Hero-of-Time Posted January 25 Posted January 25 Disgusting but also expected. This right here is one of many reasons people shouldn't have been cheering for this acquisition to go through.
drahkon Posted January 25 Posted January 25 Can't wait for the "this time it will be different" comments when Microsoft finalizes their next acquisition.
Julius Posted January 25 Posted January 25 20 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said: Seems like they are done with physical games. Yep, makes complete sense considering that Hellblade II got announced as digital-only the other day and when you consider that digital Series X leak. Then you throw Game Pass into the mix and consider just how much they could potentially save by cutting out physical media, use the PR spin of "we're saving the planet!" (I mean, I'm not totally against it for this reason, especially because I imagine the bulk of new Xbox physical copies of games are ending up in a landfill or are losing value immediately because of the lack of use cases), and it just makes more and more sense. Not a fan. I still haven't posted in the ownership thread (whoops) but options are always important in cases like this, firstly for the consumer, but secondly - and more importantly, I think - for the sake of preservation. Would be really cool if they did limited physical releases of their first-party stuff this gen, at least just for fans of that medium and for people who won a Series X with a disc drive, but I'm not holding my breath. Means I can wait until the end of the gen, weigh up my options for going physical with Xbox, pick up a Series X or a One X or a 360 or whatever is best for what I want to play of their legacy systems, and just not touch a new Xbox again – it sucks, but I really don't want to support this move. Most of their games are also on Steam anyways, and if I'm going to be putting my money anywhere towards games in a digital-only library, I'd rather it be with a company which I already have an existing relationship with as a consumer, doesn't look like it could bounce out of the industry entirely in the next decade or two if Game Pass doesn't work out, and isn't trying to swallow (embrace?) the industry's leaders in sweeping moves with the intent of monopolising things. I'm stopping myself short of saying "get f'd, Xbox", so instead, let's bring this beauty back.
Dcubed Posted January 25 Posted January 25 Damn, you beat me to it. Yeah, this is the end of Xbox’s physical presence at retail. It’s adorably all digital from here on out. Begs the question of just who exactly would be willing to stock such low margin hardware when there won’t be any razor blades to sell alongside the razor though…
Julius Posted January 25 Posted January 25 1 minute ago, Dcubed said: Begs the question of just who exactly would be willing to stock such low margin hardware when there won’t be any razor blades to sell alongside the razor though… I wouldn't be shocked if by this time next generation - heck, maybe even from the start of the next generation - if the official Xbox Store is the only official supplier of their consoles. I was watching some DF clips the other day and I do think now that they're really pulling up their sleeves, I agree with John Linneman that the modern Xbox console now needs to essentially follow the Steam Deck: with Xbox consoles already decidedly not being the best way to play Xbox games (and this having been the case ever since their games started releasing on PC), the need for a dedicated console is still there for people who don't want to stream/play on their phone, tablet, etc., and wanted a dedicated device and OS suited for the most accessible way of playing their games and entering the ecosystem. And you know what? Steam, at least in the West as far as I'm aware, are also the only official retailers of the Steam Deck, and while I don't think the aim of the Steam Deck was to expand their consumer base in a meaningful sense, in a very limited way for people who are mainly console-only (such as myself), who don't want to faff around with PC parts and don't care about playing everything at high specs, I think it has; it's by far the easiest and most accessible route into their ecosystem for the layman. I think the comparison is apt and I think that's the way Microsoft finding themselves going. Don't want to build a PC, don't want to play on low-end devices that stream, etc.? Buy this console directly from us. Also imagine it would mean making those margins even more aggressively slim/nonexistent if needed. 1
Ike Posted January 25 Posted January 25 Man, it's sad seeing Microsoft doing what they set out to do with the Xbox One and got backlash for. They just wrapped it in a different package. 17 minutes ago, Julius said: I'm stopping myself short of saying "get f'd, Xbox", so instead, let's bring this beauty back. You laugh now, but I wouldn't be surprised if Sony followed suit for the PS6. Especially if it ends up paying off for Microsoft. 1
Dcubed Posted January 25 Posted January 25 3 hours ago, Hero-of-Time said: Disgusting but also expected. This right here is one of many reasons people shouldn't have been cheering for this acquisition to go through. ABK’s sale was always an inevitability when the scandal blew up though. If it wasn’t going to be Microsoft, it would’ve been Amazon, Apple or another Big Tech giant/media conglomerate. Bobby Kotick had to go, and this was the only way it was ever going to happen. At least with Microsoft buying them, we at least have a chance of seeing the various COD studios getting broken up to work on non-COD titles again; and indeed, the acquisition was widely lauded company and industry wide for a reason. But yeah… the sentiment does little to soften the blow of such a gutting of staff.
Julius Posted January 25 Posted January 25 (edited) 1 hour ago, Ike said: You laugh now, but I wouldn't be surprised if Sony followed suit for the PS6. Especially if it ends up paying off for Microsoft. Definitely not laughing about this one, I think that's just the closest equivalent to a middle finger I can send them as you say, though, it's funny just how much of what they're doing now is similar to their approach with the Xbox One but repackaged. And with that in mind, it's definitely funny that that video - for now at least - still seems timely I mean, I wouldn't be too surprised if that's how things panned out. There's a decent chance that happens; heck, they came out with a digital-only version of their premier console, and have since released a new model with an attachable disc drive (which I think is the route they'll actually go next-gen). The thing is, even if PlayStation do that, I think they do so at the start of next gen, not in the middle of a gen. It's just poor form, at least to me, to have people pick up a premier version of your console with a disc drive and then not leave them the option to use it for newly released games the entire gen. If PlayStation did it, it would be entirely different to Xbox's approach last time out in the middle of the gen of changing course and releasing big games on PC too - killing any reason to get an Xbox for most people who play games often enough to be aware of that change - or to what they're doing now, seemingly binning off physical and going all-digital. Regardless of where you stand on these changes, I think the time and place to make them is at the start of a gen, because what you end up is a directive which might as well be telling people to point and laugh at anyone who bought into the ecosystem at the start of that gen. It gives me similar vibes to when a lot of people felt penalised for playing Persona 5 at launch when Royal came along, with no option to upgrade/purchase the new content as DLC. I find that PlayStation are much better at communicating these changes and, more importantly, timing these changes (talking about consoles here specifically, I have a growing list of issues with PS which I think I mention often enough to not come off as too biased). On the other hand, Xbox has a decade of experience making piss-poor marketing and manufacturing decisions for their consoles. Remember when they released the One X, which pretty much no third-party developer could or should have been targeting and optimising their games for, just to have a dick measuring contest? Xbox's answer to losing last gen was pretty much "well, my dad earns more money than your dad" thrown at an entire console. I half expect them to bottle the messaging on this, too. 1 hour ago, Dcubed said: At least with Microsoft buying them, we at least have a chance of seeing the various COD studios getting broken up to work on non-COD titles again While there's a chance, and I'd love to see that, I'm not too sure how great those chances are. Since they started their acquisitions spree Xbox have seemed incredibly hands-off (to a point I really question their ability to curate things - heck, you have Obsidian making a first-person fantasy RPG, and then you go buy Bethesda and Skyrim? I'm getting Days Gone flashbacks) and have just left their purchases to fend for themselves. I know that's probably not the case, and I'm sure there's some level of shared tech or effort, but they haven't made any waves whatsoever with any of their acquisitions up to this point, and so breaking their new shiny toy up just seems off the table to me based on how they've managed things so far. But we'll see. I hope so, because man, games seriously lack that splash of colour in the AAA space outside of Nintendo these days. Edited January 25 by Julius
Ike Posted January 25 Posted January 25 1 hour ago, Julius said: And you know what? Steam, at least in the West as far as I'm aware, are also the only official retailers of the Steam Deck I saw The Game Collection sell them, but they didn't have the OLED model listed.
Julius Posted January 25 Posted January 25 6 minutes ago, Ike said: I saw The Game Collection sell them, but they didn't have the OLED model listed. Hmm, looking around it seems like they're the only ones with a proper storefront and at a slight mark-up (also on Amazon by a third party), so I don't think that's a case of them being an official retailer for them, but rather just buying and then reselling from Steam? Them not having the OLED model to me suggests that that might be the case. So to clarify, I guess I mean available first/whatever/"this is the only place to officially buy your Xbox". Maybe I'm wrong but I don't remember the Steam Deck being available anywhere but Steam when it came to pre-orders and leading up to launch. The Steam Deck is also super niche and manufactured on a smaller scale than Xbox consoles, so maybe they strike up exclusive retails deals with certain stores, similar to what they've done with All Access? But I honestly think the approach of "only available here" works better for them. No-one is going out and buying a console on a whim anymore
Hero-of-Time Posted January 26 Posted January 26 11 hours ago, Dcubed said: ABK’s sale was always an inevitability when the scandal blew up though. If it wasn’t going to be Microsoft, it would’ve been Amazon, Apple or another Big Tech giant/media conglomerate. Honestly, I would have taken any of those other options over Microsoft. 11 hours ago, Dcubed said: At least with Microsoft buying them, we at least have a chance of seeing the various COD studios getting broken up to work on non-COD titles again; and indeed, the acquisition was widely lauded company and industry wide for a reason. As Julius said, there's no guarantee this will even happen. CoD is a huge money maker and keeping that gravy train going will require a lot of people to keep working on the IP. Yeah, they now have things like Crash and Spyro under their belt but will such games even get made? Just look at Rare and the IPs MS have had at their disposal for years but done nothing with. I'm pretty glad I bailed on their ecosystem during the Xbox One generation. The deals they've made and the direction they are heading don't appeal to me at all. 1
drahkon Posted January 26 Posted January 26 30 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said: CoD is a huge money maker and keeping that gravy train going will require a lot of people to keep working on the IP 30 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said: Yeah, they now have things like Crash and Spyro under their belt but will such games even get made? Great start 1
Hero-of-Time Posted January 26 Posted January 26 Absolutely brutal. Yay for consolidation, right? When it comes to layoffs, the gaming sector is in a right mess at the moment and I imagine it will only get worse, especially with AI becoming a bigger component in creating games. It seems there are very few Western developers that will offer a safe and secure job at the moment.
Sheikah Posted January 26 Posted January 26 ABK’s sale was always an inevitability when the scandal blew up though. If it wasn’t going to be Microsoft, it would’ve been Amazon, Apple or another Big Tech giant/media conglomerate. Bobby Kotick had to go, and this was the only way it was ever going to happen. At least with Microsoft buying them, we at least have a chance of seeing the various COD studios getting broken up to work on non-COD titles again; and indeed, the acquisition was widely lauded company and industry wide for a reason. But yeah… the sentiment does little to soften the blow of such a gutting of staff.Microsoft buying them will lead to (and already has led to) games being walled off from specific console owners. They're the worst American company that could have bought them, out of those who would/could realistically have done it.If Google or Amazon had bought them they'd almost certainly carry on releasing ABK games on all consoles as per usual, seeing as they don't have their own home consoles.
Sheikah Posted January 26 Posted January 26 Absolutely brutal. Yay for consolidation, right? When it comes to layoffs, the gaming sector is in a right mess at the moment and I imagine it will only get worse, especially with AI becoming a bigger component in creating games. It seems there are very few Western developers that will offer a safe and secure job at the moment.The worst thing is when Spencer comes out saying the firings are "painful". Complete tosh, he is probably getting a nice bonus after the firings for making the company more profitable.
Hero-of-Time Posted January 26 Posted January 26 Just one of many who have been hit by this. Going through the Era thread and seeing people there saying they've been given the boot, only for members to say things like "Sorry" or "All the best" is pretty rough. There's a good chance these people saying sorry were also praising/hoping for the acquisition to go ahead. You can't be pushing and praising for such a thing to happen and then act all sorry when these layoffs hit. A blind man on a galloping horse could see what was going to happen if the acquisition went through. 3
Hero-of-Time Posted January 26 Posted January 26 1 minute ago, Sheikah said: The worst thing is when Spencer comes out saying the firings are "painful". Complete tosh, he is probably getting a nice bonus after the firings for making the company more profitable. No doubt. It's bad enough that people are losing their jobs but it's even worse that some of these roles are being outsourced to cheaper, foreign labour. Would this still have happened if the sale didn't go through? We will never know but it's an awful look either way. 1
Glen-i Posted January 26 Posted January 26 (edited) 20 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said: Going through the Era thread and seeing people there saying they've been given the boot, only for members to say things like "Sorry" or "All the best" is pretty rough. There's a good chance these people saying sorry were also praising/hoping for the acquisition to go ahead Mate, the majority of those people are currently championing a game that has stolen assets from hard working artists, they don't care one jot about the bottom line workers if it means they don't have to feel bad about whatever they're playing. They claim they do, but that mask proper slipped once the victim was "That company who made that bad game I don't like". Edited January 26 by Glen-i 2 2
Choze Posted February 7 Posted February 7 https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-07/ftc-knocks-microsoft-over-activision-blizzard-layoffs-in-court?leadSource=uverify+wall Quote Microsoft Corp's plans to cut 1,900 jobs from its video game division contradict statements the company made to a US court that it would operate the newly acquired Activision Blizzard Inc. independently, the US Federal Trade Commission said Wednesday. "The reported elimination of thousands of jobs undermines the FTC's ability to order effective relief" should a court later find Microsoft's Activision Blizzard acquisition violates the law, the agency said in a letter to the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals. 2
Choze Posted February 8 Posted February 8 (edited) On 26/01/2024 at 9:03 AM, Hero-of-Time said: No doubt. It's bad enough that people are losing their jobs but it's even worse that some of these roles are being outsourced to cheaper, foreign labour. Would this still have happened if the sale didn't go through? We will never know but it's an awful look either way. MS are famous for offshoring, contracting and outsourcing to drive wages down. In the past this was illegal behaviour. Much like politicians, these tech companies are pure slime with their PR and marketing. The online armies Google, MS, Apple, Musk, Bezos etc. have are pathetic. Actions always matter more than words. We had Brexit here in the UK and this government now has record high legal migration at over 10x that of Tony Blair's. The right wing politicians are even more sold out to lobbyists despite shouting about immigration. They cant even handle Defence. Which makes war more likely. There is a race to the bottom for jobs and earnings. This is with high inflation and religious protection of corporate rents. Good article on how the EU differs from the USA on enforcement towards the largest monopolies when it comes to inflation and price rises. https://www.ft.com/content/065a2f93-dc1e-410c-ba9d-73c930cedc14 Quote As Imperial College professor of economics and antitrust advocate Tommaso Valletti put it, “Europe imported a more economic approach to antitrust from the US 30 years ago.” By this he means the consumer welfare approach and its technocratic focus on price. “Since then, professional economists [working in the field] have become very successful — they get around €1bn in annual consulting fees . . . to support a business model that protects corporate rents.” The EU has only blocked 14 mergers since its inception but at least we got USBC Iphones! That will solve everything! The UK is probably worse... Edited February 8 by Choze
Choze Posted February 22 Posted February 22 (edited) Quote Helldivers 2 continues to suffer from success, struggling to operate under the weight of an enormous amount of PS5 and Steam players attempting to play. The Steam concurrent record has now breached 400,000, and previously, Arrowhead CEO said the PlayStation split was 50/50, so it’s unclear what it is now. But the total is massive. But the Helldivers 2 community wants even more players to join. I am now seeing something that I never thought was possible, this war game causing a ceasefire between PlayStation and Xbox fans. Xbox players are obviously wishing that Sony would release this game on Microsoft’s console the way Microsoft has committed to making some of its multiplayer games playable on PlayStation. But even many PlayStation paul players want Xbox to have it as well. Paul Tassi port begging via Forbes. I wont link because nonsense like this does not deserve a click. MS is going the super sized 3rd party route to control gaming as per FTC. Edited February 22 by Choze
Dcubed Posted February 29 Posted February 29 (edited) Oh dang! That's huge news! Microsoft are crazy for letting them go, but they could theoretically work with them on a freelance basis still... or even work with Nintendo instead! Most importantly... THEY'RE FINALLY FREE FROM THE CALL OF DUTY MINES!!! Now... Can we please grant Vicarious Visions their freedom next? Edited February 29 by Dcubed
Choze Posted March 28 Posted March 28 This seems the same as MS's AI arrangements. Thanks to the EU and UK they think they can partnership to dominance and avoid any competition, tax or threat to their businesses. Seems I was correct about the incorrect classification of MS's Azure customers as competitors. Others will probably call it corruption. MS will take the EU and UK for a free ride.
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