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Microsoft Closes Redfall Developer Arkane Austin, HiFi Rush Developer Tango Gameworks, and More in Devastating Cuts at Bethesda

Topher

Gold Member
You genuinely don't think that the absolute, principle reason why Xbox games don't sell anymore is because they are all available day one on a cheap subscription service?

I think the days of day one first party games on Game Pass are numbered. Clearly Satya Nadella is not ok with ABK revenue making up for the lack of growth from the rest of Microsoft Gaming. He didn't ok paying $70 billion just to cover up the segment's failings and that is what we saw in the last quarterly report. Cutting studios and reinvesting elsewhere only goes so far. The road to increased revenue for Xbox games is with sales. So I think Microsoft is going to be forced to backtrack on this subscription strategy and adopt the more traditional approach that most other publishers have always embraced.
 
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FunkMiller

Gold Member
I think the days of day one first party games on Game Pass are numbered. Clearly Satya Nadella is not ok with ABK revenue making up for the lack of growth from the rest of Microsoft Gaming. He didn't ok paying $70 billion just to cover up the segment's failings and that is what we saw in the last quarterly report. Cutting studios and reinvesting elsewhere only goes so far. The road to increased revenue for Xbox games is with sales. So I think Microsoft is going to be forced to backtrack on this subscription strategy and adopt the more traditional approach that most other publishers have already embraced.

Yep. Undoubtedly. It was always incredibly short sighted to put new games on GamePass day one.
 

XXL

Member
Just came across this image, not sure if it's been posted. But Holy fucking shit.

GM_pH9AWMAAIXLL


What a fucking disaster.
 
Eh, they'll probably make a 6-8 month schedule but I don't think games that weren't already multi-platform (the Cod's and minecrafts) launch on non-Xbox consoles day 1, at least this generation.

There shouldn't be a schedule at all. Support them so they can do day one launches as fast possible. If he can't put his ego to side and do that he's an even bigger console warrior than anyone on here
 
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Astray

Member
The more I think about it, the more I think Timdog knew something about what was coming and turned into megapony because of it lol.

You know what I'm waiting for?

Eventually, MS/Xbox will release something truly good, they can't keep fucking it up eternally, and I'm betting it may be Indiana Jones.

And all the zealots Holding the Door are gonna turn laughing mad trying to smear others with the shit they covered their faces with all these years when finally, FINALLY, Xbox gets a pure unadulterated win. And that win will erase for them all that's wrong, not that Xbox did something wrong ever in their entire history.

And they're gonna be insufferable. 😆

Some people are just impervious to their own retardness.
The funny part of this is Xbox will always find a way to wrest failure out of the jaws of victory. It's honestly inevitable at this point.

lol.....you had Ass of Can Whooping Ass of Can Whooping heaping praise on Hi Fi Rush my man. He did more to promote Hi Fi Rush than Microsoft did. Let that sink in before you start pointing fingers at people as if it is their responsibility to buy Microsoft's games. lol...what an absurd post.
I subbed to their stupid fucking service and bought the game twice.
Totoki is sharpening the Katana to punish Ass of Can Whooping Ass of Can Whooping for this disloyalty.
 

GHG

Gold Member
Even EA does it on their sub. The most cutthroat pub there is. You're wrong.

Yes, a tiered system that only has games that they publish on it.

  • You need to pay more to get day one releases via the subscription
  • They don't have to outlay exorbitant amounts of money to pad out the service with games from 3rd party publishers/developers.
Saying "you're wrong" when you're failing to outline the complete makeup of EA's subscription service doesn't make much sense.

And for what it's worth they used to offer a service that is identical to what gamepass is today, long before gamepass was a thing, however it was PC only. They decided to wind it back and simplify it to what it is today because it was costing them too much money.

 
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Nydius

Member
They want people to sub. The main issue is not enough people buying the console.

Game Pass exists across two generations of consoles, Xbox One and Xbox Series. Sales figures show the former sold 58M lifetime and the latter is up to 21M lifetime-to-date. There are only 34M Game Pass subscribers, including Game Pass Core.

Even if we account for overlap of repeat sales between console generations, only around half (or fewer) of Xbox One/Xbox Series owners have (or had) a Game Pass subscription.

So why can’t Microsoft reach the other half and get them to become paying subscribers?

Blaming hardware sales is moving the goalposts. Especially when Game Pass also exists on PC.
 

LordCBH

Member
I think the days of day one first party games on Game Pass are numbered. Clearly Satya Nadella is not ok with ABK revenue making up for the lack of growth from the rest of Microsoft Gaming. He didn't ok paying $70 billion just to cover up the segment's failings and that is what we saw in the last quarterly report. Cutting studios and reinvesting elsewhere only goes so far. The road to increased revenue for Xbox games is with sales. So I think Microsoft is going to be forced to backtrack on this subscription strategy and adopt the more traditional approach that most other publishers have always embraced.

Satya is probably going to shit a brick when CoD sales on Xbox go to near 0 if they throw it on game pass.
 

Fredrik

Member
The road to increased revenue for Xbox games is with sales. So I think Microsoft is going to be forced to backtrack on this subscription strategy and adopt the more traditional approach that most other publishers have always embraced.
Early premium edition on Steam worked for me with Starfield. I think that’s what they need to do but keep going earlier, increase the Gamepass delay to like 3 months, would be enough, tons of people will start buying the games. enthusiasts don’t like to wait.
 

XXL

Member
I get the Xs through the studios, but those games all released.
True, but 3 of 5 games released way before they even bought Bethesda and the studio's who made them are gone. The other 2 of 5 games were in development before the purchase.

It's just not a great look.
 
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Topher

Gold Member
Early premium edition on Steam worked for me with Starfield. I think that’s what they need to do but keep going earlier, increase the Gamepass delay to like 3 months, would be enough, tons of people will start buying the games. enthusiasts don’t like to wait.

I'd be in favor of this. I like getting my games on Game Pass like everyone else, but if you got a potential blockbuster on your hands then does it really make sense to let folks subscribe for a month for $10 (or $1), play the game and unsubscribe? Just doesn't seem feasible to me.
 
I'd be in favor of this. I like getting my games on Game Pass like everyone else, but if you got a potential blockbuster on your hands then does it really make sense to let folks subscribe for a month for $10 (or $1), play the game and unsubscribe? Just doesn't seem feasible to me.
Its feasible. But the reality is that its probably too cheap if you look at EA and Ubisoft premium prices. The amount of stuff you got is far better and costs less. The issue is they needed like twice the subscribers they got. They put out the best sub deal but not enough people want it. I suspect it'll end up another MS curse where they did something 10 years too early.
 
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IntentionalPun

Ask me about my wife's perfect butthole
It’s interesting because Hi-Fi Rush only had 2 million “players” in its first month (pretty terrible for Gamepass) and apparently flopped on PS5 but they seem to be causing such a visceral reaction.

MS has always had a pretty bad relationship with attracting developers and I imagine this is just going to make it worse. Their only saving grace is the industry isn’t exactly on a hiring spree but the super talented people if they no longer feel comfortable can certainly end up poached.
 

Topher

Gold Member
Its feasible. But the reality is that its probably too cheap if you look at EA and Ubisoft premium prices. The amount of stuff you got is far better and costs less. The issue is they needed like twice the subscribers they got. They put out the best sub deal but not enough people want it. I suspect it'll end up another MS curse where they did something 10 years too early.

I guess we will have a better indication next month. MS has the daunting task of making everyone see sense in their strategy going forward. If MS doubles down on Game Pass and announces day one Call of Duty then that will defintely strengthen the pro-Game Pass argument. Perhaps the thinking will be along the lines of what you are saying and they just need more subscribers to make it work. I have doubts, but obviously that doesn't mean you are wrong.
 
I guess we will have a better indication next month. MS has the daunting task of making everyone see sense in their strategy going forward. If MS doubles down on Game Pass and announces day one Call of Duty then that will defintely strengthen the pro-Game Pass argument. Perhaps the thinking will be along the lines of what you are saying and they just need more subscribers to make it work. I have doubts, but obviously that doesn't mean you are wrong.
Yeah I have no clue. They're just as likely to cancel it. I think if they keep GP going it'll be in survival mode (higher price, lower subscribers), hoping that it somehow goes viral when they got Call of Duty cloud rights back in a decade plus.
 

Nydius

Member
Early premium edition on Steam worked for me with Starfield. I think that’s what they need to do but keep going earlier, increase the Gamepass delay to like 3 months, would be enough, tons of people will start buying the games. enthusiasts don’t like to wait.

Maybe, but I’m not totally convinced on the bold part. I have about 10 friends on my Xbox friends list who I met through Diablo 3, and they were all hyped for Diablo 4. Only one of them bought the game at launch. The rest… waited.

Checking my friends list today, ALL of them have played it now. Most of them didn’t get their first achievement until after it dropped on Game Pass.

Enthusiasts do wait. For Game Pass, or price drops, or major patches, or GOTY editions. 🤷
 

IntentionalPun

Ask me about my wife's perfect butthole
Its feasible. But the reality is that its probably too cheap if you look at EA and Ubisoft premium prices. The amount of stuff you got is far better and costs less. The issue is they needed like twice the subscribers they got. They put out the best sub deal but not enough people want it. I suspect it'll end up another MS curse where they did something 10 years too early.
I personally just don’t think subscription model works well for gaming. Massive parts of your audience only play a few games a year with a decent chance some or all won’t even be on a service. They don’t have interest in trying random games they weren’t going to buy as time is limited and games are an investment in time.

Contrast that with putting on a movie or a TV show that requires far less time and attention than learning a new game.

Been saying the same thing for years on here. The model works only at a massive scale that I don’t ever see being reached, or at a price that prohibits that scale.

I don’t see it as “getting in too early” I see it as contrary to how games are consumed. Same with game streaming.
 
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MethodRed

Neo Member
I believe Hollywood loosing alot money on gaming companies, they push Microsoft to buy as many companies they can and shut them down.
 
I personally just don’t think subscription model works well for gaming. Massive parts of your audience only play a few games a year with a decent chance some or all won’t even be on a service. They don’t have interest in trying random games they weren’t going to buy as time is limited and games are an investment in time.

Contrast that with putting on a movie or a TV show that requires far less time and attention than learning a new game.

Been saying the same thing for years on here. The model works only at a massive scale that I don’t ever see being reached, or at a price that prohibits that scale.
I don't really think that's the case. I think we just never had a truly successful sub. The games would adapt to the distribution model, like they do now for retail. Retail model incentivizes more bloated and large games to help make that steep upfront cost worth it. Sub model could just as easily encourage more 4-6 hour games. An average gamer could beat a game a week without issue. Just did this recently with Lil Gator, Rewinder, Botany Manor, etc. We just didn't see subs take off enough to start making a space for less bloated games. But that's my theory anyway. There's nothing that different about games from other media.
 

IDKFA

I am Become Bilbo Baggins
Theoretically, ID Software is one shareholder meeting away from being shut down.

Not id? Surly they're not at risk?

I swear, if Microsoft touch id software then I'll have a blood feud with Microsoft. We'll be enemies until the end of time. I'll make sure my ancestors generations from now will hate Microsoft with the burning hatred of a thousand stars.

Don't. Fucking. Touch. id Software.
 

Fredrik

Member
I'd be in favor of this. I like getting my games on Game Pass like everyone else, but if you got a potential blockbuster on your hands then does it really make sense to let folks subscribe for a month for $10 (or $1), play the game and unsubscribe? Just doesn't seem feasible to me.
Gamepass wasn’t an option for me on Starfield tbh, I wanted it on Steam for mods and it would’ve been more expensive to pay for a sub anyway since I still play it.
For Hellblade 2 I might go for a 14 day $1 sub if it’s short. Unless there are some spicy mods through Steam!
 

IntentionalPun

Ask me about my wife's perfect butthole
I don't really think that's the case. I think we just never had a truly successful sub. The games would adapt to the distribution model, like they do now for retail. Retail model incentivizes more bloated and large games to help make that steep upfront cost worth it. Sub model could just as easily encourage more 4-6 hour games. An average gamer could beat a game a week without issue. Just did this recently with Lil Gator, Rewinder, Botany Manor, etc. We just didn't see subs take off enough to start making a space for less bloated games. But that's my theory anyway. There's nothing that different about games from other media.
The best selling and most played games are long games for the most part. Multiplayer games people play for years on end are the biggest revenue generators.

The average gamer isn’t interested in playing a bunch of 4-6 hour games, that’s pretty damn clear from sales numbers for games. These are also games that often only cost $15-20 to buy in the first place.
 

FewRope

Member
Only 2 months? Those are rookie numbers my friend.

Most of us are lifers and proud (not that kind of proud).
You literally cannot have a normal conversation in that hellhole, the worse thing is that the users are the ones reporting you because mods are too lazy to scan all threads
 
I think the next one to go down is 100% inXile, I dont see then survive after the eventual flop of Clockwork
Yeah, maybe. They're at least not making an isometric game. WRPGs sell. They may get put on a bigger IP if they think its worth it. Game could also find an audience on PC. It's not like people should be writing the game off already. Buy it if you want a new IP and think it looks good, or subscribe.
 
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I think the next one to go down is 100% inXile, I dont see then survive after the eventual flop of Clockwork
Yeah, thats the most concerning.

Obsidian I think is safe.

Its the smaller sister companies that will go down.

Shame, Wasteland 3 is one of the best crpg I have played.
 

IDKFA

I am Become Bilbo Baggins
Only 2 months? Those are rookie numbers my friend.

Most of us are lifers and proud (not that kind of proud).

True story.

I once made a joke account on Ree to see how far I could go. I made this thread describing my ideal world and made it as far-left and dystopian as possible thinking they'd lap it up.

But no. It was too far even for them. I requested a ban after that.

Edit

Took out the link.
 
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FewRope

Member
Yeah, maybe. They're at least not making an isometric game. WRPGs sell. They may get put on a bigger IP if they think its worth it. Game could also find an audience on PC. It's not like people should be writing the game off already. Buy it if you want a new IP and think it looks good, or subscribe.
Ninja Theory is going to release a cinematic game like God of War (not the same but still) that should be way more hyped than it is and its probably being to be killed this very same summer, Microsoft just doesnt care about any game they are making
 
I think the next one to go down is 100% inXile, I dont see then survive after the eventual flop of Clockwork
I think Undead Labs is more likely. Tons of bad reports have come from there. The Intiative could also be closed soon if Perfect Dark is cancelled.
 
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