Notice there was no mention of Sarah Bond. Seems like the people at XB definitely miss Phil, but there doesn't seem to be the same deep sentiment towards Sarah Bond.
Because I doubt there will be a next generation of consoles after Helix (I am not saying MS will exit consoles, I just think the concept of generations will disappear). There will just be yearly hardware refreshes and sometimes those refreshes will substantially move the bar forward. People will buy consoles like vehicles. When they feel it is worn out or too degraded they will just buy the latest yearly refresh.
Very smart of Microsoft to release broadly now. It will let them work out all the kinks before the next XB ships. Personally, I will install it right away on my Windows PC and Windows laptop. I have been wanting this pretty much since XB360 came out.
Can't wait until they announce console compatbility so they can play any XB games and not just play anywhere games.
I could see MS delivering three tiers of consoles...
A $500-700 console for the low end. A $900-1,100 consoled for the masses. A $1500+ console for a high end.
The reality I think is that next generation consoles will be $900-1,100 for the masses from both Sony and MS. That is just the cost reality of a console product going forward.
@darylb24
It is not only that gaming is profitable, but gaming is a key driver of innovation and sales for Windows.
Also, gaming is one of Microsoft's last consumer brands. They want more consumer presence not less. So, pushing gaming is MS's way of staying relevant with consumers.
@GuyinPA75 I do want consoles to ship complete and be identified to a generation. Hopefully MS does not allow that level of customization to call something an XB.
@Exerion76 It really doesn't matter. Both XB and PS gaming consoles have been PCs from a hardware perspective for three generations now. The real key here is how well they deliver the console experience on the device.
@GuyinPA75 I don't have any problem with MS and maybe its OEM partners shipping XB consoles of varying specs. I have always wanted a console that can rival the best gaming PCs. This has never been shipped by any of the console vendors. The consoles have typically been a balance of price and performance. I would love to see the vendors come out with a high end console that was all about best in class performance.
Other then that, this was just an exercise to tell the world there will definitely be a next XBox.
Was also an interesting comment by Asha that it will play both Xbox and PC games. To me, this is and important thing as I also on Steam and Epic. I think the implementation on this on the Asus ROG Ally X is good, but I think it needs to be improved for the console experience.
Finally, was intersting that she focused on performance as well. Does that mean XB will focus on performance over price? It is a given that next gen consoles will start the generation more expensive then any other previous generation. But, what did she mean when saying performance?
@awp69 Agreed. The sales have so many titles now it is difficult to weed through what are games vs DLC content. It would be nice to just get a list of the games because as a personal policy I typically won't buy DLC.
I wait until there is a complete version before buying games that have DLC with achievements. And I never buy DLC as cosmetics or to help me progress quicker. If I mistakenly buy a game and they release DLC with achievements later then I do not buy the DLC no matter what. The way I see it, is the game developer/publisher should give me a roadmap to the game commercials upon or before game release. If they don't and they add later after I buy it, that is their loss not mine. I expect developer/publishers to be clear with their DLC intentions.
@Lanmanna I have 2 XSX and 2 TVs in my den for gaming with friends. 1 XSX in my living room, 1 XSX in my guest house for visitors to use, 1 XSX on my back deck with a TV, and 1 XSS in my travel trailer. And I have a Asus ROG Ally X as a travel device.
@kmtrain83 I am ok with the hardware strategy, I think the overall strategy needs work across the board.
I look at my 5 Series X and 1 Series S and I have zero issues with the hardware (other then storage size, which is an issue with all hardware that has nvme drives right now).
I think as the platform publishing rights for each title expires MS should be saying to the other platform holders, "We will publish our titles on your platform if you publish your titles on our platform".
MS I think made a bit of a mistake going on the high ground first by publishing cross platform without securiring the promise of the other platform holders to do the same back.
A few things I think needs to be done going forward with XB:
1) When you announce a game ship it, don't cancel it. So, don't announce til you know it will ship.
2) They need to be committed to making sure the XB console brand is strong.
3) Don't close any more studios until at least well after the next gen starts.
4) Instead of focusing on money milking franchises such as Halo, Gears, Forza Horizon, Elder Scrolls, Fallout, Call of Duty, Diablo, WoW, etc. Get daring on the AAA front and build some new large IPs. South of Midnight, Pentiment, etc. were good small gambles, but I want to see them shooting for the fences with some big new gambles.
5) Acquire some more studios that are up and coming.
6) Fire the whole marketing team and get a real marketing team that knows what they are doing. This marketing team took perfectly good studio/publisher acquisitions, a strong console generation, and lots of good gaming news and screwed it up this generation.
7) I don't mind them shipping games on other devices, but console sohuld be first and should have at least one year exclusivity.
@Balaam_ Her words are correct, but I will judge them on their actions, not the good words she is using.
As for Sataya, name me one successful technology CEO that is not focused on AI. I work in tech and AI is a constant in every conversation now. If you think any technology organization or company is not heavily investing in AI you are badly mistaken.
@SodaPop6548 I think they have made the right decisions to secure the future of their platform strong. If MS would have made the Activision-Blizzard games exclusive to XB they would not have been able to do the deal and they would got in hot water with anti-trust/competition laws in the USA/Europe. Taking the rest multi-platform probably saved them from having to close more studios because games keep getting more expensive to make.
I don't have a lot of confidence in every console vendor right now. To me the certainity of all consoles seems up in the air, because Gaming PCs have become so easy to configure and hook up to TVs. And with changes to the OS that MS is going to probably make available to all future versions of Windows at some point you will probably be able to put the OS in "console mode" and it will make it even easier. So, why would I buy a console that is becoming nearly the same price as a low end gaming PC, when I have the vast selection of PCs that I can buy and run it as a console? If MS was to certify PCs as "XBox Certified" then I could buy any PC that is XB Certified and game on it like a console, that would probably kill consoles as we know them today.
@Neither_scene
I have zero trust in every company. Companies have one goal and that is to make money. They may sound nice and treat their customers nice but the goal always remains the same. Anyone trusting companies is naive.
I don't trust these companies, I assess them on how well they provide me services and products and select them objectively based on that. I also use my history of dealing with them to decide on dealing with them in the future.
For example, I had bought three Sony TVs at different times in the 1990's through early 2000's. All three died shortly after the warranty ran out. Therefore I do not center my gaming purchases around Sony because I have had bad experiences with their devices and they never helped me in any of the cases. XB though... I had two RRoD consoles in the 360 era, and they were replaced quickly by Microsoft with consoles that did not fail after. I still have and use those consoles today. Nintentdo, they have always been reliable but their online services are about 5-10 years behind XB and PS.
@SodaPop6548 I think it is most likely that they are adopting AI more. But, I don't think that is a bad thing. AI is being widely adopted in all tech positions. I work in tech and it is showing up everywhere. It is a productivity tool for us. So, don't view that as a bad thing. And I think it this has nothing to do with their recent changes.
There is only one software technology that is probably advancing more rapidly then gaming. And that is AI. If one of my people was retiring (Apparently Phil told Sataya he was going to do this a year ago), it would be just as natural to move my head of AI into his position as it would some other gaming exec. The needs of both are similar. Rapid change and evolution, capital intensive upfront, and complex.
@Fiendish-Beaver
I think you are under-estimating that rate of change in the AI world. I work in technology and since the advent of personal computers we have seen a very high rate of change. But, in the AI world over the next 10-20 years you will see the rate of change explode as AI does more and more.
It is going to be humanity that slows down AI, not the ability of AI to outpace humanity.
We can only hope that humanity learns how to use this tool quickly and makes it a tool that benefits humanity. Ultimately, with AI, quantum computing, and robotics AI will be able to do everything. We are not far away from that world as all three are advancing at incredible speeds. It is the tri-fecta that will completely change humanity as we know it.
Humanity will need to change societal structure completely. No more working 9-5, work will be optional, the concept of money needs to disappear, and the idea of what it means to be human will change. Assuming AI keeps moving forward, this change is on our doorstep.
@DennisReynolds It really doesn't say all that much. Apparently, Phil has been planning this for a year. Bond probably wanted to take over but it got given to someone else. So, she decided that she didn't want to stay if she didn't get the boss title.
@GeeEssEff
I think Spencer did what needed to be done at XB. You can argue against many of the decisions, but gaming as a business at Microsoft is more solid then it has ever been. And personally I didn't see him as charasmatic, but I did like a lot of the decisions, some others not so much.
This was also a good time for a change in leadership. They are starting to prepare for a new generation and they have made all the most controversial changes. Going forward the team has a clean slate to build and grow momentum in what they are doing (whatever that is).
The biggest issue I have with this whole thing was the loss of Bond. I do think they made the right decisions, but Bond probably felt left out so I can also understand why she left. She will go somewhere else and be successful.
There has been two trailers for GTA6. While they are well done, and I have enjoyed previous GTA games, I will wait until after it comes out to make a decision.
Also, with the price of games now-a-days, I will not pay full price. I will probably wait until there is a 50% discount on the fullest edition of the game before I jump in. I expect that will be 1.5-2 years after release at the very earliest.
@oopsiezz I agree it will be more confusing but also, I think they are making buying an console to be more similar to buying a TV. There are many different brands of TVs but a person can choose features and price points to get what they value most.
If they do it right this becomes more about choice and price points. Do it wrong and it just become confusion as you stated.
As long as every XBox certified device can play every game considered to be part of the XBox ecosystem, I would think it won't matter much to people which one they buy and then it becomes more about options they may want.
For example, MS may deliver a XBox with a specific spec like a mid-class GPU and 1 Tb of storage, but maybe Dell Alienware will deliver a super high end XB with PC level max GPU and 4 TB of storage at a higher price. Or Asus may deliver a XB console with a nominal GPU and 512 GB storage. They can all run XB games smoothly, but the differentiator is number of games you can store and framerates/graphical detail the console delivers. The Dell Alienware console may be $4,000, the Microsoft XB console $1,000, and the Asus console $600. It gives people options. Rather than suck up the $1,000 Microsoft price and spec. If it is true that next generation consoles will be more expensive, I think these options will give people choice on how much they want to spend.
You see that with PS5 right now. in Canada the PS5 Pro is $960, the PS5 from launch is $650, and the PS5 Digital is $580. It gives people price point choice. MS is just looking to give people a wider range of choice. The key though is ensireing there is a standard that plays all games smoothly.
@Weebleman May be true, but a better way to present the data then would've been just to say the platform totals without a graph aligning launch on PS and XB.
BTW. Alinea Analytics provided the numbers not the "folks who made it".
@Fiendish-Beaver To me consoles are losing purpose and relevance.
People have been buying consoles as a cheap, easy connect to TV, and easy to manage device instead of PCs. Especially, in the last two generations consoles have become more and more like PC architecture and increasing in price (lol. I was buying new PS3's and XB360's for $99 - $199 at the end of that gen - good luck finding a console that price now new). And at the same time Windows is becoming friendlier to people who only want to play games on their PC.
So what is evolving is, "Why buy a console once a PC becomes just as easy as a console to use?". And by the way there are tons more games on PC... Oh! And by the way I have 100's more options in purchasing a PC then a console to go higher end on gaming. Oh x 2! And I can replace my rig whenever I want because there is constantly new ones coming out. I suspect MS is going to encourage PC OEMs to ship "Console PCs" Essentially, lower priced PCs that boot to their unified XB Console PC OS and based on the SOC partnership they have with AMD. Essentially the next version of the Asus ROG Ally X interface.
Also, networks will continue to get faster and more ubitious. As this happens I think a lot of games will shift to cloud. They still have issues to fix on cloud gaming but when they are resolved that will change how many vendors distribute games and hopefully get rid of a lot of the annoying constant updates and downloads of games. Then MS will partner even more with TV manufacturers to include the XB Cloud Streaming more and more.
5-10 years from now consoles as we know them today just won't be relevant.
@Weebleman So why are they releasing the info? If you are going to release information comparing things then it should be appless to apples comparisons. If you are not trying to make the comparison with all the adjustments to install base, taking into account that the product was available elsewhere for 1.5 years, and a factor for fansbase then the comparison is useless, doesn't say a thing, and is senseless.
This article is not an apples to apples comparison.
1) Both versions did not launch on the same date. 2) The XB install base is much smaller than PS. 3) This is a PS franchise. Sales should be higher on that platform.
@TheGameThrifter There is no positive spin on what this quarter brought from a financial view.
I am all for engagement and hours played though. To me, that is a better measure of success as a gamer then how much money they took from me for games and hardware. But I would suspect that even these numbers fell.
The money will come if the content and hardware are good and fairly priced. The problem is that CoD was less then stellar this year and they got cocky with the price increase for Outer Worlds 2 and increasing GamePass pricing with Ubisoft+ Classics. I know as a platform holder they may have decided to try and help Ubisoft using GamePass, but that was a mistake. I would say drop Ubisoft+ Classics from GamePass and go back to the pricing they had before. First party games on GamePass will be enough to sell the service.
On the hardware side MS did not do a half-cycle/late cycle refresh of XB Series hardware this generation. The drop is expected for me. I didn't buy any XBoxes recently but did pickup up a PS5 Pro last two years because I want the best PS device and I can afford that. But zero reason to replace my perfectly fine and functioning XBoxes. Xbox Series is seriously great quality hardware. I can't even complain that the fans have become noisy (most consoles and PCs become noisier over time) because they haven't.
This is the new mantra for game subscription services:
You have to buy our service to play on our network and the games because we are doubling the selling price of games. But, we also need you to bleed more by buying the premium version of the game at; well. The cost of what you used to pay for games before subscription services.
@FraserG I want XB to focus on the gaming performance of the next console.
I bought all my games digitally and have where possible since 2012. If they can give me more performance for that $35 they save in not giving me an optical drive, I would gladly buy it, and buy an optical drive if I want one.
I am expecting MS to have a very high end, mid, and entry level console next generation. High end competing with a higher end gaming PC, mid being equal to PS6, and entry level being similar to a next generation version of Series S. I also expect MS to license the XB OS to third parties so that we see Dell Alienware, Asus ROG, HP Omen, Acer Predator, etc XB certified "consoles".
The advantage of consoles is their simplicity to configure and put on a TV. I think MS wants to commoditize that so that no one talks about PS vs XB vs Switch anymore, and the conversation becomes who has the best OS, games, and subscriptions.
@Sindayl I disagree with your comment that the last 12 years have not been as bad as people put it out to be.
I will agree that the last two years has been solid. But, if you look back beyond that to the launch lineup for XB1, the only reason Microsoft still has a following on XB was its constant purchase of studios and publishers since 2014 when they bought Mojang first for Minecraft, the Gears franchise forming the Coalition studio, then the six studio purchase in 2018, then DoubleFine in 2019, then ZeniMax in 2020, and finally Activision Blizzard in 2022.
The original MS Game Studios has been a train wreck this past 12 years. And that is putting it super politely.
Storage has been a bad topic for me for a while now. There should be a option to go up to 72 TB for gamers that want to pay for it. I know a lot of gamers could do with a lot less and can't afford more but I can and there are no options for me to get there. It would take about 60 Tb for me to download and have every game I have ever bought on my console. And I would be willing to spend quite a bit to make that happen.
@Elbow
My dad passed away from cancer in November this past year and my wife passed away from cancer a few years earlier. Imagine if all the money that goes into marketing, politics, wars, drugs, alcohol, etc. and we re-directed all the AI resources to finding a cure for cancer how long would it take to solve this problem that piece by piece takes all the independence, dignity, and then their lives away from them.
The world's priorities are severely skewed away from what is really important.
@Weebleman
If I buy a low end 4K TV and a 4K firestick I can XB cloud stream. There is no way a used Series S is cheaper than a 4K firestick that often goes on sale.
I know a few people that cloud stream. They are total casual players that don't want to pay to buy a console and don't subscribe to GamePass for the one or two SP games they play each year.
SORRY CORRECTION - These people have low end GamePass subs so they can stream they told me.
@Weebleman How about the people that can't afford to buy a console and the games but have a perfectly good TV that can stream games if they just invest in a controller?
This is all about creating entry points for people. On the low end I can stream my games on compatible TVs, on the high end I get a performant device that can play games locally.
Also, there is the problem of storage. With games beinng 100+ GB, sometimes it makes sense to stream things you don't play often.
I will buy the next generation of consoles based on their specs vs costs. If they try and give me a meh device for $1,000+ dollars I will ignore it, but if they give me a technically advanced device I may be willing to spend more for it.
A nvidia 5070 ti cost over $1,000 alone. And a 5090 runs in the $4,000 price range. If XB ships something that compares to their performance then that has to be taken into account as part of the purchase.
I see them as shipping a low, mid, and high end console.
Yes game pass prices went up. That is disappointing. I still feel I get more bang for my buck with XB then with PS5 and Switch 2 though so I can't complain.
Most major publishers have had rounds of lay offs the past two to three years. This is nothing new and I expect it will continue as well.
I doubt they cancelled games that were going to be 10/10 type games. They weren't sitting there saying, "let's cancel these amazing games".
I am not sure as a gamer how marketing strategies affect me. I play games and use my devices. Marketing strategies and marketing budgets change often based on a lot of things.
True they are pushing that many devices can play XB games. I see nothing wrong with that and I myself use cloud streaming, my PC, Asus ROG Ally X, and XSX/S to play XB games based on what hardware/network is available to me. There is nothing wrong with that. I really don't understand why there are gamers that think XB should only have games on a single console device. There is nothing holding any of the companies back from shipping games on PC, cloud streaming, etc.
Game prices have been climbing for a while now. Thank the inflation gods of Biden and now Trump.
There are many games they released this year that were much better then ok. I wouldn't give any 10/10 but I saw a lot of solid 8.5 to 9.5 games. Personally didn't feel any were under an 8.
@TheGameThrifter I saw nothing wrong with this past year as an XB console owner. They did better than both Sony and Nintendo which I also have their latest consoles.
@Fiendish-Beaver
As a gamer I rate the companies I buy hardware from on the quality and performance of the hardware and I rate them also on the quality of games they ship. To me, all the other stuff is jusy noise.
From a hardware aspect I have several Series X and one Series S and have had zero hardware issues with them since they were bought and I feel the performance of them have met my expectations.
From a games perspective Microsoft didn't ship any 10 out of 10's in my books but I played a lot that I would give 8.5 to 9.5 this year. I can't say I saw the same number of quality games come out from Sony for my PS5s and Nintendo for my Switch 2.
In my books XB did great this year. Yes, things are no longer exclusive, but I look at that as MS ensuring they get the revenue to keep making the great games with the studios they have kept open. Hardware costs are what they are, some companies choose to swallow increases, XB passed them on to the consumer. As for GamePass I was disappointed in the price increase but, I can't honestly say that MS is ripping me off with all the day one MS games and even third party stuff like Claire Obscure 33 on GamePass day one as well. If you forgo buying four or five games at full price per year GamePass is still a bargain. You can look at the cup as half full or half empty. But all in all I have enjoyed XB gaming this year.
@GameOverScreen I have been through all the XB generations and before that many other console generations.
My take. The 360 generation was the era of the most obvious innnovations in games. The graphical and capability leaps seemed massive. But now innovations are a lot more subtle. For example, moving from HD to 4K is not as obvious of a change when you are sitting 12 ft back from your TV. Also, game world sizes have massively increased and interactivity with the environment is becoming more detailed. But they are mostly just building on game mechanics and gameplay that was invented in previous generations.
I don't think of these newer generations as less innovation, I just think the innovations have not been as obvious. To me, there are a lot of great games from this year, you just have to look at things from a different angle because innovation is different now. Lots of problems that existed and were solved in the 360 era are basic game stuff in 2025. Things like online, profile, gameplay mechanics, graphics, sound, etc. All solved things now. The innovation now is in small graphical details like facial expressions, interactivity, quantites of things, size of things, and interactivity with the environment. I don't look at it as lesser, I just see innovation differently now.
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Re: 'I'm Of Two Minds' - Todd Howard Gives His Thoughts On Xbox's Leadership Changes
Notice there was no mention of Sarah Bond. Seems like the people at XB definitely miss Phil, but there doesn't seem to be the same deep sentiment towards Sarah Bond.
Re: Talking Point: What Should Xbox Call Its 'Project Helix' Console?
XBox Infinite.
Because I doubt there will be a next generation of consoles after Helix (I am not saying MS will exit consoles, I just think the concept of generations will disappear). There will just be yearly hardware refreshes and sometimes those refreshes will substantially move the bar forward. People will buy consoles like vehicles. When they feel it is worn out or too degraded they will just buy the latest yearly refresh.
Re: 'Xbox Mode' For Windows 11 Is Progress, And It Could Shape Microsoft's Project Helix Console
Very smart of Microsoft to release broadly now. It will let them work out all the kinks before the next XB ships. Personally, I will install it right away on my Windows PC and Windows laptop. I have been wanting this pretty much since XB360 came out.
Can't wait until they announce console compatbility so they can play any XB games and not just play anywhere games.
Re: Tech Journalist Predicts A Price Of 'At Least $1,000' For Xbox Project Helix
I could see MS delivering three tiers of consoles...
A $500-700 console for the low end.
A $900-1,100 consoled for the masses.
A $1500+ console for a high end.
The reality I think is that next generation consoles will be $900-1,100 for the masses from both Sony and MS. That is just the cost reality of a console product going forward.
Re: Microsoft CEO On Xbox's Future: 'We'll Always Invest In Gaming'
@darylb24
It is not only that gaming is profitable, but gaming is a key driver of innovation and sales for Windows.
Also, gaming is one of Microsoft's last consumer brands. They want more consumer presence not less. So, pushing gaming is MS's way of staying relevant with consumers.
Re: Microsoft Has Explored Allowing AI & Other Xbox Players To Help Control Your Games
As long as AI is optional and achievements are turned off for people who use AI in their games I have no problem with this.
Re: Talking Point: Will 'Project Helix' Be A Niche Device, Or An Xbox Console For The Masses?
@GuyinPA75
I do want consoles to ship complete and be identified to a generation. Hopefully MS does not allow that level of customization to call something an XB.
Re: Next Xbox Console: Everything We Know So Far About Microsoft's Next-Gen System
@Exerion76
It really doesn't matter. Both XB and PS gaming consoles have been PCs from a hardware perspective for three generations now. The real key here is how well they deliver the console experience on the device.
Re: Talking Point: Will 'Project Helix' Be A Niche Device, Or An Xbox Console For The Masses?
@GuyinPA75
I don't have any problem with MS and maybe its OEM partners shipping XB consoles of varying specs. I have always wanted a console that can rival the best gaming PCs. This has never been shipped by any of the console vendors. The consoles have typically been a balance of price and performance. I would love to see the vendors come out with a high end console that was all about best in class performance.
Re: Xbox Announces New 'Project Helix' Console, Says It Will Play PC Games
I really like the logo for Project Helix. LOL.
Other then that, this was just an exercise to tell the world there will definitely be a next XBox.
Was also an interesting comment by Asha that it will play both Xbox and PC games. To me, this is and important thing as I also on Steam and Epic. I think the implementation on this on the Asus ROG Ally X is good, but I think it needs to be improved for the console experience.
Finally, was intersting that she focused on performance as well. Does that mean XB will focus on performance over price? It is a given that next gen consoles will start the generation more expensive then any other previous generation. But, what did she mean when saying performance?
Re: Poll: How Optimistic Are You Feeling About The Future Of Xbox?
I will go into the cautiously optimisitic pile.
The right things have been said, now the team has to execute well and stick to what they have said.
Re: Xbox Adds New 'Sort By' Options On The Microsoft Store, Including By Price & Discount
@awp69
Agreed. The sales have so many titles now it is difficult to weed through what are games vs DLC content. It would be nice to just get a list of the games because as a personal policy I typically won't buy DLC.
I wait until there is a complete version before buying games that have DLC with achievements. And I never buy DLC as cosmetics or to help me progress quicker. If I mistakenly buy a game and they release DLC with achievements later then I do not buy the DLC no matter what. The way I see it, is the game developer/publisher should give me a roadmap to the game commercials upon or before game release. If they don't and they add later after I buy it, that is their loss not mine. I expect developer/publishers to be clear with their DLC intentions.
Re: Xbox Adds New 'Sort By' Options On The Microsoft Store, Including By Price & Discount
Wow, amazing they brought these sorts back after how long? What a tough feature that must have been to deliver. NOT.
Re: Xbox Won't Back Away From First-Party And Become 'Just A Publisher', Insists EVP Matt Booty
@Lanmanna
I have 2 XSX and 2 TVs in my den for gaming with friends. 1 XSX in my living room, 1 XSX in my guest house for visitors to use, 1 XSX on my back deck with a TV, and 1 XSS in my travel trailer. And I have a Asus ROG Ally X as a travel device.
Re: Xbox Won't Back Away From First-Party And Become 'Just A Publisher', Insists EVP Matt Booty
@kmtrain83
I am ok with the hardware strategy, I think the overall strategy needs work across the board.
I look at my 5 Series X and 1 Series S and I have zero issues with the hardware (other then storage size, which is an issue with all hardware that has nvme drives right now).
Re: Amazon 'Abandons' Maverick Games As Former Forza Devs Seek New Publisher
Seems like all game publishers are releasing and letting studios go.
Re: Xbox Boss Questioned On Whether Exclusives Could Return In The Future
I think as the platform publishing rights for each title expires MS should be saying to the other platform holders, "We will publish our titles on your platform if you publish your titles on our platform".
MS I think made a bit of a mistake going on the high ground first by publishing cross platform without securiring the promise of the other platform holders to do the same back.
Re: 'Return To Our Roots' - Xbox CEO Reiterates Her Goals For The Future
A few things I think needs to be done going forward with XB:
1) When you announce a game ship it, don't cancel it. So, don't announce til you know it will ship.
2) They need to be committed to making sure the XB console brand is strong.
3) Don't close any more studios until at least well after the next gen starts.
4) Instead of focusing on money milking franchises such as Halo, Gears, Forza Horizon, Elder Scrolls, Fallout, Call of Duty, Diablo, WoW, etc. Get daring on the AAA front and build some new large IPs. South of Midnight, Pentiment, etc. were good small gambles, but I want to see them shooting for the fences with some big new gambles.
5) Acquire some more studios that are up and coming.
6) Fire the whole marketing team and get a real marketing team that knows what they are doing. This marketing team took perfectly good studio/publisher acquisitions, a strong console generation, and lots of good gaming news and screwed it up this generation.
7) I don't mind them shipping games on other devices, but console sohuld be first and should have at least one year exclusivity.
Re: New Xbox Head Suggests Bringing Back The Blades Dashboard In First Social Media Posts
@Fiendish-Beaver
I do agree fully with what you said. The lady is less then a few days on the job. She must be given a chance to succeed.
I do not judge any exec based on their PR, I judge them based on their actions. Time will tell us how she does with her actions.
Re: 'No Tolerance For Bad AI' - New Xbox Boss Says Games Need 'Great Stories Created By Humans'
@Balaam_
Her words are correct, but I will judge them on their actions, not the good words she is using.
As for Sataya, name me one successful technology CEO that is not focused on AI. I work in tech and AI is a constant in every conversation now. If you think any technology organization or company is not heavily investing in AI you are badly mistaken.
Re: Former Xbox Employee Returns After 13 Years As New Chief Of Staff
@SodaPop6548
I think they have made the right decisions to secure the future of their platform strong. If MS would have made the Activision-Blizzard games exclusive to XB they would not have been able to do the deal and they would got in hot water with anti-trust/competition laws in the USA/Europe. Taking the rest multi-platform probably saved them from having to close more studios because games keep getting more expensive to make.
I don't have a lot of confidence in every console vendor right now. To me the certainity of all consoles seems up in the air, because Gaming PCs have become so easy to configure and hook up to TVs. And with changes to the OS that MS is going to probably make available to all future versions of Windows at some point you will probably be able to put the OS in "console mode" and it will make it even easier. So, why would I buy a console that is becoming nearly the same price as a low end gaming PC, when I have the vast selection of PCs that I can buy and run it as a console? If MS was to certify PCs as "XBox Certified" then I could buy any PC that is XB Certified and game on it like a console, that would probably kill consoles as we know them today.
Re: Xbox CEO Shares Her Three Favourite Games Of All Time, Along With Her Gamertag
@Neither_scene
I have zero trust in every company. Companies have one goal and that is to make money. They may sound nice and treat their customers nice but the goal always remains the same. Anyone trusting companies is naive.
I don't trust these companies, I assess them on how well they provide me services and products and select them objectively based on that. I also use my history of dealing with them to decide on dealing with them in the future.
For example, I had bought three Sony TVs at different times in the 1990's through early 2000's. All three died shortly after the warranty ran out. Therefore I do not center my gaming purchases around Sony because I have had bad experiences with their devices and they never helped me in any of the cases. XB though... I had two RRoD consoles in the 360 era, and they were replaced quickly by Microsoft with consoles that did not fail after. I still have and use those consoles today. Nintentdo, they have always been reliable but their online services are about 5-10 years behind XB and PS.
Re: Former Xbox Employee Returns After 13 Years As New Chief Of Staff
@SodaPop6548
I think it is most likely that they are adopting AI more. But, I don't think that is a bad thing. AI is being widely adopted in all tech positions. I work in tech and it is showing up everywhere. It is a productivity tool for us. So, don't view that as a bad thing. And I think it this has nothing to do with their recent changes.
There is only one software technology that is probably advancing more rapidly then gaming. And that is AI. If one of my people was retiring (Apparently Phil told Sataya he was going to do this a year ago), it would be just as natural to move my head of AI into his position as it would some other gaming exec. The needs of both are similar. Rapid change and evolution, capital intensive upfront, and complex.
Re: Who Is Asha Sharma? A Look Back At The Career Of The New Xbox Boss
@Fiendish-Beaver
I am 56 so not too much younger. Have worked in technology all my working career since 1991. Things are changing quickly.
AI will be the great equalizer. Every one on the planet that gets access to it, will beenfit from first to third world countries.
I don't have a clue how schools and the current teacher model are surviving today. One can answer any homework assignment with AI today.
Re: Who Is Asha Sharma? A Look Back At The Career Of The New Xbox Boss
@Fiendish-Beaver
I think you are under-estimating that rate of change in the AI world. I work in technology and since the advent of personal computers we have seen a very high rate of change. But, in the AI world over the next 10-20 years you will see the rate of change explode as AI does more and more.
It is going to be humanity that slows down AI, not the ability of AI to outpace humanity.
We can only hope that humanity learns how to use this tool quickly and makes it a tool that benefits humanity. Ultimately, with AI, quantum computing, and robotics AI will be able to do everything. We are not far away from that world as all three are advancing at incredible speeds. It is the tri-fecta that will completely change humanity as we know it.
Humanity will need to change societal structure completely. No more working 9-5, work will be optional, the concept of money needs to disappear, and the idea of what it means to be human will change. Assuming AI keeps moving forward, this change is on our doorstep.
Re: Xbox President Sarah Bond Is Also Leaving The Company, Microsoft Confirms
@DennisReynolds
It really doesn't say all that much. Apparently, Phil has been planning this for a year. Bond probably wanted to take over but it got given to someone else. So, she decided that she didn't want to stay if she didn't get the boss title.
Perfectly in her rights to do so.
Re: New Xbox Boss Makes Official Statement As She Takes Over From Phil Spencer
I am going to wait and see on how she does.
The announcement sounds senseable but actions will speak louder then the words.
XB has changed a lot since Phil took over the helm. Now, hopefully they focus fully on delivering great games and a great next console.
Re: Phil Spencer Announces That He's Retiring From Xbox
@GeeEssEff
I think Spencer did what needed to be done at XB. You can argue against many of the decisions, but gaming as a business at Microsoft is more solid then it has ever been. And personally I didn't see him as charasmatic, but I did like a lot of the decisions, some others not so much.
This was also a good time for a change in leadership. They are starting to prepare for a new generation and they have made all the most controversial changes. Going forward the team has a clean slate to build and grow momentum in what they are doing (whatever that is).
The biggest issue I have with this whole thing was the loss of Bond. I do think they made the right decisions, but Bond probably felt left out so I can also understand why she left. She will go somewhere else and be successful.
Re: Poll: As Things Stand, Will You Be Buying GTA 6 On Xbox This November?
There has been two trailers for GTA6. While they are well done, and I have enjoyed previous GTA games, I will wait until after it comes out to make a decision.
Also, with the price of games now-a-days, I will not pay full price. I will probably wait until there is a 50% discount on the fullest edition of the game before I jump in. I expect that will be 1.5-2 years after release at the very earliest.
Re: Report: Xbox Working With OEMs To Build Next-Gen Options For 'A Range Of Price Points'
@oopsiezz
I agree it will be more confusing but also, I think they are making buying an console to be more similar to buying a TV. There are many different brands of TVs but a person can choose features and price points to get what they value most.
If they do it right this becomes more about choice and price points. Do it wrong and it just become confusion as you stated.
As long as every XBox certified device can play every game considered to be part of the XBox ecosystem, I would think it won't matter much to people which one they buy and then it becomes more about options they may want.
For example, MS may deliver a XBox with a specific spec like a mid-class GPU and 1 Tb of storage, but maybe Dell Alienware will deliver a super high end XB with PC level max GPU and 4 TB of storage at a higher price. Or Asus may deliver a XB console with a nominal GPU and 512 GB storage. They can all run XB games smoothly, but the differentiator is number of games you can store and framerates/graphical detail the console delivers. The Dell Alienware console may be $4,000, the Microsoft XB console $1,000, and the Asus console $600. It gives people options. Rather than suck up the $1,000 Microsoft price and spec. If it is true that next generation consoles will be more expensive, I think these options will give people choice on how much they want to spend.
You see that with PS5 right now. in Canada the PS5 Pro is $960, the PS5 from launch is $650, and the PS5 Digital is $580. It gives people price point choice. MS is just looking to give people a wider range of choice. The key though is ensireing there is a standard that plays all games smoothly.
Re: Helldivers 2 Xbox Vs. PS5 Sales Data Shared As Game Reportedly Hits 20 Million Copies Sold
@Weebleman
I was just pointing out the data and the shown findings would not hold up to any level of scientific peer review.
Not upset, just making an observation on the quality of the data/article.
Re: Helldivers 2 Xbox Vs. PS5 Sales Data Shared As Game Reportedly Hits 20 Million Copies Sold
@Weebleman
May be true, but a better way to present the data then would've been just to say the platform totals without a graph aligning launch on PS and XB.
BTW. Alinea Analytics provided the numbers not the "folks who made it".
Re: Xbox Achievements Have Been Visually Redesigned, Showing Up In The New Cloud Gaming UI
@Fiendish-Beaver
To me consoles are losing purpose and relevance.
People have been buying consoles as a cheap, easy connect to TV, and easy to manage device instead of PCs. Especially, in the last two generations consoles have become more and more like PC architecture and increasing in price (lol. I was buying new PS3's and XB360's for $99 - $199 at the end of that gen - good luck finding a console that price now new). And at the same time Windows is becoming friendlier to people who only want to play games on their PC.
So what is evolving is, "Why buy a console once a PC becomes just as easy as a console to use?". And by the way there are tons more games on PC... Oh! And by the way I have 100's more options in purchasing a PC then a console to go higher end on gaming. Oh x 2! And I can replace my rig whenever I want because there is constantly new ones coming out. I suspect MS is going to encourage PC OEMs to ship "Console PCs" Essentially, lower priced PCs that boot to their unified XB Console PC OS and based on the SOC partnership they have with AMD. Essentially the next version of the Asus ROG Ally X interface.
Also, networks will continue to get faster and more ubitious. As this happens I think a lot of games will shift to cloud. They still have issues to fix on cloud gaming but when they are resolved that will change how many vendors distribute games and hopefully get rid of a lot of the annoying constant updates and downloads of games. Then MS will partner even more with TV manufacturers to include the XB Cloud Streaming more and more.
5-10 years from now consoles as we know them today just won't be relevant.
Re: Helldivers 2 Xbox Vs. PS5 Sales Data Shared As Game Reportedly Hits 20 Million Copies Sold
@Weebleman
So why are they releasing the info? If you are going to release information comparing things then it should be appless to apples comparisons. If you are not trying to make the comparison with all the adjustments to install base, taking into account that the product was available elsewhere for 1.5 years, and a factor for fansbase then the comparison is useless, doesn't say a thing, and is senseless.
Re: Helldivers 2 Xbox Vs. PS5 Sales Data Shared As Game Reportedly Hits 20 Million Copies Sold
This article is not an apples to apples comparison.
1) Both versions did not launch on the same date.
2) The XB install base is much smaller than PS.
3) This is a PS franchise. Sales should be higher on that platform.
Re: Microsoft CFO Admits Xbox Revenue Was 'Below Expectations' In FY26 Q2
@TheGameThrifter
There is no positive spin on what this quarter brought from a financial view.
I am all for engagement and hours played though. To me, that is a better measure of success as a gamer then how much money they took from me for games and hardware. But I would suspect that even these numbers fell.
The money will come if the content and hardware are good and fairly priced. The problem is that CoD was less then stellar this year and they got cocky with the price increase for Outer Worlds 2 and increasing GamePass pricing with Ubisoft+ Classics. I know as a platform holder they may have decided to try and help Ubisoft using GamePass, but that was a mistake. I would say drop Ubisoft+ Classics from GamePass and go back to the pricing they had before. First party games on GamePass will be enough to sell the service.
On the hardware side MS did not do a half-cycle/late cycle refresh of XB Series hardware this generation. The drop is expected for me. I didn't buy any XBoxes recently but did pickup up a PS5 Pro last two years because I want the best PS device and I can afford that. But zero reason to replace my perfectly fine and functioning XBoxes. Xbox Series is seriously great quality hardware. I can't even complain that the fans have become noisy (most consoles and PCs become noisier over time) because they haven't.
Re: Forza Horizon 6's Controversial Game Pass Upgrade Costs As Much As The Game Itself
This is the new mantra for game subscription services:
You have to buy our service to play on our network and the games because we are doubling the selling price of games. But, we also need you to bleed more by buying the premium version of the game at; well. The cost of what you used to pay for games before subscription services.
Re: In The US, 66% Of Xbox Series X|S Sales Were Digital-Only In 2025
@FraserG
I want XB to focus on the gaming performance of the next console.
I bought all my games digitally and have where possible since 2012. If they can give me more performance for that $35 they save in not giving me an optical drive, I would gladly buy it, and buy an optical drive if I want one.
I am expecting MS to have a very high end, mid, and entry level console next generation. High end competing with a higher end gaming PC, mid being equal to PS6, and entry level being similar to a next generation version of Series S. I also expect MS to license the XB OS to third parties so that we see Dell Alienware, Asus ROG, HP Omen, Acer Predator, etc XB certified "consoles".
The advantage of consoles is their simplicity to configure and put on a TV. I think MS wants to commoditize that so that no one talks about PS vs XB vs Switch anymore, and the conversation becomes who has the best OS, games, and subscriptions.
Re: Fable Likely To Be A Huge Hit On PS5 As Sony-Hosted Trailer Hits 1 Million Views
@Sindayl
I disagree with your comment that the last 12 years have not been as bad as people put it out to be.
I will agree that the last two years has been solid. But, if you look back beyond that to the launch lineup for XB1, the only reason Microsoft still has a following on XB was its constant purchase of studios and publishers since 2014 when they bought Mojang first for Minecraft, the Gears franchise forming the Coalition studio, then the six studio purchase in 2018, then DoubleFine in 2019, then ZeniMax in 2020, and finally Activision Blizzard in 2022.
The original MS Game Studios has been a train wreck this past 12 years. And that is putting it super politely.
Re: Xbox Studios Boss Shares Update On Progress For State Of Decay 3
"We're very excited about the franchise and its potential. So I will certainly see a lot more of it in the coming year"
Translation:
"We like what we see, but it won't be done this year."
Re: Ubisoft Cancels Multiple Games, Closes Studios, And Unveils New Strategy For The Future
Sad to see game developers loser their jobs. This is how the gaming world turns right now. Studios closing is a regular occurence unfortunately.
Re: Talking Point: Xbox Series X|S Owners, How's Your Storage Looking In 2026?
Storage has been a bad topic for me for a while now. There should be a option to go up to 72 TB for gamers that want to pay for it. I know a lot of gamers could do with a lot less and can't afford more but I can and there are no options for me to get there. It would take about 60 Tb for me to download and have every game I have ever bought on my console. And I would be willing to spend quite a bit to make that happen.
Re: Tributes Pour In For Xbox Veteran Albert Penello, Who Has Sadly Passed Away
@Elbow
My dad passed away from cancer in November this past year and my wife passed away from cancer a few years earlier. Imagine if all the money that goes into marketing, politics, wars, drugs, alcohol, etc. and we re-directed all the AI resources to finding a cure for cancer how long would it take to solve this problem that piece by piece takes all the independence, dignity, and then their lives away from them.
The world's priorities are severely skewed away from what is really important.
Re: A Year Later, Microsoft Remains Highly Committed To Its 'This Is An Xbox' Campaign
@Weebleman
If I buy a low end 4K TV and a 4K firestick I can XB cloud stream. There is no way a used Series S is cheaper than a 4K firestick that often goes on sale.
I know a few people that cloud stream. They are total casual players that don't want to pay to buy a console and don't subscribe to GamePass for the one or two SP games they play each year.
SORRY CORRECTION - These people have low end GamePass subs so they can stream they told me.
Re: A Year Later, Microsoft Remains Highly Committed To Its 'This Is An Xbox' Campaign
@Weebleman
How about the people that can't afford to buy a console and the games but have a perfectly good TV that can stream games if they just invest in a controller?
This is all about creating entry points for people. On the low end I can stream my games on compatible TVs, on the high end I get a performant device that can play games locally.
Also, there is the problem of storage. With games beinng 100+ GB, sometimes it makes sense to stream things you don't play often.
Re: Talking Point: How Much Would You Be Willing To Spend On The Next Xbox Console?
I will buy the next generation of consoles based on their specs vs costs. If they try and give me a meh device for $1,000+ dollars I will ignore it, but if they give me a technically advanced device I may be willing to spend more for it.
A nvidia 5070 ti cost over $1,000 alone. And a 5090 runs in the $4,000 price range. If XB ships something that compares to their performance then that has to be taken into account as part of the purchase.
I see them as shipping a low, mid, and high end console.
Can't really judge price without specs.
Re: Phil Spencer Says 2026 Is Going To Be 'A Really Special Year' For Xbox
@TheGameThrifter
Re: Phil Spencer Says 2026 Is Going To Be 'A Really Special Year' For Xbox
@TheGameThrifter
I saw nothing wrong with this past year as an XB console owner. They did better than both Sony and Nintendo which I also have their latest consoles.
Re: Xbox & Microsoft Dominate The List Of 'Most Covered' Gaming Companies In 2025
@Fiendish-Beaver
As a gamer I rate the companies I buy hardware from on the quality and performance of the hardware and I rate them also on the quality of games they ship. To me, all the other stuff is jusy noise.
From a hardware aspect I have several Series X and one Series S and have had zero hardware issues with them since they were bought and I feel the performance of them have met my expectations.
From a games perspective Microsoft didn't ship any 10 out of 10's in my books but I played a lot that I would give 8.5 to 9.5 this year. I can't say I saw the same number of quality games come out from Sony for my PS5s and Nintendo for my Switch 2.
In my books XB did great this year. Yes, things are no longer exclusive, but I look at that as MS ensuring they get the revenue to keep making the great games with the studios they have kept open. Hardware costs are what they are, some companies choose to swallow increases, XB passed them on to the consumer. As for GamePass I was disappointed in the price increase but, I can't honestly say that MS is ripping me off with all the day one MS games and even third party stuff like Claire Obscure 33 on GamePass day one as well. If you forgo buying four or five games at full price per year GamePass is still a bargain. You can look at the cup as half full or half empty. But all in all I have enjoyed XB gaming this year.
Re: Talking Point: Which Xbox Games Deserved More Love This Year?
@GameOverScreen
I have been through all the XB generations and before that many other console generations.
My take. The 360 generation was the era of the most obvious innnovations in games. The graphical and capability leaps seemed massive. But now innovations are a lot more subtle. For example, moving from HD to 4K is not as obvious of a change when you are sitting 12 ft back from your TV. Also, game world sizes have massively increased and interactivity with the environment is becoming more detailed. But they are mostly just building on game mechanics and gameplay that was invented in previous generations.
I don't think of these newer generations as less innovation, I just think the innovations have not been as obvious. To me, there are a lot of great games from this year, you just have to look at things from a different angle because innovation is different now. Lots of problems that existed and were solved in the 360 era are basic game stuff in 2025. Things like online, profile, gameplay mechanics, graphics, sound, etc. All solved things now. The innovation now is in small graphical details like facial expressions, interactivity, quantites of things, size of things, and interactivity with the environment. I don't look at it as lesser, I just see innovation differently now.