350°

Microsoft swings for the future with integration, not games

Gamasutra- At the Microsoft presentation at this year's E3, the company showed its hand in its plans to integrate Windows 8 and the Xbox platform -- perhaps even giving glimpses into its future plans, even with its next-generation Xbox platform completely absent.

The conference started out as more of what we've come to expect from the company -- late in its lifespan the Xbox 360 is firmly established as the home of franchises like Halo, and Gears of War, which all made strong showings vociferously approved by the hardcore audience in attendance at USC's Galen Center.

Third party games like the new Tomb Raider, Resident Evil 6 and Splinter Cell: Blacklist made strong -- even bombastic -- showings. It's the end of a generation, and all of the sequels are in full force. Business as usual, right?

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gamasutra.com
MadMen4775d ago

they are buying time until the next Xbox comes out, this system is purely a hub at this point with a dash of Halo

Blah

DeFFeR4775d ago (Edited 4775d ago )

See, I agree with you, but I don't know if they've dug their hole too deep to get out of for the next console.

I've been a MS guy since 2001 - I've owned all the consoles, but I've played most of my games on MSs consoles.

The lack of new games for the 360, and the apparent direction of trying to replace everything I connect to my television leads me to think they won't ramp it up again for a new console. Games seem to be the second thing on their mind, with "entertainment" being first. Music, sports, video, web-browsing - everything I use a computer for they are featuring the 360 for. Maybe I'm a dinosaur, but I'm not switching from using my computer for those things, for my 360 (which they'll probably charge for access to) - it's so easy to just hook my computer up to my stereo system (HDMI), why would I?

I'm anxious to see Sony's conference tonight, to see if they take advantage of the second year of MSs gaming ignorance. Halo and Gears and Forza, while good franchises- it's really all we have. Kinect is not the gaming peripheral we were promised, and the trend towards Wii-ish games is disheartening to those who bought into the hype.

Qrphe4775d ago

The conference had games, many of them, playable on the 360. Multiplats sell better on the 360 and they make sure they get some of the DLC first (or force it to be that way).
Yes, it does not have many exclusives, but truth is, if you're a 360 gamer, you won't be bored.

humbleopinion4775d ago

Actually, the show had 8 exclusives: halo, gears, forza, fable, dance central and the three new XBLA games.
Not sure what's the status on Splinter Cell - can anyone shed some light?

FalconR2894775d ago

What I got from the internet was that it'll be on the ps3 as well. Not sure about the pc but probably.

Cosmo8114775d ago

I don't know about Splinter Cell. The last one was an Xbox-exclusive (although it later came to PC and Mac), maybe it'll be the same. I hope not.

neutralgamer194775d ago

Lol simply trash and they didnt swing anywhere but stumbled.

supremacy4775d ago

well atleast they have that spike tv deal...

Cherchez La Ghost4775d ago

What should MS do?! Oversaturate the market with exclusives?! Fact is you have Halo 4 & Call of Duty about to rule multiplayer at the end of the year. People complain, but the still are making money. Don't forget. We are talking about a software company. So intergrating tech will always be a focus. Exclusives vs. Multiplatforms are somewhat equal. Halo, Madden, GTA, FIFA, Call of Duty franchises are cash cows. As long as the people stay buying, they companies will keep churning milking and getting that cheese.

You gotta give MS some credit. They're making partnerships with some big companies all around the world. Now, it's more about the games. And the only ones who have complaint are the hardcore gamers. Which I see the argument is justifible. Sorry, it's just business.

DeFFeR4775d ago

"Don't forget. We are talking about a software company."

Except for the fact that they are a HARDWARE company relying on third party games, besides the 3 juggernauts in Halo, Gears and Forza. They have RARE - where's Killer Instinct, where's the new Banjo Kazooie type games... where are the NEW IPs?

Halo is fun. Halo COULD occupy my gaming time from year to year, but I also want something ELSE to play.

silvacrest4775d ago

they dont have to oversaturate anything, one or two would have been fine, people still play halo and COD because they are good, but also because there is nothing else

DlocDaBudSmoka4775d ago

360 gamers dont want integration. they want games! period point blank. multiplats are great and all, but what about games u cant g et anywhere else. like halo 4 for instance. MS needs to get their priorities in check. games first then all the other stuff as a bonus.

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240°

‘I think Xbox hardware is dead’, says Microsoft gaming veteran

One of the founding members of the Xbox team has questioned Microsoft’s multiplatform gaming strategy, and said they believe the Xbox hardware business is effectively “dead"

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videogameschronicle.com
2d ago Replies(3)
Goodguy011d 22h ago

Think that rumor that they'll still make a new console but at a profit at $1000 will be true though. The series consoles will remain their cheap alternative throughout next gen I would say. Keep in mind that game pass and pretty much going 3rd party is their main focus. They want to bring xbox everywhere.

1d 22h ago
GamerRN1d 1h ago

If they don't maintain some kind of console presence, I think they will lose gamepass subscribers and just become a 3rd party publisher who eventually sells everything off

Cacabunga1d 1h ago

Xbox games are releasing on all platforms. Who needs this hardware? PS or PC is all you need

Flewid63823h ago

I've never owned an Xbox in my life and I have GamePass.

thorstein22h ago

The only Xbox I owned was the 360. I have gamepass for my PC.

GamerRN17h ago

Majority of Gamepass users are currently on console...

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 17h ago
crazyCoconuts1d ago

Even if they could get it down to $800 for a box that can run with comparable performance to a PS6 (at, say $200 cheaper) the population of people willing to buy such a thing would be so limited.
It would be the worst of both worlds.

1d 20h ago
Futureshark1d 11h ago

A slow, painful and public death too.

Show all comments (66)
300°

Looming Xbox layoffs threaten Microsoft's reputation

Even as the company sets out to overhaul the very definition of Xbox, cuts at its studios risk creating a negative image reminiscent of EA's worst era

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gamesindustry.biz
Jingsing4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

I appreciate the article but this guy must be living in a delayed universe, The reputation was ruined 10+ years ago and hasn't recovered since. As such people have voted with their wallets and stopped buying Xbox products in large amounts.

YourMommySpoils2d ago

Their reputation was lost way before that. From the moment Microsoft said they entering the console business, we all knew it would be a downgrade.

Bathyj2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

That's not true at all the OG Xbox had drive and they had hunger and they wanted to accomplish something. It was a great console.

they didn't quite reach their goals and they gave up prematurely because they couldn't win. It was halfway through the Xbox 360 when kinect released and that was when they lost their way and we're a rudderless ship ever since

Agent752d ago

In all fairness, Xbox had some great games with online play, Xbox 360 even better. Xbox consoles started to die with the Xbox One. Ditch consoles for the PC and PS.

YourMommySpoils1d 20h ago

@Bathyj hard to compute ay. Xbox was never better than a PC and that's all they ever were. A demo box. Doesn't get more true than that.

4d ago Replies(1)
isarai4d ago

What reputation is this threatening exactly? 😂

Lightning773d ago

Rumors of Turn 10 being either shut down or hit with massive lay offs is on the horizon.

The issue is MS will do something right only to do something very, very wrong. And they do this what seems calculative at this point. Doesn't matter what they do the Investors and leadership want more and more money an endless bottomless pit of purr insatiable greed. A company that acts like it's broke or hurting is what really, really infuriates me. They've surpassed apple again well over 3 trillion who acts like they're a million dollar company is fk stupid. Pivots and changes for no reason and can't do things for more than a year with out a pivot or changing their metrics.

Christopher3d ago

That would be really bad since Phil just hyped up next year as a big Forza year at Summer Game Fest.

1Victor3d ago

@christopher: “ That would be really bad since Phil just hyped up next year as a big Forza year at Summer Game Fest”
The key word big can be ether good or bad 🤷🏿only time can tell

DarXyde2d ago

First Forza being generated entirely via AI?

If any company would do it, it'd be them.

Nacho_Z2d ago

Isn't the point that it's irrelevant how profitable MS is, the suits have decided it's time that the Xbox division started making them money. Hence the layoffs, the pivots.

hennessey862d ago

That wouldn't surprise me, as motorsport has been heading down hill since the great number 4. Where as playground have consistently put out better games. I think the two studios will be merged under playground games banner.

3d ago Replies(2)
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660°

Microsoft planning “major” Xbox layoffs next week

The cuts are expected to be announced next week.

Microsoft is also planning thousands of job cuts that will impact other parts of it businesses

Read Full Story >>
theverge.com
7d ago Replies(1)
7d ago Replies(1)
Obscure_Observer7d ago

MFs has been beating their chests over great quarterly results and big profits to shareholders while firing people by the thousands just like Sony.

I wonder if at the top of those rumored layoffs they´ll also cancel upcoming or unannounced games while shutting down more studios as well.

7d ago
pwnmaster30007d ago

Always got to throw shade at Sony smh.
Yes we get it,
MS good Sony bad
MS bad Sony is also bad lmao

7d ago
Obscure_Observer7d ago

F* them both!

Just for the record, I don´t care about your victim complex crap either. Find someone else who cares.

blacktiger7d ago

He was talking about both. Why you getting offended when he's using both names

pwnmaster30007d ago (Edited 7d ago )

@Blacktiger

Im not offended , that’s just his formula lol
He can’t help help himself, he needs to bring Sony down when the topic involves MS.
Whether is good news for MS or bad, it some how leads to Sony doing bad lmao.
It’s actually hilarious.

InUrFoxHole6d ago

He's not wrong but im tracking what youre saying. In this case is should just be MS bad. Thats a lot of people fired

+ Show (4) more repliesLast reply 6d ago
Tacoboto7d ago

"just like Sony"

Gosh you're insufferable, not everything needs to be both-sides'd. Sony's had layoffs, but nothing like what Microsoft has been doing and is continuing to do.

CrimsonWing697d ago (Edited 7d ago )

I mean, no offense, but this is why you’re not some corporate business person running a major corporation. Big profits don’t mean jobs are safe. Do you understand why things like this happen:

Cutting jobs to maintain or increase profitability, especially in underperforming divisions like parts of Xbox like other gaming divisions.

Corporate restructuring and relocating resources for strategic stability in ever changing markets and consumer behaviors.

Investor expectations and optimizing operations to maintain investor confidence. Whatever boosts stock prices and improves future margins.

And there’s many other factors at play. It’s never as simple as business doing well, everyone’s safe. That’s just you not understanding at all how corporations work and have been working since the beginning. This isn’t something that’s specific to Xbox, you can bet your ass Sony and Nintendo do this and if it’s not clear by now, game development is not a stable job nor has it ever been for many. A lot of developers are contractors and guess what happens when a project is done?

Ganif7d ago

Nintendo said they have no plans for layoffs, and you can't seriously claim that the scale of Sony's layoffs most of which involved Bungie which is self managed as even close to the same scale as what Microsoft has done since they purchased Zenimax. And that significantly less layoffs would have happened if those publishers had stayed independent. Keep in mind that much of these layoffs have been due to redundancies specifically related to these buyouts.

CrimsonWing697d ago (Edited 7d ago )

@Ganif

Nintendo:

https://gamerant.com/ninten...

Sony:

https://gamerant.com/playst...

https://techxplore.com/news...

I don’t think it’s realistic to treat Sony’s layoffs as somehow outside the norm for the industry right now. Even if Bungie is self-managed, Sony’s cuts went far beyond that like Naughty Dog, Insomniac, London Studio being shut down completely, and multiple teams across the globe took hits. These weren’t just minor adjustments.

Nintendo, I had to look up and you’re right. They seem to be an outlier, but rest assured at some point it happens. And even then there’s been layoffs, albeit a smaller amount and contractors.

Would fewer layoffs have happened if studios from acquisitions stayed independent? Maybe. But even independents have been hit hard and look at what’s happened with Embracer’s fallout, or smaller devs like Digic, Roll7, or Volition. This isn’t just a “Microsoft problem” or strictly tied to acquisitions; it’s a broader correction happening across the whole industry, and unfortunately, layoffs are a big part of that process right now.

Ganif7d ago

From your article:

"According to reports, Nintendo of America restructured its testing operations, leading to layoffs of about 120 contractors, part of a strategy for global integration.

Nintendo of America, publisher of iconic franchises like Mario and Zelda, is shifting some contractors to full-time roles for better development integration."

Contractors are not employees, and even if you want to count them as that, it's 120 people vs around 7500 since Microsoft purchased Zenimax.

In an era of game industry layoffs, Nintendo is hiring more people
https://automaton-media.com...

Nintendo Announces 10 Percent Pay Raise For Devs Despite Lower Profits
https://kotaku.com/nintendo...

Nintendo CEO’s refusal to layoff staff goes viral following industry-wide cuts
"Satoru Iwata took pay cuts to ensure staff didn’t have to be let go"
https://www.nme.com/news/ga...

And as for Sony you're comparing less than 1000 total jobs to an estimated7500

Has the industry faced layoffs, yes, but that still doesn't account for the mass layoffs due to redundancies that was easily predictable, or that fact that at least 1/3 of Microsoft's layoffs and studio closures happened before the industry downturn.

thorstein7d ago (Edited 6d ago )

Take the L, Crimson.

People hate Nintendo, but Ganif proved why they deserve support.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 7d ago
-Foxtrot7d ago

It's like banging your head off a wall, he just can't help himself.

Microsoft can do no wrong, Sony sucks at everything and Nintendo is bigged up because it's less hassle than trying to defend Microsoft all the time

What's going to happen when Microsoft finally turn completely third party, then what?

anast7d ago

I enjoy Obscure. Obscure does good work.

crazyCoconuts7d ago

Did you know that the first n4g was designed to be a perfect human world? Where none suffered, where everyone would be happy. It was a disaster. No one would accept the program.

Tacoboto7d ago

I wouldn't be surprised at this point if anast and osbcure were both alts for the Admin.

We know how Obscure especially drums up additional comments and clicks with his spam-worthy remarks that somehow never get moderated

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 7d ago
Profchaos6d ago

Thats business present a strong front to your shareholders while your company burns around you.

Keep shareholders happy at all costs andnif not happy keep them numb to the reality of you organisation

Angyobangyo6d ago

" Just for the record, I don´t care about your victim complex crap either. Find someone else who cares. "

Just for the record, you clearly you do if you have to vent this hard.

TheExecutioner6d ago

Basically you think like kids when it come to choose between candy or chocolate.

Sonic18816d ago (Edited 6d ago )

Are you and Anast the same person?

+ Show (7) more repliesLast reply 6d ago
7d ago
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