BaldB3lper78

It is a UK based magazine and I am pretty sure this website is fully aware of that. Xbox magazine died - made also by Future- because it just didn't sell enough, a bit like Xbox series consoles.

It is also available on Readly but I would always encourage people to buy the physical magazines and keep print media alive,

Had this been launched instead of the Series S, then I would have understood. But to release the underpowered Series S when they could have just launched this initially shows how bad Xbox have become.
I don’t see the point in the PS5 pro but this from Xbox just further proves how removed from reality Phil Spencer has become.

But the big issue that Phil is totally blind to is that the strategy will not sell consoles.
He can have as many store fronts as he wants on Xbox but as a platform what difference will that make.

People are unlikely to jump ship from PlayStation to Xbox and certainly won’t leave a PC rig for consoles any more as the generational leaps are simply no longer that big.

Switch will continue as a Nintendo machine with its own exclusives and be many people’s second gaming system.

But Xbox has a console is just getting worse, not better and Spencer is totally oblivious to the facts. Each day he remains in charge, the worse it will get

All well and good but Xcloud right now is running off Series S tech and it shows. Even with top quality Wi fi speeds, graphically and performance wise, Xcloud lacks in quality.

Thats what they need to fix first.

Game Pass sub numbers are not anything to write home about , let’s face it.

If GPU is the future for Xbox, then fine but it’s still not enough to convince people to buy an Xbox console any longer. They will need to offer something different.

I fully expect them to reveal a native handheld this year and use that as their hardware future with one last throw of the dice.

The issue with Xbox is that they have flip flopped around what they are doing and now Phil is doubling down on Xbox being a place where you can access lots of different store fronts.

To do so means you still need hardware but the fact is that nowhere near enough people are buying Xbox consoles.

Time is running out so Xbox need to make a huge decision snd make it asap.

Considering sales of Xbox in Europe are reportedly down 47% year on year in Europe, bringing out a refresh is pointless let alone bringing out a Pro model.

Xbox may as well have one last throw of the device. Get rid of the series S and release a handheld hybrid to see if they can claw back some sales.

Sadly, the harsh reality is that Xbox needs to get out of making consoles in the near future.

Phil Spencer gets a lot of credit from some but not from me. Xbox will go third party no matter what Bond etc say.

@NarutosBiggestFan you mean the kind of games that have put PlayStation on the brink of disaster. Yeah, great idea.

Gaming is heading toward to a huge crash. Every day there are more layoffs. Sony is in deeper trouble than anyone actually seems prepared to accept and we are heading for an 80’s style implosion.

It’s no longer sustainable.

If people aren’t deeply concerned then they need to get their heads of the sand very quickly indeed.

The whole gaming industry is standing on the edge of the biggest precipice since the 80’s.
Sad to see so many losing jobs.
It’s only just the end of February and the jobs losses are catastrophic.
AI is the big thing but it will cost jobs and in the long term will stifle creativity.

It’s about time

I thought it was good. Phil waffled at the start but Bond was pretty aggressive in her points - in a good way.
Can check my thoughts as well if you like !
https://mattjarviswriting.wixsite.com/mjjmedia/post/xbox-business-update-february-15th-2024

This rumour is from days ago. If they are to do it, then going for a hybrid model would make sense. Ditch the at home only model and go for a native, hybrid model at around £500.
It could work for Xbox.

@Fiendish-Beaver Whilst Starfield is a great game, I would hardly call it a system seller.

@Dimey yeah. It’s already been happening. MLB The Show is PS Studios game but on Xbox and Nintendo Switch. No meltdown there, although Xbox isn’t exactly shifting consoles at any great pace. That’s where the difference lies.

@Dimey I actually think this is going to be 2024’s most hyped non event. Same stance Xbox has had for ages that they want Xbox to be accessible on as many screens as possible. A select few games will go multi platform.
All digital Series that will be essentially a Pro model.
I just don’t think it will be as wild and industry changing as anyone things.

This was already known I thought. And tbh if it's game like this.… it's no big deal.

This update is gonna blow peoples minds for what's not in it as much as what is it in it.

This is going to be a PR disaster.

The MS PR team are abysmal.

It will show us the way things are heading. I’m not sure there will be much clarity tbh and more likely more confusion.

@carlos82 A large proportion play through PC.

@Titntin I think if it’s just a few games here and there, no damage is done. MLB The Show is multi platform already and that has caused Sony no harm.
If it’s things like Starfield , that strikes me as odd.

@Blinx That is an issue but by the same token, with social media, they can offer clarity much sooner. Whilst we can’t expect every rumour to be answered all the time, to allow something like we have seen with the Xbox rumours get so out of hand has been poor really.
A lot of damage has been done through lack of communication and that is going to be tough to recover , even for someone as huge as MS.

Most rumours won’t be addressed. It will be a non event.
They will say they will still make consoles but a lot of games will go multi platform.
And then the rumours will start again.

I have a feeling that all MS will do in the coming week is say very little and muddy the waters even more. Their lack of communication up to this point has been baffling and it feels very much as though there are too many people with too many different visions of what Xbox should be. Phil Spencer hasn’t been in control for a long time and he’s now just a sacrificial lamb for MS.
Hi Fi Rush and SoT will be confirmed but nothing else. The new All Digital Xbox will be announced.
I genuinely think that little else will be said.

@ZuneTattooGuy The idea that it’s fiscal suicide is bizarre. It’s not a good move if you are an Xbox console fan but financially it will make MS even more money every year.

@CaptainCluck I totally agree about the communication. It’s been really poor and now they are only coming out to speak because they have had their hand forced.
I fully expect the update to further muddy the waters and clarify pretty much nothing at all.

Won’t be the end of Xbox consoles now but will be a running down of that business.
More exclusives will be multi platform and Phil blame it all on Sony.
Will be about ten minutes long and we will know little more than we really know now.
Am
Hoping that a lot of these click baiting and you tube influencers - who have neve done a days work in their lives - get egg on their faces.
But I doubt it.

@JaxonH Problem is, console wise, Xbox hasn’t given PlayStation any competition for 2 gens and Nintendo isn’t seen as the competition.

I like exclusives. It differentiates consoles and if we get all the same games on every system, competition dries up. It’s one way to look at things that more games on every console is great for everyone but it stifles creativity.
The only winner would be MS who would make insane profits. And that’s why they will go down this route.
I suspect the next all digital Xbox will be the last.

It’s over for Xbox as a console.

So spending money makes profits. I would argue and hasn’t exactly earned the money , rather that Acti/Blizzard earned it.
But this is why they did it.

Palworld for me. Did Ollie genuinely say Palworld is not a good game?
It's better than anything that Game Freak have trotted out on Nintendo Switch and this is still a beta version.

@rustyduck You feel scammed? Are you for real? That's insane value for the amount of games you can access!

Crass timing.

It was a bad day for the Xbox PR team.

If it has better haptics then 100%. I love the feel of the current controller but it feels a little undercooked compared to the PS5 one.
So yeah, if it comes with the mentioned features, I would get one day one.

Oh goody. This will blow away all the bad news.

How crass of Microsoft to bang on about the 3 trillion dollar market cap after laying off 1900 staff!
The PR at Microsoft today is in need of sacking! In a week, Xbox has gone from a real surge of goodwill to plumbing the depths!
Whilst job losses are not a huge surprise, Phil Spencer, Matt Booty and Sarah Bond will slowly kill off Xbox as a console if they are not careful.
They lack communication with fans and are on a trajectory of kill the console.l, go all digital, go 3rd party.
The handling of the situation today has been embarrassing and a PR disaster.

Hid only knows what Phil is going to do next to try and make Xbox as unpopular as possible.

Love my Xbox but the top brass are testing my patience.

I still want the choice to buy physical games but Phil Spencer has decided that won’t happen much longer.
Yes, digital is huge now but to just alienate millions of gamers is stupid and frankly shows that Spencer holds Xbox gamers in contempt.
Xbox is misreading the room today in a huge way.

What is really bad is that MS have also closed the department responsible for physical games. Whilst we know Xbox is focused on digital gaming, this is an insult to gamers who still want physical games.
Phil Spencer is treating fans with a great deal of contempt and it’s a tightrope he’s starting to walk.

Xbox displays in retailers are already non existent and if they go all digital, they will disappear altogether which will hand PlayStation another boost- one they do not need.

Maybe this is a sign that Xbox is heading toward going 3rd party.

Whatever , going all digital is a bad move

@GuyinPA75 I know. They came to the UK and destroyed morale and the workplace. Snakes

Many will try and spin this and Xbox being in trouble but there is little going on here than normal practice after a takeover.

It’s not good and it’s bad for those affected but this is not a surprise. It’s nothing out of the ordinary and sadly it will happen again throughout gaming.

MS are embracing AI in a big way and that will lead to even more layoffs I’m afraid.

Sadly it’s normal though.

Takeovers rarely create jobs. They always lead to job losses.

It’s horrible and I know because I’ve been through it with Citi and Barclaycard years ago.

Places of this size deal in money and never people.

@EvenStephen7 out of 22k it’s not a huge number at all.
You can’t have 2 people doing the same job. I don’t agree with redundancies but sadly with sometime like this, it was inevitable.

Whilst the news is of course sad, it’s not at all a surprise. Mergers, takeovers will always result in redundancies and this isn’t even mass redundancies.
I feel for the workers but in reality it’s a minsicule proportion of the gaming division.
As for Xbox losing MS money, maybe look at the financials and you will see that isn’t the case at all. The consoles do but that’s nothing new.
Revenue wise, the gaming division of MS is highly profitable.

Sony won’t let GP on PlayStation unless hell freezes over. Nintendo maybe but I doubt it.

People will try and make a big deal out of this news and try and suggest it’s the end of Xbox.

Anyone who thinks that is living in cloud cuckoo land.

It’s a good result. And anything that comes via IGN I take with more than a pinch of salt!!!

Strangely really enjoying it despite never having been a Pokemon fan. It’s not exactly original - Pokemon meets Animal Crossing and has a baby with Breath of the Wild.
Pop in graphics are nearly as bad as the Switch Pokemon games.

But it’s good for a chill out game and got some more layers to it.

Player numbers are insane.

Xbox - release a bundle with this game.

Palworod for me. I’m
Hooked and I hate Pokemon but this seems to have a few more layers to it. Good fun and a chill out game.
Sales and numbers playing it are insane

This has me mega hyped! I love the films and this looks like it has the character of those brilliant early films as well.
Cannot wait.

@OldGamer999 You have hit the nail on the head. They need to do that or they will lose users. They need to state categorically the aims and plans.