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[LittleBusters]

The trouble with mobile games is they are garbage saturated with micro-transactions. Imagine real AAA games coming to iPads, iPhones, Galaxy phones. Halo, Gears, Ori, Cuphead, Sea of Thieves, State of Decay 2, etc...

That changes the game on mobile devices, big time. Suddenly people would be willing to pay money for that, where they are not really for garbage like Candy Crush.

 

[Kagey K]

.

 

[cdthree]

The trouble with mobile games is they are garbage saturated with micro-transactions. Imagine real AAA games coming to iPads, iPhones, Galaxy phones. Halo, Gears, Ori, Cuphead, Sea of Thieves, State of Decay 2, etc...

That changes the game on mobile devices, big time. Suddenly people would be willing to pay money for that, where they are not really for garbage like Candy Crush.

Totally agree about micro-transactions being bad. But let's say if Microsoft included Fire Emblem for Android under gamepass with no micro-transactions except buying new skins, and such I would find huge value in that. It's not always possible to play a Halo style game when I've got ten minutes to kill at work or at appointment.

 

[Kagey K]

.

 

[LittleBusters]

Gears POP is going to be right up your alley then. Games are timed and it’s kind of like Clash of Clans..

Gears POP is just another mobile game. Project xCloud brings the full XBox gaming experience with controller. Ideally I can see it with an iPad Pro.

 

[Kagey K]

.

 

[cdthree]

Gears POP is going to be right up your alley then. Games are timed and it’s kind of like Clash of Clans..

I'll have to check it out.

 

[IbizaPocholo]

 

[IbizaPocholo]

 

[Strife In a Teacup]

CD Projekt and/or Larian?

Uhh.

Although it almost seems like it makes it out to be Remedy.

Maybe the big studio I thought I heard rumored, or dreamt about, was CD Projekt. Though that's a publisher technically.

But I'm sure if they backed up the Brinks truck, anything can happen.

Edit:

"Microsoft: We hear you like cyberpunk games, CD Projekt. How about $X,XXX,XXX,XXX so you make a AAA Shadowrun for us? And become one of our first party studios?"
CD Projekt: $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ "

Edit2:

If they buy Larian however, Microsoft will have the western RPG scene on lock.

 

[cdthree]

Klobrille tweeted this yesterday

I feel like both Glen Schofield and Jade Raymond would be really bold leader personalities for Microsoft Studios. No need to connect dots here when there are none to be made (yet), but it will be interesting to keep an eye one both nonetheless.

 

[IbizaPocholo]

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/Investor/acquisition-history.aspx

 

[cdthree]

Coolest theory I read was that IO is a moon of Jupiter. As in IO Interactive.

 

[captainraincoat]

I have no doubt Bungie is regretting the mistake of switching to Activision and seeing the freedom Microsoft studios have now.

Would personally like to see them buy Segas gaming division. Leave the arcades, gambling, physical machines alone etc just obviously with a partnership when needed.

Agree...sega is sitting on a mountain of unused ip that could be respun and bought into the current gen..if ms owned them it would certainly broaden their first party and also bring a lot of Japan centric games with it.

 

[odhiex]

Well, I prefer building new studios with a lot of creative talents. But if money is not out of the question and assuming every 3rd party studio/everybody is on sale, try CD Project Red, Platinum Games and Squareenix... lol

 

[Mattyp]

CD Projekt and/or Larian?

Uhh.

Although it almost seems like it makes it out to be Remedy.

Maybe the big studio I thought I heard rumored, or dreamt about, was CD Projekt. Though that's a publisher technically.

But I'm sure if they backed up the Brinks truck, anything can happen.

Edit:

"Microsoft: We hear you like cyberpunk games, CD Projekt. How about $X,XXX,XXX,XXX so you make a AAA Shadowrun for us? And become one of our first party studios?"
CD Projekt: $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ "

Edit2:

If they buy Larian however, Microsoft will have the western RPG scene on lock.

Everything is for sale when you throw enough billions around, IE Minecraft. I don't think CD Projekt is worth that money but still. Should of went after them hard and fast before Cyberpunk got announced for so many consoles. Any acquirement now probably wouldn't pay off for the next 7 years so don't see how that would be a worth while option at the moment, maybe in the future.

 

[IbizaPocholo]

 

[cdthree]

That's actually really hilarious.

 

[MiyazakiHatesKojima]

Once Bungie ends their 10-year contract with Activision, MS should buy them back and have them make another new sci-fi IP without the grinding and loot boxes.

I'm actually hoping this would happen! Time will tell.

 

[Mattyp]

Funny, but you would have to be stupid to not take a payday you might not ever see in your lifetime from such a small studio. Probably half serious about them contacting him.

 

[Potato Chip PRO]

I think Microsoft should create a studio that's in charge of reviving old Ips from previous gens... Lots of games that should be given a second chance too.

 

[IbizaPocholo]

 

[bumleforce]

I wish they bought 4A games. Those metro games are fantastic

 

[Shin]

Agree...sega is sitting on a mountain of unused ip that could be respun and bought into the current gen..if ms owned them it would certainly broaden their first party and also bring a lot of Japan centric games with it.

The manpower/recruit to make all of that happen (actually establish individual studios) is insane I bet, they truly have a bucketload of IP's.

 

[N00bWarrior]

they should buy techland before it's too late.

 

[Bergoglio]

Too much pride to take a loan from anyone. You know he's got way too much pride to beg.

 

[IncognitoPanda]

But if it rhymes with balloon, then it likely is Typhoon, right?

 

[IbizaPocholo]

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Wow. Didn't know EP and Lucas were still doing games. I remember the TV show in the late 90s which aired on weekend afternoons.

 

[IbizaPocholo]

 

[LittleBusters]

Exciting times for XBox Studios.

 

[IbizaPocholo]

 

[FF:Enhanced_Reality]

You can't buy an industry. If Microsoft start making more serious purchases, others will retaliate and next thing you know third party publishers are being dished out between console manufacturers. I hope its one that makes sense, i.e. A studio that's worked closely with Microsoft and is unlikely to release content on competing platforms.

 

[Quasicat]

I can’t even imagine who they get if they do another one next week. Double Fine was a huge surprise for me as I always associated them with PlayStation; especially with Full Throttle and Day of the Tentacle still exclusive to PS4.
Maybe they get BioWare from EA, drop Anthem, make a Mass Effect Trilogy Remaster. Now I’m just fooling myself.

 

[Caffeine]

I heard they were looking at indie games.

 

[TheShadowLord]

You can't buy an industry. If Microsoft start making more serious purchases, others will retaliate and next thing you know third party publishers are being dished out between console manufacturers. I hope its one that makes sense, i.e. A studio that's worked closely with Microsoft and is unlikely to release content on competing platforms.

Except Microsoft said they are willing to put their games on other platforms(ps4/switch), just not AAA games. The same can't be said for Nintendo/Sony, however.

 

[Mass Shift]

I can’t even imagine who they get if they do another one next week. Double Fine was a huge surprise for me as I always associated them with PlayStation; especially with Full Throttle and Day of the Tentacle still exclusive to PS4.
Maybe they get BioWare from EA, drop Anthem, make a Mass Effect Trilogy Remaster. Now I’m just fooling myself.

I'm sure they've gone for Bioware before, certainly the Mass Effect IP. EA still holding on even as they butcher the studio into a supermarket chicken pieces value pak.

 

[Quasicat]

I'm sure they've gone for Bioware before, certainly the Mass Effect IP. EA still holding on even as they butcher the studio into a supermarket chicken pieces value pak.

I know you’re correct, but that makes me very sad. I remember when BioWare and Pandemic were bought around the same time. I thought this would truly help them financially to build on their IP; maybe another Mercenaries game or a Mass Effect game that went back to the first contact wars. Instead Pandemic gets shut down and BioWare...well we know what’s going on with BioWare.

 

[Mass Shift]

I know you’re correct, but that makes me very sad. I remember when BioWare and Pandemic were bought around the same time. I thought this would truly help them financially to build on their IP; maybe another Mercenaries game or a Mass Effect game that went back to the first contact wars. Instead Pandemic gets shut down and BioWare...well we know what’s going on with BioWare.

Yeah, that whole thing was a set up from the word go. John Riccitiello left EA to run Elevation Partners, the equity firm that had ownership of VG Holdings (conglomerate that controlled Bioware and Pandemic at the time) , and in no short amount of time he had arranged for the sale to EA.

When the sale for VG Holdings was done he promptly rejoined EA and was rewarded with the CEO position. Some say he went to Elevation Partners with that single mission in mind.

 

[ksdixon]

I'm never quite sure "why" I think this. But I've always been amazed that MS hasn't just bought EA already. They seem to fit together well.

 

[FF:Enhanced_Reality]

Except Microsoft said they are willing to put their games on other platforms(ps4/switch), just not AAA games. The same can't be said for Nintendo/Sony, however.

I don't think that's such a bad thing. Releasing your titles elsewhere gives me one less reason to the console. It's something SEGA did back in the day where a lot of their games also came to PC. But this isn't going to continue forever, you know that right? Sometimes it will make sense but eventually Microsoft will release less and less of their titles on competing platforms. They've already shown that The Outer Worlds 2 is most likely going to be exclusive. I believe they're simply releasing it on other systems because's it's already in development and in a sense, free cash for Microsoft. Same for their other studios.

This is a problem I've had with Microsoft for quite some time and it's also something of a contradiction. It's an ever evolving saga where I just think it makes more an more sense for Microsoft to just drop hardware and licence the XBOX brand to become third party. They could effectively do what Google is aiming to do right now and Google would virtually be redundant.

However, that still doesn't change the fact that Microsoft are being quite bold with their acquisitions and whilst I was mildly bereft at the Ninja Theory acquisition as a fan of their catalogue, it's only a matter of time before it is someone bigger and more mainstream with IP released on multiple consoles that suddenly becomes exclusive to Microsoft platforms.

I don't feel very comfortable with that idea, especially when Microsoft have this new acquisition and growth strategy. It's almost ironic given they nearly put Double Fine and Ninja Theory out of business and now they own them. Crazy. Sony on the other hand acquire studios who typically only develop on their platform. Psygnosis being the exception as Sony needed a big win to get into the industry, but Naughty Dog (from Crash Bandicoot onwards), Sony Bend, Media Molecule, Sucker Punch etc. These studios pretty much worked exclusively with Sony and released titles only for PlayStation so it's not like Ninja Theory, Double Fine, Obsidian, inExile who formerly released content on wider platforms.

To an extent, it's why I'm surprised Sony didn't acquire Quantic Dream, Ready at Dawn and Supermassive Games. But, at least they are free to be open to all platforms now.

This would be like Sony buying FromSoftware, releasing this new title in development they have with G.R.R Martin on all platforms and then suddenly keeping them solely on PlayStation. No more Dark Souls, Armoured Core, Sekiro or other FS IP on other systems.

Right now it seems great with Microsoft but I don't think it'll stay that way. The second Microsoft completely turns into a company with GaaS, their hardware makes 0 sense when you have PC's and other companies who rely more on selling hardware such as Sony and Nintendo. That's why you won't see Uncharted or Mario on XBOX.

 

[Teslerum]

They've already shown that The Outer Worlds 2 is most likely going to be exclusive. I believe they're simply releasing it on other systems because's it's already in development and in a sense, free cash for Microsoft. Same for their other studios.

Short correction here for accuracy's sake. In Outer Worlds case, they are not releasing anything.
They ARE contractually obligated to deliever versions for other plattforms, because they took on Obsidians contract with Take2 when they bought them. Also Microsoft doesn't get much/any cash from the games sales.

Otherwise the only real other option for Microsoft was to break off the contract or buy the publishing rights outright. Both options that would have been too expensive at that stage in development. Of course this only applies to this title. For any future games the ball is in Microsofts court.

 

[The Alien]

Short correction here for accuracy's sake. In Outer Worlds case, they are not releasing anything.
They ARE contractually obligated to deliever versions for other plattforms, because they took on Obsidians contract with Take2 when they bought them. Also Microsoft doesn't get much/any cash from the games sales.

Otherwise the only real other option for Microsoft was to break off the contract or buy the publishing rights outright. Both options that would have been too expensive at that stage in development. Of course this only applies to this title. For any future games the ball is in Microsofts court.

Pretty sure that Microsoft owns right to sequel and they've basically said it'll be exclusive....but think it still has to go thru Take2 publishing. Right?

 

[The Alien]

I'm never quite sure "why" I think this. But I've always been amazed that MS hasn't just bought EA already. They seem to fit together well.

Nah. All of EA's bang is spread across multiplats. Contractually, NFL, NHL, NBA would never allow exclusives. Call of Duty sales cut in half to be exclusive? Ir keep multiplat? Lot of money for little return.

 

[EDMIX]

but eventually Microsoft will release less and less of their titles on competing platforms. They've already shown that The Outer Worlds 2 is most likely going to be exclusive

I don't know about all that as their words at last E3 was they plan to have titles on all devices. You are asking for them to do something they are telling you they have no interest in doing any longer. Not only be their messaging but by their own actions.

E3 2018: Microsoft's gaming chiefs on the future of Xbox

The company is investing in studios in attempt to win over next generation of gamers

www.theguardian.com

"That is our goal: to bring high-quality games to every device possible on the planet.”

PlayStation® Official Site: Consoles, Games, Accessories & More

Explore the new generation PlayStation 4 and PS5 consoles - experience immersive gaming with thousands of hit games in every genre to rewrite the rules for what a PlayStation console can do.

www.playstation.com

So....clearly they have a goal, they are showing you in your face they are doing what they stated as Minecraft dungeons is on PS4 and Switch. To my understanding, MS has yet to even announce any exclusive AAA game in several years, even Halo infinite is releasing multiplatform

Halo Infinite brings the series back to PC

Bumper jump with mouse and keyboard

www.polygon.com

So I don't know anything about this um "exclusive" stuff as MS themselves are not even doing that any more, their messaging is clear they are not doing that any more and their actions 100% support they are not doing that any more. Anyone still trying to argue such a point is just lying to themselves at this point.

 

[bumleforce]

So microsoft doesnt have exclusive because games are on pc. I'm using my pc for ps now. Does that mean games arnt exclusive? They ar evecause they are in ps ecosystem. Xbox is an ecosystem and I look forward to streaming games to my tablet at my weekend job. I thank xbox for x cloud. I dont have all day to just sit in front of my tv all day like Sony wants you to do. I'll play there exclusives once then its back to my xbox weather it be on console pc or streaming. I dont see why people bitch about this. He'll I'm not a fan of Nintendo but at least they have an option for all gamers with the switch even if it is an underpowered system

 

[bumleforce]

I also keep hearing about asobo. Plagues tale was awesome and I hear they are makeing the new flight simulator. Not aure if thats true. They also did hololens work so they seem to be deep in with microsoft. I think they would be a good aquisition

 

[EDMIX]

So microsoft doesnt have exclusive because games are on pc

Yup. Sorry but PC is a platform, you can spin it anyway you feel like it, but if the game is on more then 1 system, by the definition of the word its not exclusive. So those games you played on PS Now clearly are not exclusive if you are playing it on a PC.....

Did you think using that example would make me suddenly say differently or something?

Sooooooo multiplatform means a game is on more then 1 platform...

PC, PS, XB etc are all different platforms. If something is on more then 1, by default it is multiplatform. A game on Wii U and Wii is multiplatform, a game on PS Vita and PS3 is multiplatform, a game on XB and PC is multiplatform. The company making the game has ZERO relevance to the term, the um "ecosystem" has ZERO relevance to the term. Thats like trying to say EA makes exclusives because they have their origin platform, be like "They ar evecause they are in EA ecosystem" smh

Soooooo that isn't what that word means, it has zero relevance to the term and who owns what has never had anything to do with that term even remotely.

The Last Of Us is multiplatform, you can play it on PS3, PS4 and PC thru streaming with PS Now.

To say something is exclusive by talking about the company vs the devices it can play on is moot, as well.....we already know the company owns it.

Would be like saying EA doesn't make multiplatform games anymore they make it on EA ecosystem (ignores the games are still releasing on many platforms)
Sega doesn't make multiplatform games anymore they make it on Sega ecosystem (ignores the games are still releasing on many platforms)
Acitivsion doesn't make multiplatform games anymore they make it on Acitivsion ecosystem (ignores the games are still releasing on many platforms)
Ubisoft doesn't make multiplatform games anymore they make it on Ubi ecosystem (ignores the games are still releasing on many platforms)

Moot and redundant and not even remotely what anyone is referring to when using the term. Simply something XB fans have tried to goalpost since MS has gone this route.

So if you want to user that term that way, sure...have fun.

Here is a "new" term for us then. MS is no longer making games ONLY FOR the XB home console any longer as stated many times themselves at many, many events and in practice ie = ONLY ON 1 DEVICE exclusive.

So if it confuses you, that is what we mean if that is something you are having a hard time with.

Sony still does many ONLY ON 1 DEVICE exclusives, Nintendo still does ONLY ON 1 DEVICE exclusives, MS how ever no longer does ONLY ON 1 DEVICE exclusives.....

 

[DForce]

So microsoft doesnt have exclusive because games are on pc. I'm using my pc for ps now. Does that mean games arnt exclusive? They ar evecause they are in ps ecosystem. Xbox is an ecosystem and I look forward to streaming games to my tablet at my weekend job. I thank xbox for x cloud. I dont have all day to just sit in front of my tv all day like Sony wants you to do. I'll play there exclusives once then its back to my xbox weather it be on console pc or streaming. I dont see why people bitch about this. He'll I'm not a fan of Nintendo but at least they have an option for all gamers with the switch even if it is an underpowered system

I'm one of the gamers who felt like the Xbox console has become irreverent as a person who owns a gaming PC.

Is it fair that people will say, "Why did I buy this console in the first place now that their games are coming to PC?"

PS Now is entirely different. You're not going to get day one releases on there, which means there's a good reason to own a PS4 console since you know there are going to be games that you can only play on that console (until PS5 releases, of course).

 

[Teslerum]

Pretty sure that Microsoft owns right to sequel and they've basically said it'll be exclusive....but think it still has to go thru Take2 publishing. Right?

Nope, as confirmed by Microsoft and Obsidian employees. Though I don't know if there was a fee involved (possible if Take2 had some sort of first refusal deal). IP is Obsidian/Microsofts after all.

Theres also the question how Outer Worlds 1 is handled in the future legally, but thats a whole other thing.