Playground Games talked about what drove them to do the unannounced RPG open world project and how it influenced the studio's acquisition by Microsoft.
Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun 2 developers discuss the huge success of Space Marine 2 and its effect on the series as a whole.
The latest game in BioWare’s fantasy role-playing series went through ten years of development turmoil
In early November, on the eve of the crucial holiday shopping season, staffers at the video-game studio BioWare were feeling optimistic. After an excruciating development cycle, they had finally released their latest game, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, and the early reception was largely positive. The role-playing game was topping sales charts on Steam, and solid, if not spectacular, reviews were rolling in.
Its easy they called the die hard fans people in their nerd caves who will buy anything and then went woke to reach modern audiences....insulting the nerds in their caves along the way showing utter contempt for their fan base. very hapy it failed and any company who insults their fan base and treat their customers with contempt and insults, in future, i also hope fail.
It’s disappointing but not surprising to see what's happening with Dragon Age: The Veilguard and the broader situation at BioWare. The layoffs are tragic — no one wants to see talented developers lose their jobs. But when studios repeatedly create games that alienate their own fanbase, outcomes like this become unfortunately predictable.
There’s a pattern we’re seeing far too often: beloved franchises are revived, only to be reshaped into something almost unrecognizable. Changes are made that no one asked for, often at the expense of what originally made these games special. Then, when long-time fans express concern or lose interest, they’re told, “This game might not be for you.” But when those same fans heed that advice and don’t buy the game, suddenly they're labeled as toxic, sexist, bigoted, or worse.
Let’s be clear: the overwhelming majority of gamers have no issue with diversity, LGBTQ+ representation, or strong female leads. In fact, some of the most iconic characters in gaming — like Aloy, Ellie, or FemShep — are proof that inclusivity and excellent storytelling can and do go hand in hand. The issue arises when diversity feels performative, forced, or disconnected from the narrative — when characters or themes are inserted not to serve the story, but to satisfy a corporate DEI checklist. Audiences can tell the difference.
When studios chase approval from a vocal minority that often doesn’t even buy games — while simultaneously dismissing loyal fans who actually do — they risk not just the success of individual titles, but the health of their entire studio. Telling your core customers “don’t buy it if you don’t like it” is not a viable business strategy. Because guess what? Many of us won’t. And when the game fails commercially, blaming those very fans for not supporting it is both unfair and self-defeating.
Gamers aren’t asking for less diversity or less progress. We’re asking for better writing, thoughtful character development, and a respect for the franchises we’ve supported for decades. When you give people great games that speak to them — whether they’re old fans or new players — they will show up. But if you keep making games for people who don’t play them, don’t be surprised when those who do stop showing up
I thought the writing and character development were fine. Sometimes things just dont resonate with people.
2026 will mark the 25th anniversary of Xbox, and Phil Spencer has teased it as a "really special year" for the games division.
You got downvotes by pathetic gamers for feeling hopeful about good games coming out next year. Imagine how small your brain must be to downvote someone excited for future gaming joy? It is pretty neat to see people's world view blow up in front of them as they realize Microsoft has put themselves in a driver's seat that Sony hasn't been able to touch all generation.... What's even more pathetic is the same people downvoting you are the same people wishlisting Microsoft games on their ps5s 😂
“Imagine how small your brain must be to downvote someone excited for future gaming joy?”
My dude your post history shits on EVERYTHING. You never have a good thing to say about anything lol! 🤣
“Getting ready for those GaaS reveals! Sony is a shadow of themselves this gen.”
You literally said this a couple of days ago. Start applying the clown make up, you hypocritical jester
NGL, next year might be one of the best years in gaming ... starting off with RE9 and GTA VI ...
and then all the good games that's been cooking
Pragmata, Sands of Time, Saros, Gears E-Day, 007 First Light, Blood of Dawnwalker,
Mortal Shell II, Onimusha, Marvel1943: Rise of Hydra
current-gen only Infinity Ward's CoD, Duskbloods
+ My guess: Wolverine, Exodus, Mudang, Crimson Desert, Clockwork etc ...
~ seems like it might get too stacked
@rokos:”Hopefully “
I downvoted you not for been hopeful but because I have seen the same “NEXT YEAR WILL BE SPECIAL “ comment for the last 10+ and hasn’t seen anything special from Microsoft.
I hope next year will be the one that everyone been waiting for since the last 3 years of the Xbox 360, it have to be after over $80 billions spent on acquisitions.
So the new excuse is they don't count because it's from the ABK now huh. I guess all those 3rd party games count even less because they don't own them. According to your always crappy logic.
I don't know they have delivered this year and even last year. And they have a lot more content in the pipeline right now than anyone else. We can't just keep hating on MS
Indiana Jones
South of midnight
Avowed
Flight simulator
Hell Blade 2
Minecraft update
Gears of war reloaded
Indian Jones:expansion
Gears E day
Clockwork revolution
Fable
Doom the dark ages
The outer worlds 2
Grounded 2
Call of duty
How many of those titles were just buyouts of companies that were going about making their games anyways? *Throws cash - "Oh look what we made!"
This list, that's been posted again, and again, and again in every single topic like this, contains almost nothing, literally almost nothing from Microsoft's own creational thoughtprocess.
It's a bunch of former 3rd party IPs.
Now even slowly returning to Playstation in some cases like Indiana, Hellblade, probably Starfield soon too, after they were made exclusively to Xbox on purpose.
Due to Microsoft's lack for own IP material except Halo & Forza. Which, the lack of, was the sole reason for all of it to happen in the first place anyway. Please don't pretend it wasn't.
And just look at all the games that come from Obsidian alone.
You really think Obsidian wasn't already working on Avowed and South of Midnight even without Microsoft buying Zenimax?
Microsoft delivered nothing but cheques.
@dveio THIS. Lol, this dude thinks Call of Duty wouldn't exist without Microsoft! smh 😂
Common narrative I see often — that Microsoft shouldn’t get credit for the games its studios release because they “just bought them.” But this viewpoint ignores key context and sets a double standard that other platform holders aren’t held to
No one is saying these games wouldn't exist at all without Microsoft. But let’s not pretend that having a trillion-dollar company backing a studio doesn’t make a massive difference. Obsidian never had AAA funding before the Xbox acquisition. Pillars of Eternity was crowdfunded, and their resources were always stretched thin. Now they’re working on Avowed, with proper support behind it.
Ninja Theory’s Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice was made by around 20 people, using borrowed equipment and doing mocap in a boardroom. It was a passion project held together by tape and willpower. Today, Hellblade II exists because they were given resources, time, and freedom — something many developers don’t get unless they’re owned by a company that believes in their vision.
ZeniMax (Bethesda’s parent company) was in real financial trouble before the Microsoft acquisition. Reports and insider accounts have pointed out how much they needed a cash infusion. And while some people want to write off Xbox’s ownership of Bethesda titles, they forget the alternative could have meant layoffs or even closures.
The same goes for Activision Blizzard. Would you really prefer the company to stay under Bobby Kotick, after all the documented workplace misconduct and toxic leadership issues? Say what you want about Microsoft, but their acquisition brought accountability and change to a company that desperately needed it.
At the same time, Xbox gets hated on for doing what every major company does. Sony bought Housemarque, Bluepoint, Insomniac — but no one says Spider-Man 2 “doesn’t count” because of that. Why does Xbox get treated differently for acquiring struggling or undervalued developers and giving them a chance to thrive?
And the idea that Xbox locks games away is outdated. They're pushing cross-platform releases, cloud gaming, Game Pass, and backward compatibility more than any other platform holder. They're not forcing all studios into live service. If anything, their upcoming lineup is less GAAS-heavy and more focused on narrative and creativity — Avowed, South of Midnight, Clockwork Revolution, Fable, Perfect Dark, Towerborne, and others show real variety.
Whether people like it or not, Xbox is now the biggest publisher in the industry and owns the most gaming IPs. But what matters more is how they treat their studios. Most of these teams were previously stuck making AA games with limited scope — now they’re getting the tools and support to aim higher.
So when people say “Microsoft didn’t make those games,” they’re missing the point. It’s not about who started the studio — it’s about who enabled them to do their best work. You don’t have to love Xbox to admit they’ve helped a lot of developers and are taking a player-first approach.
Instead of writing off everything they do, maybe try recognizing the good they’re doing for both devs and gamers. At the end of the day, we should want more studios to succeed — no matter who owns them
I'm surprised Clockwork Revolution (BioShock meets Dishonored) isn't getting more media attention. The game looks interesting and reminds me of the old RPG games.
The only good game on that list is Flight sim. The rest are either average or will be average. It's not a good look for MS.
My god.... Look how many comments are upset about microsoft's successes... 😂 This may be my new favorite thread. Not one gamer saying thanks for all the goodness coming their way, just bitter anger and downvoting the very games they themselves will purchase throughout 2026.... Sony really worked you guys over this generation.... Condolences.
@neutralgamer1992 You said what needed to be said.
I have heard for years from older gamers that fanboys are the biggest issue with any fanbase. They will defend or gloss over negative news as long as the correct logo is on the box and they bash the competing platform no matter how much good they are trying to bring.
Right now their advocacy for PlayStation is elevating that platform so high that Sony no longer believes they need to do anything to satisfy their loyal fanbase like they did in the PS4 days.
I just hope most of them will eventually start advocating for themselves and encourage others to do the same. No one should blindly support one platform because these companies do not care about anything other than profit.
Hunted
And first proper game done by the studio with proper AAA budget and saying it will be released when ready
Anast
I believe we went through this before that you are objectively wrong. Meta critic, user reviews, game sales. In Playstation top 10 best selling games were 5 from Microsoft studios
Otter
No this dude is saying so many other studios wouldn't be thriving without MS money and people would be getting abused physically and mentally with Bobby kotick and his side kicks
Also maybe look up how the original founder of Bethesda and zenimax was kicked out of his own company by his best friend lawyer. So that was always a shady place and had been struggling financially before MS paid a premium of almost 7 billion
Eroica
I use to be a die hard Playstation fan and now I only have a Pc. I see how these fans are so toxic. They just can't handle any positive news regarding Xbox. When the best selling games on playstation are Xbox titles. Look at Forza horizon being best seller and that's years old game by MS. I guess ms don't deserve credit for that success too since they are the only company in gaming making acquisitions
Forget the fact Sony paid 3.6 billion for bungie and MS 6.9 for zenimax. Which investment has turned out better
Destiny and marathon with a lot of controversy
While zenimax output is nothing short of amazing compared to what bungie has released
Yeah it's tricky. "Xbox" has morphed to mean different things to different people.
Console, now Windows, GamePass, and the cross platform games. There's a mix of attitudes towards all those things individually, and maybe an overarching attitude towards MS. But can't argue that the game companies MS recently bought continue to flourish, and GamePass PC has been a great value over the last year.
@OtterX
You're the dude mad at your exes new guy. She's with someone else... get over it.
They've had good output so far. So waiting for those games shouldn't be a problem.
Who cares if they're buy outs of companies or whatever excuse you want to make. They're games that are being distributed to other console. Play the games and enjoy it instead of fanboying or complaining.
They going to be a he best and biggest publisher on Xbox, Playstation and PC next year. They not really said anything about Switch 2 though spite claiming to be big supporters.
It will be, his net work will hit 50 million and he plans to buy a new mansion in Cape Cod. Thanks everyone! #failup
I'm excited to see them get out of their wheelhouse, so to speak. If it's actually going to be Fable, you've got my attention.
Thank you Playground Games.
Man this game will melt eyes on next gen.
I'm hyped
Please be Fable