow how do you say that he doesn’t get the proper budget and support while he got 70+ billion dollars to buy a crap publisher lol?

That money alone could fund lets see: 70 billion divided by 200 million. AAA budget equals 350 frikkin’ quality games if properly managed. But no, master chess player Phil bought 1 publisher with 2 big games sort of past their prime for all that money.

back in the Xbox 360 and One era


All of this is to blame on Phil, he has been the CEO for forever now and everything he tries to do fails because he has no idea of how the industry works.
Because MS doesn't understand what it takes to be successful in this business.

The ABK was acquisition was to late and unnecessary, in fact; is a detriment to Xbox. as a console, brand and Ecosystem

Also, he legit greenlighted Halo to be released and said it was looking great while the game was in a dogshit state only to walk back on it after the massive community backlash.
Halo was a shit show in part thanks to MS's policies.
 
we can go back and forth on this. 360 and kinenkt showed MS how successful it can be and they did put a lot of money into Xbox One, they had top devs like Insominac doing exclusives like Sunset Overdrive, etc. I don't think they pulled the plug before Xone, it's just that it did so bad then they thought about it, and now they basically poured so much money into Xbox you can't deny that they are not given what they need to succeed.
commitment to this medium and industry goes beyond just money. that's the point.
 
but isn't it clear now that with the acquisition of Bethesda and AB, that they are?
I will put it in this way:

You have a son, and you are rich. You provide for all his wants, but you neglect to educate him or instill strong character values in him.

that is MS with Xbox/Phil spencer.

Using that analogy, now the son is grown up and it's time to take over the family business, but the dad never taught him how to run it. The son takes over and runs everything to the ground. What's the dad going to do?

"Oh, let's buy little Phil a new and bigger business to run."

The ABK, Bethesda acquisitions dont show comminment to this medium and industry because they are not fixing the core issue inside xbox.

MS is the neglecting father that let his son fool around to much time.
 

THE DUCK

voted poster of the decade by bots
I don't care about meta scores of reviewers that might not even play sim games. Feel free to point at the score when everybody stops playing the game even though GT7 is still hugely popular. I'm a huge Forza fan since the first game and I've played over 60 hours of this shit trying to overlook all the major issues while focusing on the gameplay and I still can't. I eventually gave up regretting both my purchase and the time I spent hoping there might be something more to it. It's trash on fire, they spent 6 years to make something so much worse than Forza 7 it's not even funny.

Edit:

I mean, the game barely came out and it's already dead. GaaS and all. This is what the people that play these games actually think of it.

x9hqSai.jpg


B.. But the metascore..

It's not just the proffesional metascores, it's the user reviews you are conveineintly ignoring. Ok, we get it, you hate the game soooooo much you played 60 hours of it. Ok.
Games most people hate get an hour. (Or less) Pretty clear you just want to complain. What your talking about is akin to eating at the same restaurant 50 times even though its because you had a good meal once there 5 years ago.

So you are comparing the active users of a pc game that is available on xbox game pass via the Xbox launcher based on steam users? A game that is likely being played in large part by console players?
Ok. Again, your trying to form up something that doesn't exist based on your bizarre bias.
 
Last edited:

Skifi28

Member
It's not just the profffesional metascores, it's the user reviews you are conveineintly ignoring. Ok, we get it, you hate the game soooooo much you played 60 hours of it. Ok.
Games most people hate get an hour. (Or less) Pretty clear you just want to complain. What your talking about is akin to eating at the same restaurant 50 times even though its because you had a good meal once there 5 years ago.
60 hours is a drop in the ocean for a game such as this, I have hundreds if not thousands of hours on most other Forza and GT games. Yeah, I really wanted to like it thus I gave it a fair chance. I'm sure the opinion of those that played two races on gamepass and never touched it again is more valid than mine.

So you are comparing the active users of a pc game that is available on xbox game pass via the Xbox launcher based on steam users? A game that is likely being played in large part by console players?
Ok. Again, your trying to form up something that doesn't exist based on your bizarre bias.
Horizon 5 is also available on gamepass and released in 2021, it has 15k users right now on steam vs 400 on motorsport that is barely 6 months old. If that doesn't tell you anything about the actual state of the game, then perhaps you should be looking at your own bias.
 

THE DUCK

voted poster of the decade by bots
60 hours is a drop in the ocean for a game such as this, I have hundreds if not thousands of hours on most other Forza and GT games. Yeah, I really wanted to like it thus I gave it a fair chance. I'm sure the opinion of those that played two races on gamepass and never touched it again is more valid than mine.


Horizon 5 is also available on gamepass and released in 2021, it has 15k users right now on steam vs 400 on motorsport that is barely 6 months old. If that doesn't tell you anything about the actual state of the game, then perhaps you should be looking at your own bias.

So you are self admitted, not a regular game player, your are a car game fanatic. Thousands of hours in those two games is not typical at all. People don't typically buy $70 and to get thousands of hours, they play just to have fun, something you've clearly left behind years ago.

Horizon 5 has way more broad appeal than a sim racer, its just more fun for more people.
No surprise it has more active users.
 

ADiTAR

ידע זה כוח
I will put it in this way:

You have a son, and you are rich. You provide for all his wants, but you neglect to educate him or instill strong character values in him.

that is MS with Xbox/Phil spencer.

Using that analogy, now the son is grown up and it's time to take over the family business, but the dad never taught him how to run it. The son takes over and runs everything to the ground. What's the dad going to do?

"Oh, let's buy little Phil a new and bigger business to run."

The ABK, Bethesda acquisitions dont show comminment to this medium and industry because they are not fixing the core issue inside xbox.

MS is the neglecting father that let his son fool around to much time.
Haha, I just can't. MS gave Phil everything. he is not bad at his job because MS neglected him he is just bad at his job. MS would have done better to cut the son and find a long lost relative at this point.


More than 80b in aquisitions is 200% commitment.
 
Last edited:

YeulEmeralda

Linux User
You make it sound like they ran into these companies when they bought them and slashed and burned budgets and canceled tons of projects, when most information indicates they basically left then to operate the way they had before successfully......

Yes that's actually a good point. When Microsoft bought Zenimax a lot of people got their lifeboats to flee a ship that was already sinking.
 

Thief1987

Member
So you are self admitted, not a regular game player, your are a car game fanatic. Thousands of hours in those two games is not typical at all. People don't typically buy $70 and to get thousands of hours, they play just to have fun, something you've clearly left behind years ago.

Horizon 5 has way more broad appeal than a sim racer, its just more fun for more people.
No surprise it has more active users.
FM is a disastrous flop lol, you can't argue with facts. T10 don't have any future it will be either closed down or thrown into the cod slave factory there is no other possibilities
 

LordCBH

Member
Seems they are learning from the mistake.

Are they though? Redfall wasn’t the first high profile turd Microsoft has pushed out. Crackdown 3 may be even worse than Redfall. And of course Starfield flopped onto the ground like a soggy turd as well.
 

THE DUCK

voted poster of the decade by bots
FM is a disastrous flop lol, you can't argue with facts. T10 don't have any future it will be either closed down or thrown into the cod slave factory there is no other possibilities

FM wasn't a flop at all, they had large engagment via gamepass, which was expected. These games are expected to drive gamepass subs, something you can't see or measure. For all you know, MS would have 3 million less subs without this game.
You have zero access to the figures. They aren't being closed down at all, the game was well reviewed and received generally.
 

THE DUCK

voted poster of the decade by bots
Are they though? Redfall wasn’t the first high profile turd Microsoft has pushed out. Crackdown 3 may be even worse than Redfall. And of course Starfield flopped onto the ground like a soggy turd as well.

Crackdown was a relatively minor game that nobody that I know expected anything from. (a few people on here love the series but it doesn't have a huge mindshare generally)
Starfield did not flop, it will have long legs, and again, as my other answer above, drove new gamepass sales and kept people on gamepass. Without it you would likely see millions less subs.
And again, generally well reviewed and received by gamers. GAF is not the benchmark for success. An 83 metascore and 69 user score is not a soggy turd at all.
 
Top Bottom