I have 11, but I would say I only got 2 through thoroughly enjoying & playing the games. The rest were a bit of achievement hunting.

@Banjo- Sorry, I wasn't clear in my wording, I fully recognize that Xbox hardware is not being redeployed to Azure servers, but rather it's the capital & attention that could have gone to XBOX hardware goes to things like securing Azure hardware. The issue as you say is that Microsoft is huge & XBOX is a small piece of the pie. XBOX was 6.6% of revenue, while Azure is a big piece of the pie & growing fast at near 50% & hardware supply constrained not demand constrained. If XBOX turned things around and grew 10% we would be celebrating the achievement, but this 10% growth would be like 0.5% in overall increase in Microsoft revenue, basically a rounding error. If Sony can secure hardware Microsoft should be able to do so as well, but obviously at Microsoft Azure is what matters, so it gets the attention, capital & hardware. When you consider how insignificant XBOX is becoming to Microsoft, I wouldn't be surprised if it is sold or spun off into a completely separate company. Recent rumours were suggesting XBOX could be worth $100-150Billion. In the context of a near $4Trillion market cap, that is less than 4% of what Microsoft is worth. So to me it is not surprising Sony has PS5 hardware that I can buy in Canada (it is still important to them), while XBOX cannot supply Series X (not important, rounding error to Microsoft).

It looks to me more like all Microsoft hardware is going to Azure web services than us lowly gamers. Can't seem to get a Series X in Canada, while plenty of PS5 supply? Plenty of PS5's & Nex Playground consoles at Costco when I was there yesterday. I also checked Amazon Canada, top three listings for Series X were used, so doesn't look like you can buy a new one. Checked Microsoft Canada, also can only get Series X digital. I mean when Azure is providing much higher returns, it's not hard to see why you don't supply hardware to XBOX.

Trying to see the silver lining here... but with how advanced consoles have gotten & diminishing returns (I probably won't be able to see the difference between Helix/next-gen & the next-next-gen, without a screen shot & zooming into pixel level), so I would not be surprised if Helix is my last console. In that context even if Helix is $1800, I'm still going to get it since cost/yr of ownership will still be quite reasonable (unless it breaks soon after warranty of over). For entertainment value, probably only my $15 fishing license & my public library card would provide better entertainment value. But I fully realise it $ucks if you are a parent and your child wants one, you can't really say ok here's your combined birthday & Christmas present for the next 5yrs to make the gift reasonable cost wise.

I don't know why anyone is surprised with the reported $1200-1800 price. The steam machine is already $1100+ to $1400+ (with a controller) and the steam machine is much less powerful than supposed specs of Helix. So you already knew that Helix has to cost more.

When (if) Helix launches next year, people are going to get serious sticker shock!! Steam machine is our preview, it's a way inferior gaming PC & likewise Helix can't be subsidized because it's a PC. Helix will be way more expensive than the Steam Machine & we still have another year to go of hardware price increases! I personally don't see how it will be anything less than $2000 & scalpers will have a field day marking it up for resale. Microsoft better have a good method to allocate to real fans.

10 years baking in the oven is downright insane! Obviously, baking for this long costs a lot of money. I feel like the long development times & development cost has completely gotten out of hand. I mean how is this even considered acceptable? This game better be insanely good to justify the development time.

I just finished this game, so I can see how both a 6 & 9 review are both valid, especially depending on how far into the game you get. Two thirds through the game I was absolutely loving the game, a solid 9. I didn't want to stop playing it. So many things well done, good story, combat, puzzles, visuals, sound... Then towards the latter end of the game, the mix of content that made the first half interesting started to feel one dimensional with the constant sneaking & chase sequences were getting so tedious & frustrating. The further I got in the game the less I liked it. In fact it reached a point I didn't want to play it anymore. At one point Sophia says "Oh God, let it end." Those exact thoughts were going through my mind. I only completed the game out of need to see the end after coming so far into the game, rather than wanting to complete the game because I was enjoying the game.

To me a 9 or higher is a game that I enjoyed so much I'm sad to finish it, plus of course wanting to replay it. I can say neither of those are true. So definitely not a 9 for me. More like a 7 for me. Glad it came to game pass because this has zero replay value for me.

@Enigk Exactly 💯!! You need a lot of content for video streaming entertainment since a movie is only going to provide you with like 2hrs of entertainment. A good game is going to provide you like 100+ plus hours of entertainment. Many (most?) people don't need a constant firehose of new games. Not to mention people's backlog is so huge & older games are so cheap, just buy & play the backlog until the new games go on sale.

For example I can't believe I bought Witcher 3 completed edition on GOG last year for just over $10 & now I get the remaster for free?? I haven't even touched that game yet. At least for me, when I get around to tackling that game, that alone eliminates the need for Game Pass for many many months.

Wow, FREE. Upgrade!

@Scummbuddy Same, Steelrising, Free in Canada as well from Amazon Luna/Prime.

Take two saying well over 90% digital distribution, just about says all they need to say. Not every potential disc purchaser will refuse to buy a digital version. So maybe at worst they lose 5% of sales?

I personally think the lack of disc is not a real threat to the gaming industry/Sony, etc, the real threat is the huge backlog of great games that people haven't yet played. I'm so game backlogged I still have my GTA 5 PS3 game disc that I still haven't even played once. GTA 6 coming out only digital soon or not, doesn't affect me in any way. I'm waiting for big game price drops before I'm interested or I'll just tackle the backlog.

@BacklogBrad Reports are that Microsoft will still lose $150 per console despite the price increases coming tomorrow and we still have more component price increases through 2027, with no easing till probably 2028. Now imagine a $1000 7 year old console. People are going to lean into their backlogs rather than upgrade to 7 year old console at nosebleed prices. Then Helix will probably launch at the worst possible time for component prices. I don't envy Sharma's goal of returning to growth in 2027, but I'm glad she's trying. Every gamer loses if Microsoft stops trying.

Can't play even downloaded games on Xbox on basement, can play already downloaded games on "home" Xbox in living room.

@Mr-Cage Thanks! Couldn't play anything, even already downloaded games on my Xbox on the basement. Switched to living room Xbox & can play again.

I feel like this is going to be a wedge. For example, maybe next is an ad supported tier of Game Pass, just like video streaming services now have ads (eg. Netflix, Prime...)

I was surprised that studios got cut free with their IP & Microsoft got nothing. But it probably was not a benevolent move by Microsoft, I guess that means the IP was probably worth less than firing everyone & needing to pay severance to the workers. Now the severance liability is with the newly independent studios. Plus Microsoft gets to write down the studios investment to zero, take the loss to offset tax in the profitable parts of the company.

14 layers of management/decision making!!! Good lord! No wonder it takes so long for new games to come our. When I hear stuff like that, the chopping really needed to be done.

@GuyinPA75 Rewards being nerfed more is a given, and as you say, closing rewards down can't be ruled that out either, or like others have posted here, effectively closing it with locking their accounts so you can't redeem the points.

I wanted to save points for the next gen console, but given dual risk of Microsoft points deflation & console price inflation. I decided to hedge my bets. I used just over 300,000 points for CAD$450 towards a Series X. I'll keep the new Series X and sell my old one after incoming price increase + next one coming next year (already telegraphed by Microsoft) + remaining points towards next gen Helix.

I have 500,000+ (so over CAD$700), I was saving for the next Gen console, but with expected price inflation I'm not sure what to do. It's a double whammy of price inflation & points deflation. I mean Microsoft is sure to Nerf the conversion ratio to gift card again before Helix launches.

I was thinking I might just have to redeem for a Series X, at least it's an appreciating asset! I don't need two Series X, but anyhow I see series X sold out here in Microsoft Canada. So it's either digital Series X or Series X 2TB Galaxy black model. I guess I could keep the 2TB galaxy black model & sell my Series X next year (after even more price increases...🤪)

There is very clearly a small vocal minority that wants physical, but obviously don't back that up with purchases so this is why Sony did what they are doing. Otherwise this would not happen. Physical sales will be even worse for XBOX. Series S vastly outsold Series X & is digital only. Then you throw on top all the Game Pass gamers. Physical sales on XBOX have to be much worse than what Sony sees. Also even GTA 6, is just going code in a box for physical. The writing is on the wall. Physical just doesn't make sense anymore even for the biggest game launch.

I know this is not going to be popular, but people are absolutely dreaming if they think Helix will cost less or the same as a stream machine. Helix has way more silicon/power than a stream machine so it will cost a lot more. Plus Microsoft can't subsidise it like a true console, it's a PC. People would otherwise just buy it and use it for non gaming work. Sharma already said hardware prices doubled from Nov-Feb, then another double since she started on Feb. The last time Xbox increased hardware prices was Oct of last year & prices have gone up 4x (two doubles!). People are also absolutely dreaming if they think there is not going to be another big current gen hardware price increase.

What I find scary in the quote is that the "thousand" is actually plural as in "thousands". There is no way Helix would be under a thousand, but heck, given, CPU, GPU, memory, SSD price inflation, I wonder if it might actually be printing a number in the two thousands!?!?

Unfortunately if Xbox allows new gamers to grab a console, the bots will grab them all, since how do you distinguish a new gamer from a new bot?

Only way is to reward existing gamers, be it subscribed to Game Pass for some duration, hours played, achievements, games purchased, or some combination of these or something similar.

The problem with this innovate statement is that there is only so much you can do. The big things Microsoft really has no control over, so this likely means less memory & SSD. They really can't move to smaller less powerful CPU/GPU and thereby smaller and cheaper silicon wafer size. Sweating the small stuff is important too, but they also only yield small savings.

Sharma is just saying what Xbox gamers want to hear, but the cake is already baked, you can't change the ingredients at this point other than changing the icing on the cake (maybe a few token exclusives to keep the fans happy). PS5 is at least 2.5x the sales of the Series X|S. Ok so go ahead and do a few exclusives and you give up an additional 1.75x in sales (2.5x less Sony's 30% cut). You would have to be mental to leave that much money on the table. Plus you're not going to get that many PS5 users with their already established libraries to switch to Xbox. Xbox is between a rock and a hard place when it comes to exclusives.

Microsoft Solitaire

I wish I could put game pass on pause. Now that the weather i nicer... bike riding, kayaking, fishing, etc take precedence. Now I just launch Solitaire in the background to get my achievement for playing a game for 15min.

Let me just say for the record that we are all idiots. We were all seeing the explosion in hardware prices, which would obviously also result in record profits for tech companies. Last November I thought I was a genius by buying a gaming PC, you know FOMO. When what I actually should have done is buy any semiconductor stock, you name it GPU, CPU, memory or SSD maker. Biggest missed opportunity of my life!

I would want Movies & TV back, but maybe I am one of the few that want that feature back, way down the list... so I guess there's no hope on that coming back

KCD had a very clear niche, medieval but no dragons or magic. Lord of the rings is veering away from that niche. I'm looking forward KCD3, while at the same time hopefully they do justice to Lord of the Rings. And I better not have to wait 5+ years!!

I know it doesn't get as much attention, but bring back Movies & TV! That was really the hidden gem feature of Xbox!!

There is too much gnashing of teeth on this. Even if Microsoft did not somehow address this, Helix is a PC, so if Helix has no drive then just buy an external one & they are cheap. No big deal. Let's face it, despite what seems to be a vocal majority here, Series S outsold Series X at least 2-3 to 1. Then throw in all digital Series X & also Series X owners like me who own no physical media, there is probably only 10% who really care that there is a disc drive. For me, I'd rather there not be a disc drive that I have to pay for & that I will never use.

@Bob_Tempura Exactly! Not my kind of game. Just went to YouTube & I can skip to any of the songs I want to hear.

There is no need to pay full price for a game:
1) Full price = you get the worst version of the game, most buggy.
2) Wait till price drops, bugs are fixed & game is optimized = you get the best version of the game
3) There is no way you worked through your backlog of games, so you can wait to buy on sale & get the best version of the game.

Up front lower cost than gaming PC? Example, easier to put under the Christmas tree as a gift. Lower barrier to entry. If it was not for the Series S, I would not have gotten back into gaming.

Problem is I think you end up paying more over time in the long run by being trapped into a walled ecosystem. PC game pass is cheaper, you can always get Steam game keys cheaper & more competition (eg Epic & Amazon Prime games) & more choice (eg. Buy on GOG if you truly want to own your games & not just a license that can be taken away)

@Skinny-Pete Hogwarts Legacy was free again this past week on Epic. I hope you're not sleeping on the free Epic games giveaways. Next Gen Helix is going to be a PC, so you should be building your PC library.

@Scrubchub Same. KCD2 is so good, loved playing Expedition 33 last year, but at least for me KCD2 is even better. It's now my 2025 GOTY.

Not surprising about hardware sales drop. You had ongoing no hardware marketing combined with 50% Game Pass price increase, so no surprise there.

@themightyant Good point. Basically 100% should like this. No down side for anyone.

FPS shooters not my style, don't play COD. So very welcome change!

@Netbean Same. I can still get Ultimate codes online for essentially old pre 50% increase price. With value of rewards earned every month (saved for next console) it is effectively costing me approx CAD$5/mo for GP Ultimate.

KCD2 has just swallowed my life!! It's the game that best reminds me of Ultima III, where in highschool in the 80's my cousin & I played that game all summer, only coming up from the basement to eat. Just exploring, grinding, & leveling up!

Sounds like a pretty universal complaint, me included, that the last 50% price increase was too much & also gave us too much of what we don't want (Fortnight, Ubisoft+...). I still have almost 1.5yrs stacked on Ultimate at old prices, but there is almost no scenario I can envision where I re-subscribe at current prices.

@Scrubchub I'm also hooked on KCD2! 30 hours in and barely scratched the surface. Glad it came to Game Pass! Didn't seem like a game I would love. But so good!

I would be happy with just no price increases, but I think that might be asking too much

Buckle up! Next Gen Helix/Magnus is going to be well over US$1000!! It is just insane how much price appreciation there is in computer hardware. I have both the Seagate Xbox 1TB SSD & a SanDisk 2TB external SSD connected to my Series X. I decided to check the price for the SanDisk, it is now almost 4x what I paid. I always felt the Seagate expansion drives were rip off priced, but now they seem downright cheap!

PSA - with Helix/Magnus being a PC, make sure you are building your PC gaming library for free. This same Disco Elysium - final cut edition was recently free end of last year on Epic. I will eventually get around to playing this on Helix/Magnus when my game pass subscription runs out. Too many other games to play right now.

What Satya didn't say was obviously that shareholders want comes first. So I'm not expecting much to change

I'm at Ultimate with about 1.5yrs left. Mainly due to the $1 conversion of multiple stacked years of cheap old Gold tier then Rewards points conversions continually earning me more free months. Multiple places you can still get Ultimate at old pre 50% price increase (Costco in store & others online). So approx CAD$22/mo. When you consider current Rewards rate, nerfed but also easiest time wise it has ever been to earn, approx CAD$18/mo gift card earnings. So net cost of $4/mo. I think I will stack another 3-6 months, that should cover me to PC gaming on Helix.

I didn't have a gaming PC, but finally realized in 2024 PC gaming is the future. Have been collecting free Epic & Amazon games plus buying Steam game keys on key shops at massive discounts on super sales. Add another 2yrs of collecting PC Games while I have Ultimate & PC backlog will be absolutely enormous. Will then switch to PC gaming on Helix & tackle the backlog, can easily justify buying premium hardware due to everything that was saved on software through the years.

@sixrings Can't speak for anyone else, but for me, of course I would rather not have to deal with the memory/hardware price inflation, but at the same time I am super frugal in practically all areas of my life (no booze/smoking, rarely eat out, no pro sports, no concerts, cheap camping/fishing vacations, no gym memberships: workout at work gym & ride bike to work, etc), so for me the new Helix is reasonable for something I enjoy (of course can't be stupidly priced or I will just buy a gaming PC).

Plus I already spent so little on gaming, Helix is a reasonable reward. Up here in Canada there was this retail rewards program that was quite generous (got multiple digital cameras, budget laptops, tablets, headphones, etc over the years but sadly like everything else now enshittified & no more electronics) & I got my Series S for "free". Did the multiple years of cheap Game Pass Ultimate conversion for $1 hack. Then bought a used Series X at essentially 50% off & sold my Series S. Not to mention I have been collecting the weekly free PC games on Epic & Amazon Prime & buying games on steep discount, so I am amassing an absolutely massive PC gaming collection. By the time Helix comes out it will be time to focus on the PC gaming backlog, so my software costs will be negligible for many years.

@Krzzystuff I'll probably get it right away regardless of price. Hardware will no doubt be expensive, but the software gaming cost will be negligible. I already came to the realization in 2024 that the future was PC gaming, despite not having a gaming PC I started collecting all the free Epic & Amazon free games, while also adding PC Games on steep discounts, primarily through key shops. Still have another 1.5yrs of games pass ultimate, so I will be collecting all the free games & continue buying on deep sales. By the time Helix launches, my games backlog will be well over 500 games. My software gaming cost will be essentially zero for years as I take the backlog, so I think I can justify the cost of the hardware.