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[DeepEnigma]

Scanning the first few pages always starts the same...

Gamers need to stop blaming or praising any figure head/PR face as if they are at the top of their corporate hierarchy chart. They do get to make decisions, they are allotted budgets for each area to work with. Yes they are entrusted to make some power moves, setting up arrangements and shake hands with other publisher/developer figure heads, however, they still have bosses they report to above them. Those bosses, groups, collectives, whatever you wanna call them usually approve or deny said business moves.

Every one of these threads get so redundant with the sole finger pointing posts. It is practically idolizing.

 

[Bedlam]

I'm one of those who abandoned MS for Sony after years of enjoying the 360 as their main gaming console.

Spencer has a difficult job but he's certainly doing and saying good things. I hope he stays in charge of MS's gaming stuff for a long time to come. If their next console turns out more focussed on gaming, then I might be back; but the ship has sailed as far as this generation is concerned. My gaming time is spent between PS4, WiiU and PC and that's all I need really.

 

[poodaddy]

It's about that, and the justification of the purchase, I bought xbox one 3 times already, 3 times, I sold it all 3 times before a price drop as well..

It's not because I'm not happy with the system, but because I always end up asking myself why?

First time I bought one was because ps4 were never in Stock anywhere, plus wanted titanfall, that game was a disappointment, sold it.

Second time was for Sunset Overdrive, which to this day, imo is the best game on the Xbox One hands down. Played the hell out of it, sold it.

3rd time, 1tb master chief collection /backwards compatibility, but when I realized the most requested backwards compatible games for x1 were multiplatform games and not even xbox exclusives that was a turn off. MCC campaigns were fun but the MP felt broken and old to me, but mostly I always had my ps4 on more often, so I decided, sell the Xbox one, buy more photography equipment instead, Uncle Phill will drop the price below $300 soon anyway.

Last gen I was a proud PS360 owner and found myself turning on both consoles constantly, but that's not happening this time and I can't pin point it? Is it because xbox turned into the system just for exclusives? I don't like the exclusive games they have now, dragon by Dre headphone game, crackdown 3 and rare pirates don't come out for a long ass time. Multiplatform games look better on ps4 and destiny had a death grip on me this gen.

Microsoft should have stuck to their original digital vision, that's the system I wanted, not..... Whatever this is now.

Hey I get that. I basically own an Xbone for Forza 6 and Killer Instinct and you can bet your ass that if PS4 had those games I probably would of been perfectly happy with my PS4 PC Wii U combination. I was just speaking from impartial ground, I don't get fanboys. Everything has pro's and con's, and for what it's worth I really think that the Xbox brand has made some major improvements in the past year. At this point, I just think all the platforms are pretty great at this very moment and that they're only getting better in the future. Now if only the rest of the world loved the Wii U as much as I did then I'd be super satisfied.... . I hope Nintendo sees the same improvements to their brand and business that Sony and Microsoft have been seeing.

 

[Atwa]

Probably can't, but doesn't need to.

Xbox One is doing great on its own terms and can do it all generation as well.

 

[Flintty]

I don't have either console but it seems to me that it's been Sony doing the leading in all areas and MS responding. It seems that most of the Xbox enhancements have been responses to things Sony already did albeit many of them nowhere near as polished.

Yeah, Playstation BC is trailblazing.

/s

In all seriousness, updates is somethin MS has excelled at this gen. They are doing it right and doing it better (from what I have read) than Playstation. So your post is baffling to me.
I'll give Playstation screenshot capture though. They did that first.

 

[SlipperyFishes]

To me it just seems like MS knows at this point they won't beat Sony this gen. But are doing the best they can to salvage what they have to continue interest and momentum to carry them through to next gen where they hope theyll be on better ground from the start. They are probably planning the next ten years rather than the next couple like any company.

Personally I think the damage has been done for good. I will never return or trust MS after all their 180s and quietly putting their mistakes under the rug like Kinect and their continued lack of support in certain countries.

It's like you bake a cake but it turns out looking unappetising and tastes bad so you start adding all these bits to it to salvage it but by the end it's a shadow of its former self or how it should have been like originally.

But this is exactly the same, albeit with different screw ups as $599 USD, work two jobs, scrapping BC post launch and CELL PROCESSOR will change the world. People flocked back to Sony in volume after Microsoft pulled the exact same shit this time. It's cyclic, if Sony don't stick to their guns next gen and Microsoft pull a PS4 then people will flip flop back.

 

[EGM1966]

Can't believe thread is still open after 11 pages. Almost impressive and practically no bans too. Guess we're settling to general status quo much like the platform providers.

Mostly.

 

[Kazuma Kiryu]

Can't believe thread is still open after 11 pages. Almost impressive and practically no bans too. Guess we're settling to general status quo much like the platform providers.

Mostly.

Thank god. It's tiring reading the same delusional stuff, over and over again.

 

[Team Andromeda]

Think the XBox One is just another Mega Drive in that it sell well in the USA, UK and well enough overall but will only be 3rd place in Japan and outsold in most of Europe .

 

[PoweredByHentai]

Wasn't Spencer high enough in the executive pecking order to be able to veto the whole DRM shenanigan at the time the Xbone was in its early stages of development?

Did he ever talk about what he did during that period or has he been avoiding that topic like the plague?

I think it would be more interesting and respectful if he were to explain what happened and what his role was in the whole fiasco leading up to the whole 180.

 

[Fat4all]

Wasn't Spencer high enough in the executive pecking order to be able to veto the whole DRM shenanigan at the time the Xbone was in its early stages of development?

Did he ever talk about what he did during that period or has he been avoiding that topic like the plague?

I think it would be more interesting and respectful if he were to explain what happened and what his role was in the whole fiasco leading up to the whole 180.

Even if he was and/or did, he obviously got out-voted.

And if that did happen, I doubt he'd be at liberty to discuss it so frankly.

 

[Team Andromeda]

Wasn't Spencer high enough in the executive pecking order to be able to veto the whole DRM shenanigan at the time the Xbone was in its early stages of development?

I really wished MS went with the always online part of the plan myself. What really cost MS to me was the focus on Kinect and its pointless features at the expense of the better GPU.

I really can't work out why the PS4 is selling so much better though... its line-up isn't half as good as the One (for me) and its joypad and online functions aren't as good either

 

[Trup1aya]

Wasn't Spencer high enough in the executive pecking order to be able to veto the whole DRM shenanigan at the time the Xbone was in its early stages of development?

Did he ever talk about what he did during that period or has he been avoiding that topic like the plague?

I think it would be more interesting and respectful if he were to explain what happened and what his role was in the whole fiasco leading up to the whole 180.

No he wasn't...

And I think you'd be hard pressed to hear any exec ever discuss what you think would be 'respectful'.

If he was against it, he'd be throwing co-workers under the bus (and his cynics wouldn't believe him anyway)... If he was for it, he'd be throwing himself under the bus(and his cynics would be screaming 'I told you so' and he's always been a shill and isn't right for the job).. Both are corporate and PR no-no's... And really, wouldn't help the consumer in any way.

It makes much more sense to say I'm in charge now, and I'm going to steer the ship in the right direction.

 

[Zambayoshi]

I hope Phil's words translate into actions. Even though I have a PS4 and no Xbone, I hope that MS can continue to push Sony so Sony doesn't become complacent. The recent shift in quality of PS+ instant game collection might be indicative of Sony not feeling it has to try as hard?

 

[Three]

Wasn't Spencer high enough in the executive pecking order to be able to veto the whole DRM shenanigan at the time the Xbone was in its early stages of development?

Did he ever talk about what he did during that period or has he been avoiding that topic like the plague?

I think it would be more interesting and respectful if he were to explain what happened and what his role was in the whole fiasco leading up to the whole 180.

The thing is he was honest about this not so long ago. Near launch He said "I'm not going to deny I was a part of that" yet people simply don't listen they still go on about how he was being held back by Mattricks ideas. If you look back at his past his work and interviews you would see he very much was a part of that plan. He headed rare when they were making avatars, he was the kinect mentor, he was chasing Apple and Google and making deals with nike as part of xbox. Before xbox he was working on MS Money, MS Works and encarta. Phil is a good businessman. Kinect and avatars were good businesses during the 360 era, they no longer are. This idea that he was some core gamer being wipped into making things he didn't like is absurd. He makes things that sell. He says things that sell products. What sells has changed and so has Phil's priorities. There is nothing wrong with that, that's the sign of a good businessman.

 

[GnawtyDog]

Always online wasn't the killer, it didnt help, but there were plenty of gamers who understood most of us have been "always" gaming online for decades anyway. It was the no used games, and the threat to plastic dlc that was really the issue, which is something because that was never true, just some rumors fanned into a backlash by irresponsible media.

No one knows the future. I can go only by personal experience though as that is the only info I have access to, but I have a ps4 and a one and I shut up, invited my pals over to use each and then answered their questions and then gave my concerns on each one when they were done sucking around, and more people I know IRL have chosen the One over the PS4, even my ex-Roomie yesterday to be precise, because of the same reasons; they feel it is the better choice overall with better exclusives and value.

No one knows the future, no one knows which 8th gen console will sell best this gem, but I will tell you this. For Microsoft to win, Sony doesn't have to lose. For Microsoft to win, they have to do a damned good job, and they are doing just that with a console that has community input, is backed by forward-thinking technologies and pro-consumer policies, and excellent value.

To Phil and his team, I say keep up the good work.

 

[PoweredByHentai]

Even if he was and/or did, he obviously got out-voted.

And if that did happen, I doubt he'd be at liberty to discuss it so frankly.

Even if he was out-voted, he is now the head of Xbox so there isn't really anyone else above him other than Nadella (the current CEO of MS). Having a more transparent postmortem even a year after launch would go a long way in recovering consumer goodwill.

I really wished MS went with the always online part of the plan myself. What really cost MS to me was the focus on Kinect and its pointless features at the expense of the better GPU.

I really can't work out why the PS4 is selling so much better though... its line-up isn't half as good as the One (for me) and its joypad and online functions aren't as good either

Not sure if you're actually serious or if you're just trolling.

No he wasn't...

And I think you'd be hard pressed to hear any exec ever discuss what you think would be 'respectful'.

If he was against it, he'd be throwing co-workers under the bus (and his cynics wouldn't believe him anyway)... If he was for it, he'd be throwing himself under the bus(and his cynics would be screaming 'I told you so' and he's always been a shill and isn't right for the job).. Both are corporate and PR no-no's... And really, wouldn't help the consumer in any way.

It makes much more sense to say I'm in charge now, and I'm going to steer the ship in the right direction.

He was in charge of MS Game Studios. I'd say that is high enough in the corporate ladder for him to have voting rights on the Xbone's development. Yoshida was President of SCE Worldwide Studios for Sony and he gave the green light for Cerny to start development on the PS4 in 2008. It would be ridiculous for an organization like MS to not have his software division have a say on a hardware's development.

The thing is he was honest about this not so long ago. Near launch He said "I'm not going to deny I was a part of that" yet people simply don't listen they still go on about how he was being held back by Mattricks ideas. If you look back at his past his work and interviews you would see he very much was a part of that plan. He headed rare when they were making avatars, he was the kinect mentor, he was chasing Apple and Google and making deals with nike as part of xbox. Before xbox he was working on MS Money, MS Works and encarta. Phil is a good businessman. Kinect and avatars were good businesses during the 360 era, they no longer are. This idea that he was some core gamer being wipped into making things he didn't like is absurd. He makes things that sell. He says things that sell products. What sells has changed and so has Phil's priorities. There is nothing wrong with that, that's the sign of a good businessman.

I agree that a good businessman goes after what sells. An excellent businessman understands and preempts what will sell well. Phil isn't anywhere near Buffett's level.

 

[Chris1]

Not sure if you're actually serious or if you're just trolling.

I wish they stuck with the always online/drm too. And no, I'm not trolling. Every physical disc being a digital version of the game sounds awesome to me.

 

[Fat4all]

Even if he was out-voted, he is now the head of Xbox so there isn't really anyone else above him other than Nadella (the current CEO of MS). Having a more transparent postmortem even a year after launch would go a long way in recovering consumer goodwill.

Doesn't mean he can't be replaced.

Discussing the people who pushed the failed agenda might be considered "bad-mouthing" to former (or current) employees.

I wish they stuck with the always online/drm too. And no, I'm not trolling. Every physical disc being a digital version of the game sounds awesome to me.

Not being able to sell your own property doesn't sound awesome to me.

 

[gtj1092]

Yeah, Playstation BC is trailblazing.

/s

In all seriousness, updates is somethin MS has excelled at this gen. They are doing it right and doing it better (from what I have read) than Playstation. So your post is baffling to me.
I'll give Playstation screenshot capture though. They did that first.

Share play
Share button
Streaming to YouTube
Party chat
Live from PlayStation
PlayStation Now
PlayStation Vue-cant use this one yet.


Sure there is more but those are just things that I use. Maybe you should read other sources.

 

[Chris1]

Not being able to sell your own property doesn't sound awesome to me.

I don't sell my games anyway, microsofts pre 180 plans were 100% in my favour. I realize that's not the case for everyone but to me it was awesome and I'd take those days back any day over what we have now.

Getting physical sales for digital games? sounds brilliant to me. On release games will also be £40~ instead of £60 or whatever the xbox store tries to charge. Those are very good reasons as to why someone might prefer the pre 180, casting someone as trolling just because they'd prefer those benefits over the downsides (which if andromedia is like me, there is none) is silly.

 

[Mastperf]

I wish they stuck with the always online/drm too. And no, I'm not trolling. Every physical disc being a digital version of the game sounds awesome to me.

It would have been DOA. They dropped all of that and are still being outsold nearly 2:1 while still having the reputation of not supporting used games.

 

[Sagroth]

Yeah, I don't think MS is likely to beat Sony in console sales this gen, but I'm okay with that. It's still outselling what the 360 did a this points in the life cycle, right?

Anyways, I am hoping that MS doubles down on the current path of funding and putting out first party exclusives, as that justifies for me keeping it around next to my PS4.

 

[Flintty]

Share play
Share button
Streaming to YouTube
Party chat
Live from PlayStation
PlayStation Now
PlayStation Vue-cant use this one yet.


Sure there is more but those are just things that I use. Maybe you should read other sources.

I'm not going to engage in list wars with you. All I'm saying is that to state that Xbox is playing catchup with features isn't entirely true.

Is Xbox throwing a lot of resources at improving and creating new features because of its market position? Hell yes. They had to do something lol.

 

[PoweredByHentai]

I wish they stuck with the always online/drm too. And no, I'm not trolling. Every physical disc being a digital version of the game sounds awesome to me.

Sure, if I didn't need to have my console check against a server every time.

I live in Los Angeles and we still have shitty broadband, even if the connection is 65 Mbps down / 4 Mbps up. In fact, the recent heatwave has been frying out my ISP's nodes in my area.

Doesn't mean he can't be replaced.

Discussing the people who pushed the failed agenda might be considered "bad-mouthing" to former (or current) employees.



Not being able to sell your own property doesn't sound awesome to me.

When someone is responsible for a horrific failure like the recent VW emissions shenanigan, are you honestly going to continue to hide/preserve that person's reputation? Real reform doesn't happen until the ones responsible for the fiasco have been rooted out.

Share play
Share button
Streaming to YouTube
Party chat
Live from PlayStation
PlayStation Now
PlayStation Vue-cant use this one yet.


Sure there is more but those are just things that I use. Maybe you should read other sources.

The reprogrammable controller buttons from the system menu was a nice surprise. Remote Play is also a pretty awesome feature.

 

[Cthulhu_Steev]

I don't sell my games anyway, microsofts pre 180 plans were 100% in my favour. I realize that's not the case for everyone but to me it was awesome and I'd take those days back any day over what we have now.

Getting physical sales for digital games? sounds brilliant to me. On release games will also be £40~ instead of £60 or whatever the xbox store tries to charge. Those are very good reasons as to why someone might prefer the pre 180, casting someone as trolling just because they'd prefer those benefits over the downsides (which if andromedia is like me, there is none) is silly.

They can still offer all the 'good stuff', as a choice. People can have the all digital MS vision of the future, or the status quo.

So why don't they offer the choice?

 

[Kayant]

I don't sell my games anyway, microsofts pre 180 plans were 100% in my favour. I realize that's not the case for everyone but to me it was awesome and I'd take those days back any day over what we have now.

Getting physical sales for digital games? sounds brilliant to me. On release games will also be £40~ instead of £60 or whatever the xbox store tries to charge. Those are very good reasons as to why someone might prefer the pre 180, casting someone as trolling just because they'd prefer those benefits over the downsides (which if andromedia is like me, there is none) is silly.

There was no evidence pointing towards this being a plus to MS's model.

 

[Bedlam]

They can still offer all the 'good stuff', as a choice. People can have the all digital MS vision of the future, or the status quo.

So why don't they offer the choice?

This is really what it comes down to.

Going digital-only just means losing the physical option. This only benefits platform-holders and publishers, there are literally no benefits on the consumer-side. You can already choose to buy all games digitally. Why should we give up that choice and accept more restrictions instead?

 

[Leyasu]

Doesn't mean he can't be replaced.

Discussing the people who pushed the failed agenda might be considered "bad-mouthing" to former (or current) employees.



Not being able to sell your own property doesn't sound awesome to me.

Well as I am 100% digital this gen. I am stuck with the games that I no longer play anyway. In all honesty, I will never buy another disc again. DRM or not means nothing to me.

 

[TheUnsunghero26]

Share play
Share button
Streaming to YouTube
Party chat
Live from PlayStation
PlayStation Now
PlayStation Vue-cant use this one yet.


Sure there is more but those are just things that I use. Maybe you should read other sources.

What do you mean by this one?

 

[AyaisMUsikWhore]

Maybe it's me but I feel like the Xbox features are just basic features enhanced to work on that UI. It has nothing to do with being trailblazing. Like besides snap and the hdmi in, which is the only feature that I would say is next gen...what other generational move has Microsoft done to really tackle Sony?

So you can get to your party chats quicker. So you can talk to more friends on party chat with a higher quality. So you can make favorites, see what they are doing and message them all at once. So you can use some of Microsft suite of apps to work from the system. And multitask to a limited degree to do stuff. So you can upgrade your hard drive via external and the list goes on and on...

Backwards compatibility is the only thing that counts? Nah...that's a backwards move to appease fans but it's not moving forward the generation.

Sony basic features may not be enhanced the way they are on Microsoft ....but I do believe that they have tried new things rather than continuously focus on fixing everything that's wrong to make it right. Shareplay, Remote Play, Remapping Controls software level , bringing communities as half assed as they are, etc etc. It's like they try to balance both as bad as it is and it's really something that I feel is costing Microsoft more than just price and having on big flashy system with voice control and a camera

 

[Fat4all]

When someone is responsible for a horrific failure like the recent VW emissions shenanigan, are you honestly going to continue to hide/preserve that person's reputation? Real reform doesn't happen until the ones responsible for the fiasco have been rooted out.

Mattrick already took the largest chunk of the blame with him when he left, you think Phil want to put any of that old grudge back onto another employee? There would be a company backlash not only for giving the media even more to talk about with the failed Xbox One pre-launch, but fuel outrage if people who were in that think-tank is still working in the Xbox Division.

Well as I am 100% digital this gen. I am stuck with the games that I no longer play anyway. In all honesty, I will never buy another disc again. DRM or not means nothing to me.

And I prefer to be able to buy and sell my physical games, so I guess I won this round.

Good luck next generation.

 

[Sithlord77]

But this is exactly the same, albeit with different screw ups as $599 USD, work two jobs, scrapping BC post launch and CELL PROCESSOR will change the world. People flocked back to Sony in volume after Microsoft pulled the exact same shit this time. It's cyclic, if Sony don't stick to their guns next gen and Microsoft pull a PS4 then people will flip flop back.

I'm not really sure what you mean. The PS3 in the end outsold the 360 in WW sales. It wasn't a a disaster. It just had some bad first few years. But the year head start had a lot to do with the 360s success too - It wasn't just this gen Sony bounced back either, It started about 5 years ago when MS just got lazy and complacent with Kinect and released nothing exciting on the 360 therafter. That was a chance for Sony to come back and improve with mass appealing games and strong first party titles.

The gap last gen certainly wasn't the 10 million+ lead as it is now in the same time frame between the 360 and PS3. It's not exactly the same as before.
This can be attributed to the brand recognition and the fact Sony has always had much larger market share in the UAE and European countries and of course Japan. Why is that? I personally think the brand recognition is strong because they make games for everyone that are more mass appealing and there's a wider variety of content overall.

This gen I think the stuff like the disastrous launch of XB1 and their other cockups only made it worse. However I still think PS4 would be outselling the XB1 even without MS's cockups because they both launched at the same time and the Sony PlayStation brand has always been bigger worldwide overall since its inception.

 

[Despera]

Well I guess once Uncharted 4 comes out it's officially game over.

 

[Chris1]

They can still offer all the 'good stuff', as a choice. People can have the all digital MS vision of the future, or the status quo.

So why don't they offer the choice?

Confusion? having two discs do completely different things will only raise more confusion which is likely the first thing MS wants to avoid here.

If you mean digital then they're already available, just at extortionate pricing because xbox store controls the prices and market which wouldn't be the case under MS pre 180.

There was no evidence pointing towards this being a plus to MS's model.

I can't tell if you're serious. Supermarkets would never stick to RRP, they sell their games at a loss for a reason and they're not gonna change that just because. They also don't buy used games so there's no market there either (At least not at my locals, not sure if this is store specific). On top of that, pre 180 I'm pretty sure games were being sold at less than RRP on amazon etc too.

 

[Katana_Strikes]

I hope Phil's words translate into actions. Even though I have a PS4 and no Xbone, I hope that MS can continue to push Sony so Sony doesn't become complacent. The recent shift in quality of PS+ instant game collection might be indicative of Sony not feeling it has to try as hard?

I'd agree if GWG wasn't equally as bad, if not worse. And recent as in it was happening right at the start of the PS4?

I guess the focus shifted once multiplayer became part of Plus rather than anyone being complacent.

 

[Trup1aya]

He was in charge of MS Game Studios. I'd say that is high enough in the corporate ladder for him to have voting rights on the Xbone's development. Yoshida was President of SCE Worldwide Studios for Sony and he gave the green light for Cerny to start development on the PS4 in 2008. It would be ridiculous for an organization like MS to not have his software division have a say on a hardware's development.

Having voting rights and having veto power aren't even close to being the same thing...

In a round table discussion , all involved parties are going to have there say... Then a decision is going to be made... Everyone sitting at the table is 'a part' of the
process, but that doesn't mean everyone got what they wanted...

There would have been a number of people involved in the original Xbox's original plans, from sourcing to hardware engineering, to software engineering, to marketing, trend analysts and accountants, and someone in charge of lining Xbox with MS' larger corporate goals... All lobbying for different things... There's no reason to believe Phil's say was any stronger than anyone else's at the table...

 

[Outrun]

To me it just seems like MS knows at this point they won't beat Sony this gen. But are doing the best they can to salvage what they have to continue interest and momentum to carry them through to next gen where they hope theyll be on better ground from the start. They are probably planning the next ten years rather than the next couple like any company.

Personally I think the damage has been done for good. I will never return or trust MS after all their 180s and quietly putting their mistakes under the rug like Kinect and their continued lack of support in certain countries.

It's like you bake a cake but it turns out looking unappetising and tastes bad so you start adding all these bits to it to salvage it but by the end it's a shadow of its former self or how it should have been like originally.

Never day never. Many swore off Sony because of their own shenanigans. Then they kept on releasing quality software after quality software. And then E3 2013 happened.

You never know

 

[PoweredByHentai]

Mattrick already took the largest chunk of the blame with him when he left, you think Phil want to put any of that old grudge back onto another employee? There would be a company backlash not only for giving the media even more to talk about with the failed Xbox One pre-launch, but fuel outrage if people who were in that think-tank is still working in the Xbox Division.



And I prefer to be able to buy and sell my physical games, so I guess I won this round.

Good luck next generation.

Mattrick was the most visible executive spouting that nonsense. We've also had similar shenanigans from Mehdi and Panello who are most likely just as complicit as Mattrick. The other executive that was as high profile as Mattrick was Adam "deal with it" Orth. Bringing these skeletons out into the sun would go a long way in helping to inform the public on what to expect from the various decision makers at MS. What happened to Mattrick is basically scapegoating, that does not instill confidence in an organization that has just demonstrated a blunder on a corporate level.

Regarding the backlash from a postmortem, I think giving people a better understanding of the failure would actually limit the backlash to the ones responsible (especially those at the executive level) as opposed to pinning the responsibility on the organization as a whole.

Having voting rights and having veto power aren't even close to being the same thing...

In a round table discussion , all involved parties are going to have there say... Then a decision is going to be made... Everyone sitting at the table is 'a part' of the
process, but that doesn't mean everyone got what they wanted...

There would have been a number of people involved in the original Xbox's original plans, from sourcing to hardware engineering, to software engineer, to marketing, trend analysts and accountants, and someone in charge of lining Xbox with MS' larger corporate goals... All lobbying for different things... There's no reason to believe Phil's say was any stronger than anyone else's at the table...

In Ballmer's Microsoft, voting rights work just the same as veto rights. It is kind of why a number of brilliant MS initiatives died very early.

 

[RoyalLaFlame]

I bought my PS4 a few months ago but I wished I went with an Xbox One first. Phil is saying the right things and while the Xbone won't beat the PS4, at least they can try and get as most market share as possible.

They want a profitable product . Doesn't need to be the winner... just profitable.

 

[Three]

Confusion? having two discs do completely different things will only raise more confusion which is likely the first thing MS wants to avoid here.

If you mean digital then they're already available, just at extortionate pricing because xbox store controls the prices and market which wouldn't be the case under MS pre 180.

Confusion? You think pre-180 the plan wasn't confusing already? What do you think prompted the video showing how easy it is to share a game? Confusion was NOT what MS was trying to avoid. If anything they were not making things very clear intentionally.

MS would control prices pre 180. They would control it even more because the main driver of falling prices would be eliminated, second hand sales.

 

[Sithlord77]

Never day never. Many swore off Sony because of their own shenanigans. Then they kept on releasing quality software after quality software. And then E3 2013 happened.

You never know

Nope. Not gonna happen. I backed the wrong horse last gen and wish I stayed with PS3 over 360 because I missed out on lots of Japanese games which are some of my faves. I played on PS3 and still do but used 360 mostly because I just ended up staying with it after its year head start. Wish I hadn't but still enjoyed its multi platforms. The first party stuff not so much....in fact I thought the shooters and first party stuff and lack of Japanese support in the latter half was the worst thing about the console but it was all there with PS3 from the start. If it wasnt for the year head start I'd probably have continued gaming on PS3.

 

[Pancakes R Us]

I hope Phil's words translate into actions. Even though I have a PS4 and no Xbone, I hope that MS can continue to push Sony so Sony doesn't become complacent. The recent shift in quality of PS+ instant game collection might be indicative of Sony not feeling it has to try as hard?

I like your stance. The industry needs some good, healthy competition between Sony and Microsoft so that we never get an all-seeing, all-powerful Sony (or in the past, Nintendo) situation again. It works out so much better for consumers and tends to bring out the best in both companies. Yes, Microsoft got humbled by awful actions prior to this generation, and deservedly so. I'm glad they've seen the error of their ways though. Sony got humbled last gen with PS3. And Nintendo? These guys are stepping into mobile gaming!

 

[Chris1]

Confusion? You think pre-180 the plan wasn't confusing already? What do you think prompted the video showing how easy it is to share a game? Confusion was NOT what MS was trying to avoid. If anything they were not making things very clear intentionally.

MS would control prices pre 180. They would control it even more because the main driver of falling prices would be eliminated, second hand sales.

Are you arguing for the sake of arguing or what? I never said the pre 180 plan wasn't confusing. I said releasing two discs, one that works as a digital download and one that works as discs do today would be confusing, and MS is trying to avoid confusion these days. Especially with something that nearly killed their product. What they done in the past is irrelevant to what they're doing now really.

"Ms would control prices pre 180".... So why were games available on amazon etc at a cheaper price than RRP? Do you think MS were just going to stop shipping games to stores unless they force them to not have their own sales to avoid competition (which by the way, they'd be breaking the law by doing)? Microsofts pre 180 plans and price control is completely different to how digital works now.

Like I said, good luck making supermarkets stay at full price for games. They never will in the UK, they sell games at a loss for them for a reason and that reason has absolutely nothing to do with gaming.

 

[Randy Monk]

ACTIONS speak louder than WORDS

So until MS gives us a more powerful console at a cheaper price and more consumer friendly than Sony, I'll stick with the Playstation brand.

 

[omonimo]

Well as I am 100% digital this gen. I am stuck with the games that I no longer play anyway. In all honesty, I will never buy another disc again. DRM or not means nothing to me.

Wow. Some post sometimes seem a parody of itself. I don't know really. Try to pass this matter how positive and an advantage of the xbone to beat ps4 sales wise.. I have read everything now. Without offence.

 

[Trup1aya]

Mattrick was the most visible executive spouting that nonsense. We've also had similar shenanigans from Mehdi and Panello who are most likely just as complicit as Mattrick. The other executive that was as high profile as Mattrick was Adam "deal with it" Orth. Bringing these skeletons out into the sun would go a long way in helping to inform the public on what to expect from the various decision makers at MS. What happened to Mattrick is basically scapegoating, that does not instill confidence in an organization that has just demonstrated a blunder on a corporate level.

Regarding the backlash from a postmortem, I think giving people a better understanding of the failure would actually limit the backlash to the ones responsible (especially those at the executive level) as opposed to pinning the responsibility on the organization as a whole.



In Ballmer's Microsoft, voting rights work just the same as veto rights. It is kind of why a number of brilliant MS initiatives died very early.

I'm pretty sure you've got the voting rights thing 100% wrong... Phil Spencer did not have the power to stop MS' Xbox hardware and distribution plans dead in their tracks... Perhaps now he does, but he certainly didn't then.

Regarding a postmortem, it will have a negligible effect on consumer confidence, because 99.9% of gamers wouldn't even know such a thing exists... Sure Neogaf might appreciate such a thing, but We're talking about gamers who don't even know the 180 occurred 2 years after the fact... Do you think those folks want a post mortem? They don't even know who phil Spencer is...

It's also very rare in the business world for anyone to directly point fingers at execs, past or present... You have CEO's who run companies into the ground, but still get a golden parachute and a statement that says "we appreciate what so and so has done for our company, we have achieved our goals with his leadership and now we are parting ways to achieve a different set of goals". In short, you'll never see an official post mortem.

Confusion? You think pre-180 the plan wasn't confusing already? What do you think prompted the video showing how easy it is to share a game? Confusion was NOT what MS was trying to avoid. If anything they were not making things very clear intentionally.

MS would control prices pre 180. They would control it even more because the main driver of falling prices would be eliminated, second hand sales.

Used game sales aren't the main driver of falling prices... In fact they are hardly a driver at all... Why are prices on Steam so low?

Used game sellers keep their prices as close to retail as possible. GameStop even repackages some used games and tries to sell them as new.

The main drivers of falling prices is reduced demand an competition. Both of which would still be at play in an all digital environment.

 

[Avatar1]

What do you mean by this one?

party chat was a broken mess on Xbox one early on. it has improved but its still touchy.

strangely, Sony seems like they lifted the system right off the 360 and while there were some performance issues early they are ironed out and I think its party chat is perfect for my uses.

I think the 360 party system was amazing. why Microsoft re-engineered the wheel where it wasn't needed baffles me. blame it on trying to be like windows 8? I dunno.

 

[Fat4all]

ACTIONS speak louder than WORDS

So until MS gives us a more powerful console at a cheaper price and more consumer friendly than Sony, I'll stick with the Playstation brand.

I'm sure it's completely healthy for a company to drop their plans for the next 4-7 years and stop supporting their current product in favor of starting brand new with vague ideas of where to go from here.

Their adopters won't feel betrayed at all.

Spoiler

:/

 

[Angelus Errare]

Yeah, Playstation BC is trailblazing.

/s

In all seriousness, updates is somethin MS has excelled at this gen. They are doing it right and doing it better (from what I have read) than Playstation. So your post is baffling to me.
I'll give Playstation screenshot capture though. They did that first.

Not sure how the post is baffling when I state MS' enhancements end up being more polished.