Microsoft's quest for short-term $$$ is doing long-term damage to Windows, Surface, Xbox, and beyond

Microsoft is pushing for no "red line" for what games could come to PlayStation, and it all revolves around Satya Nadella and CFO Amy Hood's plans to increase every department's margins.

[Brazz]

"The plan to move Xbox games to other platforms is codenamed "Latitude" internally, and I know there's debate and unease at Microsoft about whether or not this is a good idea. More upcoming Microsoft-owned games slated for PlayStation are already being developed. At least for now, they're potentially obvious games you'd most likely expect. And yes, while it's true Microsoft is a prolific publisher on PlayStation already, it has typically revolved around specific franchises like Minecraft. From what I've heard, Microsoft is pushing for no "red line" for what games could come to PlayStation, and it all revolves around Satya Nadella and CFO Amy Hood's mandate to increase every department's margins. "

Yeah, they are going to kill Xbox hardware.

[Xeofate]

"Yeah, they are going to kill Xbox hardware."

It's for the best.

Quit stringing along xbox fans and screwing over PlayStation owners.

[crazyCoconuts]

Take good care of those Xboxes if you have 'em ...

[outsider1624]

An Xbox game on a Playstation. Never in my years of gaming did i ever thought this was gonna happen.

[jznrpg]

It is dying anyway so doesn’t make much of a difference

[VersusDMC]

No way can they get rid of the hardware as probably 90% of game pass subscribers are hardware users.

Highly doubtful those users will move to PC or Cloud to subscribe there and the competition (Sony and Nin) will never have gamepass on their system.

If they want to keep the current subscribers, they need to keep releasing new hardware.

[PSPSA]

I'm not convinced, why then announce that they're actually working on the next-generation Xbox with “the largest technical leap”, and also looking into handhelds now?

[Rols]

Not like MS don’t drop things a hot potato if it is not performing. Look at MS history to see products or platforms discontinued. Xbox is not a charity for MS, it needs to make money and the ABK was the last roll of the dice for Xbox.

[purple101]

Xbox hardware team members have been incorporated into surface team

This perhaps shows they are not expecting big things from Xbox as a separate entity

[Abear21]

Seems like they are planning to win next gen. All the acquisitions were this generation and nobody except Xbox fans expect games from the acquisitions any time soon.

I’m sure Microsoft can afford to lose money on the short term, pretty sure they do risk assessment when acquiring many companies and spending billions, they’ll be fine lol.

[fr0sty]

*cough*

https://ibb.co/Z8VzKBF

[gold_drake]

i think it will kill off the xbox brand. windows will be fine.

but there is and would be a chance that xbox might be killed off in the future. if they fail to make the money they put in. imo.

[S2Killinit]

They wont kill it, but they will go fully PC while keeping xbox as a brand, and go multiplatform for the most part. They will also work tirelessly to diminish console gaming’s importance.

[PRIMORDUS]

It would be best if Xbox goes the way of Sega, just make and publish games. I know I myself will not support them at all with buying games from them, you all can. 🙃

[ChasterMies]

The Xbox brand will live for the games. I don’t expect Microsoft to entirely drop out of gaming hardware. They make Surface tablets and laptops. They’ll make Xbox branded hardware for those that want it.

[shadowT]

"Microsoft is pushing for no "red line" for what games could come to PlayStation"

Forza and Starfield next?

[ocelot07]

I'm hoping for age of empires

[Cacabunga]

Flight simulator

[Skuletor]

Starfield would be no surprise and there's the rumor that it will come to Playstation after the Shattered Space DLC, Forza (along with Halo and Gears of War) I find less likely but I wouldn't be surprised if they eventually end up on PlayStation too, especially if Xbox give up on hardware and go the Sega route.

[shinoff2183]

Not to worried about forza. I'd rather see others like what inxile and obsidian are working on. Starfield sounds like it needs more time in the oven so let it cook first imo. If starfield and it's a small if does release on ps it'll be in the fall around the time for dlc or right at the dlc and come packaged with it.

[-Foxtrot]

In the words of Phil Spencer when he was talking about Nintendo last year

“It's just taking a long time for Microsoft to see that their future exists off of their own hardware"

[S2Killinit]

Yup. MS are a cancer to console gaming.

[Aloymetal]

100%!!
I wonder what happened to that dude that was always here posting those court articles with cartoons about MS spending all those billions in studios. He suddenly disappeared, I guess he doesn't like bad news when the green brand is in trouble. No new articles from him as of late...

[PRIMORDUS]

Yup, and it's only going to keep spreading.

[Outside_ofthe_Box]

Phil Spencer's words always comes back to bite him lol

[S2Killinit]

MS doing permanent damage to console gaming. Dipshits couldn’t dominate, so they are setting fire to everything.

[FGHFGHFGH]

Will Microsoft drop direct x? If they want to develop games for other platforms than why would they use direct x, since vulkan works on windows too.

[Profchaos]

No direct X is integral to windows graphics processing it let's the application to the drivers in simple terms has been for decades and will be ongoing. Dx powers even the most basic integrated graphics workloads on windows to advanced games.

It's here to stay

[PRIMORDUS]

I'm proud to say I never "paid" for Windows, never have never will. I get it for free, been doing this for over 20yrs never had any issues with updates either. Windows 11 I'll get when I'm good and ready LOL.

[franwex]

Okay…?

Well, they have your data anyway. So they’re making money regardless.

[PRIMORDUS]

That's ok as long as I don't give them money directly I'm good. You all can if you want LOL.

[DivineHand125]

Windows 10 and 11 have built in features for data collection. If Jack Sparrow is sourcing those copies for you, then aren't you concerned that the crackers may have a line of code in there to help collect information about you to sell on the dark web?

[Reaper22_]

Xbox is always gonna be here. You playstation guys are the one who help keep it alive because you're always talking about it. Xbox future isn't as bleak as some of you try and make it out to be. While some of you talk about games going here and there the sinilar things are happening at sony with PC. Guess who also benefits when games go to PC. That would be Microsoft.

[Nacho_Z]

"Guess who also benefits when games go to PC. That would be Microsoft."

Microsoft yeah not the Xbox division.

[Reaper22_]

Anything that benefits microsoft is gonna benefit xbox. Some of you forget that it's not 1st party that carries the industry. It's 3rd party that makes the industry what it is. Sony and Nintendo can't carry the industry alone. It's just too expensive. Whether people like it or not Microsoft will always be part of the industry in some way. They aren't sega and atari. They are very cash rich.

[romulus23]

You think PlayStation owners talking about xbox keeps it alive, you know that's not really a thing right?. xbox's future is as bleak as xbox is making it and that's solely on them.

[Reaper22_]

You guys are hung up on xbox but what you don't seem to realize is that Microsoft doesn't need xbox to prosper in the industry. Look at how many ps5 sony has sold but yet they are putting games on PC. Just because you can sell 100 million consoles doesn't mean you will sell 100 million copies of a game. The rising cost of making games will make the hardware matter less. You will see more and more 1st party games go multiplat. It's already happening. The only difference is that Microsoft is being up front about it and Sony is slowly gradually doing it because they don't want to hurt their hardware sales but in the coming years it won't matter. 10 years ago no one thought that God Of War would ever be on anything but Playstation. Now look where we are. This is just the beginning. Financial gain has and always will be the priority. If you think sony only wants people who own playstation to play their games you are mistaken. Don't be fooled by the public persona the executives display. Get ready for even more changes coming. Personally, I don't think it's a bad thing that more people get to play games without having to own multiple consoles. I like the fact that I don't need a console to play God of War or Starfield.

[Charlieboy333]

Actually STEAM is the one that benefits when PS games go to PC, you dumbass

[WiiU-Dude]

This is where Nintendo is amazing. They are still very very shrewd in their own way, BUT they still play the long game. They understand and do respect their IPs. Microsoft likely looked at games as a natural place to expand 25 plus years ago when they were planning Xbox. The problem is games are similar to music in that somewhere someone has to truly care and love their craft be it music or games or other similar things. Microsoft just never truly was invested in games being in their blood. Miyamoto was or still is in many ways the face of games for Nintendo. He started with making great games. He rolls up his sleeves and is involved with his experience. No one at Microsoft can say such a thing. Another problem is video games is what Nintendo does. Microsoft, and even Sony, games are just another part of a larger company. Sony has been infinitely smarter. Maybe because they are Japanese, maybe because they took more cues from Nintendo in terms of how important it is to have exclusives that help define and represent your company. Microsoft had it with Halo and Master Chief, but they failed in 25 years or so to truly embrace the creation of video games. And so now they are likely destroying Xbox and will just become more or less a publisher with Activision and the other developers they own that they don't close. It is sad to me really, but they are using only corporate thinking. Nothing else. No pure love for games, their creation and understanding that that is what it should be about at the end of the day really.

[Reaper22_]

Like you said the difference is Nintendo is a gaming company. Microsoft and Sony are companies that do gaming. Nintendo can't do what they do and vice versa. Nintendo doesn't need to spend and make as much money to stay healthy. I disagree with this Microsoft destroying xbox stuff. The industry is evolving and they are just reacting to the market changes. We will still be able to play xbox years from now. Microsoft isn't just gonna throw away the millions of fans they have gained in the industry.

[fsfsxii]

The gaming industry is so volatile that it takes one hardware fuck up to end your run as a platform holder, we saw it with the wiiu (hehehe) and they were so quick to abandon that shit and they were running in red immediately, no matter how much they made with the switch, their future is uncertain

[Miacosa]

Microsoft Xbox as grown and spent too much for it to service just a small group of Xbox gamers. Games Pass for the past 3 years as had flat growth. The potential base of core gamers that would even sub to a service such as Games Pass not being large enough to offset costs they need to go wide. Microsoft Xbox future as always been to become a publisher of games for all platforms which aligns with how all their other businesses are run. Only the worst of the worst console warriors suffering from self inflicted ptsd from some fictional warfare are opposed to Xbox's survival by going wide.

[Reaper22_]

Sony has the same goal. They also want to publish on all platforms. They don't say it publicly but their actions are proving it. Neither is making any real money on the hardware. Sony just hired 2 CEOs and you don't do that if you are doing the same things you've been doing for the past 20 years. Their long term vision will most likely involve more Playstation titles on PC and anywhere else that's gonna benefit them in the long run. That includes putting certain games on xbox as well.

[DivineHand125]

Xbox needs new leadership, once they open that door and port Xbox games to PlayStation, it won't be easy to close that door again in the future. In addition to this, it would be a massive betrayal to all the persons who supported the series consoles.

I bought a Series X back in 2022. My main reason was because I wanted to catch up on all the games I missed out on last Gen as I was gaming mostly on PS4. Microsoft also had a great conference back then however, to this date, those games haven't been released. Most don't even have a release date.

One of the main selling points of gamepass over PS Plus extra or Premium is that you get 1st party releases day one but one thing people have been overlooking is that those first party games are few and far between. This is why I never joined the crowed to pressure Playstation in copying the gamepass model.

[ocelot07]

Xbox branded PC's and handhelds I can see happening in the future. Both will obviously run windows so both will be classed as a pc rather than a console. However, I would love to see Microsoft attempt charging pc gamers for Xbox live again that was fun to watch back in 2007.

[anast]

The Oracle has spoken. Welcome to all live service cloud gaming and mobile gaming.

Once streaming becomes viable and they have hoodwinked their consumer base. MS is going to make even more money and lock up PC gaming completely.

[Abear21]

Wolfenstein, Doom, and COD are all a good bet to release on PlayStation, they always have and Microsoft is going to make more money selling these games on PS than holding them to try to sell Xbox hardware.

Fable, Gears, and ES6 I expect will be exclusive.
These decisions, what games stay exclusive and what go, will be deciding factors of the health of the Xbox brand next generation. They will keep releasing Xbox hardware, that would be brand suicide. It is very interesting this information hasn’t been hyped by Phil already, which leads to one answer why—they still don’t know what is staying exclusive and what isn’t, and the timeline for these games is still unknown.

Just be honest Xbox, and do it quickly before internet rumors erode your brand integrity even further.

[ThePacemaker]

The article says “no red line”. It basically means every xbox exclusive could potentially appear on PS5, including Gears, Halo, & Forza.