330°

Microsoft’s Play Anywhere program fails to attract big game studios

Microsoft’s year-old Play Anywhere program lets people play video games on both a console and a PC. But big game studios haven’t opted in.

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seattletimes.com
lelo2play2917d ago

No wonder big game studios haven’t opted in.
Every big studio prefer selling 2 copies of the game to the same person instead of a single copy for two platforms.

freshslicepizza2917d ago (Edited 2917d ago )

Sony tried something similar on Vita and PS3, not sure how successful that was either.

ApocalypseShadow2917d ago

I knew it from the start that most companies would not opt into giving away a game for free if they can sell it to you. It's a nice, consumer friendly idea. But you're asking them to give away money on one platform.

Same reason Sony went with digital downloads of their games to your console from 5 consoles to 2. They were giving away money. And gamers were sharing with each other on their purchases. Still do I bet even with 2 consoles.

Same reason Microsoft killed couch multiplayer on halo 5. Why sell 1 halo when you can get 4 people to buy the same game each and have to purchase Xbox live gold to play it.

That's just how business works. Just the other day I was telling someone at lunch that I remember you could buy 5 roast beef sandwiches at Arby's for $5. Now, you get 2 roast beef sandwiches for $6.

Play anywhere is a good idea in theory but big publishers aren't going to cut into their profits by giving away a free version if they can help it.

freshslicepizza2917d ago

@Apocalypse Shadow
"Same reason Sony went with digital downloads of their games to your console from 5 consoles to 2. They were giving away money. And gamers were sharing with each other on their purchases. Still do I bet even with 2 consoles."

I think people were abusing the system.

"Same reason Microsoft killed couch multiplayer on halo 5. Why sell 1 halo when you can get 4 people to buy the same game each and have to purchase Xbox live gold to play it."

It's probably more to do with getting people to buy Live subscriptions and performance hits.

"Play anywhere is a good idea in theory but big publishers aren't going to cut into their profits by giving away a free version if they can help it."

In theory it could be used as a selling feature but you're right, it's not as beneficial to them since they want to sell games, not hardware.

ApocalypseShadow2917d ago

They were abusing it. It was a cool idea in theory for up to 5 PlayStations. I heard from people all the time that they would pitch in and buy a game to share on 2 consoles.

I just don't know how play anywhere would work when a company can make potentially up to a $120 sale or more instead of potentially up to a $60 sale.

Second reason why I can't see this wide spread is why would a consumer put their games on multiple machines. Typically, we all play on a preferred machine. Some may do that because someone else has control of the main TV. But different systems like console and PC?

If I have a game on a phone or tablet I play it on a phone or tablet. If I have a game on a PC, I play it on a PC. If I have it on a console,I play it on a console. That's just from personal experience.

I see the idea of continuing where you left off like my Rokus in different rooms to play Netflix. Don't see it yet taking off for games. Good idea with no widespread need for it.

Bigpappy2917d ago

They can just use it for 1st part. Don't see it costing much to maintain.

subtenko2916d ago

I was great when sony was doing it, but now we are in ps4 generation, im not sure how often it goes on with ps vita and ps4

XanderZane2916d ago

The difference is they were doing that stuff with Indie games and older PS2 games that could play on PSVita and PS3. For M$, this is just for 1st party XBox One games. It was a good idea in theory and made a few PC gamers happy, but it the end they are just losing money and angering the XBox fanbase.

2916d ago
ApocalypseShadow2916d ago

Crotaaa, they're all about the money. Which is why I mentioned Sony in the picture too. Not just Microsoft. Which is why most publishers aren't signing up for play anywhere.

Unless Microsoft is doing an incentive to pay those companies for giving away a free copy, they're not going to do it. They would be losing money and potential profits.

As for halo 1080p/60fps, every halo had split screen. Was getting tick marks for resolution and frame rate more important than giving gamers what they knew came as a standard thing? This is how I'm going to attack your logic:

Single player could have been 1080p/60fps.But, that doesn't have anything to do with couch multiplayer against you friends or family. Previous halo couch multiplayer wasn't 1080p/60fps for 4 screens. Why would halo 5 have to be? Resolution and frame rate had nothing to do with taking couch multiplayer out. It was to sell more copies of the game. Perfectly OK for them to do as a business. But less consumer friendly compared to other versions. Now do you get it?

Skull5212916d ago

Resident Evil and Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor are big 3rd party games that support it so there is still hope. Honestly though with the XBOX being massively powerful the program doesn't matter much to me anymore since I'll be getting high end PC settings on the XBOX anyway. Nice though for playing with friends that just have an xbox or PC when you get a copy of both. I'd love Battlefield to add this functionality. Very good consumer friendly program though. I think EA and Ubisoft as well as other big studios are greedy and would rather you buy 2 copies of the games.

2916d ago
+ Show (7) more repliesLast reply 2916d ago
2916d ago
BeOpenMinded2916d ago

You already can buy digitally and share titles with friends nowadays outside of play anywhere. I have been splitting purchases with a friend most of this gen as it is. I don't know if that's a factor as much as launching on UWP is the issue actually.

XanderZane2916d ago

Exacty, Microsoft's Play Anywhere program is really just for their own 1st party games. They should have know that 3rd party companies wouldn't even waste their time doing this, because they would lose lots of money. Microsoft would be better just pulling the plug on this program and keeping XBox One exclusives on the XBox One platforms. Maybe make a few PC exclusives like the Age of Empire and Flight Simulation games and call it a day.

MegamanXXX2916d ago (Edited 2916d ago )

Not going to happen since they're committed to their first party games. Can't wait to play their first party exclusives. I'm glad Microsoft is giving us option to play on PC and Xbox one

XanderZane2916d ago

@MegamanXXX
We'll see. Phil already said that PC and the XBX will have their own exclusives down the road. So don't expect every XB1 1st party game to grace the PC in the future. If Microsoft wants to sell more XB1X, they will eventually make XB1X exclusives as well.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 2916d ago
XiNatsuDragnel2917d ago (Edited 2917d ago )

No wonder why this kind of flops.

2916d ago Replies(7)
IGiveHugs2NakedWomen2916d ago

Why would anyone make two copies of the same game available for the price of one? I can't believe that there are people in this thread who actually thought that developers outside of Microsoft would participate.

Kribwalker2916d ago

Well capcom has with resident evil 7, Warner is with Shadow Of War and there's already almost 20 games in the program with 20 more to come so far

https://www.windowscentral....

GrmpyolGamer 2916d ago

Ah well. More devs have opted on than have for the PS play anywhere program because more options suuuuuuuuuuuuuck

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170°

AMD CEO Shares Vision Behind Xbox Partnership and Next-Gen Chip Roadmap

AMD CEO Lisa Su talks about the Xbox AMD partnership, next-gen Ryzen + Radeon chips, and AI rendering tech coming to all Xbox devices.

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clouddosage.com
Obscure_Observer5h ago

AMD is really building hype around their unique partnership with Microsoft to help and build an advanced and seamless Xbox ecosystem across all Xbox consoles and devices.

I wonder what she meant by "full roadmap of gaming optimized chips" though? Seems ambitious.

Next year´s Xbox Showcase already looks promising and exciting. Here´s hoping they deliver.

Fishy Fingers5h ago(Edited 5h ago)

Some odd, deliberate wording, no branding, not 'Xbox consoles, Xbox handhelds' specifically, feels and sounds like they're building towards hardware that anyone can be used or licensed to/by themselves and other manufacturers.

Multiplatform software and hardware 'Xbox/AMD APU'.

Obscure_Observer4h ago

I guess you missed Sarah Bond´s next generation Xbox announcement this week, were she clearly states:

"I´m thrilled to share that we´ve established a strategic multi-year partnership with AMD to co-engineer silicon across a portfolio of devices, including, *our* next generation *Xbox consoles*."

But hey, I don´t think you´re entirely wrong, maybe MS will build their own Xbox consoles while licencing other manufactures to build and sell their own Xbox branded consoles. Who knows

BeHunted10m ago(Edited 10m ago)

I think you watched the wrong video. It's below the description, or you can watch it directly on YouTube.

https://youtu.be/kprpRvsOua...

HyperMoused4h ago

Shares vision....we provide chips for money, this deal will sell many chips, we will make lots of money...good vision

Christopher4h ago

The marketing behind this is so heavy that I worry about the actual outcome. Why are they just not showing us the product, why all this talking in market speak?

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320°

Sony PS5 Era Profits Soar Past $13 Billion, Outpacing All Prior PlayStation Generations

Sony’s PS5 era has generated over $13 billion in profits, surpassing the combined earnings of PS1–PS4, with $136 billion in sales.

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inspire2rise.com
lukasmain21h ago(Edited 21h ago)

Their recent Playstation revenue is also more than Xbox and Switch combined, obviously in large part due to 3rd party sales.

Christopher20h ago

I mean, if Sony is keeping third parties happy, kind of feels like a winning method.

IRetrouk16h ago

Kinda always been that way if you look at previous gens, exclusives are important but they aint the main revenue generator.

Reaper22_15h ago(Edited 15h ago)

.While that is impressive. Microsoft made 13 billion in one quarter. Making up facts doesn't make them true.

Mmmkay15h ago

microsoft is not xbox. a bot should know that by now. you have been told this bs 1000 times on this site alone.

OlderGamer1712h ago

Yeah Microsoft but Xbox on the other hand.....

Aloymetal12h ago

Your defense of Microsoft is only highlighting Lord Phil's and the lame MS mismanagement. Since you're talking about MS as a whole, imagine having trillions in the bank and still losing to ''tiny'' Sony PS and Ninty. It doesn't get any more lame than that.

Christopher7h ago

If what Microsoft made as a whole was all that mattered, we would still have Windows Phones and Zunes. I would love to see Xbox' operating profits. Love to see it.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 7h ago
thorstein13h ago

I prefer Playstation over Xbox when it comes to consoles but how does this news justify their layoffs?

Shane Kim13h ago

But the execs brother. You got to think about them. How could they otherwise buy yet another mansion and yacht?

raWfodog11h ago

People are generally paid for the work they are doing. Layoffs generally occur when there is no work for them to do (project cancelled, business slowing down, etc). I’ve been laid off from two jobs during my 40+ years of working so I know about these things. A company is not going to just keep paying people if there is no work for them to do, no matter how much profits they made.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 7h ago
MIDGETonSTILTS1716h ago

And this is why the game output for ps5 has been a tad slower…

1) they needed to be… games take longer to develop, and they’d burn out their teams trying to maintain the same pace as ps3.

2) they can afford to… games cost more than ever to push boundaries, so Sony had to figure out a way to match Xbox’s clever profit strategies in order to afford to continue to innovate and take risks.

lukasmain11h ago

So much time was wasted on those Live Service shits. Glad they learned their lesson and have scaled that way back. Still haven't killed it, but I like it being in the background and not at the forefront

MIDGETonSTILTS176h ago

Honestly, I love Helldivers 2 so much that I can forgive them for over investing in GaaS. At least they got one gem from the endeavor.

And I still dream of Factions releasing one day.

I don’t hate GaaS inherently, most are just implemented poorly.

Reaper22_15h ago(Edited 15h ago)

@ s2killinit

Thats xbox which includes other services. The playstion division also includes other services as well. Its mostly playtion but not all playstation. What's up with all the double standards around here.

Chevalier14h ago

Yeah double standards like some idiots who got to talk about unrelated profits as a talking point. Wish those damn parrots could stay on topic with game related profits.

Next thing these idiots will talk about is something unrelated like Nintendo made more off the Mario movie than all of Xbox studios TV/movie endeavors combined you know?

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/...

14h ago
Deathdeliverer14h ago

@Chevalier

Mind you that’s only AFTER buying all those other companies adding them to the revenue. It was a LOT lower. This is Activision, Bethesda, and others COMBINED to get that number.

“The sales of windows professional on the other hand trounces god of war sales” 😂

Reaper22_12h ago(Edited 12h ago)

All you did was prove that you dont know what revenue is. Tencent is no.1 in profits. Buts that's ok because unlike Tencent and Microsoft, Sony isn't in it for the money, right.🤔

pwnmaster300011h ago

That’s what Xbox fanboys do. They’ve been doing this since Xbox one.

They will use all of MS, one of the biggest company in the world and play it like every dollar they earn comes from Xbox just to one up PlayStation.
Is actually pretty sad.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 11h ago
Chevalier14h ago

"Mind you that’s only AFTER buying all those other companies adding them to the revenue. It was a LOT lower. This is Activision, Bethesda, and others COMBINED to get that number."

Guys we're off topic here you know? Can someone bring us back on topic and tell us how much revenue Xbox studios does for movies and TV? Pretty sure we should also discuss how much Nintendo stands to make at Universal studios on Nintendo land and the rides should be a hot ticket this summer.

"Ouch! hahaha no wonder reaper wanna hide behind profits made by windows XD"

Yeah idiots with some sort of inferiority complex needs to get their win somewhere though. But wait shouldn't we get back on topic guys? Like seriously how much money do you think Fallout Season 2 will bring in?!

Reaper22_9h ago

Nah, reaper's not hiding behind anything. I'm just pointing out some facts. At first the narrative was Microsoft isn't going to make the money back from the ABK deal to now their profits wouldn't be as high if they didn't get the deal. This very topic is part of the reason why the deal was secured. Sony's dishonesty and reluctance to tell the truth about how much money they're making and lying about how much this deal would hurt their business. That strategy failed. They're are making a lot of money. No doubt about it and its good for the industry but don't get butthurt when Microsoft post their profits and you guys see they are also making a lot of money as well.

CrashMania9h ago

@reaper.

Microsoft don't reveal Xbox profits, sales numbers, or gamepass numbers, I wonder why that is?

You call Sony dishonest but at least they don't hide and obfuscate meaningful playstation numbers like MS do with Xbox.

IRetrouk8h ago

Reaper stop lol, only one company hides that info and it ain't sony....

Chevalier12h ago

"All you did was prove that you dont know what revenue is."

Nah all you did was confirm you're an idiot.

Reaper22_10h ago(Edited 10h ago)

You seem to be fluent in idiocy. Not everyone speaks it. So next time speak slowly and clearly so we all can understand. Getting emotional doesn't really make you smarter. Before you post a link with info make sure you know what it says.🫡

Chevalier5h ago

"Nah, reaper's not hiding behind anything. I'm just pointing out some facts"

🤡 What facts? 🤣

Please share with everyone your idiocy

What does Xbox make in revenue and profit? What are their sales? How much money does Gamepass cost them? Oh right you got ZERO numbers to post.

"Before you post a link with info make sure you know what it says."

Says the idiot who can't even tell the difference between Microsoft and Xbox? Lmao. Seriously all you're showing everyone again is how much of an uninformed parroting idiot you are.

But go ahead and post your evidence! Oh right again ZERO from a ZERO. Absolutely 💯 hilarious to see you stumble like the idiot you are.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 5h ago
Npugz714h ago

Only because of games prices otherwise it’s the worst generation in PlayStation history especially for games

Reaper22_14h ago

Thats true. The article did mention game and prices were a reason. Its also shows their greed is no different than Microsoft. Laying off all those people but yet bragging about profits and still tried to stop ABK deal. What the hell!

MatrixxGT14h ago

Closing studios, layoffs, leadership changes, PS plus increases, multiple game cancellations and delays, total flops like concord. Slowest release of first party games of any generation and they just shut down PS stars I guess because it was costing to much.
Yet they announce record profits…..the greed here is insane, MS and Nintendo too. All of them milking gamers and we just keep lapping it up like a blood hound for a meal.
Them tariffs are really hitting them hard I see.

Deathdeliverer13h ago

Well a part of running a business is a tight grip on that P&L sheet. In project management. It’s a known fact that the farther into a project you go, the more costly the corrections. Having something reach the definition of done, the end of the road, and it’s hated is a monumental loss of money. As games are usually made iteratively it’s like how was this not caught and course corrected several times before this point. Sony is definitely known as trusting and allows teams to make the games they want to make. They “trust the process”. The caveat to that big budget and freedom is if it bombs, especially if it’s your first game, you’re outta there. They have shareholders/stakeholders to keep happy. Where as normally a done game like Concord would give ROI as it was out in the wild. The cost of the project is recouped and turned into profit or delivered whatever value they wanted. If the game is now NOT coming out, how do they get that money back and stay profitable? By not paying wages for that team over a course of time that would have still been on payroll working on the next potential bomb, DLC for a dead game, and essentially costing more money.
It sadly isn’t greed, it’s business. They release these great profits because 1) it’s enticing for more stakeholders to invest, and 2) Despite failures they are still balancing the books and turning record setting profits.
How many live service games died at various stages of development? They are still this profitable? Imagine if the games came out and were hits to add onto the profits?

Christopher6h ago(Edited 6h ago)

So, you're saying that over $10B of this is from $10 to $20 software price increases? Zero to do with increased market reach? Massive MTX from third-party games?

Vithar14h ago

where are the "Sony is in trouble" sayers? LOL

Chevalier13h ago

They're talking about Microsoft quarterly profits like any true gamer would be doing.

Aloymetal12h ago

Oh, that's coming, it's a mandatory thing just wait for next gen and you'll see infinite articles from the shills and the green fanbase saying ''tHiS GeN WiL Be dIfFerEnT''

stonecold34h ago

over twitter xbox fanboy you tube are saying saying sony is broke cant afford warner bros.

Show all comments (66)
100°

PlayStation The Concert Announces U.S.Tour Dates

The tour is coming to the states as new dates have been revealed.