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[Kokoloko85]

Phil‘s being his typical passive agressive self.
He would have a totally different tone if the Activision deal went through.

They want to compete, thats why they paid 7+billion to keep Bethesda off Playstation and take the IPs. Thats why they almost went and tried to buy Acitivision for 70-80billion. So they can compete.
If they didn’t want to compete they would go a different direction and go 3rd party And not keep flipflopping that PS is there competition, then isnt there competition and back and forth.

Plus god knows how much money theyve put into trying to shill gamepass as the future knowing full well without MS money it wouldnt be sustainable And the “compeitition“ cant afford to do the same.

And his boss said this recently
https://gameluster.com/microsoft-ceo-tells-sony-let-us-have-competition/
So its typical MS bs

 

[Kokoloko85]

I find it insane that he would come out and make a statement like this.

It's the complete opposite of what has, and will always be true in the gaming industry (and by extension, the entertainment industry). Content is king.

He wants to pretend they arent competing with PS…

 

[Kokoloko85]

How did the PS3/360 generation shift? That at least had something to do with content, right? As Sony kept hammering "core" gamers while MS went off on their Kinect misadventures.

People aren't going to sell their PS5 for Starfield NOW, because PS5 has a lot of games and it is years in. The generation isn't starting today. The big problem for Microsoft is that Halo Infinite was delayed a year and came out in shabby shape. It reviewed well, yes, but we all know that is not the game it should have been. But waht if 343 actually delivered a complete, Halo 3-like package at launch? I would argue that things have gone differently.

That and Xbox had a years head start, better 3rd party developement, cheaer, better online and had a bunch of PS centric games for the first time like Tekken, Final Fantasy and DMC. Won’t ever happen again

 

[Ozzie666]

It's a bit strange, I don't trust it fully and suspect he is lowering expectations for the showcase.
Play the humble sympathy card and see how it goes. Microsoft is playing some serious 4D chess and I don't think anyone truly knows where they see this all going in 25 years.

This is what makes the PS3 and Sony's recovery so impressive. A change in games and quality, aggressive hardware bundles. Rolled right into the PS4.

 

[avin]

I knew many of you didn't really know how to read. I had thought this generation watched video instead, but looking at the posts in this thread, I'm thinking a lot of you base your idea of what's happening on neither reading nor video, but something else I can't really figure.

Maybe it's just how you "feel" about things?

avin

 

[Sgt.Asher]

The kinect/xbox one really killed momentum for them and phil did nothing to give even a little push.

 

[XXL]

People thinking creating great games won't change anything are fucking morons.

Imagine an alternate reality where instead of Take Two being the creators of the GTA and RDR, it was a Xbox IP and was developed by their own internal studios, so every GTA and RDR ever made was a first party Xbox exclusive.

Do you think the market split wouldn't be a bit different?

Step into fucking reality.

Halo 1/2 alone propelled the original Xbox and made the 360 even possible and that console gained marketshare.

Why? Because great exclusives games matter.

Nintendo literally to this day lives off of Mario, Zelda and a few other IP.

Why? Because great exclusives games matter.

This is kind of scary, it seems some of you guys have literally been fucking brainwashed by this campaign Xbox has been on for a while now.

Wake the fuck up.

Great games or the absence of them is really the only thing that matters in this industry.

 

[Brucey]

How long until Phil leaves MS due to family reasons?

Tomorrow is Friday....

 

[Nydius]

Great games or the absence of them is really the only thing that matters in this industry.

Yep. Like David Jaffe said earlier in his live video, even if you buy into the future of subscription services for gaming they still need marquee games to make people want to subscribe to them.

Edit:

He claims that pundits want them to make great games and sieze maretshare, but he doesn't see that as realistic, and it's not their goal.

So it’s not the goal of the head of the Xbox gaming brand to create great games in order to motivate people into buying their game console?

Games sell consoles, this is indisputable fact. You will never gain market share if you never try to make products people want to buy in that market.

If you think he‘s right then, yes, I can only assume you’re taking crazy pills. Because in the history of this industry, whether it’s arcade quarter munchers or home video games, quality games drive revenue.

 

[Simply Sami]

Nonsense take from Phil.

Yes it was a blow to lose consumers last gen, who have now built up digital collections from PS4. But guess what? New kids get into gaming. Entice them. You don’t have to go after the people who own PS, but go after people who are just starting gaming or were on PC/Nintendo. There’s plenty of customers around. You just have to make great games, which Spencer has been incapable of doing for 15 years as leader of first party or Xbox.

 

[reezoo]

What is he talking about?

"I see commentary that if you just build great games, everything would turn around. It's just not true that if we go off and build great games"

This is exactly how sony saved playstation from PS3 fiasco

"There is no world where Starfield is an 11 out of 10 and people start selling their PS5. That's not going to happen."

another stupid comment its never about selling other console. Its about buying your console, and that will only happen with great content which in gaming is great exclusive. I own switch, I own PS5, only once thought about buying Xbox but realized there isnt anything i will get out of it.

Feels like he dosent care about the box but only owning great library of content but even that requires Starfield to be doing very good in numbers.

He is making basic mistakes now, looks like he 'lost it'. Xbox needs a new leadership, if competition goes away, we will have arrogant sony back.

 

[lefty1117]

I suppose it's possible he's taking this tone to try to help with the CMA appeal but I doubt it. He sounds tired and depressed. Halo Infinite really phucked him bad this gen.

 

[quest]

Nonsense take from Phil.

Yes it was a blow to lose consumers last gen, who have now built up digital collections from PS4. But guess what? New kids get into gaming. Entice them. You don’t have to go after the people who own PS, but go after people who are just starting gaming or were on PC/Nintendo. There’s plenty of customers around. You just have to make great games, which Spencer has been incapable of doing for 15 years as leader of first party or Xbox.

If there was lots of customers we wouldn't be stuck on 200 million high performance consoles since the ps2 generation. The market has not grown in that segment since the ps1 to ps2 generation. The only thing that changes is the percentage of the 200 million each get. We are probably looking at 170 million ps5 to 30 million Xbox's. Which fits the current 6 to 1 sony is leading by right now.

 

[Astray]

I suppose it's possible he's taking this tone to try to help with the CMA appeal but I doubt it. He sounds tired and depressed. Halo Infinite really phucked him bad this gen.

The moment the CMA put out it's final report and decision is the moment where they got done pending a successful appeal, they aren't even the people who will handle the appeal process (that would be CAT), and they won't get involved again until said appeal is successful, which would put the case back in front of the CMA to decide again.

I don't think this is some 4D play, I think he's genuinely at his wit's end here.

 

[Jaybe]

Thinking on this more, what’s funny is all this ‘we lost prior gen, doomed to fail this gen’ well Xbox you actually were running super close with PlayStation for the first year and a half of this gen. Probably is, no games in 2022 that were marque and your team let Starfield… announced to great fanfare as a November 2022 release somehow miss the day by almost a full year. Had that made the cut, things would be a fair bit less dire than now. Take a look in the mirror.

 

[Crayon]

I am with you. Unfortunately, I feel like this is Phil's "Stolar moment" when he declared “The Saturn is not our future."

I do believe I understand what he meant and that he was being honest. I just do not see where it benefits him or Microsoft to say it at this time. They just had a flop release on the console/Game Pass and the timing of this sounds like, "we knew it wasn't great but we didn't care because even it if was good it would not have mattered." I am not sure it helps with the current acquisition attempt because the CMA blocked it over cloud gaming. How does what he said help the CMA change their position?

Just a really weird vibe from him today.

Damn yeah I remember the saturn is not our future thing. It is a bit like that feeling.

 

[Heisenberg007]

Sounds more like words directed at the CMA, FTC and EU ..... He is undoubtedly admitting that Xbox has no chance against PS5 in sales, but that is one thing (as I say, more towards the regulators) and another is the interpretation of some beyond that such as:

"P. Spencer is saying that he's not going to invest in big first party games because they don't serve to sell more consoles" Of course he's not saying that, the investment is there and Gpass need It.

"P. Spencer is advancing that they are going to stop manufacturing consoles and become 3rd party." He is far from pointing out such a thing, especially when he admits that cloud gaming is far from being a reality and that the XBOX console is still the center of income for his gaming business.
And no, becoming a 3rd party and abandoning hardware manufacturing is not synonymous with being a better business, NO. First because Sony is not going to accept Gapass on Playstation. Second because MS loses 30% of the sales of 3rd party games on console. Third, the success of your first parties is always more profitable on your platform and not on someone else's.

If cloudgaming ever becomes a real competition for physical hardware... then not only will the XBOX console be in danger, but so will the competing consoles.

The opposite.

If these words were for CMA and EU, he wouldn't be talking about console sales. As both the CMA and (apparently) EU have already disregarded console SLCs. Cloud gaming is their concern.

And Phil Spencer is here saying that they will invest and can beat their competitors in Cloud gaming. If anything, these statements will work against Microsoft in regards to ABK acquisition.

 

[legacy24]

This is one of the many reasons why I appreciate Phil. He goes out of his way for Xbox fans even though he doesn't need to. Admirable leader! someone give this man another reward!

 

[Mibu no ookami]

The moment the CMA put out it's final report and decision is the moment where they got done pending a successful appeal, they aren't even the people who will handle the appeal process (that would be CAT), and they won't get involved again until said appeal is successful, which would put the case back in front of the CMA to decide again.

I don't think this is some 4D play, I think he's genuinely at his wit's end here.

I've said this before and I think many people just having come to grasps with it.

There is no pipeline fix for Microsoft within the scope of this generation. Games take 4+ years to make being conservative. Changes you make now, you won't feel for another 4-5 years at the earliest. That's 2027-2028. That's the end of the generation.

That's why they're trying to buy content now because the pipeline isn't there.

You can release a Last of Us like PS3 did in 2013, but if that's your starting line, it's too late. Recall that Naughty Dog has Uncharted 2 in 2009. 2009 was really a reboot for PS3, not 2013. You had MGS4 come out in 2008 from 3rd party.

PS3 launched in 2006. So their reboot took 2-3 years. We're at the 3-year mark this year and Starfield is no MGS4 and it probably won't be Uncharted 2. Worse is there is no God of War 3 on the horizon for Xbox in 2024.

Like he mentioned they've lost the momentum and fixed momentum races. PS4 has a baked in userbase with a VERY strong digital library. Xbox One just doesn't.

This is going to be a TERRIBLE year for Xbox, but the worst thing about it is that next year will be even worse... They just don't have a model that is going to sell hardware units and that includes a poor software pipeline made worse by their subscription model which suggests operating costs have to be restrained.

 

[Mr.Phoenix]

I knew many of you didn't really know how to read. I had thought this generation watched video instead, but looking at the posts in this thread, I'm thinking a lot of you base your idea of what's happening on neither reading nor video, but something else I can't really figure.

Maybe it's just how you "feel" about things?

avin

Why don't you point out what people are saying that's wrong?

let me make it easy for you since you read so well.

1. Are people wrong to say that he sounds defeatist for saying they can't out-console Sony and Nintendo?
2. Are people wrong to think it's ridiculous for the head of Xbox to say that just making great games doesn't or wouldn't do anything for them or more specifically how there is no upside for them there?
3. Are people wrong for jumping on a man championing gaming for everyone whose primary and obvious strategy so far is to buy out IPs completely and tie those IPs to their subscription service? (so basically, you can play on anything and anywhere you want, as long as you have an Xbox subscription)
4. Are people wrong to call BS on the whole no new gamers thing because they are tied by the existing library when Nintendo Switch literally just happened?

So which of those do you `feel` speaks to the general ignorance or illiteracy of the member of this forum?

 

[HazukiSensei]

Orange box, assassin‘s creed and modern warfare also released on PlayStation that year so I don’t know why you included them on that list.

It was included because they were major games that you had access to as an xbox owner, doesnt have to be just exclusoves to be a great year...

It's exclusives in top of multi plats

And for me personally, I was still playing oblivion, rainbow six vegas etc well into 2007

 

[Mibu no ookami]

Redfall normally would have been delayed.

At 60-70 dollars and on both PS5 and Xbox, it would have had a larger market and more ability to reclaim operating cost...

But only on Xbox and on GamePass... it's very limited, they couldn't keep delaying the game and they needed something out there... it was the wrong choice likely, and that is why he had to come out to eat crow.

Phil is just running out of time and he knows it.

 

[HazukiSensei]

2007 and 1998 are the two best years in video games.

Yeah because 2007 also had

Mario galaxy
Crysis
God of war 2
Uncharted

 

[Silent Viper]

The fact that Phil Spencer truly believes great games wont move the needle for XBOX is tragic.

I've often wondered if XBOX's understood that the most crucial components of console gaming are Mindshare and Momentum. For the longest time I thought they didn't. It wasn't until the attempted activision takeover that I realized they did. The problem is that they don't have faith in building it. They want to purchase it outright, like some off the shelf component.

Unfortunately for Microsoft it isn't for sale. The only way to obtain Mindshare and Momentum is via the creation of great ip.

Reason he said it coz people already have digital library and they wont abandon it and just play on xbox.

I won't sell my ps5 even if xbox making all bangers.

He phrased it poorly, so it comes out as he giving up and throwing towel.

 

[MasterDerico]

God gave us the power of speech to hide our thoughts.

He was very unhappy in the way he said, and at this moment, with a broken game released from them...All bad, all wrong.

If he were from my company, he would be fired immediately.
Everything he said is clear, but there are ways to say it without sounding like a born loser working on a failed company.

 

[KURDISTAN YPG]

I think his trying to make microsoft fire him, honestly nobody would say such thing in his position surely his honest, but his position is to make the brand bigger than what is.

The other reason i think they are failing is because of too much focus on GAMEPASS yeah sure hardcore gamers love it, but this was always going to be quanity over quality, the netflix of gaming.

My problem with playstation premium and gamepass service models ( i have ps plus highest tier) i scroll thro 200 games and i can promise you i might be one game for 2 minut and close it up, i know for fact im not the only one doing that..

 

[H-I-M]

There is no pipeline fix for Microsoft within the scope of this generation. Games take 4+ years to make being conservative. Changes you make now, you won't feel for another 4-5 years at the earliest. That's 2027-2028. That's the end of the generation.

So you're telling us that they learned nothing from the Xbox One tanking a decade ago and are only now starting to develop new games that will be out in 4-5 years?
So for a whole decade they did nothing?
Or am I getting it wrong?

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

this interview (especially the last beat) was what I said:

pray to all gods RedFall reaches at least 80 on meta just to act as a Pressure relief valve. if not...these couple of weeks of "doom and gloom" are going to climax in a disgusting display of sadomasochism.

Xbox is really in a fucked up position...

I cannot stress enough how damaging, bad, total disaster, catastrophic it is.

Remember:
One of the objectives of PR is to make your product, service, persona, etc... to be presented in the best light possible.

What Phil just did is the polar opposite:

Putting Xbox as basically a shittie brand/product/service. And him, as a totally inept not qualified for the position; without a basic understanding of how this business works.....INSANE.

Benji breaks down this.....shitshow



if Phil was honest...it just reaffirms my belief that Xbox doesn't deserve to be in this industry.

BUILD. THE. FUCKING. GAMES. PHIL!!!!

is just pathetic at this point.

i just really, really, really hope Starfield is a 11/10.....because if it's not.........yisus fucking christ...

 

[Mibu no ookami]

So you're telling us that they learned nothing from the Xbox One tanking a decade ago and are only now starting to develop new games that will be out in 4-5 years?
So for a whole decade they did nothing?
Or am I getting it wrong?

They learned the wrong lessons and their attempts to fix it were unsuccessful. You saw a DRASTIC change in strategy with the purchase of Zeni. That was 2020...


Xbox One launched in 2013.
They bought Mojang in 2014.
They bought Ninja Theory, Obsidian, Compulsion, Undead Games, and Playground Games in 2018.

At first they thought they could buy minor studios and build them out similar to Sony. Then they realized that was not going to work, especially with the continued degradation of their internal studios.

The best studio they bought was PlayGround, but Fable is out of their wheelhouse and a decent chance the game will either being extremely late or trash.

I said it before that Microsoft's studios despite their quantity didn't have the prestige of most Sony studios. Whereas the best Microsoft studios, Sony would have to ponder if the would trade their worst studios for.

They don't have a Naughty Dog, Insomniac, Santa Monica, or even a Guerrilla Games.

There was this idea that zenimax at 7.5 billion was going to somehow transform the narrative here... it never was going to. Which is why they shot big for ABK.

With few exceptions, Sony's games were the best selling on the PS4. These are industry leading titles.

 

[nashman]

Phil knows that everything hinged the Activision deal. Once that is offically dead he'll be gone and XBOX as hardware brand will be gone too.

Just listen to the whole interview hes spelling it out without directly saying it. I actually appreciate his honesty as he didnt have to tell us in this way. Nadella is obviously pissed Phil said all this but Phil doesnt care sure he has enough to retire comfortably and will get a fat pension either way.

 

[Fabieter]

this interview (especially the last beat) was what I said:



I cannot stress enough how damaging, bad, total disaster, catastrophic it is.

Remember:
One of the objectives of PR is to make your product, service, persona, etc... to be presented in the best light possible.

What Phil just did is the polar opposite:

Putting Xbox as basically a shittie brand/product/service. And him, as a totally inept not qualified for the position; without a basic understanding of how this business works.....INSANE.

Benji breaks down this.....shitshow



if Phil was honest...it just reaffirms my belief that Xbox doesn't deserve to be in this industry.

BUILD. THE. FUCKING. GAMES. PHIL!!!!

is just pathetic at this point.

i just really, really, really hope Starfield is a 11/10.....because if it's not.........yisus fucking christ...

I still think its calculated. He's super smart and act always super carefully. There is no way he's going to kinda funny and lose it in a big way.

 

[Mr.Phoenix]

So you're telling us that they learned nothing from the Xbox One tanking a decade ago and are only now starting to develop new games that will be out in 4-5 years?
So for a whole decade they did nothing?
Or am I getting it wrong?

No. What he is saying is that its too late for MS to just invest in games and new IPs because they take a while to make. So if they start doing shit now, by the time those games are released, this gen is ready over. And that's why MS is taking the buy what is already out there approach, that way they can bolster the library immediately.

Not like this makes anything better, but yeah, that's what he is saying.

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

Phil knows that everything hinged the Activision deal. Once that is offically dead he'll be gone and XBOX as hardware brand will be gone too.

Think that’s reading too much into it.

He said hardware would always be a focus and that Activision was just an accelerant but not essential to future plans

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

I still think its calculated. He's super smart and act always super carefully. There is no way he's going to kinda funny and lose it in a big way.

there is no justification to have this PR strategy at all.

 

[Dr. Claus]

there is no justification to have this PR strategy at all.

There is if they are trying to get the Acti/Blizz buyout by making themselves look like complete failures.

But that is more a conspiracy theory than a real justification.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

There is if they are trying to get the Acti/Blizz buyout by making themselves look like complete failures.

But that is more a conspiracy theory than a real justification.

nope. this a very "alex jones" way to look at things.

 

[Stardust_Dragon]

The only immediate and simple thing that I can think of that Microsoft could do that would grab the wider gaming community's attention in a positive way would be discontinue the paid Xbox Live Gold membership and just make online multiplayer free for all online games on the Xbox consoles, not just the free-to-play games.

However, Microsoft just tried the opposite a couple years ago, so clearly the concept of making all online multiplayer free to access from Xbox consoles is borderline anathema to Microsoft, but at this point, what other card could Phil Spencer play if he wants to help differentiate the Xbox brand from Playstation in a positive way? And you definitely cannot tell me that a $2 trillion company couldn't financially afford to do this, they just simply aren't comfortable going down this route, but seeing what's happening to their console marketshare over the past 6 months should be ringing alarm bells at Microsoft headquarters and that they should be willing to try such a disruptive strategy to throw Sony off guard here.

I do think this move would be an interesting strategy by Microsoft, as that would ironically make the Playstation's marketing agreement with Activision for COD look somewhat awkward when Sony is still charging $60 a year for online multiplayer when COD gamers could just buy the game on Xbox instead and not need to pay for online multiplayer there.

 

[Dr. Claus]

nope. this a very "alex jones" way to look at things.

Like I said, a conspiracy theory. But it is one that I see stated quite a bit by notable xbox fanboys/warriors as justification for Phil's utter incompetence the past few days.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Like I said, a conspiracy theory. But it is one that I see stated quite a bit by notable xbox fanboys/warriors as justification for Phil's utter incompetence the past few days.

and why?!?! because the opposite is inconceivable.

 

[semiconscious]

Phil is just running out of time and he knows it.

yep. imagine witnessing the redfall trainwreck, & then recalling that another one of your upcoming heavy-hitters that you're banking on is... hellblade 2...

 

[Dr. Claus]

and why?!?! because the opposite is inconceivable.

Yep. They can't handle the fact that this guy has simply given up and completely lost control.

 

[Silent Viper]

I think what he meant players with established library wont abandon PS ecosystem and go with Xbox only. He phrased it poorly and it came out as weak statement.

He looked visibly frustrated and cranky during interview. Guess ABK deal and all the attacks he getting on twitter making him really pissed and he didn't think properly what he was saying. I get logic behind it but he shouldn't make such statements. It just kill trust of fans

 

[nashman]

Think that’s reading too much into it.

He said hardware would always be a focus and that Activision was just an accelerant but not essential to future plans

MS has to pay Acti 3 billion as a penalty if the deal falls through, hes getting relieved of his duties. Xbox as a hardware has never made money and its only getting worse. Phil and his vision was the reason MS let them try yet again. With him gone RIP XBOX.

I loved my 360 and like my Series X but lets be real here. The writings on the wall. Phil in this inverview literally said " next time you guys maybe talking to someone else/ or maybe ill be gone"

 

[Silent Viper]

yep. imagine witnessing the redfall trainwreck, & then recalling that another one of your upcoming heavy-hitters that you're banking on is... hellblade 2...

If Hellblade 2 and Starfield also fails then you will see massive changes in xbox.

That will be the red line. Phill might just quit as well. Just to avoid constant headache of dealing with 30 studios lol

 

[Silent Viper]

At this point MS should just go the Nintendo and Playstation way and stop with these interviews.

Let the games do the talking (even if apparently they don't mind lmao). Stop having PR people doing these interviews.

This is such a defeating thing to say. Imagine thinking great games won't sell a videogame console.

This felt more like Phil still trying to show Xbox as this weak ass company due to this acquisition happening and appearing even weaker than they are...and this will backfire on them.

Honestly Xbox seems like it's basically Gamepass at this point with studios running free to do whatever they want at Xbox. But content IS king. Redfall can't be their content from here on out.

Phil just showed they barely have any quality control, even saying the game's crashes weren't that bad cause there weren't a lot of them. Like...who says that?

Yes, he should stop being too frank and transparent all the time with these interviews. He should realise being nice and transparent in interview will not make him good in eyes of internet.

You have to let games do the talking. We all know xbox wont beat ps in Console sales but why u have to talk about it publicly. Phill needs to think before he say such stuff

 

[-Zelda-]

I have not liked the Xbox since the 360. There were some really great rpgs/jrpgs on the first two x box consoles, but the others seemed meh to me. If I were an xbox fan, this would piss me off and I can see how it might piss those who are off. Makes me wish those rpgs were not system exclusive. No hate to Xbox, I just don't have them any more and miss the OG and 360.

 

[Heisenberg007]

If Hellblade 2 and Starfield also fails then you will see massive changes in xbox.

That will be the red line. Phill might just quit as well. Just to avoid constant headache of dealing with 30 studios lol

I think the redline has been drawn.

They are not banking on Starfield's success or failure anymore; that's what Phil said in this interview, i.e., even if it's 11/10 it does not matter.

The only thing that I believe they are waiting for is the ABK deal -- which can potentially extend their lifeline by a few years. But, let's say, if EU also blocks it, then that's it for either Phil or Xbox hardware or both.

The process of winding up one or both of them may already have been started -- which is what led Phil to say all this.

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

MS has to pay Acti 3 billion as a penalty if the deal falls through, hes getting relieved of his duties

Phil isn’t responsible for the ATVI deal failing. He helped establish an initial deal and the board accepted the risk

It was always a risky move given the size

 

[Astray]

Redfall normally would have been delayed.

At 60-70 dollars and on both PS5 and Xbox, it would have had a larger market and more ability to reclaim operating cost...

But only on Xbox and on GamePass... it's very limited, they couldn't keep delaying the game and they needed something out there... it was the wrong choice likely, and that is why he had to come out to eat crow.

Phil is just running out of time and he knows it.

You touched on something very critical here, I think Redfall has perfectly encapsulated why the mass buying-out of publishers strategy is a limited strategy:

• When MS buys something like a Bethesda, and takes games that are still in the reveal stage into their pipeline as "1st Party", they are not really doing 1st party, they are just doing "3rd party on a single ecosystem", which sounds similar initially, but is vastly different in practice, games like HiFi Rush or Starfield or Redfall were greenlit with budgets that reflect the markets Bethesda was targeting as an independent publisher, locking them into your ecosystem will cause imbalances in those assumptions, with varying results. Starfield might not be super affected by PS5's exclusion, but Redfall just lost a massive chunk of its prospective playerbase.
• When you buy everything that moves for IP, you also inherit the failings of past games of their franchises, Psychonauts 2 is reportedly fantastic, but it's no system seller because Psychonauts 1 is too outdated graphically to have any appeal (Psychonauts 1+VR never sold well during its time). The same goes for Dishonored, which had very soft sales on its 2nd installment.
• Despite the attempts by astroturfers to convince you otherwise, players DO know the histories of their favorite IPs, so locking up something like the next DOOM or the next Dishonored isn't necessarily gonna make them switch to your ecosystem, there's the possiblity that the opposite happens: People might wait for you to fail and have to port that stuff over to wherever they already were playing! This is exactly what happened when Xbox locked up Rise of the Tomb Raider, and people just waited out that shit and bought it on PS4 when it came out there. You can definitely tell that something similar is happening now, some people are most definitely waiting out for Starfield to come to PlayStation in like, 2027 or whatever. Plus, if I already knew that DOOM isn't for me, then why would you think that the next Doom being exclusive to Xbox is something that would bring you my dollars? I already know that I don't like it, but if you bring something new to the market and surprise me with its quality, then I might be more amenable to giving it a try or reading about it etc.

 

[bitbydeath]

I knew many of you didn't really know how to read. I had thought this generation watched video instead, but looking at the posts in this thread, I'm thinking a lot of you base your idea of what's happening on neither reading nor video, but something else I can't really figure.

Maybe it's just how you "feel" about things?

avin

You’d play the defensive too if it were a console you liked. Phil phucked up though, he’s probably just tired.