MS may not have had any impact on games this generation for Xbox but they walked away with some massive changes to the traditional console landscape.
a) supporting crossplay between console vendors (nintendo and xbox)
b) a netflix style subscription service
c) all exclusives now moving onto PC Windows Store
d) the play anywhere initiative that comes with dual license ownership
e) their exclusive titles now appearing on both Steam and Nintendo
These changes alone to their business model should help direct where they are headed,.
Allow me to place some questions, or make some observations about those points:
a) Cross play!
Microsoft did more than to create Cross Play between Nintendo and Xbox. Microsoft ended up creating a universal Cross Play platform when Sony finally decided to enter the scheme.
This is kind of good!
Why kind? Because I only see this as good if the player has the possibility to allow or disallow certain platforms. For example, certain games have input disadvantages on certain platforms over others, or some platforms have hacks and cheats, like the PC, that may ruin my game. So I only see this as a really good thing if one has the possibilty to preserve the quality of multi player.
But we should ask one thing: Are the credits due to Microsoft?
If we go back in time, we see Sony Crossplaying since the PS2 era. And with PC, Nintendo, and mobile platforms. Microsoft were the ones that were denying Cross Play!
On the 360 era Microsoft denied Cross Play in several games, and even on The Xbox One era, the Cross Play between One and 360 was lacuster, hardly existing.
Microsoft even justified itself by saying that in their experiments, PC players with mouse and keyboard crushed Xbox players with a controller, and that reason was why they were denying Cross Play.
But now... things changed. Microsoft is no longer worried with that, and even invites others that suffer the same problem, ou have it worse, to join.
Isn't this a contradiction? Or does Microsoft expects Nintendo, and mobile users to add a Keyboard and mouse to their devices?
b) Netflix style subscription!
I have serious doubts about these services, and already posted about that.
When Netflix asks for 11.99€ for a HD streaming, how can Microsoft ask for 10 euros?
As I stated before, movies go to cinemas, then when cinema atraction drops, go to phisical and digital sales, and then when sales drop, go to subscription services. All services are in a chain, all obtaining extra profit, and the notion that a new services cuts on the previous one profits is present!
Games have no cinemas part, so they go straight to phisical and digital sales. Subscription services should appear later in life, when sales drop. But that's not the case with gamepass! Games appear on day one and subscriptions canibalize sales.
Is this profitable at 10 euros?
But more... Netflix infrastructure is mainly storage space. They do not need big CPUs, RAM or GPUs. But Microsoft does! Theoretically, with a new generation, Microsoft may have do dedicate up to 10 Tflops,16 GB RAM and a lot of CPU per session to a single user.
And Netflix asks for 11.99 euros, and Microsoft 10? Is this profitable?
Besides Netflix movies are not exactly Blockbusters quality. And mainly they deliver content over time, in series episodes. Is this what MIcrosoft will offer? Episodic content?
There are a lot of questions that remain about the profitability of these services, and if they will be a good thing for gamers, specially when other players enter the market and all start to keep their games on their services as exclusives, forcing people to subscrive several to get all the games they can get now.
c) Exclusives on PC Windows Store.
Debatable if a good thing, at least for them. I own a Xbox One and a PC. And for over some time now I almost stoped playing Microsoft exclusives on the Xbox. Why? Because I can get those games for the PC, get better performance and resolution, and play them online not paying for Live.
The need for a Microsoft console seems to be way inferior with this option available.
d)Play anywhere!
Accepting the games on PC as a good thing for the Xbox, this is a great move. Nothing to say about it!
e)Exclusives on Steam and Nintendo
What exclusives? These are not exclusives... on so many stores these are just Microsoft published games!
Note that in no way I'm pretending to start a consoles war. I could talk badly about sony moves too! That is not my point.
The point is that after those points you state that "These changes alone to their business model should help direct where they are headed...", and I do not see where they are headed. What I see is Microsoft turning everywhere to see what falls on their lap. But, the way I see it, they are far from a clear direction.
And the above moves are mostly questionable if they will end up beeing good for the consumer or the Xbox console.