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[Poll] Can Microsoft afford to hold back from showing all their big games in their July event?

Can Microsoft afford to hold back from showing all their big games in their July event?

  • Yes they can afford to not show all their big games

    Votes: 96 40.2%
  • No they have to show all their big games

    Votes: 143 59.8%

  • Total voters
    239

Stuart360

Member
Why do you imply that I'm trying to start a console war?

I answered the question and afaik I'm free to state my opinion the way I see it.

Imo, they need to go all out, given their position this gen and Sony admittedly holding stuff back for august.
They need to go in guns blazing, especially with the current fallout due to Spencers recent comments about next-gen exclusives.
This - All of MS' momentum is fabricated. . Nothing console war like about that at all.
 

Kuranghi

Member
I hope we see some 30/60 fps titles that really push the boat out graphically - ie Halo Infinite and Hellblade 2 - because I don't gaming-age-forum if a game is running at 120hz if it has to look like a current gen game to do it.

I need to see something really pushing the HW, I know this gen is going to be a lot about having cleaner image quality all round than huge leaps in rendering (Like PBR & modern AO) for the most part, as can be seen in many of the PS5 titles.

Ray-tracing is that new hotness but I don't want it if I have to play games at 1080p@30/60 to get it. If the reflections were actually full resolution then maybe.
 

Psykodad

Banned
This - All of MS' momentum is fabricated. . Nothing console war like about that at all.
Because they don't have nearly as much momentum as some people claim. That's just how I see it.
Me being blunt =/= me trying to start console wars.

Maybe you should ease up a bit and look at what's being said, instead of focusing on how things are being said.
 
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FunkMiller

Gold Member
Playstation outsold XBox 2 to 1 last gen.

Sony buzz online is ten times that of Microsoft’s.

No. They can’t hold games back. They have to show them now, while they can generate the most buzz pre-release.
 
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Stuart360

Member
Because they don't have nearly as much momentum as some people claim. That's just how I see it.
Me being blunt =/= me trying to start console wars.

Maybe you should ease up a bit and look at what's being, instead of focusing on how things are being said.
Oh of that i have no doubt lol.
 

Kuranghi

Member
They need to come out swinging. I also don't think they can rest on their tentpole franchises either (Halo, Gears, Forza)

With all these studio acquisitions I do think they could have a great show on their hands, but it's likely going to be a showpiece event for Halo. Not to mention the time scale for the newly bought studios means we're unlikely to see much from teams at Double Fine and Compulsion.

Thats why I'm a bit worried and eager to see the "secret games" from the newly acquired stuidios, because Gears 6 must be 18 months out at least surely, Forza is a racing game and I don't know if the racing genre can truly appeal as widely as FPS or AC-style game. So it just leaves Halo Infinite, thats a lot of pressure on that one game to be amazing/a system seller imo.

I hope Double Fine will have proper Psychonauts 2 gameplay, isn't that game out this year?
 

Goro Majima

Kitty Genovese Member
I kinda feel like they can do whatever they want up to the point when everyone starts taking reservations for the next systems.

Even gamers can have the memory of a goldfish so if they reveal everything the same day that they take preorders then that might be a good way to go.
 

Psykodad

Banned
Stop being mean to everyone equally! You must choose a target for your misgivings and focus on one thing only.
Lt7HT2.gif
 

NullZ3r0

Banned
No, they have no choice but to show games. They have literally 7 years of underwhelming shows. This isnt even about winning, they have to show the goods just to stay in the game. I really hope they go all out. Sony needs more competition.
Stop with the hyperbole. MS has had awesome E3s since Phil was leading. They don't need to show everything. They need Halo, Forza, Fable and one more big secret game.
 

Bolivar687

Banned
They are not in a position to scrap it out in a back and forth with Sony, expecting us to wait and see who tops the other one next. They went all in on the power advantage months before the race even began in earnest. Now they need to cement that this is the most powerful console at a proportional price coming with a stacked lineup of launch games that make the most of this hardware. That should be the narrative right up until the Fall, regardless of whatever else Sony has to add until then.
 
I think that some superb hellblade II and halo gameplay with a fable teaser is enough. Thier job is to show what they have for the near future and that it looks good. If open world halo looks superb and hellblade looks the same as the first but visually looks like the trailer they can impress most people.
 

Bryank75

Banned
Unfortunately they are completely overshadowed, they are not even on the radar as far as I can tell with average gamers.

I understand they are trying to be strategic and have a payload left for later in the year but most of the preorders will be locked in well before they show whatever they hold back.

I would just make one big show and say it's a show for the fans, the people who stuck with Xbox through all last gen and a tribute to them, instead of making it about PlayStation and competition.
 

NullZ3r0

Banned
When did that rule come into effect to begin with? Because both Halo Infinite and Crackdown 3 say hi.
Phil got pissed after Scalebound and vowed to never reveal games too early ever again. But Scalebound did its job at the time. It gave people an exclusive to look forward to. Phil's problem was cheaping out and going with second parties to develop exclusives and not in-house teams.

Scalebound and Recore could have been awesome games in the hands of competent teams.
 

sircaw

Banned
All the stops, no stone turned. Bring the God damn fire.

They need to hire ten thousand of those hand clappers and I love Phil shouters and fill a room with them. Every time Phil says, FIRST ON XBOX or XBOX EXCLUSIVE they need to light up that applause screen and let those carnies sing.

This is you Chance MICROSOFT. Shoot for the stars.
 

Three

Member
Phil got pissed after Scalebound and vowed to never reveal games too early ever again. But Scalebound did its job at the time. It gave people an exclusive to look forward to. Phil's problem was cheaping out and going with second parties to develop exclusives and not in-house teams.

Scalebound and Recore could have been awesome games in the hands of competent teams.
Fair enough but my concern isn't about the incompetence of the teams (though I'd argue Platinum Studios can be competent). My issue is with the idea that they don't show games that are less than a year out.

Even of the very few games that they do show and release the majority of them have taken longer than a year to release. Even in-house. Another example being Ori: will of the wisp. Shown at E3 2017 released March 2020. I don't think this policy ever existed and if Phil mentioned it at some point it was his usual PR nonsense response for a lack of games at shows.
 
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NullZ3r0

Banned
Playstation outsold XBox 2 to 1 last gen.

Sony buzz online is ten times that of Microsoft’s.

No. They can’t hold games back. They have to show them now, while they can generate the most buzz pre-release.
If your girl has given you blue balls for six months teasing you with the poonanny, of course you're going to bust harder when she finally drops them panties.

MS has been putting out consistently. We know almost everything about the box.

MS doesn't have to do much to top Spiderman in Da Hood and R&C. Just show true next Gen graphics and a diverse lineup.
 

NullZ3r0

Banned
Fair enough but my concern isn't about the incompetence of the teams (though I'd argue Platinum Studios can be competent). My issue is with the idea that they don't show games that are less than a year out.

Even of the very few games that they do show and release the majority of them have taken longer than a year to release. Even in-house. Another example being Ori: will of the wisp. Shown at E3 2017 released March 2020. I don't think this policy ever existed and if Phil mentioned it at some point it was his usual PR nonsense response for a lack of games at shows.
Yeah, I think someone talked him off the ledge.
 
Thats why I'm a bit worried and eager to see the "secret games" from the newly acquired stuidios, because Gears 6 must be 18 months out at least surely, Forza is a racing game and I don't know if the racing genre can truly appeal as widely as FPS or AC-style game. So it just leaves Halo Infinite, thats a lot of pressure on that one game to be amazing/a system seller imo.

I hope Double Fine will have proper Psychonauts 2 gameplay, isn't that game out this year?

I think so many of their respective projects are a fair distance away, so much so that MS may fall victim to over eagerly announcing projects still years away. Which doesn't help consumers like myself who want to see something new from them. As much as I like Forza and Halo, playing the same franchises all the time from them is somewhat tiresome.

I think Pyschonauts 2 was supposed to release this year, but honestly I am not sure.
 
I think it all depends on what they have in development. We really don’t have a good picture of what they’re working on and how far along it is.

There are likely nearly 20 XBox Studios titles in some level of production and we have no idea about the vast majority of those (scope, progress, etc).

They need to present at least 4-5 really great and unique experiences for XBox if they want to start to reclaim some mindshare. Even though Sony’s presentation was a little light in comparisons (only 3-4 truly stand out exclusives), they have a great track record to lean on.
 

Jtibh

Banned
This is their make or brake moment.
This show will decide if they go all service and say fuck it to the plastic box or if they will actually support and invest into the console with lots of first party games.

If they go all third party and halo maube forza the message is clear.

Expect the same old from them for the next 6 years.


They have to show it all.
 

splattered

Member
Well, 60+% of the poll shows the majority of voters feel the same way.
I just don't sugarcoat my opinion.

60% of voters still have beer goggles on from current gen... once things are fully in motion for both companies and more games are revealed on both sides perspectives will begin to sober up and shift a bit.

Doesn't mean either side has to show everything they have cooking ASAP though.
 

splattered

Member
This is their make or brake moment.
This show will decide if they go all service and say fuck it to the plastic box or if they will actually support and invest into the console with lots of first party games.

If they go all third party and halo maube forza the message is clear.

Expect the same old from them for the next 6 years.


They have to show it all.

Do you really expect them to put on a show next week and go "Ok guyz, here's Halo Gears Forza KTHX GOODBYEEE" ?

They have 15 studios now, maybe even more we don't know about yet...

Yes there will be some good 3rd party stuff shown but there will also definitely be more 1st party other than halo and forza.
 

Gavin Stevens

Formerly 'o'dium'
Blowing their load in one go now would be a monumentally stupid thing to do, from a marketing point of view.

At this moment in time, Sony have them beat in terms of next gen gaming news and appeal. Sony have a show out, MS don’t. Now, I know damn well that up to the 23rd Sony will do everything they can to keep their name in the spotlight.

And then after the 23rd, and up to release of the PS5? You can bet they will be trying to control media coverage as much as possible and not give up any ground.

We all know that Sony has held back announcements, and will be dropping more over the next few months. This keeps people talking about the PS5. Silent Hill? Is it even real? Who knows, but people are TALKING about it, and that’s what matters.

We also *think* that MS has more games to show for their 23rd event (compared to the Sony event) and by all accounts has what could likely be a better show than what Sony did. That’s just the word on the street and isn’t a fact though, so don’t get your knickers in a twist. Though the Sony one was very high in quality, but very low in substance.

But how stupid would it be for MS to come out all guns blazing, produce an amazing show that gets even Sony fans taking and then... nothing. Nothing until the lockhart reveal and price.

That would be a stupid idea. They would have nothing to counter the Sony news cycle with. People don’t care about the price, we are all getting one or both of the consoles regardless. People care about the GAMES.

So yes, MS absolutely MUST hold back a few bits for later. Not shitty shovel ware fodder, I mean big games. Because you know Sony play dirty and love to dominate the media coverage, and this is something I’ve said all along MS have been pretty shit at doing. They did seem like they were on a good streak but then that weird inside box show happened and it was all too quiet. Sony though, they put in so much more money for advertising, that I’m pretty much hit in the face with a PlayStation game or something every time I use YouTube, go to the cinema, browse the net. It’s so bad I wouldn’t be surprised to see a PS5 advert on the Xbox dash some day 🤣 MS really need to kick their efforts here up the arse IMO.

All of this is a strategic game, make no mistake. And it’s one Sony are very good at playing. It’s time MS actually stepped up and hit it hard too.
 

NahaNago

Member
I changed my mind on this. They need a show that pretty much gets folks hyped for the next 2 to 3 years. So lay pretty much lay everything out , similar to the e3 dreams event that will have folks theorizing about Microsoft's eventual release of those games for the next few years.
 
They already know Sony have another event and I think they are genuinely trying to wait them out at this point. So I think they will keep a couple of surprises back to respond to Sony's event and then close it off.

True and all, but the August event isn't the last one for Sony in 2020. There's always another event coming up just a few weeks later.
 

Klayzer

Member
No, they shouldn't show every game they have coming, just the right games to get new customers. I'm of the mindset that they will have a few new titles that will impress the gaming public. I feel something big is brewing in the MS studios basement. That may sound like wishful thinking, but, I really believe in their collection of developers now.
 

Tiamat2san

Member
I think they can keep a few if there’s at least 8 big games showed in July.
Maybe some teasers for big ones that are far away
 

JOEVIAL

Has a voluptuous plastic labia
To answer your question... yes they can. But let me explain.

They will likely show every game they have coming out (within a 1 year timespan). But they might not show features/gameplay of each.

I fully expect to only see single-player gameplay for Halo Infinite on the 23rd, and then they can show multiplayer next month. So in effect, yes, Microsoft can afford to not show all their big games right now. And by that I mean showing them fully. They will probably treat the Halo Infinite reveal like two reveals. One for single-player, and the next for multi-player. Just like what they have done in the past.
 
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Drewpee

Banned
In my opinion they need to go big and show everything they have in terms of exclusives in order to really impress and win the trust of those gamers who have been undecided about MS's future plans.

They have underdelivered so many times in recent years on their promises to show big and interesting exclusives that i think for a lot of gamers their July show will be their last chance to really make some noise and win the "war" of impressions.

If they think Sony held out games it would be smart to do the same, for the same reason. Halo has to be shown regardless, but maybe they will hold onto a few games until they know Sony has shown everything.
 
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quest

Not Banned from OT
Of course they should hold a few back for a show later this year closer to launch or next year. I can image a repeat of whining earlier this year Microsoft has nothing to show anymore if they blow it all. The fable game or initiative game would be something to hold back till a later date. Then i can also imagine the crying about showing games that are 2022 or 2023 that is to soon where is the game play ect.
 
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S

Steve.1981

Unconfirmed Member
They can afford to hold something back & I think they should because PlayStation probably did.

It wouldn't make sense to blow their load, get some good word of mouth going for a few weeks, then PlayStation drop a teaser for God of War 2 & walk all over the top of that hype.

Xbox need a great showcase in a couple of weeks. It needs to be great, but they've got enough studios now. They can spread the announcements out further.
 
This isn't rocket science for me.

I simply have to ask myself: what games at the Sony event had the best actual *showing* (as in a REAL albiet brief look at the actual product with gameplay)?

For me it was Ratchet, Gran Turismo 7, Returnal and Kena Bridge of Spirits.

All I really need to see from Microsoft are games that have a better SHOWING than those on July 23rd.
It's as simple as that.

And the same goes for these subsequent "August shows."

The selfish part of me wants to see every thing in the pipeline from Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo but that isn't how business works..and thats why nobody in this thread is a CEO of any of those companies.

Until then, for my wallet to open up, I need to see some actual product.
After this gen, announcement trailers dont hit the same.
 

Jtibh

Banned
Do you really expect them to put on a show next week and go "Ok guyz, here's Halo Gears Forza KTHX GOODBYEEE" ?

They have 15 studios now, maybe even more we don't know about yet...

Yes there will be some good 3rd party stuff shown but there will also definitely be more 1st party other than halo and forza.
I actually do.

They have a long history of letting people down.

Do you remember the original xbox days?
Well i just dusted mine of and the first game i found was oddworld. You know a microsoft exclusive amongst many other.

Maybe you didnt play xbox back then but please tell me how does that line up compare to the last 10 years???

Nah man they have to be at the same level or they are done
 

The Fartist

Gold Member
No, they have no choice but to show games. They have literally 7 years of underwhelming shows. This isnt even about winning, they have to show the goods just to stay in the game. I really hope they go all out. Sony needs more competition.
Anymore competition and Sony will go Super Sayan.

I mean, look what we got on PS4 in 7 years, Sony dominated the whole generation and we still got GoW, Spider-Man, Uncharted, etc.
 

Arkam

Member
From where I see it, MS has until pre-orders for PS5 go live. After that people will have 'spent' their money. I fully expect a complete blowout (on content) this month.... with maybe a price reveal ready for day/date of PS5 price announcement.
 

PSlayer

Member
I don't think they're in a position to hold anything much longer. PS4 has more than double the install base of xbox one and unless Sony screw things up in a E3 2006 way, PS5 has the momentum of last generation. Not only that but, right now Xbox is sharing most of its exclusives with PC which means the logical thing to do if you are on a budget is to buy a PS5 for the exclusives and juice up your PC for microsoft games and multiplatforms.

Microsoft has to show something that people can only get on that platform if they want to compete with PS5.
 

dorkimoe

Member
Exactly. People underestimate HOW MUCH showing games years off helped Sony build strong momentum in PS4's early years. Dreams, Uncharted 4, SFV, Shenmue 3, FFVII Remake etc. All shown at least two years before release (some even earlier than that). Can extend to stuff like Crash remakes, too.
Gran Turismo 5 was shown at E3 2005, then released in 2010; which means it was probably shown at 5 consecutive E3's lol and each time people got a boner about it.
 

Jtibh

Banned
Blowing their load in one go now would be a monumentally stupid thing to do, from a marketing point of view.

At this moment in time, Sony have them beat in terms of next gen gaming news and appeal. Sony have a show out, MS don’t. Now, I know damn well that up to the 23rd Sony will do everything they can to keep their name in the spotlight.

And then after the 23rd, and up to release of the PS5? You can bet they will be trying to control media coverage as much as possible and not give up any ground.

We all know that Sony has held back announcements, and will be dropping more over the next few months. This keeps people talking about the PS5. Silent Hill? Is it even real? Who knows, but people are TALKING about it, and that’s what matters.

We also *think* that MS has more games to show for their 23rd event (compared to the Sony event) and by all accounts has what could likely be a better show than what Sony did. That’s just the word on the street and isn’t a fact though, so don’t get your knickers in a twist. Though the Sony one was very high in quality, but very low in substance.

But how stupid would it be for MS to come out all guns blazing, produce an amazing show that gets even Sony fans taking and then... nothing. Nothing until the lockhart reveal and price.

That would be a stupid idea. They would have nothing to counter the Sony news cycle with. People don’t care about the price, we are all getting one or both of the consoles regardless. People care about the GAMES.

So yes, MS absolutely MUST hold back a few bits for later. Not shitty shovel ware fodder, I mean big games. Because you know Sony play dirty and love to dominate the media coverage, and this is something I’ve said all along MS have been pretty shit at doing. They did seem like they were on a good streak but then that weird inside box show happened and it was all too quiet. Sony though, they put in so much more money for advertising, that I’m pretty much hit in the face with a PlayStation game or something every time I use YouTube, go to the cinema, browse the net. It’s so bad I wouldn’t be surprised to see a PS5 advert on the Xbox dash some day 🤣 MS really need to kick their efforts here up the arse IMO.

All of this is a strategic game, make no mistake. And it’s one Sony are very good at playing. It’s time MS actually stepped up and hit it hard too.
How many xbox and sony shows you expect to take place till release?

Hell even ubisoft plays this dumb game with more to come.

The fact is all companies are held back by global economics and they are all scrambling trying to find the best option to gain market share.

Holding games back holding price back holding some specs back holding lockhart back i mean when in history did we have this?

I get what you are saying but to be frank we waited soo long that i already made up my mind on what to get.

You expect people to get all info a month before release?

Consoles are long term investment and that choice is made months prior like E3 historically.

Nah man i am too old to get my leg pulled.
Show me all so i know if i care or i just go with based on what i already know.
 

SleepDoctor

Banned
Of course they can. At this point most people who are buying a Ps5 or XSX, already have made their mind up.

Show just enough to match or surpass Sony's show and have something to come show after Sony's next show. That is if their next show will be as significant as the first.
 

Vawn

Banned
It's difficult to say without knowing what they have to show. They need to show a lot, but not necessarily everything. They just to be clear there will be more announcements soon.
 
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