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Phil Spencer told Microsoft to go 'all-in' on gaming when brand was threatened
- Thread starter ivan.k
- Start date
Ori and the Will of the Wisps
Wasteland 3
Bleeding Edge
Tell Me Why
Grounded
Gears Tactics
Minecraft Dungeons
All before Summer ends next year. And we then have Halo Infinite, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Battletoads and Psychonauts 2 releasing in 2020 without a confirmed date so far.
What goal post movement? All I am saying is that I am waiting until the AAA games are out. Microsoft has still a lot to prove in that field.
Ori is a huge one for me as well.
I think the issue is that people still label Xbox as a Halo/Gears machine and that's it. I felt that way for a long time too, but someone would have to be blind to not see the steps they've been taking to shed that label. Sure they're still going to pump out Gears, Halo, Forza. They'd be stupid not to, but with all of those new studios that have their own unique styles I think we're going to start seeing more interesting things next gen. We already got a small taste of that.
I mean, that's entirely Microsoft's own fault. They had other games this generation, obviously, but that consisted of smaller stuff like Ori, Recore, Killer Instinct, etc. that are good, but don't have whatever pull Halo has, and the pile of forgettable, crap, or crap-at-launch games like Dead Rising 3/4, Sunset Overdrive, Sea of Thieves, Ryse, and so on.
As others have stated ad nauseam, saying "you'll believe him when you see AAA games" is pretty disingenuous and disregards the fact that he convinced his CEO to invest billions in a market he didn't fully understand or want to stay in. We're already slowly starting to see the fruits of their labor- Ninja Theory announcing Hellblade 2, with 14 other studios working of their next big projects.
I assume you're going to disregard the 8-10 XGS titles releasing in the first half as not counting because they're "not AAA"? If so, that's too bad because they're are some really cool titles coming next year, with Ori 2 being my most anticipated.
But even though all of those other games "don't count", I'm sure they will be revealing some next gen titles at E3. And I wouldn't be surprised if MS has more to show than the competition. But I guess no one should get excited for the direction Xbox is heading until all of these games release
I should clarify, Sea of Thieves was crap at launch. I know it's improved, but it's still one of those games that's way too niche to really sell a platform.
Sunset Overdrive is a game with decently fun mechanics wrapped in an incredibly basic open-world formula that was tired in 2014, and is even moreso now.
It's easy for gamers to be dismissive of the changes made at XBOX since Phil Spencer took over. XBOX as a "platform" is ending the generation in a vastly different state and position than it started at and while we (on an enthusiast gaming forum) can point to significant changes I don't think that those changes have translated, or are even noticed, outside of the core community.
At least here in Europe...
I think the only thing that matters is games. In essence that's where the communication between publisher/platform holder and the entire gaming audience takes place.
At least here in Europe...
I think the only thing that matters is games. In essence that's where the communication between publisher/platform holder and the entire gaming audience takes place.
I never said it wasn't there own fault though. They definitely dug that hole themselves. I'm saying that it's clear to see that they have been taking steps to course correct. I don't blame anyone for being a bit skeptical and taking a wait and see approach to releases, but to say they are blowing smoke would be absurd.
Sunset Overdrive also was not crap (unless you are talking about it's brand in humor). That was a really fun game.
lol, "thats bait.gif"
I honestly cant remember Phil Spencer doing an anti consumer thing since taking over xbox. He seems like a great lad and leader.
So great to have him after the joke that was Don Mattrick.
Game Pass Ultimate
Game Streaming
xCloud
Fucking Halo on PC
This man has COMPLETELY turned Xbox around from what it was when it launched. Being in the Xbox ecosystem is an absolute no-brainer at this point.
Game Streaming
xCloud
Fucking Halo on PC
This man has COMPLETELY turned Xbox around from what it was when it launched. Being in the Xbox ecosystem is an absolute no-brainer at this point.
Phil Spencer is perfect for Xbox. Xbox vision is fantastic these days. I wish Phil was my dad. Phil is like the dad that when you have social awkwardness at a big family function he comes close puts his arm around you and says, "Son I can see that you are anxious and I just want to say I am proud of who you are and I will stay here with you until you feel comfortable to get up and speak to others." His presence at that point is a present. He just calmly talks you through your issues listens carefully and slowly gives you advice. He is like the dad who sees that you have a bad grade on a report card and with meaning but grace pushes you to meet your full potential but doesn't crush you for your failure. He would says with a smile "I see that you got a C in class and I know you must be disappointed and I would be too but I know you will do better next time. You have so much potential and please know that I am here to help you and I am willing to take time from my executive role just for you and your dreams. I love you buddy." We embrace and I kiss him on the cheek. I can taste that his dimpled cheeks are salty with tears. Not tears of disappointment but with tears of pride for his son.
The real funny bit of all this is that unless you're #1 everyone thinks you're losing money and are a joke. You can be #2 or 3 and still be successful.
They've changed it all around. All I play these days is Game Pass for PC, and I'm probably going to scale down and just go with a XSX next-gen. Game Pass just makes it so easy, and quality control at Microsoft has been going up. I feel confident I will get an absurd amount of fun through the service with a very diverse assortment of games.
It's the right platform for me. Sony and Nintendo aren't even in consideration for me any more. I especially look forward to seeing what Obsidian and inXile can do with proper budgets.
It's the right platform for me. Sony and Nintendo aren't even in consideration for me any more. I especially look forward to seeing what Obsidian and inXile can do with proper budgets.
You mean anti consumer stuff like keeping F2P games locked behind a paywall and releasing an unfinished dumpster fire like the MCC and then taking 4 yeas to fix it ? Apart from that XGS software output has been absolutely anemic the last 6 years, both in quantity and quality.
I can definitely understand people claiming everything until now is just more hot air. Like, I've been hearing Microsoft say how they want to take PC gaming seriously for years, and they only started actually having anything to show for that about nine months ago. Until then, it was inconsistent ports on a busted storefront and platform they refused to fix, along with things like free-to-play versions of Forza and Halo 5, or that garbage Forza Street game that apparently was supposed to be a PC exclusive, that gave the impression that Microsoft was unbelievably out of touch. And even now, a lot of what's coming is games that don't have gameplay trailers. We're still well into the drought of Microsoft releases.
As soon as they're listed like that it's easy to see how invested they are in gaming now and how big a difference it makes, having so many first party studios. That clear goal they've decided upon - Netflix for gaming - is also something that resonates with a lot of core gamers and potentially much wider than that.
There's always things you can do better, but it's impossible to look at their current hardware offerings, first party studios, persistant library across generations and easy access to hundreds of games through Game Pass and not see the changes from the Mattrick years or the years right after, where they (likely) were on a shoestring budget.
Its hard to get hyped for smaller games for me, that's why I talked about AAA games in my first post. From the biggest tech company in the world I want the biggest games. I don't care much for this smaller projects. They don't even look that great. And I tried the first Ori and didn't like it. Wasteland 3 would have been happened anyway so not really Microsoft earning. But I am looking forward to that one.
But yeah, as for the AAA output we still have to wait and see and I can't praise them for just announcing games. Especially after their output this gen.
This thread is full of people talking abasolute shite.
- It takes time to make stuff
- Sony's output has been better received and has been consistently good (though not always top notch, but you know what? If you love it, good, that's the fucking point of all this)
- MS's output is not shite because of that fact, per se (the 'winner takes all' mentality is fucking ridiculous and unhelpful), though some has definitely been worse than it could/should have been
- The change from MS 2013 to MS 2019 is absolutely stark, and to pretend otherwise is to be facetious, at best.
- It takes time to make stuff
- Sony's output has been better received and has been consistently good (though not always top notch, but you know what? If you love it, good, that's the fucking point of all this)
- MS's output is not shite because of that fact, per se (the 'winner takes all' mentality is fucking ridiculous and unhelpful), though some has definitely been worse than it could/should have been
- The change from MS 2013 to MS 2019 is absolutely stark, and to pretend otherwise is to be facetious, at best.
So the Minecraft acquisition was partly in response to the disastorous Xbox One launch... well colour me surprised.
I remember Jim Sterling's early videos about how Microsoft was moving away from core gaming and into video streaming and that was before the Xbox One reveal.
I remember Jim Sterling's early videos about how Microsoft was moving away from core gaming and into video streaming and that was before the Xbox One reveal.
I have been gaming for a long time. People that only own one system always seem to hate on the others. Never made sense to me. Microsoft has consistently been putting out the games I want to play the most. I love some of the games sony puts out...same for Nintendo.
Anyone complaining about games is generally a console warrior and they are easy to spot.
What do you consider good enough? Huge budget crunch inducing games you play once and put down?
Since Mattrick left and Phil Spencer took over, the following things have happened.
- Unbundled Kinect, significant price drop.
- The death of Kinect as a whole
- Xbox Elite Controller
- Improved Xbox One S model, significantly improved Xbox One X model
- Minecraft purchase, the most valuable addition to Microsoft's gaming lineup since the launch of the original Xbox
- Initiative to bring Xbox console games to PC
- Initiative to bring Xbox console games to other platforms when appropriate (Steam, Switch)
- Huge push for crossplay between Xbox, PC, and other platforms before the idea hit mainstream (Fortnite)
- Xbox GamePass
- PC GamePass, and GamePass Ultimate
- Significant investment in first party studios (staffing up studios like 343, Coalition, and Playgrounds, bringing on a lot of additional studios to work on Xbox Game Studios games)
- Concentrated effort towards Japanese third parties to get more games on Xbox (Neir Automata, Yakuza, Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy Backlog, ect).
- Huge push to get Indies on Xbox with GamePass deals.
So what. People are passionate about devs, systems, games and all that jazz. We get it...some of you are very above it all. Congrats.
I mean, Tim Schafer doesn't have to fly all around the world doing pitches to get funding to make games (which he was spending a LOT of time doing) instead of just making them. This is Phil's doing. Kids who own different gaming systems can play Minecraft together. This is Phil's doing. There's an affordable, high-quality, open/extensible accessibility controller for the first time. This is Phil's doing.
What the fuck is there not to like? He's doing good things. The gaming world is a better place for MS having Phil in his position.
Those saying "but where are the games MS?", aren't exactly bringing it up from nowhere.
Listing games that Xbox is projected to have coming out in response is not exactly telling of how they have changed even though they very well might have. Do those of you making these lists believe Xbox didn't (before Phil made his intentions clear) have a slate of games announced and set to release, and that MS publishing wasn't "serious" about those games when they were making them? Of course they were serious, they just weren't good at doing it. Xbox in fact did have a lot of games that you could similarly make lists out of before 2019. Will all of those games you list be good as what people expect from other platform holders (which is where a lot of the criticism comes from)? That's a question for another day. It's definitely a start, but to act like they were never serious about games is like… a fallacy.
Listing games that Xbox is projected to have coming out in response is not exactly telling of how they have changed even though they very well might have. Do those of you making these lists believe Xbox didn't (before Phil made his intentions clear) have a slate of games announced and set to release, and that MS publishing wasn't "serious" about those games when they were making them? Of course they were serious, they just weren't good at doing it. Xbox in fact did have a lot of games that you could similarly make lists out of before 2019. Will all of those games you list be good as what people expect from other platform holders (which is where a lot of the criticism comes from)? That's a question for another day. It's definitely a start, but to act like they were never serious about games is like… a fallacy.
I don't know how people think this guy is Lip service. Studio being bought, gamepass, embracing PC and even steam. He's obviously been doing a lot. Hope he continues.
I do need to finish the first Ori, but I'm still looking forward to the sequel. I don't know enough about the other games to say if they excite me or not.
I actually liked the Xbox One exclusives that were already being made before the big changes. Dead Rising 3, Sunset Overdrive, Gears 4, Quantum Break... I wish they would've kept focusing on stuff like that.
Xbox just has three times the studios now that makes games. So.. making these kind of lists becomes a little easier. ;)
They were always serious about making games. They just didn't have the budget or manpower to do as well as they can now.
Damn Phil, thanks for going to bat for Xbox. I don't follow the corporate side of gaming too terribly closely, but I remember seeing Nadella's comments about his hesitation with Xbox and thinking the writing was on the wall. I knew Phil had a huge part in turning the brand around, but I didn't realize he essentially saved the sinking ship single-handedly.