Comments 994

Re: Xbox & Square Enix Announce Plans To 'Partner Closely' On Future Games

Grumblevolcano

@Banjo- You misunderstood my point. What I was on about is Square Enix will likely be cautious not to burn bridges. PS5 is the best place to play FF at current because it's missing the least number of games, if that changes to all 3 being equal then that's not going to cause problems.

But if it changes to Series X|S being the best place to play FF because of what Microsoft were able to do with the backwards compatibility program in the XB1 era (current systems having the same games except Series X|S also having the FFXIII trilogy), that would probably burn bridges with Sony.

Re: Xbox & Square Enix Announce Plans To 'Partner Closely' On Future Games

Grumblevolcano

@Banjo- There seems to be a resurgence of 7th gen games being remastered of which the originals were added to the Xbox backwards compatibility program. The main purpose likely being about Switch and PS4/PS5 (sometimes also PC like with RDR) getting games that aren't currently on the system so I could see something similar happen with FFXIII trilogy.

Re: Talking Point: After Almost Four Years, We're Starting To Miss Gears

Grumblevolcano

The Coalition announced moving to UE5 for next gen development in May 2021 so I figure if Gears 6 exists it would launch around 2026/2027 (5-6 years seems a reasonable guess).

A Gears collection containing the 360 games in a MCC style package to catch PC players up with the story as well as reviving the playerbase would seem like an easy win for Xbox but that rumour is seeming less likely now. The collections tease prior to the showcase feels like it was for Activision collections like Skylanders or Hexen + Heretic.

Re: Xbox Extends Activision Blizzard Takeover Deadline To October

Grumblevolcano

@shoeses @Dragonsbane Given the change from Xbox Live Gold to Xbox Game Pass Core and that Game Pass doesn't exist on Xbox 360 consoles, I get the feeling Microsoft are going to kill off 360 soon like they did the original Xbox in 2010. Online servers and the marketplace.

https://www.purexbox.com/news/2023/02/xbox-360-may-2023-closure-message-was-an-error-says-microsoft

Pretty much that the "error" earlier in the year was only an error in terms of when the closure was happening.

Re: Poll: Are You Buying The 'Early Access Upgrade' For Starfield?

Grumblevolcano

@Moonglow It's a negotiation phase now of which it'll go through if both parties come to an agreement. We don't know what concessions Microsoft will need to make in order for the CMA to accept. And if they don't come to an agreement then Microsoft's CAT appeal goes ahead in October.

Meanwhile Microsoft and Activision making an extension to satisfy the CMA may set off more FTC resistance given Microsoft and Activision will have lied under oath to the judge. What comes of it, who knows.

Re: Poll: Are You Buying The 'Early Access Upgrade' For Starfield?

Grumblevolcano

@Ralizah I disagree. While not likely, Starfield on PS5 is more likely than that. Reasoning being that Microsoft's treatment of Bethesda has been a big factor in there being so much resistance to the Activision acquisition. If Microsoft are so desperate to own Activision, under certain circumstances they may cave in and put Bethesda games on other consoles to push the Activision acquisition through.

It all comes down to how much power the CMA wields (there's reports saying they managed to delay the acquisition past the deadline so that's something).

Re: Xbox Wins FTC Court Case As Judge Denies Preliminary Injunction

Grumblevolcano

Not surprising given what was reported on about the FTC's arguments in the trial though the result is still disappointing.

It's been so wonderful playing Square Enix games on my Switch and it's so sad that's going to be taken away all because regulators allowed Microsoft to start an acquisition war. CoD on Nintendo hardware is a terrible consolation prize.

Re: Xbox Game Pass Is Now Officially More Expensive In Most Countries

Grumblevolcano

@gamer5634 The official Xbox support site states the changes:

https://support.xbox.com/en-GB/help/subscriptions-billing/manage-subscriptions/xbox-game-pass-ultimate-faq

What happens to my prepaid months of Xbox Live Gold, Xbox Game Pass, and/or EA Play when I sign up for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate?

  • Xbox Live Gold and PC Game Pass conversion ratio: Any remaining time will convert to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate time at a ratio of 3:2 and be rounded up to the next full day. For example, 90 days remaining of Xbox Live Gold or PC Game Pass will convert to 60 days of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate time.
  • Xbox Game Pass for Console conversion ratio: Any remaining time will convert to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate time at a ratio of 4:3 and be rounded up to the next full day. For example, 90 days remaining of Xbox Game Pass for Console will convert to 68 days of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate time.
  • EA Play conversion ratio: Any remaining time will convert to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate time at a ratio of 3:1 and be rounded up to the next full day. For example, 90 days remaining of EA Play will convert to 30 days of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate time.

Re: Sarah Bond: Xbox Game Pass Ultimate's Least Popular Feature Is Cloud Gaming

Grumblevolcano

@NEStalgia I feel this generation perfectly sums up why Nintendo were right out of the 3 regarding hardware. All you hear regarding PS and Xbox is about acquisitions meanwhile Nintendo's just happily continuing supporting a much weaker specs 6 year old console with a strong lineup.

The state of Xbox/PS honestly makes me think that Nintendo would be best off using the Game Boy approach for the Switch (i.e. releasing Switch 2 around 2029). Avoid releasing a next gen system for as long as possible.

Re: Here's The Latest Xbox Game Studios & Bethesda Roadmap (June 2023 Version)

Grumblevolcano

@UltimateOtaku91 I'm less confident about Gears collection happening given collections of games is the only thing from the Kinda Funny interview comment which didn't appear in the showcase:

"I can say now and everybody can already stop [with] 'I don't want to hear what Phil has to say about the future' and I fully respect that point of view, [but] we've got Starfield coming, we've got Forza coming, we've got Hellblade coming, like we've got collections of games, I'm seeing very good builds of Avowed... I can see it, but until you have a controller in your hand and you're smiling from playing our games, none of my words should matter."

https://www.purexbox.com/news/2023/05/xbox-boss-insists-microsoft-will-deliver-a-packed-schedule-of-releases

So based on what's happened the past week, it feels like the hint was for Activision collections (e.g. Skylanders, Heretic/Hexen) rather than stuff like Gears.

Re: Phil Spencer Teases Multiple Games That Weren't Shown In This Year's Xbox Showcase

Grumblevolcano

@Fiendish-Beaver Something for Gamescom seems almost guaranteed but there were also a few years they did something in November:

  • 2022 - Gamescom stream in August (acted similar to showcase extended)
  • 2021 - Gamescom stream in August, Xbox 20th anniversary event in November
  • 2019 - Inside Xbox stream in August and September, X019 event in November
  • 2018 - Inside Xbox stream in July, August and September, X018 event in November

Re: Poll: How Would You Grade The Xbox Games Showcase 2023?

Grumblevolcano

B or 6/10, a solid showcase with a variety of games even though I was only interested in Fable, Clockwork Revolution and the Atlus stuff. Was surprised we didn't see Age of Empires 4 for console given that's currently scheduled for 2023, there was a large focus on 2024 and beyond as well as not enough gameplay.

But it's entirely possible that all my issues with the showcase gets resolved with the Extended showcase on Tuesday.

Re: Poll: How High Are Your Expectations For Sunday's Xbox Showcase?

Grumblevolcano

I have no expectations as I could see it go either way. I could see a very good showcase where we finally see a load of those 2019/2020 announcements return among some new stuff. On the other hand, I could instead see a really bad showcase where Forza + Starfield is doing all the heavy lifting while Microsoft pulls a "imagine what would've been on Game Pass if the CMA didn't block the Activision acquisition" because they expected to close the acquisition by now.

Re: Atlus Reveals Two New Persona Games, Both Coming To Xbox Game Pass

Grumblevolcano

@Green-Bandit The point I was trying to get across is that Square Enix have already taken into account the PS5 exclusivity for their expectations. If it was multiplatform day 1, yes of course there would be more preorders but Square Enix's expectations would also be higher hence resulting in the same panicking that's currently being reported on.

Multiplatform would of course be the better outcome, all I was saying is that it wouldn't solve Square Enix's specific problem. Meanwhile if they revealed FFVII Rebirth in September 2023 instead of June 2022, that would've solved their problem.

Re: Our Predictions For The 2023 Xbox Games Showcase

Grumblevolcano

Since their acquisition of Bethesda, all the showcases have started and finished with Bethesda. So my predictions are:

  • Showcase starts with Wolfenstein III
  • XGS updates: Forza Motorsport release window, Hellblade 2 release window, Avowed trailer but no release window, AoE 4 console release date, ARA release date, ESO trailer, next Sea of Thieves season content, next Fallout 76 update
  • XGS new announcements: Gears collection, Fable collection, Hi-Fi Rush DLC, some kind of Double Fine collection or remaster, 1-2 Xbox Games Studios Publishing releases
  • New hardware and services announcements (e.g. multiple new controllers, some already existing games being added to Game Pass, perhaps a new Game Pass tier)
  • Close the showcase with a Starfield trailer which then goes straight into the Starfield Direct

Don't think Halo Infinite or Redfall will be present, instead them being blogpost announcements whenever the time is suitable for more news.

Don't have specific 3rd party predictions but I feel there'll be a wide variety of 3rd party presence.

Re: Xbox Fans Begin Speculating As Double Fine Teases 'More To Come' On Game Pass

Grumblevolcano

I'd guess Stacking and The Cave Remastered. Costume Quest got added to Game Pass last year and Stacking had the same publisher. As for The Cave, you can't buy it anymore on Xbox so if it was to appear on Game Pass it would be in the form of a remaster.

@GiveMeMoney Good call, a collection of their pre-XB1 Xbox games that aren't Kinect or licensed games (Psychonauts, Brutal Legend, Costume Quest, Stacking, The Cave, Iron Brigade) would fit that hint well.