And they seem well prepared to do that with their massive investment in first-party.
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Wired: The Future of Xbox Isn't Just a Console (Phil Spencer Interview)
- Thread starter wwm0nkey
- Start date
Sure - but the recognition is that PC users are behaving quite differently, so their approach is different. They want choice between the services they use and the interoperability there. MS recognise that per their own statements when they made the move, and look set on acquiring as many users wherever they are, regardless of the established ecosystem they are using (at least longer term). That is why MS games are on Steam - with XBL directly integrated into the games to capture users that way.
Sooner or later, a Steam specific Gamepass and Xcloud will show up there as well, as a frictionless way to reach that specific audience of users that simply don't want to buy / use the MS store. That audience is very significant, and MS are treating it as it's own thing, even down to updates, feature use and comms.
People need to see this for the long term game it is. They'll do the same with EGS too as time goes on in a way that works for that audience. Equally it will be done in Sony's own way, but it's looking like the same will happen with their games and PSN + services.
The Switch isn't in competition with Xbox at the high end, and those games showing up on Switch are largely third party exclusives.
On the console space, it makes perfect sense to keep their games locked to their hardware to maximize revenue.
I'm not sure how you're convinced Gears isn't a system seller.
User Banned (3 weeks): Console wars, history of similar behavior
Word is out on that front still. They need to show games on the same level of quality as the competition consecutively.
I dont like this future. Maybe im just getting old but i like the build up to a release, and getting the physical disc ( the smell of a fresh game lol), and having that game in a collection i can look at on my shelf. I dread an all digital streaming service future where titles can be turned on or off at the whim of a publisher.
Not as bad if it runs alongside physical media but I wouldnt want this as the only option. No way
Not as bad if it runs alongside physical media but I wouldnt want this as the only option. No way
Microsoft games are already on the platform via Play anywhere. And they're most likely giving up only 20% to Valve.
It does need to be profitable because Nadella isn't looking to carry dead-weight for his enterprise focused MS. Thankfully for Xbox, the division pulls in $10B in revenue every year and is one of the larger divisions (rev-wise) in MS.
Gears is nowhere near a system seller it once was unfortunately but it should be
Of course Sony is still a huge direct competitor for MS. They just don't publicly admit to it because they got absolutely spanked this gen with regards to unit sales, revenue and pretty much all other metrics. It's the same reason why he's saying unit sales are not important, because he doesn't want to create any outward pressure or expectations on unit sales for the new hardware.
I don't believe the business model is public. It is also unlikely they have a fixed model for all scenarios.
What I can say, I have non gaming platform experience. A platform without content is worthless...
If they can really pull off Xcloud as a legit alternative to have on a smart TV, Roku, Apple TV, etc, then I think the game could really change. A lot of people will always want the dedicated box but there will be a lot of people who won't care about fidelity and are just happy to play games on their TV this way. Playing on phones or tablets feels like it will just be for a specific market of people or as a companion device.
Actually i meant gamepass, but said xbox devision.
If they introduced a subscription service that was profitable from day one, then that is really impressive.
I think that is quite unique in the entertainment industry.
Pretty impressive.
MS has been forward thinking ever since they put a broadband ethernet port on the OG Xbox and people complained not realizing it was the right choice all along.
Basically, people get too wrapped in boxes. I mean, anyone care what brand VCR you bought back in the day, or what your cable box is? As long as it plays what you want without issues....
I'm sorry is it 2016? How is this question still being asked with a straight face?
The good thing with giving us choice is MS doesn't care where you play as long as your engaging.
MS still gets your money no matter where you're playing. Dont want to buy a console and just play on your PC. All good to them.
We've been there for years, I mean your physical disk is basically a key. if the game requires a server log in, your disk is useless in any case.
Streaming, and no dedicated hardware probably is the future, but I personally don't think this is necessarily a good thing.
People view Netflix and other video streaming platforms as something great, when I've always kind of felt they are the opposite in that they've contributed to a video/film/television ecosystem that has actually devalued content and lessened its impact.
It makes media ubiquitous, always on, and ever-present and as a result, things tend to both blur together and become more similar in nature in their content.
Like, I don't think the theater industry going extinct is a good thing and I feel the same way about the (probably inevitable) loss of dedicated gaming hardware.
People view Netflix and other video streaming platforms as something great, when I've always kind of felt they are the opposite in that they've contributed to a video/film/television ecosystem that has actually devalued content and lessened its impact.
It makes media ubiquitous, always on, and ever-present and as a result, things tend to both blur together and become more similar in nature in their content.
Like, I don't think the theater industry going extinct is a good thing and I feel the same way about the (probably inevitable) loss of dedicated gaming hardware.
They need to put out a wide variety of quality games of all genres and sizes on a regular basis that people want to play, and they seem well positioned to do that. Very exciting times ahead, Game pass is going to be a force to be reckoned with next gen.
That would be cool but not with the way internet speeds/caps are across the country.
Their hardware is a high end box for the console crowd and I doubt they could compete with the Switch in the handheld space. Even if they wanted to it would take a major retooling of their business structure.
As far as PC, this is a totally separate consumer base from console. Even if a PC gamer buys your console for exclusives that aren't on PC, what's the point? You don't make anything on the hardware and they are going to buy the non exclusives on PC. Companies are better off porting to PC because the people that would have bought the console for the game will buy the game for PC and you allow for your game to be sold to consumers that wouldn't have purchased a console in the first place.
Game pass is THE gaming service to have next gen. Its only growing and growing. With Halo Infinite it will probably hit 15-20 million subscribers.
Lol this is so simple but brilliant.
I bet there's a forum with those arguments though just like I bet there's a "best toaster" forum.
20 I don't know but I could see 15. But you forgot to say "lol 1$ subs so it doesn't count, people will unsubscribe after a month"
They want that 30% cut of third party games revenue sold at their platform. Once they stop making hardware, there won't be Xbox version console games anymore and instead they will be competing against Steam and Epic Stores. That might be their future. Microsoft is at destiny crossroad next generation.
Well, now Netflix is having war with Disney, Amazon, etc... and each platform is developing or buying exclusives...
It makes me really wonder if the online infrastructure is going to be able to withstand the amount of people that will be playing online lol.
sure - the solution is to own stock in all, sub to all and chill
Nadella is not interested in consumer business divisions. Luckily, he sees upside to Xbox and potentially cross-selling Cloud gaming functionality to Sony and potentially other vendors in the future.
That is great.
They really did build a studio list and if the content grows gamepass can become a really huge thing on all devices.
I'll always be "in" as far as a traditional Xbox console with physical games. As long as that party lasts.
I have zero interest in xCloud/streaming.
I have zero interest in xCloud/streaming.
However, they won't like to compete with Steam because that means they are moving into a smaller market segment. For comparison Steam revenue was around 4 to 5 billion USD a year, Xbox 10 billion and PlayStation 20 billion. And to become a pure third party software company means even smaller revenue. The biggest third party publishers revenue never reached 10 billion USD a year in history. Being platform holder is how you make money consistently without relying too much on the variant output of your studios.
I think a lot of people get confused with "our games on every device you own" to mean every console. That's not what they're talking about. They mean every screen you want to play on. If you want a console to hook up to your TV get an Xbox, if you want to play streamed games on your TV or phone they will have an app in Xcloud. If you prefer to play at a desk with a mouse and keyboard on your monitor (or TV) then you can play on PC.
They want to control the ecosystem, Sony and Nintendo already control their own ecosystems on their consoles. PC is open so they can have their own storefront or Game Pass because publishers can also offer they games on services like Steam or the Epic store. With Xcloud they are also controlling the ecosystem, even if it's a native app on your TV and you don't buy a console.
They will also still make consoles just like they make Surface devices despite working with a lot of hardware partners on similar devices.
They want to control the ecosystem, Sony and Nintendo already control their own ecosystems on their consoles. PC is open so they can have their own storefront or Game Pass because publishers can also offer they games on services like Steam or the Epic store. With Xcloud they are also controlling the ecosystem, even if it's a native app on your TV and you don't buy a console.
They will also still make consoles just like they make Surface devices despite working with a lot of hardware partners on similar devices.
They're not going to stop making hardware and accessories so long as they make up a significant contribution to revenue.
Xbox is making two consoles for next gen. MS is making more Surface devices, not less.
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I'm old, but have the opposite opinion. Stadia, GFN and xCloud had converted me.
The publisher's pulling their games after GFN went live highlighted the illusion that is game ownership.
I'm loving the direction MS is going
MS is smart enough to know that local hardware will always be king. I don't see their push for cloud gaming and local streaming as a signal that they are leaving the hardware business. It's all about giving consumers different ways to play.
Microsoft is far ahead of its competitors here when it comes to positioning itself for the future.
Between game pass, azure and Xcloud, love what they're doing and the way they've set themselves - and consumers - up.
Between game pass, azure and Xcloud, love what they're doing and the way they've set themselves - and consumers - up.
Microsoft should be leveraging their war chest to avoid competitors.
Disagree, as long as there's long term value and potential and a vision in the business, then Microsoft is willing to invest the resources to compete. That's why Game Pass is in a loss leader mode because they are sacrificing short term revenue and profit for market share, which is smart business. The Samsung Access for TV has 8 Months worth of Game Pass Ultimate, that's a long time for a subscription service like this.
I agree that Xbox division during the early of this gen didn't have a solid vision for the business, but now they do.
- Sacrifice profit and revenue for market share
- Give away Game Pass ultimate for every Smartphone, tablet, PC and TV for 3-12 months.
- Reduce the price of GPU to $10 and GP to $5 per month
Disagree, as long as there's long term value and potential and a vision in the business, then Microsoft is willing to invest the resources to compete. That's why Game Pass is in a loss leader mode because they are sacrificing short term revenue and profit for market share, which is smart business. The Samsung Access for TV has 8 Months worth of Game Pass Ultimate, that's a long time for a subscription service like this.
I agree that Xbox division during the early of this gen didn't have a solid vision for the business, but now they do.
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I called this around 5 years ago, anybody who knows how Satya Nadella thinks can see that he's not interested in exclusivity for the sake of it, he's an ecosystem figure first and foremost.
Anybody surprised that Microsoft is participating by throwing their games on multiple platform and multiple devices, this was in the making for a looooong time. It's been bubbling ever since Age of Empires on DS and even that cancelled Halo demo. Only thing that faltered that was Ballmer.
Of course they'll do this tactfully, Ori on Nintendo platforms, Gears on PC/Xbox, Minecraft on all platforms for example.
Anybody surprised that Microsoft is participating by throwing their games on multiple platform and multiple devices, this was in the making for a looooong time. It's been bubbling ever since Age of Empires on DS and even that cancelled Halo demo. Only thing that faltered that was Ballmer.
Of course they'll do this tactfully, Ori on Nintendo platforms, Gears on PC/Xbox, Minecraft on all platforms for example.
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I don't know why people think MS are contracting available platforms. Their goal is to reach MORE people with their platform, not less. You don't reach more people in the foreseeable future by NOT having a console.
Its going to be funny when Sony follows down the same road. You are already starting to see Sony exclusives on PC, PSNow, the Sony Microsoft Azure partnership. Companies go where the money is at, why constrain yourself to a small pool of money when you can dip into a larger pool of money. Phil is laying down the ground work and is being open about it
Maybe?
Sorry, spoke too soon. The answer is probably not.
The question isn't whether Microsoft would ever put Game Pass on Playstation, the question is more in line with would Sony allow it? You are talking about a company who was last onboard with console crossplay and the same company who stalled on allowing EA Access.
Maybe Sony allows XCloud on Playstation? Outer Worlds and Minecraft are on PS4, that's a start. MLB The Show is apparently going to be on other systems in the future. So we are slowly getting there.
Steam games are PC games that need M&K and can't work on any other device other than PC.
This is pretty much their whole strategy. As long as you are buying into their ecosystem they don't care if you buy the console or not.