DANGERMAN Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 Wait, it was certified 4 years ago? Presumably it's nothing then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maf Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 Sorry I didn’t write it properly. 5 months before the Series consoles came out in 2020, they had a dev kit serial number certified by this same agency Now this year they’ve got another dev kit series number registered, which probably means a new thing on the way Although watching a DF video yesterday, Xbox said there would be no Pro console equivalent this gen. So either they changed their mind, or this is some kind of handheld console. Or nothing. But this is the rumour Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DANGERMAN Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 Ah ok. I was watching a DF thing yesterday and they said there's a Microsoft handheld coming. I don't know if that's based on anything concrete or they've just decided there is, but maybe it's that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maf Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 Toys for Bob who split from Microsoft to go independent, now reached an agreement to make their first independent game for Microsoft https://www.windowscentral.com/gaming/xbox/exclusive-xbox-has-reached-an-agreement-with-toys-for-bob-for-their-first-independent-game Quote What you need to know Recently, Microsoft acquired Activision-Blizzard-King in a blockbuster $72 billion deal that gave the software giant control over franchises like Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, and Candy Crush Saga. Included in the acquisition was legendary studio Toys for Bob, who have worked on franchises like Skylanders, Spyro the Dragon, and Crash Bandicoot, across a 30-year history. Last month, Microsoft and Toys for Bob agreed to part ways with the latter spinning out into an independent company. Microsoft retains ownership of Skylanders, Crash Bandicoot, Spyro, and other properties associated with Activision. Our sources have confirmed that Toys for Bob has now finalized an agreement with Xbox to fund their first title. Another business thing I don’t really understand. I guess it’s cheaper to part fund a project than run a whole studio? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maryokutai Posted March 25 Share Posted March 25 I don't really understand the nuances either. From my perspective it's actually not that good of a deal for MS because it's way more committal, but on the other hand it's a fantastic opportunity for TfB because not only are they sort-of in safe blanket for as long as that deal runs (presumably around five years, considering current dev cycles), it also allows them to use that time to maybe have a smaller secondary team build and pitch prototypes for the next thing with a different partner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maf Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 Phil Spencer is open to Epic Store front being on Xbox 🤔 Feel like they’re in spaghetti at the wall mode. Also, I don’t put much stock in this as it was one guy having conversations at GDC, then talking about it on a podcast. But apparently developers/publishers are questioning why even make Xbox versions of games because console sales have flatlined in Europe https://www.eurogamer.net/majority-of-xbox-games-will-come-to-ps5-at-some-point-its-claimed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maryokutai Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 We've all been saying Series S is going to be a problem down the line. If Sony and MS had started this gen on equal footing then it probably would have been a smart idea to increase the own install base quicker with a cheaper alternative than the competition has on offer. But if you're playing catch-up – and they were always going to after Xbox One – then it's just additional workload for developers for very little payoff. Now I'm pulling these numbers out of my butt of course, but why spend six months optimising for an SKU that 15 million people have when you can spend 12 months for a Switch version that has a potential customer base ten times that size? As for games not selling that much, that's just a knock-on effect of Gamepass and also something I've been a bit afraid of for a while now. I know Phil initially said that they noticed an increase in spending alongside Gamepass but with the amount of 'Gamepass when?' comments online I kinda believe that era is over. If of course this is a general sentiment and not just anecdotal stuff from a couple of disgruntled studios that had an unlucky release. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DANGERMAN Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 Well, based on here as a sample (which it shouldn't be used for obviously 😅), yeah. I'll likely never buy a Microsoft game again because I have GP on pc. I suppose stuff like Doom I probably will, but it does seem like everyone who has access to Game Pass on here doesn't buy the game* if they can play it there *on Xbox Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maf Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 I bought P3 Reload but on PS5 So I’m not helping 😁 That’s the point in the service, though, right? When it comes to 3rd party games, honestly if these games didn’t go to GP I wouldn’t play them anyway. Too many games to buy stuff I’m not sure will be good Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DANGERMAN Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 Yeah, we don't owe anyone anything. But as a publisher, I don't think the deal is so good that it works as anything other than supplementary income. I'll bet some people do amazingly out of it, but for others the money coming in mustn't cover the cost of development Pure speculation obviously, it just seemed like Microsoft (and Epic with their exclusives) were always going to bump up against this issue if they didn't gain some traction Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maf Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 More speculation from me, but I think for some JPN companies like Sega and Square, MS are effectively paying for the Xbox version so they can help build/prove there’s an audience on the platform in hopes JPN companies will see there’s a significant audience on the platform being under served. I think MS are really trying to push that with these day 1 Atlus releases and Yakuza and Mana releases. I bet FF14 is too expensive for MS to pay for in the same way, but they’ve convinced Square to give it a go so future FF games come to Xbox Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maryokutai Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 Atlus stuff seems to be basically defaulting to Gamepass at this point, so they're definitely paying for that at least. As for game sales, Microsoft has also done a pretty decent job of alienating people who like buying physical releases. I realise this is not as big a market as it once was, but I think Sony still sells roughly half of their games on disc and Nintendo even the majority of them. My spending on Xbox games has gone down significantly since they stopped not pressing complete versions on disc. It's their business model, they have to find a way to get it to work, but it's kind of going backwards, isn't it? Their messaging is that they want more people to play their games and here I am moving away from their ecosystem because I don't like what they're doing. They should embrace (uh, bad word these days) every aspect of content delivery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maf Posted March 31 Share Posted March 31 Here was an interesting story I saw this week about indie funding via Gamepass and Epic https://www.pcgamer.com/games/roguelike/the-gold-rush-is-over-slay-the-spire-and-darkest-dungeon-devs-say-that-big-game-pass-and-epic-exclusive-deals-have-dried-up-for-indie-devs/ Quote 'The gold rush is over:' Slay the Spire and Darkest Dungeon devs say that big Game Pass and Epic exclusive deals have dried up for indie devs In an interview at last week's Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, the developers behind indie sensations Slay the Spire and Darkest Dungeon said that the deal some small developers have come to rely on for funding in recent years—like Epic Game Store exclusives and Xbox Game Pass—are no longer what they once were. "I talked to at least five small teams, like 35 [members] and under, during GDC, and they're like: Cuts, cuts, cuts, funding canceled, talks that were going on for a year, canceled," said Casey Yano, the co-founder of Slay the Spire studio Mega Crit. "It sounds like it's shit. We're definitely very privileged to be able to self-fund. [Otherwise] I'd be very, very, very scared right now." ... Though DD director Chris Bourassa said that Microsoft's deals for getting games on Game Pass have "come down in scope" since the subscription service began. "Way down," Yano added. "So has Epic," Bourassa said. "The Gold Rush is over. I come from the Northwest Territories. The town I'm from was built on gold, and then they found diamonds further north. Maybe another paradigm shift is waiting for us, but I definitely think the scale of the deals I'm hearing about is significantly dimishese from the big swinging days. Certainly we got our Epic [deal] at the right time." I wonder what that means for the budget of Gamepass going forward. Is this finally where the service falls off? I've been saying for ages it's best to make the most of GP in these golden days before they hike the price too high or the quality of the curation drops. Maybe this is the start of it. I wish there were more details on the Gamepass deals for indies. It would be very interesting to see what they used to be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maf Posted April 6 Share Posted April 6 https://www.eurogamer.net/gears-6-will-be-announced-in-june-leak-suggests Rumour - Gears 6 to be announced in the summer. Feels right. It’s been a long time since Gears 5 now. Would be very excited. I think Gears 5 is the best one they ever made, so more of that would be great. Especially after such a long break. Coincidentally I’ve been thinking about playing Gears 5 again. I never did my collectible or Insane run like I do in these games so might go back and finish that soon. Also strikes me we’re only 2 months away from “E3” season. Oh, boy. Big time video game stuff coming soon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nag Posted April 6 Share Posted April 6 2019... so yeah, I'm ready for a new one... and for fucksake where's that Marcus Fenix collection that keeps being rumoured. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfnick Posted April 6 Share Posted April 6 I loved Gears 5 but I just can’t muster any excitement for another one at all. Hope that changes when it’s shown. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maf Posted April 6 Share Posted April 6 https://www.windowscentral.com/gaming/xbox/exclusive-xbox-president-sarah-bond-has-set-up-a-new-team-dedicated-to-game-preservation-and-forward-compatibility Spoiler EXCLUSIVE: Xbox President Sarah Bond has set up a new team dedicated to game preservation and forward compatibility What you need to know Per emails received by Windows Central, confirmed by Microsoft as genuine, Xbox President Sarah Bond recently briefed her team on various topics. In the emails, Sarah Bond reiterated Microsoft's plans to build new Xbox hardware focused on delivering "the biggest technical leap ever in a generation." Sarah Bond also revealed that Microsoft has set up a dedicated team to future-proof our digital Xbox game libraries across future hardware paradigms to further "build on [Xbox's] strong history of delivering backward compatibility." Additionally, it was revealed that Xbox has become Diablo 4's most prominent platform since the game's inclusion into Xbox Game Pass. I wonder what the plans are for the next Xbox. Imo, even though I understood the strategy for this generation - play on value for money and give people lots of options - I think it’s proven to be flawed and not something that gamers seem to want or care about. I think there’s a lot going on with why Xbox came last this gen between exclusives, reputation, slow production, etc. but on paper it made sense to me, especially Gamepass, and I thought it would work. But clearly it has not. So this news about focusing on preserving games “across future hardware paradigms” and stuff like that. Either they’re going to try this again in a different way or have not learned. I would have thought build a great Xbox, but have games more ready to go for the first couple of years, and then start expanding options to bring in people once demonstrated Xbox is the place to play great games. But again it seems to be about just providing an Xbox service wherever they can put it. I think they have to convince people to want to engage with Xbox first. And I think they have to do that by building a great console + great games. It still works for PlayStation and Nintendo. Also framing it as preservation is a bit manipulative of the spirit of game preservation, but it’s technically true so it’s fine. Hopefully one expansion they make is features for games like FPS boost and such. So games just aren’t preserved but like PC can scale with the new console. I dunno. Even though this is actually good news story and I don’t want to be cynical about it. And maybe the vision becomes clearer in time when we see what this new Xbox is and what makes it different. But I can’t help it, the language used here sounds like the same thing they just tried. I messed up and put the news in a spoiler box and not a quote box and I can’t edit the post. My bad Quote EXCLUSIVE: Xbox President Sarah Bond has set up a new team dedicated to game preservation and forward compatibility What you need to know Per emails received by Windows Central, confirmed by Microsoft as genuine, Xbox President Sarah Bond recently briefed her team on various topics. In the emails, Sarah Bond reiterated Microsoft's plans to build new Xbox hardware focused on delivering "the biggest technical leap ever in a generation." Sarah Bond also revealed that Microsoft has set up a dedicated team to future-proof our digital Xbox game libraries across future hardware paradigms to further "build on [Xbox's] strong history of delivering backward compatibility." Additionally, it was revealed that Xbox has become Diablo 4's most prominent platform since the game's inclusion into Xbox Game Pass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maryokutai Posted April 6 Share Posted April 6 Probably a way to extinguish some fires around the insecurity of Xbox's future in their fanbase and the expected mid-generation switch to being digital-only. Coming out and not only reaffirming they let you keep all your stuff going forward but also emphasising they're putting in extra work is just kind of the PR way to balance that out. Now Sarah just has to explain to me where I have to put my Spec Ops disc in the next Xbox because that game isn't available digitally anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfnick Posted April 6 Share Posted April 6 Objectively a great thing. As long as there’s still a Xbox in 5 years or so anyway. Hopefully means they’ll start getting even more old OG Xbox and360 games working going forward again too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DANGERMAN Posted April 6 Share Posted April 6 If they made every Xbox game playable, including on disc, then I'd be more interested in picking one up This news though could be a mixed blessing. Possibly Xbox going with Nvidea rather than AMD, and so needing more work to continue support. Or, based entirely on speculation I heard the other day, not anything more than that, that they're going back to the cloud idea to get that biggest leap they mentioned. Personally I think the biggest leap comment was just marketing business nothingness, and not something I'd expect to hold them too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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