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[FalsettoVibe]

For some reason, I expect to see a lot of this type of thing in the coming year.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

For some reason, I expect to see a lot of this type of thing in the coming year.

and the year after

 

[Dr. Suchong]

Emil Pagliarulo next please. Replace him so we can actually have good quests AND writing next time.

Unironically my favourite quest in Oblivion.

 

[BouncyFrag]

Easily replaced with Ai.

Radiant AI quests in ES6? I can’t say no to that. Still years until release tho.

 

[FalsettoVibe]

Even coming in 2nd is no bueno, because the following month will be 3rd again and it is going to be a rough holiday season.

You buy a company for 7.5 billion and their big game that has been in development for more than half a decade entirely fails to make a small shift of the needle.

I don't think that's being called a fanboy to suggest that that's a failure and a disaster. I really feel like some people are so disassociated from reality that they can no longer call objective balls and strikes anymore.

If you had to say so far, whether or not Zenimax has been worth the 7.5 billion, what would your answers be? Mine is a no, and it's been enough time to come to an early conclusion on that. The key word being early. Enough time has gone by for people to be evaluated and judged.

Only time will tell but so far, outside of Hi-Fi Rush, it's been a little ehh.

 

[Mibu no ookami]

Will Shen has been a very big presence in the pre-release interviews. Very strange to see him leave like this.

Like I said, don't think this will be limited to just a handful of people.

Bonuses will likely have been missed, pressure to push people out, an environment since leading up to and after the delay that would have likely been frosty especially between BGS and Microsoft and with the game still not delivering... there is going to be bad blood.

Redfall disaster.
Shinji Mikami leaving Tango.
Starfield not living up to expectations.
MachineGames still not able to show Indiana Jones and the IP drastically falling out of favor.


Tell me how things are going well for Zenimax.

 

[GHG]

Phil when satya asks him what did you do with my 7 billion?

 

[Bojanglez]

Next Todd Howard leaves bethesda. New Elder Scrolls 6 game director Phil Spencer confirmed.

Every character in the game has a blazer and game t-shirt.

 

[Astray]

Even coming in 2nd is no bueno, because the following month will be 3rd again and it is going to be a rough holiday season.

You buy a company for 7.5 billion and their big game that has been in development for more than half a decade entirely fails to make a small shift of the needle.

I don't think that's being called a fanboy to suggest that that's a failure and a disaster. I really feel like some people are so disassociated from reality that they can no longer call objective balls and strikes anymore.

If you had to say so far, whether or not Zenimax has been worth the 7.5 billion, what would your answers be? Mine is a no, and it's been enough time to come to an early conclusion on that. The key word being early. Enough time has gone by for people to be evaluated and judged.

I think the past 2 years have shown us why Bethesda got sold by the shareholders. The company simply had nothing in the near-term future that would have been a lock to be a big AAA blockbuster, you look at the last 4-5 games they released this gen, and they either are very niche, terrible or caveated in some way (imagine how Starfield would have come out had it released on its original date!).

MachineGames still not able to show Indiana Jones and the IP drastically falling out of favor.

Tbf, Indiana Jones falling out of favor is not Microsoft's fault. More Disney/Lucasfilm-related.

 

[MatrixReloaded101]

It's becoming more and more clear that Starfield was an unmitigated disaster and a complete flop.

We're going to see an unnatural amount of exodus as a result of it and probably somewhat of a reduction in force.

Some of that has to do with the expectations Microsoft created for it, some will be the game itself, and some of it will be putting this game on GamePass.

It probably needed a year or two more or a grander scope from the outset and it really needed that PS5 B2P revenue. The timing against Baldur's Gate couldn't have been worse not to mention the Cyberpunk expansion and it is going to be a complete ghost during the holiday season having unsuccesful moved the needle for Xbox Series.

This is precisely what myself and many are warning about when it comes to ABK. I'm sure some people will suggest this is just the regular grind of people coming and leaving studios, but it's only the start of it.

Starfield took years to make, it’s understandable that they are probably just over it and want a change in a new role or company.

But to some extent, Starfield was the biggest Xbox game released this Gen and it will hold that title for awhile so the fact that it didn’t move the needle as much as they thought is a problem and I am sure they are glad they got the ABK done because they are going to need all the help they can get.

 

[Mibu no ookami]

I think the past 2 years have shown us why Bethesda got sold by the shareholders. The company simply had nothing in the near-term future that would have been a lock to be a big AAA blockbuster, you look at the last 4-5 games they released this gen, and they either are very niche, terrible or caveated in some way (imagine how Starfield would have come out had it released on its original date!).


Tbf, Indiana Jones falling out of favor is not Microsoft's fault. More Disney/Lucasfilm-related.

The problem is their luster has been washed off. Look at BioWare and DICE.

CDPR was able to largely repair its reputation through reinvestment into Cyberpunk and some transmedia, but the media and consumers will still be careful around them.

Zenimax can't wait until Elder's Scrolls 6 to repair its reputation. That's too far out and Microsoft doesn't have that kind of time.

Indiana Jones isn't their fault, but it's just one more thing not going well for Zenimax and it was predictable. Indiana Jones hasn't been relevant in decades. Look how no one wanted to buy Tomb Raider for any real money and that was more relevant than Indiana Jones. Making this game is right out of the late 90s and thinking this is GoldenEye but with Indiana Jones. That's what Microsoft bought into.

People forget about the operating costs involved with running ABK and the more they lean into exclusivity the more expensive those games are going to get. And if they don't move the needle, they're just dumping money.

This exact same thing happened with Resident Evil on the Dreamcast and Gamecube, and Tomb Raider on the 360. Microsoft dropped 100 million for Rise of the Tomb Raider exclusivity and got NOTHING for it.

 

[N30RYU]

Starfield took years to make, it’s understandable that they are probably just over it and want a change in a new role or company.

But to some extent, Starfield was the biggest Xbox game released this Gen and it will hold that title for awhile so the fact that it didn’t move the needle as much as they thought is a problem and I am sure they are glad they got the ABK done because they are going to need all the help they can get.

Are you saying it hadn't scored 11/10 and ppl aren't selling their PS5?

 

[Crispy Gamer]

Damn he couldn't at least wait a week? That doesn't look good leaving the same day as Pete's retirement

 

[Mibu no ookami]

Starfield took years to make, it’s understandable that they are probably just over it and want a change in a new role or company.

But to some extent, Starfield was the biggest Xbox game released this Gen and it will hold that title for awhile so the fact that it didn’t move the needle as much as they thought is a problem and I am sure they are glad they got the ABK done because they are going to need all the help they can get.

ABK isn't the answer. They just came out with Diablo. Another Diablo won't come out for another decade... Managing these IP are going to be a nightmare for Microsoft and the reality is they're still going to rely on CoD.

It was the wrong time to buy ABK to have any real impact on this generation.

 

[Alebrije]

Starfield took years to make, it’s understandable that they are probably just over it and want a change in a new role or company.

But to some extent, Starfield was the biggest Xbox game released this Gen and it will hold that title for awhile so the fact that it didn’t move the needle as much as they thought is a problem and I am sure they are glad they got the ABK done because they are going to need all the help they can get.

Think Phill knew Starfield wont move anything since his 11/10 game statement about competing vs Sony.

Also Bethesda is not in the same field than years ago..there are companies like CDPR with great wastern RPGs so players have more options, also Starfield shows that Bethesda is looked on the same formula , yes it works but not for a GOTY award these days...

 

[Flutta]

The rats are leaving the ship.

Not if you ask the green ones, they will prob go down with it

 

[Forth]

Wtf is going on with Microsoft?
My only gaming machine is a Series X but all of this doom and gloom is not looking good.
Although Sony is having a rough time too but at least they are still selling consoles.

 

[Trogdor1123]

It's becoming more and more clear that Starfield was an unmitigated disaster and a complete flop.

We're going to see an unnatural amount of exodus as a result of it and probably somewhat of a reduction in force.

Some of that has to do with the expectations Microsoft created for it, some will be the game itself, and some of it will be putting this game on GamePass.

It probably needed a year or two more or a grander scope from the outset and it really needed that PS5 B2P revenue. The timing against Baldur's Gate couldn't have been worse not to mention the Cyberpunk expansion and it is going to be a complete ghost during the holiday season having unsuccesful moved the needle for Xbox Series.

This is precisely what myself and many are warning about when it comes to ABK. I'm sure some people will suggest this is just the regular grind of people coming and leaving studios, but it's only the start of it.

It is? How so? I’d like to see some data

 

[Dr. Suchong]

Wtf is going on with Microsoft?
My only gaming machine is a Series X but all of this doom and gloom is not looking good.
Although Sony is having a rough time too but at least they are still selling consoles.

Drunken master technique?
Winning by appearing to be losing?

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Damn he couldn't at least wait a week? That doesn't look good leaving the same day as Pete's retirement

They both used Spider-Man's launch as a distraction

 

[Mibu no ookami]

It is? How so? I’d like to see some data

Every metric we've seen show a steep decline. Whether that be Amazon charts, UK charts, other european charts, Microsoft's own online store, steam...

people aren't buying the game in large enough numbers anymore, but more importantly it dropped hard and fast.

 

[OmegaSupreme]

Nothing to see here please disperse gif.

 

[Trogdor1123]

Every metric we've seen show a steep decline. Whether that be Amazon charts, UK charts, other european charts, Microsoft's own online store, steam...

people aren't buying the game in large enough numbers anymore, but more importantly it dropped hard and fast.

Not sure that is it. For a game that drops on a subscription service on day 1, I’d think this is expected. We will see though once we see some data on it.

 

[I Love Rock 'n' Roll]

So... Activision Blizzard to be sold to Sony or Nintendo in about 2 years for less than 500000$ to get rebuy later by MS, just like they did with Nokia and then try to buy it again? right?

 

[mckmas8808]

Confirmed by a Rare employee himself

Microsoft Execs Thought They Owned Donkey Kong After Acquiring Rare

Conker's Bad Fur Day director tells an amusing tale

www.nintendolife.com

BRO.........this is nuts!!!

 

[semiconscious]

when you buy a 'past it's prime but still competitive' baseball team, & then the entire pitching staff quits the following week...

 

[digoutyoursoul]

Every metric we've seen show a steep decline. Whether that be Amazon charts, UK charts, other european charts, Microsoft's own online store, steam...

people aren't buying the game in large enough numbers anymore, but more importantly it dropped hard and fast.

Because it’s archaic shite compared to what is being put out by other developers . Xbox’s first party output ended up putting unnecessary pressure on the games build up to release to deliver something it clearly isn’t and you can tell there is a hesitance in some folk in the Xbox media to be truly honest about that

They can’t honestly preach to people about how great the management over there is and at the same time cautiously raise the notion that the game needs to be of the highest quality and to really deliver because of what’s occurred in recent years in terms of content and droughts in major releases. The end result time and again doesn’t stack up to the praise and plaudits of the management.

The game doesn’t do anything as well or better then a lot of highly regarded games in its genre.

And it says a lot that a few people who got to review it where pushing an opinion that the game comes into its own with New Game +.

Still, I wouldn’t be surprised if Geoff threw it a token nomination at the VGAs.

 

[Mibu no ookami]

Because it’s archaic shite compared to what is being put out by other developers . Xbox’s first party output ended up putting unnecessary pressure on the games build up to release to deliver something it clearly isn’t and you can tell there is a hesitance in some folk in the Xbox media to be truly honest about that

They can’t honestly preach to people about how great the management over there is and at the same time cautiously raise the notion that the game needs to be of the highest quality and to really deliver because of what’s occurred in recent years in terms of content and droughts in major releases. The end result time and again doesn’t stack up to the praise and plaudits of the management.

The game doesn’t do anything as well or better then a lot of highly regarded games in its genre.

And it says a lot that a few people who got to review it where pushing an opinion that the game comes into its own with New Game +.

Still, I wouldn’t be surprised if Geoff threw it a token nomination at the VGAs.

Throwing it a nomination when there are so many more games that have better critical reception, consumer reception, and commercial reception, would be a massive blow to any level of credibility the show has.

No one thought Spider-Man would be a GOTY contender certainly not over Starfield, but it clearly is in the conversation now. That's one less spot for Starfield.

Zelda
Baldur's Gate 3
RE4 Remake*
Street Fighter 6**
Sea of Stars
Diablo 4
Spider-Man 2

That's already 7 games. Fighting games don't tend to make it and remakes are 50/50. That's still at least 5 games that are more deserving of consideration than Starfield. That's without getting to FF16, Armored Core, Hi-Fi Rush, Deadspace**, Hogwarts Legacy, Jedi Survivor, Mortal Kombat**

 

[Gaelyon]

A job well done.

 

[Feel Like I'm On 42]

I don't think that Elder Scrolls VI will have any key people working on it from Morrowind, Oblivion and Skyrim.

You just know it won't be the same at this point, aside from having the same engine.

Ouch

 

[BlackTron]

I don't think that Elder Scrolls VI will have any key people working on it from Morrowind, Oblivion and Skyrim.

You just know it won't be the same at this point, aside from having the same engine.

Here I thought the only reason of keeping the engine was so key people wouldn't have to learn a new one. But funny to keep this while ditching Halo's engine for UE5

 

[EDMIX]

Starfield's lead quest designer leaves Bethesda to join other RPG veterans making a new open-world game

Something Wicked Games snatches another veteran for their horror-RPG

www.gamesradar.com

Starfield’s lead quest designer, also a Bethesda design director, is leaving the studio to help other genre veterans make another open-world RPG.

Will Shen was the lead quest designer and eventually design director on Starfield - meaning he’s responsible for some of the space epic’s very best moments - but he’s actually been working on Bethesda RPGs since Fallout 3. In an interview with Game Developer, Shen confirmed that he’s now joining developer Something Weird Games, a studio that was founded by another ex-Bethesda lead. The team now houses an all-star lineup of RPG developers with former BioWare, Bethesda, and Obsidian staff employed at the new studio.

Shen said his new role would bridge the gap between the studio’s narrative and design teams to help the game achieve a more cohesive vision.

Respect.

He did a great job in Starfield, I'm loving a lot of these crazy levels, stranded ships, space stations, underground cities etc.

 

[Atrus]

There are likely some major issues over at Bethesda.

Fallout 76 released poorly and needed resources to fix, which may have taken resources from Starfield’s development.

Starfield in turn was scheduled to launch last year and is still in an unfinished state with respect to a large number of mechanics.

 

[balls of snow]

Todd is going down with the ship. That salary bump if he got any must be pretty nice.

 

[Thirty7ven]

Trust the process.

 

[Bkdk]

Many more restructuring coming from top to bottom of BGS for sure with disappointing starfield, likely extremely disappointing for MS since they had very high hopes for this to really boost gamepass suscription numbers.

 

[EDMIX]

Every metric we've seen show a steep decline.

We've seen games drop for the charts to break many records over time. I'm not disputing the data, merely that you might be exaggerating this a bit.

Whether that be Amazon charts, UK charts, other european charts, Microsoft's own online store, steam...

people aren't buying the game in large enough numbers anymore, but more importantly it dropped hard and fast.

Ok, but none of that tells us about a long term effect of how it will do regarding sales. You are merely talking about the short term, again...I'm not disputing the data, simply that you are exaggerating it and using to to force this idea of a "success or fail" based on a very, very short time frame to put up this whole narrative of bashing the title.


https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/technology-science/technology/fifa-14-knocks-gta-5-2326187

^ Using your exact logic, GTA V will flop and see "more importantly, it dropped hard and fast" last we'll see of GTA V right?

So this lead is leaving after the game is complete, NOT BEFORE. To try to use this as some "doom and gloom" type of narrative doesn't really make sense and the way you post about it, something tells me the janitor could have quit and you'd just be telling us the exact same thing lol

 

[Ansphn]

In 2 years, Todd Howard has retired. He miss spending time with his family.

 

[ADiTAR]

That's why Nintendo doesn't buy studios, you usually lose the talent. Though I do think Microsoft bought them for IPs.

 

[Mibu no ookami]

We've seen games drop for the charts to break many records over time. I'm not disputing the data, merely that you might be exaggerating this a bit.



Ok, but none of that tells us about a long term effect of how it will do regarding sales. You are merely talking about the short term, again...I'm not disputing the data, simply that you are exaggerating it and using to to force this idea of a "success or fail" based on a very, very short time frame to put up this whole narrative of bashing the title.


https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/technology-science/technology/fifa-14-knocks-gta-5-2326187

^ Using your exact logic, GTA V will flop and see "more importantly, it dropped hard and fast" last we'll see of GTA V right?

So this lead is leaving after the game is complete, NOT BEFORE. To try to use this as some "doom and gloom" type of narrative doesn't really make sense and the way you post about it, something tells me the janitor could have quit and you'd just be telling us the exact same thing lol

I think that is the definition of hopium.

There is almost no chance that Starfield gets a second life on console, maybe on PC, but console is a completely different animal.

And it wasn't just that one major release pushed Starfield down the list, but rather numerous releases that were major AND minor.

It's laughable that you'd use FIFA displacing it by 1 spot to create an analogy to where starfield was on the list. It's not even on the most recent top 10 displaced by Hogwarts Legacy...

 

[Unknown Soldier]

In 2 years, Todd Howard has retired. He miss spending time with his family.

I legit wonder if Todd will make it to the release of TES6, that's a minimum of 6 years away...

 

[EDMIX]

I think that is the definition of hopium.

Nah, thats allowing more time to give a proper judgement on the exact numbers we'll see long term from the title...

There is almost no chance that Starfield

ahhhh this is more so a strange absoult.

I'm not arguing IT WILL MOVE GTA V numbers, but you are arguing this whole "almost no chance" idea.

It's laughable that you'd use FIFA displacin

And? GTA V was down more then 80%, this is to show this early, yes...it is fucking LAUGHABLE that someone would have some idea of the future, based on limited data like this, this early.

That was the point...

 

[Mibu no ookami]

Nah, thats allowing more time to give a proper judgement on the exact numbers we'll see long term from the title...

ahhhh this is more so a strange absoult.

I'm not arguing IT WILL MOVE GTA V numbers, but you are arguing this whole "almost no chance" idea.


And? GTA V was down more then 80%, this is to show this early, yes...it is fucking LAUGHABLE that someone would have some idea of the future, based on limited data like this, this early.

That was the point...

It didn't drop from #1 to #2 when a game like FIFA came out... it dropped entirely off the charts surpassed by games that have been out for a year or more.

And it's down across the board.

GTA has a 97 on metacritic, it was always going to have legs... Starfield has an 83, a user score of 6.7, steam score falling below 70.

Yeah, I guess Super Mario Bros 3 could make a huge comeback on the charts too, but is it likely? It's laughable that you're trying to ignore all the measurables for this game because they don't fit with your agenda and hopes.

On Amazon right now where does it rank for best selling games? Even among Xbox games it is low.

Top paid games - Microsoft Store

Top paid games – Shop these 90 items and explore Microsoft Store for great apps, games, laptops, PCs, and other devices.

www.microsoft.com

What does this tell you?

 

[EDMIX]

It didn't drop from #1 to #2 when a game like FIFA came out... it dropped entirely off the charts surpassed by games that have been out for a year or more.

And it's down across the board.

GTA has a 97 on metacritic, it was always going to have legs... Starfield has an 83, a user score of 6.7, steam score falling below 70.

Yeah, I guess Super Mario Bros 3 could make a huge comeback on the charts too, but is it likely? It's laughable that you're trying to ignore all the measurables for this game because they don't fit with your agenda and hopes.

On Amazon right now where does it rank for best selling games? Even among Xbox games it is low.

Top paid games - Microsoft Store

Top paid games – Shop these 90 items and explore Microsoft Store for great apps, games, laptops, PCs, and other devices.

www.microsoft.com

What does this tell you?

That tells me we need a bit more time to tell how this game will do regarding lifetime sales.....

I mean, you are trying to come to a conclusion on a title in mere weeks after release.

 

[Clintizzle]

Like I said, don't think this will be limited to just a handful of people.

Bonuses will likely have been missed, pressure to push people out, an environment since leading up to and after the delay that would have likely been frosty especially between BGS and Microsoft and with the game still not delivering... there is going to be bad blood.

Redfall disaster.
Shinji Mikami leaving Tango.
Starfield not living up to expectations.
MachineGames still not able to show Indiana Jones and the IP drastically falling out of favor.


Tell me how things are going well for Zenimax.

If there was an award for pulling shit out of your ass, you'd win it no contest.

 

[GigaBowser]

MS ruining all the developers they buy marster chief was my role model why is the best game for this thing still Flight simumlator

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

He didn't do a very good job on Starfield, so maybe this isn't a big loss.

 

[L*][*N*K]

I wouldn’t be really surprised if Todd leaves by the end of the year, Bethesda’s reputation is something no one can fix might as well leave

 

[Kenpachii]

There games are so outdated at this point, might as well replace the entire leadership. No clue how they though something like starfield would be acceptable in 2023.

 

[Sgt.Asher]

I loved the quest where I was an intern and had to fetch some coffee. So riveting.