@SMJ Microsoft keeps advertising Game Pass, but most casuals don't even know what Game Pass is. Saying "play it day one with Game Pass" means nothing to those people because they need to learn more about Game Pass itself. It's baffling that Microsoft has never bothered to make a massive "what is Game Pass" ad campaign.
If only they put more resources into advertising Game Pass and consoles instead of spending money on that confusing "This is an Xbox" campaign.
Microsoft keeps complaining about how they aren't able to grow Xbox and yet they refuse to put in actual effort to make the Xbox brand more relevant in (non English speaking) European countries.
It's like Microsoft thinks the entire world is U.S., Canada, Japan, and the U.K., and that's it.
@TheGameThrifter Japanese companies don't lay off employees as much due to laws in Japan that make the process difficult.
Microsoft is among the top 5 biggest Western tech companies, so like Google, Amazon, and Meta, they lay off employees by the thousands each and every year.
@VoidPunk Not at all true. Xbox is making more money than ever before this generation, which makes these layoffs and bad business strategies even more inexcusable.
God I would love to play this game on Xbox, I'm a massive fan of the first Death Stranding, and I was so pleasantly surprised by the Xbox release of the original game.
Sadly, I think we might have to wait a while for an Xbox port. Worst case scenario, Death Stranding 2 doesn't come to Xbox until 2030. Best case scenario, it comes to Xbox and PC in a year or two.
If Sony publishes the PC version of Death Stranding 2 instead of 505 Games, then that will not be a promising sign, because it suggests that Xbox players will have to wait until the publishing contract for DS2 completely expires.
@Fiendish-Beaver They will probably announce Starfield for PS5 here as well. Knowing Microsoft, they will save it as a "one last thing" announcement, like they did so with Indiana Jones for PS5 last year.
@NishimuraX Dude, why are you so hostile? I never said the next Xbox will be like the ROG Xbox Ally. I said, if the next Xbox can hypothetically play all Xbox console and PC games, it would be objectively better than your current PC. That's it.
I'm not saying the next Xbox will have access to all Xbox console games and all PC games, or that Microsoft said this this will happen. However, IF it does, it will objectively have access to the most games of any other platform, more so than the average PC. A device that has access to all PC storefronts, plus one that can also natively play all Xbox console games, would be great.
Also, even current Xbox consoles have more freedom than the average console. Like I said in my previous comment, which you seem to have ignored, you can emulate thousands of PS1/2, Xbox 360, GameCube, SNES, Game Boy, 3DS, etc. games on your Xbox right now via dev mode. Obviously, it's not as convenient as on PC, but still.
Not sure why people here like to hate Jez Corden so much. He's right, this "Xbox Classics" thing almost certainly isn't happening. It makes no sense for Microsoft to partner up with Xenia when they already have a superior 360 emulator of their own.
Y'all should be doubting extas1s more than Jez, he's the one who has gotten a lot of stuff wrong lately.
@TheGameThrifter I agree with most of your comment, but Grounded definitely didn't flop. It was a massive commercial success, had tens of millions of players despite being made by a tiny team at Obsidian.
If Grounded was a flop, we wouldn't be getting a Grounded 2 next month.
@NishimuraX If the next Xbox has access to all PC storefronts like the ROG Xbox Ally does, it would have access to DRM free GoG lol.
And you do realise you can emulate thousands of games on Xbox consoles right now, right?
I don't care if it isn't happening or not. I'm saying that, if the next Xbox can play both Xbox console and PC games, it would be objectively better than your current PC. That's all.
@NishimuraX To be fair, if the next Xbox can play both all Xbox console games and all PC games, then it would be superior to the PC you own right now. In this scenario, the next Xbox would by far be the platform with the most games, more so than even PC.
However, it remains to be seen if this is what actually happens.
@Fiendish-Beaver I agree with the notion that the next Xbox is probably not gonna be affordable. However, the PS6 won't be, either.
There's pretty much a zero percent chance that the PS6 will be equal to or less than $700. It will probably be $800 minimum. Could even be $900 if Sony raises the price of its consoles due to tariffs.
When the PS6 costs that much money, a $1000 Xbox won't sound that crazy in comparison
I would like to see Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection, The Great Ace Attorney, and Monster Hunter Stories 1+2 announced for Xbox. Sadly, there's a 0% chance of that happening.
On a related note, it would be nice if Capcom finally announced Ace Attorney 7.
This whole Xbox Classics thing seemed exciting for PC fans, but unless they added more games to back compat, I don't see how exciting it would be for PC fans.
@darkswabber Not really, pretty much everything he's reported on on Windows Central has turned out to be correct. It's his random Twitter posts that sometimes end up being false.
I agree with the Sony isn't scared of Microsoft part. Sony definitely still views Xbox as competition, more so than they do Nintendo or PC IMO, but they aren't porting games to Xbox because they think of Microsoft as their fierce rival. Even though Microsoft doesn't think the same anymore.
Like you said, Sony doesn't really have an incentive to port games to Xbox at the moment, because they're direct competition. Sony, however, is okay with bringing some of their games to Switch and Switch 2 because they don't think it will harm their market dominance or brand image.
The only way I think Sony will ever willingly port games to Xbox is if Microsoft's multiplatform plan somehow works, and if Xbox still maintains the ~30 million console users it currently has, despite losing all exclusives. Maybe then Sony's shareholders will push PlayStation to port more of their games to Xbox and Switch 2, but that's still unlikely.
@wildcat_kickz Last thing I wanted to add is that, if the ABK deal never happened, Microsoft would have probably not gone multiplatform. At least not during this console generation. If they did go multiplatform, it would have probably happened like 5-10 years from now.
@wildcat_kickz Yes, Microsoft wants endless growth from their Xbox division. They would have still grown if they kept their games exclusive and followed through with their original plans, but it would have taken a longer time. Going multiplatform was the easiest and quickest way to make the most money, regardless of if it ends up being detrimental to Xbox in the long run.
Shareholders and Microsoft execs definitely do not care about console market paradigms. Satya said a few years ago, in fact, that he hates exclusives and that Xbox "had no choice" but to do them because Sony does exclusives, as well. Obviously, Satya must have forced Xbox's hand later on, because now Xbox has no exclusives.
I would argue that Microsoft would probably make more money in the long run by keeping all their games exclusive and forcing PlayStation and Nintendo players to buy an Xbox. Game Pass, in this scenario, would probably grow dramatically as well, because Xbox console sales would increase.
However, this would take a lot of time and effort to achieve, which Microsoft doesn't have the guts to do. In order to properly compete with PlayStation and Nintendo, Microsoft would have to get up off their butts and hire an actually competent marketing division, and they'd have to keep their consoles in stock worldwide, like PlayStation does.
All of this is too much of a hassle for Satya and the shareholders, so, of course, they chose the multiplatform pivot instead.
@wildcat_kickz I would disagree with the notion that you and @DennisReynolds have said about Microsoft NEEDING to change their business strategy. Microsoft did not NEED to go multiplatform, Xbox would not have gone bankrupt if they didn't put Halo/Gears/Forza on PlayStation this year.
There are a lot of similarities between Xbox and Sega, but the fate of their console divisions do differ in one notable way. Sega was bleeding cash near the end of the Dreamcast generation, their entire business was in the red since no one was buying their consoles or games (which was their only major source of revenue). Sega had no choice but to go multiplatform; otherwise, they would have gone bankrupt and closed their doors.
Xbox is not in the same position. Xbox consoles aren't selling well (they're still doing better than the Dreamcast), but the Xbox business as a whole was still successful, even before the multiplatform push. In 2023, for example, back when all Xbox games were still exclusive, Microsoft reported record-breaking revenue two times in a row for its Xbox division, in spite of underwhelming hardware sales.
This shows that Xbox was, by no means, struggling in the same way that Sega was. Even if they kept all their games exclusive, Xbox was at no risk of going bankrupt in the future. In fact, their business would still be growing, but not at the fast-enough pace that Microsoft's shareholders desire.
At the end of the day, Xbox going multiplatform is not something that Microsoft NEEDED to do. It is something Microsoft chose to do, because, frankly, I think Microsoft is run by fools. Microsoft higher-ups do not understand the gaming industry, and they prioritize short-term gains over long-term wins. After spending $70 billion dollars on Activision, Microsoft took control of the Xbox division and decided they want to make money as fast as possible, regardless of if it kills their console division in the process.
The catalyst of Xbox going multiplatform is not "slow Xbox console sales" or "no one buys games on Xbox because of Game Pass," the catalyst is Xbox spending $70 billion on ABK and MS wanting that money back ASAP.
@Tasuki I think the fact that Borderlands 4 is $80 in Europe and pretty much everywhere else except the U.S., makes me think that 2K was originally planning to charge $80 in the US, as well
@InterceptorAlpha It says, "entire Xbox library," though. That includes OG Xbox and Xbox 360 games.
Either way, even if we're looking at Xbox Series games only, there are many Xbox Series X/S games that are not available on PC, nor are they Play Anywhere. Unicorn Overlord, GTA 6, Arcade Archives 2 Ridge Racer, MLB The Show, College Football, etc, are all on Xbox, but not on PC.
Like I said, "fully backwards compatible with your existing Xbox library" would entail all of these games, as well. There is no room for half-truths there. If it can't play these games, then this statement would be objectively wrong.
Either way, what you suggest wouldn't really make a lot of sense. The next Xbox will only be able to run PC versions of the games in our existing Xbox library? The only way that would be possible is if Microsoft makes all current Xbox games Xbox Play Anywhere compatible, which is never gonna happen.
I talked to some PlayStation fans on Push Square a few days ago, who thought that it was unfair for Microsoft to buy up studios and publishers for exclusivity. However, the reality of the situation is that Microsoft had no choice but to buy up studios and publishers in order to get compelling AAA Xbox exclusives.
They can't buy exclusivity from third-party developers constantly, like Sony can, since they would have to pay far more for exclusivity deals (and Game Pass deals, as well) compared to Sony. Plus, they also couldn't build tons of studios from the ground up and expect them to release amazing blockbuster IPs out of nowhere.
Buying publishers like Bethesda was pretty much the only feasible way for Microsoft to compete toe-to-toe with PlayStation for exclusivity. And, for the record, even though some PlayStation fans have complained that Microsoft has taken games away from PS players, Sony has taken far more compelling AAA third-party titles away from Xbox players than Microsoft ever has this generation. Most of MS's third-party exclusives have been AA or indie titles, at best, while Sony secures third-party AAA blockbuster after third-party AAA blockbuster exclusively for PlayStation.
Of course, none of this really matters anymore, since Xbox exclusive is an antiquated term now.
@J_Mo_Money Ubisoft+ does have day-one games on Xbox and PC, but it doesn't have day-one games on PlayStation. The only version of Ubisoft+ available on PlayStation is Ubisoft+ Classics, which only has old titles
@LogicStrikesAgain If hardly anyone bought Square Enix games on Xbox, then Square Enix wouldn't be in a rush to port all of their tentpole titles to Xbox. And before you bring up the FF16 Xbox sales report, it's important to note that that Alinea Analytics sales "report" was determined by counting the amount of reviews for FF16 on the Xbox store and comparing it to PS/Steam. In other words, it's wholly unreliable.
FF16 Complete Edition (the $70 version of the game) is currently the 11th best selling game on Xbox in the U.S. That, to me, suggests it's doing pretty good for a late port of a Final Fantasy game.
@DarthVerde To be fair, there is a zero percent chance that the PS6 will be at the same price or less than the PS5 Pro. Chances are the PS6 will be a minimum $800 device, without a disc drive.
@InterceptorAlpha Not sure where you're getting all this "form" stuff from.
In the description for the Xbox + AMD video, it explicitly says that the next Xbox is "fully compatible with your existing Xbox game library."
There is no room for interpretation or half-truths there. All the games that you can play on your Xbox Series X/S right now, like Lost Odyssey, will be playable on the next Xbox. If that wasn't true, then the next Xbox wouldn't be "fully backwards compatible," as Microsoft themselves have confirmed.
So, no, it seems like it won't be like the ROG Xbox Ally, and it won't run PC versions of your existing Xbox consoles games.
Also, I don't recall Microsoft ever saying that Xbox Series X/S emulation on PC was not possible. I don't mean to be rude, but do you have a source for that information, if possible?
@Tasuki So then we should all be thankful for Randy Pitchford, because if he kept his mouth shut, we would be paying $80 in the US for Borderlands 4 right now lol.
@PsBoxSwitchOwner SE won't be taking any money from Sony anymore, lest they want to go bankrupt in the future. PC, Switch 2, and Xbox combined is a market too big to skip over. They've already confirmed as such.
There's also a bit of a contradiction in your logic; if Final Fantasy games don't sell on Xbox, then why is Sony even paying Square Enix and other publishers to keep games off Xbox to begin with? Surely those publishers would just skip Xbox willingly, without having to be bribed by Sony?
@PsBoxSwitchOwner I like how Phil said a few months ago, that he had to make one of two choices to keep the Xbox business sustainable: either price gouge the hell out of the existing Xbox playerbase, or put games on competing platforms. Phil said that he and MS were gonna do the latter, but it turns out they're doing both instead!
Not only are all Xbox games going multi-platform, but Xbox players are getting shafted with price increases, as well. So much for multi-platform saving the day.
@Weebleman Sony wouldn't want people to be subscribing to Game Pass on PlayStation to play Microsoft games, though. Notice how there isn't a single subscription service on PlayStation that offers AAA games on day-one. Ubisoft+ and EA Play are on PlayStation, but they don't offer day-one games, even though the former does on Xbox.
Sony would lose a lot of money if people could just subscribe to Game Pass on PlayStation to play the latest Call of Duty, Gears of War, Halo, Forza, etc. game. No cut from Game Pass subs would be enough to make up for the loss in revenue on Sony's end. Of course, it would be great for Microsoft, though.
@PsBoxSwitchOwner If a game is broken and buggy at launch, does that mean people are obligated to say they don't like it, even if they actually do? That isn't "encouraging the industry" to get away with things, that's sharing your true feelings about a game.
@Medic_alert I've become a big JRPG guy in recent years, and I only own an Xbox right now. This is partly thanks to Game Pass, and tbf most major JRPGs are releasing on Xbox these days.
I don't know why everyone is quickly taking this 22,000 sales number as fact, when Alinea Analytics popped out of nowhere last year and doesn't really have a big track record
EDIT: On Twitter, the guy from Alinea Analytics who provided this info said that he used the number of reviews on the Xbox store "for reference" to determine the amount of copies it's sold so far. Shows you shouldn't immediately believe everything you see online.
@dskatter Forza Horizon 5 is part of a tentpole Xbox exclusive franchise that no one ever thought would come to PlayStation. It's selling so well based on sheer novelty alone. Let's also not forget to mention the fact that Forza is way more popular than Final Fantasy; the game was on Game Pass, sure, but it had 40 million players on Xbox and PC before its PS5 launch.
Any game that's part of a tentpole exclusive franchise is gonna sell very well on a competing platform. God of War and Spider-Man would sell like gangbusters on Xbox, too, if Sony were to bring them over.
For reference, look at how well Death Stranding sold on Xbox, despite being a five year old game. Since it was formerly a Sony property, no one expected Death Stranding to come to Xbox. And yet, when it shadowdropped on Xbox with zero marketing, it still managed to claw its way to the #3 top paid spot on the Xbox store. The 50% discount likely helped, as well.
Square should really improve the resolution for this game on Series X, and they should add back the ability to change costumes. For some strange reason, the Xbox version of FF16 is the only one that doesn't let you change the costumes of the main characters.
Either way, I'm still enjoying the game and I'm glad it's finally on Xbox
@bazchillin I know that I shouldn't be judging games on graphics alone, but wow, do FF16's graphics look better than Stranger of Paradise's. Back when Stranger of Paradise came out, I thought it sucked that PlayStation got all the cool, graphically-impressive Final Fantasy games, and Xbox got the scraps like SoP.
No disrespect to Stranger of Paradise, btw. It seems like a good game, as well.
@Fiendish-Beaver There was no previous game, this is a new IP. You might be confusing this with Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, another soulslike that was released day-one on Game Pass.
@bjs5667 Sony could easily screw over Microsoft in the future by demanding a 40% or even 50% cut out of all third-party game sales on PlayStation going forward. Microsoft, of course, isn't taking that into account as they kill their own platform. It's the same mistake they made with Windows Phone, and it's why Microsoft is unable to launch an Xbox mobile store.
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Re: Microsoft Planning To 'Restructure' Xbox Distribution In Central Europe, Says Report
@SMJ Microsoft keeps advertising Game Pass, but most casuals don't even know what Game Pass is. Saying "play it day one with Game Pass" means nothing to those people because they need to learn more about Game Pass itself. It's baffling that Microsoft has never bothered to make a massive "what is Game Pass" ad campaign.
If only they put more resources into advertising Game Pass and consoles instead of spending money on that confusing "This is an Xbox" campaign.
Re: Microsoft Planning To 'Restructure' Xbox Distribution In Central Europe, Says Report
Microsoft keeps complaining about how they aren't able to grow Xbox and yet they refuse to put in actual effort to make the Xbox brand more relevant in (non English speaking) European countries.
It's like Microsoft thinks the entire world is U.S., Canada, Japan, and the U.K., and that's it.
Re: Report: Xbox Suffering Major Layoffs Next Week, Microsoft Declines To Comment
@TheGameThrifter Japanese companies don't lay off employees as much due to laws in Japan that make the process difficult.
Microsoft is among the top 5 biggest Western tech companies, so like Google, Amazon, and Meta, they lay off employees by the thousands each and every year.
Re: Report: Xbox Suffering Major Layoffs Next Week, Microsoft Declines To Comment
@VoidPunk Not at all true. Xbox is making more money than ever before this generation, which makes these layoffs and bad business strategies even more inexcusable.
Re: System Shock 2 Remaster Hits PC This Week, But The Xbox Version Has Been Delayed
@Fiendish-Beaver Mindseye would have needed a three year delay in order to be good
Re: Talking Point: Have This Month's Announcements Made You Excited About Xbox Again?
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Re: Talking Point: Have This Month's Announcements Made You Excited About Xbox Again?
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Re: Talking Point: Have This Month's Announcements Made You Excited About Xbox Again?
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Re: Talking Point: Have This Month's Announcements Made You Excited About Xbox Again?
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Re: Death Stranding 2 Debuts To Impressive Reviews Ahead Of Hopeful Xbox Release
God I would love to play this game on Xbox, I'm a massive fan of the first Death Stranding, and I was so pleasantly surprised by the Xbox release of the original game.
Sadly, I think we might have to wait a while for an Xbox port. Worst case scenario, Death Stranding 2 doesn't come to Xbox until 2030. Best case scenario, it comes to Xbox and PC in a year or two.
If Sony publishes the PC version of Death Stranding 2 instead of 505 Games, then that will not be a promising sign, because it suggests that Xbox players will have to wait until the publishing contract for DS2 completely expires.
Re: With The Summer Showcase Over, Xbox Is Now Focusing On Gamescom 2025
@Fiendish-Beaver They will probably announce Starfield for PS5 here as well. Knowing Microsoft, they will save it as a "one last thing" announcement, like they did so with Indiana Jones for PS5 last year.
Re: Talking Point: Have This Month's Announcements Made You Excited About Xbox Again?
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Re: Talking Point: Have This Month's Announcements Made You Excited About Xbox Again?
@NishimuraX Dude, why are you so hostile? I never said the next Xbox will be like the ROG Xbox Ally. I said, if the next Xbox can hypothetically play all Xbox console and PC games, it would be objectively better than your current PC. That's it.
I'm not saying the next Xbox will have access to all Xbox console games and all PC games, or that Microsoft said this this will happen. However, IF it does, it will objectively have access to the most games of any other platform, more so than the average PC. A device that has access to all PC storefronts, plus one that can also natively play all Xbox console games, would be great.
Also, even current Xbox consoles have more freedom than the average console. Like I said in my previous comment, which you seem to have ignored, you can emulate thousands of PS1/2, Xbox 360, GameCube, SNES, Game Boy, 3DS, etc. games on your Xbox right now via dev mode. Obviously, it's not as convenient as on PC, but still.
Re: 'Xenia' Team Issues Statement In Response To Xbox Backwards Compatibility Rumour
Not sure why people here like to hate Jez Corden so much. He's right, this "Xbox Classics" thing almost certainly isn't happening. It makes no sense for Microsoft to partner up with Xenia when they already have a superior 360 emulator of their own.
Y'all should be doubting extas1s more than Jez, he's the one who has gotten a lot of stuff wrong lately.
Re: Talking Point: Have This Month's Announcements Made You Excited About Xbox Again?
@TheGameThrifter I agree with most of your comment, but Grounded definitely didn't flop. It was a massive commercial success, had tens of millions of players despite being made by a tiny team at Obsidian.
If Grounded was a flop, we wouldn't be getting a Grounded 2 next month.
Re: Talking Point: Have This Month's Announcements Made You Excited About Xbox Again?
@NishimuraX If the next Xbox has access to all PC storefronts like the ROG Xbox Ally does, it would have access to DRM free GoG lol.
And you do realise you can emulate thousands of games on Xbox consoles right now, right?
I don't care if it isn't happening or not. I'm saying that, if the next Xbox can play both Xbox console and PC games, it would be objectively better than your current PC. That's all.
Re: Talking Point: Have This Month's Announcements Made You Excited About Xbox Again?
@NishimuraX To be fair, if the next Xbox can play both all Xbox console games and all PC games, then it would be superior to the PC you own right now. In this scenario, the next Xbox would by far be the platform with the most games, more so than even PC.
However, it remains to be seen if this is what actually happens.
Re: Talking Point: Have This Month's Announcements Made You Excited About Xbox Again?
@Fiendish-Beaver I agree with the notion that the next Xbox is probably not gonna be affordable. However, the PS6 won't be, either.
There's pretty much a zero percent chance that the PS6 will be equal to or less than $700. It will probably be $800 minimum. Could even be $900 if Sony raises the price of its consoles due to tariffs.
When the PS6 costs that much money, a $1000 Xbox won't sound that crazy in comparison
Re: Talking Point: What Do You Want To See From Next Week's 'Capcom Spotlight' Showcase?
I would like to see Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection, The Great Ace Attorney, and Monster Hunter Stories 1+2 announced for Xbox. Sadly, there's a 0% chance of that happening.
On a related note, it would be nice if Capcom finally announced Ace Attorney 7.
Re: Xbox Journalist Denies Report About Backwards Compatibility Plans For 2026
This whole Xbox Classics thing seemed exciting for PC fans, but unless they added more games to back compat, I don't see how exciting it would be for PC fans.
Re: Xbox Journalist Denies Report About Backwards Compatibility Plans For 2026
@darkswabber Not really, pretty much everything he's reported on on Windows Central has turned out to be correct. It's his random Twitter posts that sometimes end up being false.
Re: PS5's Stellar Blade Could Move To Switch 2, But What About Xbox?
I agree with the Sony isn't scared of Microsoft part. Sony definitely still views Xbox as competition, more so than they do Nintendo or PC IMO, but they aren't porting games to Xbox because they think of Microsoft as their fierce rival. Even though Microsoft doesn't think the same anymore.
Like you said, Sony doesn't really have an incentive to port games to Xbox at the moment, because they're direct competition. Sony, however, is okay with bringing some of their games to Switch and Switch 2 because they don't think it will harm their market dominance or brand image.
The only way I think Sony will ever willingly port games to Xbox is if Microsoft's multiplatform plan somehow works, and if Xbox still maintains the ~30 million console users it currently has, despite losing all exclusives. Maybe then Sony's shareholders will push PlayStation to port more of their games to Xbox and Switch 2, but that's still unlikely.
Re: Report: Xbox Working On Massive Backwards Compatibility Overhaul Called 'Xbox Classics'
@FraserG Thanks for the info! Hopefully it does involve new games, because if not, this wouldn't be that exciting for me, personally speaking.
Re: Report: Xbox Working On Massive Backwards Compatibility Overhaul Called 'Xbox Classics'
Does this include new games that aren't currently backwards compatible on Xbox, or does it only include existing back compat titles?
Re: PS5's Stellar Blade Could Move To Switch 2, But What About Xbox?
@wildcat_kickz Last thing I wanted to add is that, if the ABK deal never happened, Microsoft would have probably not gone multiplatform. At least not during this console generation. If they did go multiplatform, it would have probably happened like 5-10 years from now.
Re: PS5's Stellar Blade Could Move To Switch 2, But What About Xbox?
@wildcat_kickz Yes, Microsoft wants endless growth from their Xbox division. They would have still grown if they kept their games exclusive and followed through with their original plans, but it would have taken a longer time. Going multiplatform was the easiest and quickest way to make the most money, regardless of if it ends up being detrimental to Xbox in the long run.
Shareholders and Microsoft execs definitely do not care about console market paradigms. Satya said a few years ago, in fact, that he hates exclusives and that Xbox "had no choice" but to do them because Sony does exclusives, as well. Obviously, Satya must have forced Xbox's hand later on, because now Xbox has no exclusives.
I would argue that Microsoft would probably make more money in the long run by keeping all their games exclusive and forcing PlayStation and Nintendo players to buy an Xbox. Game Pass, in this scenario, would probably grow dramatically as well, because Xbox console sales would increase.
However, this would take a lot of time and effort to achieve, which Microsoft doesn't have the guts to do. In order to properly compete with PlayStation and Nintendo, Microsoft would have to get up off their butts and hire an actually competent marketing division, and they'd have to keep their consoles in stock worldwide, like PlayStation does.
All of this is too much of a hassle for Satya and the shareholders, so, of course, they chose the multiplatform pivot instead.
Re: PS5's Stellar Blade Could Move To Switch 2, But What About Xbox?
@wildcat_kickz I would disagree with the notion that you and @DennisReynolds have said about Microsoft NEEDING to change their business strategy. Microsoft did not NEED to go multiplatform, Xbox would not have gone bankrupt if they didn't put Halo/Gears/Forza on PlayStation this year.
There are a lot of similarities between Xbox and Sega, but the fate of their console divisions do differ in one notable way. Sega was bleeding cash near the end of the Dreamcast generation, their entire business was in the red since no one was buying their consoles or games (which was their only major source of revenue). Sega had no choice but to go multiplatform; otherwise, they would have gone bankrupt and closed their doors.
Xbox is not in the same position. Xbox consoles aren't selling well (they're still doing better than the Dreamcast), but the Xbox business as a whole was still successful, even before the multiplatform push. In 2023, for example, back when all Xbox games were still exclusive, Microsoft reported record-breaking revenue two times in a row for its Xbox division, in spite of underwhelming hardware sales.
Source 1: https://www.gamespot.com/articles/xbox-starfield-and-cloud-services-helped-microsoft-reach-a-record-breaking-quarter/1100-6518647/
Source 2: https://www.tweaktown.com/news/95919/xbox-delivers-historic-7-11-billion-revenue-in-holiday-2023/index.html
This shows that Xbox was, by no means, struggling in the same way that Sega was. Even if they kept all their games exclusive, Xbox was at no risk of going bankrupt in the future. In fact, their business would still be growing, but not at the fast-enough pace that Microsoft's shareholders desire.
At the end of the day, Xbox going multiplatform is not something that Microsoft NEEDED to do. It is something Microsoft chose to do, because, frankly, I think Microsoft is run by fools. Microsoft higher-ups do not understand the gaming industry, and they prioritize short-term gains over long-term wins. After spending $70 billion dollars on Activision, Microsoft took control of the Xbox division and decided they want to make money as fast as possible, regardless of if it kills their console division in the process.
The catalyst of Xbox going multiplatform is not "slow Xbox console sales" or "no one buys games on Xbox because of Game Pass," the catalyst is Xbox spending $70 billion on ABK and MS wanting that money back ASAP.
Re: 2K Not Following Microsoft & Nintendo With $80 Game Prices, For Now
@Tasuki I think the fact that Borderlands 4 is $80 in Europe and pretty much everywhere else except the U.S., makes me think that 2K was originally planning to charge $80 in the US, as well
Re: Xbox Emphasises That Its Next-Gen Devices 'Aren't Locked To A Single Store'
@InterceptorAlpha It says, "entire Xbox library," though. That includes OG Xbox and Xbox 360 games.
Either way, even if we're looking at Xbox Series games only, there are many Xbox Series X/S games that are not available on PC, nor are they Play Anywhere. Unicorn Overlord, GTA 6, Arcade Archives 2 Ridge Racer, MLB The Show, College Football, etc, are all on Xbox, but not on PC.
Like I said, "fully backwards compatible with your existing Xbox library" would entail all of these games, as well. There is no room for half-truths there. If it can't play these games, then this statement would be objectively wrong.
Either way, what you suggest wouldn't really make a lot of sense. The next Xbox will only be able to run PC versions of the games in our existing Xbox library? The only way that would be possible is if Microsoft makes all current Xbox games Xbox Play Anywhere compatible, which is never gonna happen.
Re: Final Fantasy 16 Delivers Great FPS But 'Weird' Visuals On Xbox Series X
@Jenkinss That's definitely true.
I talked to some PlayStation fans on Push Square a few days ago, who thought that it was unfair for Microsoft to buy up studios and publishers for exclusivity. However, the reality of the situation is that Microsoft had no choice but to buy up studios and publishers in order to get compelling AAA Xbox exclusives.
They can't buy exclusivity from third-party developers constantly, like Sony can, since they would have to pay far more for exclusivity deals (and Game Pass deals, as well) compared to Sony. Plus, they also couldn't build tons of studios from the ground up and expect them to release amazing blockbuster IPs out of nowhere.
Buying publishers like Bethesda was pretty much the only feasible way for Microsoft to compete toe-to-toe with PlayStation for exclusivity. And, for the record, even though some PlayStation fans have complained that Microsoft has taken games away from PS players, Sony has taken far more compelling AAA third-party titles away from Xbox players than Microsoft ever has this generation. Most of MS's third-party exclusives have been AA or indie titles, at best, while Sony secures third-party AAA blockbuster after third-party AAA blockbuster exclusively for PlayStation.
Of course, none of this really matters anymore, since Xbox exclusive is an antiquated term now.
Re: Gears Of War: Reloaded Is Top Of The PS5 Pre-Order Charts Right Now
@J_Mo_Money Ubisoft+ does have day-one games on Xbox and PC, but it doesn't have day-one games on PlayStation. The only version of Ubisoft+ available on PlayStation is Ubisoft+ Classics, which only has old titles
Re: Gears Of War: Reloaded Is Top Of The PS5 Pre-Order Charts Right Now
@LogicStrikesAgain If hardly anyone bought Square Enix games on Xbox, then Square Enix wouldn't be in a rush to port all of their tentpole titles to Xbox. And before you bring up the FF16 Xbox sales report, it's important to note that that Alinea Analytics sales "report" was determined by counting the amount of reviews for FF16 on the Xbox store and comparing it to PS/Steam. In other words, it's wholly unreliable.
FF16 Complete Edition (the $70 version of the game) is currently the 11th best selling game on Xbox in the U.S. That, to me, suggests it's doing pretty good for a late port of a Final Fantasy game.
Re: Xbox Emphasises That Its Next-Gen Devices 'Aren't Locked To A Single Store'
@DarthVerde To be fair, there is a zero percent chance that the PS6 will be at the same price or less than the PS5 Pro. Chances are the PS6 will be a minimum $800 device, without a disc drive.
So the Xbox won't be too far ahead in price.
Re: Xbox Emphasises That Its Next-Gen Devices 'Aren't Locked To A Single Store'
@InterceptorAlpha Not sure where you're getting all this "form" stuff from.
In the description for the Xbox + AMD video, it explicitly says that the next Xbox is "fully compatible with your existing Xbox game library."
There is no room for interpretation or half-truths there. All the games that you can play on your Xbox Series X/S right now, like Lost Odyssey, will be playable on the next Xbox. If that wasn't true, then the next Xbox wouldn't be "fully backwards compatible," as Microsoft themselves have confirmed.
So, no, it seems like it won't be like the ROG Xbox Ally, and it won't run PC versions of your existing Xbox consoles games.
Also, I don't recall Microsoft ever saying that Xbox Series X/S emulation on PC was not possible. I don't mean to be rude, but do you have a source for that information, if possible?
Re: 2K Not Following Microsoft & Nintendo With $80 Game Prices, For Now
@Tasuki So then we should all be thankful for Randy Pitchford, because if he kept his mouth shut, we would be paying $80 in the US for Borderlands 4 right now lol.
Re: Gears Of War: Reloaded Is Top Of The PS5 Pre-Order Charts Right Now
@Weebleman Thank you!
Re: Final Fantasy 16 Delivers Great FPS But 'Weird' Visuals On Xbox Series X
@PsBoxSwitchOwner SE won't be taking any money from Sony anymore, lest they want to go bankrupt in the future. PC, Switch 2, and Xbox combined is a market too big to skip over. They've already confirmed as such.
There's also a bit of a contradiction in your logic; if Final Fantasy games don't sell on Xbox, then why is Sony even paying Square Enix and other publishers to keep games off Xbox to begin with? Surely those publishers would just skip Xbox willingly, without having to be bribed by Sony?
Re: Gears Of War: Reloaded Is Top Of The PS5 Pre-Order Charts Right Now
@PsBoxSwitchOwner I like how Phil said a few months ago, that he had to make one of two choices to keep the Xbox business sustainable: either price gouge the hell out of the existing Xbox playerbase, or put games on competing platforms. Phil said that he and MS were gonna do the latter, but it turns out they're doing both instead!
Not only are all Xbox games going multi-platform, but Xbox players are getting shafted with price increases, as well. So much for multi-platform saving the day.
Re: Gears Of War: Reloaded Is Top Of The PS5 Pre-Order Charts Right Now
@Weebleman Sony wouldn't want people to be subscribing to Game Pass on PlayStation to play Microsoft games, though. Notice how there isn't a single subscription service on PlayStation that offers AAA games on day-one. Ubisoft+ and EA Play are on PlayStation, but they don't offer day-one games, even though the former does on Xbox.
Sony would lose a lot of money if people could just subscribe to Game Pass on PlayStation to play the latest Call of Duty, Gears of War, Halo, Forza, etc. game. No cut from Game Pass subs would be enough to make up for the loss in revenue on Sony's end. Of course, it would be great for Microsoft, though.
Re: Hands On: Gears Of War Reloaded Beta - Great Gnasher Gibbings, But Overly Familiar On Xbox
Buying this on Xbox for $40 would be a scam, glad Microsoft is at least giving this away for free to existing owners of Ultimate Edition
Re: Hands On: Not Gonna Lie, I'm Enjoying MindsEye On Xbox Right Now
@PsBoxSwitchOwner If a game is broken and buggy at launch, does that mean people are obligated to say they don't like it, even if they actually do? That isn't "encouraging the industry" to get away with things, that's sharing your true feelings about a game.
Re: According To Sales Estimates, Final Fantasy 16 Had A Rough First Week On Xbox
@Medic_alert I've become a big JRPG guy in recent years, and I only own an Xbox right now. This is partly thanks to Game Pass, and tbf most major JRPGs are releasing on Xbox these days.
Re: According To Sales Estimates, Final Fantasy 16 Had A Rough First Week On Xbox
I don't know why everyone is quickly taking this 22,000 sales number as fact, when Alinea Analytics popped out of nowhere last year and doesn't really have a big track record
EDIT: On Twitter, the guy from Alinea Analytics who provided this info said that he used the number of reviews on the Xbox store "for reference" to determine the amount of copies it's sold so far. Shows you shouldn't immediately believe everything you see online.
Re: According To Sales Estimates, Final Fantasy 16 Had A Rough First Week On Xbox
@dskatter Forza Horizon 5 is part of a tentpole Xbox exclusive franchise that no one ever thought would come to PlayStation. It's selling so well based on sheer novelty alone. Let's also not forget to mention the fact that Forza is way more popular than Final Fantasy; the game was on Game Pass, sure, but it had 40 million players on Xbox and PC before its PS5 launch.
Any game that's part of a tentpole exclusive franchise is gonna sell very well on a competing platform. God of War and Spider-Man would sell like gangbusters on Xbox, too, if Sony were to bring them over.
For reference, look at how well Death Stranding sold on Xbox, despite being a five year old game. Since it was formerly a Sony property, no one expected Death Stranding to come to Xbox. And yet, when it shadowdropped on Xbox with zero marketing, it still managed to claw its way to the #3 top paid spot on the Xbox store. The 50% discount likely helped, as well.
Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/xbox/comments/1gppapl/death_stranding_is_the_3_top_paid_game_on_xbox/
Re: Final Fantasy 16 Delivers Great FPS But 'Weird' Visuals On Xbox Series X
@PsBoxSwitchOwner We probably shouldn't be taking sales reports from dubious sources like Alinea Analytics as fact right away
Re: Final Fantasy 16 Delivers Great FPS But 'Weird' Visuals On Xbox Series X
Square should really improve the resolution for this game on Series X, and they should add back the ability to change costumes. For some strange reason, the Xbox version of FF16 is the only one that doesn't let you change the costumes of the main characters.
Either way, I'm still enjoying the game and I'm glad it's finally on Xbox
Re: Final Fantasy 16 Delivers Great FPS But 'Weird' Visuals On Xbox Series X
@bazchillin I know that I shouldn't be judging games on graphics alone, but wow, do FF16's graphics look better than Stranger of Paradise's. Back when Stranger of Paradise came out, I thought it sucked that PlayStation got all the cool, graphically-impressive Final Fantasy games, and Xbox got the scraps like SoP.
No disrespect to Stranger of Paradise, btw. It seems like a good game, as well.
Re: Opinion: It Feels Like Microsoft Is Planning A Huge Final Year Of Xbox Series X|S In 2026
I got my Xbox in 2023 so it'd be a shame if the generation ended in 2027.
Re: Four Games Are Confirmed For Xbox Game Pass In July 2025 So Far
@Fiendish-Beaver There was no previous game, this is a new IP. You might be confusing this with Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, another soulslike that was released day-one on Game Pass.
Re: PS5 Execs Questioned About Xbox 'Moving Away From Console' In Official Sony Interview
@bjs5667 Sony could easily screw over Microsoft in the future by demanding a 40% or even 50% cut out of all third-party game sales on PlayStation going forward. Microsoft, of course, isn't taking that into account as they kill their own platform. It's the same mistake they made with Windows Phone, and it's why Microsoft is unable to launch an Xbox mobile store.