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Confirmed: Four Games are going multiplatform. (Pentiment, Sea of Thieves, Grounded, Hi-Fi Rush)
- Thread starter Draugoth
- Start date
Diseased Yak
Gold Member
Aww man, how did I miss that? That's cool.
Bernardougf
Gold Member
The plan is not moving needles for now.. is just to calm the sharks and slowly swing by them ... or as some said slowly boiling the frogs.
I cant think that anybody on xbox management is stupid enough to think these 04 games will decide their whole third party strategy. And this strategy just began.
That being said, HiFI Hush should do good numbers if the price is right and the word to mouth is good
CamHostage
Member
So, to double-check for conversation's sake since the OP lists this as "confirmed", none these games have been confirmed as the fourth game, correct?
- The Verge only says "Sources familiar with Microsoft’s plans tell me the first two titles will be Hi-Fi Rush and Pentiment, followed by Sea of Thieves and Grounded" despite being sourced for the fourth game.
- The Xbox news release has nothing of info on any of these titles ("Today we announced that we will expand the communities we reach: we are currently in the process of bringing four Xbox games to other platforms. These are titles which have been available to Xbox players for at least a year, including hidden gems that deserve to be experienced more widely, and live service games whose communities will benefit from welcoming even more players. We will share more details on these titles soon."
- And I believe the podcast (I haven't listened yet, but I scanned the "Exclusivity" section) also skipped over naming any of the names. Phil Spencer just said, "I won't be talking about the titles specifically, but I think when they come out, it'll make sense."
- He also said of the first four games, "They are not Starfield or Indiana Jones."
Trogdor1123
Gold Member
Let’s see if they add them to plus like how ms did with baseball.
mckmas8808
Mckmaster uses MasterCard to buy Slave drives
Orbital2060
Member
Its a great game and first entrance in something that may become a franchise for Xbox, but its also a somewhat varied experience in my view, with moments and gameplay ranging from a 7 to a 10, and its a little bit too long in the last half of the game I thought. The section where you go through the factory and theres not a lot of variation. Its about 20 % too long in playtime because of that, which should be tightened up to a 8-10 hour game instead of 10-12 hour game. And work on the art design and aesthetics to be even more outstanding and bold. It looks a bit flat in places, even with the great design. Maybe its something better lighting and shadows can help with. Overall its a strong 8/10 for me, and with some more work a sequel can be a solid 9/10.
DeepEnigma
Gold Member
Roberts
Member
I just realised that they picked Xbox's most universally loved recent games (if we are not counting Forza Horizon). I mean, Pentiment is a niche game but people who actually played loved the shit out of it. Pretty much everybody I have talked to adored Hi-Fi Rush (except for rhythmically challenged ones). The same goes for Sea of Thieves and Grounded - two GAAS games that refuse to die, because people who fall in love with them, keep on playing for a looooong time. I'm pretty sure it was a deliberate choice to show that xbox games can be unique and wonderful and their ecosystem appealing to those who didn't know anything about xbox.
Jadsey
Member
How people believe anything that comes out Phil's mouth is astonishing. Complete corporate Con-artist at work.
I've played those games. 3 are utter shite and HiFi Rush, whilst good, just isn't my thing.
Get Gears and FH5 on the table and I'm in. Also looking forward to playing Indy, Fable and Avowed on PS5 in the next few years.
I've played those games. 3 are utter shite and HiFi Rush, whilst good, just isn't my thing.
Get Gears and FH5 on the table and I'm in. Also looking forward to playing Indy, Fable and Avowed on PS5 in the next few years.
DJ12
Member
They are a pallet cleanser for xbox fans. We will get no numbers but the success will be resounding so more games will be ported.
StreetsofBeige
Gold Member
I can see Grounded and SOT being released, but Pentiment and HiFi were really low sellers I believe. Those last two games are basically a waste of time.
I'm thinking maybe Gears Ultimate Edition to give PS gamers the first game to set a foundation. Although technically, it's your typical Man vs Alien action shooter so you really dont need the background story. Then if a success, release more. Or they go the reverse and do the latest Gears game first and then the oldies later.
I'm thinking maybe Gears Ultimate Edition to give PS gamers the first game to set a foundation. Although technically, it's your typical Man vs Alien action shooter so you really dont need the background story. Then if a success, release more. Or they go the reverse and do the latest Gears game first and then the oldies later.
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Clear
CliffyB's Cock Holster
I think everyone knows they won't move the needle!
ManaByte
Gold Member
Hi-Fi Rush is confirmed. The last update added PS5 and Switch T-Shirts to the game.
Pancakes and Sausage
Member
I bet my ass that Starfield launches with the PS5 Pro.
Clear
CliffyB's Cock Holster
Note during the podcast that Phil referenced these titles as being in 2 different categories, two being chosen because they are GaaS, and the other two he described as smaller, more niche titles.
What you can take from this is that they only actually have performance expectations for Grounded and Sea Of Thieves. A 4 year old and 6 year old title respectively.
Does any part of what I've just written sound like a recipe for great success?
No. It does not. Its just them easing people into seeing their product as multi-platform.
What you can take from this is that they only actually have performance expectations for Grounded and Sea Of Thieves. A 4 year old and 6 year old title respectively.
Does any part of what I've just written sound like a recipe for great success?
No. It does not. Its just them easing people into seeing their product as multi-platform.
Topher
Gold Member
If you mean "same direction" as in PC and mobile then yeah, but obviously Xbox is going a bit farther than that.
That was never the case.
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sankt-Antonio
:^)--?-<
This feels like Nedalla forced them to go multiplat, releasing these games is a plot to tell him in a couple of months "releasing Xbox games on PS5/Switch" isn't moving the needle, can we have some more money to buy Ubisoft please?
No one cares about these games.
Orbital2060
Member
That is the same direction, although Xbox started to launch on PC a long time ago and are further ahead.
But yes its about PC and mobile for now, but the difference is that Totoki was specifically talking about how Sony used to think about first party being a driver for selling consoles, as opposed to how they are now going to think about it in terms of using the sum of their IP to drive profit margins up by launching first party on other platforms, and he mentions PC (which in most cases mean launching day 1 on the Windows platform). He clearly indicated that there was going to be a change of policy going forward. Whether that means PS games on Xbox time will tell, but you can easily make the same argument that people are making with Xbox and multi platforms: that it is a slippery slope, and only a matter of time before it happens. Because there is money to be made, simple as that. And the industry is changing in the sense of being less dependent on traditional consoles, which presumably will also help usher in a landscape of devices where being multiplatform makes more sense than not doing so.
Xbox does have a lot more studios than PlayStation at the moment though, so they will probably be able to make more games to publish outside of Xbox. And I dont think marquee titles like God of War or Last of Us are coming to Xbox. But maybe Spider-Man? Or other games that are made from now on? Games from the GAAS push.
Topher
Gold Member
Don't think the same argument is "easily" made for PS games on Xbox as the other way around. Xbox doesn't have the marketshare that PlayStation does and that's definitely a factor. But very well could be that Bungie's Marathon game brings enough profits from Xbox for Sony executives to want to broaden that offering so not going to say you are completely wrong in your thinking here. Honestly, it wouldn't bother me a bit if we did see Spider-man and other games on Xbox. I feel like "exclusive" has become such a diluted term over the last few years that it really has lost a lot of its meaning in consoles.
Varteras
Gold Member
RoadHazard
Gold Member
Yeah, I've asked where this confirmation came from a few times, no one knows it seems.
Orbital2060
Member
Some people are focusing way too much on Xbox vs PlayStation. I dont think the marketshare between those two should define how they run their businesses. But rather how you are doing versus everyone else in the market. And changing market conditions.
At least Nintendo can do their thing in peace now, it was not that long ago that the same rhetoric of doom was used against them.
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Mr.Phoenix
Member
I think the games selected to start this thing were chosen for this exact reason. This is about desensitizing the audience more than it is to make actual money.
TerribleAtThisGame
Member
Pentiment is extremely niche but also fantastic. I'm a history nerd myself so the art and "peasant tales" focus in this is cool as hell.
Kerotan
Member
It's probably both. With skull and bones being very limited there's a lucrative market for Sea of thieves. I'm assuming SOT actually has hand to hand combat and exploration/combat on land?
Topher
Gold Member
That isn't "Xbox vs PlayStation" in a warring sense. Any publisher has to determine what platforms are worth publishing their games to. If the suggestion here is that it is just as easy a decision for Sony to publish games on Xbox as it is for Microsoft to publish games on PlayStation then I'm saying that's not true due to Xbox lower numbers.
I'm not expressing any "rhetoric of doom" so I'm assuming that's meant for some other posts.
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This is true but it’s also true that it just doesn’t feel great to know your Xbox is far less popular than PlayStation. It just isn’t a great consumer feeling to buy something for $400 or $500 and be told it’s a sinking ship. Even if Microsoft pulled the plug on hardware, Microsoft would still be a huge publisher. Microsoft would be fine. Xbox would be fine. But console users would feel burned. Being told your console choice was bad or unpopular definitely impacts how many consumers behave.
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EverydayBeast
thinks Halo Infinite is a new graphical benchmark
Exclusive games is a formula and yes some games are reserved for multiplatform an example is mass effect 2 last gen.
Bumblebeetuna
Member
All of them day one and some will even launch on PS5 first into GamePass+
Topher
Gold Member
Krappadizzle
Member
I know a few die-hards are upset that the exclusives are moving to the other side(s), but I'll say that I think that Sea of Thieves is a great choice to put on the Playstation. I haven't played it in years, but it was good time with friends, and having more people in the player pool and being cross-play would greatly expand that for everyone.
MarkMe2525
Member
I imagine we should expect the Wolfenstein and Doom series to continue to be multiplatform as well. MS should holdout on making many previously multiplat games exclusive. Save the exclusives for new IP or a reimagining of an old IP.
ReBurn
Gold Member
I think what we're seeing manifest is the reality of running a hardware platform alongside a game publishing company on the strength of first party AAA games settling in. For sure Microsoft is having to make these moves to other consoles first because they're in the worst position. They already went PC day 1 at the start of the generation and that's not doing enough so they're looking at other consoles for ways to earn more.
With the Sony executive chatter we've been hearing this week they're starting to nudge toward Day 1 PC releases because the reality is starting to catch up to them. It's plain as day in their most recent earnings that first party revenue has been declining despite console install base growing. Couple that with Japan entering a recession and suddenly Sony's Japanese leadership is starting to downplay the importance of the console at the head of the ecosystem just like Microsoft did 3 years ago.
Nintendo will be the last to buckle because their evergreen titles, and what we learned during the FTC vs. MS hearings, they're making more revenue from first party games than Sony and Microsoft combined. They're they only console platform of the big three that can survive on first party alone. If Nintendo falls into the 5 year / $150m plus production pattern that Sony and MS have been in for years then they may also be in this position one day.
MarkMe2525
Member
Considering the fact that Mr. Booty already suggested otherwise when he stated "we want to continue to bring our games to more players, so we will continue to look at that", I don't believe anyone (especially xbox management) thinks these are going to be the only 4 games. The scenario you suggested is not grounded in the reality of the situation and is closer to a false dilemma.
Krappadizzle
Member
This seems like a fair analysis. I can say, that with very very few exceptions, I've only bought first party games on the Switch and don't really consider it to be anything other than a machine for Nintendo games, even then, I've not bought a Switch game in years other than Tears of the Kingdom, which I didn't even play on the Switch as it was better played via other means.
Even all these years into the PS5/XsX life, I've not seen a compelling enough game that makes me feel that I need to buy either console. Which is a major switch for me as I've essentially bought every console one way or the other since the original Playstation. My standards have changed and the fact that most of the best games on the system are still games that released last generation has made that wait even easier. I would pick up Ghosts of Tsushima day 1 on PC if it was released, and probably GoW eventually on a sale, but there just isn't much enticing software on either console that makes me long to play for them. 90% of the games I love are on PC and they typically play substantially better on that platform compared to the consoles anyways.
Sony's constant "remaster/remake" ideations as primarily a PC player leaves me less than enthused to even consider a system purchase because I can play all my old games already at whatever arbitrary resolutions/framerates that I already want without feeling like I'm being sold the same thing multiple times.
drganon
Member
How Destin got a job at ign is a mystery. That and people using his videos to prove their point just makes them look dumb.
Portugeezer
Member
Definitely trolling for his Xbox fanboy viewers.
Sorcerer
Member
Maybe it's just me but why these 4 games? None of them is going to sell in multitudes. Not saying they are bad games but lets be real. It's like Microsoft knows this so they can say wow that didn't work lets's abandon this idea. Why even bother trying? Go in with guns blazing or just stay home. Trade 1 bigger title for all four of these to make it a real experiment.
Iced Arcade
Member
2 are small but didn't sell/engage enough to justify existence.
sot is a pretty successful GaaS though. I think we will see more and more GaaS games being multiplatform from all angles.
darrylgorn
Member
I remember the days when MS would tout ONLY ON XBOX every second phrase and beat that idea into our heads, relentlessly, even for shitty games like Brute Force. Then it was CONSOLE EXCLUSIVE that was the penultimate messaging.
And now we're here.
Our baby is all growed up.
And now we're here.
Our baby is all growed up.
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TheBomb
Member
I agree. You open the floodgates a bit, and at the right time it all comes out.
nial
Gold Member
As much as you want to believe, no. If anything, not even 'traditional' games would come to PC day one since Hiroki Totoki was pretty clear in not making business decisions that could hurt the growth of PlayStation hardware.
What he meant with accelerating their plan, it's just them pumping the production of their 'live service' games out that were confirmed to be day one on PC a long time ago.
Humdinger
Member
They aren't trying to make a lot of money at this point. They are just testing the waters. These represent 4 safe choices. They aren't expecting to make a ton of money from these games, so they won't be judged on that. This is just a foot in the door. They are just testing to see how the process goes.
The plan is already set, but they are rolling it out slowly. The big money comes later, with Bethesda and ABK games multiplats.
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