Game News 2.0

I think there's more to the debate than fan boys throwing a hissy fit.

Gamers aren't coming to xbox so they're bringing the games to the gamers on other platforms. I'm not going to burn my xbox, but its clearly not good news.

I know you mean the console but I am looking forward to the revamp of Sega games. I like the new art/animation style we've seen so far.

Tamagotchi gets back in fashion.

Gonna party like it's 1999.

That's not what it is. I don't have any outraged influencers in my feeds so I can't comment on that, I'm sure it's out there no doubt but to say that is what the debate is all about is misleading.

The concern is that it things are so bad that they can't even sell their own games on their own platform and have to take their games to other platforms. Gamers won't come to xbox, so they'll take the games to them on PS and Nintendo. Things do not bode well. That is it, nothing more.

We can speculate it is the beginning of the end but its all speculation. One thing is for sure, sales are not good and things are not well and it is not a good thing despite people trying to say it doesn't mean anything. Who cares if PS players get to play Xbox games? That's not the point, at all.

Out of curiosity, what was the last truly essential Xbox exclusive? Actually, come to think of it, what was the last truly essential PS exclusive? God of War, maybe?

A more pertinent question might be 'what is the next big "console exclusive" for each system?' I'm genuinely struggling to think of any so-called system sellers coming to either platform for the rest of this year!

Pretty sure Rebirth is PS5 exclusive until June next year.

It's also not just a case of what's coming soon, but what is expected in the future. Sony Santa Monica working on a solo Kratos GoW sequel set in Midgard, a spin off feating Atreus (possibly Miles Morales style spin off) and a unrelated untitled 3rd game. Insomnic working on Wolverine and no doubt more Spiderman, along with more Ratchet and Clank at some point. Sucker Punch no doubt working on Ghost of Tsushima 2, and have the excellent Infamous and Sly series they can "easily" update and re-release for easy money. Naughty Dog will surely get 3 more re-releases out of the 3 games they've made in the last 10 years...

Sony/PS have not just created excellent exclusives (and console sellers imo), they've also fostered a future to look forward to, because these studios have proven they release quality. I can't say the same for MS, Forza is getting middling reviews, Starfield isn't the big hoo-ha they said it would be. And now their exclusives are coming to PS, they're really not paiting a picture to make you want to buy into their hardware at least.

So while I could see MS going the route of services only, ie: Gamepass on anything, it would have to be a limited version if it was ever to come to PS. The current ones they support, Ubi, EA, etc are specific to their own games, while Gamepass is a library of everyones so not the same. As was said above, you'll never get Netflix having to allow Prime releases, and vice versa.

Why is that a concern or is that a bad thing for anyone other than Microsoft? Bringing their games to more gamers is good for the consumer surely. And it’s not like Microsoft are struggling for cash, they’re more than getting by.

Competition is good. If Microsoft were to completely dump Xbox (which is probably not happening) that means Sony could get complacent with the next console sure. But it’s not like Nintendo don’t exist and within a year they should have a new console on the market, while you have hardware like the Steam Deck growing in market share too. And if Sony really slipped up that would give an opening for someone else to come in.

And given it’s the games that truly matter (and hardware is “good enough” these days), you could apply the above argument and say maybe Bethesda and Arkane would have put out better games last year if they had to compete with Naughty Dog and Insomniac.

And ultimately that’s where the “competition is good” argument falls down for me as Microsoft are a uniquely anti-competition company in every sector they enter. When it comes to gaming that has involved buying out vast chunks of the industry and forcing creators to stop making their games for other platforms which just reduces competition. A reversal in that tactic can only be a good thing for consumers in my eyes. And given the side effects of these huge corporate consolidations is usually the leaching of vast amounts of cash to people like Kotick while thousands of workers on the ground get laid off, it’s probably good for the industry too.

At its simplest, Microsoft cannot sell enough games on its own platforms and they must publish their games on rival platforms in order to make their games profitable.

I get that it is a trillion dollar company and surely they have enough profit. Its not a factor in the debate really. If games aren't profitable, they'll stop making the games. We've seen many examples of that over the past year.

Sony's only competitor (Nintendo is not a competitor, but that's for another debate) unable to compete is in no way good for gamers.

That's the argument at its.mosy basic level without going into any speculation, with the exception that games coming to PS is still technically speculation. But it is safe to say its happening and if it is happening it is bad for gamers, most of all PS gamers ironically. Because Sony are ruthless bustards that will rip off their consumers to the hilt at every given opportunity. And there is no bigger opportunity than this.

Do not read this with any tone of fan boy outrage because I am neither a fan boy or outraged. I'm mainly a PC gamer actually and lately my Xbox is mainly a moonlight streaming client. But I value Microsofts contribution to gaming, greatly.

I think when Fortnite introduced the Lego, Racing and Festival game experiences they were showing that it's not just a battle royale game it's more a hub to different experiences. There will probably be a lot more Disney collabs in Fortnite at least. Unreal engine is probably being used outside games with Disney. Just saw this too