I switched from PlayStation to Xbox as my primary gaming console this generation because Microsoft’s published games are day one on Game Pass. If Microsoft changes any of it, this will be the last generation of Xbox for me because at the end of the day, Game Pass is far more vital and important to me than exclusivity of any kind will ever be and without it, there’s no reason for me to stay on Xbox.
I’m already set on buying the Steam Machine (unless it’s some outrageous price like $1200 or some shit) to replace PlayStation 5 and if I need to go all in on PC/Steam, so be it. I realized that Valve is by far the best company of them all because they don’t do anything to screw you over. They’re just there with their platform/storefront and if you want to play games on it, great and if not, no biggie.
The Steam Machine specs aren’t something I’m interested in, but even as easy as everyone says building a PC is I have no interest and would likely go for a pre build. Waiting on Helix also gives me guaranteed backwards compatibility with Xbox so I won’t have to rebuild my library, with the specs that have been leaked making it clear it will be strong enough to play games for at least a decade without any issues.
Me leaving the Xbox ecosystem to buy games on Steam will all depend on Microsoft decision with first party going forward. CoD while not something I care about, if it’s removed, will give them a reason why they could decide to do the same to the rest of the first party. Giving me my reason to stop spending on Xbox and go with Steam.
They want the service to grow after an uptick it’s up to them to manage that uptick from sliding down. Also, they already increased ultimate to 30 dollars and that is the only tier that gets COD other tiers don’t.
At this point I don’t think they have years to figure out things and build Game Pass. If anything, they have squandered a lot of chances to grow it and such chances can’t be tolerated anymore. In any case the reality of COD leaving is what we’re discussing and whether Game Pass can sustain it or not I think it will crater the service and once inconsistent messaging sets in, it’s downhill from there.
Game Pass generated about 5 billion dollars last year which is close to if not more than Playstation’s entire game sales generation for the year. PSNow at its max had 3.3 million subs which was only because of covid lockdown before that it was 700,000 even after combining it with PS plus it has failed to grow. I doubt Game pass removing these games will help.
Jez said Forza Horizon was built into Game Pass, and I agree which has led to the game benefitting from it. I think Xbox can build COD into it and maybe they will take some loses to get there. Halo infinite drew 20 million players in 6wks and Forza drew 18 million. The service is still young and has yet to mature if it is properly marketed it will grow. Instead, Xbox has made it seem like it was hiding knowledge of these games on Xbox Game Pass I feel like I have to research what’s there.
I’m interested in the Steam Machine because it’s preset spec wise. While the GPU is weaker than the PS5 Pro, the CPU and RAM are better than the PS5 Pro/XSX and since I care more about performance and frame rate, this is fine by me.
I wouldn’t rebuild my library or anything. I would still keep my XSX but I would stop buying new games if Microsoft changes Game Pass/goes back to exclusivity and all this other crap that simply hasn’t, didn’t and wouldn’t work for them.
Are you sure about that? I remember reading that power wise the Steam Machine is about equal to the PS5. Of course we’ll have to wait and see how real world performance is on that thing to come to any meaningful conclusions.
Also there’s always the big question about the price.
It is but CPU wise it’s better, which means you should be able to get higher FPS if you are willing to lower your graphical settings.
ANd then there’s the upscaling thing, if it manages to get some PSSR like or FSR4 upscaling method, it’ll have fairly better image quality while maintaining higher FPS, i saw the Pragmata Switch 2 vs XSS and PS5 and it’s amazing what a good upscaler does nowadays.
Pure power, Steam Machine is weaker but the CPU and the RAM are newer iterations and thus superior to what’s in the PS5 Pro but the GPU is weaker due to the compute units even though it’s RDNA 3.
I’m expecting the visuals to be weaker (say 1080p or perhaps 1440p) but provide better frame rates (60fprs and perhaps even 120fps depending on the game). I’m not a graphics guy so it’s going to come down to the performance. If I can get a locked 60FPS at 1440p natively with HDR, I will easily be happy because there’s games on Steam that I want to play. Of course, the price will play a huge part in my decision and when it releases. If it somehow gets delayed to 2027, then I would most likely just wait for Xbox Helix.
Seems like doing too many interviews with certain bad actors kinda suggests it will be less likely we see many interviews like the one Phil had in the past. Honestly, I think it might be for the best, mostly cause the current look at certain places clearly are too caught up in the Sony pocket to be worth it. Maybe this could be a lesson to stop being Sony fanboys and focus more on having legit integrity in the gaming landscape.
Already has been 60 days, huh. So far, I liking the shift and I’m not referring to likely pre-planned moves like Xbox Presents or more of these shows. If anything, just be glad they remained there, so not like she will be evil to remove them. So credit where it is due.
Ugh, don’t like what Windows Central has been doing with those polls recently. Every option is a leading answer. It’s all just “This thing sucks. How much do you agree??” This one is just to what level I respect Sharma for killing the mobile store . The article isn’t even written like that. It’s somewhat neutral and suggests the mobile store isn’t fully dead. I guess Jez is in his, “Rage baiter”phase. Gotta pay bills.
I liked the idea of Xbox doing their own mobile store because we desperately need competition in the mobile space and I’d love to have all my games across PC, Console, mobile, and cloud on one account. With the expansion of mobile hardware it also feels necessary. Yes, Apple showing off Resident Evil and AC on their iPhone was just a flex. But it was also a really revealing flex that shows how powerful the hardware in smartphones is becoming, and smartphones have already taken over the world. There’s still a very real chance that traditional computers are pushed into a minority space or even phased due to smartphones. Those have successfully become integral to our lives in a way PCs and Laptops aren’t. Mobile games continue to be the most lucrative gaming market period and where a LOT of the money is. Some of Microsoft’s biggest games now (like candy crush) are on mobile, but they can’t exist without playing fiddle with Apple and Google and giving them their cut. Not having their own mobile platform has stunted even their cloud gaming plans and their Xbox app.
The problem is ultimately how locked down Apple and Google have made their mobile operating systems. And it absolutely sucks. Google has been forced to open up android a bit, but iOS (especially in the States; not as much in the UK) is still impenetrable. I don’t think Xbox wants to pursue a half-assed launch. Though I do think Xbox should. There is benefit to getting on this stuff at the ground floor and working their way up as they gain more wiggle room. Like what Epic is doing. Start with sideloading it in the EU and with having it available on Android. Make it some beta. Build it up and then when iOS and Android are equally open fully launch it. The mindshare from doing this early on will help. It will also be great for finding dev support and improving the storefront/launcher.
I do hope we see it in the future. I love the dream of Xbox Everywhere. If they could manage to get games like Dead Cells, Hades, Slay the Spire, and etc (possibly a lot more with where smartphone hardware is headed) Xbox Play Anywhere on mobile with achievement and cross progression support even on a native mobile download then I’d be in heaven. Maybe after Helix launches and they have the resources to spare to work on it again.
I hate doing this because I’m not an insider or anything like that. I still have some contacts left at Microsoft. I asked about this lady that is now the boss at Xbox. I was told she is very tough and has the eye of the tiger. That doesn’t mean everything will be great, but she doesn’t back down. I was told that all the gaming bros that is dogging on her on social media wouldn’t last a minute with her if they meet her in person. She would crush those so-called tough guys…
. The article isn’t even written like that. It’s somewhat neutral and suggests the mobile store isn’t fully dead. I guess Jez is in his, “Rage baiter”phase. Gotta pay bills.
