Eight Big Showcases Xbox Fans Should Look Out For In September

I think that with Sony's pipeline being so restricted right now, there will be more third-party multiplatform games than games that are exclusive to PlayStation, @fatpunkslim & @FarmDog08...

I will probably watch the State of Play, the Xbox showcase and the Capcom showcase (because they are killing it lately, and you never know, we might get some Resi news). For everything else I will just come here. If I have the time, and don't feel like doing anything else, then I might watch the PC games show because they can be quite funny sometimes (not always intentionally!)...

@ZombiesEveryWhere Yes, brand-new!

@RiverGenie We'll have all the summaries as usual, although the Xbox showcase will be streamed live as well.

I know it's your job, @FraserG, but there must be times that you wish you could skip the showcases and read what someone else has written about them... 🤣

@Fiendish-Beaver Absolutely. I enjoy the momentum of covering showcases back-to-back and being able to provide instant recaps, but there are definitely times where I wish I could just watch a showcase without treating it as "work"

Can't exactly complain though, can I? It's a privileged position to be in, and it's gratifying to know that people appreciate the "work" we're putting in for events like these.

I didn't mean third-party exclusives, @Millionski, although I would not be surprised if Sony do have one or two timed exclusivity deals to show. No, what I said was third-party multiplatform games. Those are what I think will make up the bulk of the showcase. They will effectively be used to pad out the showcase.

As you say, Sony already have a substantial lead over Xbox in terms of console sales, and now, with the release of GTA 6, they will undoubtedly sell far more consoles than Microsoft, which is why Sony sign these sorts of deals with the likes of Rockstar. They know that people will associate PlayStation with GTA 6, and will sell a heck a lot of consoles as a consequence...

I do feel a little more confident in Xbox right now, @Millionski, but I still think that Helix will sell in very few numbers, and will see Microsoft leave the console business around 3 years after the release of Helix (so 2030/31, assuming Helix releases next year, which I think it will).

I am convinced that the disc to digital programme (which is utterly fantastic) is another sign that Helix will not have a disc drive (or even an attachable disc drive). I don't think there was ever much doubt that Helix was going to be an all digital device as it is essentially a PC, and gaming on PCs has been all digital for around a decade now.

A lot of the positivity around Xbox at the moment stems from the fact that there is a lot of negativity around PlayStation right now, and the reverse has been true over the past decade. There was much wrong with PlayStation during that time, but it was overlooked because there was far more wrong with Xbox. However, whilst there is positivity about much that Xbox is saying right now, unless that translates to sales of Helix (or more Series consoles for now), then it will not amount to much, and PlayStation will romp off into the distance next generation as well.

There is a lot resting on the shoulders of Helix next generation, but a lot is going against it right now too. The component crisis means that Helix will cost way too much for most gamers were Microsoft to make Helix as was initially envisaged (and as we were led to believe), and the current rumours are that Microsoft are considering releasing it with a 500 gig hard drive (as is found in the Series S) in an effort to keep costs down. Basically, Helix could end up being watered down to little more than an equal to the PS6, and if that is the case, then Xbox is on really shaky ground next generation because in a head to head with the PS6, it will lose. Helix needs to be something that gamers want to buy, and if it is just the same as the PS6 but with an Xbox logo, then Xbox stands very little chance...

I think that the production costs for consoles, including setting aside time in the factories, etc. will mean that remaining in the console business will not be viable for Microsoft, @Millionski. They will still earn all the revenue from consoles they have already sold, but I'm not sure Microsoft will make enough revenue from new consoles that they sell to warrant continuing to pay to manufacture more consoles. Obviously I am talking about 3 years after Helix releases, so we are talking about things that might happen in 2031 or so, and whilst Xbox may have 40 million gamers now, once the PS6 releases, that number may shrink (possibly considerably so).

That said, my view is shifting ever so slightly (or at least it was!); I believe that aside from Helix, Microsoft intends to release a solely Cloud based console that will basically be the Helix S, and it would cost a lot less than the full fat Helix. I was thinking that Microsoft were going to introduce a Cloud tier of Game Pass to go alongside the Helix S, but now they have announced restrictions with Cloud, I am not so sure.

Honestly it's a bit of a mess now. Every time I think Xbox are heading in the right direction, they do something that makes me feel less assured about their future, and I firmly believe that their loyal fanbase can tolerate only so much, and if the PS6 releases before, or at the same time, as Helix, I think many once loyal Xbox gamers may just decide they cannot trust Microsoft to do right by them. I know Sony cannot not be trusted either, but there are no conversations about Sony leaving gaming, whereas Microsoft have had to come out a number of times to refute such claims. Even if there is no truth in the rumours about Microsoft abandoning consoles, the notion still lingers in the back of gamers minds, and we want to put out money where we feel it will be safest and Microsoft does not necessarily make us feel that way...

I think we believe, or part believe, the rumours more often than we do Microsoft because actions speak louder than words, @Millionski. I'll just say, 'it's just 4 games', and leave it there. Microsoft have said one thing, and then done the opposite so many times now, that it is difficult to believe what they say. I do believe that Microsoft want, or would rather, have happen what they say, but they more often than not are bounced into changing course by the market conditions that affect Xbox more so than any other gaming company. So, whilst Microsoft may wish to give the impression that they are here for the long haul (because not doing so would spook gamers, the markets and their investors), that does not mean that market conditions will not dictate that they have to withdraw from making consoles...

That is actually a very good question, @Millionski. What I would say is that someone that is very loyal to Xbox, I find moving away from the brand something that I really do not want to do, so personally, I will still buy Helix (mostly because I think it will be the best place to play my existing (and very extensive!) Xbox library, but also because even if Microsoft announce in 2031 that they are leaving the console business, I would still own my Helix, and it would remain the best place to play my existing Xbox library. That would not change just because Xbox ceases to exist in terms of consoles. So, as someone that always buys both the new Xbox and the new PlayStation, and who has them sitting side by side under my television, it makes no difference to me if only Sony continues to make consoles. However, for those that only buy one console each generation, then making the right choice is far more nuanced because if you do fear Xbox leaving the console business, then maybe it is time to move to PlayStation because Sony offer far more certainty. Thus I think it comes down to people's personal circumstances as to what choice they make next generation, but as someone that always buys both consoles, even I am slightly reticent about Xbox next generation, and only the realisation that Helix is very likely to be the best place to play games on a console next generation has made me definitively decide to buy Helix. Heck, if Xbox do not walk back on their assertion that Helix will be this powerful device they talked about, then Helix might even be more powerful than the PS7 let alone the PS6, meaning it might be the best place to console game for more than one generation. Unfortunately, I think in Sharma's efforts to make Helix more affordable, certain sacrifices will be made, and so that ultra powerful leap we were hoping for might be more of a small hop...!