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Jerichoholic

You can be sure Sony are working on something similar already.

Retr0gamer

With PS Now Sony seem to be ahead of the game in that regard.

As for the xbox it's not a bad system to own but it's really struggling to fir a reason to exist at all. It just does nothing that can't be done by a PS4 or PC better. It desperately needs exclusives. Sony haven't been the best this gen with exclusives but it's got more than enough to justify it's existence.

The One is pretty much the first console I feel I'm not missed out on anything by not owning. Let's see if the polygon rumours can turn that around but im kind of enjoying the extra 400 euro in my pocket.

kunst nugget

Is acquisition by MS an attractive proposition for a game studio? You'd be cutting yourself off from nearly two thirds of the console market and they've closed numerous studios recently enough.

Retr0gamer

kunst nugget wrote: »

Is acquisition by MS an attractive proposition for a game studio? You'd be cutting yourself off from nearly two thirds of the console market and they've closed numerous studios recently enough.

It is for the shareholders of said company which is all that matters. Any lost revenue is made up for by MS funding and usually you will increase sales when you have an exclusive.

The risk of the studio closing is a concern.... except for the people who make that decision. A nice packet of Microscoft shares and a pay out isn't so bad.

heebusjeebus

EA own a fortune of studios. If the rumors are true that MS buy EA then you could expect severe rationalization of these teams for streamlining purposes.
I don't think IP owners like Disney or Fifa would appreciate the limiting of the playerbase for their games though.

Jerichoholic

Retr0gamer wrote: »

With PS Now Sony seem to be ahead of the game in that regard.

As for the xbox it's not a bad system to own but it's really struggling to fir a reason to exist at all. It just does nothing that can't be done by a PS4 or PC better. It desperately needs exclusives. Sony haven't been the best this gen with exclusives but it's got more than enough to justify it's existence.

The One is pretty much the first console I feel I'm not missed out on anything by not owning. Let's see if the polygon rumours can turn that around but im kind of enjoying the extra 400 euro in my pocket.

PS Now is a streaming service though, I wouldn't pay for it to be honest, not for a few years at least. Too many possible problems streaming a game. Download service is the way to do it.

Penn

I'd be extremely hesitant as a developer to become a first party studio for Microsoft at this point. Your games are going to be given away for free by Microsoft through their Gamepass which is going to greatly skew stuff like sales figures and consumer rating (eg. someone downloads the game because it's free, doesn't like it because it's not their typical type of game and gives it bad reviews online), and you're cutting out the PS4 market which is more than double the worldwide consoles sold than the Xbox One.

Then with the game being made available to so many for free, it's more likely there'd be a greater push for stuff like microtransactions and the like. Same way part of the reason for PS+ and GwG was to give games away for free which weren't really selling anymore in the hopes they'd then buy some of the DLC.

I dunno. Like most of what Microsoft do, it sounds like a great theory and sounds like it might be good for consumers, but I don't think it's going to work out how they'd like. One thing is for sure though, they need to get more and better exclusives if they're going to have any chance of doing it right, and they need to get them quick.

Penn

heebusjeebus wrote: »

I don't think IP owners like Disney or Fifa would appreciate the limiting of the playerbase for their games though.

Or the giving away of the games for free (unless the amount MS pay them for each game downloaded is high enough to compensate for it), but even then and with the on-going backlash against stuff like microtransactions and lootboxes, methods of gaining additional revenue from games could become more limited in addition to limiting the playerbase for their games.

If EA did become MS exclusive, that would also likely close off the Switch from them too, not just PS4.

Jerichoholic

There's no way they'd go exclusive, the FIFA and Disney deals ensure creating games on multiplatforms. They would take their business elsewhere.

Jerichoholic

Jerichoholic wrote: »

PS Now is a streaming service though, I wouldn't pay for it to be honest, not for a few years at least. Too many possible problems streaming a game. Download service is the way to do it.

The future is going to be a combination of streaming and download titles and PS Now is way ahead of the game in that regard. Give it 5, maybe 10 years and we should be at the stage in which we can exit out of a game on a console or PC and then hop onto a bus and continue to play from where we left off on a mobile device. I think that something like PS Now on a device like the Switch would be great.

Jerichoholic

Yeah, I agree. It'll take time for that to work well though.

Penn

Deleted User wrote: »

The future is going to be a combination of streaming and download titles and PS Now is way ahead of the game in that regard. Give it 5, maybe 10 years and we should be at the stage in which we can exit out of a game on a console or PC and then hop onto a bus and continue to play from where we left off on a mobile device. I think that something like PS Now on a device like the Switch would be great.

Sony badly screwed up (well, still are) on the pricing of the service though. Not sure what the actual infrastructure of the service is like now or if it's improved since launch. I've never had much of an interest in it to be honest. I think a middle ground between PS Now and Gamepass is what both companies will end up with moving forward. A combination of streaming, downloading and maybe deals on new/exclusive games, or making them free after a period.

Retr0gamer

Retr0gamer wrote: »

With PS Now Sony seem to be ahead of the game in that regard.

As for the xbox it's not a bad system to own but it's really struggling to fir a reason to exist at all. It just does nothing that can't be done by a PS4 or PC better. It desperately needs exclusives. Sony haven't been the best this gen with exclusives but it's got more than enough to justify it's existence.

The One is pretty much the first console I feel I'm not missed out on anything by not owning. Let's see if the polygon rumours can turn that around but im kind of enjoying the extra 400 euro in my pocket.

€260 with an extra controller and 3 games last year. :pac:

The Xbox is perfectly fine. If it hadn't stumbled out of the gates and given Sony the initiative it would be doing a lot better (buy what your friends have etc.). I generally play sports and racing games (I know) and EA access at €25 for year covers probably 80% of my needs.

Penn

Penn wrote: »

Sony badly screwed up (well, still are) on the pricing of the service though. Not sure what the actual infrastructure of the service is like now or if it's improved since launch. I've never had much of an interest in it to be honest. I think a middle ground between PS Now and Gamepass is what both companies will end up with moving forward. A combination of streaming, downloading and maybe deals on new/exclusive games, or making them free after a period.

The pricing is an issue but it's something that they have worked on, think it's now $9.99 a month or $99.99 for the year which is the same as game pass. I used it for a couple of months to see what it was like and had no issues, it worked really well and think that if they do a download and streaming service they will have a winner on their hands.

Jerichoholic

Deleted User wrote: »

The pricing is an issue but it's something that they have worked on, think it's now $9.99 a month or $99.99 for the year which is the same as game pass. I used it for a couple of months to see what it was like and had no issues, it worked really well and think that if they do a download and streaming service they will have a winner on their hands.

Not available here though right?

Deleted User

Deleted User wrote: »

€260 with an extra controller and 3 games last year. :pac:

The Xbox is perfectly fine. If it hadn't stumbled out of the gates and given Sony the initiative it would be doing a lot better (buy what your friends have etc.). I generally play sports and racing games (I know) and EA access at €25 for year covers probably 80% of my needs.

It's fine as long as you are only really interested in third-party titles, EA access is a nice little service but I still prefer to have a console that gets multiple exclusive titles a year. My Xbox is mainly for streaming and watch Blu-Rays on, most of my gaming is done on PC or PS4 and if I get a third party console title I always go for the PS4 version. I wish that the Xbox would get into gear and deliver something worthwhile, they need to take a chance. Sony has been great this year for getting oddities from Japan onto the PS4 and something like Yakuza or Nioh is far more appealing than anything that MS have upcoming.

Jerichoholic

Jerichoholic wrote: »

Not available here though right?

Not at the minute but it's easy to get it.

Deleted User

Deleted User wrote: »

It's fine as long as you are only really interested in third-party titles, EA access is a nice little service but I still prefer to have a console that gets multiple exclusive titles a year. My Xbox is mainly for streaming and watch Blu-Rays on, most of my gaming is done on PC or PS4 and if I get a third party console title I always go for the PS4 version. I wish that the Xbox would get into gear and deliver something worthwhile, they need to take a chance. Sony has been great this year for getting oddities from Japan onto the PS4 and something like Yakuza or Nioh is far more appealing than anything that MS have upcoming.

Yeah that's all fair enough but plenty of people just want a console they can play **** games on with their mates. I got mine for basically just FIFA and Rocket League with my mate, would've cost around 400 for the same kind of bundle for a PS4. Add EA Access and we've Madden and all that jazz.
I'm just holding on for the next GTA at this stage. :pac:

Jerichoholic

Deleted User wrote: »

Not at the minute but it's easy to get it.

Can it be done through the PS4?

Deleted User

Deleted User wrote: »

Yeah that's all fair enough but plenty of people just want a console they can play **** games on with their mates. I got mine for basically just FIFA and Rocket League with my mate, would've cost around 400 for the same kind of bundle for a PS4. Add EA Access and we've Madden and all that jazz.
I'm just holding on for the next GTA at this stage. :pac:

You can get a PS4 for 200 euro most of the time and while EA Access is great, if you want Madden you can pick it up for a couple of euro by the time it hits the vault.

TitianGerm

[Deleted User] wrote: »

It's fine as long as you are only really interested in third-party titles, EA access is a nice little service but I still prefer to have a console that gets multiple exclusive titles a year. My Xbox is mainly for streaming and watch Blu-Rays on, most of my gaming is done on PC or PS4 and if I get a third party console title I always go for the PS4 version. I wish that the Xbox would get into gear and deliver something worthwhile, they need to take a chance. Sony has been great this year for getting oddities from Japan onto the PS4 and something like Yakuza or Nioh is far more appealing than anything that MS have upcoming.

The biggest sellers on PlayStation and Xbox are multi plat games. FIFA, Minecraft, Assassin's Creed etc will always sell much numbers per console than exclusives though.

Penn

emmetkenny wrote: »

The biggest sellers on PlayStation and Xbox are multi plat games. FIFA, Minecraft, Assassin's Creed etc will always sell much numbers per console than exclusives though.

Totally, but in terms of what makes people choose one console over another, two of the biggest factors are friends and exclusives, especially when the consoles are in the same ballpark regarding specs and price.. If you can play the multi-plat games on either, it's which console will your friends also be playing the game on. This is true particularly at launch.

But further into the gen cycle, the importance of exclusives become more apparent and people are more likely to buy the other console (which by now is likely reduced in price) to play the exclusives they've been missing out on and have both consoles. MS's problem this gen is they haven't had the exclusives to tempt people who already have a PS4 to buy an XB1 as a second console, whereas the PS4 is still selling well because people are buying it for the PS exclusive titles which have built up over the last few years, or the upcoming ones.

Price, specs and friends are some of the biggest factors at launch, but after a while exclusives become a huge factor, and have more of an impact on console sales towards the end of the gen than any other factor, in my own opinion anyway.

emmetkenny

emmetkenny wrote: »

The biggest sellers on PlayStation and Xbox are multi plat games. FIFA, Minecraft, Assassin's Creed etc will always sell much numbers per console than exclusives though.

That is true but after a couple of years, exclusives become worth way more than one would expect. Anyone, I know who went with the One over the PS4 has already or is planning on getting a PS4 so as to play the exclusives. Horizon Zero Dawn, Uncharted 4, The Last Guardian, Shadow of the Colossus, Until Dawn, Bloodborne and so on are very appealing and make the PS4 a worthwhile investment, and that is before you even look at the numerous others titles such as The Yakuza series, Nioh and so on. The Xbox can't hold a candle to the PS4 lineup and the sales figures reflect that. Bar Sea of Thieves pretty much all of the Xbox exclusive titles have been sequels to existing games and while Sony has also had a few sequels they have also been releasing and developing new titles.

Deleted User

Deleted User wrote: »

You can get a PS4 for 200 euro most of the time and while EA Access is great, if you want Madden you can pick it up for a couple of euro by the time it hits the vault.

Well I got the One S, would I be able to get the Pro with the extra controller and games I actually want for 200?

Retr0gamer

Another factor is that all Xbox exclusives are coming to PC. If I was a PS4 owner looking for a second machine, I'd be considering a PC over a Xbox as it offers so much more.

As for MS buying EA, I don't think it will affect a lot of third party publishing. MS have let their studios publish of other platforms before. I'd say the multiplatform deals will stay in place. As for the switch, MS might not see them as a direct competitor. They let Rare release GBA games after all.

Grumpypants

Microsoft higher-ups have changed the direction of the Xbox section recently. It is no longer going to focus on hardware and will now focus on software. This is why there is a sudden push to buy up studios and start making games again.

In short, they don't think we will have consoles, as we know them, in ten years. Most likely the next Xbox when it launches in 2-3 years won't even have a disk drive. After that, you will prob just buy an Xbox Controller and play via an App on your smart device. So the idea of console exclusive studios will be gone. They will be "service exclusive" and that service will be pretty universal.

Stop thinking about playing on a console at home and start thinking about how you use Netflix. Think about a world where you start playing on your TV, you pick up your phone and keep playing on the bus, you sit at your work PC and keep playing the same game/session where it all runs on a supercomputer in the cloud and streams to your device.

So having a subscription model works, having a ton of studios making games for that subscription service makes sense.

For an independent studio, there is a lot of positives to being on that MS label. Most noticeably it reduces the risk associated with making games. For most studios, you are always just one commercial flop away from shutting down. If you get X amount every year from MS it is much easier to stay afloat than trying to raise the initial capital and ensure it is enough to fund a project that could last 3-4 years and incur serious scope creep as technology changes.

Microsoft are moving towards Xbox as a service platform, playable on every device you can think of (except Sony devices who will ban it).

Grumpypants

Grumpypants wrote: »

Microsoft higher-ups have changed the direction of the Xbox section recently. It is no longer going to focus on hardware and will now focus on software. This is why there is a sudden push to buy up studios and start making games again.

In short, they don't think we will have consoles, as we know them, in ten years. Most likely the next Xbox when it launches in 2-3 years won't even have a disk drive. After that, you will prob just buy an Xbox Controller and play via an App on your smart device. So the idea of console exclusive studios will be gone. They will be "service exclusive" and that service will be pretty universal.

Stop thinking about playing on a console at home and start thinking about how you use Netflix. Think about a world where you start playing on your TV, you pick up your phone and keep playing on the bus, you sit at your work PC and keep playing the same game/session where it all runs on a supercomputer in the cloud and streams to your device.

So having a subscription model works, having a ton of studios making games for that subscription service makes sense.

For an independent studio, there is a lot of positives to being on that MS label. Most noticeably it reduces the risk associated with making games. For most studios, you are always just one commercial flop away from shutting down. If you get X amount every year from MS it is much easier to stay afloat than trying to raise the initial capital and ensure it is enough to fund a project that could last 3-4 years and incur serious scope creep as technology changes.

We all know that apps will be the future but I can't see MS and Sony ever coming together and releasing titles on each others service. We will end up where streaming is now, with multiple streaming services coexisting. MS will still need exclusive titles in order to convince gamers that it is a better choice to Sony's offering. Also, a streaming service such as this may not be all that great for smaller studios. Sure the best of the best and a couple others will be snapped up but don't be surprised to see the future end up as something like Amazon Prime in which you have a certain catalogue of titles but then different studios have their own channel which you can pay to add onto your sub.

kunst nugget

Deleted User wrote: »

Microsoft are moving towards Xbox as a service platform, playable on every device you can think of (except Sony devices who will ban it).

No they won't. If they stopped their smart tvs and phones from having a subscription service on them that was available everywhere else, they would be shooting themselves in the foot. That would be like them producing TVs with an inability to accept Xbox consoles. That would be beyond stupid for them.

Sony could position themselves that their devices could have enhanced content with PS Now as a way of making them more attractive.

Sea of Thieves says hello

http://www.gamerevolution.com/features/364699-sea-thieves-shaping-2018-pubg