VenomUK

It's not her who's been playing!

I've read and watched a lot of the commentary about Asha Sharma and Matt Booty and whilst it's good to be hopeful, too many people are treating them like the second coming. There is the expectation that they will suddenly make all great decisions and that Xbox will be 'back!'

I suspect the reality is that their main focus is to ensure Microsoft publishing (games releases on all platforms) dominates the market - and then secondly to keep loyal Xbox console fans placated.

I'm also looking forward to the Helix PC console but I think long time fans should be cautious about expecting a return to the Xbox 360 era.

Seeing pics of Phil Spencer at GDC underlines one thing to me; he had wanted to be around for the full reveal of Xbox Helix and the big 25th anniversary - but Satya moved his departure date forward.

So many people have been quick to allow themselves to believe everything will be better now. But mentioning the Blades makes it sound like she was instructed to say something that would resonate with the blindly loyal and unquestioning Xbox fans. No she doesn't have to be a gamer, Matt Booty will concentrate on the studios, but she does have to quickly bring herself up to speed on the market. I hope she does a great job, but for now, I will wait to praise her until I've seen the result of her actions.

Seeing some of the excited reactions to Rog Xbox Ally X from established Xbox influencers, it seems they would be happy with a fridge if it had an official Xbox sticker on it. So a super premium Xbox, that is really a PC will delight them because it will be the most powerful 'console'. It could well be a fantastic machine, but it won't be an affordable home console so at $1000/£1000+ it will be too expensive to become a mass market device. So where will the majority of the current Xbox community migrate to, a Switch 3 or PS6 or the new next-gen Xbox?

I like this concept as it is similar to the interface on the PS5 but instead of having games in a row at the top, here they are at the bottom.

• Microsoft is cutting staff and studios to stop making losses.
• Manufacturing a new next-gen Xbox console would be expensive.
• The next-gen Xbox will likely be manufactured by third-party companies. The Asus Xbox X.

They’re not ‘performance issues’ they’re features.

People who have played Starfield, does Oblivion Remastered look like it has better graphics?

I ask because if UE5 does look better then it might be used in the same way for the Elder Scrolls VI to run on top of the Creation Engine.

This will be the biggest gaming event in the PlayStation calendar this year. It will be the showcase that sees Microsoft fully-embrace its third-party status by announcing games that come to other platforms. We will see the Nintendo logo and the PlayStation logo on games.

Whilst I understand that some super-loyal Xbox owners may be upset by the console losing its exclusives, a good way to look at it is that there will now be millions more people who will get to play and share the fun of the games you love..

We might even get to see a Gears or Halo remaster announcement.

I would pay £100 for GTA VI.

Yes, it’s expensive but it’s also one of the most anticipated games of all time. Its publisher can afford to charge more than a standard game. For anyone who’s been waiting more than a decade, paying that bit extra won’t dissuade them from buying.

@Fiendish-Beaver A few years back, maybe 2019, there were substantial rumours about Microsoft selling off the Xbox division. I even saw Bill Gates in an interview almost confirm by saying everything was being considered.

https://www.theverge.com/2014/5/6/5686380/bill-gates-comments-on-potential-microsoft-xbox-sale

Phil Spencer had previously commented on the DualSense haptics by saying companies copy from one another. Microsoft will add it - but it will be saved until the next generation Xbox.

@Martsmall Cheers, will try soon when I need to renew.

@Martsmall Are international Xbox Live and Game Pass codes compatible with UK accounts?