Sea of Thieves shows how Microsoft can sail past PlayStation’s exclusive game lineup

It is no secret that Microsoft has struggled to deliver compelling exclusives to the Xbox One. Even Microsoft gaming executive Phil Spencer admits the company can do a better job. By contrast, PlayStation 4 exclusives like Horizon: Zero Dawn and Uncharted: The Lost Legacy earned critical acclaim and sold well over 2 million combined digital copies in 2017.

[Cyborgg]

This article is hilarious 😁

[JaguarEvolved]

early April 1st jokes started early. I understand and won't be fooled

[thekhurg]

Yet another paid hype program for a MS game. Constantly happens each year. It'll happen again at E3 where everyone will claim MS is going to dominate blah blah blah. Just internet fud.

[GrubsterBeater]

@thekhurg

"It'll happen again at E3 where everyone will claim MS is going to dominate blah blah blah. "

Another thing that happens each year is when MS ends up having an awful E3 show after all the "just wait til the tides change at E3" and "XBox is gonna destroy Sony at E3", all the XBox fanboys (not normal fans) come out and say how bad Sony got destroyed by XBox at E3, all while showing "timed console exclusives" and all that other stuff they show.

It blows my mind, man....

[Sono421]

I mean, sea of thieves is good, no denying that, but since when did one game = 20?

[neutralgamer1992]

cyborgg

it is because instead of demanding more from MS they are trying to settle for what is being offered(they don't know any better) the reason playstation has had long term success along with nintendo isn't due to MT but due to the fact both console makers have great 1st-2nd party studios

I have heard since 2013 how ms will improve and how they will invest more into their studios so far it has been all talk. Just like the months xbox one finishes dead last they release xblive user data and the few they win they will actually release sales data

this is the 3rd console from ms yet they havent learned a thing and keep making the same mistakes over and over

and than articles like these show up which are clearly paid by MS because no one in their right mind would think MT can replace actual exclusives. There is a reason sony has come out to say we will focus even more on 1st-2nd party games. Long term success comes from smart investments but instead xbox fans want timed exclusives(instead of spending millions on them why not invest that into opening new studios)

[Godmars290]

Thing is MS thinking is more aligned with profit-making than entertainment-making. They don't seem to know the difference between providing a service and offering product.

That their fans carry their banner, repeat and believe as gospel whatever PR is offered, just makes things worse.

[Death]

@Godmars,

Why are games as a service bad again? Monster Hunter World took the same approach with pretty impressive results. The game will stay fresh with a steady stream of updates/DLC and by the looks of it, free. Not all games have to be single player narratives to be good.

[The Wood]

'Not all games have to be single player narratives to be good.'

Nobody is claiming that. The point is it's a major deficiency on ms's part. There is an audience that ms aren't catering to and it is obviously more important than some give it credit for.

Following on from what neutral said. . Xbox fans spend way too much time highlighting others deficiencies and defending or deflecting away from ms's own deficiencies. It's weird such a cash rich manufacturer can't get their act together in their 3rd season. Maybe they will never do more because every misstep they make is pacified and defended by a large amount of hard-core fans. . I mean. . that behaviour isn't exclusive to ms fans. . no way but right now, ms are the ones with the biggest issues to remedy.

[Godmars290]

"Why are games as a service bad again?"
Because it makes the industry in general more profit driven and less creative.

Just as there are too many examples of publisher abusing the market, what effect do you think required subscriptions would have?

As is I'm at a loss why you used MH as example of a service game.

[quenomamen]

Oooog yea well Sea of Theives got that Cloud powa Ocean! How you like dem apples !

[trooper_]

Death: No one said games as a service is bad. It just doesn't justify a $399-$500 price tag. I don't know why you guys are scared of getting new exclusives from Microsoft, let alone them putting money into first party studios. Forza, Halo, Sea of Thieves, or whatever nonsense they have coming out isn't going to cut it.

Where is the creativity? Where's the hunger to please gamers?

[Godmars290]

@trooper:
The issue is that MS comes off as wanting to get far more money out than put into gaming. That games as services is essentially giving them a blank check in addition to DLC, MTs and loot boxes.

If you really look at their game development history they've always had creative issues, looked for 3rd parties to provide that, while any idea of "pleasing gamers" breaks down to business mechanics on how to get more money out of consumers for the least amount of effort.

Know I can't point that out without being called a Sony fanboy, but the obviousness, the results, of MS's actions are still plain to see.

[Ceaser9857361]

Thank you guys for the comment.. you guys saved me a click... The heading itself is hilarious..

[OB1Biker]

I read it because I thought the title was ironic and it was referring to PS4 games but yea, it's a joke.of a bias. . The interesting thing is a reflection on questioning the press motives and/or competence and unfortunately it's very common.

[morganfell]

"The interesting thing is a reflection on questioning the press motives and/or competence and unfortunately it's very common."

Then this article is full of irony.

[Aceman18]

This one game will not make their exclusive games lineup better than PlayStation' s all of a sudden 😒😩

[trooper_]

What the...

Okay, I died laughing when I saw the title.

[Jinger]

I'm excited for Sea of Thieves, but lets not overhype this...

Plus, the writer really didn't go into any detail of how it will surpass all of those games besides saying that it was popular on streaming sites...

[Gazondaily]

Yeah that isn't a good enough reason.

Sea of Thieves beta showed a lot of interest on streaming sites sure; but I question the long term engagement of it.

Ultimately, Sea of Thieves will be seen as a success if it can pass off as a well fleshed out title that can retain player attention.

There really isn't any other game like it. That alone is rare (hehe) these days so that's great. I'm glad Rare got a chance to be untethered from Kinect and have had creative freedom to create something this unique. I've had a lot of fun in the beta but let's see how the final game fares.

As for comparing it to PS exclusives; that's silly. There's no other game like it really and I can't think of an appropriate comparable.

[Godmars290]

"There really isn't any other game like it."

Guns of Icarus minus altitude changes, plus wave, plus being able to get off the ship?

If anything kills it its going the apparent high exceptions of the fans trying to support it. Though if its true that's its going to become part of a subscription service day one, that's going to both take something away from while making it more stable.

[Gazondaily]

"Guns of Icarus"

Never heard of it. Already sounds like a stretch based on your own description.

[Godmars290]

How have you never heard of Guns of Icarus? Has literally been out for YEARS! Is the first thing that comes up on google if googled.

[lodossrage]

Godmars290 is right.

Not only is Guns of Icarus real and been out for a few years now, there is a PS4 version in the process of being made

[UltraAtomic]

I completely agree. This game is one of a kind. It has alot of hart. Obviously psn is still king on the first party. However if ms can deliver on games like sea of theives or just by taking risks like this. Eventually they could give there compilation an actual compilation on first party. I got the little pun lol this game is soo rare!! Lol

[Thegamer41]

Blackwake comes to mind as well. Very similar.

[letsa_go]

It is so funny to see you in full on MS Defense mode! hahahahah

[Rude-ro]

Streaming sites are controlled atmospheres. Sponsored players and such.
There is no proof of hype other than a lot of popular streamers all of a sudden streamed sea of thieves all at once. That is not popular, that is paying to put the product into high populated streams then using those numbers to create a false sense of hype or demand.
It fell like a ton of bricks on twitch.

[Rachel_Alucard]

"see its in the top 20 (by hours viewed)!"

That part made me giggle of how far of stretch they'll take it

[Aenea]

*joke ahead*
That doesn't say anything, the game can be so boring to watch that people fall asleep after 20 minutes and wake up 8 hours later!
*end joke*

[Raiden]

NOPE, forget the hype crap, the article makes sense, how many games does Sony have that are multiplayer basically NONE, let's take a none Xbox/ps and look at the market, cross out and sky force are free to play can you complete the game no, not yet because the content is constantly be added, now here is the trick, free to play is not really free, because once you are hooked and you want to upgrade fast you pay, million of players fo this every day, now having a game that you and your friends just join play until you forget time exist and you keep on return that is revenue, with game pass it will be crazy, just think about it $/£10 per month play as many games you like, now multiply by 1mil that's instant 10mil multiply by 12 months 12mil and that just 1mil user base, now if 50% of user use this service MS is winning on revenue alone, but they need game that keep your attention and that they do have, if the next table will have a sea of thieves element bang jack pot, crackdown 3 expansion packs upgrade better weapons characters mods jack pot, then you add in DLC, if you sub to game pass it's free bang jack pot, how many entertainment companies offer sub to the public and most don't even look back once, sub are headache free. So the article may be fun to most but when it happens.