Biggest Failure of 2013 ‘Award’

Winner: Xbox One Brand and Marketing Department

As a PlayStation-only site some may think that us awarding Microsoft with this dishonor is a little bias. But to be one of those people, you will have to have missed the past 7 months of gaming news.

- PSLS

[DigitalRaptor]

Nail on the head, really.

Even if Microsoft are in a better position than they were a couple months ago, it doesn't negate all the horrible missteps and decisions that they made (and continue to make) in regards to the Xbone and their brand direction over the past 9-10 months or so.

You would never have expected this, and it was definitely the worse PR I think any console manufacturer has had to deal with prior to launch. I cannot fathom how the negative news and rumour just continued to flow so outrageously, but it did.

[doctorstrange]

It was almost a parody. Glad they're moving in the right direction now.

[BitbyDeath]

Now if only they could just sell it to someone who isn't as greedy.

[USA007]

They've fixed a lot of the mistakes they made, but after the console came out, a whole new list of mistakes, especially with the UI was made. Hopefully they will keep tweaking it and get everything ironed out, as a lot of the things are features the 360 had that they decided weren't needed on the one

[Nevers0ft]

But have they *really* fixed their mistakes? In the last week alone a tournament was halted because the XBone DRM (which totally doesn't exist, honest!) stepped in and prevented the contestants from playing Killer Instinct: http://kotaku.com/xbox-one-...

And don't get me started on Kinect 2. It's just as broken as Kinect 1 - it just screws up in higher resolution now.

[USA007]

@Nevers0ft

I run tournaments and was expecting to move to the X1, but have been held back in a similar way to what you describe, it isn't DRM holding tournaments back, it's Microsoft's policies.

They have deliberately gotten rid of system link (LAN), so now to connect any amount of Xboxes together an Xbox Live Gold Acc and Internet is needed. Large tournaments run somewhere on the lines of 200 consoles. Each gold Acc is $60 since they cancelled the family plan. That is $12k right there. And let alone getting an Internet connection good enough to run that many consoles is even more than that each tournament.

Most others I know doing tournaments think it is MS trying to kill off small tournaments so that only MS sponsored ones remain.

Considering that the PS4 still has system link, I can go run a tournament on them with none of these costs to worry about. It's just the main competitive scene is on xbox (well atleast 360). So the PS crowds are smaller and harder to make a profit.

I mainly run CoD tourneys, but fighting games also. And I've talked to MS and they straight up said they aren't changing their policy any time soon and won't even help us out (even though my tournament company is a non- profit that donates all proceeds to charity)

If people want LANs, and tournaments to continue on a broad scale (not just MS supported ones) than support Sony, as MS is killing all the little guys so they can make more money.

Sorry, but mentioning that tourney really pulled a string, as this issue has caused me a lot of problems and I've had to spend a lot of money that could have gone to charity. I usually try to keep business away from personal accounts like this

[first1NFANTRY]

"Don't buy a X1, just keep your 360" - Don Matrick

That guy was the biggest failure for a launch in the history of electronics. Not a good representative for the xbox fanbase.

[lolCHILLbro]

lol it still wasnt as bad as PS3's pathetic launch "RIDGE RACERRRRR" "GIANT ENEMY CRABS" "599.99" then "PSN HACK" but its funny this is forgotten by all of you, Microsoft made one mistake, which it corrected, one which Sony would of made aswell since Digital is the future but Microsoft went first, sorry guys

[Angels3785]

....nice try.

[Mikeyy]

You seriously want to go there? Are you forgetting the RROD?

[gamer2013]

Are you forgetting the YLoD?

[Riderz1337]

They made one mistake? Really?

I guess if you count the Xbox ONE as one mistake, then you would be correct.

[BitbyDeath]

'but Microsoft went first'

Sony announced the PS4 on Feb 20, 2013
MS announced the Xbone on May 21, 2013 (3 months later)

[hulk_bash1987]

Look at his name and stop feeding him.

[NeoTribe]

How was xbox 360s rrod launch any better? Besides thats way off topic here lol. Nice try though. They still force a garbage camera down your throat instead of having better hardware, than they go and down grade the controller. The triggers and bumpers are horrible.

[jessupj]

The ms fanboys must be having a really hard time.

After all the hilarious blunders MS has continued to execute over the past few months, including the pathetic attempt to try to spin NPD numbers for November, the significant power difference between the PS4 (I laugh at anyone that says it's not significant) and how insanely popular the PS4 is right now in the hearts of the public and the sales, if I was an MS apologist I'd be spewing.

After what MS tried to do though which their draconian DRM they deserve it.

[hulk_bash1987]

They did dig a pretty big hole for themselves after their console reveal and E3 conference. But they have managed to turn things around since then. Guess we'll just have to wait and see how things play out in the next year or so. (Goes back to playing Killzone: Shadowfall MP)

[SynestheticRoar]

Look at that face. It just spells douche.

[Mikeyy]

Used car salesman instantly comes to mind.

[Nicaragua]

Guppy faced bell end comes to my mind

[MasterCornholio]

He should get a job as a boxing dummy because his face screams hit me.

Lol

[jessupj]

Honestly, the incompetence of MS's PR was that horrendously bad that we'll be taking about this for years to come.

They had a horrible product to try to sell from the start, and somehow they thought insulting gamers on a regular basis and treating them like idiots would make things better.

For a period I would wake up in the morning and as the PC was booting up I would say to myself "and what stupid thing has MS done today", and I was never disappointed.

It got to the point of being so bad I literally couldn't comprehend their utter failure.

Honestly, imo it's the biggest fail in gaming history and I don't think anyone is going to be able to try even if they tried.

[DCfan]

A couple hours after the reveal i was like daamn, had too much fun that night though, a couple days later i was wondering could it be any worse??

[Moonman]

Dat smoke. ;p

[Max-Zorin]

With Don Mattrick gone, things can go back to the way it was before.

[_FantasmA_]

What a stupid face. I don't know but I always want to slap the **** out of it. If I looked up Derp! in the Wiktionary, that goofy face would in there.