themightyant

@Gabrie They have been calling the death of consoles for several decades already, I'd put good money on us seeing a PS7 and Switch 4. Xbox is harder to predict with Microsoft's constant flip flopping, but I still think the odds are pretty high, even if it's far more like a PC under the TV than a console.

@Weebleman Agreed. I didn't believe it at all when I first read it. But when Tom Warren, who also has massive Microsoft connections, said this guy does too it started to hold a little more weight, even if it still felt false. I suspect there's some truth buried in there e.g. Microsoft are missing deadlines and considering shifting from a 2026 launch to later. But I don't believe there won't be another Xbox console.

Need to get to Nine Sols and perhaps Stalker 2, it was a complete mess at launch, buggiest game I’d played in years.

@SodaPop6548 I can see what you are saying, but @Cvantez makes a fair point, prices go up and while SOME subscribers are lost most don’t leave and revenues go up. It was the same when Netflix clamped down on sub-sharing and raised prices. It was the same when Disney+ raised prices, it was the same when PS+ and Game Pass raised prices. In all cases their revenue went up.

That doesn’t mean it doesn’t suck, it does, ESPECIALLY for those that are struggling financially and have to make hard choices, but more people complain than take any action. I’d be amazed if Microsoft’s Game Pass revenues don’t go up here too. Obviously I don’t want this price hike, but I doubt it will change much for them, despite how much pushback there has been.

Not interested in them, especially at this extra cost.

@Master_Cthulhu70 I agree that for SOME users, like yourselves, it is still the best package to be on. But I fear that is becoming a smaller minority and subscription services only really work at large numbers. If it gets too niche prices will have to go up again or the numbers don’t add up. They’re shooting themselves in the foot here I feel.

@Weebleman absolutely right mate. I last paid £1 in 2019 to upgrade from Xbox Live Gold again and have just used Xbox rewards and a couple of hacks (like EA play) to keep it going. I won’t have paid directly all this gen. That was never sustainable.

But seeing day 1 games go from $9.99 a month last year (via the middle tier) to $29.99 a month this year is too much of a leap in too short a time. They try and dress it up with all the other things (cloud, ubi classics, Fortnite) but this isn’t what most want.

I wonder how all the people that crowed about Microsoft buying ABK feel now? We’ve had just a handful of ABK games so far, yet Game Pass day 1 prices have tripled. Be careful what you wish for.

@Ricky-Spanish on its own I might agree. But let’s not forget there was a price hike last year. Just 14 months ago you could get games day 1 for $9.99 now it’s $29.99. That’s a 3x price hike if that is what you want. (Day 1 games)

Additionally in some territories this is a 100% price hike. The value proposition is not what it was. At $360 a year it’s no longer the best value deal in gaming.

@Coletrain EXACTLY! just like Netflix, Disney, Amazon Prime… upsell, upsell with what you want but bundle it with things you don’t because “value”.

Lovely idea but NEVER going to happen. They want you paying for Day 1 releases on Ultimate / top tier. There’s good reason (from their viewpoint) to not offer Day 1 releases on the lower tiers. They want to upsell you.

As a subscriber to both PS+ and Game Pass I definitely prefer that the mid tier of PS+ offers most of the benefits a lot of people want and the top tier is added stuff. Whereas on Game Pass it’s the top tier / ultimate has the day 1 releases most want.

Personally I have no interest in old Ubisoft games or Fortnite and have no extra time for even more Day 1 games so the 50% price hike has no use for me. (That’s on top of the one last year)

@OldGamer999 Agreed. Indiana Jones is probably the only absolute classic I think in the last 12 months or so. Everything else has disappointed a little: Doom: Dark Ages, Avowed, South of Midnight, Gears: Reloaded. All good games but not that memorable.

I’m not worried about the next Xbox being a streaming box, it will be native I’m sure, but I am worried about the cost of it. Top level series X is $800, Xbox Ally X is $1000, Game Pass ult is $360 a year etc. it just feels like they are fleecing everyone.

Around 2 years ago you could get all Day 1 games on Xbox Console for $9.99 a month and it was easy to call it the best deal in gaming.. now it’s $29.99 a month to get them Day 1 on Ultimate. I don’t magically have more time to play more games so it offers little added value. And old Ubisoft games & Fortnite Vbucks certainly ain’t it!

Disappointing all around.

@awp69 Totally agree the curation and games are excellent, anyone calling it ‘filler’ or ‘trash’ simply doesn’t have a wide enough range of gaming, and the service isn’t really for them.

But the problem is TIME. No one can realistically keep up with all the Game Pass releases already, adding 50% more doesn’t suddenly give more time to play more, hence there’s little added value.

Look at Spotify they reportedly add almost 100,000 new tracks a day, and have hundreds of millions of songs on the service, but realise they can’t just double the cost, people don’t magically have more time.

On paper 50% more Day 1 titles sounds great… but the issue isn’t range, even as an enthusiast who plays FAR too much there’s already more games coming to Game Pass than I can keep up with, the issue is TIME. I simply don’t have any more time to play more games, hence this adds little additional value other than a slightly wider range. So a 50% price hike is useless.

I play 20+ games a year on Game Pass and try a lot more… so there is still some value in it… but for most users that equation no longer balances.

@SodaPop6548 I thought Tariffs are only on shipped products from overseas, it shouldn’t affect a digital subscription service at all.

Not changing YET… but only because I have Game Pass Ult. maxed out at another 3 years via rewards. I literally will not have paid Microsoft a penny directly this gen for game pass. That was always unsustainable. But I can’t see me paying £275+ a year (or whatever it costs by 2028/9).

@OldGamer999 @Cakefish In a similar boat here, i’m subbed for the next 2-3 years through Rewards and haven’t paid directly to Microsoft in years. I think the last time I paid it was still a £1 conversion from Xbox Live Gold before Covid.

I still get a lot of use out of Game Pass… but £275 is a lot to pay annually. By the time my membership does come up for renewal it will likely be even more… can’t see me paying £275+ a year currently.

Add Eternal Sonata to that list. Also… dare I say it… Scalebound. lol

Obviously disappointed by this news… but also, back in reality, I haven’t paid for Game Pass Ultimate for about 5 years due to rewards, this could never last.

It’s too late in the generation imo. Just wait for next gen and launch a controller with a low more features, plus an Elite Series 3 at the same time.

@Cakefish Apple reportedly make a lot more profit on their phones - reports i've seen vary between 25% to 50+% depending on the specific model and storage options etc. - so they have a lot of wiggle room to reduce their profit margins on phones a little and navigate the tariffs for now.

But if the tariffs remain long term i'd expect them either to up prices, or perhaps not increase the spec of some models as much to keep build costs down while keeping prices stable.

@Medic_alert Agreed. The whole OS just feels so Microsoft. Bloated and buggy. There's still a lot of legacy issues from the Xbox One OS. It generally works most of the time but frequently has little issues that simply shouldn't be there.

Just hoping they mix up the formula, FH5 was a well made game but also a bit of a let down as it was essentially just a re-skinned FH4.

@SuBLiMe83 Me too, the whole time the new game comes in and goes to #1. But that only makes the backlog even longer.

Not for me, but i'm happy for the people that want one...
But $1000 USD for the Ally X is painful.

@Enigk It better not! That and Clockwork Revolution are my most anticipated Xbox titles after Perfect Dark's cancellation. At least till Elder Scrolls 6 next decade.

Interesting in Visions of Mana, but the reality is my backlog is still so long! Not sure i'll ever get to it.

This looked bonkers in the best way possible

@UnusedBabyWipes I think that's probably broadly true but I think it might be more on a case by case basis. Basically do they think they will get good multiplatform sales if they wait. Forza Horizon 5 showed there was still plenty of appetite for this franchise even 3-4 years later. But other games haven't sold as well after a delay. It's probably not as clear cut as that imo.

It's a sensible approach imo. Timed exclusivity followed by a multiplatform release.

@Ricky-Spanish They said "...and PlayStation 5 post-launch." so it isn't day 1 is seems, though that can always change.

@OldGamer999 I think sales of FH5 on PS5 showed Microsoft can have their cake and eat it too with this IP, they can both have a timed Xbox/PC exclusive and have a second flurry of sales and mindshare when it comes to PS5.

Very little for me in that list. A shame, but you can't win em all. Still got plenty to play, so my backlog thanks you.

D. Not a lot for me in this one. It wasn't all bad, but very little to get excited about either.

That was one of the lamest 'reveals' in a long time. It's the 6th game in a franchise, at least show some gameplay.

Even if there were no leaks it would be underwhelming, but with them (and it's been months of knowing it's Japan) that was awful.

Great to hear they are finally making their way to Xbox.

@Ricky-Spanish Agreed. Quite happy for games to get this level of remaster and be £25 / $30 rather than having the UE5 remake treatment and being $70

@Fiendish-Beaver It would be VERY unusual to stop making a console, and stop selling it, over a year before the next console releases. Never heard of that happening before and seems like TERRIBLE business, not to mention awful optics.

One aspect that might muddy the analytics: You have to play 8 different games for at least 10 minutes to get the Xbox rewards. Many months I don't actually play 8 different games on Xbox, but I do start 8 different games and leave it running for the rewards.

But aside from that I probably do try more games via Game Pass.

Looks... Unreal.

It does look graphically insane to be fair. Not sure I want to be scared s--tless playing a game though.

Call of Duty probably costs more than every ID@Xbox game on Game Pass.

@Ricky-Spanish Depends what you are streaming it to in my view. A phone, Steam Deck or tablet was absolutely fine. A massive TV not so much. Will be interesting to see if the later is better.

@OldGamer999 Sony already put up price slightly, and reduced the storage on Digital PS5, so they probably won't do it again soon.

Oof! XSX is now $100 more than base PS5 and 2TB XSX is now $50 more than a PS5 Pro! Not a good look.

Haven’t played an old fashioned shmup at home in years. Might give it a go.

@shiningpikablu252 100%. While in theory i'd love them to be upfront about when games are leaving (e.g. this game is on game pass until X date) I think the reality is a lot of contracts are probably open ended and will keep rolling until one party or another stops it.

E.g. when Microsoft sees players drop off below what they think it reasonable to pay them may cancel the contract.

In short they don't know when the contract is ending.

Because most deals will be structured to pay the publisher X amount for Y months (often 1, 2 or 3 years), not indefinitely, for which they would understandably want a lot more money.

Meanwhile the number of players drops off significantly after the early months so Microsoft don't want to do longer deals where there are less players.

Though not all deals are structured this way. TakeTwo reportedly wants a monthly fee for their games which is why GTAV and RDR are only ever on it for a few months at a time.

This feels like another necessary step between merging console and PC. If you can pick up and play your xbox saves through PC or cloud it all gets a lot easier.

"the game is pretty damn optimal"

— Randy Pitchford

@SeaDaVie The 'AAAA' bit was always a typo on a linked in job listing that sadly gathered traction. Gamers can be ruthless.

What it was conceived as was a small agile studio SPECIFICALLY designed to poach some of the very best talent from other studios, especially several of Sony's studios in and around Santa Monica. They were initially successful with this, poaching dozens of them on the promise that (I paraphrase) "this studio would be different, it wouldn't be the usual AAA grind for years, you'll work on smaller more focused games with other veterans".

Sadly the studio never quite formed into what it promised to be and within a few years, around the time it was decided to make Perfect Dark, there was a mass exodus from many of those veteran devs who didn't get what they had come for. Many were welcomed back into their previous roles, good talent is hard to come by.

That's the dream that never became a reality. Jason Schrierer wrote a good exposé on in.

I'm guessing this is more to do with individual TVs because I haven't noticed any gradient banding and i'm usually quite sensitive to it.

@Lrapsody This wasn't JUST making a new game, it was building a new studio from the ground up. Which is hard enough but it was during COVID too.

It's a shame as the IDEA of The Initiative was great, to have smaller teams of veteran devs working on smaller faster more agile projects (more like how game dev used to be).

But it morphed into something else and over half the hand picked veteran devs that they prised away from huge studios like Sony Santa Monica, Insomniac and Naughty Dog left within a few years when that initial promise ended up not being what it was in reality.

A shame, as I still think the core idea of the Initiative - Veteran devs working on smaller projects but with a budget - could have been amazing.