It's Game Over For The Xbox One

Is the Xbox Done?


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Kvally

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I know, Forbes is a Sony loving site, but do you agree with this assessment? I bolded the most interesting points.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2017/04/04/its-game-over-for-the-xbox-one/#8de477d26eee

The console wars are ever in flux, but when it comes to the rivalry between Sony's PlayStation 4 and Microsoft's Xbox One, the war is over. The battle has been fought, and the PS4 has emerged the clear victor. The PS4 has sold around twice as many units as the Xbox One since both systems launched in 2013.

That's not even a war. It's a slaughter.

All that Microsoft can do now is hope and pray that the upcoming Scorpio can save the day; that it's not too little too late to introduce an even more powerful system to the market.

And it's not just about how many systems have been sold, it's about what gamers on either platform can expect in terms of content and value right now and moving forward.

You need look no further than Sony's incredible line-up of exclusive or semi-exclusive titles to see how badly the PlayStation 4 is beating the Xbox One. So far in 2017, Microsoft's only Xbox One exclusive has been Halo Wars 2, but thanks to Microsoft's (consumer-friendly) Play Anywhere program, you can play that on PC and skip the Xbox One altogether. That's great for consumers but not necessarily for the Xbox One.


There's other Xbox One exclusives in the pipeline for 2017, but Crackdown 3 and Sea of Thieves can't keep a gaming system afloat. Neither IP is big or popular enough. If the Scorpio does launch this holiday season, Microsoft will need a major launch title to go along with it, but it's a little early for Halo 6 or Gears of War 5. The very fact that these two franchises represent the bulk of the Xbox platform's exclusive draw is itself a very big problem for Microsoft, and one they need to address now if they want to remain in the console business.

Indeed, it isn't merely the Xbox One's horsepower that's led to its second-place status, it's the lack of compelling content on the system. While Sony has a long list of incredible exclusives just in the first few months of 2017, ranging from Nioh to Persona 5 to Horizon Zero Dawn, Microsoft is cancelling promising titles like Scalebound. And that cancellation comes on the heels of the shuttering of Fable Legends with no new Fable anywhere in sight. That's a game that the Xbox One desperately needs, and something that could launch alongside the Scorpio in a big way. A current-gen Fable could be fantastic, and yet we've heard neither hide nor hair of it.

Maybe Scorpio Should Start Fresh

I've argued that Microsoft should abandon the Xbox One brand and start fresh with Scorpio. I'm not sure that's necessary for Microsoft to succeed, but it would free them from the confines of this generation and allow them to start over with a brand new console and all the hype that entails. Just make it backwards compatible, and you won't alienate consumers.

Look no further than the boring PS4 Pro to see how ineffective a console "refresh" can be. And once you've got an Xbox One, an Xbox One S and a Scorpio sku, things become overly complicated for consumers and developers alike.

But really, Microsoft needs more games not just more horsepower. They need compelling new franchises, and they need to start offering a more competitive platform. Reducing the cost of Xbox Live Gold or offering it for free for a year with the purchase of a Scorpio, for instance, could make the Xbox brand more compelling.

Game Over

Whatever the case, right now one thing is clear: In its current form, the Xbox One is dead. It's over. Franchises like Destiny and Call of Duty offer exclusive content to PlayStation 4 gamers now. In the latter's case, that's a major reversal from the Xbox 360 years. This means that the PlayStation 4 now has the lead not just in JRPGs and big, long-running Sony first party exclusives, but in mainstream shooters as well. My how the times have changed.

This isn't a good thing. This isn't something we should want. Competition is incredibly important in an industry like video games. A more competitive Xbox brand is good for consumers because it ensures that Sony doesn't start to rest on its laurels. Nintendo is another important factor here, but Nintendo dances to the beat of its own drum, and appeals to a somewhat different audience. The important war---the video game equivalent of Intel vs. AMD---is between Sony and Microsoft.

And for the time being, the war is over. Right from the get-go, the Xbox One didn't stand a chance. It was $100 more than the PS4, saddled with a Kinect that nobody wanted, and marred by a host of anti-consumer decisions that were quickly walked back. I think Phil Spencer has done an admirable job trying to right the ship after inheriting the top spot at Xbox, but it hasn't been enough.

I hope very much for all our sake's that the Scorpio can turn things around for the Xbox brand, but I can't help but wonder if an even more powerful console is even the right direction for console gaming. I think the Switch helps illustrate that more power isn't everything. Meanwhile, game development costs have simply ballooned out of control and will only continue to do so if companies like Microsoft insist on more and more horsepower, 4K gaming, and so forth. To be honest, the Xbox One would have been just fine if it had been on par with the PS4. Now we risk a new arms race that many developers and publishers will have a hard time keeping up with. After all, if it's this hard to make new exclusives for the Xbox One, imagine how much more difficult and costly it will be to make games for a machine 4.5 times more powerful.

Desperate Times

On the one hand, it's exciting to hear about a more powerful console that can give the PS4 Pro a run for its money. On the other hand, better graphics only go so far these days. We've reached a point where higher graphical fidelity pays increasingly diminishing returns. The leap from 1080p to 4K is nowhere near the leap from SD to HD. Whereas we once marveled at each new blockbuster's incredible graphics, these days it feels fairly routine. The importance of art-style and design, not to mention frames-per-second, is slowly overshadowing the value of higher detail and resolution.

That being said, Microsoft has to do something at this point. There are rumors of a VR headset, which I think is a huge mistake (VR is dead in the water also) but a more powerful console is a better idea. Right now it's game over for the Xbox One. Only drastic measures, and really good games, can save it now.
 
Definitely, as long you consider Scorpio completely separate than the xbox one.

MS actually needs some new games though or we could see the same thing continue.



.... Wait for it....
 
People have short memories including me. Its taken years for Sony to have the stellar line up of games its been pushing out. MSFT has been doing a great job they are just suffering from a drought in games right now. The same thing happened to Sony for years until late last year and for this year. Don't get me wrong Sony is kicking some serious butt right now with the line up its been pushing out but I won't forget about all the great games I played on the X1 especially at the start of this generation. Its not a sprint but a marathon and MSFT needs to remember that and redouble its efforts to stay relevant in this console battle.
 
That explains why when I turned on the Xbox this morning, instead of the familiar start screen, I just saw Cortana tits up and a 21 gun salute was going off in the background.
 
What's up with the double standard of counting PS4/PC games as exclusive, but not counting X1/PC games as exclusive?
 
But the overall point of the article still stands, despite being overly dramatic.

Microsoft needs to take game creation more seriously.

I think they could live off of one or two smash hit franchises. But they just haven't had that yet outside of the Forza's which I love.
 
But the overall point of the article still stands, despite being overly dramatic.

Microsoft needs to take game creation more seriously.

I think they could live off of one or two smash hit franchises. But they just haven't had that yet outside of the Forza's which I love.

The point about games is fair and it feels like something that will continue to show its head because their first party will continue to be built around those big franchises. Its understandable why they do that but they aren't as massive as they once were and they have given up on creating the next big thing. Nothing they can do about PS having more Japanese games though. That is pretty much set in stone.

There are lots of ridiculous points though. There is no competition? Maybe its not very competitive in every country but X1 does well enough to push Sony.

They need to reduce the price of Live? No they don't. PS3 had free online and it didn't make a difference. At this point nobody cares about that.

The Pro not being big means the Scorpio won't be? Its irrelevant as Sony didn't push the Pro hard like Microsoft will. Plus Microsoft knows the X1S will be the bigger seller so its not like they are expecting the world to turn upside down over night. Only the console warriors on twitter with Scorpio icons expect that.
 
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Interesting how the gap from 900p to 1080p was such a game changer a few years ago and now doesn't matter now. People are re-writing history. Before 2017, Sonys best exclusives were Uncharted 4 and Bloodbourne. Neither were major risk taking, genre bending new IPs. The wave of new exclusives by 3rd parties that Sony didn't help produce and launched in Japan first aren't what got Sony this huge sales lead. It was the publicity regarding MSs price, crappy message and resolutiongate.

Shouldn't we wait on Sea of Thieves and Crackdown to launch before telling the world these aren't the exclusives they should care about?
 
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The point about games is fair and it feels like something that will continue to show its head because their first party will continue to be built around those big franchises. Its understandable why they do that but they aren't as massive as they once were and they have given up on creating the next big thing. Nothing they can do about PS having more Japanese games though. That is pretty much set in stone.

There are lots of ridiculous points though. There is no competition? Maybe its not very competitive in every country but X1 does well enough to push Sony.

They need to reduce the price of Live? No they don't. PS3 had free online and it didn't make a difference. At this point nobody cares about that.

The Pro not being big means the Scorpio won't be? Its irrelevant as Sony didn't push the Pro hard like Microsoft will. Plus Microsoft knows the X1S will be the bigger seller so its not like they are expecting the world to turn upside down over night. Only the console warriors on twitter with Scorpio icons expect that.

To clarify, when I said MS could live off of one or two major hit franchises, I meant two new franchise hits.

I don't think they need to abandon Halo and Gears. Maybe just take them in a different direction.
 
Heck no. Typical clickbait from Forbes (not long ago they were actually a legit business publication).

What is this Highlander? There can be only one lol.

Should Burger King shut down tomorrow because they aren't selling as many hamburgers as McDs.
 
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Game over? It's just GG these days. Honestly, this whole article comes across as something I'd read on the forum of the old TXB threads.
 
There's 4 phases to the Xbox situation:
  • 2001 - 2008 - MS was aggressive and an innovator. They had a nice balance of 1st party and 2nd party games. They were still coming out with successful new IPs and their pillar franchises were healthy. They were leaders in terms of online functionality, community features and overall ecosystem.
  • 2009 - 2013 - Kinect and Mattrick time. MS puts a lot of eggs in the Kinect basket. They focus on maximizing IPs short term and damage brands for the long term. A lot of sequels end up worse than the previous versions of games. They consolidate and close down a lot of studios. They don't renew 2nd party relationships. They actually take steps back with their UI, online features, community features and overall ecosystem with the Xbox One launch. Xbox One at launch is their worst hardware release from a value proposition.
  • 2013 - Now - New leadership starts immediately correcting mistakes. Xbox team improves Xbox One hardware, controller, UI, community features, services and overall ecosystem.
  • The future - Starting with the Fall of 2017, Xbox is a complete branding refresh. This will be the first wave of big IPs under new leadership. (All IPs up to this point were greenlit under previous leadership). So far new leadership has listened and executed a turnaround in every facet they failed on. Games take the longest since development cycles are 3 to 5 years on AAA releases. It will take the next two E3's to get a good picture of the game's focus. There's reason to be hopeful but lack of information doesn't mean there's no plan or hope as this article indicates.
 
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What's weird to me in regard to Microsoft's first party output is that even as an upstart video game company on the OG Xbox, they released a ton of first party games in a short four year stretch.

Yeah not all those titles were AAA. But a lot of them were memorable. It just seemed like they were trying harder on the software front back then.

I know that the current economics affects the numbers of games that can be published now. But when I think of my best times with Xbox, it's definitely during that time. Something is missing now. And really it's felt that way since late in the 360's life cycle.
 
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  • The future - Starting with the Fall of 2017, Xbox is a complete branding refresh. This will be the first wave of big IPs under new leadership. (All IPs up to this point were greenlit under previous leadership). So far new leadership has listened and executed a turnaround in every facet they failed on. Games take the longest since development cycles are 3 to 5 years on AAA releases. It will take the next two E3's to get a good picture of the game's focus. There's reason to be hopeful but lack of information doesn't mean there's no plan or hope as this article indicates.

Going dark is business as usual for MS before a new console launch.
 
As a whole Xbox isn't done but I'd say PS4 "won" the current war. We'll see what happens when Scorpio launches though.
 
It's funny how they still see the stupid hardware. XBOX LIVE is the clear winner here and has been from day one. When Scorpio comes out your going to see an increase of live members.
 
Anybody else see X1's backwards compatibility as a huge advantage over Sony's?

Nah. Backwards compatibility is just giving you something you already paid for. PSNow has found a way to charge you for what you already paid for. #4TheGamers
 
Nah. Backwards compatibility is just giving you something you already paid for. PSNow has found a way to charge you for what you already paid for. #4TheGamers

I'd argue it's more than that. A lot of people have grabbed games from the 360 that they never played before as a result. It's an even bigger win for those that never owned the previous gen console. I just bought a PS Pro a few months ago. Would love to catch up on more PS3 exclusives that they don't have Remasters for.
 
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Anybody else see X1's backwards compatibility as a huge advantage over Sony's?

Yes. Its like being told you can have sex with any girl you wanted from high school as they looked at high school...in the school uniform.

It certainly shouldnt be discounted given the amount of remasters Sony pushes.

Not to mention the metascores...
 
I'd argue it's more than that. A lot of people have grabbed games from the 360 that they never played before as a result. It's an even bigger win for those that never owned the previous gen console. I just bought a PS Pro a few months ago. Would love to catch up on more PS3 exclusives that they don't have Remasters for.

Well, yeah, but that's not nearly as funny. Do you even hrudey bro?

I have definitely picked up games that I didn't have yet on the 360 b/c of BC, mostly the free Gold games but there are other games that I never got around to and if I see a deal on and they're BC, I'll pick them up hoping someday to get around to them. :)
 
Contributor = blog

Exactly. He doesn't write for Forbes but instead is a blogger who shops his wears to online publications. I have a friend who does this in the financial services industry and its a nice way to make money while working from home. The reason sites use this outsourced type of material is because its cheaper than hiring and keeping a staff writer.
 
The bloke is clearly objective.




(To be fair, he posted an article the other way round too lol. He seems like a bit of a tosspot, going by his comments/tweets)

Goodluck to the lad. At least he puts his name/face out there when he writes his stuff, even if it is sensationalized to the hilt. All of his articles are though. I was shocked to the first time I saw the Forbes tech site.
 
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