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[Banjo64]

Going by this forum, this is exactly what people want Microsoft to be doing? So there shouldn't be a problem right?

If both MS and Sony stop doing it then it's a fair playing field and all is well, I suppose. But, we all know that ain't going to happen.

We have seen this quite a bit with these game pass deals, I imagine it's part of the terms for paying a big chungus to put it on the service for its users to play.

Not at all.

You have read it yourself in the acquisition thread, people have used PlayStation buying timed exclusivity as an excuse for Microsoft to be able to buy who they want.

The argument always comes back that Microsoft are engaged in the exact same thing but ‘people’ always come back with horse shit like ‘the last time they did that was Tomb Raider hur dur and look what happened’.

 

[Sony]

What? It's not like Xbox is beta-testing a pile of junk, Valheim is in a completely fine and playable state for a long time now.

It doesn't have achievements and we have people in this very thread bitchting about its graphics and how it's only 1080p 60fps/ how bad the performance is on Series X.
There's plenty room for improvement.

 

[Goalus]

I don't really understand why you're comparing multiplayer player counts to late playstation ports. but ok.

The narrative coming from the likes of you is usually that single player games are better than multiplayer games, and that Playstation 1st party games are better than the other games. It looks like this is pure fan fiction. Cyberpunk is also a single player game by the way.

 

[Party McHardy]

6 months is nice but I wanted to play this yesterday.

 

[Damigos]

Meh. Starfield I'm jelly. Valheim? Meh you can have it.

Meh.

 

[Three]

The narrative coming from the likes of you is usually that single player games are better than multiplayer games, and that Playstation 1st party games are better than the other games. It looks like this is pure fan fiction. Cyberpunk is also a single player game by the way.

Not sure that helps your case. Cyberpunk has lower concurrent users than this multiplayer indie game too and that's a more recent day one release on steam.

 

[Heisenberg007]

Why would it? It's a 6 month Early Access beta on a platform that does better in those types of indie situations. A better version will come to playstation in 6 months.

Where's the controversy in that..?

Xbox paying money to keep a game off of PlayStation for 6 months, while complaining about PS timed exclusivity deals and chanting, "when everyone plays, we all win" and "gaming is for everyone."

 

[Roberts]

Gotta love the framing here. It's 6 months Early Access. The game is labeled as 'Preview' and lacks achievements.

It's basically a 6 month beta with the full patched release coming to PS in 6 months.

Yeah, I was about to say that. It is not the first time, we, green rats get to test an ea game before others. Move along, nothing to see here.

The game is fine, btw. Very pretty in motion, but I’m still playing Grounded and as a survival game it is so much richer and rewarding.

 

[Topher]

Gotta love the framing here. It's 6 months Early Access. The game is labeled as 'Preview' and lacks achievements.

It's basically a 6 month beta with the full patched release coming to PS in 6 months.

The "framing" is coming directly from Microsoft, dude.

 

[cireza]

Take this, Final Fantasy XVI !

 

[Sony]

Xbox paying money to keep a game off of PlayStation for 6 months, while complaining about PS timed exclusivity deals and chanting, "when everyone plays, we all win" and "gaming is for everyone."

There have been plenty of consoles exclusives on Series to debunk Phil's statements. It's this specific example of a Early Access game which will launch in 6 months on PlayStation that's odd to me. Like, out of all things to call out, this is controversial? Xbox must be doing pretty good if this is the hill you want to die on xD.

 

[Banjo64]

There have been plenty of consoles exclusives on Series to debunk Phil's statements. It's this specific example of an Early Access game which will launch in 6 months on PlayStation that's odd to me. Like, out of all things to call out, this is controversial? Xbox must be doing pretty good if this is the hill you want to die on xD.

I think you think that by calling it Early Access it makes the game appear tiny or irrelevant?

The game has a peak concurrent Steam player count of over 500,000.

That figure dwarfs any first party Xbox or PS game on Steam.

The game is hugely popular. That’s why Microsoft have paid for timed exclusivity. Not so their player base can act as beta testers.

 

[Chukhopops]

Gotta love the framing here. It's 6 months Early Access. The game is labeled as 'Preview' and lacks achievements.

It's basically a 6 month beta with the full patched release coming to PS in 6 months.

Bullshit - the game is still flagged as early access on Steam today, and nothing indicates there will be a full release in 6 months. In fact the dev itself says (about how long the EA will be):

We don’t know. We’re currently working on our seventh biome, the Ashlands, and after that we have one more to complete (the Deep North) before we’ll consider the game to be version 1.0. It’s a pretty safe bet to say that Valheim will be in active development for at least another two years (counting from January 2023).

It’s just how those games work, they have long EA phases because they are produced by small teams.

 

[Edgelord79]

The humanity.

 

[M1chl]

Hey MS, throw your money towards development of actual games, FFS

 

[Chukhopops]

Is graphical fidelity the ultimate metric of quality to you people?

Shouldn't your thought process after checking out some footage be:
"Hm. This game definitely isn't popular because of its graphics -> There must be something else about it that's really good/unique -> I should ask the people that like it what that might be"

Have you never enjoyed a game that wasn't pushing your (I assume) console to the limit before? Or enjoyed a game you didn't think you would from looking at a glance?
Do you think minecraft isn't a really good game and everyone is just pretending?
I genuinely want to know

It was the same with Vampire Survivors, there were dozens of posts akin to « How can game GOOD if graphics NOT GOOD? » Ironically the PC audience seems to be the best at looking past the surface to identify fun.

At least the success of those games proves there is still hope for a future where not only graphics matter. Innovation hasn’t come from the AAA space for years now.

 

[Heisenberg007]

There have been plenty of consoles exclusives on Series to debunk Phil's statements. It's this specific example of a Early Access game which will launch in 6 months on PlayStation that's odd to me. Like, out of all things to call out, this is controversial? Xbox must be doing pretty good if this is the hill you want to die on xD.

What does "early access" have anything to do with it? Did MS pay money to block a PlayStation release or not? That's the discussion and all that matters.

Games like these remain in "early access" forever. This game is 2 years old and is still in "early access."

 

[Mr Reasonable]

Xbox paying money to keep a game off of PlayStation for 6 months, while complaining about PS timed exclusivity deals and chanting, "when everyone plays, we all win" and "gaming is for everyone."

Xbox funding testing and bug squashing of console version in exchange for relatively short window of early access is another view.

 

[Heisenberg007]

Xbox funding testing and bug squashing of console version in exchange for relatively short window of early access is another view.

Xbox paid money so only their console users can exclusively bug test the game?

"6-month bug testing exclusivity"

 

[Snake29]

Paid excusivity is always shit and i hate it, but better 6 months than 2 years or unlimited.

Xbox ARK 2, 2 year timed exclusive says hi!

But the media won’t make a point about it, because it’s MS.

 

[Team Andromeda]

This exclusivity shit is getting tiring. Games and their audiences shouldn't be sacrificed/split up for the survival of consoles.

It always been done in gaming.I don't get the outcry myself

 

[DenchDeckard]

Using your own logic.

Going by this forum and even your own posts this is exactly what MS apparently doesn’t do and Sony shouldn't do.

Now it's OK for you and you're simultaneously claiming this is a big get too. Make up your mind.

Not at all.

You have read it yourself in the acquisition thread, people have used PlayStation buying timed exclusivity as an excuse for Microsoft to be able to buy who they want.

The argument always comes back that Microsoft are engaged in the exact same thing but ‘people’ always come back with horse shit like ‘the last time they did that was Tomb Raider hur dur and look what happened’.

So, where are we at with all this. Should Microsoft be doing deals to bolster their gamepass service, buying studios or both or what?

Microsoft are doing exactly the same thing as Sony, they both need to stop it. Will that happen, doubt it.

So, What should Microsoft be doing to compete with Sony?

Also, T Three where have i said this is a big get?

It's not OK to me at all, it's the business and what I have read on here what people want MS to do. hundreds of posts saying Microsoft should use their money to secure deals for Gamepass games. So, what are they doing here?

 

[Thebonehead]

Coffee Stain Studios and Iron Gate Studio’s Valheim is a timed console exclusive on Xbox for the duration of 6 months, and it is, therefore, planned for release on PlayStation later on.

According to an email sent out by Microsoft to Xbox Game Pass subscribers on the occasion of the launch of Valheim on its platform, the game is a timed console exclusive for the duration of 6 months, suggesting that it will arrive on PlayStation later on. A screenshot from said email can be seen below.

Towards the bottom of the email, it is explicitly stated that Xbox console exclusivity will extend for a limited time of six months. This opens the window for a PS4 and PS5 launch once the 6 month exclusivity window has expired.

Valheim is a survival and sandbox video game by the Swedish developer Iron Gate Studio and published by Coffee Stain Studios. Early access was made available on 2 February 2021 for Linux and Windows users through Steam, and on 14 March 2023 for Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S users. The game was created by a five-person team, which built on Richard Svensson’s development work from a side project he had worked on in his free time. Valheim, hailed as a “rare exception” of a well-done early access game, has enjoyed critical and commercial success since its early access release. Over five million copies had been sold and it was one of the most popular games on Steam a month after its launch.

The game’s setting features a place where dead Vikings go to establish their suitability for the halls of Valhalla. As such, the player starts out without anything and quickly learns that in order to enter the Norse afterlife, they must vanquish the evils that prowl Valheim. They gear up to battle Odin’s sworn enemies, guided only by their instincts and sporadic cues from a raven.

Valheim Is 6 Months Timed Xbox Console Exclusive, Will Come To PlayStation Later

Valheim is a timed console exclusive on Xbox for the duration of 6 months, and it is, therefore, planned for release on PlayStation later on.

twistedvoxel.com

I'm settling down to read this and am looking forward to hot takes, ranting, and mis-attributed Phil Spencer quotes.

Let's see how this pans out

 

[Punished Miku]

Phil Spencer just promised he was going to shut down Xbox and use his salary to buy poor kids PS5s. This directly contradicts what he said.

 

[Topher]

So, where are we at with all this. Should Microsoft be doing deals to bolster their gamepass service, buying studios or both or what?

Microsoft are doing exactly the same thing as Sony, they both need to stop it. Will that happen, doubt it.

So, What should Microsoft be doing to compete with Sony?

Also, T Three where have i said this is a big get?

It's not OK to me at all, it's the business and what I have read on here what people want MS to do. hundreds of posts saying Microsoft should use their money to secure deals for Gamepass games. So, what are they doing here?

Where are these "hundreds of posts" saying Microsoft should use their money for timed exclusives?

 

[DenchDeckard]

Where are these "hundreds of posts" saying Microsoft should use their money for timed exclusives?

I am sure there are users in the ABK thread saying that Microsoft should go out and secure third party exclusivity deals to improve their service and platform...is this not what is being said?

 

[Punished Miku]

I am sure there are users in the ABK thread saying that Microsoft should go out and secure third party exclusivity deals to improve their service and platform...is this not what is being said?

Some free advice, just ignore this thread.

 

[Topher]

I am sure there are users in the ABK thread saying that Microsoft should go out and secure third party exclusivity deals to improve their service and platform...is this not what is being said?

The narrative that I recall is that paying to keep games off of other platforms or services is a horrible practice.

 

[nemiroff]

Is graphical fidelity the ultimate metric of quality to you people?

Shouldn't your thought process after checking out some footage be:
"Hm. This game definitely isn't popular because of its graphics -> There must be something else about it that's really good/unique -> I should ask the people that like it what that might be"

Have you never enjoyed a game that wasn't pushing your (I assume) console to the limit before? Or enjoyed a game you didn't think you would from looking at a glance?
Do you think minecraft isn't a really good game and everyone is just pretending?
I genuinely want to know

Just wanted to add that I have a 4090 and I still love Valheim.. It's a great experience and doesn't feel like its hindered by its early access status. So I for one suspect most of those being "concerned" by its graphics have undertones of being defensive.

 

[Belthazar]

So it’s being portrayed as exclusive because it’s in the preview program. (that’s just because Sony doesn’t have the same program on PS)


The way I see it, is in 6 month PSN will get a finished port instead of a alpha/beta version.

Sony has an early access program tho, Temtem released on it and Wayfinder will too, later this year.

 

[Three]

So, where are we at with all this. Should Microsoft be doing deals to bolster their gamepass service, buying studios or both or what?

Microsoft are doing exactly the same thing as Sony, they both need to stop it. Will that happen, doubt it.

So, What should Microsoft be doing to compete with Sony?

Also, T Three where have i said this is a big get?

It's not OK to me at all, it's the business and what I have read on here what people want MS to do. hundreds of posts saying Microsoft should use their money to secure deals for Gamepass games. So, what are they doing here?

I personally think exclusivity deals aren't good in general but you need to drop the act of MS only doing these 'not OK' things in defense of others.

This isn't because Sony do it, MS have been doing it even before this, as has Sony, Sega, Nintendo. It's party of the industry and nobody is altruistic. MS isn't buying 2 huge publishers because of some new thing one party is doing that the other party doesn't like or hasn't participate in too.

You didn’t directly say anything. You replied to somebody with a gif agreeing with them. That persons post was saying it's a big get and a more popular game than Sony's own first party games. If that's not saying it's significant game they've got exclusivity on then my bad.

 

[Mr Reasonable]

Xbox paid money so only their console users can exclusively bug test the game?

"6-month bug testing exclusivity"

Are you expecting them to fund games for other systems?*

An indie Dev with (I assume) limited staff can get more done by focussing on one job at a time.

It's not like this is a AAA Dev with the manpower that comes along with this.

I honestly don't know what goes on in your head. You'll be screaming "gotcha!" When Microsoft don't release Forza on PlayStation next.

*Edit: that they won't benefit from

 

[Sony]

What does "early access" have anything to do with it? Did MS pay money to block a PlayStation release or not? That's the discussion and all that matters.

Games like these remain in "early access" forever. This game is 2 years old and is still in "early access."

So... let me get this straight... The discussion to you is about wether or not Microsoft paid for getting a 2 year old early access game into Xbox early with 6 month console exclusivity?
I guess if that's what you want to be discussing and others want to be outraged about, definitely be my guest .

 

[DenchDeckard]

The narrative that I recall is that paying to keep games off of other platforms or services is a horrible practice.

So, what do Microsoft do then to compete and improve their service?

Exclusives are horrible, I think we all agree on that, People should be able to play where they want....What do MS do to get gamers to buy an Xbox or sign up to Game pass when their biggest rival is doing these deals?

It sucks, but what do they do?

Valheim is like two years old at this point?

 

[mrmustard]

Xbox ARK 2, 2 year timed exclusive says hi!

But the media won’t make a point about it, because it’s MS.

My 'better 6 months than 2 years or unlimited' stands no matter who does it. It's shit anyways.

 

[Thebonehead]

Paid excusivity is always shit and i hate it, but better 6 months than 2 years or unlimited.

No-one is complaining about the 2 year exclusivity deal for Forspoken now ...................

................. After they got to see it, that is.

 

[Roxkis_ii]

I buy most of my games on sale anyhow, so I'm patient enough to not mind timed exclusives.

 

[BootsLoader]

This exclusivity shit is getting tiring. Games and their audiences shouldn't be sacrificed/split up for the survival of consoles.

This exclusivity shit is getting better and better. Gamers and their audiences should be sacrificed/split up for the survival of consoles.
/s

 

[Heisenberg007]

Are you expecting them to fund games for other systems?*

An indie Dev with (I assume) limited staff can get more done by focussing on one job at a time.

It's not like this is a AAA Dev with the manpower that comes along with this.

I honestly don't know what goes on in your head. You'll be screaming "gotcha!" When Microsoft don't release Forza on PlayStation next.

*Edit: that they won't benefit from

Oh come on. Are we seriously taking this angle? I thought your first post was a joke one, and that's how I responded.

This "indie" dev will be one of the richest indie studios. Valheim is a huge commercial success.

And no, Microsoft did not help this developer by volunteering bug QA on Xbox. This game has been in "early access" for 2 years. That's just what some games do. Fortnite was in early access for the longest time.

Valheim is a fully playable bug-free game with multiple expansions already released.

Microsoft is not helping a poor dev by providing bug-testing facilities on Xbox. They are paying money to get an extremely popular game on Xbox console and blocking it from coming to PlayStation for at least 6 months.

This is a simple timed-exclusivity money-hat deal. Nothing more; nothing less.

 

[Topher]

Are you expecting them to fund games for other systems?

An indie Dev with (I assume) limited staff can get more done by focussing on one job at a time.

It's not like this is a AAA Dev with the manpower that comes along with this.

I honestly don't know what goes on in your head. You'll be screaming "gotcha!" When Microsoft don't release Forza on PlayStation next.

This game is two years old on Steam and has sold 10 million copies. Microsoft isn't funding development. Microsoft is buying exclusivity.

So, what do Microsoft do then to compete and improve their service?

Exclusives are horrible, I think we all agree on that, People should be able to play where they want....What do MS do to get gamers to buy an Xbox or sign up to Game pass when their biggest rival is doing these deals?

It sucks, but what do they do?

Those same excuses work for Sony too then?

 

[Ar¢tos]

.

Yes there is, I’ve asked why games like Octopath Traveler and Tunic aren’t (weren’t) on PS and was met with smarmy shite.

The first Octopath Traveler is still not on PlayStation and it seems that it will never be.

 

[vaibhavpisal]

The narrative that I recall is that paying to keep games off of other platforms or services is a horrible practice.

It is.

If exclusivity is permanent.

Timed exclusive always come to all platforms. So it's fine.

 

[DenchDeckard]

Oh come on. Are we seriously taking this angle? I thought your first post was a joke one, and that's how I responded.

This "indie" dev will be one of the richest indie studios. Valheim is a huge commercial success.

And no, Microsoft did not help this developer by volunteering bug QA on Xbox. This game has been in "early access" for 2 years. That's just what some games do. Fortnite was in early access for the longest time.

Valheim is a fully playable bug-free game with multiple expansions already released.

Microsoft is not helping a poor dev by providing bug-testing facilities on Xbox. They are paying money to get an extremely popular game on Xbox console and blocking it from coming to PlayStation for at least 6 months.

This is a simple timed-exclusivity money-hat deal. Nothing more; nothing less.

Can I ask you directly, what do you want MS do to make their platform appealing. What do they do to go up against the following large third party exclusive deals with Key publishers?

Deathloop - Bethesda - 1yr
Ghost Wire Tokyo - Bethesda - 1yr
Forspoken - Square - 2 years
Final Fantasy XVI - Square 1/2 years?
Final Fantasy VII Remake - Square - TBD??
Hogwarts Legacy Exclusive Quest - 6 months? / 1 year?
Silent Hill 2 - Konami - Not sure timeframe on this one? 1 year / 2 ?

I may have missed some and I am sure more are coming.

What would you be happy with Microsoft doing?

 

[MarkMe2525]

[

Yes, they have early access. Even sold Dreams in early access themselves.

Ok, my PlayStation generally is not hooked up to Ethernet and almost all of my PS4 games are physical, so PlayStation store practices are a blindspot for me.

 

[Ozriel]

Xbox paying money to keep a game off of PlayStation for 6 months, while complaining about PS timed exclusivity deals and chanting, "when everyone plays, we all win" and "gaming is for everyone."

Pretty sure that’s about accessibility and inclusivity in gaming.

Hey MS, throw your money towards development of actual games, FFS

they aren’t funding their own studios with bananas.

I'm settling down to read this and am looking forward to hot takes, ranting, and mis-attributed Phil Spencer quotes.

Thread features all three.

 

[Thebonehead]

Pretty sure that’s about accessibility and inclusivity in gaming.



they aren’t funding their own studios with bananas.



“Spencer said we all win when everybody plays, so he has to make Xbox a third party software dev and put all their games on every console or he’s a liar”

Thread delivered alright and continues to do so.

Eddie-Griffin would be proud of you Topher for the amount of salt you are generating on all sides

 

[Team Andromeda]

So, where are we at with all this. Should Microsoft be doing deals to bolster their gamepass service, buying studios or both or what?

Microsoft are doing exactly the same thing as Sony, they both need to stop it. Will that happen, doubt it.

So, What should Microsoft be doing to compete with Sony?

Also, T Three where have i said this is a big get?

It's not OK to me at all, it's the business and what I have read on here what people want MS to do. hundreds of posts saying Microsoft should use their money to secure deals for Gamepass games. So, what are they doing here?

Why? MS main issue is the deals it does have been crap over the last couple of years. I love to see Team XBox use the money it's go to have Fromsoftware and SEGA make the odd exclusive, like it the good old OG XBox days.

 

[Topher]

Can I ask you directly, what do you want MS do to make their platform appealing. What do they do to go up against the following large third party exclusive deals with Key publishers?

Deathloop - Bethesda - 1yr
Ghost Wire Tokyo - Bethesda - 1yr
Forspoken - Square - 2 years
Final Fantasy XVI - Square 1/2 years?
Final Fantasy VII Remake - Square - TBD??
Hogwarts Legacy Exclusive Quest - 6 months? / 1 year?
Silent Hill 2 - Konami - Not sure timeframe on this one? 1 year / 2 ?

I may have missed some and I am sure more are coming.

What would you be happy with Microsoft doing?

What would you be happy with Sony doing? Those deals you listed are in order to make "their platform appealing". Right?

Thread delivered alright and continues to do so.

Eddie-Griffin would be proud of you Topher for the amount of salt you are generating on all sides

Metacommentary is usually the saltiest so thanks for doing your part.

 

[Thebonehead]

What would you be happy with Sony doing? Those deals you listed are in order to make "their platform appealing". Right?



Metacommentary is usually the saltiest so thanks for doing your part.

 

[DenchDeckard]

What would you be happy with Sony doing? Those deals you listed are in order to make "their platform appealing". Right?



Metacommentary is usually the saltiest so thanks for doing your part.

How can you turn that on me? hahaha

I would prefer if these didn't exist, I've literally posted it in this thread.

Microsoft hasn't secured those games as exclusive, Sony has....so we aren't living in that reality.

So, I ask again....what does microsoft do to compete with those exclusivity deals. If you could share your thoughts Topher as well that would be great.