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[IbizaPocholo]

Phil Spencer Doesn't Think That Cloud Systems Will Fully Replace Traditional Consoles Just Yet

The cloud is "inevitable", he says, but there's still plenty of room for standard consoles.

www.gamespot.com

GameSpot recently spoke with Spencer about a number of topics, including how he sees xCloud fitting into Xbox's repertoire. He also laid out how he thinks xCloud will work in an industry that's traditionally orbited around consoles in the home, and how new technology will change things going forward.

"It's one of the directions the industry is headed," Spencer said. "To me, it's about what you as a gamer want to do, and I'm not trying to tell you that owning a box that plays video games is a bad thing or that somehow that's not needed.

"I think that the cloud inevitability as part of gaming is absolutely true," he continued. "But we have more compute devices around us than we've ever had, whether it's your phone, a Surface Hub, or an Xbox. The world where compute devices are gone and it's all coming from the cloud just isn't the world that we live in today."

Physical devices are still very much part of the equation when it comes to cloud gaming, but Xbox itself isn't making a new device specifically for it. "Last year we talked about xCloud and then we said we were working on new game consoles, but that's all I said." Spencer clarified, "We didn't say that [a streaming console was in the works]. I think maybe some people thought that that was the disc-less one that we just shipped. We are not working on a streaming-only console right now. We are looking at the phone in your pocket as the destination for you to stream, and the console that we have allows you to play the games locally."

"If you bought a big gaming PC and you like playing games there, I want to respect that and meet you where you are and bring the content and services that you want to that device. If you want to buy an Xbox, if you want to play Minecraft on a PlayStation, I want to make sure that comes to you there."

check the link for more.

 

[Hideous Snake]

Still early for all that + I believe it'll never happen

"If you bought a big gaming PC and you like playing games there, I want to respect that and meet you where you are and bring the content and services that you want to that device. If you want to buy an Xbox, if you want to play Minecraft on a PlayStation, I want to make sure that comes to you there."

Top man Phil

 

[KungFucius]

The math will be interesting on streaming. Consoles are about 500 a pop plus games. DVD/BluRay Players were around 200. Streaming services for video are an alternative to both players and cable providers. Games are really just one thing with different HW required to play them. As a PC gamer who hates having to buy consoles for exclusives but does, I would absolutely jump on the streaming gig for Sony/Nintendo games if they go to my PC and don't require new hardware. MS games though, tend to come on PC as do most 3rd party games.

What is going to get me to stop buying ridiculously expensive GPUs? I tend to keep a GPU for 3 -4 years or so. Once I have one, I want to use it so it would be very hard for me to opt for a streaming solution unless it is on par with a local experience.

 

[alabtrosMyster]

Well, no sh*t Johnny, why else would MS release a next gen Xbox if they though that cloud gaming was the immediate future of gaming?

Top man Phil

Well, it's all empty words, you can literally make what you want of what you quoted!

 

[bellome]

They need to sell their useless box another time.

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

Boiling that frog.

 

[TheWanderingOgre]

Hopefully consoles and hardware will never go away.

Still, this is little more than PR speak.

They have a console to sell come next gen, what else can the man say?

And try to dare him to substitute 'Minecraft' with Halo.

 

[Hideous Snake]

Well, it's all empty words, you can literally make what you want of what you quoted!

I'll give him credit for being the only one talking about it at least

 

[mejin]

They need to sell their useless box another time.

At least they will try.

 

[DanielsM]

Boiling that frog.

Trying to for sure. Lots of companies wasting lots of money.

 

[LordOfChaos]

Same. I'm actually not convinced remote will ever be fully comparable to local, but it will work for some people who want portability.

 

[Fuz]

No shit, Phil.

 

[Jigsaah]

I wish all execs would talk so openly and clearly about their direction or where they feel things are going. I'd be interested to see if there's a debate to be had. Since Phil is the only one really speaking up, it makes me feel like others either just agree, feel it's not worth being said because its assumed to be common sense or are a bit too protective of their opinions. Like I'm sure Sony is still kinda in this "crouching down" mode...but I'm not altogether sure it's the best strategy. Fuck man, say....something.

 

[sublimit]

I'm so annoyed by that "just yet".

 

[Woo-Fu]

Sherlock Spencer is on the case.

Cloud systems can't fully replace consoles, the infrastructure isn't there. Anybody who tries to go full Cloud will be leaving a huge segment of the market out in the cold, a huge segment that somebody else will satisfy with a physical console.

 

[Fake]

Not yet, so wait for /build

 

[DeltaPolarBear]

Streaming games is not the same as netflix or youtube; you are not actually streaming a file, you are renting computation time.

In real life, it costs money to rent processing power. And that cost isn't going to go away just because you use it for playing videogames.

This is why so many people are caught out by how much Stadia costs to use; they didn't realize how expensive it is to rent a remote piece of hardware. And that it is NOTHING like streaming a video. Not just because of lag, but that financially it is a burden. And someone, somewhere, has to pay that rent. Ten bucks a month is not enough.

 

[Psykodad]

Ofcourse not, until next-gen Xbox underperforms again. Watch him go full-on streaming then.

They're just setting everything up for a digital platform that finalizes the original Xbox One plans.

 

[Vawn]

I'll give him credit for being the only one talking about it at least

Noone has ever criticized Phil Spencer for not talking enough. He's on PR talk 24/7. Years later all that talking hasn't changed the quality Xbox game drought - its actually gotten worse.

 

[Hideous Snake]

No has ever criticized Phil Spencer for not talking enough. He's on PR talk 24/7. Years later all that talking hasn't changed the quality Xbox game drought - its actually gotten worse.

Xbox One was done the moment it was revealed. Phil can fix all that starting next-gen and if nothing changed then it'll be Xbox being Xbox

 

[Deleted member 1159]

Until I can stream a game at >100hz with 1ms response time for a twitch shooter like DOOM 2016, it'll never replace my PC. I can see a strong argument for mainstream audience that just wants to play the latest cinematic whatever game...something like Red Dead 2 which has sluggish controls and lock on mechanics already could be totally fine. But for anything that requires an amount of precision, input lag is just infuriating. I still have a goddamn CRT for my old consoles because I hate input lag so much. And the older I get the more it fucks me up!

 

[Vawn]

Xbox One was done the moment it was revealed. Phil can fix all that starting next-gen and if nothing changed then it'll be Xbox being Xbox

Xbox's reveal hurt sales, but it hardly explains the lack of quality exclusive games.

 

[VAL0R]

No has ever criticized Phil Spencer for not talking enough. He's on PR talk 24/7. Years later all that talking hasn't changed the quality Xbox game drought - its actually gotten worse.

We know you think Xbox has no games bro. Like, we go it. We're good. Seriously. VAWN THINKS XBOX HAS NO GAMES EVERYBOOOODY!!! OOOOOOOOKAYYYYY!!?

 

[Dabaus]

What do you guys think made MS change their tune 180 degrees like this? Or is this just more PR spin ?

 

[Vawn]

What do you guys think made MS change their tune 180 degrees like this? Or is this just more PR spin ?

They changed their tune? It sounds to me what we've been hearing for a while now. Hopefully it eventually turns into something tangible.

 

[Three]

Xbox One was done the moment it was revealed. Phil can fix all that starting next-gen and if nothing changed then it'll be Xbox being Xbox

Yet xbox Ones trajectory was better than the 360s in its early years. A lot of people tend to try and place too much emphasis on MS and Don screwing up instead of the xbox just not being that great or popular to begin with. It's selling change and hope and that's a lot of the marketing behind the brand lately. Change and hope are the running themes this whole gen like it's a political campaign when the product itself has not been that compelling or desirable to enthusiasts.

 

[ThatGamingDude]

I wish all execs would talk so openly and clearly about their direction or where they feel things are going. I'd be interested to see if there's a debate to be had. Since Phil is the only one really speaking up, it makes me feel like others either just agree, feel it's not worth being said because its assumed to be common sense or are a bit too protective of their opinions. Like I'm sure Sony is still kinda in this "crouching down" mode...but I'm not altogether sure it's the best strategy. Fuck man, say....something.

No has ever criticized Phil Spencer for not talking enough. He's on PR talk 24/7. Years later all that talking hasn't changed the quality Xbox game drought - its actually gotten worse.

Talk is cheap, and you can always walk yourself back out of saying something dumb
Phil is nothing really special; there's many execs that kick back and act like an average person with a job
Oddly enough, execs are just people too

I've met execs who will only drink shit beer like Budweiser, not because of some sort of statement, but because they just like Budweiser

Don't think for a second though that he doesn't make any cut throat decisions; business is business, no one cares if you're a nice person

 

[DForce]

Some Xbox fans on here told me it was going to be a major factor next generation.

 

[Jigsaah]

Talk is cheap, and you can always walk yourself back out of saying something dumb
Phil is nothing really special; there's many execs that kick back and act like an average person with a job
Oddly enough, execs are just people too

I've met execs who will only drink shit beer like Budweiser, not because of some sort of statement, but because they just like Budweiser

Don't think for a second though that he doesn't make any cut throat decisions; business is business, no one cares if you're a nice person

I think Don Mattrick would beg to differ with you.

Talk is not cheap when it comes from somebody who is integral to how the industry flows. Talk does need to be followed up with action, that much I agree with, but to say words are just words flowing from somebody's mouth is woefully incorrect.

 

[Dabaus]

They changed their tune? It sounds to me what we've been hearing for a while now. Hopefully it eventually turns into something tangible.

Weve heard nothing but streaming is the future on any platfrom you want for almost 2 years and this week they all of a sudden want to keep AAA's (Halo and Gears) on xbox and now streaming is not the future? Sales must have collapsed with that kind of messaging and are now playing clean up on aisle xbox or are just spinning like they always do.

 

[ThatGamingDude]

I think Don Mattrick would beg to differ with you.

He wasn't able to talk himself out of the bull shit he put himself into. For instance, lawyers can walk them selves out of shit quite well.

Talk is not cheap when it comes from somebody who is integral to how the industry flows. Talk does need to be followed up with action, that much I agree with, but to say words are just words flowing from somebody's mouth is woefully incorrect.

....If talk isn't followed up by action, what would you call that talk?

 

[SurprisedPikachu]

Cloud streaming of games will never overtake physically running it from your device. It sounds like a miracle on paper, even PSNow was impressive to me but there are glaring issues that they cannot resolve with the technology we have today.

1. Latency - physical latency from controller, to device, to cloud.
2. Ownership - I prefer owning my games, not paying a subscription to play the games I bought.
3. Censorship - Tinfoil hat moment, but if big tech doesn't like you they could revoke your access to everything including the games you play on their cloud streaming services. Look at what they're doing to conservatives on Twitter/Facebook/etc.
4. Internet - this would have been bundled with latency, but I wanted to count it as a separate issue - not everyone has blazing fast internet. In fact, in my area alone there are a lot of homes that can't even get 20Mbps still. I'm lucky to have gigabit. Most of the world just doesn't have the infrastructure still.

I remember playing Uncharted on PSNow and at one point I think my internet derped out or something started installing updates (most likely case) and responsiveness took a nose dive, video quality went to shit, and the game became unplayable. I just can't see cloud gaming replacing traditional gaming at any point in the near future. They've been trying to do this for at least a decade or more now. I remember a service that would let you play FEAR and other games through the cloud and it was just awful. Graphics were dumbed down and it wasn't responsive. I think it was called OnLive.

 

[Breakage]

Sounds as if he is worried that lots of people won't buy the next Xbox.

 

[Klayzer]

I was wondering when Microsoft was going to realize they have a next generation console to sale. All this streaming talk for games is fool's gold imo.

 

[DESTROYA]

Your not wrong Phil.
Very doubtful about streaming to begin with.

 

[Dane]

Still early for all that + I believe it'll never happen

Top man Phil

If Phil relied on opinions of people i've seen around the internet, he would have basically followed the EGS footsteps (cancelling non xbox ports, removing already released games from competitors stores).

 

[DeepEnigma]

"Just yet".

The devil is in the intent details.

 

[Elenchus]

Boiling that frog.

When you're boiling the frog you don't normally tell it you just lit the pilot light.

Phil said it was inevitable so there's hardly any subterfuge here.

He was asked to make a prediction. He made it.

The prediction will either be wrong or right but nothing is being hidden.

 

[Otterz4Life]

It is years away, but it will eventually become the dominant way to play games in the future.

He's right that it's inevitable.

 

[Airbus Jr]

Yet?

Feck off phil

Not gona buy any cloud console in my life

If every future console gona be like that im going to be 100% PC gamer

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

When you're boiling the frog you don't normally tell it you just lit the pilot light.

Phil said it was inevitable so there's hardly any subterfuge here.

He was asked to make a prediction. He made it.

The prediction will either be wrong or right but nothing is being hidden.

But his prediction may be wrong. His presupposition is that branded, corporate-owned cloud gaming is inevitable (debatable). What if Microsoft simply wants to move into that space with the Xbox brand? Blaming the "inevitable" proliferation of cloud-based services (meaning, non-local hardware that will assuredly replace home consoles in spite of all the undesirable limitations) for Microsoft's decision to eventually go multiplatform and stream from the cloud seems like a smart PR move. Turning the brand into a Netflix-like service would be a significant shift and would upset a lot of fans, while possibly attracting many new others (which is not a controversial prediction, in the least). Blaming the inevitable absolves them of any blame from the hardcore gaming community. 'Cause... you know, it was inevitable.

phil_spencershrugging.gif

"We had to put in the DLC," said EA, too.

 

[Hideous Snake]

If Phil relied on opinions of people i've seen around the internet, he would have basically followed the EGS footsteps (cancelling non xbox ports, removing already released games from competitors stores).

Nah that would be straight up stupid!

 

[demigod]

Some Xbox fans on here told me it was going to be a major factor next generation.

I sure would love a list of this. I bet their tune is changed once again now that their Lord and Saviour has spoken.

 

[The Pleasure]

I have enough games to last me a lifetime. Fuck the cloud. Smells like lag.

 

[mejin]

Weve heard nothing but streaming is the future on any platfrom you want for almost 2 years and this week they all of a sudden want to keep AAA's (Halo and Gears) on xbox and now streaming is not the future? Sales must have collapsed with that kind of messaging and are now playing clean up on aisle xbox or are just spinning like they always do.

Yep, I think nothing changed in Phil's Big Plan. Those are just PR talks he spills from time to time to soothe the xbox community.

 

[alabtrosMyster]

He

Xbox One was done the moment it was revealed. Phil can fix all that starting next-gen and if nothing changed then it'll be Xbox being Xbox

Could have started fixing it the day he got the job, all he ever gave gamers is empty rhetoric and bland PR talk.

Sony is still kinda in this "crouching down" mode...but I'm not altogether sure it's the best strategy. Fuck man, say....something.

MS seems like some needy team to me, I would rather have them speak only when they have something to show for it.

 

[SpinningBirdKick]

Entrepreneur with unloved products finally realises that opening a new store front to sell the same products won't improve matters.

Film at 11...

 

[dirthead]

*dumb suit says that the sun is hot*

*millions of forum posts debating the statement*

 

[Dabaus]

Yep, I think nothing changed in Phil's Big Plan. Those are just PR talks he spills from time to time to soothe the xbox community.

Theyre bleeding fans and revenue much quicker than anticipated so they send Phil and Booty out to say whatever, whenever to whoever even if they contradict one another. Its amazing to watch.

 

[Klayzer]

I sure would love a list of this. I bet their tune is changed once again now that their Lord and Saviour has spoken.

I think Phil should go radio silent for a while. Too many interviews.

Phil: Streaming is the future Xbox cloud etc.

Phil: Streaming is not the near future.

Everybody: "Will someone please unplug Phil's mic"