For the last few years, Futatsugi has held the role of Design Manager at Microsoft Game Studios Japan, overseeing the development of games like Blue Dragon, Lost Odyssey and 99 Nights. But his recent stay at Microsoft has kept him out of the actual development process, a process he dearly misses, and by the time you read this interview, he will have left Microsoft Game Studios entirely to dive back into the world of game development.
That's good news for gamers. But before Futatsugi left MSG, 1up.com took him out for drinks and yakiniku to discuss his plans for the future, his time at Microsoft, why he's leaving Microsoft, modern gaming trends, and so much more.
Microsoft just posted the third quarter of its 2024 fiscal financial results. The software maker made $61.9 billion in revenue and a net income of $21.9 billion during Q3. Revenue is up 17 percent, and net income has increased by 20 percent.
Xbox content + services up 62% while hardware down 31%... seems about right with the way they tout you don't need the hardware to play. People can play on their phones or smart tv or other means. I don't hardly play on my consoles directly since getting devices like the logitech g-cloud and ps portal. Which is to also say I have been playing more digital than physical because of these devices.
you should apply in MS PR team buddy, I think you will do a great job in my humble opinion :)
MS: "Xbox services and content without AB up 1%, with AB up 62%. Hardware down 31%. In total a loss of 350 mill."
darthv72: "Seems about right."
MS: "Excuse m ..."
darthv72: "I don't hardly play on my consoles directly."
MS:
What he said was facts. How he plays games is no concern of you. Don't get too mad about it.
I can tell people like you are an absolute minority..
If service is up means their fans and fanboys accepted this model and subscribed to it. The near future you will see a big decline because the service is saturated.
But that's been ms for years. When things aren't going their way they try to change the way things are said. For instance console sales are down, they stop telling how many sold instead telling us how many hours spent in halo or headshots. So it makes sense console sales down just say people are playing on more devices then previous. What they won't say is how many xbox players jumped ship to ps5.
Hardware sales are so bad that Sony and Nintendo are blowing the sales off the water with their hardware.
If Xbox are losers, others aren’t..
Xbox already tried everything with Xbox live then subscriptions went down so much that they had to find something else. Their fans subscribed then reached saturation rather quickly.
Hardware and exclusive games is where it’s at! Keep gamers excited, announce decent software and people will support you
@shin
Well keep it simple Sony 's operating income is down 26% and Microsoft's is up 32%. No MS spin there, just facts. 😉
Cheers
Odd that a company that touts you dont need the hardware to play is already touting another console in the works.
They are not reliant on the HW but still want to maintain a presence (no matter how small) is a good thing. It shows commitment to the craft. It reminds me of SNK and how they made games for their own hardware (Neo Geo) while also making them for others because they knew there was a market to do so. They knew they would sell more to others but also sell to their own niche fan base.
In the last two years they've started exiting the consumer market altogether. All of the newest Surface products are business models only. They can't seem to work out what they want to do with it.
Too expensive hardware when others offer the same or more for less? Good work, Green Team.
"Despite some early successes for Xbox games on rival platforms, Xbox hardware is down by a massive 31 percent this quarter."
"Without Activision Blizzard, Microsoft’s overall gaming revenue would have actually declined this quarter."
"Xbox content and services would have only been up a single percent without Activision Blizzard..."
"It looks like next quarter is going to be a similar story for gaming at Microsoft, too."
That is crazy... so A/B/K is carrying the whole Xbox gaming.
Oh and Microsoft will be fine. Windows, Office and Cloud are growing with each pc purchase.
Activision: "we gonna need a bigger rucksack/backpack please"
Microsoft: "why's that"
Activision: "to carry yo' weak ass'
Top brass have also wanted to start seeing returns on the 100 billion they have put into various Xbox related moves so seeing more multiplatform games is highly likely especially from abk
It's basically saying that PlayStation is the reason Xbox is afloat right now thinks to Ps5 versions of COD
The only growth MS will get out of the console industry is if it supports it's rivals platforms. Xbox is a pointless machine now. I can see them on a big push for live next, and they won't give up on trying to buy Steam.
As of right now, there are no monopolies in the games industry, and for the sake of the medium as a whole, they never should either.
And yet the biggest tech companies in America are essentially that. They buy up all the small comps only to kill them off and steal what they have, and if they can't buy em they bleed them to death.
Eventually they’ll realize the value is with the employee not the company. Buying an IP means nothing if the people who contributed are let go. They’ll get it one day.
tech is different because they buy threats and then kill them. Twitter bought Vine and did nothing with it. Despite people seemingly liking it. Could've had tiktok a decade before bytedance. go figure.
They buy IPs not talent. That's why these buyouts never work and the IPs die. Right now it's too expensive to develop games - but I expect that to shift maybe as AI tools can make it easier. The best games have been indie games for awhile as big developers fuck their ips to death with "games as a service" -
GL compiles a list of some of the most mind-blowing video game narrative twists in recent memory, from The Last of Us to Outer Wilds
With articles like these cant you tag the games mentioned so that we can know ahead of time if there’s a spoiler to avoid?
Not clicking on your article otherwise.
X360 don't sell in Japan because people there are wise enough not to buy a defective/unfinished products. They got best technology from Eletronics to cars. You rarely see Japanese cars break down unlike American cars. My Japanese conosles still work till this day since launch. This Also includes a walkman I bought from Japan at the 1st of them. Same with a Digital camera which I got from japan when they were born. They all still work.
Japanese do NOT want defective products that includes everything not X360 only.
Would you buy a car without a steering? Please wait for next version
Would you buy a hospital machine high failure rate? Please await next patch while people DIE
Would you buy a TV that displays only half screen? please await next model
This goes also for Windows and all other software released with bugs. People are allowing unfinished products on market. Would you want to buy a mobile and 3/4s of your phone book in SIM Card don't work with it? (Eg Vista with games and programs)
"Would you buy a car without a steering? Please wait for next version"
which is why i have not bought a ps3 since there are no games. At this rate I'll have to settle for the PS4
"Would you buy a hospital machine high failure rate? Please await next patch while people DIE"
Again the ps3 everytime theres a new update all it does is try to catch up to 360 as well as every update seems to fudge up either games or the system itself look at warhawk as an example
"Would you buy a TV that displays only half screen? please await next model "
Which is why i have not bought a PS3 everything they promised, only half of what they said is true.
If Microsoft made Cars, Planes, Hopsital machines the death rate in the world would rise by 237983425234%* (*Random number, its just a very high number)
People are just allowing unfinished products on markets which should not. Now let me sell you a car. It doesn't turn left we didn't make it yet its bugged please wait for next update!
The Car would be called Buggy
Lol. Only Japanese hardcore gamers by 360s? Doubt it. Those hardcore gamers probably play PC games/ dating sims. The Japanese that buy the 360s are probably the most western Japanese out there.
there is no pedo-porn available for it.