410°

How Microsoft Sold More Consoles World Wide In 2011, And Why It'll Stay That Way In 2012

Crappyreviews writes:
What will Microsoft do as an encore to being the best selling game console world wide for 2011?

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Cocozero4456d ago

A pricecut/Halo 4/Star Wars Kinect are all they need to remain no.1 WW. They had next to nothing in 2011 and came out on top, 2012 should be easy pickings.

NukaCola4456d ago

It's simple. Market in America. That is their money maker. Yes they cleared the numbers WW but it was the American numbers that did it. EU/JP figures didnt show Xbox in number 1 or 2.

dark-hollow4456d ago

A gamer is a gamer and a cusotmer is a customer.

It doesnt matter if they were from usa or europe or mars!!

SuperLupe4456d ago

Excuses excuses.

You wanted WW figures, great, now eat it.

WW = WW. Period.

BattleAxe4456d ago Show
EVILDEAD3604456d ago

The 360 is in really great position to have a decent year.

The first quarter or so will resemble last year where the momentum of the holiday may keep the numbers similiar, but to predict YOY increase for the first 6 months would be tough.

E3 is the most important factor for what will transpire.

Microsoft won't need a price cut as people are saying. Because the stand alone Kinect will be sold at a lower price which act as a price cut for their main selling bundle.

I like what micrsoft is doing this year in regards to games. They are starting a XBLA campaign here in Feb with Alan Wake and I am Alive leading the way.

I love how Witcher 2 is looking like it has potential to be the best PC to console adaption since Valve gave us the Orange box.

The big boys are dropping AAA monsters from Mass Effect 3 to the new Grand Theft Auto.

I keep saying this..but it is the Wii-U that is the most intersting factor in the equation. If Wii-U still is limited to what we saw at last year's E3 then the 360 is going to dominate the year.

The tablet and Wii-motes simply arent enough to derail Kinect's appeal.

On that note Kinect may have it's best year ever after EA launches Mass Effect 3, Tiger, Fifa, and Madden all Kinect enabled.

Not to mention HBO Go and other Live additions that seem to keep coming.

But, let's face we it..Halo 4 is oging to be monstrous at retail. Not to mention Treyarch comes back with zombies for Black Ops 2 and you have smooth sailing for a pretty good holiday for the 360 next year as well.

If Micrsoft keeps making great moves they are in a good position, but Wii-U is the X-factor.

Evil

yesmynameissumo4456d ago

HBO Go is going to be a great addition to the PS3 too.

Tonester9254456d ago

What does console sales have to do with me? I'm still going to play my PS3 lol

BitbyDeath4456d ago (Edited 4456d ago )

@EvilDead360,

I agree, hopefully MS will counter Nintendo with a new console announcement.

stiggs4456d ago

"Don't let the numbers fool you, XBOX is struggling."

You are DELUSIONAL.

kreate4456d ago

yea im pretty surprised xbox did this well through out 2011. certainly there's a large fanbase.

i just hope the verizon channels work. i tried it last night and i got a error message saying that i cant view the verizon channels cuz the servers were down. im sure this is a verizon issue and not a xbox live issue but if im paying for the service, it should work.

verizon tv + fios internet + xbox gold = doesnt work .... wtf?? o_0;;

*i took a picture of the error screen as proof that it doesnt work but n4g seems to want me to only add a url instead of a image from my pc.

DragonKnight4456d ago

It's really funny. For 5 years the PS3 has outsold the 360 worldwide and these kinds of articles were nowhere to be seen. In fact, the focus always became NPD numbers and how the 360 is winning in the States. Now one year and the 360 outsells the PS3 by a marginal 800K and it's like it's been happening since day one.

*sigh* Journalism.

-Alpha4456d ago (Edited 4456d ago )

@DragonKnight

There are tons of articles on worldwide sales. Of course it's a big deal when MS outsells Sony WW--it's news, isn't it? Do you expect nobody to report this unusual trend? If Sony outsells MS in U.S, you can bet you will see the same amount of articles. Don't play the "conspiracy" card

DragonKnight4456d ago

@Alpha: "There are tons of articles on worldwide sales."

Where are the 3 or 4 "in a row" articles about the PS3 outselling the 360 worldwide every year up until now hmm? Yeah, thought so.

"Of course it's a big deal when MS outsells Sony WW--it's news, isn't it? Do you expect nobody to report this unusual trend?"

Did I say that? Nope. I'm commenting on the clear bias.

"If Sony outsells MS in U.S, you can bet you will see the same amount of articles. Don't play the "conspiracy" card."

Didn't realize stating an easily noticed observation was "playing the conspiracy card."

"I'll tell you what I don't understand: When I see a PS3 sales article that positively shows Sony growing and closing the gap, PS3 fans will talk highly of sales. "Sales are great, go Sony!, Move will easily bring in casuals and hardcore gamers alike and close the gap, GT5 will really close the gap"

But the minute sales are going bad for the PS3, I see a total 180 "I play games, not sales", "Sales don't matter to me", "Kinect is the reason", "Xbox has no games"

Stop grouping people. I don't care about the sales, I care about the coverage. The lack of journalistic objectivity and the evidence of clear bias is what I'm commenting on. If I cared about the sales, I'd say the same thing everyone else has been saying. The 360 outsold by a measly 700K and when it can outsell for 5 years straight then come back and talk. But who gives a damn about that when the media picks and chooses what it wants to highlight the most. 700K is not the "gen ending" sales point, yet the articles make it seem like this mega triumph. Why the hyperbole and over exaggeration?

"If I go to a sales thread I expect some proper discussion on sales, but I see anything but that. It really annoys me when people fight about sales when at this point it doesn't matter, and it annoys me even more that people will find every excuse in the book to deny the fact that one product is simply performing well over the other."

Why are you surprised? You know the most annoying thing is people going to sales articles and getting upset that two sides are arguing when it's obvious that that will always happen. One side boasting, the other downplaying, then the roles reverse. What do you expect to happen? The beginning of this gen, the 360 diehards were all too pleased to rub the 360's success in the noses of the PS3 diehards. That stuff isn't forgotten, and then the PS3 diehards did the exact same thing. It's an eye for an eye topic that isn't going to end any time soon, and you'll get nowhere complaining about it.

Simply talk to people you know won't be party to it and have discussions with them. Let the stockholders on N4G duke it out on their own.

-Alpha4456d ago (Edited 4456d ago )

@Dragon

Sorry I edited that all out because I didn't feel like getting into this, but I guess I have to respond now:

But why do you expect to see articles saying PS3 is outselling 360 worldwide? It's not news, nor is it biased to expect it. A simple "PS3 worldwide sales" on N4G yields results and PS3 fans talking happily about the status of the PS3 brand.

One is new information, the other is an expected trend.

"Stop grouping people"

I'm telling you what I see here: Fans like to talk sales regardless of platform, but not if it doesn't favor what they want the outcome to be. I have seen people expect Move to be the device that brings casuals on to the PS3 by the boatload, sales matter because it's a bragging right, and people love to brag.

"One side boasting, the other downplaying, then the roles reverse"

I agree completely with this and the latter of what you said, though I don't necessarily start the blame on 360 fans-- I recall just as much "Lol Xbox? That thing wont last half of this generation with PS2 around" and later "PS3 will dominate Xbox 360 like last gen, just wait"

The best I can call it is a circle, I don't see reason to put blame one way or another, some people bashed the Xbox when it was announced, others bashed the PlayStation starting this generation, but the comparisons were bound to happen regardless

I am remarking on your excuse that the fact that this happened is journalistically biased as if Xbox outselling the PS3 is supposed to be something common.

Add in the PS3 fans talking all year about the exclusives and consumer variety, about the Move, about the gimmicky death of Kinect, etc. As if not to expect a backlash. Yes, it's a viscous circle, but I don't see why you wont give credit where credit is due. You acknowledge that people reverse roles when it suits them, but I don't see why this should be normal, all it shows me is that people only care about sales if it helps their console ego. To me, if I'm going to talk about sales, I'm going to look at the product more objectively, and as I see it, MS has pushed the Xbox harder while maintaining a balance between core consumers and introducing new fans, while Sony has struggled last year with expanding Move's casual appeal and lack of interest with key franchises like Killzone, SOCOM, and Resistance (both of which sold less than predecessors, and two of which tried to expand appeal by tuning the product towards casuals)

ShinMaster4456d ago (Edited 4456d ago )

Middle-ground troll.
People have different tastes. They can like or dislike whatever they want. Not everyone is going to like and approve of everything or every system equally and fairly. Let's be real.

If people think that "selling more" means/proves nothing when core games are replaced with casual appeal. So be it. It's how they feel.

To me, it's all about the games and who can deliver best.

P.S. These are just Microsoft's numbers
http://i44.tinypic.com/2i06...
Sony's fiscal year isn't even over yet!

+ Show (11) more repliesLast reply 4456d ago
Agent-864456d ago (Edited 4456d ago )

What was the author's source of information to claim the 360 sold the most consoles worldwide? In fact, no numbers or sources were even listed. According to this article (link below), the PS3 sold more worldwide (14m vs 13.3m). In fact, it looks like the PS3 sold more than the 360 in every year listed (2009-2011) and the first month of this year. So, may the author explain to me how "it'll stay that way in 2012" when it looks like the 360 has been outsold worldwide for at least the last three years?

http://www.vgchartz.com/art...

k-dillinger4456d ago

the ppl dont realize that ps3 fiscal year isn't over yet so how are they already saying xbox won 2011 we will know on march 31 when Sony has a complete full cycle like Microsoft.

Anon19744456d ago (Edited 4456d ago )

Vgchartz are guesstimates and have been proven incorrect, time and time again. Do your homework. There's a reason no one, and I mean no one, in the industry takes that site seriously. Not console makers, not analysts, not developers. They simply aren't accurate. Never have been, even back when ioi was originally banned from the NeoGaf forums for posting his sales guesses and started his little fan site in the first place. They even say right on their own site that the numbers they provide our meant for entertainment purposes and shouldn't be used anything serious.

The only true source of information you'll receive is the numbers from the companies themselves. And they clearly show that for the calendar year, 2011 - the 360 came out on top.

However, the PS3 had been outselling them the 9 months prior before the 360's outstanding holiday season. I think one strong holiday quarter isn't enough to go claiming the 360 is suddenly going to take over. It was one good quarter after years of coming in 3rd place head 2 head against it's rivals. If you're going to try to take a stab at predicting the future, I think some perspective is in order.

PimpDaddy4455d ago

Agent-86: All you have to do is look at the quarterly shipment numbers for 2011 to see which console shipped (sold) more. The totals had Microsoft shipping more consoles in 2011 by 800,000 consoles total.

K-dillinger: For the calendar year of 2011 Microsoft outsold the PS3 by 800,000 units. Microsoft and Sony each have their fiscal years start/end at different quarters during the calendar year. Please stop spinning facts.

Darkride66: The 360 outsold the PS3 in 3 of the 4 quarters according to the financial reports. Sony outsold Microsoft by a significant number in the 3rd quarter of the calendar. That coincided with the 50 dollar price drop on all PS3 SKU. But the 1st, 2nd, and 4th quarter the 360 outsold the PS3. Maybe one year of outselling the PS3 won't determine the future. But I think Microsoft has momentum, Kinect is bringing in a new demographic and keep in mind that Microsoft hasn't dropped the price of the 360 since 2008. I expect a price drop this year to further increase demand. I would not be surprised if the 360 did outsell the PS3 for the full calendar year of 2012.

Eddie201014456d ago (Edited 4456d ago )

The only thing that sold the Xbox 360 was them adverting the hell out of Kinect being the next coming. Most of the people that bought into that were the same people that bought into the Wii. So,many of those people moved on from the Wii. Those people for the most part are not hardcore gamers. Also, for a lot of people, after the novelty wares off they don't mess with it much, Me being one of them.

So the Kinect is the biggest reason for the good sales, we all Know how novelty sells (Wii, 3ds, Kinect, Tomogotchi), they sell really well really quickly but they also bottom out really quickly.

For me the best and most accurate ways of playing games is using a good controller or mouse and keyboard. I'm not fond of the Wii mote, Kinect or the move control scemes. to me they are only good for casual games.

Dark3604456d ago ShowReplies(2)
Noticeably_FAT4456d ago (Edited 4456d ago )

The funny part is that all I heard last year was how Sony had all these great exclusives, Microsoft had nothing and then Sony had a price drop and Microsoft didn't match it. So everyone thought Microsoft messed up. Turns out they did the smart thing and had their best year ever and with the more expensive product.

Sony fans must be scratching their heads wondering what Sony has to do to win something these days.

This year Microsoft is sitting pretty because they can do a price drop and really start to get some great numbers. A $149 4 gig Xbox 360 and a $99 Kinect would sell amazingly well.

Also, I forgot about Steel Battalion Heavy Armor and Project Draco, those both look very promising.

I don't see Microsoft letting go of the WW lead anytime soon.

Oh and by the way America=World.

4456d ago Replies(1)
BitbyDeath4456d ago

"and with the more expensive product"

PS3 is still the more expensive product.

smashcrashbash4456d ago (Edited 4456d ago )

Do you EVER stop trolling about Sony? Anyway I love this gen a lot. They always think nothing could ever happen to destroy or bring down a console. No one probably ever thought that Sony could have taken Sega and Nintendo to the cleaners with the PS1 and PS2. No fanboy could ever see how their chosen system could fall down.

A victory in 2011 automatically means a victory in 2012 and 2013 and 2014 etc. And a high sales in one gen equals high sales next gen. No one remembers the mass migration from Nintendo to Sony or the Wii's sudden rise to power or Sega biting the dust.Sorry but business goes up and down like a yo-yo. Microsoft gaming division could be nothing by next gen.Same goes for everyone else.

jetlian4456d ago (Edited 4456d ago )

well this is a MS article!!! Wii won casuals yes and now its totally falling off.

Edit; by the end of the year 360 should pass wii software sales even with a 30 million console difference which shows casuals dont spend money long term!

Also 360 has the most pirates and still selling games

_Aarix_4449d ago

For every 1 person on here bashing the ps3 there is 17 bashing the xbox.

pandaboy4456d ago

"America=World"

haha, and Americans wonder why their international reputation is akin to Adolf Hitler.

On topic, a 360 price cut with Halo4 could really crush the ps3 in the North American market. Kinect has won over the casuals there too. Sony will be fine in Europe and Japan however.

Nodoze4456d ago ShowReplies(1)
majiebeast4456d ago (Edited 4456d ago )

When i see the republican candidate's for america i can see how the 360 is still leading sales you just dont know any better.

Bigpappy4456d ago (Edited 4456d ago )

360 guys are Democrats. They pay their taxes and XBL membership for the greater good.

PS3 guys want to depend on corporations to give them online features. We pay or taxes (Membership fee) to insure we get the best online features.

Tito084455d ago (Edited 4455d ago )

@ Bigpappy- I'm a democrat as well, & I pay my taxes, but I don't pay for XBL!!!!!!So, what does that have to do with being a democrat????!!!! If that was the case, then PC gaming should be subscription based too!!!!

Ace_Man_64456d ago

"Oh and by the way America=World."

And you're called 'Noticeably_FAT'… hmm yeah, sounds about right.

+ Show (4) more repliesLast reply 4449d ago
DiRtY4456d ago (Edited 4456d ago )

I think this scenario is likely. They sold crazy numbers with a PS3 that even saw a pricecut.

The only thing that could ruin this is a Xbox 3 announcement. Other than that I don't think Star Wars, Halo, Fable, Steel Battalion, great marketing, price cut, next wave of Kinect titles and thousands of Apps can be stopped.

Especially the Apps will become an important factor for MS and the industry overall.

I think MS is in a comfortable position right now. Sony needs to make a profit better sooner than later. Nintendo has to show us these "OMG-Moments" with the Wii U and they need to make money as well after a year of losses.

Another point is that all the new studios MS opened need time to get their porjects running. So they definitely don't want the next gen to start before fall 2013 for them.

Shadonic4456d ago

< Die hard microsoft fan MWAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAAHAH

Show all comments (113)
280°

Xbox's Preservation Step Sets A Much-Needed Example, Especially For Nintendo

Hanzla from eXputer inquires: "If Xbox can care about preserving its games and legacy, what exactly is wrong with Nintendo, trying to kill game preservation single-handedly?"

purple1015d ago

Ahh yes the good old game preservation of saving all your games to a removable hhd on the Xbox 360, taking it round your mates house, setting up multiple tvs to
Be met with “save data corrupted, please re download”

Or how about removing 360 games
From the store
, download them now or else, and, better hope to god that save data doesn’t corrupt, or it’s lost for ever

Nice one ☝️

Zeref4d ago

It's better than what Nintendo and Playstation is doing. It might not be perfect but at least they are TRYING. Unlike the others.

DarXyde4d ago

Trying? Take off the blinders for a moment, mate.

1. A failure to preserve games is just that: a failure to preserve games. Don't try to sugarcoat it: NO ONE is doing it properly. Better than awful is nothing to write home about.

2. At the time of this comment, isn't it the case that you need an internet connection to play Xbox games even if you buy physical discs that are hardly in circulation anymore? I don't have a Series X and I can't verify, but I think that is correct. I'm fairly certain you can at least play PS5 games at version 1.0 (not much of a win really when many games require day one patches). I think Microsoft's all digital, licensing approach is by far more aggressive than anyone else's. They really try to push you to game pass where you lose your entire library by umm.... Skipping a month of payments.

I don't think anyone is doing it right whatsoever. Don't get me started on Nintendo, who goes after anyone looking to preserve their games better than they ever would with extreme litigation.

Don't be a simp for any of these companies. Get it together.

PhillyDonJawn4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

@DarX never speak on Xbox again. You lost all credibility with your internet connection comment. Smh you have 0 clue and misinformed yet speaking on something you don't no squat about.

Einhander19724d ago

What has Sony done exactly? You guys keep deflecting to Sony but I am not actually seeing any results, and ai am certain nothing that you can come up with even comes close to what Microsoft has done and what they have tried and failed to do, like tie all your disks to your account on xbone.

Microsoft removed their whole indie section when they moved to the xbone because they were going to only allow games on the service that came from a publisher, id@xbox started after xbone launched and it only exists because Sony embraced indie and Microsoft was forced to cancel their plans and reverse course.

And every single game that was part of games for windows live including disk games (I have gta 4 on disk that won't work) so hundreds of games that use that DRM no longer work unless the company themselves patched it out which of course very few did.

MrBaskerville4d ago

Not trying. Tried. they killed of the backcomp program years ago. They set something up again, but sounds like it's more of an attempt to save the current library on whatever they are planning next. With luck they save everything and more, but let's see. I could see them killing off parts of the OG xbox and 360 libraries. Can't imagine that they would allow us to play Forza 5-7 in the future.

With that said, I do like what they've done and really wish they could have done more.

shinoff21834d ago

Zeref

So killing off physical media is trying what exactly. Ms don't really give a fk if you think they do your kidding yourself.

Profchaos4d ago

They are not trying this team is established for forward compatability the team is. It interested in preserving Xbox or 360 games.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 4d ago
isarai5d ago

Is that why Hellblade 2 is digital only?

Zeref4d ago

Just because it's digital only doesn't mean you can't preserve it. Just put it on an external and you have the exact same functionality of what a disc does.

MrNinosan4d ago

Guess you're trolling, but if you actually think that's how it works, I'd recommend buying some braincells.

mkis0074d ago (Edited 4d ago )

Volitile vs nonvolitile data. A disc will not corrupt either. A drive can be corrupted.

Einhander19725d ago

This is just a scammy PR move to distract from the fact they are going digital only and trying to push streaming and subscriptions only.

No gaming company has pushed harder to remove ownership than Microsoft.

Without discs there is no preservation, preservation can't be done by the rights holders it can only be done by the consumers, anything else is a lie.

5d ago Replies(3)
Einhander19725d ago

Anyone remember xblig which Microsoft removed their whole 360 indie section removing hundreds of games from people?

5d ago
5d ago
Zeref4d ago

Do you know you can put your games on an external and preserve them that way? There are no benefits to discs. ZERO. Idk why some of you are still obsessed with them.

DarXyde4d ago

Because games like Persona 5 exist. It's STILL V1.00. On Playstation, that's a win because 1.00 is installed on the disc—no need to download anything.

If a game does not require any updates, it's all on the disc.

Extremely low bar in the modern era, of course. It's not much of a win by any stretch.

But for now, physical media does have a purpose, at least on Playstation.

Einhander19724d ago

That is factually not how game licensing works, try plugging your hard drive into someone else xbox, It's not going to work, and it won't work if the licensing servers ever go down.

Einhander19724d ago

Anyone remember games for windows live.

I have around a dozen games, some on Steam itself that will not work because Microsoft shut off the licensing servers.

BehindTheRows4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

I do. I STILL have games (Gears of War being the big one) I cannot access because Games for Windows LIVE is total garbage and no one has held Microsoft accountable.

Zeref4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

You don't have an Xbox apparently. Because you can 100 percent plug in your external and play games from it on any Xbox console lol. You just have to be logged in to prove ownership.

Chevalier4d ago

"You don't have an Xbox apparently. Because you can 100 percent plug in your external and play games from it on any Xbox console lol. You just have to be logged in to prove ownership."

Damn how many times do people got to explain your idiocy to you? You can take a copy of Persona 5 like someone used as an example and play that game on ANY console WITHOUT logging in which means I can lend the game to a friend without internet and they can play my game. Can you lend your hard drive to anyone without logging in for them to play? NOPE. That is a huge difference and if you think otherwise then sorry you're an idiot.

Tacoboto4d ago

"No gaming company has pushed harder to remove ownership than Microsoft."

Ubisoft is literally erasing games people bought from their libraries... My PS1-3 discs are useless on modern hardware. Nintendo's re-published and resold almost their entire Wii U library, and the eShop is completely dead with no BC mechanism in the Switch software. Microsoft publishes everything they make today day one on Steam and Xbox/Windows. Sony only brings to PC the titles they think you might want some years later and Nintendo won't even design a functional long-lasting joystick.

You're absolutely trolling and not serious if you think Microsoft today is the worst offender.

shinoff21834d ago

Yay steam

Not everyone fks with computers though. The disc is still the best way as a console player. Period.

Tacoboto4d ago

How do Sony and Nintendo feel about these discs from 2001-2013?

Don't be stupid, you know Xbox is the best at this today.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 4d ago
Hofstaderman4d ago

Nobody wants this. Sales or the lack of it in the case of XBOX is very telling. I wonder how the adorably all digital series X will fare. Adorably dismal perhaps?

crazyCoconuts4d ago

Only time will tell, but for from someone like me suspecting that Xbox is trying to gracefully exit the console market, that "forward compatibility" team is trying to get Xbox games playing on Windows PCs. I mean, it's nice that they're not planning on exiting with a "enjoy your games while the hardware still works" message, so that's nice. They still have a brand to protect via Microsoft so probably feel obligated to have a better exit strategy.

Xeofate4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

That is not their plan, their plan is to transfer users accounts to the cloud.

Phil Spencer himself said as much a few months back, plans could have changed but I think people are reading way too much into one statement where Phil said he would allow Epic on xbox because he wants to be able to sell xbox games directly on other platforms. Aka, instead of selling Sea of Thives through PSN he wants to have an xbox store to sell his games on PlayStation without giving PlayStation any money.

Again, it's extremely unlikely that Phil plans to put PC on xbox and licensing would prevent them from just giving out other publishers games purchased on xbox copies of thier games on PC, Microsoft does not own their games.

crazyCoconuts3d ago

The thing that doesn't align with the cloud strategy is the giving up on exclusives. You'd still need strong exclusives for cloud streaming - it's still a "platform" , just with a lower upfront hardware investment. I feel like they've learned what PS learned with PSNow long ago. We're not ready to stream games and it's only gonna lose them money to try at this point

FinalFantasyFanatic4d ago

I would love that, I'd buy up some of the Xbox games if they could run on PC, like the Rare Replay, Lost Odyssey and Dead or Alive Ultimate, probably a pipe dream though.

Show all comments (43)
370°

Could Xbox Soon Become The Next Dreamcast?

Microsoft's future in the video game space is murky right now, so let's break it all down.

Read Full Story >>
thegamer.com
ApocalypseShadow17d ago (Edited 17d ago )

Not anytime soon. But they're on that path.

One thing not mentioned in the article is Microsoft's money bags. If Sega had Microsoft's money, they would have still been around as a hardware manufacturer. Xbox as a platform only survives because of the money bags. They can continue making consoles for the core and port to PC.

The multiplatform strategy is only the result of arrogance and misguided leadership that blew up in their face. They thought gamers would jump on Xbox in droves if they knew that many of their favorite games would be only on Xbox. But that's not happening at all. Sales didn't increase. They decreased. Why? Because the dumb asses thought giving away these expensively made games in a cheap service would also turn the tide.

Gamers on other platforms are willing to buy quality. They don't need to be handed nearly free games in a service that aren't even finished and sometimes average in their development. Gamers buy Nintendo games. They buy Sony games. Microsoft groomed their base to not buy games. Even the quality ones. It has always been their plan to go digital. But most gamers still like single player gaming. Still like physical releases.

Microsoft's problem has always been that they don't produce high quality games at the same output as Nintendo and Sony. Actually, they should be producing quite a lot more because they're worth over 2 TRILLION. How they don't have more is ridiculous and no excuse. Buying publishers to take away from competition only backfired. Because it still takes millions of dollars to continue to make those games from the publishers they snatched. Their only choice was to crawl back to their competitors to help sustain those developers because Nintendo and Sony platforms were the ones buying games.

Am I sorry for Microsoft? Hell no! They deserved last place for putting in the least effort. They deserved the fallout for buying up the industry and didn't make a single blip on the radar against their competitors where they now need those same gamers they took away games from to support them. Part of it may have been to cash in on their competition. But the result is the slow death of their platform. They may go 3rd party. They may keep making hardware. I don't give a shit about them to worry about it. I only give a shit about the destructive nature of their industry moves that only negatively affect gamers. They could sell and drop out of the industry and I wouldn't blink. Probably laugh. But not blink. They deserve whatever comes to them. At least Sega put in the effort when it came to games. They just had poor leadership. Microsoft has poor leadership and barely makes memorable games. That's a killer combination. And not in a good way.

Cacabunga17d ago

That would be an insult to Dreamcast.. it had a crazy line up of legendary critically acclaimed games.

Crows9017d ago

I was thinking the same. Dreamcast had incredible games in such a short amount of time. It was truly exceptional.

darthv7216d ago

...and yet all those great games were not enough to sway people from the looming release of the PS2 at the time. Sony just has that kind of brand loyalty.

Cacabunga16d ago

Darth

I do not agree.. Sony had even better games thanks to an unprecedented 3rd party support..
DC had amazing lineup but 90% were arcade games..

88316d ago

@darth:
And Sony showed off "The Emotion Engine" and their real time demos that made everyone think they would miss out on REAL next gen 128bit magic if they jumped in before PS2s polygon pushing monster (and early lack of anti-aliasing with a healthy heap of shimmer + DVD playback) stepped up. PS2 was a fantastic system though with amazing games.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 16d ago
blacktiger17d ago

That's not true. Just because Microsoft has the money doesn't mean Microsoft can allow xbox to bleed entire Microsoft money. It doesn't work like they. Also SEC will be watching and investor won't allow it. Lot of reasons why Microsoft can not continue even if they wanted to. SEC regulations is expensive.

fr0sty17d ago (Edited 17d ago )

Exactly this... Microsoft is a publicly traded company, mostly owned by their shareholders (Approximately 59.24% of the company's stock is owned by Institutional Investors, 7.73% is owned by Insiders and 33.03% is owned by Public Companies and Individual Investors.). Their shareholders call the shots on the business decisions, and their shareholders want one thing and one thing only, for their stock price to go up. Losses do not make stock prices go up... so if the division continually posts losses on hardware, but shows profits on software and services (which has been the case with Xbox its entire lifespan, for over 20 years now), the shareholders are going to grow impatient and demand they stop making hardware and focus on the only thing that has ever made them money, software and services.

When Microsoft bought Blizzard and Activision for almost 100 billion, I knew that was the nail in the coffin for Xbox as a console... as the shareholders were going to expect a quick return on that investment, and when it didn't materialize, they were going to be out for blood... out to force Xbox to sell those games on as many consoles as possible, "and while you're at it, sell those first party exclusives that aren't selling well on other consoles as well... hell, just stop making consoles and sell games."

If there is another Xbox console generation, it will definitely be the last, but I doubt there even will be one at this point. I think the Xbox division planning on it just in case, but I don't think the project has been greenlit from Microsoft itself. The rumors that they have not yet even secured the chips needed from the chip fabrication facilities ties into this.

shinoff218317d ago

While I usually agree with you . Alot of what was said can just also be asked before any of that.

How long will the shareholders wait? It doesn't appear long at all

Babadook716d ago

I think I get your point. Like just because MS has money does not mean they are content to throw it away on a dying ecosystem. Xbox has to be profitable or “what’s the point?”

ifinitygamer16d ago

Money bags, yes, but are we ignoring that Xbox actually makes a profit on games and GamePass? Hardware is often a loss leader, and they're probably making profit 4 years into the life cycle, but games and services revenue have been very profitable while other parts of Microsoft's business is struggling. Say what you will about the quality of those games, of course, but this is kind of a reverse Dreamcast situation, where the console was dragging down the company and put it at risk of shuttering entirely. Killing that console saved the business and allowed it to continue to make games on multiple platforms. In this case, the service is very profitable, as are the games, and they're also double-dipping into Multiplatform to extend this further, while their hardware is just sort of what they believe to be the best for gamers and their own titles (whether that is the case or not...)

fr0sty16d ago (Edited 16d ago )

The issue is, they aren't selling enough hardware to make their exclusives profitable, and now that they've bought half the gaming publisher/dev industry, they have no choice but to go third party to make a profit... and that is making their shareholders take a real close look at their hardware division under the microscope... why keep making the hardware if the software is all that is making them money, and they continually, generation after generation come in dead last with hardware sales?

Look at a game like Spiderman 2... if it had been an Xbox exclusive, with the amount it cost to develop, it would have been a huge failure... simply not enough consoles out there to sell it on. They would have been lucky to break even.

ifinitygamer16d ago

@fr0sty agreed completely, which is why they're hedging by releasing other games to multiplatform, plus they have PC to make up for the difference in a lot of ways, which is why their games are not complete money pits. It brings up the question of whether or not those exclusives would drive sales of consoles, though. Let's say Spiderman 2 was an Xbox exclusive, it would certainly have pushed console sales, though who's to say how much is anyone's guess.

fr0sty16d ago

That's why you can't rely on just one exclusive, Sony has always delivered on a wide range of solid exclusives, even this generation (even if they haven't been strong on the first party exclusives, they've made up for it with third party). They don't rely on just one "system seller", they have a portfolio of them.

16d ago
JBlaze22616d ago

ApocalypseShadow To be honest Sony has more of a chance to go 3rd party because like you said Microsoft has money, Sony does not. Sony does not have games, Only games they have come from 3rd party. Sony has been losing money for years and you. Saying Microsoft has been putting the least effort just proves you have no idea what's been going on. All Sony has done is repeat and recycle, never innovating or doing something new. All Sony has is brand loyalty nothing else and it shows.

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LG_Fox_Brazil17d ago

Not sure about that. It's been two decades and I still think about Power Stone, Shenmue, Crazy Taxi, Jet Set Radio, Seaman and others, but I'm not sure I'll remember Xbox Series X/S games in a few years from now... Maybe I'll remember about the franchises that the Xbox brand spawned, but I don't believe that the Xbox Series lives up to the late Dreamcast or even to the Xbox name itself. I do have great memories about the 360 with Blue Dragon, Gears 2 and Lost Odyssey though

isarai17d ago

Nah, sega actually makes good games

Becuzisaid17d ago

No, Dreamcast was ahead of it's time and most still have very fond memories of it that had one. It also had some good games on it even in it's short lifespan. Xbox has none of these qualities.

Profchaos17d ago

I remember it coming out at the time in a really bad place they hit the market before the PS2 but it was during this transitional time when Sony was promoting the power of the PS2 and so many of the Dreamcast games were awesome but often third parties simply ported the PS1 version increased resolution and performance but rarely fully utilise the capabilities of the console.

I think in the end bad marketing done it in and like the GameCube so many people are fond of it now but at the time it was looked at in the lense of the day and it didn't stack up.

Personally I miss Sega in hardware they took risks that many companies won't

Becuzisaid17d ago

I never owned it, and got the PS2 right when it launched. But there were certain games it had that I was always jealous of that I didn't have access to - Sonic adventure, crazy taxi, power Stone, code Veronica, shenmue, skies of Arcadia. I always thought it was a really cool machine though. I've never heard a bad thing about it though from those that had it.

FinalFantasyFanatic16d ago

I only ever saw one Dreamcast, and that was one my friend owned, pity I never got to play it, I wonder what games he had for it?

It would be nice if some of those games got ported to modern systems.

Profchaos17d ago

Oh man sonic adventure on the Dreamcast made me so jealous as a huge sonic fan on the mega drive who also moved to PlayStation 2 I never got the chance to play it back in the day either. The Dreamcast in Australia where I am was always relegated to the smallest corner of EB Games it was kind of a strong first indicator that things were not going well at the time.

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Microsoft Rewards app on Xbox and weekly streaks to be killed off soon

Microsoft has announced the Microsoft Rewards app on Xbox will be discontinued in April and has confirmed that weekly streaks will also be coming to an end.

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