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Phil Spencer on the ‘console war’ mentality, and Xbox’s shift away from the box

SlimySnake

Flashless at the Golden Globes
Emotions are running high during a pandemic, everyone is posting angry comments and the next generation game consoles aren’t even out yet.
Aggressive and sometimes toxic rhetoric over the console wars isn’t new to gaming culture — and it’s prone to be exacerbated with the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 on their way. But it’s time to move past that, says Phil Spencer, Xbox chief and Microsoft’s executive vice president of gaming.

“This idea that in order for the industry to grow, some companies must succeed and others must fail … it doesn’t help gaming reach the potential it should,” Spencer tells The Post. “We should be driven to help gaming as an industry grow, for creators to take the biggest risks they can. When a great game comes out, we should applaud it, whether it’s for PC, or PlayStation or on a Switch.”


Spencer said he doesn’t imagine movie executives hope for another studio’s project to fail.
“We should focus on this industry that we love and see it continue to grow. And we should protect it from the issues that it does have,” said Spencer, adding that recent conversations around accessibility, inclusivity and addressing toxic, harmful communities have highlighted what truly undermines the industry. “If we’re going to spend energy, let’s go spend it on those things, not ‘my piece of plastic is better than your piece of plastic.’ I don’t think that’s a productive conversation.”
I am struggling to understand how fanboys on gaf and twitter are keeping games from reaching their potential. I'd like to think cross gen games are responsible for games not reaching their full potential but what do i know.

I like him addressing the toxicity and harmful communities on the internet, but he has no qualms tweeting back guys like XcloudTimdog who is probably the most prolific warrior on twitter with 16k followers, and has trashed gaf and gaf mods on twitter before and after getting permabanned here.

Lastly, I did not see a single Sony exec even acknowledge the xbox series x, let alone start any console wars. I am really not sure what he's going on about with the movie executive analogy. Him, Greenberg and Jason Ronald are the ones who cant keep talking about the PS5. He literally just took a shot at Sony introducing a new controller earlier this morning in his blogpost.

I like everything he says, I just dont know if he himself is preaching it. The bit about how other companies must fail is quite apt because I have seen several bans recently for users who desperately want the PS5 to be 8-9 tflops. Surely he should be saying this to Timdog instead of the Washington Post, no?

Full article here: https://www.washingtonpost.com/vide...r-console-war-mentality-xboxs-shift-away-box/

Update: Thou shalt not console war. But this is ok.

Just being honest, I felt good after seeing their show. I think the hardware advantages that we have built are going to show up as we’re talking more about our games and frame rates and other things,”



When Spencer is asked about his reaction after watching the PS5 architecture presentationHe says he felt "even better" about the decisions they had made with Xbox Series X.

Credit: Bolivar687 Bolivar687
 
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You think Phil Spencer gives two shits about fanboys on forums and Twitter? I don't see how mentioning them has any direct correlation to him.

What, you want him to personally call out fanboys? What would that solve? They will always exist on both sides anyway (and of course Nintendo has their fanboys too). These companies don't get down like that.
 
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SlimySnake

Flashless at the Golden Globes
You think Phil Spencer gives two shits about fanboys on forums and Twitter? I don't see how mentioning them has any direct correlation to him.

What, you want him to personally call out fanboys? What would that solve? They will always exist on both sides anyway (and of course Nintendo has their fanboys too). These companies don't get down like that.
then why is he bringing them up in an interview with the washington post?
 

Yams

Member
I am struggling to understand how fanboys on gaf and twitter are keeping games from reaching their potential. I'd like to think cross gen games are responsible for games not reaching their full potential but what do i know.

His quote doesn't say that, but to be fair to you, the Washington Post insinuates it. The quote is about winners and losers and this idea that if one console succeeds, then the other must fail. I think what he's getting at is that good products and good games should be celebrated regardless of where they come from. I'd put money on the PS5 outselling Xbox this generation, but that doesn't mean that Xbox "lost" assuming they turned a profit and put out a good product that people enjoy.
 
I like looking down and seeing the ants fighting amongst each other.

PcMasterRace

EachHighEider-size_restricted.gif
 

longdi

Banned
Another one *DJ Khaled’s voice*

Phill talks too much... and oh! I think he doesn’t get the concept of consoles. PlayStation this, exclusive that is all he talks about. You’re not going to make half of PS sales with this approach smh

Dont be surprise in another 5 years, 'console' gaming is where you can play on anywhere, as long as you have a screen, controls input and internet connection.
Perhaps PCMR and Xbox exclusives can be played on PS6!
 
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teezzy

Banned
Phil and the boys are literally trying to reinvent the entire console industry by letting you play whatever you want to play howver you want to play it (i.e. like PC currently) and people are giving Microsoft flack for it. Anyone who at least isn't open-minded to what Xbox has planned for next gen deserves the repetitive pig slop they shall be forced to consume. Keep stanning for Japan, I guess.
 

Bolivar687

Banned
Sure. Lets hear it. What has Phil said thats hostile and antagonistic?



 

TheGrat1

Member
Although there are fanboys who want other companies to fail, I would say the majority of system warriors just want bragging rights over the other piece of plastic. For that they need one system to constantly try and outdo the others which, in my opinion, does help gaming reach the potential it should. Hell, I would go so far as to say that is the only way it will reach it's potential at an appreciable rate.
 
I am struggling to understand how fanboys on gaf and twitter are keeping games from reaching their potential. I'd like to think cross gen games are responsible for games not reaching their full potential but what do i know.

I like him addressing the toxicity and harmful communities on the internet, but he has no qualms tweeting back guys like XcloudTimdog who is probably the most prolific warrior on twitter with 16k followers, and has trashed gaf and gaf mods on twitter before and after getting permabanned here.

Lastly, I did not see a single Sony exec even acknowledge the xbox series x, let alone start any console wars. I am really not sure what he's going on about with the movie executive analogy. Him, Greenberg and Jason Ronald are the ones who cant keep talking about the PS5. He literally just took a shot at Sony introducing a new controller earlier this morning in his blogpost.

I like everything he says, I just dont know if he himself is preaching it. The bit about how other companies must fail is quite apt because I have seen several bans recently for users who desperately want the PS5 to be 8-9 tflops. Surely he should be saying this to Timdog instead of the Washington Post, no?

Full article here: https://www.washingtonpost.com/vide...r-console-war-mentality-xboxs-shift-away-box/
Pretty much.

Not a good look when you feed the toxic twitter horde then claim said toxic twitter horde is bad for gaming. LOL
 

Tschumi

Member
How do you spell hedging ^_^

No, for real, I don't agree with what he's saying about this kind of thing holding back the industry. In a perfect world, xBox would be releasing killer new titles to duke it out with PlayStation, finding ways to reframe gaming and supercharge its power to move and change us.

I'm not trying to come across as a PS fanboy here, but to me it seems like there's a duality to Microsoft's tone on the xBox that muddies the water unnecessarily. On the one hand they're all about their colossal power (what does 'shift away from the box' mean in the context of the physical shape of the XSX?) on the other hand they're putting the brakes on really reaching for the stars with said power?

We all have computers, why does Microsoft keep trying to make the xBox another computer? Isn't that kind of what went wrong with the xBox One? They tried to be a multimedia device first and xBox second? *shrugs* for real I must be missing something in their narrative.
 

longdi

Banned



Yap, MS is aiming to hit both targets. Building the best hardware for their fans and continuing to pursue the future of gaming ecosystem without being tied down to specific hardware generations.
Phil is a warrior and a forward lookling sensible one.
 
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Although there are fanboys who want other companies to fail, I would say the majority of system warriors just want bragging rights over the other piece of plastic. For that they need one system to constantly try and outdo the others which, in my opinion, does help gaming reach the potential it should. Hell, I would go so far as to say that is the only way it will reach it's potential at an appreciable rate.
Its really annoying.

You can't voice your opinion in a thread otherwise you get labelled a fanboy or accused of being one instead of discussing the topic. This is why half the threads are filled with personal insults and people at each other's throats over a hobby we all enjoy.

Mind you there are members on this forum that go around from thread to thread to deliberately stir shit up and the mods are dragging their feet to rid the forums of these maggots.
 

Vroadstar

Member



So basically some fans suffer amnesia when it doesn't fit the narrative of "the wonderful Mr. Phil" :messenger_tears_of_joy: :messenger_tears_of_joy:
 

skneogaf

Member
The responses on here are exactly what he's on about but I do believe humans have a natural tendency to be tribal about things as you only have to look at football fans or even mobile phone fans of ios vs android etc.

Everyone on here could easily be best friends as we all have games and gaming as one of our biggest interests yet the division is massive about which path you chose.

Its embarrassing to look at as it has to be one of the least important things in life but it is what it is.
 
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longdi

Banned
Yea that good guy Phil shit is so dumb. They got their ass kicked this gen now hardware doesn’t matter. Let’s see them outsell the PS5 for just 1 month and watch them shout it from the mountain tops 😂😂

It is pretty weird thing to say. MS Phil built the most powerful hardware in recent times, with Series X and One X. 🤷‍♀️

Imo Phil is looking beyond the console wars tirade, he wants to grow gaming beyond the confines of old restrictions, via the push for generations-free ecosystem through their Azure cloud.
 
Yea that good guy Phil shit is so dumb. They got their ass kicked this gen now hardware doesn’t matter. Let’s see them outsell the PS5 for just 1 month and watch them shout it from the mountain tops 😂😂
Indeed they will.
Xbox and their cheerleader Greenberg was notorious for doing that during the early Xbox 360 days. They were quick to post sales results and other metadata when the 360 was curb stomping the PS3. That noise subsequently died down as that generation went on and PS3 started to gain traction.
 
Yap, MS is aiming to hit both targets. Building the best hardware for their fans and continuing to pursue the future of gaming ecosystem without being tied down to specific hardware generations.
Phil is a warrior and a forward lookling sensible one.
Stop calling him 'Phil' you fucking twonk. He isn't your best mate, he isn't your drinking buddy, he's a fucking dude in a suit.

Phil Spencer
Mark Cerny
Jim Ryan
Satya Nadella
Bill Gates

It's not Phil, Mark, Jim, Satya, Billy G.

Jesus (christ)
 

SlimySnake

Flashless at the Golden Globes


lmao. This guy is the biggest warrior of them all.
 
I mean, as things like game streaming and subscription services become more and more viable and mainstream, the console and generations will begin to fade away. It may be to early now which could bite them in the ass, but they could also be on time or even slightly early so as to establish dominance. Bringing games to PC and having games available everywhere is the future, and focusing only on consoles sold isn't going to be the best decision sooner or later
 

Bogroll

Likes moldy games
He seems to do a lot of interviews, he's more open and is bound and to be asked questions that lead to those sort of answers and if you don't like it don't read it. The news has been doing my head in the last few weeks so i stopped watching tv and i feel a load better for it.
 
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Keihart

Member
I took the time to read the OP, i feel cheated.
Which lines are supposed to be about xbox moving away from the console?

I have the impression that they do want to do that, but i just read a bunch of lines talking about console warz or something.
 

onQ123

Member
I took the time to read the OP, i feel cheated.
Which lines are supposed to be about xbox moving away from the console?

I have the impression that they do want to do that, but i just read a bunch of lines talking about console warz or something.

They talk about not focusing on the device
 

HarryKS

Member
What does he 'really' mean by the potential of gaming?

How much money they can drain out of kids or creating life-altering experiences?


Videogames are fun, but they're not exactly that great in terms of educational input.
 

godhandiscen

There are millions of whiny 5-year olds on Earth, and I AM THEIR KING.
He seems to do a lot of interviews, he's more open and is bound and to be asked questions that lead to those sort of answers and if you don't like it don't read it. The news has been doing my head in the last few weeks so i stopped watching tv and i feel a load better for it.

I believe Phil caught the virus of Twitter. He is seeing an abundance of conflict and console warring thanks to the Twitter recommendation system. Only a minority of fans engage in console wars, but his perception of the landscape is already clouded.

I believe we haven’t seen peak Phil yet. He is amplifying negative scenarios in his head, and soon will be more vocal about his discontent.

tenor.gif
 

Boss Mog

Member
He's fighting an uphill battle and he knows it. I liked Phil and was happy when he was brought in but he didn't deliver much for the XB1 in the end. Scalebound was cancelled, The Phantom Dust full remake/sequel was canned and just became a basic remaster, Crackdown 3 turned out mediocre and had none of the touted "cloud physics". Since Bungie and Epic have moved on from Halo and Gears respectively, those franchises have lost their soul and feel like hollow shells and MS hasn't really come out with any major new AAA "system seller" IPs this gen.

With backwards compatibility now in play it will be a tough sell for PS4 owners to go Series X and most people don't really get 2 consoles anymore because you'd have to pay for online twice. This gen was the one where they could've taken the lead. The XBOX 360 was such a great system, it's really a shame they threw all that momentum away with all their TV, DRM and Kinect talk when announcing the XB1. It was an easy switch to PS4 for me and many other 360 fans.
 

cireza

Banned
Who cares about wars on forums. As a company you have to use all the advantages you spent years building to market your console. This is the natural course of action.
 

Jigga117

Member
Another triggered thread? I think some of you are too sensitive to be playing videogames. You got to whine and complain about every miniscule aspect of this hobby. Bitching about Greenberg who is a doing his damn job. Phil didn't call a certain person out so let me get triggered. Really sitting at dinner ready to get back on here to complain.
 
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