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Phil Spencer Says Studio Acquisitions Are A Good Thing

mckmas8808

Banned
But whose fault is that some platforms are as hermetic and alienated as only possible? If you'r purposely going into Apple, Sony or Nintendo ecosystems, you're doing it with full responsibility and can blame no one but yourself. And if you're really that desperate to play a game that's hardly locked to MS systems, you can always get XSS for 299 and call it a day, it's literally cost of merely 3-4 fully priced games.

I often say that about all exclusives on a console or PC, but many people love to complain about exclusives for some reason saying it's "anti-consumer".

Nothing he said had anything to do with rescuing anyone.. or a business even being small.

It's basically "it's natural for people who create businesses to have an eventual goal of cashing in based on the value they built."

Bethesda/Zenimax were started by a small group of people long ago.. had some private investors along the way, and eventually all fully cashed in with MS.. it's.. what people creating businesses OFTEN look to do eventually.

Having said that, I don't love the industry consolidation.. but from the standpoint of the businesses themselves, agree with Spencer here.. not sure why anyone wouldn't.

I LOVE the industry consolidation. Without it lots of companies would be going out of business. If you notice, everything is going in this direction when it comes to media content. Be it movies, TV shows, Apps, Videogames, etc.
 

Fredrik

Member
That's cool. Thankfully MS offers a wide variety of games that appeal to a wide variety of tastes. Lots of genres for lots of occasions. Again plenty for Xbox fans to be satisfied with.
Yup. The year on Xbox has been so-so to be honest but it’s looking reeeally nice going forward, starting with The Ascent for me.
And Forza Horizon 5 could end up as my GOTY.
But I can’t get over how awesome the Ratchet localization is, there is Swedish voice acting, Disney quality, might not sound important but for me it’s a dream come true since I can finally play with my kids without having to translate everything. So Playground have a mountain to climb to reach the bar set by Insomniac this year.
 

mckmas8808

Banned
You don't have to buy a specific device to play Xbox games.. and as some people love to say, there are no exclusive Xbox games lol

They've expanded that to anyone with a browser now (although technically true, fuck game streaming).. and have even said they'd be willing to entertain gamepass on other consoles.

He quite literally did not say what he is "quoted" as saying. Same with this thread title really; not a good paraphrasing of what he said.. which was more like "people create businesses specifically to sell some day."

The same thing happened with Jim Ryan's "We believe in Generations" quote, but look how much that gets mischaracterized.
 

DeepEnigma

Gold Member
Xbox is always behind Playstation. Sony pushed the power narrative in 2013 then Microsoft started doing that in 2017. Sony pushed the subscription and cloud gaming narrative with PS Now in 2015 then Microsoft started doing that in 2018. Sony pushed the first party games narrative in 2018 now Microsoft pushing the first party games narrative in 2021. Now according to Jim Ryan they are working on bringing their huge IP’s to mobile market because mobile is the biggest cash cow in 2021 just ask Roblox or CoD/Activision. When PS games does come to mobile, I expect Xbox to follow suit after a few years late once again.
Cat Reaction GIF
 

IntentionalPun

Ask me about my wife's perfect butthole
The same thing happened with Jim Ryan's "We believe in Generations" quote, but look how much that gets mischaracterized.
Sure, and I've talked about that before. That same interview they talked about years of supporting PS4.

But then there was the PS5 show where they showed multiple cross gen games and doubled down on the "we believe in generations" thing lol

Spencer is a slimey fuck.. don't get me wrong.. but this interview is.. fine.. to me. As was the one about exclusives; because MS is the company, or at least was, the company releasing to a broader audience.
 
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CrustyBritches

Gold Member
You are right, but the same principle applies. He was the one to say "exclusives are counter to what gaming is about".
I'm still not understanding how that would apply to PlayStation? Forza, Halo, Gears, FS, SoT, nor any other Xbox console exclusive has come to PlayStation.

In a vacuum, that statement could be read as "MS is against exclusives of any kind", but contextually it always meant Xbox+Win 10+Steam+Cloud. Sony has adopted a similar approach(PS+EGS+Steam+Cloud), and I think it's great for gamers.
 
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Hezekiah

Banned
Which is a Microsoft ecosystem and a subscription. A decent answer, but a terrible one if it's not in your country or you don't want to pay for a subscription, or you have half bad internet.
Or if you have good internet and are sensitive to latency.
 

IntentionalPun

Ask me about my wife's perfect butthole
Playstation fan-personss since forever: 'Xbox has no exclusives because of PC!'

Playstation fan-persons since Phil Spencer interview: 'How can Phil Spencer say exclusives are bad, when they are buying companies!'
 
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DeepEnigma

Gold Member
Playstation fan-personss since forever: 'Xbox has no exclusives because of PC!'

Playstation fan-persons since Phil Spencer interview: 'How can Phil Spencer say exclusives are bad, when they are buying companies!'
In this thread,
Xbox fan-personss since forever: 'MS wins either way, PC is their ecosystem'

Xbox fan-persons since Phil Spencer interview: 'Phil said not HIS device, PCs are not Xbox, duh!... /peaks at Win11 integration, whistles quietly!'
 
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mckmas8808

Banned
I'm still not understanding how that would apply to PlayStation? Forza, Halo, Gears, FS, SoT, nor any other Xbox console exclusive has come to PlayStation.

In a vacuum, that statement could be read as "MS is against exclusives of any kind", but contextually it always meant Xbox+Win 10+Steam+Cloud. Sony has adopted a similar approach(PS+EGS+Steam+Cloud), and I think it's great for gamers.

It doesn't apply to Playstation directly. It does indirectly. I 100% disagree with Phil's stance about exclusives by the way. Apple has done an amazing job in the smart phone space and they have 1000s of exclusive apps. And I say that as a 13 year Android-only guy.
 

Hawke502

Member
The very best games won't be coming out on Xbox. And the biggest third-party games wont be on GamePass day one either.

But every Xbox games will be available to play my PC. Can't wait until 2023.
Oh, no, you're going to play on PC? Well, i think you fooled Microsoft. Damn it, if only they knew people would play their games on PC when they decided to put their games on PC, you really got them.

And best games = Sony games? Well, lets see how your predition turns out.
 
You go above and beyond in a PR worded standard.

Fo free?

high quality days GIF
I will push back against lies like 'Xbox has no games until 2023'. I responded with the truth. I'm sorry that offended your sensibilities.

Tall tales from the"Book of Phil" @fanfiction.net written by DirkMagusDCXIX.

Tell us when you have something real, you're just satisfied with PR, not actual released games.
You clearly dislike reality. Oh well PropellerousMaximus28463. The release schedule speaks for itself.
 
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Hezekiah

Banned
Oh, no, you're going to play on PC? Well, i think you fooled Microsoft. Damn it, if only they knew people would play their games on PC when they decided to put their games on PC, you really got them.

And best games = Sony games? Well, lets see how your predition turns out.
"almost every game coming out on Playstation is coming out on Xbox"

Oh nooo I guess you got Sony fooled 😁.

And I also guess you've been asleep the past decade.
 

Zeroing

Banned
in American accent: Y'all hollering about nothing , get out of my lawn, you gamer punks"

now seriously, most of you are off topic and all this back and forth will not reach any conclusion.
 

Esppiral

Member
Xbox is always behind Playstation. Sony pushed the power narrative in 2013 then Microsoft started doing that in 2017. Sony pushed the subscription and cloud gaming narrative with PS Now in 2015 then Microsoft started doing that in 2018. Sony pushed the first party games narrative in 2018 now Microsoft pushing the first party games narrative in 2021. Now according to Jim Ryan they are working on bringing their huge IP’s to mobile market because mobile is the biggest cash cow in 2021 just ask Roblox or CoD/Activision. When PS games does come to mobile, I expect Xbox to follow suit after a few years late once again.
Were you born yesterday?
 

CrustyBritches

Gold Member
It doesn't apply to Playstation directly. It does indirectly.
Can you expound on this? I can see how acquisitions could affect PlayStation, but the exclusive thing seems consistent. PlayStation doesn't get the Xbox console exclusives, and Xbox doesn't get the PlayStation console exclusives. That's how it's always been.
 

mckmas8808

Banned
Can you expound on this? I can see how acquisitions could affect PlayStation, but the exclusive thing seems consistent. PlayStation doesn't get the Xbox console exclusives, and Xbox doesn't get the PlayStation console exclusives. That's how it's always been.

To add context, Phil also said that quote during the time period when people were saying Sony were being anti-consumer by buying timed exclusives (ex. DeathLoop, FF 16, etc) and characters in games (Spiderman in Marvel's Avengers). So it seemed as if Phil was taking a small shot at Playstation when the heat was on them.

My response was the same as yours for the most part. It's always been part of the game, so what's the big deal. But many others disagreed. There was even alot of video game podcasters that started questioning Sony's tactics too.
 

Shmunter

Member
Nothing he said had anything to do with rescuing anyone.. or a business even being small.

It's basically "it's natural for people who create businesses to have an eventual goal of cashing in based on the value they built."

Bethesda/Zenimax were started by a small group of people long ago.. had some private investors along the way, and eventually all fully cashed in with MS.. it's.. what people creating businesses OFTEN look to do eventually.

Having said that, I don't love the industry consolidation.. but from the standpoint of the businesses themselves, agree with Spencer here.. not sure why anyone wouldn't.
Getting rewarded for you investment is natural. But as you say, consolidation is the issues.

Leads to a lack of competition and a homologised industry. And it’s always the shark that eats the smaller fish, and why there are laws against such unscrupulous business dealings.
 
Did big Phil just say this last year?





This is sorta confusing. Because buying a Publisher or a few Developers means they'll be exclusive to MS. Which flies in the face of what he said one year ago, last summer.

People keep bringing up that statement without ever seeming to take the full context into consideration. I wonder why?

HE WAS REFERRING TO MAKING GAMES THAT TAKE ADVANTAGE OF SERIES X, BUT THEN ARE ONLY PLAYABLE ON XBOX SERIES X AKA LOCKED TO A SINGLE DEVICE. He was saying that he won't pursue as a strategy what Sony is doing by explicitly trying to make the PS5 the only place to play its latest games.

It's not about supposedly never having console exclusives or acquiring game studios.
It's about not defining a strategy around a game only being accessible from a single device. Microsoft's games are accessible from Series X, Series S, PC, through Xbox Game Pass subscriptions including many day one releases through not just xbox consoles, but also game pass on PC, and Xbox Cloud Gaming on multiple devices with more and more coming.

Phil Spencer was saying that taking or keeping things away from a specific group of gamers all for the purpose of locking to a single device is never the goal, purpose or central motivation for gaming.


Gaming is about entertainment and community and diversion and learning new stories and new perspectives, and I find it completely counter to what gaming is about to say that part of that is to lock people away from being able to experience those games. Or to force someone to buy my specific device on the day that I want them to go buy it, in order to partake in what gaming is about.

"Gaming is bigger than any one device
, and that is something as an industry that we've embraced all up as we bring more and more players in. I think it's vital to the role that gaming can play on the planet."

So Phil Spencer hasn't, in any shape or form, strayed from precisely the position he laid out in the games industry biz interview.

Notice he also says it isn't about gaming on any one device? It falls in line perfectly with what the messaging has always been on Game Pass, being available across xbox and PC and mobile phones, tablets, televisions through Xbox Cloud Gaming. So long as Microsoft is maintaining its Xbox and PC and Game Pass and Cloud approach, Phil Spencer is staying true to exactly what he said he was going to do from the very start. Even Xbox Series S is a device that proves it true. Yet another device available to gamers, but one just not as expensive as a high end gaming PC or a Series X.

Let's see if people keep dishonestly representing what he actually said.
 

IntentionalPun

Ask me about my wife's perfect butthole
Leads to a lack of competition and a homologised industry. And it’s always the shark that eats the smaller fish, and why there are laws against such unscrupulous business dealings.

It's not "unscrupulous" to grow a company by way of acquisition on it's own; or to buy a company in general, particularly if the intent is to grow or improve THAT company as well.. Nobody in this space is anywhere near a monopoly, and there is still very strong competition all around. New publishers even are showing up and growing to compete with the big boys.

Not all purchases are created equally, nor are all "purchasers."

As it stands, right now, both MS and Sony seem to be doing good things for and with the companies they buy. Sony has long term, MS so far seems to have made a good turn (although we will have to wait and see).. but at the very least, the creative's seem quite happy.

I'd rather Bethesda have stayed independent, and found a way to improve their pipelines and their financials on their own, but in the long run it will be time that will tell if the purchase was a good/bad thing for gamers and the industry. We know it's going to make some games not appear on Playstation so until we see other improvements, there's a pretty big ding from that.. but this also means all of their games included in a $10-15 sub on Xbox/PC, so depending on who you are, it could be a win, a loss, or neutral.

For me it's a loss; I want the choice of Bethesda games on PS5 more than I want their games to come w/ Gamepass, despite owning both... but I'd also like to see Bethesda improve their output, and money/support from MS might do that.
 
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Genx3

Member
Xbox is always behind Playstation. Sony pushed the power narrative in 2013 then Microsoft started doing that in 2017. Sony pushed the subscription and cloud gaming narrative with PS Now in 2015 then Microsoft started doing that in 2018. Sony pushed the first party games narrative in 2018 now Microsoft pushing the first party games narrative in 2021. Now according to Jim Ryan they are working on bringing their huge IP’s to mobile market because mobile is the biggest cash cow in 2021 just ask Roblox or CoD/Activision. When PS games does come to mobile, I expect Xbox to follow suit after a few years late once again.
Lol
The irony of this post is too much.

Nothing wrong with buying up studios. That's what Sony has always done. The majority of their studios were bought.
MS does the same thing.
 
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Barakov

Member

“I know sometimes I see dialogue out in the industry about, well, are acquisitions a good thing or a bad thing,” says Spencer before congratulating Sony on their acquisition of Housemarque announced earlier today.

“One thing I’ll put out there is… starting a new studio — starting any small business, frankly, is a very risky proposition, starting a video game studio even more so. And if a team actually takes the risk of starting a new company, starting a new studio, building that over years, building value in that. To say they shouldn’t sell, I think, is just short-sighted.”

Spencer says that the value of growing a business to become something valuable is part of why creative teams start new studios in the first place. The immense risk it takes to start a new company is the potential reward that comes with it, and Spencer says “M&A is absolutely a part of that.”

Spencer clarified that not every new company has to sell and that there are a lot of studios that can fail. But successful teams growing and potentially getting acquired “is a natural and healthy part of our industry.”

“It’s such a risk-filled journey for them to get to the point to create real value. I’m always going to congratulate when teams get to the point where they realize that value through acquisition or just massive independent success… many of those leaders will go off and start other things over time. It’s kind of the natural turnover that happens with entrepreneurs and startup businesses. And for us, we’re always out there looking at where we could continue to build our first-party capability and looking at teams that we think would be good fits for us.”
Unimpressed Uh Huh GIF by Brooklyn Nine-Nine
 

Shmunter

Member
It's not "unscrupulous" to grow a company by way of acquisition on it's own; or to buy a company in general, particularly if the intent is to grow or improve THAT company as well.. Nobody in this space is anywhere near a monopoly, and there is still very strong competition all around. New publishers even are showing up and growing to compete with the big boys.

Not all purchases are created equally, nor are all "purchasers."

As it stands, right now, both MS and Sony seem to be doing good things for and with the companies they buy. Sony has long term, MS so far seems to have made a good turn (although we will have to wait and see).. but at the very least, the creative's seem quite happy.

I'd rather Bethesda have stayed independent, and found a way to improve their pipelines and their financials on their own, but in the long run it will be time that will tell if the purchase was a good/bad thing for gamers and the industry. We know it's going to make some games not appear on Playstation so until we see other improvements, there's a pretty big ding from that.. but this also means all of their games included in a $10-15 sub on Xbox/PC, so depending on who you are, it could be a win, a loss, or neutral.

For me it's a loss; I want the choice of Bethesda games on PS5 more than I want their games to come w/ Gamepass, despite owning both... but I'd also like to see Bethesda improve their output, and money/support from MS might do that.
Talking cross purposes here. Maga corps chewing up everything in their paths has proven to occur should it be allowed to run unfettered. Indeed MS has been in hot water in the past.

Even the Zenimax deal had to be approved by government due to the size, potential ramifications for the sector had to be evaluated.

So yes, everything is fine to a point. Excess is not.
 

IntentionalPun

Ask me about my wife's perfect butthole
Talking cross purposes here. Maga corps chewing up everything in their paths has proven to occur should it be allowed to run unfettered. Indeed MS has been in hot water in the past.

Even the Zenimax deal had to be approved by government due to the size, potential ramifications for the sector had to be evaluated.

So yes, everything is fine to a point. Excess is not.

MS wasn't really in trouble for absorbing tons of companies in the late 90s; it was.. other things lol

But sure, Zenimax required approval.. and was approved with no issue.. because they it didn't even make them the biggest game publisher, let alone someone w/ a majority share.

Especially since the market is likely judged across lots of verticals, not just consoles.. or consoles + PC.. but consoles/PC/mobile.

In the end, in the US at least.. it's not even really illegal to become the majority of a market.. or to do some things "monopolies" have gotten in trouble for.. it's illegal to become the majority of a market by shady means, or do what is seen as shady (but legal if you were a smaller company) shit.

As long as consumer choice is still really strong, and competition strong, it's all fine from a legal standpoint. And both things are incredibly true.
 
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Zenimax had to be willing to sell. It wasn't like a hostile takeover or anything. They obviously wanted out or saw that the risk was too great, so they wanted to get out.
Most gaf and era users don't understand how acquisition made, they think these corporations forcefully buy companies n all lol.
 

TheGrat1

Member
I respectfully disagree. Before the 360 which console packed in a wireless controller standard? MS did it first. They were also the first to include a hard drive with every console with the original Xbox. The fact that 360 didn't do the same thing doesn't take away from the fact MS did it first. There is nothing wrong with acknowledging a fact man.
You disagree with...reality? Ok, you have fun with that.

Never did I say the OG Xbox did not come standard with a hard drive, only that it was odd the 360 did not. The only one denying a fact here is you.
 
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Melchiah

Member
Some of you with this wall of whining either don’t research the contradictions of the points your making or really just flat out ignore reality of the situation. Either way is hilarious

Care to elaborate on the supposed contradictions, instead of whining like a corporate defence force with a persecution complex?

And by the way, it's you're not your. Now, that's hilarious.
 
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