I was genuinely gutted to see Perfect Dark cancelled. As a child of the N64 generation I wanted a proper sequel to the original, not PD0 which we ended up with!
The strategy MS is pursuing is fairly obvious, Nadella has never been shy about his distaste for traditional console business driven by exclusivity. Xbox will release PC-based living room console that will have ease of use of console with openness of PC, while releasing all its games on all platforms that can support them. The added value of Xbox will come from precisely that combination of openness + gamepass + convenience and ease of use (and possibly performance). Meanwhile people will be able to play Xbox games anywhere, thus reducing barrier to entry and making big money for MS.
With their strategy of openness, we see cross-play, smart delivery (free upgrade to next Gen version), PlayAnywhere (buy Xbox version, get PC version free) and an increasing number of titles that would have been exclusive now making their way to all platforms (e.g. Hell divers 2, Final Fantasy series).
In the Services Era, should the long-standing supporting consumers continue to pay for multiple versions of the same console game? Or have to buy multiple consoles? Or lose access to live service games or games with licensed content?
I agree that this is the strategy Microsoft is pursuing. It makes a lot of sense when you're Microsoft, who makes an OS that runs on hardware other people pay for. But it's a strategy that essentially forfeits the Xbox consoles in exchange for Xbox-branded hardware. Sony and Nintendo are winning because they have must-play games, and players have shown for years that they buy systems for exclusive games and not for ease of use, convenience, etc.
This whole situation gives me serious Stadia vibes. It's by no means a perfect analogy - for one thing, GamePass is real - but tech companies seem to have this belief that they can become the biggest games publisher because [insert reasons here] without having to do any of that pesky "make great games" stuff. Google lost with Stadia, Epic Game Store & Netflix Games are unremarkable after years of support, and Microsoft is now throwing in the towel.
Meanwhile, Sony and Nintendo continue to outperform Microsoft's games in both critical acclaim and profitability, with similar (albeit lesser) % increases in stock price over the last 5 years. And Steam continues to print money. I know who I'd bet on for the future of gaming, and it sure isn't Microsoft.
I do think Phil’s original vision was to “win” the console war when he bought Bethesda and Activision. He clearly stated in internal emails that he wanted to make Elder Scrolls VI exclusive, and he was the one who forced Bethesda to cancel the PS5 versions of Starfield and Redfall after the acquisition. I’m confident he would’ve been open to making Call of Duty exclusive too if regulatory bodies hadn’t forced them to keep releasing it everywhere. He had a real opportunity to save the old Xbox, but he failed to deliver great results. Starfield was underwhelming, Hellblade II wasn’t well received, Redfall was a flop with a disastrous launch, and all of that clearly gave Nadella cold feet. Phil signed a deal with the devil (Microsoft) when he took their money to acquire ABK in exchange for opening up Xbox games to PlayStation.
And yet, they had over 40 projects in development. Forza Horizon 5 was amazing, the new Fable looks promising, Clockwork Revolution seems fantastic, The Outer Worlds 2 is shaping up to be a big step up from the first, Indiana Jones was a success, and the new Gears is almost ready. They decided to abandon the old Xbox at the exact moment when it had the most potential, when all the big single-player AAA games, in development since 2018–2019, were finally starting to land.
They were so close to being able to compete with PlayStation again.
If Nintendo keeps screwing around with pricing of games,systems and "game key"(like I'd buy an empty box with a code).Nintendo Entertainment will be going off into the sunset. Why do game company's that make a system, get cocky when that one does well,so they think they can f around with their customer the next time. Nintendo only feeding game companys 64g cards only, to put their games on, is one of the lowest thinks I have ever seen. Sony learned the hard way with the PS3 crashing.
As for the studio cancellations and layoffs, MS has 228,000 employees. Insane number, there must be such high number of waste and bureaucracy that I am not surprised at all they are trying to trim it. Imagine managing organization like this. There is a reason governments are the least effective, most corrupt organizations on the planet. It is inevitable once you reach a size like this. And it is obvious both Perfect Dark and Everwild never had a solid enough vision and execution to actually be finished.
I was genuinely gutted to see Perfect Dark cancelled. As a child of the N64 generation I wanted a proper sequel to the original, not PD0 which we ended up with!
The strategy MS is pursuing is fairly obvious, Nadella has never been shy about his distaste for traditional console business driven by exclusivity. Xbox will release PC-based living room console that will have ease of use of console with openness of PC, while releasing all its games on all platforms that can support them. The added value of Xbox will come from precisely that combination of openness + gamepass + convenience and ease of use (and possibly performance). Meanwhile people will be able to play Xbox games anywhere, thus reducing barrier to entry and making big money for MS.
With their strategy of openness, we see cross-play, smart delivery (free upgrade to next Gen version), PlayAnywhere (buy Xbox version, get PC version free) and an increasing number of titles that would have been exclusive now making their way to all platforms (e.g. Hell divers 2, Final Fantasy series).
In the Services Era, should the long-standing supporting consumers continue to pay for multiple versions of the same console game? Or have to buy multiple consoles? Or lose access to live service games or games with licensed content?
I agree that this is the strategy Microsoft is pursuing. It makes a lot of sense when you're Microsoft, who makes an OS that runs on hardware other people pay for. But it's a strategy that essentially forfeits the Xbox consoles in exchange for Xbox-branded hardware. Sony and Nintendo are winning because they have must-play games, and players have shown for years that they buy systems for exclusive games and not for ease of use, convenience, etc.
This whole situation gives me serious Stadia vibes. It's by no means a perfect analogy - for one thing, GamePass is real - but tech companies seem to have this belief that they can become the biggest games publisher because [insert reasons here] without having to do any of that pesky "make great games" stuff. Google lost with Stadia, Epic Game Store & Netflix Games are unremarkable after years of support, and Microsoft is now throwing in the towel.
Meanwhile, Sony and Nintendo continue to outperform Microsoft's games in both critical acclaim and profitability, with similar (albeit lesser) % increases in stock price over the last 5 years. And Steam continues to print money. I know who I'd bet on for the future of gaming, and it sure isn't Microsoft.
I do think Phil’s original vision was to “win” the console war when he bought Bethesda and Activision. He clearly stated in internal emails that he wanted to make Elder Scrolls VI exclusive, and he was the one who forced Bethesda to cancel the PS5 versions of Starfield and Redfall after the acquisition. I’m confident he would’ve been open to making Call of Duty exclusive too if regulatory bodies hadn’t forced them to keep releasing it everywhere. He had a real opportunity to save the old Xbox, but he failed to deliver great results. Starfield was underwhelming, Hellblade II wasn’t well received, Redfall was a flop with a disastrous launch, and all of that clearly gave Nadella cold feet. Phil signed a deal with the devil (Microsoft) when he took their money to acquire ABK in exchange for opening up Xbox games to PlayStation.
And yet, they had over 40 projects in development. Forza Horizon 5 was amazing, the new Fable looks promising, Clockwork Revolution seems fantastic, The Outer Worlds 2 is shaping up to be a big step up from the first, Indiana Jones was a success, and the new Gears is almost ready. They decided to abandon the old Xbox at the exact moment when it had the most potential, when all the big single-player AAA games, in development since 2018–2019, were finally starting to land.
They were so close to being able to compete with PlayStation again.
If Nintendo keeps screwing around with pricing of games,systems and "game key"(like I'd buy an empty box with a code).Nintendo Entertainment will be going off into the sunset. Why do game company's that make a system, get cocky when that one does well,so they think they can f around with their customer the next time. Nintendo only feeding game companys 64g cards only, to put their games on, is one of the lowest thinks I have ever seen. Sony learned the hard way with the PS3 crashing.
"Xbox continues to invest in smaller properties like The Outer Worlds"
Outer Worlds 2 is 80$.
As for the studio cancellations and layoffs, MS has 228,000 employees. Insane number, there must be such high number of waste and bureaucracy that I am not surprised at all they are trying to trim it. Imagine managing organization like this. There is a reason governments are the least effective, most corrupt organizations on the planet. It is inevitable once you reach a size like this. And it is obvious both Perfect Dark and Everwild never had a solid enough vision and execution to actually be finished.
Really great piece and a great argument. What even IS Xbox trying to do, and how does raising the prices on its consoles help any of that?!