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[Honey Bunny]

"It's just not true that if we go off and build great games, all of a sudden you're going to see console share shift in some dramatic way."

He either wants out of Xbox, or is on some pity-party PR offensive to help the Activision merger through.

 

[Dr. Wilkinson]

This is honestly embarrassing

That interview was insane. The guy who runs Xbox doesn't even have confidence in Xbox or the staff he has producing games.

You would prefer he sugarcoat it and put on a brave front, for no reason?

Who’s the real clown?

I prefer brutal honesty. I found it quite refreshing

 

[TheKremlinBossMan]

Redfall is a first party title from a 8 Billions aquisition
Forspoken is third party time exclusive that had a bad start

Brand isn't tainted. Most people do not pay attention to this stuff. It isn't "you can't play used games". It is just Phil looking at his marketing and market share and being realistic. But a person in his position should have a plan, and go buy some software that are must haves. I think they thought they did that in some ways. And are trying to do that with Activation. But some areas they took bets on have not paid off.


Redfall : Xbox :: Forspoken : PS5

No let them have forspoken so when FFXVI comes out we can pretend that's 1st party too.

 

[staticshock]

Did you read what I wrote? Because you are proving my initial point, that they aren't able to deliver big exclusives like the competition. That's why he said what he said, that's why they got Game Pass.

That doesn't mean they aren't trying. You don't just conjure up a triple-A with a 95 on Metacritic. They don't have the staple to do it, Starfield is their best bet.

Sony doesn't have a monopoly on creating amazing games; there's no hidden formula. Any well-funded team could potentially replicate a Sony Exclusive.

Take Spider-Man, for example. It's set in a fixed open world that isn't a sandbox. It's not like GTA or Watch Dogs, where complex AI and simulations are at play. The open world in Spider-Man is just a backdrop for missions, with minimal interactions like waving or dancing at pedestrians. There's no day/night cycle or weather.

We all know the thousands of things you can do in GTA, but Spider-Man doesn't offer that kind of depth. It's just a static open world backdrop.

Epic demonstrated how easy it was to create a similar Spider-Man world in less than a year with a smaller team compared to AAA devs (Matrix Awaken).

If Phil from Xbox had a better strategy, he could've taken some of that $70 billion budget and assembled multiple teams of 50-100 devs each, with the sole aim of creating competitor games for every Sony exclusive that comes out. For instance, after seeing Spider-Man, he could've partnered with DC to make a Static Shock game that closely mirrors Spider-Man's structure.

Spider-Man essentially combines an open world backdrop, an origin story, a captivating plot, and enjoyable, fast-paced gameplay. This formula can be replicated.

As the saying goes, good artists copy; great artists steal. Tech companies are well-aware of this (just look at phone lineups), but other industries seem oblivious.

If Phil had created a Static Shock game, it would've been a huge hit!
The same applies to competitors for Uncharted/Horizon (Lumen in the Land of Nanite has a Tomb Raider vibe and could've been a system seller)
and God of War (a visually stunning cinematic adventure that is basically just walking and fighting).

These games can be duplicated, and with teams working together, there's no need to start from scratch every time. They could reuse materials, shaders, logics, equipment, rendering tech/setups, and more.

Phil's approach really let Xbox down. Phil failed Xbox.

 

[sendit]

Phil should be a comedian. 22+ pages of comedy gold.

https://www.neogaf.com/threads/ot-xbox-power-king-memes

 

[Captain Toad]

You would prefer he sugarcoat it and put on a brave front, for no reason?

Who’s the real clown?

I prefer brutal honesty. I found it quite refreshing

Brutal honesty? He's playing the victim. Like a company as small as Microsoft doesn't have a fair shot against Nintendo and Sony. He's literally saying, it doesn't matter if they put out quality software or not.

Honest, would be, "it is our fault. If we had been producing better software over the last ten to fifteen years, we wouldn't be in this position".

He's not being honest. He's playing the victim when, in reality, they have had the advantage the entire time, but have completely mismanaged it.

 

[Captain Toad]

Phil should be a comedian. 22+ pages of comedy gold.

https://www.neogaf.com/threads/ot-xbox-power-king-memes

Wow. You almost forget. Now those people are here telling everyone they should be embarrassed for giving Phil and Xbox a hard time.

 

[feynoob]

Brutal honesty? He's playing the victim. Like a company as small as Microsoft doesn't have a fair shot against Nintendo and Sony. He's literally saying, it doesn't matter if they put out quality software or not.

Honest, would be, "it is our fault. If we had been producing better software over the last ten to fifteen years, we wouldn't be in this position".

He's not being honest. He's playing the victim when, in reality, they have had the advantage the entire time, but have completely mismanaged it.

The dude has yes people.

 

[Alex Scott]

So can you kindly explain the Nintendo Switch?

Nintendo games don't have to compete with 3rd party games unlike on PS5 and Xbox.

 

[paulyboy81]

So much pearl clutching because he said what everyone already knows. It's too late for Microsoft to win this console generation regardless of how many games they release. He didn't say they weren't going to make any new games, just that games won't move the needle much on their overall percentage of the plastic box market.

Dude, what the fuck are you smoking?

Actually listening to the interview intelligently and understanding what he was inferring and using that to form some semblance of a common sense opinion?

How dare you, don't you know where you are?

 

[FrankWza]

Brutal honesty? He's playing the victim. Like a company as small as Microsoft doesn't have a fair shot against Nintendo and Sony. He's literally saying, it doesn't matter if they put out quality software or not.

Honest, would be, "it is our fault. If we had been producing better software over the last ten to fifteen years, we wouldn't be in this position".

He's not being honest. He's playing the victim when, in reality, they have had the advantage the entire time, but have completely mismanaged it.

He came out and said they bought zeni to bring games to xbox.
Now this :

So what we have to do, and we have this unique vision because we see what creators want to do, creators want to build games that can meet players on any screen, people play with their friends regardless of what other screen they're on, and the console is the core of the Xbox brand, there's no doubt. So, we will stay focused on making sure that console experience is awesome.

So creators want games everywhere and he still buys existing IPs to take them away from Playstation and Nintendo.

 

[@gkTH]

So it basically officially confirms the exit of MS from the gaming business given by this statement from Head of Xbox.

XB gamers can now know what to expect and think of transitioning to PS. The core principle is too much absurd.

 

[Musashipan]

At least he is honest
Unlike that arrogant prick of sony

 

[XXL]

"At least he's honest"

"I find his honesty refreshing"

 

[killatopak]

Embarrassing thread. Being sincere guys. If you ever get bored look at some old threads on here from 10 years ago. It was a lot more intellectual, and people discussed things a lot more intelligently. I'm all for jokes and short posts since we're on our phones now, but just repeatedly amplifying outrage is a great way to not get accurate or nuanced information.

10 years ago would be around before the PS4/XBO release. I assure you, there were no intellegence then.

 

[SlimySnake]

I have to disagree with you here. I feel, the truth of the matter is that sony and MS are not even in the same ball park much less paying the same game.

An argument can be made for being (or not being) excited about what sony has shown, and put out since launch, or their choice for making a lot of those cross-gen titles, but we cannot say it has been lean.

Since 2020, Sony's first party has released

• Demon Souls
• SM.MM
• Ratchet
• Returnal
• HFW
• GOWR
• GT7

And there is a new IP on that list and I didn't add any remake/remaster or third-party games revealed at sony shows and that have a strong tie to PS (eg. RE, FF, SF, Tekken, Hogwarts, KH4....etc). Funny enough, I think they have released more than 90% of the stuff they showed in their shows in 2020 and 2021.

So this year, we just know we will see Spiderman 2, and start to see more of the stuff we will get next year and the year after that.YOu can almost set your clock to how Sony operates now. The same can't be said for MS.

In terms of actual games, they have obviously exceeded MS's efforts. I just dont care for these PS4 games in 2022. They feel derivative, dated and just like how we ignore MS's output in 2021 because it was full of well reviewed cross gen stuff like Halo, Forza and Psychonauts, these games are not what we bought the PS5 and XSX for.

Id say they started off the gen very strong with a fantastic remake, a wonderful innovative pack-in game, and two very unique AAA titles in Returnal and Ratchet that really pushed the system hard. And then they went silent. No E3 2021 presense. Nothing at E3 2022. That to me is unacceptable. I paid $500 for this console on the promise of next gen Sony first party games to come and sony has simply not delivered anything in the last two years since Ratchet. Their lone PS5 only release is a remake that plays and looks worse than the PS4 TLOU, not to mention looking worse than Ratchet and Demon Souls.

Sony's FY results showed a slight drop in first party software sales last year. They forecasted another lean year this year. GOW was their only big AAA title in the last year Fiscal year which saw horizon and gt launch before the fiscal year started in April. Spiderman 2 seems to be the only title they will ship this year if they are expecting sales even worse than last FY. Two AAA games in 2 Fiscal years is abysmal to me.

P.S I dont care much for moneyhatting stuff like Tekken, Hogwarts or even FF. Just like Starfield, those games will always come to Playstation. There is no point wasting money on those games. Id rather they use those dollars towards shipping more than 1 AAA first party game a year.

 

[fart town usa]

Kinect was the beginning of the end it wasn't game pass. They stopped investing in new AAA first party IP halfway through the 360 generation to focus on new kinect games and it killed all of their momentum.

Man, that's bringing back memories of late E3s from that gen. Lots of, "why the fuck is there so much focus on Kinect?????"

 

[bitbydeath]

We lost the worst generation to lose in the Xbox One

That was mostly all Phil’s doing, he had an entire generation to turn it around and even with all that time he’s still yet to make any new AAA franchises.

 

[GHG]

Required watching:




In terms of commentary surrounding this interview Benji and Jaffe's videos are the two to watch. Benji talks about the sales side of things (obviously) and Jaffe from the creative side.

If Phil's bosses see things the same way then he's put himself in big trouble with this interview, but maybe that was his intention.

The data and history of this industry do not support his statements. They are nonsensical.

 

[mckmas8808]

I listened to it all, and it actually makes sense.

There is no competing. People have invested in their platform, their digital platforms and Sony fans have always said I'll just buy a pc. So there is literally no "win" for xbox in the console space. Its not possible.

As long as they make great hardware there is an option there for people that want it and those that don't want it will buy a pc for the games when they come.

This is a loser mentality. Sony didn't do that with the PS3. Even though it cost $200 more and came out 2 year later.

 

[lmimmfn]

Microsoft is only interested in AAS(as a service). They want subscriptions, Office 365, Game Pass, Azure and eventually Windows.

They're not interested in the hardware that sells subscriptions other than it being adequate, and doesn't matter if its XBox or PC.

The acquisition of Activision etc. Is just to bolster subscriptions.

 

[Neofire]

No games + gamepass.
They caved their own grave.

And that's why PS5 should not ever go full PC. If people have reasons to buy a console, they will buy a console.

Exactly!

 

[quest]

Sony doesn't have a monopoly on creating amazing games; there's no hidden formula. Any well-funded team could potentially replicate a Sony Exclusive.

Take Spider-Man, for example. It's set in a fixed open world that isn't a sandbox. It's not like GTA or Watch Dogs, where complex AI and simulations are at play. The open world in Spider-Man is just a backdrop for missions, with minimal interactions like waving or dancing at pedestrians. There's no day/night cycle or weather.

We all know the thousands of things you can do in GTA, but Spider-Man doesn't offer that kind of depth. It's just a static open world backdrop.

Epic demonstrated how easy it was to create a similar Spider-Man world in less than a year with a smaller team compared to AAA devs (Matrix Awaken).

If Phil from Xbox had a better strategy, he could've taken some of that $70 billion budget and assembled multiple teams of 50-100 devs each, with the sole aim of creating competitor games for every Sony exclusive that comes out. For instance, after seeing Spider-Man, he could've partnered with DC to make a Static Shock game that closely mirrors Spider-Man's structure.

Spider-Man essentially combines an open world backdrop, an origin story, a captivating plot, and enjoyable, fast-paced gameplay. This formula can be replicated.

As the saying goes, good artists copy; great artists steal. Tech companies are well-aware of this (just look at phone lineups), but other industries seem oblivious.

If Phil had created a Static Shock game, it would've been a huge hit!
The same applies to competitors for Uncharted/Horizon (Lumen in the Land of Nanite has a Tomb Raider vibe and could've been a system seller)
and God of War (a visually stunning cinematic adventure that is basically just walking and fighting).

These games can be duplicated, and with teams working together, there's no need to start from scratch every time. They could reuse materials, shaders, logics, equipment, rendering tech/setups, and more.

Phil's approach really let Xbox down. Phil failed Xbox.

You should play the arkham games spiderman is just an arkham game staring spiderman.

 

[mansoor1980]

is there any chance bobby kotick might be interviewd soon?

 

[eNT1TY]

"It's just not true that if we go off and build great games, all of a sudden you're going to see console share shift in some dramatic way."

He either wants out of Xbox, or is on some pity-party PR offensive to help the Activision merger through.

Little bit of column A, little bit of column B.

 

[Chronicle]

You would prefer he sugarcoat it and put on a brave front, for no reason?

Who’s the real clown?

I prefer brutal honesty. I found it quite refreshing

You might prefer brutal honesty but that often times doesn't make money. Shareholders do not want this shit out there at all. Phil gonna be fired.

Not sure why you're calling Wilkinson a clown though.

 

[Moonjt9]

If I were an Xbox guy I would be LIVID. The head of Xbox admitting that they don’t even care to make good games? Jesus Christ. Well that sure does explain a lot doesn’t it?

At this point, things need to change. Phil should be fired. Xbox should go third party.

 

[Plague Doctor]

Right now, in the halls of government they are realizing they should let the activision deal go through because they listened to a video game podcast and the CEO just said making good games won't help them sell consoles.

That's what some people are suggesting. "Wait, he thinks his company's chances suck.... let's give this to Microsoft. He sounds defeated and pathetic and sad. I feel bad for him. Maybe they need this merger. They need a win."

Man, that is a 4D chess move if I ever heard one. Ma Bell should have played the pity card back in the day. Historians will be puzzling and marvelling over this uno-reverso play for decades to come.

 

[ByWatterson]

Just watched had some great points

Benji basically never misses.

 

[Captain Toad]

At least he is honest
Unlike that arrogant prick of sony

MS - We could make good games, but it wouldn't help enough
Arrogant Prick Company - here's some good games

 

[GHG]

If I were an Xbox guy I would be LIVID. The head of Xbox admitting that they don’t even care to make good games? Jesus Christ. Well that sure does explain a lot doesn’t it?

At this point, things need to change. Phil should be fired. Xbox should go third party.

If they were to go third party then it would be all about the games.

And that doesn't seem to be an area Phil excels in or has a deep desire to excel in based on his statements.

It's best they keep things the way they are for now until they can get someone in who knows what the hell they are doing with regard to managing creative teams and processes.

 

[ByWatterson]

At least he is honest
Unlike that arrogant prick of sony

My dude, Jim Ryan earns that arrogance. Like if Jim Ryan had Saddam Hussein's gold toilet, I'd say, "......Yeah, okay, that tracks."

 

[SuperSaiyanWithDreads]

Been said this yearsss ago. He should have been fired. It’s crazy, it takes the head of Xbox admitting defeat lol it takes all that just to get it through these die hard hard headed delusional Xbox fans. I switched from Xbox to PlayStation completely and it’s been the best gaming decision I ever made.

 

[Captain Toad]

I really don't think Sony wants Xbox to die. They aren't going to just have a full reign of the higher-end gaming market. Someone else would take a shot. There might not be room for a third, but there's definitely room for two.

If Xbox ever bows out, someone will take a swing at going toe to toe with Sony. And they just might do it better.

 

[93xfan]

If I were an Xbox guy I would be LIVID. The head of Xbox admitting that they don’t even care to make good games? Jesus Christ. Well that sure does explain a lot doesn’t it?

At this point, things need to change. Phil should be fired. Xbox should go third party.

There needs to be competition. Without it, who knows how Sony will handle pricing (both games, peripherals, and services), backwards compatibility, and even making groundbreaking (but very expensive) games.

 

[hussar16]

I do understand the real reason why he said that, but i think he should not provide that kind of statement, xbox fanbase is not going to take lightly on that statement.

What Xbox fantasy? They barely have any real Xbox fans. It's just Xbox game pass now .game pass is not even Xbox anymore

 

[MagnesD3]

It sucks that its honestly too late for Xbox since Game Pass exists and they arent just gonna pull back on that, Xbox leaving the market will hurt us all due to a lack of potential competition to keep the other big dogs in line. They didnt have as much influence as they used to but they still were at least a potential threat giving incentive for Sony and Nintendo to try harder. There's no way this Xbox isnt their last console.

 

[Tams]

I thought this was going to be some boring suck up to him full of softballs.

I mean, it was mostly, but I did not expect a complete public surrender. Someone here said this would be good drama. I should have believed them.

Anyway, surely he has to go now?

 

[DeceptiveAlarm]

 

[Captain Toad]

There needs to be competition. Without it, who knows how Sony will handle pricing (both games, peripherals, and services), backwards compatibility, and even making groundbreaking (but very expensive) games.

If Xbox ever left, there would be competition. Someone would jump in to take a shot. I don't know who, Google, Amazon, or someone else. Hell, maybe Activision Blizzard.

 

[Captain Toad]

I thought this was going to be some boring suck up to him full of softballs.

I mean, it was mostly, but I did not expect a complete public surrender. Someone he said this would be good drama. I should have believed them.

Anyway, surely he has to go now?

Yeah. Don't be confused. There was no great gotcha interviewing go on here. Phil stuck his foot in his mouth all on his own. He basically brought the subject up himself when he went off rambling for several minutes.

 

[digoutyoursoul]

If I were an Xbox guy I would be LIVID. The head of Xbox admitting that they don’t even care to make good games? Jesus Christ. Well that sure does explain a lot doesn’t it?

At this point, things need to change. Phil should be fired. Xbox should go third party.

I miss the 360 days. I know, times change and so on but still, I loved Xbox despite RROD.

Unless he loves the limelight too much, the big giveaway in all of this is if Xbox had a better outlay of content , better consistency, better momentum , he would of not have to do all these interviews or have to keep acknowledging fans are tired of talking and waiting. Yet he’s compelled to do so time and again.

I’m really disappointed they never asked him about Series X v PS5 performance or why the Series X gets no marketing .

 

[ergem]

"There's no world where Starfield is 11/10 and people start selling their PS5s"

Phil, why people selling their PS5s is your goal? Is that why you want to take CoD away from playstation players?

Go make good games. Sell your xbox. Why the fuck would you target people selling their PS5s.

Phil needs to resign.

 

[Tams]

 

[XesqueVara]

Where did people get that they don't want to make great games btw? It sounds to me that even if great games are coming it wouldn't mean that marketshare would flip btw.

 

[HazukiSensei]

Xbox has had 21 years to "compete" and the best year they had in gaming they still managed to get outdone by their "competition" of the PS3 which was Sony's absolute worst year they've had. All this money from daddy microsoft, entering the console market to "take down" Sony and they STILL can't do anything worth a shit... Shit needs to change. Cause as again... This will go down as another year for xbox that absolutely blows ass. Bots better hope and prey starfield is worth a shit cause if not....

What year was this? Their best year was say...2007 I'd say.

Orange box
Mass effect
Bioshock
Halo 3
Assassins creed
Modern warfare

All released that year

360 was actually killing playstation around 2005-2008ish

 

[Mr.Phoenix]

Nintendo games don't have to compete with 3rd party games unlike on PS5 and Xbox.

So basically exclusives are important?

Have any idea how many exclusives ms could have made with the $70B they have tried to spend on acquisitions in the last 18 months alone?

Now imagine they have spent that actually making games over say the last 8 years.

 

[bender]

Required watching:




In terms of commentary surrounding this interview Benji and Jaffe's videos are the two to watch. Benji talks about the sales side of things (obviously) and Jaffe from the creative side.

If Phil's bosses see things the same way then he's put himself in big trouble with this interview, but maybe that was his intention.

The data and history of this industry do not support his statements. They are nonsensical.

That tank top though.

Turned off the video because of preamble that dick strokes Phil and KF.

 

[ArcaneNLSC]

Most of the founders and the actual talent that Arkane had are long gone. Let it burn.

 

[Captain Toad]

What year was this? Their best year was say...2007 I'd say.

Orange box
Mass effect
Bioshock
Halo 3
Assassins creed
Modern warfare

All released that year

360 was actually killing playstation around 2005-2008ish

I remember those days. Xbox 360 was my primary console during those years.

I didn't start becoming more PlayStation again until later when Naughty Dog, Sucker Punch and Insomniac (close third-party at the time) really started hammering out great games and the 360 games dried up or all became multi-platform (Mass Effect 2, BioShock, etc).