Makes sense. You own the biggest annual franchise, you have the marketing deal with the game, and it's "free" for the first time ever at launch on your subscription service. Why would you give it away for $1 for new subscribers when you can get $20 from them and they'll gladly pay it instead of spending $70 USD?
@nomither6 Yes very early on, before the game was even revealed or anyone knew anything about it. However, most people associate Gears of War with Xbox, even though it was created by Epic.
@Quickbeamx I agree. The "flagship" or "tentpole" Xbox franchises, as in "born on Xbox" games like Halo, Gears, Forza, and Fable probably won't release on rival consoles. They're sort of the last games that help make up the identity of the Xbox platform, without them there would be even less incentive for anyone to buy an Xbox.
I agree with you almost 100% on this, however I can't lie. IF I was in a better position financially, I would most likely buy a PS5 Pro. But since I'm in no position to drop nearly a grand Canadian on a game console, I'll just be sticking with my regular PS5 and Series X for the remainder of this generation.
Kids today don't appreciate the importance and significance of Halo to the Xbox brand. That and it's influence on console FPS games. The first Xbox sold 24 million consoles compared to 155 million PS2's. The main reason MOST people bought Xbox's was for Halo. Halo 3 was responsible for selling a **** load of Xbox 360's as well.
Unfortunately the franchise has been mismanaged by 343 and Microsoft and in decline since Bungie departed. Hopefully they go back to a more traditional Halo game for the successor to Infinite.
3rd party exclusives just simply shouldn't be a thing in 2024. Only exceptions are if the platform holder co-funds or co-develops the game. With the cost of development these days, most 3rd parties want their games to be available on as many platforms as possible.
Realistically there are only 3 games I would actually purchase from this group, however at $90 CAD each that's still a savings of $270 minus the monthly Game Pass Ultimate subscription fee.
When I look at this generation objectively, ignoring gaming media bias or echo chambers like platform-specific podcasts, influencers etc, and I compare my personal experience with my Xbox Series X and PS5, the ONLY thing that PS5 has a slight advantage in is exclusives. The DualSense controller is neat, but mostly gimicky and the battery life absolutely blows. To me, the Xbox controller is much more comfortable to hold in my hands and whether it's AA batteries, rechargeable batteries or battery packs the charge life is MUCH better. I like certain aspects of each system's UI and conversely don't like others of both. Game Pass is unquestionably a better value than PS+ as well. Also 360 backward compatibility is awesome (it's criminal Sony hasn't figured out PS3 back compatibility yet) and Smart Delivery is great, unlike Sony who charge $10 to upgrade PS4 games to PS5 versions or release PS5 versions separately. for example, if Xbox owned the IP instead of Sony and was to remaster or remake The Last of Us 2, Xbox players would've just got to play it free on their Series X via Smart Delivery.
Performance-wise the 2 machines are practically identical, but when I look at both consoles, the one I feel that gives me the best value it's definitely the Series X.
I'm anticipating Microsoft to get the jump on the next generation releasing the Xbox Series X|S successor in 2026 or 2027 a year or even 2 before PS6. I'm perfectly happy playing my Series X for 2 or 3 more years and see no real need for a mid-gen upgrade.
@PsBoxSwitchOwner True. It's more the optics than anything. Sony's hubris is showing. Xbox could take advantage of this and be the "good guys" here if they play their cards right.
Sony has raised the prices of the regular PS5 and Slim as well as DualSense controllers, PLUS unveiled the insanely high-priced PS5 Pro!
What Microsoft should do now is lower the cost of the current 1TB Xbox Series X model for the holiday season. Especially with the new 2TB more expensive Series X and the white all-digital one coming. I'm sure they have excess inventory of the OG Series X. Exclusive games or not, it starts to matter much less when Sony pushes the limits of what customers are willing to pay for a voluntary hobby.
@BacklogBrad And you find that gives you good enough performance? For me, slower moving games or indie, 8-bit/16-bit type games are ok, but I tried streaming NHL 24 to my phone with X-Cloud using a Bluetooth controller as well as on my PS Portal and the lag was just too much. Sure it was playable, but barely.
I mean say what you want about Xbox, however there are roughly 30 million Series X & S consoles in the wild now, so why wouldn't Square-Enix or any other publisher want their games exposed to an additional 30ish million more customers?
3rd party exclusives should simply not be a thing. Unless they're co-developed or co-funded by the platform manufacturer, then it muddies the waters a bit, but other than in those cases 3rd party titles should release on every platform technically capable of running them.
@BacklogBrad How fast is your Internet connection out of curiosity? I have a 1.5 Gbps down & 500Mbps up connection and my experience with streaming Xbox or PS has been relatively poor.
@DeanyBabyy Right?! and 2 years in a row no less! The GotY (well Wukong is a strong candidate anyway) 2 years in a row comes out in August on PS5 and PC while Xbox users have to sit there and hear everyone else rave about it for 3 or 4 months...Very frustrating indeed.
@TheSimulator Unfortunately it's not an "eye for an eye" type scenario. Sony doesn't have to share any of their games with Microsoft as they are the market leader and their mantra is to sell as many consoles as possible. So how do you do that? Well having a ton of console-exclusive games helps A LOT. Just take the Switch for example. It would be virtually useless and pointless without Nintendo's own 1st party exclusives. The fact PS games are starting to go to PC is irrelevant as most console gamers only play on console and prefer to play there which is why the PS5's sales are still on pace to match or exceed PS4's.
Microsoft have pretty much thrown in the towel when it comes to the video game console wars / hardware race. For them, if you buy an Xbox, great, even though they make little to no profit off of the hardware. But if you subscribe to Game Pass, that's where they earn their money from you. So regardless if you're on an Xbox, PC, Laptop, mobile device, streaming over X-Cloud, or on a Firestick etc as long as you're a hamster on their wheel they're happy with that. So because selling you their box has become such a low priority, having exclusives on that box has also become low priority.
All aquired IP from Bethesda and ABK will be multiplatform.
All traditional, "home-grown" Xbox tentpole IP (Halo, Gears, Forza, Fable etc.) will remain Xbox console-exclusive.
At least for the remainder of this generation and the beginning of next generation. If their hardware sales continue to fall, then nothing will be off the table...
On one hand it makes perfect sense and it's something most of us could predict was coming. This is due to the fact this game is based off of a 40+ year old, worldwide recognized and beloved IP and really shouldn't be locked to just one console.
However, why wouldn't Microsoft and Xbox want to take advantage of the timed-exclusivity for this holiday season? Doesn't affect me as I'll be playing it on day 1 on Game Pass, just strange timing to "let the cat out of the bag" so to speak.
I really don't mind it when it involves retro characters. For example Banjo-Kazooie in Smash Bros, or Perfect Dark on Nintendo Switch Online. Say what you want about Microsoft, but they're pretty good about that kind of thing so allowing Crash and Spyro in Astro Bot isn't shocking.
I don't know why Square-Enix wouldn't want to release FF16 on Xbox? Even if it only sells a million copies, that's still a million more copies right? Besides changing some button prompts, how hard or expensive can it possibly be to port the game to Xbox from PS5 considering their architecture is 95% the same?
@BAMozzy You make some good points and I do agree with a lot of them. Specifically that it's on the devs to determine if they'll port their game to "weaker hardware" or not. The Witcher 3 is a great example along with Doom 2016 and Doom Eternal. All of them were ported to the Switch and run pretty great as far as a portable experience goes. As a hockey fan I'm frustrated that EA Sports won't make a port of NHL for the Switch when they do for FC (formally FIFA), 2K makes NBA 2K on Switch and San Diego Studios makes MLB The Show for Switch as well, so what's EA's excuse for NHL? I can't believe they would pass up the opportunity to release a game on a system with an installed base of 140 million worldwide?! So what if they have to lower the resolution and dumb down some of the lighting/reflections/shading, I want a portable NHL game!
Back to the Series S, while it is underpowered in comparison to the Series X and PS5, you're right that it's not underpowered in general. at 4 TFLOPS it's right around the PS4 Pro, but has a much faster CPU/GPU with RDNA 2 and SSD which does make it a pretty capable little box for 1080p and 1440p displays. I've thought about getting one for the bedroom as I only have a 1080p TV in there, but I could play my digital games (which is 90% of my Xbox library) in there at night or if the living room is occupied and I don't have access to my Series X.
And yes pretty soon here there won't be just one SKU for devs to worry about on PS5 as the PS5 Pro will likely launch soon. So will the devs/pubs blame having to "dumb down" the games for the standard PS5 as an excuse for development issues and delays for their games going forward? Time will tell.
Great news! While there are FAR too many games releasing across all platforms in 2024, actual talented teams like Tango deserve to continue making great games.
@BAMozzy Building 2 different SKU's is fine, however where M$ messed up is building 2 different spec'd SKU's. The great thing about the PS5 is that whether you buy the disk version, all-digital version, slim disk version or slim all-digital version, the performance is the same for ALL users. Developers love the PS5 because they don't have to mess around with trying to get the same games to run on weaker hardware. Remember Baldur's Gate 3? - probably the single most glaring example of Microsoft's errors.
I will say you're correct on one point. Younger kids who only have 1080p TV's in their bedrooms and have very little to no expendable income tend to gravitate towards the Series S as all they need is a Game Pass subscription (well now they need Ultimate to play 1st party games day 1), to have access to hundreds of games to download out of the box. However with most of these kids only playing free-to-play stuff like Fortnite, Apex etc, and GP games, they aren't buying games and thus aren't contributing to the industry or Xbox's bottom line. Also a BIG reason why a lot of multiplatform titles either come to Xbox much later or not at all. Despite what die-hard Xbox fanboys will claim not ALL of these missing titles are due to exclusivity deals with Sony.
@BAMozzy No one "thinks" the Series S is underpowered. It is underpowered, thus the much lower price. The lack of a disc drive is not the only difference between Series S and X.
@NEStalgia In the end, especially in the console gaming industry specifically, GAMES sell consoles, not tech. Never has, likely never will. Check the history of the console gaming industry. The most powerful-spec'd systems have rarely ever won their respective hardware generations.
Secondly, there are many people who just prefer to play on console as it is still a cheaper, more convenient and more streamlined experience.
I don't think Microsoft necessarily wanted to let the cat out of the bag that they're working on a next-gen system already, as much as they HAD to due to all the negativity and rumors swirling around the Xbox brand at the time.
That being said, they also likely realize their only shot at possibly being more competitive next generation would be to launch early again like they did with the 360.
I believe if they don't perform better next generation, it will be the last generation of Xbox hardware. Hopefully it's not but eventually the higher-ups and bean counters at Micro$oft will cut the cord.
Firstly, 30 million people worldwide who've purchased a Series X or S (so far) would argue the platform is needed.
Secondly, 3rd party exclusives should simply NOT be a thing at all. If it's co-funded and/or co-developed by the platform manufacturer, fine, but otherwise as a 3rd party why would you NOT want your game available on as many platforms as possible?
I think they will do at least one more generation of Xbox hardware, but beyond that it's unclear. If their marketing (what little they do) continues to revolve around "No Console Required", pretty soon the mass public (not just the hardcore gamers) will say "Yeah you know you're right, why do I even need to buy an Xbox?"...
I'm afraid the writing is on the wall for Xbox. It's now not really a matter of "if" but a matter of "when" Microsoft will go the way of Sega. As an Xbox gamer from the start this sucks. Firstly, less competition is never a good thing in any industry. Secondly, if Microsoft exits the console space, who will try to fill that void? Tencent? Amazon? Better the devil you know right?
I hope Avowed, Indiana Jones, Fable, Gears and Perfect Dark plus the new CoD being "free" day 1 on Game Pass will help contribute to a huge increase in hardware sales. If NOT, I'm not sure anything will sell Xbox consoles and eventually the bean counters and top brass at Micro$oft will realize this and pull the plug.
Honestly, it all began with the 360. The didn't want their second console to appear inferior to the PS3 so instead of simply calling it "Xbox 2" they called it "Xbox 360". Their official reason was something along the lines that it was an "all encompassing machine surrounding the user with 360 degrees of entertainment". Really they just wanted a '3' in the name and also a bigger number than PlayStation 3. Then they flipped the script and called their next system "Xbox One" - which makes absolutely zero sense considering it was their 3rd console. Again the reason being it was "The One system to rule your living room" yadda, yadda. Then "Xbox One S", and "Xbox One X", then "Xbox Series S" and "Xbox Series X". Not too tough to follow for those of us who pay super close attention to the gaming industry, but Hella confusing for parents and casuals for sure.
3 TRILLION DOLLAR market cap company: "They’re blessed [PlayStation] with marketing funds that we’re just not able to enjoy. But that’s totally fine. We adopt what I would call a more fiscally responsible approach to media investments.
We’re not blessed with huge media budgets, so we have to be quite scrappy really, and quite tenacious to fight for funds that would probably go somewhere else,"
Of course I don't like paying more, who does? What they could've done instead is just introduce a lower/cheaper tier w/o day one releases and left the price of Ultimate the same. However with their recent studio/publisher acquisitions - including putting one of the best-selling games in the world (COD) on Game Pass day 1, it was inevitable they'd have to increase the prices. That or have their subscription numbers significantly increase - which they haven't.
Don't get me wrong, Game Pass is an insane value. However I just don't see how it will continue to be sustainable in it's current form without the number of monthly subscriptions increasing dramatically. How long will Microsoft essentially "give away" all of their studio's/pubs games for "free" on day 1 without a fairly substantial bump in subs? Again, not really for me as the customer to worry about too much as that's the bean counter's jobs at Microsoft.
As tempting as that new 2TB Series X is, at this point I'll likely just wait till the next-gen Xbox. Same thing with PS5, I'm not going to be buying the PS5 Pro.
@Rangers420 Really? You can't see ANY reason people may be somewhat put off by some of the developer's choices? I mean I think it looks pretty good and I'll very likely be buying it this fall, but I can understand some of the feedback.
THIS was the showcase that the Xbox brand NEEDED! Absolutely awesome! The closest thing to an E3 press conference since E3 went bye bye. And for all of those saying "well a lot of the games shown are multiplatform so why do I need an Xbox?" Hey if you want to spend $70 per game for ALL of these games, great, go ahead. For myself and a lot of others who aren't exactly flush with cash in this economy, Game Pass is an absolute game changer! Now Micro$oft needs to capitalize on the positive reaction and hype of this showcase and spend some of their $3 TRILLION (with a Capital 'T' on traditional forms of marketing with TV commercials and print ads.
@RIghteousNixon Relax there Bruh. Ever been a sports fan? True fans always critique their team, get mad when they lose etc. But they still cheer for them. Ever have a deadbeat relative? You love them, but are likely still constantly disappointed with them, but you don't abandon them. Kinda the same vibe with Xbox really ever since the Xbox One reveal.
I feel that Xbox as a brand is at a real inflection point here. Worldwide they're getting outsold by over double by the PS5 and the Switch is also still outselling Series X/S even though it's 7 years old and no doubt the Switch 2 is going to sell like crazy as well. Xbox went from "Xbox has no games" to "Xbox buys up a bunch of publishers and studios" to "Why do I need to buy an Xbox when ALL of their games also come to PC day 1 and NOW their games are coming to PS5 and Nintendo?". The talking heads at Micro$oft have said they're planning a next-gen console, but is there still a chance they change their minds and go the Sega route? If not, will the next generation be the last generation for Xbox hardware? So much uncertainty surrounding the brand. Hopefully this Showcase answers at least some of these questions.
Man, I remember this like it was yesterday! Such an awesome commercial that no doubt helped to sell a boatload of Xbox 360's! I already had mine, but THIS was the game to justify my purchase of the console for sure!
Hopefully Gears 6 gets announced at the Xbox Showcase and the brand can build it's way back up. I don't know that they'll ever hit the heights of the 360 era again though.
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Re: Xbox Removes $1 Game Pass Trial As Black Ops 6 Launch Looms
Makes sense. You own the biggest annual franchise, you have the marketing deal with the game, and it's "free" for the first time ever at launch on your subscription service. Why would you give it away for $1 for new subscribers when you can get $20 from them and they'll gladly pay it instead of spending $70 USD?
Re: Reaction: Halo Is Still Xbox's Baby, And It's Time For The Series To Shine On UE5
@nomither6 Yes very early on, before the game was even revealed or anyone knew anything about it. However, most people associate Gears of War with Xbox, even though it was created by Epic.
Re: Reaction: Halo Is Still Xbox's Baby, And It's Time For The Series To Shine On UE5
@Quickbeamx I agree. The "flagship" or "tentpole" Xbox franchises, as in "born on Xbox" games like Halo, Gears, Forza, and Fable probably won't release on rival consoles. They're sort of the last games that help make up the identity of the Xbox platform, without them there would be even less incentive for anyone to buy an Xbox.
Re: Opinion: As The Dust Settles On PS5 Pro, I'm Still Glad Xbox Didn't Bother
I agree with you almost 100% on this, however I can't lie. IF I was in a better position financially, I would most likely buy a PS5 Pro. But since I'm in no position to drop nearly a grand Canadian on a game console, I'll just be sticking with my regular PS5 and Series X for the remainder of this generation.
Re: Xbox Exec Reveals How Much Money Microsoft Has Made From Halo
Kids today don't appreciate the importance and significance of Halo to the Xbox brand. That and it's influence on console FPS games. The first Xbox sold 24 million consoles compared to 155 million PS2's. The main reason MOST people bought Xbox's was for Halo. Halo 3 was responsible for selling a **** load of Xbox 360's as well.
Unfortunately the franchise has been mismanaged by 343 and Microsoft and in decline since Bungie departed. Hopefully they go back to a more traditional Halo game for the successor to Infinite.
Re: Is Silent Hill 2 Remake Coming To Xbox? Here's Everything We Know So Far
3rd party exclusives just simply shouldn't be a thing in 2024. Only exceptions are if the platform holder co-funds or co-develops the game. With the cost of development these days, most 3rd parties want their games to be available on as many platforms as possible.
Re: Xbox Shares Roadmap For Various Upcoming 'Day One' Game Pass Titles
Realistically there are only 3 games I would actually purchase from this group, however at $90 CAD each that's still a savings of $270 minus the monthly Game Pass Ultimate subscription fee.
Re: Rumour: Microsoft Employees 'Completely Confused' About New Xbox Strategy, Says Insider
When I look at this generation objectively, ignoring gaming media bias or echo chambers like platform-specific podcasts, influencers etc, and I compare my personal experience with my Xbox Series X and PS5, the ONLY thing that PS5 has a slight advantage in is exclusives. The DualSense controller is neat, but mostly gimicky and the battery life absolutely blows. To me, the Xbox controller is much more comfortable to hold in my hands and whether it's AA batteries, rechargeable batteries or battery packs the charge life is MUCH better. I like certain aspects of each system's UI and conversely don't like others of both. Game Pass is unquestionably a better value than PS+ as well. Also 360 backward compatibility is awesome (it's criminal Sony hasn't figured out PS3 back compatibility yet) and Smart Delivery is great, unlike Sony who charge $10 to upgrade PS4 games to PS5 versions or release PS5 versions separately. for example, if Xbox owned the IP instead of Sony and was to remaster or remake The Last of Us 2, Xbox players would've just got to play it free on their Series X via Smart Delivery.
Performance-wise the 2 machines are practically identical, but when I look at both consoles, the one I feel that gives me the best value it's definitely the Series X.
Re: Xbox Series X Vs. PS5 Pro: What Are We Missing Out On?
@OldGamer999 At the end of the day if it looks awesome, who cares if they're "cheating"?
Re: Poll: How Much Would You Pay For An Xbox Series X Pro?
I'm anticipating Microsoft to get the jump on the next generation releasing the Xbox Series X|S successor in 2026 or 2027 a year or even 2 before PS6. I'm perfectly happy playing my Series X for 2 or 3 more years and see no real need for a mid-gen upgrade.
Re: Reaction: PS5 Pro's Extortionate Price Justifies Xbox's Lack Of A New Console
@PsBoxSwitchOwner True. It's more the optics than anything. Sony's hubris is showing. Xbox could take advantage of this and be the "good guys" here if they play their cards right.
Re: Reaction: PS5 Pro's Extortionate Price Justifies Xbox's Lack Of A New Console
Sony has raised the prices of the regular PS5 and Slim as well as DualSense controllers, PLUS unveiled the insanely high-priced PS5 Pro!
What Microsoft should do now is lower the cost of the current 1TB Xbox Series X model for the holiday season. Especially with the new 2TB more expensive Series X and the white all-digital one coming. I'm sure they have excess inventory of the OG Series X. Exclusive games or not, it starts to matter much less when Sony pushes the limits of what customers are willing to pay for a voluntary hobby.
Re: Xbox Loses Upcoming Free-To-Play RPG As Bandai Namco Announces Its Cancellation
Not enough weirdos in the west to support this game...
Re: Here's What's Included In The Xbox August 2024 Update
@BacklogBrad And you find that gives you good enough performance? For me, slower moving games or indie, 8-bit/16-bit type games are ok, but I tried streaming NHL 24 to my phone with X-Cloud using a Bluetooth controller as well as on my PS Portal and the lag was just too much. Sure it was playable, but barely.
Re: Final Fantasy Dev Insists The Future Is Bright For Square Enix Games On Xbox
I mean say what you want about Xbox, however there are roughly 30 million Series X & S consoles in the wild now, so why wouldn't Square-Enix or any other publisher want their games exposed to an additional 30ish million more customers?
3rd party exclusives should simply not be a thing. Unless they're co-developed or co-funded by the platform manufacturer, then it muddies the waters a bit, but other than in those cases 3rd party titles should release on every platform technically capable of running them.
Re: Here's What's Included In The Xbox August 2024 Update
@BacklogBrad How fast is your Internet connection out of curiosity? I have a 1.5 Gbps down & 500Mbps up connection and my experience with streaming Xbox or PS has been relatively poor.
Re: Rumour: Black Myth: Wukong 'Memory Leak' Has Caused Xbox Series X|S Delay
@DeanyBabyy Right?! and 2 years in a row no less! The GotY (well Wukong is a strong candidate anyway) 2 years in a row comes out in August on PS5 and PC while Xbox users have to sit there and hear everyone else rave about it for 3 or 4 months...Very frustrating indeed.
Re: Phil Spencer On Game Exclusivity: 'We Have To Anticipate There's Going To Be More Change'
@TheSimulator Unfortunately it's not an "eye for an eye" type scenario. Sony doesn't have to share any of their games with Microsoft as they are the market leader and their mantra is to sell as many consoles as possible. So how do you do that? Well having a ton of console-exclusive games helps A LOT. Just take the Switch for example. It would be virtually useless and pointless without Nintendo's own 1st party exclusives. The fact PS games are starting to go to PC is irrelevant as most console gamers only play on console and prefer to play there which is why the PS5's sales are still on pace to match or exceed PS4's.
Microsoft have pretty much thrown in the towel when it comes to the video game console wars / hardware race. For them, if you buy an Xbox, great, even though they make little to no profit off of the hardware. But if you subscribe to Game Pass, that's where they earn their money from you. So regardless if you're on an Xbox, PC, Laptop, mobile device, streaming over X-Cloud, or on a Firestick etc as long as you're a hamster on their wheel they're happy with that. So because selling you their box has become such a low priority, having exclusives on that box has also become low priority.
Re: Phil Spencer On Game Exclusivity: 'We Have To Anticipate There's Going To Be More Change'
Not tough to see their strategy.
All aquired IP from Bethesda and ABK will be multiplatform.
All traditional, "home-grown" Xbox tentpole IP (Halo, Gears, Forza, Fable etc.) will remain Xbox console-exclusive.
At least for the remainder of this generation and the beginning of next generation. If their hardware sales continue to fall, then nothing will be off the table...
Re: NHL 25 Brings A Suite Of Gameplay Innovations To Xbox Series X|S This October
As a Canadian and huge hockey fan, I'm a hamster on EA's wheel as this game is pretty much a guaranteed purchase Every...Damn...Year.
Yes, I know I'm part of the problem...
Re: Indiana Jones And The Great Circle Hits Xbox This December, And A PS5 Port Is Officially Coming
On one hand it makes perfect sense and it's something most of us could predict was coming. This is due to the fact this game is based off of a 40+ year old, worldwide recognized and beloved IP and really shouldn't be locked to just one console.
However, why wouldn't Microsoft and Xbox want to take advantage of the timed-exclusivity for this holiday season? Doesn't affect me as I'll be playing it on day 1 on Game Pass, just strange timing to "let the cat out of the bag" so to speak.
Re: Rumour: Xbox IP Apparently Spotted In Upcoming PS5 Exclusive
I really don't mind it when it involves retro characters. For example Banjo-Kazooie in Smash Bros, or Perfect Dark on Nintendo Switch Online. Say what you want about Microsoft, but they're pretty good about that kind of thing so allowing Crash and Spyro in Astro Bot isn't shocking.
Re: Final Fantasy 16 Director Says He'd Like To See The Game On Xbox
I don't know why Square-Enix wouldn't want to release FF16 on Xbox? Even if it only sells a million copies, that's still a million more copies right? Besides changing some button prompts, how hard or expensive can it possibly be to port the game to Xbox from PS5 considering their architecture is 95% the same?
Re: Xbox Series X|S Sales 'Holding Close' To Xbox 360 In The US, Says Analyst
@BAMozzy You make some good points and I do agree with a lot of them. Specifically that it's on the devs to determine if they'll port their game to "weaker hardware" or not. The Witcher 3 is a great example along with Doom 2016 and Doom Eternal. All of them were ported to the Switch and run pretty great as far as a portable experience goes. As a hockey fan I'm frustrated that EA Sports won't make a port of NHL for the Switch when they do for FC (formally FIFA), 2K makes NBA 2K on Switch and San Diego Studios makes MLB The Show for Switch as well, so what's EA's excuse for NHL? I can't believe they would pass up the opportunity to release a game on a system with an installed base of 140 million worldwide?! So what if they have to lower the resolution and dumb down some of the lighting/reflections/shading, I want a portable NHL game!
Back to the Series S, while it is underpowered in comparison to the Series X and PS5, you're right that it's not underpowered in general. at 4 TFLOPS it's right around the PS4 Pro, but has a much faster CPU/GPU with RDNA 2 and SSD which does make it a pretty capable little box for 1080p and 1440p displays. I've thought about getting one for the bedroom as I only have a 1080p TV in there, but I could play my digital games (which is 90% of my Xbox library) in there at night or if the living room is occupied and I don't have access to my Series X.
And yes pretty soon here there won't be just one SKU for devs to worry about on PS5 as the PS5 Pro will likely launch soon. So will the devs/pubs blame having to "dumb down" the games for the standard PS5 as an excuse for development issues and delays for their games going forward? Time will tell.
Re: Xbox's Hi-Fi RUSH Studio Tango Gameworks Revived, Acquired By PUBG Publisher
Great news! While there are FAR too many games releasing across all platforms in 2024, actual talented teams like Tango deserve to continue making great games.
Re: Xbox Series X|S Sales 'Holding Close' To Xbox 360 In The US, Says Analyst
@BAMozzy Building 2 different SKU's is fine, however where M$ messed up is building 2 different spec'd SKU's. The great thing about the PS5 is that whether you buy the disk version, all-digital version, slim disk version or slim all-digital version, the performance is the same for ALL users. Developers love the PS5 because they don't have to mess around with trying to get the same games to run on weaker hardware. Remember Baldur's Gate 3? - probably the single most glaring example of Microsoft's errors.
I will say you're correct on one point. Younger kids who only have 1080p TV's in their bedrooms and have very little to no expendable income tend to gravitate towards the Series S as all they need is a Game Pass subscription (well now they need Ultimate to play 1st party games day 1), to have access to hundreds of games to download out of the box. However with most of these kids only playing free-to-play stuff like Fortnite, Apex etc, and GP games, they aren't buying games and thus aren't contributing to the industry or Xbox's bottom line. Also a BIG reason why a lot of multiplatform titles either come to Xbox much later or not at all. Despite what die-hard Xbox fanboys will claim not ALL of these missing titles are due to exclusivity deals with Sony.
Re: Xbox Series X|S Sales 'Holding Close' To Xbox 360 In The US, Says Analyst
@BAMozzy No one "thinks" the Series S is underpowered. It is underpowered, thus the much lower price. The lack of a disc drive is not the only difference between Series S and X.
Re: Microsoft Hiring Engineers To 'Define The Future Of Graphics' On Xbox
@NEStalgia In the end, especially in the console gaming industry specifically, GAMES sell consoles, not tech. Never has, likely never will. Check the history of the console gaming industry. The most powerful-spec'd systems have rarely ever won their respective hardware generations.
Secondly, there are many people who just prefer to play on console as it is still a cheaper, more convenient and more streamlined experience.
Re: Microsoft Hiring Engineers To 'Define The Future Of Graphics' On Xbox
I don't think Microsoft necessarily wanted to let the cat out of the bag that they're working on a next-gen system already, as much as they HAD to due to all the negativity and rumors swirling around the Xbox brand at the time.
That being said, they also likely realize their only shot at possibly being more competitive next generation would be to launch early again like they did with the 360.
I believe if they don't perform better next generation, it will be the last generation of Xbox hardware. Hopefully it's not but eventually the higher-ups and bean counters at Micro$oft will cut the cord.
Re: Phantom Blade Zero Dev Throws Shade At Xbox Before Studio Issues Statement
Firstly, 30 million people worldwide who've purchased a Series X or S (so far) would argue the platform is needed.
Secondly, 3rd party exclusives should simply NOT be a thing at all. If it's co-funded and/or co-developed by the platform manufacturer, fine, but otherwise as a 3rd party why would you NOT want your game available on as many platforms as possible?
Re: Microsoft CEO Reassures Investors That Xbox Is Focused On Console, PC And Mobile
I think they will do at least one more generation of Xbox hardware, but beyond that it's unclear. If their marketing (what little they do) continues to revolve around "No Console Required", pretty soon the mass public (not just the hardcore gamers) will say "Yeah you know you're right, why do I even need to buy an Xbox?"...
Re: Xbox Console Sales Struggling As Hardware Revenue Nosedives At Microsoft
I'm afraid the writing is on the wall for Xbox. It's now not really a matter of "if" but a matter of "when" Microsoft will go the way of Sega. As an Xbox gamer from the start this sucks. Firstly, less competition is never a good thing in any industry. Secondly, if Microsoft exits the console space, who will try to fill that void? Tencent? Amazon? Better the devil you know right?
I hope Avowed, Indiana Jones, Fable, Gears and Perfect Dark plus the new CoD being "free" day 1 on Game Pass will help contribute to a huge increase in hardware sales. If NOT, I'm not sure anything will sell Xbox consoles and eventually the bean counters and top brass at Micro$oft will realize this and pull the plug.
Re: Four Years Later, People Are Still Getting Confused By Xbox's 'Horrible' Console Names
Honestly, it all began with the 360. The didn't want their second console to appear inferior to the PS3 so instead of simply calling it "Xbox 2" they called it "Xbox 360". Their official reason was something along the lines that it was an "all encompassing machine surrounding the user with 360 degrees of entertainment". Really they just wanted a '3' in the name and also a bigger number than PlayStation 3. Then they flipped the script and called their next system "Xbox One" - which makes absolutely zero sense considering it was their 3rd console. Again the reason being it was "The One system to rule your living room" yadda, yadda. Then "Xbox One S", and "Xbox One X", then "Xbox Series S" and "Xbox Series X". Not too tough to follow for those of us who pay super close attention to the gaming industry, but Hella confusing for parents and casuals for sure.
Re: Talking Point: Have You Ever Bought A Controller From Xbox Design Lab?
I've customized them a number of times, I've just never pulled the trigger on actually ordering one...yet.
Re: Sony PlayStation 'Regrettably Outspends Us', Says Xbox EMEA Marketing Boss
3 TRILLION DOLLAR market cap company: "They’re blessed [PlayStation] with marketing funds that we’re just not able to enjoy. But that’s totally fine. We adopt what I would call a more fiscally responsible approach to media investments.
We’re not blessed with huge media budgets, so we have to be quite scrappy really, and quite tenacious to fight for funds that would probably go somewhere else,"
Yeah...Ok...right.
Re: Baldur's Gate 3's Next Massive Update Will Include 'Dynamic Split-Screen' On Xbox
Photo Mode will just be ***** with this game..
(.)(.)
Re: Hallmark's Musical Xbox Ornament Sounds Like A Must-Buy This Christmas
I have the SNES version of this. It plays the theme song from Super Mario World.
Re: Xbox Game Pass Gets Price Increases And New 'Standard' Subscription Tier
Of course I don't like paying more, who does? What they could've done instead is just introduce a lower/cheaper tier w/o day one releases and left the price of Ultimate the same. However with their recent studio/publisher acquisitions - including putting one of the best-selling games in the world (COD) on Game Pass day 1, it was inevitable they'd have to increase the prices. That or have their subscription numbers significantly increase - which they haven't.
Re: Xbox Game Pass In 2024: The Full List Of Everything Announced So Far
Don't get me wrong, Game Pass is an insane value. However I just don't see how it will continue to be sustainable in it's current form without the number of monthly subscriptions increasing dramatically. How long will Microsoft essentially "give away" all of their studio's/pubs games for "free" on day 1 without a fairly substantial bump in subs? Again, not really for me as the customer to worry about too much as that's the bean counter's jobs at Microsoft.
Re: Xbox's Avowed Is Fully Playable In Third-Person, Confirms Obsidian
Very nice! I just hope the character doesn't float or ski around in 3rd person mode.
Re: Talking Point: Are You Interested In Any Of The New Xbox Series X|S Models?
As tempting as that new 2TB Series X is, at this point I'll likely just wait till the next-gen Xbox. Same thing with PS5, I'm not going to be buying the PS5 Pro.
Re: Dragon Age: The Veilguard Gets Huge Gameplay Deep Dive Ahead Of Fall 2024 Launch On Xbox
@Rangers420 Really? You can't see ANY reason people may be somewhat put off by some of the developer's choices? I mean I think it looks pretty good and I'll very likely be buying it this fall, but I can understand some of the feedback.
Re: Here's Everything That Was Revealed At The Xbox Games Showcase 2024
THIS was the showcase that the Xbox brand NEEDED! Absolutely awesome! The closest thing to an E3 press conference since E3 went bye bye. And for all of those saying "well a lot of the games shown are multiplatform so why do I need an Xbox?" Hey if you want to spend $70 per game for ALL of these games, great, go ahead. For myself and a lot of others who aren't exactly flush with cash in this economy, Game Pass is an absolute game changer! Now Micro$oft needs to capitalize on the positive reaction and hype of this showcase and spend some of their $3 TRILLION (with a Capital 'T' on traditional forms of marketing with TV commercials and print ads.
Re: Reaction: Xbox's 2024 Showcase Felt Like A Throwback To The 360 Era, In The Best Way Possible
As a fan of videogames, throwing all fanboy stuff to the side, how could you NOT be impressed by that showcase?!
Re: Black Myth: Wukong Suffers Delay, But Only For Xbox Series X|S
@armondo36 If you're an Xbox-only gamer you've been a second class citizen for a decade now...
Re: Black Myth: Wukong Suffers Delay, But Only For Xbox Series X|S
Another casualty of Series S
Re: Talking Point: 10 Years Ago, Phil Spencer's First E3 In Charge Marked A Turning Point For Xbox
@RIghteousNixon Relax there Bruh. Ever been a sports fan? True fans always critique their team, get mad when they lose etc. But they still cheer for them. Ever have a deadbeat relative? You love them, but are likely still constantly disappointed with them, but you don't abandon them. Kinda the same vibe with Xbox really ever since the Xbox One reveal.
Re: Xbox Games Showcase 2024: Date, Start Times, Rumours, Leaks & More
The closest thing we get to an E3 press conference these days. Hope it hits as hard as those used to!
Re: Talking Point: 10 Years Ago, Phil Spencer's First E3 In Charge Marked A Turning Point For Xbox
I feel that Xbox as a brand is at a real inflection point here. Worldwide they're getting outsold by over double by the PS5 and the Switch is also still outselling Series X/S even though it's 7 years old and no doubt the Switch 2 is going to sell like crazy as well. Xbox went from "Xbox has no games" to "Xbox buys up a bunch of publishers and studios" to "Why do I need to buy an Xbox when ALL of their games also come to PC day 1 and NOW their games are coming to PS5 and Nintendo?". The talking heads at Micro$oft have said they're planning a next-gen console, but is there still a chance they change their minds and go the Sega route? If not, will the next generation be the last generation for Xbox hardware? So much uncertainty surrounding the brand. Hopefully this Showcase answers at least some of these questions.
Re: Former Xbox Boss Reminisces About Gears Of War's 'Groundbreaking' Mad World Trailer
Man, I remember this like it was yesterday! Such an awesome commercial that no doubt helped to sell a boatload of Xbox 360's! I already had mine, but THIS was the game to justify my purchase of the console for sure!
Hopefully Gears 6 gets announced at the Xbox Showcase and the brand can build it's way back up. I don't know that they'll ever hit the heights of the 360 era again though.