Let’s talk about Xbox | This week’s gaming news

No one is suggesting that Microsoft should stop making video game hardware. What we’re wondering, here in the dark and twisted channels of Engadget Slack, is whether Microsoft should continue to create separate consoles from one generation to the next in the traditional hardware cycle. Basically, does the Xbox need a box? Microsoft has worked to lay the groundwork for a platform-agnostic, cloud-first future for video games, and it has consistently trailed Sony and Nintendo in the console race. So why are executives trying to get us excited about a super-powerful 10th generation Xbox?

Perhaps Microsoft is reluctant to reveal a radical ecosystem change after the chaos surrounding the Xbox One and its permanent DRM features in 2013. After a wave of negative feedback to the idea of ​​a permanent online console, Xbox had to quickly reverse its launch plans. , while Sony took the PlayStation 4 on an early victory lap. This fumble paved the way for the next decade of console sales, and it’s a lesson that would stick with any studio, especially one trying to make streaming and cloud gaming the norm.

That’s understandable, but it doesn’t change the fact that accessible, affordable (and likely portable) hardware makes a lot of sense for Microsoft’s current vision and investments. More than an expensive console, at least.

This week’s stories

A delicious Ancient Ring entrance

Ancient RingThe Shadow of the Erdtree expansion will be released for PlayStation, Xbox and PC on June 21. This one has been a long time coming: FromSoftware announced the DLC in February 2023, giving players plenty of time to prepare for more masochism. A new, three minute trailer for Shadow of the Erdtree features sprawling locations and epic bosses inspired by chaotic combinations of animals, insects and elements. The expansion costs $40 and pre-orders are live now.

Borderlands by Cate Blanchett

I’m just going to come out and say it: I think Cate Blanchett is a great Lilith. THE first trailer for this summer Borderlands Movie came out and it looks like Mad Max meets guardians of the galaxy – which is Borderlands in a nutshell anyway. The film stars Blanchett, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Hart, Jack Black and Ariana Greenblatt, is directed by Eli Roth and is scheduled to hit theaters on August 9.

Xbox should leave the console business

Last Thursday, Xbox executives made it clear they weren’t about to abandon the traditional hardware market, and they announced a next-generation console that will represent “the greatest technical advancement you’ll ever have.” seen “. That’s cool, but given Microsoft’s position in the industry, it doesn’t seem like Xbox needs to make consoles anymore.

After acquiring half the industry, Microsoft is now a mega-game publisher, with more than 30 in-house studios. Many of these development teams are world-renowned and have a rich, cross-platform history. It is also the operator of one of the world’s largest game subscription services, game Pass.

game Pass has grown significantly during the pandemic, but subscriptions have stagnated. In game-pass-subscribers-pay-full-price” rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank” data-ylk=”slk:court documents;cpos:12;pos:1;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas” class=”link “>court documents As of April 2022, Microsoft revealed that it has 21.9 million game Pass subscribers and 11.7 million Xbox Live Gold members across its consoles, for a total user base of 33.6 million. Last week, Microsoft revealed that game Pass had 34 million subscribers, including PC game Pass and game Pass Core, the new name for Xbox Live Gold. Even assuming PC game Pass had no subscribers in 2022, that means game Pass subscriptions only grew 1% over the past 22 months. The most likely scenario is that the overall number of subscriptions has declined over this period – although it’s at least possible that more people are paying for the full-price service than before.

Microsoft’s plan for this generation of consoles was clear for all to see: sell hardware and sell a subscription service with its own games. It turns out that it’s hard to sell game Pass to someone without an Xbox, and few people buy Xboxes. Microsoft stopped reporting hardware numbers during the Xbox One era, but analysts put the combined sales of Xbox series consoles at around 25 million. Meanwhile, Sony has sold over 50 million PS5s and Nintendo has sold around 140 million Switches. This gap seems to be widening every day, and it is much more pronounced in Japan and Europe than in the United States. If Microsoft wants to expand game Pass, it looks like it will have to be on platforms outside of Xbox.

This week, Xbox confirmed plans to bring four formerly exclusive games to PlayStation and Nintendo consoles, and for years, executives have been pitching an ecosystem in which Xbox — and game Pass — are playable on anything with a screen. Microsoft has a powerful cloud network that even Sony uses for game streaming, and has more than 30 studios. In the long term, Microsoft is positioning Xbox to become a platform-agnostic software publishing powerhouse, with the industry’s most stable streaming network at its back.

In this landscape, it’s surprising to hear Xbox talking about building a hyper-powerful console for the next generation. I’m not advocating that Microsoft abandon the hardware market: it makes sense for the company to focus on affordable portable devices and streaming boxes that support game Pass and cloud gaming. Xbox is working toward a future where its games and game Pass are available everywhere, which raises a clear question about its current plans: why bring an expensive next-gen console into a war that’s really about software, subscriptions, and streaming?

Bonus content

• Sony President Hiroki Totoki told investors last week that the company would be more aggressive in bringing its PlayStation titles to PC.

• Xbox has confirmed which of its games will be coming to other consoles: Based And Repentance will come to PlayStation and Switch, while Sea of ​​Thieves And Rush to Hi-Fi will only arrive on PS5. Both Sea of ​​Thieves And Based will support cross-play on all platforms.

• Now for a totally different port: The Pokémon Company has scheduled an anniversary stream for next Tuesday at 9 a.m. ET. It may be a little early for a Gen 10 reveal, but a Switch remake of Black White This seems like a safe bet.

Now playing

If you’re a Switch or PlayStation gamer curious about all these Xbox games coming to your consoles, I have a simple and clear recommendation: play Repentance. Obsidian’s tapestry-like narrative game is a surprise and delight, and I’ve had a lot of fun playing it on game Pass recently. It’s available now on PS4, PS5, and Switch, and I’m sure it looks just as great on those platforms.

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