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[Self High Five]

Gamers hate changes so he might be right, but I love Black Mirror and that sounds like an awesome concept for a video game (especially a game that is made for Gamepass) if done right.

Gamers hate getting nickled and dimed (or the loud minority does I guess), so the hate will be deserved depending on their plans.

Breaking up a a regular full priced title into 'episodic content' where the end user gets charged more in the long run while trying to sell it as a deal by saying "don't worry, just pay $120 a year for gamepass" deserves hate.

Ironically it won't come from the same people who raged out about $10 increase to full price games.

 

[White-fire]

Why would I give up on Xbox Game Studios just because they might have ome studio that might produce shit?

That line alone makes me call bullshit on this.

What ever the initiative is making isn't gonna make me want Fable, Avowed and TES6 any less.

I will reserve judgement on this game till it comes out, as episodic games in themselves aren’t horrible. But I think he’s talking about an extension of the current narrative that Xbox Games Studios doesn’t put out consistently quality titles. This includes 343i and their entire handling of Halo, Rare and Kinect, Battletoads, Crackdown 3, etc. if the Initiative becomes a AAA studio with tremendous hype and promise, and releases a massively disappointing game, it would make people question how Microsoft is handling its studios.

I don’t know if it believe the report cause sometimes the true value and quality of a game isn't realized midway during development, but near the end.

 

[killatopak]

Episodic just makes me think it’s for the gamepass model.

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

That's when they started building that studio from scratch. Any real work on game started way later. Probably somewhere in second half of 2019.

I would doubt that.

They started hiring in 2018. Once a game developer is hired, they begin working on game development. Production may have ramped up in 2019, but developers don't wait around for "real work on the game" to start at some arbitrary time in the second half of 2019.

The episodic nature of the game could suggest an earlier release date too.

 

[LordCBH]

Halo Infinite bad or Zune bad?

 

[Bernkastel]

Why would I give up on Xbox Game Studios just because they might have ome studio that might produce shit?

That line alone makes me call bullshit on this.

What ever the initiative is making isn't gonna make me want Fable, Avowed and TES6 any less.

He just wants to drive traffic to his site.

 

[Nikana]

Halo Infinite bad or Zune bad?

Zune was amazing. Bite your tongue.

 

[Hendrick's]

Episodic just makes me think it’s for the gamepass model.

That model makes perfect sense for Game Pass. Steady stream of quality content is what they need to sustain the platform.

 

[imsosleepy]

Classic MS.

"Let's hire all the best talent from other studios and make an episodic game like Alone in the Dark."

How tone deaf that would. Speculation is really all this is but it would be completely tonedeaf and of course the internet reaction would be bad. You don't build the next big studio for your brand and have them push out an episodic game.

Well if this is true then it wil defenitly not be a AAAA studio/game

 

[kiphalfton]

Zune was amazing. Bite your tongue.

That's a name I haven't heard in a long time. Had one, and it wasn't bad for its time.

 

[Bernkastel]

What if each episode was 8-10 hours long(assuming it is episodic)?

 

[Evangelion Unit-01]

I don't know that there is a ton of credibility here. XboxEra has run with speculation in the past. They have a few associated folks like Klobrille and Jez that have somewhat decent second hand info but at the end of the day its always hearsay.

That said, the game could totally be episodic. It is a brand new studio and they are releasing a game for the first time. Going episodic might give them a chance to get a minimum viable product out the door rather than risking a full AAA dev cycle and budget on a game that might bomb. I think episodic content in Game Pass is a no brainer and I'm surprised that nobody at XGS is already doing it. They did hire one of Bungie's writers who worked on the initial Destiny 2 Curse of Osiris + Warmind expansions as well as the Forsaken season pass content which were all somewhat episodic. There is also the rumor that the game is a third person Perfect Dark reboot which I could see being released episodically like Hitman.

I think people need to get their expectations in check for the game. It is the studio's first game and first time working as a team. That has to be even more difficult with the remote working environment right now. It is incredibly hard to put together a new studio and release a massive AAA game without any prior experience working together. Those synergies get built over time. Naughty Dog's first game wasn't Uncharted or TLOU either. I think Xbox fans are putting too much faith in it, in a "this will show the Sony fans that we have games" way. Similarly I think Sony fans are feeding into that mentality and often compare apples to oranges. Xbox absolutely has a draught of good first party content and I don expect that to turn around overnight. Studios take time to build and the investment in first party didn't really begin until mid 2018. I don't think the barometer for this game's success should be if it can stand against Sony first party but rather how it compares to other studio's first games. I think fanboys on both sides are too busy feeding into this comparison narrative and I think it will be hard to live up to those expectations. The Initiative could deliver an amazing product but the level of hype being built around the studio is not appropriate for it being their first game.

TL;DR: Grain of salt. Source isn't really an "insider". Game could be episodic based on writer, genre, and Game Pass. This is studio's first game so don't expect Uncharted. Judge them based on it being their first game not based on your fanboy console war metrics.

 

[Nikana]

That's a name I haven't heard in a long time. Had one, and it wasn't bad for its time.

Zune HD was a sexy little device with an OLED screen. I watched a lot of movies on that tiny OLED. Blew my god damn mind.

 

[Topfuel]

How do people find all these strange podcasts and fan news sites? Xbox living rent free.

 

[welsay01]

If they're saying it's like Black Mirror, it's not just episodic, it's an anthology. Other comparable shows would be Tales from the Crypt, Amazing Stories, Tales from the Dark Side, etc.

So each episode would be its own self-contained story, but also linked with a common theme. There's a good opportunity for a lot of variety if people keep an open mind about it.

 

[sublimit]

I was hoping they are making an action/adventure game similar to Uncharted. Wasn't that what the early rumors seemed to be pointing out?

 

[ManaByte]

Absolutely nothing Xbox Game Studios can do in the 21st Century would be worse than the game they almost let Larry Holland (X-Wing) make on the original XBox.

It was basically Joust 3D with purple seahorses.

 

[ShirAhava]

I'm big on XBOX these days but I almost never end up liking these types of games and don't really understand why anyone would not really sure who the intended audience even is

 

[Bernkastel]

TL;DR: Grain of salt. Source isn't really an "insider". Game could be episodic based on writer, genre, and Game Pass. This is studio's first game so don't expect Uncharted. Judge them based on it being their first game not based on your fanboy console war metrics.

Death Stranding was that studios first game. Similarly Initiative is also made of industry veterans so they are expected to bring something equivalent to their past expertise.

 

[DonJorginho]

The episodic aspect is a non-factor. FFVIIR is an episodic game yet it's been received rather well. The only requirement this game needs to meet is that it is good.

An episodic game that was 35+ hours btw

 

[diffusionx]

Anyone who thinks MS bought all these studios so they can have their Naughty Dog, their Sucker Punch, their Insomniac, etc. just isn't paying attention to anything.

And besides what's the point of supporting MS in the hopes they become more like Sony when you can just... support Sony?

 

[Chukhopops]

I like the Black Mirror idea, the inspiration from the series was pretty much the only good thing about Watch Dogs legion.

The episodic part I’m not convinced about to say the least unless they mean they want to build a full trilogy out of it or something.

 

[kuncol02]

Well if this is true then it wil defenitly not be a AAAA studio/game

Why? Game being episodic is not connected to it budget or quality.
Would Alan Wake be worse game if they would release it as episodic game? Was Episode 2 worse than Half-Life 2? Would The Wolf Among Us be better game if it would not be episodic?

 

[Bragr]

I actually enjoy episodic games. The Walking Dead, Life is Strange, hell even Resident Evil Revelations 2 was episodic.

Being episodic doesn't make a game bad.

But all those are very specific games that fit a certain umbrella, especially the Telltale and DontNod games. But imagine a large triple-A game like Breath of the Wild, where after you do the tutorial area you have to wait 6 months to play the next part of the game.

That is the fear, that they are rushing out a game in episodes because they are too eager to get a game out rather than spend the next 4 years developing something to rival other huge triple-A games.

The Initiative is supposed to be Microsoft's answer to Sony Santa Monica, they are a "quadruple-A studio", not some peasant triple-A or "spit on the ground in contempt" indie studio.

 

[mejin]

AAAA project.....jesus.

 

[ksdixon]

This goes against everything I've previously heard about The Initiative and it being an AAAA studio.

I thought the whole POINT of it was to poach talented people from everywhere else and make some new Sony-style blockbuster IP, whilst the other initial 12 studios were, by Matt Booty's own admittance, focused on slopping-out smaller-scale "not AAA" filler for gamepass?

 

[BeardGawd]

Please don't be some social justice warrior "woke" snooze fest. That's all I ask.

 

[Evangelion Unit-01]

Death Stranding was that studios first game. Similarly Initiative is also made of industry veterans so they are expected to bring something equivalent to their past expertise.

Yeah KojiPro had the benefit of a degree continuity though they still had a mixed reception to Death Stranding. Similar to Respawn coming from Infinity Ward.

I don't expect them to put out a dud or anything but I think looking at something like Hitman or Shadow of the Tomb Raider is probably a better comparison than TLOU or Horizon. That is to say I think it will be a decent AAA game but not quite "Xbox's answer to Naughty Dog" that I see and hear people hyping them up to be. They'll need some time to really come into their own as a studio.

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

NeoGAF loves talking about graphics, game length, and payment models.

NeoGAF does not love to talk about game design, or game mechanics.

 

[retsof624]

Who in tf is Speshal Ed?

 

[Ricky_Bee]

Zune was amazing. Bite your tongue.

 

[Adam_802]

lol concern trolling BS

Era thread has already been locked for sketchy 'source'.

 

[Nikana]

 

[Papacheeks]

I was hoping they are making an action/adventure game similar to Uncharted. Wasn't that what the early rumors seemed to be pointing out?

No rumors were a game set in the perfect dark universe. It's possible they are doing episodic perfect dark game that has different characters that all occupy the same universe in perfect dark. You play different character in each episodes?

Unless they are big enough to have 2 projects but they are like 50+. SO it has to be just one project at the moment. Honestly this smells similar to what David Jaffe said about too many top chef's in the kitchen under one resturant.

All have their own idea;s/projects or idea on what they thing the project should be.

Really hope all this is just fluff and initiative turns out something decent. Doesn't have to be a god of war killer or anything like that, just a well made game. No one knocks it out of the park on the first go from a newly formed studio.

Death Stranding was that studios first game. Similarly Initiative is also made of industry veterans so they are expected to bring something equivalent to their past expertise.

Well Kojima Productions was made up of Konami veterans that had already worked with kojima so.....

This is a new studio that has a culmination of different studio heads from top tier studios who have never worked together.

 

[JLB]

Classic MS.

"Let's hire all the best talent from other studios and make an episodic game like Alone in the Dark."

How tone deaf that would. Speculation is really all this is but it would be completely tonedeaf and of course the internet reaction would be bad. You don't build the next big studio for your brand and have them push out an episodic game.

Classic Internet.

Take the opinion of a random guy seriously.

 

[Drewpee]

Gamers hate getting nickled and dimed (or the loud minority does I guess), so the hate will be deserved depending on their plans.

Breaking up a a regular full priced title into 'episodic content' where the end user gets charged more in the long run while trying to sell it as a deal by saying "don't worry, just pay $120 a year for gamepass" deserves hate.

Ironically it won't come from the same people who raged out about $10 increase to full price games.

Noone pays for Gamepass because of one game so your example makes no sense. Episodic gaming is not new and to not see how beneficial it would be to a service like Gamepass is just ignoring the obvious.

I have come to appreciate gaming in slices as I get older so this style of game would work perfectly for me.

 

[bumleforce]

Gears 4 and 5 have been good, MCC is a blast. Halo 5 despite what people thing actual scores really well. Sea of thieves if one of the most succesful IP's ofthis gen. Has it all been perfect? no. However they have so many studios now this could work out well for them as they want lots of content on gamepass. I agree with some people above. Xbox needs to make good games. and they are. They don't need to chase the Third person action adventure genre like Sony. They also don't need to worry about making people happy because some people just wont like them no matter what so do your thing microsoft.. Also I was listening to the podcast and sometimes these guys are right sometimes they say stuff that is very dumb and I think it was on of those moments. The only way I see people freaking out is if the game is cartoony

 

[3liteDragon]

I’ll wait until I see anything from them before jumping to conclusions because of one insider.

 

[TheMay30thMan]

I’m interested in the Black Mirror style episodic nature mentioned, but the dev’s comments on how it’s “bad” weird me out. What about it is bad? The gameplay? The episodic nature of the game? Is it chalked full of politics that you know gamers are going to hate? I’m just confused, if you said it’s bad and people will hate it in an interview, why aren’t you changing it?

 

[Bryank75]

News from both sides regarding 1st party has been terrible lately....

Hopefully MS buy Sega, so it lights a fire under Sony, cause they are both going soft IMO.

 

[oldergamer]

I don't know that there is a ton of credibility here. XboxEra has run with speculation in the past. They have a few associated folks like Klobrille and Jez that have somewhat decent second hand info but at the end of the day its always hearsay.

That said, the game could totally be episodic. It is a brand new studio and they are releasing a game for the first time. Going episodic might give them a chance to get a minimum viable product out the door rather than risking a full AAA dev cycle and budget on a game that might bomb. I think episodic content in Game Pass is a no brainer and I'm surprised that nobody at XGS is already doing it. They did hire one of Bungie's writers who worked on the initial Destiny 2 Curse of Osiris + Warmind expansions as well as the Forsaken season pass content which were all somewhat episodic. There is also the rumor that the game is a third person Perfect Dark reboot which I could see being released episodically like Hitman.

I think people need to get their expectations in check for the game. It is the studio's first game and first time working as a team. That has to be even more difficult with the remote working environment right now. It is incredibly hard to put together a new studio and release a massive AAA game without any prior experience working together. Those synergies get built over time. Naughty Dog's first game wasn't Uncharted or TLOU either. I think Xbox fans are putting too much faith in it, in a "this will show the Sony fans that we have games" way. Similarly I think Sony fans are feeding into that mentality and often compare apples to oranges. Xbox absolutely has a draught of good first party content and I don expect that to turn around overnight. Studios take time to build and the investment in first party didn't really begin until mid 2018. I don't think the barometer for this game's success should be if it can stand against Sony first party but rather how it compares to other studio's first games. I think fanboys on both sides are too busy feeding into this comparison narrative and I think it will be hard to live up to those expectations. The Initiative could deliver an amazing product but the level of hype being built around the studio is not appropriate for it being their first game.

TL;DR: Grain of salt. Source isn't really an "insider". Game could be episodic based on writer, genre, and Game Pass. This is studio's first game so don't expect Uncharted. Judge them based on it being their first game not based on your fanboy console war metrics.

True but asking that is like asking sony fans to temper expectations in "performance wars" with early games

We're talking about. "Omigod PS5 has 8 frames where it hits 1440p and XSX has 21 frames where it hits 1440p, S5 is king!!!!!" Its basically not going to happen and those same fans will jump at the chance to paint the mundane in a negative light.

 

[Self High Five]

Noone pays for Gamepass because of one game so your example makes no sense.

What difference does it make if they're using a subscription service to justify paying more for less content? The whole point is getting $120 a year out of the consumer instead of $60 for one purchase.

I have come to appreciate gaming in slices as I get older so this style of game would work perfectly for me.

What an asinine justification. This is just as stupid as someone saying "I'm glad to pay $10 a ticket to see 30 minute movie because as I get older I value my time. Less is more!"

Instead of justifying reasons to pay more money for less why don't you just donate your money instead. I'm sure you can find an accountant that can pass it off as a tax write off.

 

[ResilientBanana]

Why does this thread exist?

 

[Larlight]

If this is true, guess they are going the episodic route to keep gamers “invested” into Gamepass by having content come out monthly or every certain quarter. Like Disney Plus does. Although isn’t this the studio that claimed AAAA games would be made by them?

 

[Mr Moose]

"I know the word episodic has been thrown around," insider Shpeshal Ed said about the game.

What? lol
Stopped reading right there.

 

[N1tr0sOx1d3]

They don't need The Initiative to chase Sony 1st party. MS has plenty of other studios that could do that if they wanted. Have no idea what they are working on, but I'll keep an open mind.

As we all should. There’s no denying The Initiative is made up of talented industry veterans some of which are from Sony’s side no less.

 

[cireza]

An episodic game that was 35+ hours btw

Imagine the padding. Must be insane.

 

[Mr Moose]

Well if this is true then it wil defenitly not be a AAAA studio/game

Maybe it's 4 episodes? A A A A.

I'm kidding, there's nothing wrong with it being episodic Wasn't Hitman? And technically Final Fantasy 7 remake?

 

[ivan.k]

>Xbox Era
>Shpeshal Ed
>insider

You've gotta be kidding, lol

 

[Drewpee]

What difference does it make if they're using a subscription service to justify paying more for less content? The whole point is getting $120 a year out of the consumer instead of $60 for one purchase.

I have paid full price for one game in the last 2 years (RDR2) but have played more games than ever because of my Gamepass subscription.

You have no idea what you are talking about.