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[Clear]

Yeah they can, but realistically if you consider most studios will put out 2 or 3 max titles per gen... its seems likely to me that its going to take a few years.

Honestly though, I don't see it. To me their little spree of buying devs just spoke of their need to have sufficient "product" to keep the wheels of GamePass oiled, not any great vision for the future. They are still going to lead with the same triumvirate of Halo, Gears, and Forza until the end of time.

 

[Bolivar687]

 

[Mattyp]

My biggest fear is that they copy Sony and start churning out Naughty Dog clones.

This. If the initiative wants to go that route cool. Any more? No thanks.

I've put more hours into any single one of Microsofts multiplayer games this gen than I have of a walk through of Uncharted. It's fun with friends for hours on end, I don't want much more.

 

[Sota4077]

Xbox has has a disaster of output this gen. some gems for sure but way below what I expected (I really wanted a Fable. How can they go a whole gen without Fable!?).

But I'm optimistic about next gen. the studios are there and so is the hunger. Fingers crossed!

We didn't go the whole gen without Fable. They had that shitty Fable Legends or whatever that was canceled before it came out and then they closed the doors at Lionhead. But that game I still put on the shoulders of Don Mattrick cause that was the first 2 years of the console.

 

[Sota4077]

Their 1st party has been a dumpster fire for 10 years now. Even if they turn it around their 1st party are now multiplatform. I wouldn't be surprised to see them launch on ps5 especially if it dominates in sales again.

Lol they're not going to launch their games on PS5. You are delusional if you think that is happening. If there is a Minecraft 2 or something that may end up on the PS5, but everything else is staying in the Xbox ecosystem I guarantee it.

 

[DryvBy]

5 years ago, Phil was supposed to do that. He was the chosen one. He did a mighty fine job of bringing nothing to the table but people still have faith in him. I bought an Xbox One X and never saw games coming out that were just haves for the system through their first party. He's done nothing of importance to strengthen the brand outside of bring the few first parties they have to PC, which... I just don't understand.

I love Microsoft. But on the PC. Age of Empires 4 looks absolutely amazing and the AOE remasters are wonderful. Maybe they can bring back NFL Fever for a new generation as an arcade game?

In all seriousness, they have Crimson Skies, I'm certain they could do a new MechAssault game, maybe try Bruce Force again, even give Knack a run for it's money with Blinx 3? At least they tried a couple of new things but they all felt like really bad and bland tech demos. Crackdown 3 was the power of the cloud and I never could even stand a couple of hours with it. And Sea of Thieves, even post patch, was awful.

I wish whoever ran them when it first started was back in charge. Halo was a MAC exclusive that looked a lot different and was redone for their platform. The first time I played that was the first time I wanted a console more than a PC. And the OG Xbox library was incredible. Now we're just stick with Phil and people making excuses for him.

 

[too much eslim]

That would be better than Halo, Gears and Forza tbh

No it wouldn't.

 

[ZywyPL]

New gen, new studios, sounds like a perfect occasion for new IPs.

 

[Filippos]

I think they already did.
According to metacritic at least, Microsoft has been the 7th best publisher for the last year based on their metacritic:

505 Games, Activision, Nintendo 2019’s Best Publishers Says Metacritic, Sony Not in Top 20

Who published the best games of 2019? 505 Games, Activision, and Nintendo excelled, but others like Ubisoft, Sony, and Bethesda disappointed.

wccftech.com

Sony wasn't even in the top 20 lol

so, Yeah nextgen Output will be way better

 

[ph33rknot]

That would be better than Halo, Gears and Forza tbh

In your opinion bro

 

[SaltyMcSalt]

I hope they are not going for as many narrative 3rd person action adventures as Sony since i don't like this Netflix stories for hours with generic gameplay so much. One or two ok. I have no problem with some smaller AA games as long as the diversity of genres is good.

 

[Little Chicken]

I guess purchasing Obsidian, Ninja Theory and Double Fine, among others, was just for forum list wars.

 

[Flintty]

We didn't go the whole gen without Fable. They had that shitty Fable Legends or whatever that was canceled before it came out and then they closed the doors at Lionhead. But that game I still put on the shoulders of Don Mattrick cause that was the first 2 years of the console.

Erm. So yeah, we didn't get a Fable game this gen
I tried the Fable Legends Beta. It was a bit shit. And it was never finished. So yes, we went the whole gen without a Fable game, sadly.

 

[Nemesis Prime]

Not if they don't stop with the co-op crap. Grounded is the same crap as stateof decay. They need to have a higher standard of qaulity and they need more narrative single player games. It really is that simple

Pretty sure most of these coop games you're thinking of were in production before Microsoft purchased those studios.

Would you prefer they cancel them?

 

[Badlucktroll]

I hope they come up with something thats like Borderlands.

 

[Sota4077]

Erm. So yeah, we didn't get a Fable game this gen
I tried the Fable Legends Beta. It was a bit shit. And it was never finished. So yes, we went the whole gen without a Fable game, sadly.

Well yeah we're arguing semantics here but they did intend on a Fable game coming out this generation. It's just that like you said the game was shit because the leadership directed it to be a shitty game and it tanked the studio which sucks.

 

[Hobbygaming]

No it wouldn't.

In my opinion, it would

 

[daninthemix]

They have lots of studios but only a couple seem to have the funding and manpower that all of Sony's studios have - and that's The Collective, PlayGround and 343.

 

[HaveButOneLife]

Some of them haven't developed games for Microsoft exclusively yet TBF.

 

[Flintty]

Well yeah we're arguing semantics here but they did intend on a Fable game coming out this generation. It's just that like you said the game was shit because the leadership directed it to be a shitty game and it tanked the studio which sucks.

Yup. I hope they deliver the goods with Fable 4

 

[Muddy]

Doubt they can match Sonys quality this coming generation . Lets not forget what happened to RARE. Obsidian and Ninja theory are good studios but not in the same league as ND, Santa Monica, Insomniac and Sucker Punch. Lets be honest here.

 

[Hayabusabruh]

Pretty sure most of these coop games you're thinking of were in production before Microsoft purchased those studios.

Would you prefer they cancel them?

Yes.

 

[Sota4077]

Yup. I hope they deliver the goods with Fable 4

The rumor is the Playground Games were working on it, but then a week or so ago I saw something, a rumor of course, that Playground are working on a game that is not Fable. So who the hell knows if it is even a thing.

I think for Microsoft to come out of the gate screaming what they do is:

1. Rare are working on a modern more gritty/darker Perfect Dark reboot. Like Splinter Cell meets The Last of Us type thing.
2. Forza does what Forza has always done and blow the graphical fidelity out of the water.
3. Hellblade 2 continues on track.
4. The Coalition shelves the Gears franchise for a few years and makes Microsoft's answer for Horizon Zero Dawn. They dabbled in open world in Gears 5 so I think that might actually be a thing to do an open world 3rd person story game.
5. Someone reboots Fable. It stays the cheeky humored game, but the graphics make a big jump forward and it goes for more realism.

If they have that for their first year in addition to whatever Obsidian are working on I think Microsoft make the case for their 1st party titles being back on track. Assuming they do not suck with review scores.

 

[Hideous Snake]

Some of them haven't developed games for Microsoft exclusively yet TBF.

True. Thats why we have to wait for an outcome. I'm not saying they'll nail it from the beginning but at least they acknowledged their biggest weakness and thats the first step towards the process in working on it

 

[Flintty]

All of this sounds perfect to me

 

[-Troid-]

They gotta put their new studios to work on stuff that matches their respective talents. Get an Obsidian RPG going, and Hellblade 2 looks like it could be good, so they seem to have an inkling of doing that already. I'm cautiously optimistic.

 

[MadchesterManc]

Potentially, depending on their overall focus. I remember the OG Xbox when Microsoft had to come out swinging was lavished with some amazing exclusives, the first few years of the Xbox 360 was the same too. It's only really been this current generation with their focus on services in the beginning that has seen a lacklustre output. With the amount of studios they have acquired recently, we should at the very least see more variety in their exclusives

 

[mejin]

Compared to playstation first party they will always be behind, but there is no doubt they can do better since it is not possible to be even worse than it already is

 

[drganon]

With the amount of new studios they got, it's possible. They can't have most of them make online multiplayer focused stuff though.

 

[dilbag]

I hope they do I want real competition next gen. At least they seem to be headed in the right direction and Gears tactics and hellblade 2 seem like a push to break the mold they are known for.

Hopefully halo infinite helps put halo back on the map, halo 5 was lackluster IMO and the single player was terrible.

 

[Hideous Snake]

Compared to playstation first party they will always be behind, but there is no doubt they can do better since it is not possible to be even worse than it already is

No doubt. They need to put more effort than Sony to turn around their current state. Not going to happen instantly or whenever the new-gen starts. It needs a lot of time

 

[Entroyp]

It will take time. Not every developer will be able produce great games on the first year or two. 3-5 years down the road and we might have a big number of quality first party from MS.

 

[Manwithoutfear]

Not very impressive this gen compared to playstation. But, they've acquired lots of studios and they didn't hold back when building their next gen console. First party output is the area where they still need to make gains.

will they?

I think they absolutely will turn things around compared to what they offered for the "one". Will it stack up to sony........ ehhhhh hard to say. Sony has a HUGE first party lineup and they have support from so many Japanese studios that make amazing games that msoft just doesnt have. So i do think the xbox will have better and more exclusives than ever, just not more than Sony.

 

[CC-Tron]

They should be able match and surpass Sony if they choose to. Many former Sony top devs are working for MS Game Studios now. Also former Rockstar talent.

 

[diffusionx]

They can, but it's really hard to do. Look at Scalebound for a worst case scenario. What is bad for them is that even their Halo/Gears/Forza triumvirate is looking pretty shaky these days. The games just aren't as good as they used to be.

I worry that they are moving to a Netflix-type quantity over quality thing just to get a steady cadence of 80 Metacritic games out to keep people subscribed to GamePass.

 

[LittleBusters]

They can, but it's really hard to do. Look at Scalebound for a worst case scenario. What is bad for them is that even their Halo/Gears/Forza triumvirate is looking pretty shaky these days. The games just aren't as good as they used to be.

I worry that they are moving to a Netflix-type quantity over quality thing just to get a steady cadence of 80 Metacritic games out to keep people subscribed to GamePass.

No more Scalebounds, that was Phil's big mistake. Every executive is entitled to one.

 

[Allnamestakenlol]

No way. They are doomed. DOOMED.

 

[Thavash]

My biggest fear is that they copy Sony and start churning out Naughty Dog clones.

Ugh please no - they actually had a good vibe going during Original Xbox / 360 days

 

[CC-Tron]

Ugh please no - they actually had a good vibe going during Original Xbox / 360 days

They'll probably be one studio that puts out games similar to ND. Probably the Initiative.

 

[Goliathy]

damn. Can't wait for flight simulator. Like a dream coming true. I waited so long for this.

 

[Hostile_18]

My biggest fear is that they copy Sony and start churning out Naughty Dog clones.

That's my biggest dream

Obviously it's all a matter of taste but I LOVE third person cinematic games so in my eyes MS would literally have to cover so much ground its impossible exclusive wise. However just a marked increase in output quality would be a good goal to aim for this generation. Something in line with the first half of the 360 gen.

 

[Yoboman]

They've invested in a lot of developers you forgot even existed when they were third party

Still lacking any top tier studios

 

[cireza]

Looking at Phil Spencer's track record, with BC promised BC delivered, best hardware promised and best hardware delivered.

He promised to deliver on games so he is going to bring the goods.

 

[Team Andromeda]

Hard to say. Microsoft is not a "creative" company but hopefully the studios they bought will be allowed to make their own decisions.

I love it when people say that. Both MS and SONY are far more creative than Nintendo; who just turns out endless sequels to the same old games, other than Splatoon and Arms for the last 2 gens
Both SONY and MS look to bring in new IP each gen, but the trouble is the fans of systems also expect and want sequels to their fav games. Its something SEGA didn't do enough with the Saturn and DC


Without the silly focus on Kinect and hopefully a focus on both multiplayer and single player. The games will be good. I hope going forward MS looks to has innovative with LIVE features like it was for the 360 ( able to see friends log in, what games they're playing, gamer points Ect), Look to bring back stuff like LIVE Arcade and look to work with SEGA and Fromsoftare more like they did with the OG Xbox

RARE, Double Fine, Ninja Theory, Obsidian, The Coalition, Playground Games, know who made good games when all is said and done

 

[existensmaximum]

I highly doubt it, but I really hope so! It would be so cool if they would release as good exclusives as for the 360.

 

[Rockondevil]

I'd love to see some of the old games I loved come back like Brute Force, Fuzion Frenzy, Jet Set Radio Future, Age of Empires (now that we have keyboard support), Fable (a real one) and Viva Piñata.
I'm sure there are others people loved that they'd like to come back. Microsoft does own some good IP, they just need to start developing it.

Though I am happy to have new stuff, as long as it's not garbage. Same goes if they pick up old IP's, don't make it garbage (looking at you Crackdown and Fable).

90% of my gaming is third party, but I'd like the remainder to be as good as it once was.

 

[SGRU]

If the question is "are we going to see games as good as Spider-Man, God Of War or The Last Of Us on Xbox?" The answer is definitely no. Not in the next two to four years.

If the question is "are we going to see exclusives games on Xbox that makes it worth it to buy the console?" The answer is maybe. Do you have enough time for playing al the games you want during the year? In my case is a clear NO.

Having industry defining games like the games mentioned above takes more than money. You need to have a correct policy with the studios, you need to have a good picture of what the people is demanding and you need to have taste. Microsoft doesn't have any of these.

Xbox is going to be a great platform in this generation, there's no doubt about that, but most of us are going to be happier with a Sony console, for a lot of reasons. What Microsoft needs is to make huge buyouts and I'm not talking about small studios, even talented ones. I'm talking about buying CAPCOM, EA, Nintendo. I'm talking about making a truly earth-shaking acquisition.

 

[SGRU]

BTW, I'm just talking about exclusives. There are a lot of reasons for preferring a Xbox. Some people prioritize GamePass, better third party versions... Some people just prioritize exclusives.

 

[MilkyJoe]

I just hope they don't buy into the "people only want 3td person Walkie Talkies"

 

[mcjmetroid]

Microsoft have said numerous times they dont tell their studios what they can or cant make, devs have come out and said the same numerous times. If people dont believe that, then its down to them. Its like that new Bleeding Edge game, its not for me lol but people keep saying Microsoft forced them to make it, even though the devs have denied that, and said it was in development long before Microsoft bought them, which can be backed up by a dev post on Steam from 2 or 3 years ago where they responded to user asking what other stuff they are working on, and one of the games was a Fortnite style MP hero shooter.

I believe this.

With the exception of maybe rare with the kinect sports games. I would say they had free reign.

Who in their right mind would force them to make Viva pianate