What would you do I’m just throwing shit at the wall because they aren’t in the best spot. And to the first question about why would they develop for Xbox $$$$
Hard to make a decision on the larger issues like whether to just go 3P or not, it's easy to look at anecdotal or partial evidence, but we don't really have the full picture.
But if you ask me honestly?
I think Microsoft needs to stop "listening" to fan forums or their cultivated insiders and podcasters etc, those people mean well for the brand of Xbox. But you never, EVER see a doctor asking a patient's family on how to proceed with the surgery, you never see a pilot ask the passengers on how best to land a plane..etc. So why does Phil and co always talk about listening to the fans, and even if they don't say it, their conferences and shows tend to feel like they are answering fan mail without saying they're answering fan mail ("we have Japanese games coming, "we will have games coming out at a faster clip", "we won't make the mistakes of the past"). It's genuinely mind boggling to me.
A fan can be passionate and even be an evangelist for the product, but they just can't see the ins and out of what's happening like a good exec does. If Sony's development schedule was up to the fans we'd be talking about Crash 7 or whatever instead of Ghosts of Tsushima, Nintendo doesn't vary as much in the IP, but it always, ALWAYS has a unique angle with each Zelda or Mario game.
Now, sometimes when you do this, you do dumb or bad shit, but more often than not, successful entertainment companies tend to
surprise and
delight, and you can't do that when you're just wishcasting from the fans. Even the good stuff from Xbox has become sorta expected by now. Buying COD or Skyrim won't change the equation much because everyone already knows what a COD or Skyrim would look like, they are EXTREMELY KNOWN QUANTITIES, you can't surprise consumers with things they know intimately well.
