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[ShaiKhulud1989]

The PS3 had pulled ahead and solidly put the X360 in third place.

PS3 was always ahead everywhere but the US. Even piracy-prone countries ended up with PS3 dominance partly because PS3 piracy was so much easier at some point.

It's the huge lead in US that pulled 360 so close to PS3 globally. The lead that Xbox totally destroyed in two short years of XBO. Terrific, really.

 

[Rocco Schiavone]

Strange to hear something like that from those who paid $7.5 billion for Bethesda to release their games exclusively on their platform.

 

[Three]

Whenever Xbox is in trouble, somehow the entire industry is in trouble.

The industry isn't exactly doing great but not doing great is still enough for PS5 and Nintendo to keep their games exclusive to 1 console. For now it's only xbox that's crossed that threshold where they need the sales from other consoles because it's selling so poorly.

 

[Zadom]

Thats your fault lmao.

I started my kid on my 3ds playing zelda link between worlds. took him a year to get it and make progress. by the time he was six, he was able to beat some dungeons. Got him a switch and raised him on Mario, Luigi and more zelda games. When he went to trash like minecraft and robolox a couple of years later, he just didnt find them fulfilling enough. Now he plays robolox with his friends to socialize every now and then but would rather play street fighter, spiderman, botw, totk, and other AAA games.

apparently all his friends are playing fortnite too but im not letting him play that trash. you control the trash they play.

No way. I try to get my son to play any PlayStation game he wants, I bought him a Nintendo Switch and tons of games, and he only wants to play Roblox. Kids are there own person not clones of their parents. I hate Roblox but he likes it. I have enough respect to allow him to have his own opinions.

 

[clarky]

This. /thread seriously.

GTAVI will be the BIGGEST entertainment product of all time. It'll sell considerably more than GTAV did in about half the time.

The sheer amount of consoles that will sell... PS5 + PS5 Pro; 2025 will be the biggest revenue year for gaming and PlayStation by a landslide.

None of this matters when your profit margins are almost non-existent.

 

[DForce]

You conveniently left the OG Xbox out. I wonder why? Oh don't answer that, I know why, because the OG Xbox sold just around 24 million units for the entire generation, so it wouldn't fit your weak rhetoric.

You conveniently left out the fact that 360 absolutely demolished the OG Xbox sales and even bested the PS3 in the United States and after the dust settled, they were both neck and neck worldwide thanks to the 360's dominance in the US and the UK.

So what happened? We can all thank Don Mattrick for coming in with Xbox One and throwing that all in the garbage. DRM online only Xbox was the biggest fear in gamers, much more so in a world when digital and online checks weren't even a thing yet. Xbox One was basically a downward disaster that nearly caused the demise of Xbox. That downward momentum is basically why MS is just picking up the pieces with XBS. So it hasn't been ALL DECLINE for Xbox... LIES! Xbox started of with a pretty nice 2nd place outselling the GameCube slightly, not bad for a newcomer, then absolutely smacking it out the park with Xbox 360 only to mess it up with Xbox One and now XS is still feeling the effects, but as history has taught us, it can take more than a generation to bounce back.

Getting back to my original point though, it wasn't about comparing how well Xbox is doing vs Nintendo or PlayStation, but simply saying that EVERYONE is feeling the burn, or are you going to tell me that Sony just layed off 900 workers and closed studios because they are pure evil?

The only weak rhetoric is yours.

I can go into the 6th generation and STILL prove my point.

- The Dreamcast failed.
- The Gamecube was one of the worst-selling consoles from Nintendo.
- Xbox was the first console from Xbox and sold more than the GameCube.
- The PlayStation 2 was the only successful console.


I started with the 7th gen to show that Xbox is the only console that has seen dangerous declines.

- Nintendo saw massive consoles with the Wii and then it declined and picked up again with the Nintendo Switch.
- Microsoft saw a massive boost with the 360, but the Xbox One console saw a massive decline and that's continuing with the Xbox Series X|S
- Sony saw a massive decline in PS3 sales but picked up with the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 sales are going strong.

You're trying to paint this narrative that they're all going through similar problems when they're not. Microsoft is the only one out of the 3 that's seeing a massive decline that could hurt their division dramatically, which isn't the same for Sony and Nintendo. Microsoft is the only platform holder that's putting their games on rival platforms because they're desperate for growth. And don't use MLB and Destiny as proof since Sony could only renew the contract with MLB if that agreed to put games on other platforms and Bungie is independent under Sony.

Don't use "Sony and Nintendo too." when their problems are not even the same.

People have pointing out Microsoft's problems for years and Xbox fans have been in denial ever since.

 

[rapid32.5]

Risky business buying companies that produced zero games in four years.
The level of incompetence at MS is astonishing. They think they will go full Netflix on many platforms and it's success. Netflix is a passive entertainment and games aren't, you will still need compelling software to rent or buy software.

 

[Arsic]

I'm not going to lie, my kids dont play xbox or switch, they would rather jam out on their tablets, playing roblox or some other garbage ass game..

You have failed them.

You don’t let kids smoke crack and you don’t let them game Roblox on an iPad.

JK. Mine son does rails of Roblox too. Pathetic.

 

[damidu]

in today's episode of "phil says"
geez did this industry ever saw a bigger loser?! cant really think of anyone

 

[InterMusketeer]

I won't pretend to be an expert on business, but it's really weird to me that we can have years of unprecedented growth, lots of revenue, money getting thrown around to buy studios, publishers, IP, in an industry that is bigger than music and cinema combined and then when there's one year of stagnation/shrinking immediately everyone goes into panic mode.

 

[CLW]

I mean when is ANYONE going to ask this clown how he has remained employed despite being DEAD LAST in a space where he has the most $ at his disposal

 

[T-0800]

None of this matters when your profit margins are almost non-existent.

The 30% Sony collect from GTA6 sales will be staggering.

Edit - Specner is a clown.

 

[SneakersSO]

This entire interview needs a thorough breakdown, but the most infuriating part of this entire interview is that Polygon's writer seems to have allowed the presumption of the console business 'not growing' to go unchallenged.

We can talk about growth in a variety of manners, but the truth of this whole situation boils down to this: the Xbox platform has not been growing, and hasn't been for longer than Phil cares to admit to. These talks about the industry facing growth issues only ring true when you consider the Xbox as a part of that. Sony and Nintendo are doing tremendously well right now, as is Steam, as are the major producers of videogames for the most part. Why the media allows Phil to state this without challenging him on the facts will always perplex me.

The gaming industry now is bigger than it literally has ever been, both in terms of users, profit, and revenue. More human beings do some form of videogaming now than at any other point in videogame industry history, and folks are spending more in gaming as well. The entire 'the industry isn't growing' discourse lives and dies by Xbox/Microsoft not being able to grow their audience, end of discussion.

 

[meech]

The idea of constant growth is such bullshit. There is a limit of individuals on the planet, hence a limited number of customers, current and potential. Even if they were the market leaders, they would eventually hit the max amount of units/services they can sell. So no, there cannot be "constant growth", be it Sony, Nintendo, or Microsoft. This is by far the most stupid fallacy of capitalism.

The limit?There are billions of people that can an will expand this market in the future, like in India and China.

 

[Varteras]

This entire interview needs a thorough breakdown, but the most infuriating part of this entire interview is that Polygon's writer seems to have allowed the presumption of the console business 'not growing' to go unchallenged.

We can talk about growth in a variety of manners, but the truth of this whole situation boils down to this: the Xbox platform has not been growing, and hasn't been for longer than Phil cares to admit to. These talks about the industry facing growth issues only ring true when you consider the Xbox as a part of that. Sony and Nintendo are doing tremendously well right now, as is Steam, as are the major producers of videogames for the most part. Why the media allows Phil to state this without challenging him on the facts will always perplex me.

The gaming industry now is bigger than it literally has ever been, both in terms of users, profit, and revenue. More human beings do some form of videogaming now than at any other point in videogame industry history, and folks are spending more in gaming as well. The entire 'the industry isn't growing' discourse lives and dies by Xbox/Microsoft not being able to grow their audience, end of discussion.

Jesus, thank you. I read this interview thinking it's a whole lot of words to avoid admitting that Xbox consistently failed to secure solid market share in the console space, and people more important than him got fed up.

 

[mitch1971]

I don't think Phil actually does interviews anymore. He just records himself mumbling in his sleep then sends the sound files to journos and asks them to 'make of that what you can.'

 

[SneakersSO]

Jesus, thank you. I read this interview thinking it's a whole lot of words to avoid admitting that Xbox consistently failed to secure solid market share in the console space, and people more important than him got fed up.

Its absolutely appalling that Microsoft wants to paint the larger industry as having, coincidentally, the same particular set of issues they seem to be the facing. I get it - he doesn't wanna get canned and all. This industry requires journalists to hold the feet of someone like Phil far closer to the fire though. They can't simply let these folks roll over on them like this.

Whats even worse is how the entire industry, not just Phil mind you, can't seem to decide what to do about Nintendo in this larger talk. Yes, the PS4/Switch generation did see growth coming from the 360/Wii/PS3 generation. Sure, Phil wants to make the correct argument that that growth was in significant part fueled by users leaving Xbox and going over to PS (and PC, increasingly), but new users were coming in. Heck, they themselves back in 2022 were touting numbers about some significant % of XSS users were brand new users to their ecosystem. Sony said a very similar thing bout some significant % of PS5 users were brand new to console gaming back in 2022 as well, then Sony went on to sell even more consoles in each subsequent year (so far) after that, while Xbox sales cratered.

How come journalists don't go into these interviews armed with the fiscal reality this industry is living in? Sure, I get going after Geoff Keighley for not mentioning the historic layoffs at the TGAs last year, but Phil has done at least 3 interviews now with gaming media folks, and to say that hes been treated with kids gloves would honestly be underselling it, given that Phil is essentially going on an 'apology/excuse tour' as to why he had to kill exclusives at XGS. If you care about the folks being laid off and you cover this industry, you should know about the financial aspect of this industry and how the significant metrics for it are going in. If an industry is a collection of folks operating within a market, a body if you will, then the money is the literal blood of it. Every 3 months, the entire industry is forced to spill the beans on how they are doing, and yet none of the folks covering the media side of it care to talk to execs about it. I've legit seen CNBC go after Spencer harder than these folks who are actually in the industry are.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

The size of the pie isn’t increasing.

...for xbox

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

How come journalists don't go into these interviews armed with the fiscal reality this industry is living in?

they are access media. these interviews are just PR circus for what's next.

 

[ShaiKhulud1989]

Its absolutely appalling that Microsoft wants to paint the larger industry as having, coincidentally, the same particular set of issues they seem to be the facing. I get it - he doesn't wanna get canned and all. This industry requires journalists to hold the feet of someone like Phil far closer to the fire though. They can't simply let these folks roll over on them like this.

Whats even worse is how the entire industry, not just Phil mind you, can't seem to decide what to do about Nintendo in this larger talk. Yes, the PS4/Switch generation did see growth coming from the 360/Wii/PS3 generation. Sure, Phil wants to make the correct argument that that growth was in significant part fueled by users leaving Xbox and going over to PS (and PC, increasingly), but new users were coming in. Heck, they themselves back in 2022 were touting numbers about some significant % of XSS users were brand new users to their ecosystem. Sony said a very similar thing bout some significant % of PS5 users were brand new to console gaming back in 2022 as well, then Sony went on to sell even more consoles in each subsequent year (so far) after that, while Xbox sales cratered.

How come journalists don't go into these interviews armed with the fiscal reality this industry is living in? Sure, I get going after Geoff Keighley for not mentioning the historic layoffs at the TGAs last year, but Phil has done at least 3 interviews now with gaming media folks, and to say that hes been treated with kids gloves would honestly be underselling it, given that Phil is essentially going on an 'apology/excuse tour' as to why he had to kill exclusives at XGS. If you care about the folks being laid off and you cover this industry, you should know about the financial aspect of this industry and how the significant metrics for it are going in. If an industry is a collection of folks operating within a market, a body if you will, then the money is the literal blood of it. Every 3 months, the entire industry is forced to spill the beans on how they are doing, and yet none of the folks covering the media side of it care to talk to execs about it. I've legit seen CNBC go after Spencer harder than these folks who are actually in the industry are.

Polygon was created around the documentary called Press Reset that was directly bankrolled by MS: $750,000 in sponsorship. So Polygon guy is not doing journalism, he's here to spread the PR message.

 

[Feel Like I'm On 42]

Thats your fault lmao.

I started my kid on my 3ds playing zelda link between worlds. took him a year to get it and make progress. by the time he was six, he was able to beat some dungeons. Got him a switch and raised him on Mario, Luigi and more zelda games. When he went to trash like minecraft and robolox a couple of years later, he just didnt find them fulfilling enough. Now he plays robolox with his friends to socialize every now and then but would rather play street fighter, spiderman, botw, totk, and other AAA games.

apparently all his friends are playing fortnite too but im not letting him play that trash. you control the trash they play.

Your kid will forever have good taste in games as a result

 

[Gojiira]

Fill Spender can say whatever he wants, but its only Xbox abd Xbox adjacent outlets,influencers and idiots pushing this narrative…
Meanwhile Nintendo and Playstation are posting profits and a healthy amount of high quality exclusives, and thats the keyword ‘High Quality’, something Xbox needs to learn instead of pushing Xbox Handheld and whatever other crap Fill has on his mind this month…

 

[Yekshemesh]

Xbox isn’t trying.

In this interview itself, Phil has said they want to grow with industry, not at expense of others.

How can anyone actually belives that shit. What's a harsher word for gullible? A sucker, that's what you are.

 

[lh032]

lol phil is doing damage control before more games comes to PS.

 

[graywolf323]

Spencer was the corporate vice-president of Microsoft Studios under Mattrick (2009-2014)

People just thought he came out of nowhere...

LOL

he’s also became the head of Xbox Game Studios in 2008, when people talk about the downfall of Xbox’s first party you’d think they’re recognize it happened entirely under Phil’s leadership… but somehow nothing is ever his fault to the evangelists on here

 

[Kokoloko85]

Talk about a collective narrative... MS and its shills need to stfu about this.

Playstation and Nintendo exclusives have been selling just fine.
The quicker these clowns are out of the console and platform industry the better

 

[Humdinger]

And for Spencer, the path forward is to abandon assumptions about exclusivity and attract new customers who have cooled on the console experience.

On Xbox.

“We’re a business. I’ve said over and over. I don’t get any luxury of not having to run a profitable growing business inside of Microsoft. And we are that today.

As long as you keep the 80 billion+ off the budget line.

Spencer continually returned to the idea of exclusivity. This year, Xbox Game Studios Publishing has begun porting more and more former exclusives to other consoles, like Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 5. For Spencer, this is a way to bring more players (and sales) to old games, but it’s also a way to break some old industry habits, like exclusivity, that may be responsible for the stagnation of the console market.

Phil the Innovator!

Sarcasm aside, though, it's interesting to see him "continually returning to the idea of exclusivity." It's not an interviewer prompt, it is something Phil wants to explain. Here comes the PR, prior to the larger moves we suspect are coming (i.e., porting big, recent AAA games like Indiana Jones or Starfield to other consoles).

“I know sometimes things get weaponized, that there’s some evil in the background that’s making us do things — ‘Phil hates exclusives and that’s why we’re like PlayStation and Switch now.’

No one says that, Phil. Can't you acknowledge what people really say -- "Phil is inept at producing high-quality AAA exclusives that draw people to his platform"? Instead it's a strawman.

Every decision we make is to make Xbox stronger in the long run.

Xbox as a play-anywhere service, yes. Not Xbox as a console.

For Spencer, moving toward the future is about walking — in some part — away from exclusivity.

Cool. Walk faster.

 

[Sgt.Asher]

TLDR: I don't know what I'm doing.

 

[Jimmy_liv]

Correction: exclusives have become risky for Xbox because their brand has devalued them by putting them on a subscription service that has not grown and on a console that they give you very little reason to own....

Bingo

 

[ZehDon]

...for xbox

Eating your competitors market share and pretending its industry growth is harmful in the long run. Nintendo moved out into the non-core gamers with the Wii. That was the last time we really saw a proper console industry expansion - and even that wasn't huge. It seems we've hit a ceiling in the console space. However, development just continues to grow more expensive. When Sony is dropping USD$200 on TLOU2 and then USD$300m on Spider-man 2, they've hit bubble-levels of unsustainability where everything needs to sell 10+ million copies just to break even. There's only so much customer money to go around. What happens next-gen when games cost USD$400m to make?

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Eating your competitors market share and pretending its industry growth is harmful in the long run. Nintendo moved out into the non-core gamers with the Wii. That was the last time we really saw a proper console industry expansion - and even that wasn't huge. It seems we've hit a ceiling in the console space. However, development just continues to grow more expensive. When Sony is dropping USD$200 on TLOU2 and then USD$300m on Spider-man 2, they've hit bubble-levels of unsustainability where everything needs to sell 10+ million copies just to break even. There's only so much customer money to go around. What happens next-gen when games cost USD$400m to make?

thats what I had speculated many times now, it seems it's a reality:

"the console business can't sustain this many consoles"

The only reason Xbox has been a thing is because of MS's deep pockets; Xbox One shouldn't have even existed in the first place

MS's attempt to gain market share in a saturated market has ultimately hurt the console space

 

[ByWatterson]

None of this matters when your profit margins are almost non-existent.

Dude when Sony is getting 30% of $2B instantly, that's not gonna be a small profit margin for that year.

 

[ByWatterson]

The limit?There are billions of people that can an will expand this market in the future, like in India and China.

Little discussed but of much importance is India's rapid and dramatic escape from multidimensional poverty. It is becoming so much less poor so fast, it makes post-Mao China look like a tortoise.

https://www.reuters.com/world/india/one-tenth-indias-population-escaped-poverty-5-years-government-report-2023-07-17/

 

[ReBurn]

Dude when Sony is getting 30% of $2B instantly, that's not gonna be a small profit margin for that year.

Would Sony get 30% of the physical sales of GTA VI? Not all of the revenue is going to be subject to the PS store tax.

 

[ByWatterson]

Would Sony get 30% of the physical sales of GTA VI? Not all of the revenue is going to be subject to the PS store tax.

They get 30% of every sale. All sales.

I guess they'll miss out on Xbox sales revenue, but....come on.

 

[ReBurn]

They get 30% of every sale. All sales.

Interesting. I thought I read somewhere that the platform holder gets like 15% of a physical copy as a license fee.

 

[ByWatterson]

Interesting. I thought I read somewhere that the platform holder gets like 15% of a physical copy as a license fee.

That'd be news to me.

Now, certain games get special deals with lower fees, and Rockstar certainly would be in the position to negotiate one. But aside from that, Sony is in a position to make hundreds of millions for no extra work or investment at all.

 

[Mibu no ookami]

This weird notion kids don't want consoles makes no sense to me specially considering most people i hear on multiplayer games.

That's Jez's narrative now?

Video games consoles overall was always something niche when compared to mobile phones, etc...this isn't new.

Kids are getting cell phones at a younger age now. They can play games like Fortnite and Roblox on their cellphone.

These kids don't care as much about great gameplay or even graphics. They watch youtube and tiktok videos instead of tv and movies.

Gaming should be growing pretty steadily generation to generation. People who are in their 40s and 50s grew up gaming. You couldn't say that 10-20 years ago and yet the console market isn't really growing and its because this new generation of kids aren't as engaged in it. That could always change, but that's what we're looking at right now.

This is why Microsoft thought they could attract them into a subscription model rather than B2P. They love their F2P gaming, they use subscription streaming services.

Game companies have to evolve, but I hope that they don't forget who pays for so much of the industry, and its still older generations.

 

[Mibu no ookami]

None of this matters when your profit margins are almost non-existent.

You need to explore the Why in sony's slim margins.

We know of the hardware costs, but what we don't know much of is their R&D costs whether that is hardware or software R&D. Investments and acquisitions.

It's not unfeasible that Sony can turn their revenues into extremely large operating profits, but I think they recognize that the industry is in a unique time and in this transition it is easy to get left behind. That's why they're still doing VR and that's why they're doing AI, and that's why they're getting their hands into a lot of different pots.

 

[Physiognomonics]

The problem for them is that people are still buying mainly... good games. Lately Western developers have being doing shit or mediocre games people are not interested in. People want games, not interactive movies trying to convert them to the latest state sponsored stinking ideology.

Japan (or even chinese / indies) industry have no problem selling their games currently. I wonder why. They are trying to make compelling games that could relate to anybody.

 

[Mibu no ookami]

No way. I try to get my son to play any PlayStation game he wants, I bought him a Nintendo Switch and tons of games, and he only wants to play Roblox. Kids are there own person not clones of their parents. I hate Roblox but he likes it. I have enough respect to allow him to have his own opinions.

My nephew is obsessed with Spider-Man. Saw Into the Spider-Verse 6 times in the theater. He beat Miles Morales in like a week. I bought him Spider-Man 2 for Christmas and he hasn't played beyond the intro fight with Sandman. He got a gaming PC and all he does is play Rocket League at 120 fps on it.

He had a friend over the other day and they played the PS5, but only to play It Takes Two.

I'm not sure how interested he is in playing any single player games at this point.

 

[ZehDon]

thats what I had speculated many times now, it seems it's a reality:

"the console business can't sustain this many consoles"

The only reason Xbox has been a thing is because of MS's deep pockets; Xbox One shouldn't have even existed in the first place

MS's attempt to gain market share in a saturated market has ultimately hurt the console space

"This many consoles"... being two?

When Microsoft entered the fray, console gaming was growing. As I said, the Wii was the last time we saw that growth, but up until then, console sales continued to expand with each generation. There was a time when four primary consoles on the market was just fine. So, before launch, there was nothing to indicate the Xbox One "shouldn't have even existed". That's a silly statement: it made perfect sense for Microsoft to continue in the console space - the industry was happily supporting the PS3 and Xbox 360, with the Wii a side consideration. The issue is that the industry hit a ceiling but continued to ramp up expenditures anyway. It seems there's only so many people who want an expensive box under their TVs to play games, but the infinite growth requirements for publically traded companies mean they need to extract more money from the same people anyway. So, the platforms cannibalised one another's marketshare, ramped up microtransactions, increased prices, and other dubious practices, all to force the illusion of growth. And sure, revenues are up, but at the end of the day, the generational console sales aren't growing. And if your business is console gaming, that's a problem when development costs double and triple. Xbox is trying to find a way through the ceiling the industry seems to have hit without dumping everything into live service loot boxes. Good decisions or not, that's what they're trying to do.

 

[Kumomeme]

he really try hard to validate his stance. what a stubborn. welp maybe his position is on the line so desperate time call for desperate measure.

ahh right, the news about Xbox sales are flatlining at certain region are out now so he must 'balance' out the reception lmao. blame the exclusives!

 

[ReBurn]

That'd be news to me.

Now, certain games get special deals with lower fees, and Rockstar certainly would be in the position to negotiate one. But aside from that, Sony is in a position to make hundreds of millions for no extra work or investment at all.

I know that Sony gets royalties for physical games on their platform, but the different articles I read over the years said that those tend to be between 15% and 20%. The ones that I saw kicked around on reddit when I still went there were these:

Why Gears Of War Costs $60

Videogames are more expensive than ever. Yet publishers aren't getting rich--yet.

www.forbes.com

A Dirty Little Secret Of The Game Industry: Royalties

Many game studios develop games for publishers through an early stage development agreement: the studio pitches a publisher on a game that it wants to make and if the publisher greenlights the deal…

davidmullich.com

Price Breakdown Of A $70 Video Game: Digital Vs Physical – Kantan Games Inc. CEO Blog – From Tokyo, Japan

www.serkantoto.com

Any or all of them could be wrong. But I never saw any articles with the physical cut being as high as 30% for the platform, but that doesn't mean it isn't in some cases. If anyone has a shot at getting better rates out of Sony it would be Rockstar.

 

[solidus12]

Blaming Gen Z for Xbox’ failures instead of bad management and lack of quality games is not something I was expecting.

 

[Matsuchezz]

Not a bad interview. He’s right about everything he’s saying about growth.

It does seem like he’s kinda desperate for Sony to go multiplat tho, or at least day & date with PC. They might have no other choice in the end as the growth isn’t there. The size of the pie isn’t increasing.

Trump = Uncle Phil

 

[SneakersSO]

Would Sony get 30% of the physical sales of GTA VI? Not all of the revenue is going to be subject to the PS store tax.

Platform holders get a 30% cut even if its a physical piece of media that is sold. This isn't just digital store fronts. So yes, Sony gets a 30% cut of every copy of every game not published by them that is sold for their platform.

 

[The Pleasure]

I'm not going to lie, my kids dont play xbox or switch, they would rather jam out on their tablets, playing roblox or some other garbage ass game..

 

[T-0800]

Its absolutely appalling that Microsoft wants to paint the larger industry as having, coincidentally, the same particular set of issues they seem to be the facing. I get it - he doesn't wanna get canned and all. This industry requires journalists to hold the feet of someone like Phil far closer to the fire though. They can't simply let these folks roll over on them like this.

Whats even worse is how the entire industry, not just Phil mind you, can't seem to decide what to do about Nintendo in this larger talk. Yes, the PS4/Switch generation did see growth coming from the 360/Wii/PS3 generation. Sure, Phil wants to make the correct argument that that growth was in significant part fueled by users leaving Xbox and going over to PS (and PC, increasingly), but new users were coming in. Heck, they themselves back in 2022 were touting numbers about some significant % of XSS users were brand new users to their ecosystem. Sony said a very similar thing bout some significant % of PS5 users were brand new to console gaming back in 2022 as well, then Sony went on to sell even more consoles in each subsequent year (so far) after that, while Xbox sales cratered.

How come journalists don't go into these interviews armed with the fiscal reality this industry is living in? Sure, I get going after Geoff Keighley for not mentioning the historic layoffs at the TGAs last year, but Phil has done at least 3 interviews now with gaming media folks, and to say that hes been treated with kids gloves would honestly be underselling it, given that Phil is essentially going on an 'apology/excuse tour' as to why he had to kill exclusives at XGS. If you care about the folks being laid off and you cover this industry, you should know about the financial aspect of this industry and how the significant metrics for it are going in. If an industry is a collection of folks operating within a market, a body if you will, then the money is the literal blood of it. Every 3 months, the entire industry is forced to spill the beans on how they are doing, and yet none of the folks covering the media side of it care to talk to execs about it. I've legit seen CNBC go after Spencer harder than these folks who are actually in the industry are.

It is simply because there is no such thing as gaming journalism.

 

[Astray]

Its absolutely appalling that Microsoft wants to paint the larger industry as having, coincidentally, the same particular set of issues they seem to be the facing. I get it - he doesn't wanna get canned and all. This industry requires journalists to hold the feet of someone like Phil far closer to the fire though. They can't simply let these folks roll over on them like this.

Whats even worse is how the entire industry, not just Phil mind you, can't seem to decide what to do about Nintendo in this larger talk. Yes, the PS4/Switch generation did see growth coming from the 360/Wii/PS3 generation. Sure, Phil wants to make the correct argument that that growth was in significant part fueled by users leaving Xbox and going over to PS (and PC, increasingly), but new users were coming in. Heck, they themselves back in 2022 were touting numbers about some significant % of XSS users were brand new users to their ecosystem. Sony said a very similar thing bout some significant % of PS5 users were brand new to console gaming back in 2022 as well, then Sony went on to sell even more consoles in each subsequent year (so far) after that, while Xbox sales cratered.

How come journalists don't go into these interviews armed with the fiscal reality this industry is living in? Sure, I get going after Geoff Keighley for not mentioning the historic layoffs at the TGAs last year, but Phil has done at least 3 interviews now with gaming media folks, and to say that hes been treated with kids gloves would honestly be underselling it, given that Phil is essentially going on an 'apology/excuse tour' as to why he had to kill exclusives at XGS. If you care about the folks being laid off and you cover this industry, you should know about the financial aspect of this industry and how the significant metrics for it are going in. If an industry is a collection of folks operating within a market, a body if you will, then the money is the literal blood of it. Every 3 months, the entire industry is forced to spill the beans on how they are doing, and yet none of the folks covering the media side of it care to talk to execs about it. I've legit seen CNBC go after Spencer harder than these folks who are actually in the industry are.

It is simply because there is no such thing as gaming journalism.

This is the same games media industry that watched Microsoft not disclose its profit/loss figures for over a decade now and just kept on trucking with no actual questioning.. %25 of the dedicated system market went completely dark on them with no actual reaction.

There's a lot to be said about why the games media is in the state it is, and sadly a lot of it has its origins in the industry's roots as PR vehicles that exist to create filler hype content in between advertisements for various games (this is also why most "bad" games get 7s and 6s instead of 2s and 3s). The internet kinda killed the advertising market, which made it now so the average gaming journalist's absolute dream is to go work at a Sony or MS studio as a PR person or writer or something.

Would any of us put Phil in the hot seat knowing that maybe he's their next boss's boss? Probably not.

Compare this to the movie industry, where we get far more info on which movies made money and which didn't, it's getting worse now that streaming is a thing (Netflix is notorious for keeping its data private), but generally you know pretty quick what's happening to any studio or production outfit in Hollywood.