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Alternate reality: you are Head of Xbox during the previous generation (XB1), what's your game plan for next-gen?

Ozzie666

Member
Sell the hardware at significant losses and ride it out for the generation and build a massive install base. Lock people into their libraries digitally so they are trapped.
 

AREYOUOKAY?

Member
Buy Playtonic or any other company with Rare employees that jumped ship.
Buy Blizzard from Activision and do the same thing.
Buy Bungie again before Sony does so they can get back to Halo so I can disband 343.

You can't run away from me. Now get back to making those companies good again.


 
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Sanepar

Member
To solve xbox problem you need to go back to xbox360 days. During kinect launch, dropping studios and focusing all your energy to make kinect games. Almost abandon fp portfolio after 2011.
 

Alan Wake

Member
I'm honestly baffled that these videos game hardware companies haven't adopted the cell phone business model. Hardware that costs MORE, but sells to everyone become it's subsidized model.

Particularly Microsoft with the Xbox....

Buy an Xbox at full price, fine. No subscriptions needed. Pay $15 a month for Gamepass if you feel like it.

Get an Xbox up front for free but you're locked into a 3 year subscription plan. $25-$35 a month for Gamepass. Or scale that to whatever makes the most sense.

Lower the barrier to entry, subsidized by the subscription service, tie people to the service and keep them through various iterations of hardware by keeping the barrier of entry just another trade in and plan extension.
This is what a lot of people thought would happen during the Xbox One generation. Michael Pachter famously predicted it at E3 2013. He and others thought Microsoft would tie the Xbox One to a cable subscription, which would have made sense give the TV focus they had at the time. To my knowledge this never happened.
 

Three

Member
Depends, am I trying to make shitloads of money, or do what's best for xbox consoles/customers and improve the medium?

If it's the latter
  • Had studios like Coalition or Rare, create exclusive games that were timed for the new console instead of releasing Gears 5 a year before launch or concentrating on GaaS for years on end.
  • Not had 343i creating a GaaS Halo trying to chase whales. Instead I would have had them create a Halo that concentrated on what made past Halos great i.e. Not launching with less features to make it appear you're adding things in 'seasons'.
  • Stuck to one spec that was XSX and spent money on fab/wafers instead of not caring about consoles or ease of development.
  • Would have funded some timed third party console exclusives that had a xbox360 connection in the past. A new Bioshock, Mass effect, or Witcher to push console sales.
This stuff might not be financially sound though. This is just things that would make xbox attractive and output good games. If I was trying to do the former and make a shitload of money instead though I would be doing what they're doing:

  • I wouldn't care about generations or consoles to begin with
  • I would have shifted most of my games to an EA style mtx business model in the xbox one gen
  • I would have then followed in EAs footsteps of creating a subscription service like "EA Access" to boost those mtx numbers without going f2p and being able to still charge for those games. This has the added benefit of subscribers checking out only your specific new releases too when they become attached to the service.
  • I would have had most of my studios like Rare, 343i, Coalition feeding it by creating games with mtx and gone full on GaaS. Not caring enough to use them to make my next gen loss leader console attractive. I wouldn't be having them concentrating on singleplayer blockbusters to drive consoles when I need to be driving those subs and mtx through engagement.
  • Buy more IPs that are successful GaaS/mtx games
  • Shifting away from expensive high budget technical showpieces and more towards larger audiences for mtx/GaaS via cheaper lower spec machines or through mobile.
  • Instead of funding new third party games like Bioshock, ME or Witcher I would attract that audience via low cost means like adding legacy game libraries to my subscription because those single player games don't really drive engagement.
 
Kill off Xbox live. Make Xbox as the first neutral console. Basically windows that focuses only for gaming. Make it easier for Stream/Epic/Ubi APIs launch natively as if they own the console.

Each with their own containerized systems and you simply collect a subscription fee to keep the OS secure and add features for them to use. It should be easy to switch over form different storefronts and allow the door to be opened to every other gaming company, including Sony.
 
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