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Xbox ‘didn’t deliver’ on 2022’s Showcase, but Phil Spencer is ‘enthusiastic’ about this year’s

Mr Reasonable

Completely Unreasonable
Anyone else feel like Activision acquisition was a "hail Mary" last ditch attempt? Like launching a nuke when you're losing.
Nope.

It's a profitable business. Whether it's first, second or third place, the fact that it's profitable dictates it's success.

Microsoft buying Activision to provide content for Gamepass and Xbox would have been a desperate move, but there's no way spending $70bn on Activision is the best way to do that. They could have bought a series of publishers and paid for exclusivity for Major titles for less money. There's no way Microsoft's board would have signed off on $70bn for Xbox alone.
 
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Bernardougf

Member
Really? I know it's cool and all to shit on Xbox on Gaf, but reality will Trump trolling.

You do know that MS owns 21 game studios? And you do know that these studios have around 28 separate teams working on individual games yeah? And you do know that Xbox Game Publishing is working with other AAA, AA and Indie studios to bring exclusive games to Xbox yeah?
And while it's fun to say xbox has no games, you do know these games are going to drop sooner rather than later?
Gamers are fickle, and things change quick. We saw this with MS going from champagne after HiFi to Shit after Redfall.
Maybe when these games start dropping, and PS players are getting their 5th GAAS game out of 12 dropped on their console, it might be a very different conversation.
You forgot gamepass "greatest deal in gaming" ... you dont get that 20% pr bonus if you dont say it... never forget!
 

Bernardougf

Member
Anyone else feel like Activision acquisition was a "hail Mary" last ditch attempt? Like launching a nuke when you're losing.
Its surely seems like it ... the usual will say no and that Everything is fine.Gif .... but it also could be their big first step in their plans for the future of the industry whatever that is since "great games are not the way" who the fuck knows what they want for us.. and thank god CMA stopped
 
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DragonNCM

Member
Todd Howard must be VERY stressful now.
nah he isn't......
sweating-nervous.gif
 

feynoob

Banned
These 3 years aren't any indication of Xbox future, considering their pipeline and their current studios.

If Xbox plays their cards carefully, they can turn the ship around.

The goal right now is to have steady quarters first, and not care about wining shit. Once they have that locked down, they can worry about the rest.

This showcase is highly important as it covers this year and next year. They need to hit the mark, otherwise it's will be a rocky road for them.
 

Mr.Phoenix

Member
Honestly, as someone who only has a PS5, I look at this lineup and I get quite excited. I feel like any one of Starfield, Fable, Hellblade 2, or Indiana Jones can sell me a Series X if they're good. Everwild looks intriguing too. It's kind of sad to see the Xbox brand going through a rough patch right now, but there's so much potential in these titles. Like even though that Redfall game looked like hot garbage (no offense) based on the videos I saw, I feel like the vibe they were going for was really interesting. Xbox has some good ideas, but so far the execution is lacking. Hopefully all the stinkers are out of their system now, and they can string together some hits soon.
Yup, true. But I think that is part of the problem. Some of the games in that ist were shown as much as 3-4 years ago. And only one has been released? And then look at the state it was released in.

I have never had a doubt that Xbox can show up interesting-looking stuff, my problem is now that I simply don't trust them. As Phil said (and probably the only thing he said I agree with), I will believe it when am playing the game myself.

These 3 years aren't any indication of Xbox future, considering their pipeline and their current studios.

If Xbox plays their cards carefully, they can turn the ship around.

The goal right now is to have steady quarters first, and not care about wining shit. Once they have that locked down, they can worry about the rest.

This showcase is highly important as it covers this year and next year. They need to hit the mark, otherwise it's will be a rocky road for them.
Every showcase... is important. And every time, it should be an indication of the future of the platform and what is to come.

The problem is that no matter what MS shows now, I won't trust it. As you said, the goal is to have steady quarters first. I feel that is more important than any showcase. let them show me that I can trust what they show and say.

I mean sony/nintendo is at a place where they show a game, and you aren't really worried. You know it's gonna meet a certain degree of polish and have high production values. And you know it's likely going to be at least an 80+ rated game. Can we really say the same about MS now?

But one thing MS is good at and has been good at doing, is making a flashy show with lots of promises and declarations. I do hope they get their shit together though... I am beginning to regret the whole upgrade my PC shit I did last year on the back of potential xbox exclusives....
 
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feynoob

Banned
Every showcase... is important. And every time, it should be an indication of the future of the platform and what is to come.

The problem is that no matter what MS shows now, I won't trust it. As you said, the goal is to have steady quarters first. I feel that is more important than any showcase. let them show me that I can trust what they show and say.

I mean sony/nintendo is at a place where they show a game, and you aren't really worried. You know it's gonna meet a certain degree of polish and have high production values. And you know it's likely going to be at least an 80+ rated game. Can we really say the same about MS now?

But one thing MS is good at and has been good at doing, is making a flashy show with lots of promises and declarations. I do hope they get their shit together though... I am beginning to regret the whole upgrade my PC shit I did last year on the back of potential xbox exclusives
What they need to do is ditch yearly showcase and do quarterly showcase.
That is much better and makes everyone tune in to what they have in the bag.
 

Eiknarf

Banned
Yeah but who would win in a fight between all the world’s XBOX fanboys vs all the world’s PlayStation fanboys in a huge rumble set in a huge field in, say, Texas or Arizona? No weapons allowed.

Just fists, elbows, knees, feet and forehead??
 

RIPN2022

Member
What was the last have to have, Only on Xbox, title? Forza Horizon 5, the Master Chief Collection? Or do you have to go back to Xbox One with Sunset OverDrive, Gears of War, or something 3/5 years ago?
Every game you mentioned is on PC or XCloud gaming.
Honestly, go back to 360 era? Gears and Halo were still console exclusives back then.
 

Mr.Phoenix

Member
What they need to do is ditch yearly showcase and do quarterly showcase.
That is much better and makes everyone tune in to what they have in the bag.
I think the yearly showcases are fine... or adopt something more akin to what Sony does.

One year showcase for big and long-term announcements, then quarterly state of plays and even one-off state of plays for specific games.

So basically, Xbox showcase and quarterly Xbox direct.
 

StueyDuck

Member
i will say one thing that completely just popped into mind...

if i see one god damn CG bs trailer from MS this year then i don't even know what to say, if they drop another CG avowed sword man trailer or another on rails Hellblade 2 angry face trailer then i think it's time we all do have a serious talk.
 
i will say one thing that completely just popped into mind...

if i see one god damn CG bs trailer from MS this year then i don't even know what to say, if they drop another CG avowed sword man trailer or another on rails Hellblade 2 angry face trailer then i think it's time we all do have a serious talk.
the serious talk shoud have happend when Phil took over the job. after the cancelation of fable legends, the shutdown of lion head, scalebound, the disappointment of crackdown, recore, phantom dust..just to name a few things
 

Quantum253

Gold Member
Every game you mentioned is on PC or XCloud gaming.
Honestly, go back to 360 era? Gears and Halo were still console exclusives back then.
I guess you would have too. Not to say more people having access to a game is a bad thing, since it nice to have the choice between PC/Console and still be in the same ecosystem. I'm glad cross-platfrom play is starting to come popular, but it used to be why your friends would coax you Into a particular system.
Something has been off in the gaming space for awhile now. I figured it was just me getting old
 

fermcr

Member
Nope.

It's a profitable business. Whether it's first, second or third place, the fact that it's profitable dictates it's success.

Microsoft buying Activision to provide content for Gamepass and Xbox would have been a desperate move, but there's no way spending $70bn on Activision is the best way to do that. They could have bought a series of publishers and paid for exclusivity for Major titles for less money. There's no way Microsoft's board would have signed off on $70bn for Xbox alone.

Microsoft should have left Activision alone. Microsoft's biggest mistake was not purchasing Crystal Dynamics and Eidos. Exclusives like Deus Ex and Tomb Raider would have been a big deal for Gamepass. I'm still baffled that neither Sony nor Microsoft purchased them...
 
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Mr Reasonable

Completely Unreasonable
Microsoft should have left Activision alone. Microsoft's biggest mistake was not purchasing Crystal Dynamics and Eidos. Exclusives like Deus Ex and Tomb Raider would have been a big deal for Gamepass. I'm still baffled that neither Sony nor Microsoft purchased them...

I'm surprised they didn't buy CD/Eidos but the fact that neither did shows how Xbox don't have an open cheque book and that purchases of any size need to be justified. I assume that the valuation ($300M iirc) was so low because despite having very recognisable IP, the performance of the business (or perhaps it's liabilities) meant it made less sense than might initially present, would be my guess anyway.
 
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gothmog

Gold Member
These 3 years aren't any indication of Xbox future, considering their pipeline and their current studios.

If Xbox plays their cards carefully, they can turn the ship around.

The goal right now is to have steady quarters first, and not care about wining shit. Once they have that locked down, they can worry about the rest.

This showcase is highly important as it covers this year and next year. They need to hit the mark, otherwise it's will be a rocky road for them.
Their goal should be to focus on gaining trust. Focusing on their balance sheet is not going to get them where they want to be.
 

feynoob

Banned
Their goal should be to focus on gaining trust. Focusing on their balance sheet is not going to get them where they want to be.
To gain people's trust, they need to relase quartly games. That is how you gain people's trust.

Xbox currently has history of draught. We thought the draught will end in 2021. But we went an entire year without AAA game. THey neeed to not repeat that mistake.
 

ungalo

Member
Deus Ex and Tomb Raider are nothing. How can people even compare the 2 things ? It's not what was at stake.

Buying Activision would have given sense to the entire strategy of Xbox all by itself and despite all the shortcomings of Microsoft, it would have saved Phil. At the very least it makes the division much more profitable in the blink of an eye, and that's really the tip of the icerbeg in terms of potential.
 

gothmog

Gold Member
To gain people's trust, they need to relase quartly games. That is how you gain people's trust.

Xbox currently has history of draught. We thought the draught will end in 2021. But we went an entire year without AAA game. THey neeed to not repeat that mistake.
Sony doesn't even release quarterly games so it's more about the trust in the pipeline and the quality of releases than just throwing stuff out there. Redfall is the best and worst example of just getting something out there. It being an Arkane game checks the box on AAA. It being an unfinished and unpolished piece of work at launch only degrades the trust you're trying to build. And it's not even. For every well received Forza you maybe get a +1 on trust but for every Crackdown 3 or Redfall you get like a -10 on trust. You can always buy a third party game to plug a hole in your quarter here and there. It won't move people's trust in you much but it also won't damage you as badly as releasing a stinker.
 

feynoob

Banned
Sony doesn't even release quarterly games so it's more about the trust in the pipeline and the quality of releases than just throwing stuff out there. Redfall is the best and worst example of just getting something out there. It being an Arkane game checks the box on AAA. It being an unfinished and unpolished piece of work at launch only degrades the trust you're trying to build. And it's not even. For every well received Forza you maybe get a +1 on trust but for every Crackdown 3 or Redfall you get like a -10 on trust. You can always buy a third party game to plug a hole in your quarter here and there. It won't move people's trust in you much but it also won't damage you as badly as releasing a stinker.
No, Sony does release quarterly games. Its in form of timed exclusive games. That is how peop;le trust their content. They have some of the biggest timed exclusive on their platform.
This year alome, they have FF16 as timed exclusive with Spiderman 2. Xbox doesnt have that type of timed exclusive.

They need to be bold and do timed exclusive games like x360. After tomb raider, they chickened out and stopped doing it.
 

gothmog

Gold Member
No, Sony does release quarterly games. Its in form of timed exclusive games. That is how peop;le trust their content. They have some of the biggest timed exclusive on their platform.
This year alome, they have FF16 as timed exclusive with Spiderman 2. Xbox doesnt have that type of timed exclusive.

They need to be bold and do timed exclusive games like x360. After tomb raider, they chickened out and stopped doing it.
Sorry I thought you were talking about first party content only. Xbox does get things like Atomic Heart from time to time. Honestly that's probably their most positive area in getting some exclusive content for GamePass. I thought the Persona games was also a good get, but it did show that maybe the Xbox audience is generally not interested in those types of games.

Tomb Raider may have scarred them for life. I do think they would be well served to acquire more timed exclusives. It's more around choosing your exclusivity well than getting a slam dunk. Tomb Raider sounds like a great win on paper but they really soured many people not only on Xbox but the Tomb Raider franchise. Even Sony is not perfect on that front. They really pissed a lot of people off and probably doomed Avengers over Spider-Man. New IPs and franchises connected to your platform are probably good exclusives. Stealing away franchises from other platforms is risky.
 

Dr. Claus

Banned
What a load of rubbish. I play it regularly with a bunch of people. It's a good game.

Halo infinite's campaign was not awful. The multiplayer is the best Halo has ever been.

As a package, Halo Infinite shipped an excellent multiplayer with a decent number maps, and a great campaign. Any other game, that'd be perfect. Post launch they added more maps, the best forge there ever has been. It took a while to bring more maps and forge, people including me felt it took too long for more maps to come along. This is not a problem now.

Oh yes, the game is so good that it is making bank for the company and 343i and Microsoft are both incredibly happy with how it turned out, right?

Right?

Oh wait, no. It is a complete and utter failure and caused massive layoffs and future expansions to be cancelled. Its fine if you like the game, but the game is objectively bad. Also if Riky of all people is agreeing with you, that is a massive red flag. Until SenjutsuSage left, he was the biggest Xbox fanboy on this site.
 

Mr Reasonable

Completely Unreasonable
Oh yes, the game is so good that it is making bank for the company and 343i and Microsoft are both incredibly happy with how it turned out, right?

Right?

Oh wait, no. It is a complete and utter failure and caused massive layoffs and future expansions to be cancelled. Its fine if you like the game, but the game is objectively bad. Also if Riky of all people is agreeing with you, that is a massive red flag. Until SenjutsuSage left, he was the biggest Xbox fanboy on this site.


87 (professional reviews) and 7.9 (user)

Dr. Claus Dr. Claus : Objectively Bad.

Seems like you're the one that can't be objective mate, it's ok for you to not like it but it seems like most people who've reviewed it do.
 

Dr. Claus

Banned

87 (professional reviews) and 7.9 (user)

Dr. Claus Dr. Claus : Objectively Bad.

Seems like you're the one that can't be objective mate, it's ok for you to not like it but it seems like most people who've reviewed it do.

As I have always said, anyone who brings up metacritic is either a child who needs validation for their purchase decisions or a console warrior.

Thank you for proving my point.
 
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Mr Reasonable

Completely Unreasonable
As I have always said, anyone who brings up metacritic is either a child who needs validation for their purchase decisions or a console warrior.

Thank you for proving my point.
Resorting to insults? Can't argue your completely nonsense point so just attack?

How else would you suggest we get a general feel for how successful the game was? Quote a site with over 5000 user reviews or...

...just go with your completely unreasonable verdict?

Welcome to the ignore list.
 
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Dr. Claus

Banned
Resorting to insults? Can't argue your completely nonsense point so just attack?

How else would you suggest we get a general feel for how successful the game was? Quote a site with over 5000 user reviews or...

...just go with your completely unreasonable verdict?

Welcome to the ignore list.

Nothing I stated was an insult, just a statement of fact. I will never understand folks like you who tie their entire personality around a plastic box and company that does not even know you exist.
 

Banjo64

cumsessed
As I have always said, anyone who brings up metacritic is either a child who needs validation for their purchase decisions or a console warrior.

Thank you for proving my point.
If anyone knows anything about Halo multiplayer they would find Infinite extremely below par and disappointing.

You are absolutely correct that the opinions of a bunch of Halo casuals who put in 10 hours is completely irrelevant.

Clearly all of those users who reviewed it positively haven’t stuck around otherwise the game wouldn’t have 5k players on Steam right now.
 
Microsoft have an internal roadmap, and have a distinct plan for what they are doing. It doesn't matter that we arnt aware of what it is.
Do you honestly think Microsoft was going to shell out 69 billion, their biggest ever aquisition, on something that they wernt happy the direction of? If you think MS was going to shell out that amount of money just to try and beat Sony in console sales, then you arnt thinking right.

Microsoft thinks long term. They are doing things now to pay off in 10 years time.
Now, do you honestly think that Satya is going to sack Phil because Redfall got average reviews? Honestly? Nah, there is bigger things at play than Redfall.
Agreed completely. Fucking up the xbox's standing in the market, doesn't happen without talent and a plan. And the guy in charge for 8 or 9 years now has been planning since even before that, since the last few years of the xbox 360 - so about 15 years or so?
 
Agreed completely. Fucking up the xbox's standing in the market, doesn't happen without talent and a plan. And the guy in charge for 8 or 9 years now has been planning since even before that, since the last few years of the xbox 360 - so about 15 years or so?
Sure, I get that it's great console war fodder, but the reality says different.
Phil took over with the xbox one. An underpowered, over expensive console which relied on four internal studios. The investors were asking if MS should even be in the gaming buisness.
Phil then took a plan to Sayta for the future of Xbox.
That included Gamepass, investment in first party studios and IPs and moving to other key areas of content delivery like Cloud.
Since then Xbox released the Xbox One X console, which was historically one of the best consoles ever made.
It blew the PS4 Pro out of the water.
Xbox reclaimed the power crown.
They have purchased 20 extra studios including some of the most valuable gaming IP in the world.
They have tried to buy ABK, which who knows what will happen.
If you include ABK, Microsoft has nearly spent as much money on game studios than the entire market cap of Sony.

They released the XSXS. The XSX is an excellent console. Amazing build quality, quiet and good looking.
The Series S services a need for a segment of the population. Don't like it? Don't buy it.

So the "I started here graph" for Phil is excellent. He saved the brand.
Now has everything gone right? Nah. There has been issues with 343. After delivering an excellent, acclaimed Halo Infinite campaign, they dropped the ball on multiplayer content. They fucked up.
Phil put the broom through 343, changes were made and let's see how that goes.
The Initiative was a grand idea that hit a road bump. Too many chiefs and not enough Indians. They thought pulling all the ultra talented and driven people together in one studio would create a master studio. While it sounded good on the outside, on the inside there were too many strong minded people who all wanted to have their input. Personalities clashed and Gallagher pulled rank. People left and then they outsourced alot of the grunt work to CD.

Prior to Redfall, Zenimax released Deathloop to much acclaim, Ghostwire was a decent game, HiFi Rush was an amazing game and on the horizon there is Starfield, Indiana Jones, Wolfenstien 3, Zenimax Onlines new IP etc.

Their Xbox Game Studios released Halo Infinite to much acclaim, Playground released the best racing game ever in Forza Horizon 5, Psychonauts 2 was excellent and in 2020 MS won publisher of the year. Did anyone think when Phil first took over that they would win that in 2020? Nope, no one would have thought that.

There are supply issues with the XSX which Phil needs to get fixed. He is trying to balance sending silicon to produce consoles, and silicon to support Xcloud. They need more of both.

The ABK purchase has really put a block on MS doing alot of things they should have been doing. It stopped them acquiring studios that they should have bought. They pulled back on any real publicity of their upcoming games. They went radio silent to keep a narrative up for the regulators. Sony did the same thing as well. How long since Sony has had a showcase?

With all that said, you would have to be a moron to think that MS are just going to fade away, that all those studios arnt going to release their games.
But yeah, great console war fodder.
 

Riky

$MSFT
Jez Corden seems to think we'll see stuff for further out this time,

"I will say that there are some things slated for the Showcase which are a bit further out."

"[I'm 75% sure]. Some of the games that I've heard that are going to be at the Showcase are surely further out than 12 months. So, unless some of these games are launching sooner than expected..."

Makes sense if new games are being announced, hopefully means we get to see something about the likes of Perfect Dark and Everwild.
 
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zomboden

Banned
Jez Corden seems to think we'll see stuff for further out this time,

"I will say that there are some things slated for the Showcase which are a bit further out."

"[I'm 75% sure]. Some of the games that I've heard that are going to be at the Showcase are surely further out than 12 months. So, unless some of these games are launching sooner than expected..."

Makes sense if new games are being announced, hopefully means we get to see something about the like is Perfect Dark and Everwild.
These shows should always follow the formula of

Present - Play this on Game Pass/Available right now!
Near Future - Coming out in the Next 6-12 Months
Future - Check out a quick teaser for something we are working on

Problem is, right now we get "Near Future" stuff and they end up being delayed 5 times before they actually come out. And we see "Future" stuff that we don't hear about again for 4 years and everyone forgets about it.
 
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Dr_Ifto

Member
These shows should always follow the formula of

Present - Play this on Game Pass/Available right now!
Near Future - Coming out in the Next 6-12 Months
Future - Check out a quick teaser for something we are working on

Problem is, right now we get "Near Future" stuff and they end up being delayed 5 times before they actually come out. And we see "Future" stuff that we don't hear about again for 4 years and everyone forgets about it.

Yeah, this is most likely the roadmap. Probably can include any hardware topics before the future section, if they have any. And then finally a One More Thing at the end.
 
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