Be sure to grab the Thomas the Tank Engine mod for Starfield at Nexus Mods before the fun-haters at Mattel pull the plug and force Brock into hiding... again.
Bethesda’s space opera Starfield, famously cancelled on the PS5 after Microsoft’s multi-billion-dollar acquisition of the publisher, could still release on Sony’s console in the future.
Speaking with reporter Destin Legarie, Xbox bigwig Phil Spencer was asked if the intergalactic RPG would be “staying put for the time being”.
Replies(1)
Starfield was strongly hyped as a triple-A exclusive that could drive Xbox Series console sales. Since Microsoft announced that four of its games would tentatively release on other platforms, there's been speculation about whether Xbox would fully embrace third-party status. Starfield's potential release on other platforms has become a barometer, a key indicator, on whether Xbox will go completely third-party.
Whilst there have been other games announced as coming to PlayStation and Nintendo, the most extreme in the Xbox creator community have always held on to the notion that Starfield would remain exclusive. Now the final barrier has been removed, Phil Spencer head of Microsoft gaming has refused to agree that Starfield, its flagship title, will remain exclusive.
And now Obscure Observer's final prophecy has been proven false.
https://ibb.co/qWLK4Zp
https://ibb.co/Xk7Y5qj
Venom,
"Starfield's potential release on other platforms has become a barometer, a key indicator, on whether Xbox will go completely third-party."
I see what your are saying, but, I believe Halo is the barometer for if they are going full multiplatform. If Halo launches on PS, then that is the full confirmation.
Additionally, yes, 3rd party makes sense technically, but the term multiplatform would be more appropriate, as they still have their dedicated hardware, if they were to ditch their own hardware, that would be full 3rd party.
MS needs to decide what they want to do and jump in. They should announce clear plans and launch their games day one on other platforms and here is why, xbox gamers usually play their games through gamepass while other platforms would be paying full price. It's a win win for MS because they can continue to grow GP while getting a lot of extra revnue from playstation and nintendo
halo MCC, Gears of war complete collection, forza horizon 5 (each game selling at full price)
"It's a win win for MS because they can continue to grow GP while getting a lot of extra revnue from playstation and nintendo."
How does it affect Microsoft's business strategy if in that scenario the profits from PS, Nintendo, or a combination of the two surpass their profits from the closed Xbox ecosystem (Game Pass, Xbox hardware, and associated software from those sources)?
Money is money. Xbox has a goal to grow gamepass which they will and who knows maybe gamers will see GP as better value and in future generations switch platforms
"Money is money."
One last question for clarification.
I gave a scenario in which the profits coming in from the two camps are not equal. Is it your belief that Microsoft would not be concerned with which of those camps was driving the higher profits and would not adapt their strategy to cater to the audience driving the most profits?
Gamers need to stop this false narrative. MS has literally told you and shown you the path forward. I understand older gamers being in denile because the past metric was exclusives and console sales. Gaming has changed. We can grow with it or get left behind. It's that simple. Games everywhere is pro consumer. I'm all in
@InUrFoxHole
"I understand older gamers being in denile because the past metric was exclusives and console sales. Gaming has changed. We can grow with it or get left behind."
Says who Microsoft? You think Sony and Nintendo don't care about their console sales? Why gaming always have to shift to Microsoft's wants and needs?
Raul
Microsoft's recent decision to allow Xbox exclusives on PlayStation and Nintendo platforms seems to reflect their shifting business strategy. With a massive investment of $80–$100 billion and a diminished market share, it appears Microsoft is prioritizing revenue over hardware sales. Ideally, Xbox would be performing better, with Game Pass subscriptions exceeding 50 million, but given the current reality, their focus seems to be on software and expanding Game Pass to as many platforms as possible.
Microsoft seems to envision Game Pass becoming the "Netflix of Gaming," aiming for widespread availability—even on competing platforms like Nintendo and PlayStation. While this may sound far-fetched, it aligns with their strategy of maximizing accessibility and revenue streams.
Their current approach also provides a unique advantage. Xbox exclusives launch Day One on Game Pass, attracting subscribers, while players on other platforms pay full price for these same titles. This could potentially serve as a long-term strategy: when some PlayStation or Nintendo gamers recognize the value of Game Pass, they might eventually decide to purchase an Xbox to enjoy these games at a lower cost and with greater convenience.
This is just my perspective, but it seems like Microsoft is playing the long game here, focusing on software dominance and creating a future where Game Pass is synonymous with gaming itself
@ neutral
There are so many contradictions in that wall of whatever that I don't know where to start, but for one, selling hardware generates revenue. Is your point that nobody buys xbox hardware anymore so it no longer generates any revenue?
I think the title Did not do as well as they hoped I've seen retail disc copies going for 10 dollars so going multiplat for this game is just a return on investment more than anything.
Halo and gears are the true test
Well if I'm being objective. It's a solid game. But it's dulled by so many menus.
Seeing Zenimax and Activition-Blizzard games remain multiplat post-acquisition is being made such a big deal.
These games would have been on ps regardless.
I'll be fully convinced once I see legacy first party games like Halo, Gears, fable and co. cross over
Either way, they're all coming to PC just like PS games. I'm a happy gamer.
Getting closer and closer to all games one platform. Slowly but surely.
😂 “I’ll be convinced once I see legacy first party games…”
Then lists their only first party games.
😂
And the legacy ones are the only ones worth playing and they should come as a $29.99 bundle.
The ones they made once they took over the IPs are crap and not worth playing.
Halo is going. I'll stake your reputation on it! But in all seriousness. I think HMCC will go and I'm cool with that. Because I would love to play KZ and socom on xbox. MS gets great games and sony makes $
“ 'Keeping Games Off Other Platforms Is Not the Path for Us’”
Of course not because that is not how third-party publishing works. This isn’t new. Xbox is reinventing the wheel and getting praised for it by the usual fanboys.
Bethesda originally planned to include gore and dismemberment mechanics in Starfield but had to remove them due to technical limitations.
I wonder If it was the technical limitations that made them leave out anything fun as well.
LOL
It likely would have added even more to the already excessive loading instances.
https://www.ign.com/article...
Seems like it was an effort issue, same with the loading screens. It's a travesty for such a big publisher to accept it.
A former Starfield developer has stated that the industry has found itself moving away from big games due to fan fatigue.
I avoid them. But there's still an audience that's happy to spend that amount of time playing a game.
Time flies when you're having fun but when it feels like a chore. No thanks.
Stop padding the games with grindy stuff then maybe people will be happy to spend time doing the fun stuff.
25-30 hours for a RPG is normally enough for me... unless it's isometric RPG's like Fallout 1/2, Wasteland 2/3, Baldur's Gate 3, Underrail, etc, then it's more than 30 hours.
10-20 hours for a action, metroidvania or platformer game is enough for me.
100's of hours for Football Manager, Civilization or any decent strategy game is enough for me...
Haha so true! I cringe to actually look up on Steam how many hours I've spent on Total War games. EASILY 100's of hours!!!
I platimuned RDR2 in 500hours. I wish it took double that time. When the game is good I give it the time it deserves for full enjoyment.
Stellar Blade is another example. I wish the game never ended
I don't avoid RPG's that take a long time to actually play, however I do agree that for some games there is so much unnecessary padding that playing becomes a chore. Of course you do have to define what is "unnecessary padding" and that is subjective.
I am pretty sure I invested more than 100 hours to beat Dragon Age Inquisition and almost all that to finish Metaphor Refantazio, I felt like an orphan when I beat both, had a ton of fun. That said, I rushed as much as I could in quite a few games that lasted 50 hours or less because I coudn't bear to play more. Tons of padding. The game just have to be fun and with great stories. That's it
I don't mind long games, I just don't care for the ones which are only long because they've padded their games with the same repetitive padding and it's super obvious.
Wrong, were tired of 100hrs of filler and low effort fetch quests and 500 useless collectibles with little to no reward. Anyone would be ecstatic to have 100hrs of gripping side quests and interesting stories, but you stopped delivering on that.
Rememywhen collectibles were like 8 armor pieces to unlock a legendary armor set? Now it's 200 letters to get a trophy/achievement
I don't mind throwing long hours into a game. As long as it has a great story, fun to play, great characters. Last game I threw 100 plus hours into was AC Odyssey. I don't have much time to throw in that type of hours into a game my back log is too long plus work interferes with gaming. There are fans out there who love 100+ hrs there are people who still believe in getting every bang for your buck. $80-90 for a new game that is short is pointless and can piss people off.
There's two things that you can always guarantee the mod community will add to a game, boobs and Thomas the Tank Engine.
CJ from San Andreas better be in inside that.
Gotta love them mods.