I doubt it , the broken up companies will be under DOJ scrutiny like what happened to MA bell back in the day. Of course I believe we shouldn't allow foreign companies to purchase american ones but hey we now have a Chinese bought President entering office so I guess the American people don't care
Sony PS6, Microsoft neXt Series - 10th gen console speculation [2020]
- Thread starter Megadrive1988
- Start date
I doubt it , the broken up companies will be under DOJ scrutiny like what happened to MA bell back in the day. Of course I believe we shouldn't allow foreign companies to purchase american ones but hey we now have a Chinese bought President entering office so I guess the American people don't care
Flappy Pannus
Veteran
jfc this thread
ChuckeRearmed
Regular
For Teams there is Slack that has been bought by Salesforce recently. Technically MS benefits from not sticking out.
Okay, feels like it's time to do the rest of my PS6 speculation. Since all this ARM stuff's been coming up lately, I made a bit of a change; it might be possible AMD can translate a future Zen architecture to an ARM design. That would probably be a CPU both Sony and Microsoft go with, can see them both making yet even more customizations on the CPU side than they have for PS5/Series X|S.
[PLAYSTATION 6]
[PLAYSTATION 6]
[CPU]
And now with PS6 out of the way, I can get on with my Microsoft 10th-gen predictions....sometime soon hopefully. It's basically all written up but I'm trying to shorten this stuff to make it more brief. Got some really interesting ideas for what Microsoft could try doing 10th-gen.[FEATURES]
[MEMORY]>Two CPU chiplet blocks; technically Zen can be called a chiplet, but what would be going on here is literally more like two CPU dies closely integrated together to function like a single CPU block.
>The two CPU chiplets are the "High Power" and "Low Power" blocks.
>"High Power" block and "Low Power" blocks have the same core and thread counts: 8 cores, 16 threads. However, the "High Power" block has more on-chip cache and some processor feature support not present in the Low Power block .
>"Low Power" block can be clocked a bit higher than the "High Power" block for asynchronous CPU-bound workloads.
>"High Power" and "Low Power" blocks are managed through a shared scheduler.
>The scheduler enforces Heterogeneous Multi-Processing (HMP).
>Dynamic prioritization and organization of workloads with dual-block design means one or the other blocks can be powered down to save on power consumption when not required for work.
>Shared high-speed, low-latency L4$.
>The two CPU chiplets are the "High Power" and "Low Power" blocks.
>"High Power" block and "Low Power" blocks have the same core and thread counts: 8 cores, 16 threads. However, the "High Power" block has more on-chip cache and some processor feature support not present in the Low Power block .
>"Low Power" block can be clocked a bit higher than the "High Power" block for asynchronous CPU-bound workloads.
>"High Power" and "Low Power" blocks are managed through a shared scheduler.
>The scheduler enforces Heterogeneous Multi-Processing (HMP).
>Dynamic prioritization and organization of workloads with dual-block design means one or the other blocks can be powered down to save on power consumption when not required for work.
>Shared high-speed, low-latency L4$.
>ARCHITECTURE: ZEN_ARM Nth-Generation
>1x 8C/16T "High-Power CPU" block, 4.2 GHz
>1x 8C/16T "Low-Power CPU" block, 5 GHz
[CACHES]
>1x 8C/16T "Low-Power CPU" block, 5 GHz
[CACHES]
>L1$: 128 KB (per core, HP block), 64 Kb (per core, LP block) 1.536 MB (total)
>L2$: 512 KB (per core, HP block),256 KB (per core, LP block), 6.144 MB (total)
>L3$: 8 MB (HP block), 8 MB (LP block), 16 MB (total)
>L4$: 8 MB (shared)
>L2$: 512 KB (per core, HP block),256 KB (per core, LP block), 6.144 MB (total)
>L3$: 8 MB (HP block), 8 MB (LP block), 16 MB (total)
>L4$: 8 MB (shared)
>>TOTAL: 31.68 MB
>GDDR-based (GDDR7).
>2nd or 3rd generation GDDR7 with higher bandwidths (36 Gbps).
>144 GB/s module bandwidths.
>4 GB module densities.
>256-bit memory bus (8 modules).
>1.152 TB/s system memory bandwidth.
>Additional 2 GB of LPDDR5 present for OS-related tasks and SSD I/O related temp caching, 51.2 GB/s bandwidth.
[STORAGE]>2nd or 3rd generation GDDR7 with higher bandwidths (36 Gbps).
>144 GB/s module bandwidths.
>4 GB module densities.
>256-bit memory bus (8 modules).
>1.152 TB/s system memory bandwidth.
>Additional 2 GB of LPDDR5 present for OS-related tasks and SSD I/O related temp caching, 51.2 GB/s bandwidth.
>NAND-based. NAND technology will continue to improve on latency and bandwidth, and reduce in price per GB. Persistent memory will not become a suitable alternative for storage options but can likely see use as off-chip cache in smaller MB or low GB capacities.
>More standardized NVMe-based internal drive that should allow for much easier expandability and replaceability; in turn system OS files are stored on separate block of NAND embedded on the system board, intended for OS file changes and updates/backup states, security files etc. Saves on required space of storage drive for formatting and hosting reserve space for OS features.
>PCIe 5.0 interconnect; some features from PCIe 6.0, such as FEC (forward error correction) support, will be enforced through custom implementation at hardware level by Sony.
>8x PCIe 5.0 lanes, for up to 32 GB/s raw bandwidths.
>16x 1-channel, 256 GB NAND modules, for 4 TB storage and 16-channel interface.
>Internal FMC (Flash Memory Controller) for the storage, paired with internal FMC in the PS6 for data comms.
>Enforced implementation of CCX cache coherence with dedicated hardware to handle overhead, on both FMCs.
>Advanced decompression system as evolution of PS5s, with improved maximized compression ratio of 5.5:1.
>Compressed bandwidth of 176 GB/s (8x increase over PS5's 22 GB/s peak, and same bandwidth as PS4's GDDR5 memory).
>PS5 internal flash memory controller can support.
>Unlike PS5, internal SSD and any expansion SSD share the same slot; transfer of data from internal default SSD to an expansion external SSD will require an intermediary external SSD or HDD to act as a middleman.
[AUDIO]>More standardized NVMe-based internal drive that should allow for much easier expandability and replaceability; in turn system OS files are stored on separate block of NAND embedded on the system board, intended for OS file changes and updates/backup states, security files etc. Saves on required space of storage drive for formatting and hosting reserve space for OS features.
>PCIe 5.0 interconnect; some features from PCIe 6.0, such as FEC (forward error correction) support, will be enforced through custom implementation at hardware level by Sony.
>8x PCIe 5.0 lanes, for up to 32 GB/s raw bandwidths.
>16x 1-channel, 256 GB NAND modules, for 4 TB storage and 16-channel interface.
>Internal FMC (Flash Memory Controller) for the storage, paired with internal FMC in the PS6 for data comms.
>Enforced implementation of CCX cache coherence with dedicated hardware to handle overhead, on both FMCs.
>Advanced decompression system as evolution of PS5s, with improved maximized compression ratio of 5.5:1.
>Compressed bandwidth of 176 GB/s (8x increase over PS5's 22 GB/s peak, and same bandwidth as PS4's GDDR5 memory).
>PS5 internal flash memory controller can support.
>Unlike PS5, internal SSD and any expansion SSD share the same slot; transfer of data from internal default SSD to an expansion external SSD will require an intermediary external SSD or HDD to act as a middleman.
>Tempest Engine Audio Next (TEAN).
>Repurposed dual CU unit from PS6 GPU.
>Clock rate set lower than GPU, at around 1.849 GHz (55% of base GPU clock rate).
>~946.8 GFLOPs of theoretical performance capability.
>Expanded programmability options compared to PS5's Tempest Engine.
>Complementary general-purpose DSP for additional lower-performance audio tasks present, integrated into TEAN.
[PLAYSTATION LITE AND PLAYSTATION FOLD 2]>Repurposed dual CU unit from PS6 GPU.
>Clock rate set lower than GPU, at around 1.849 GHz (55% of base GPU clock rate).
>~946.8 GFLOPs of theoretical performance capability.
>Expanded programmability options compared to PS5's Tempest Engine.
>Complementary general-purpose DSP for additional lower-performance audio tasks present, integrated into TEAN.
>Mid-tier and entry next-generation PlayStation products to compliment PS6 (high-end).
>PlayStation Lite is a refresh/replacement for the PS5 Enhanced and PS5; PlayStation Fold 2 is a replacement for the PS4 Pro and PS4.
>Both PS Lite and PS Fold allow fluid streaming of PS6 games; PS Fold 2 allows fluid streaming of PS5 & PS5 Enhanced games.
>Small console form-factor for PS Lite; portable form-factor for PS Fold 2.
>Both systems leverage the "Low Power" CPU block from the PS6, and one of the two GPU chiplets.
>"Low Power" CPU block in both is clocked lower to match CPU clocks of systems they replace (but can likely provide slightly more).
>GPU chiplets, similarly, are clocked lower to match the GPU clocks of systems they replace (but can likely provide slightly more).
>PS Lite features 8x 2 GB GDDR7 modules at rates of 24 Gbps (96 GB/s), for 16 GB @ 768 GB/s.
>PS Fold 2 features 8x 1 GB GDDR7 modules at rates of 20 Gbps (80 GB/s), for 8 GB @ 640 GB/s.
>PS Lite features 2 TB of storage, as 2x PCIe 5.0 lanes, for 8 GB/s raw bandwidth. 4x 2-channel 2 GB/s NAND modules. Same hardware setup for FMCs/decompression as PS6, 5.5:1 compression ratio, CCX-enforced cache coherence & FEC support. Compressed bandwidth: 44 GB/s.
>PS Fold 2 features 1 TB of storage, as 1x PCIe 5.0 lane, for 4 GB/s raw bandwidth. 2x 2-channel 2 GB/s NAND modules. Same hardware setup for FMCs/decompression as PS6, 5.5:1 compression ratio, CCX-enforced cache coherence & FEC support. Compressed bandwidth: 22 GB/s.
>Higher-quality OLED screen design for PS Fold 2 with slightly larger size (8" vs. 7").
>Non-simultaneous (within 6-12 months) release with PS6.
[BUSINESS STRATEGY]>PlayStation Lite is a refresh/replacement for the PS5 Enhanced and PS5; PlayStation Fold 2 is a replacement for the PS4 Pro and PS4.
>Both PS Lite and PS Fold allow fluid streaming of PS6 games; PS Fold 2 allows fluid streaming of PS5 & PS5 Enhanced games.
>Small console form-factor for PS Lite; portable form-factor for PS Fold 2.
>Both systems leverage the "Low Power" CPU block from the PS6, and one of the two GPU chiplets.
>"Low Power" CPU block in both is clocked lower to match CPU clocks of systems they replace (but can likely provide slightly more).
>GPU chiplets, similarly, are clocked lower to match the GPU clocks of systems they replace (but can likely provide slightly more).
>PS Lite features 8x 2 GB GDDR7 modules at rates of 24 Gbps (96 GB/s), for 16 GB @ 768 GB/s.
>PS Fold 2 features 8x 1 GB GDDR7 modules at rates of 20 Gbps (80 GB/s), for 8 GB @ 640 GB/s.
>PS Lite features 2 TB of storage, as 2x PCIe 5.0 lanes, for 8 GB/s raw bandwidth. 4x 2-channel 2 GB/s NAND modules. Same hardware setup for FMCs/decompression as PS6, 5.5:1 compression ratio, CCX-enforced cache coherence & FEC support. Compressed bandwidth: 44 GB/s.
>PS Fold 2 features 1 TB of storage, as 1x PCIe 5.0 lane, for 4 GB/s raw bandwidth. 2x 2-channel 2 GB/s NAND modules. Same hardware setup for FMCs/decompression as PS6, 5.5:1 compression ratio, CCX-enforced cache coherence & FEC support. Compressed bandwidth: 22 GB/s.
>Higher-quality OLED screen design for PS Fold 2 with slightly larger size (8" vs. 7").
>Non-simultaneous (within 6-12 months) release with PS6.
>Large expansion of game streaming paired with media content streaming.
>Singular integration of PlayStation, Sony film/television/music/anime content in all-encompassing PlayStation Entertainment streaming platform.
>Same-day VOD streaming of Sony Pictures films with theatrical releases.
>PlayStation Entertainment will NOT have day-and-date for all 1P PlayStation titles. However, GaaS-focused online multiplayer 1P PlayStation titles WILL be day-and-date with the service.
>Enhanced interactive integration of media content with 1P and select 3P PlayStation games content for users on PS6, PS Lite and PS Fold 2, leveraging built-in hardware of those devices. Think things like seamless streaming of Sony-owned media (music, films, anime etc.) content in the open world of a 10th-gen Spider-Man or PS6 version of 10th-gen GTA7. Bringing back and extending some of the potential of PS Home (PS3) but much more robust than that managed to go, and tailored more to specific games.
>Subscription tiers for PlayStation Entertainment depending on what type of content packages users want.
>Robust cross-media possibilities for non-gaming content that can leverage PS hardware. For example, a theatrical film with a VR mode for users watching on PS6 with a PSVR-compatible headset, and interactive segments within the film that can leverage next-gen Dualsense inputs.
[PRICE]>Singular integration of PlayStation, Sony film/television/music/anime content in all-encompassing PlayStation Entertainment streaming platform.
>Same-day VOD streaming of Sony Pictures films with theatrical releases.
>PlayStation Entertainment will NOT have day-and-date for all 1P PlayStation titles. However, GaaS-focused online multiplayer 1P PlayStation titles WILL be day-and-date with the service.
>Enhanced interactive integration of media content with 1P and select 3P PlayStation games content for users on PS6, PS Lite and PS Fold 2, leveraging built-in hardware of those devices. Think things like seamless streaming of Sony-owned media (music, films, anime etc.) content in the open world of a 10th-gen Spider-Man or PS6 version of 10th-gen GTA7. Bringing back and extending some of the potential of PS Home (PS3) but much more robust than that managed to go, and tailored more to specific games.
>Subscription tiers for PlayStation Entertainment depending on what type of content packages users want.
>Robust cross-media possibilities for non-gaming content that can leverage PS hardware. For example, a theatrical film with a VR mode for users watching on PS6 with a PSVR-compatible headset, and interactive segments within the film that can leverage next-gen Dualsense inputs.
>PS6: $499.99
>PS Lite: $349.99
>PS Fold 2: $249.99
>PS Lite: $349.99
>PS Fold 2: $249.99
ChuckeRearmed
Regular
The future Xbox will be a TV stick 
I wonder if people predicted PS5 and XSX when Xbox One / PS4 were just released. Or if people predicted Xbox One/PS4 when Xbox360/PS3.
After all neither TV, nor music they won't be able to lock from other media services, but they might get some benefits by providing them as some Sony+ service.
I wonder if people predicted PS5 and XSX when Xbox One / PS4 were just released. Or if people predicted Xbox One/PS4 when Xbox360/PS3.
This is probably an interesting topic considering that Sony has a huge media branch (but not ecosystem). I wonder if they will be able to implement such platform. It has a huge potential, but requires immense investment that Sony probably won't be able to afford.
After all neither TV, nor music they won't be able to lock from other media services, but they might get some benefits by providing them as some Sony+ service.
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The future Xbox will be a TV stick
I wonder if people predicted PS5 and XSX when Xbox One / PS4 were just released. Or if people predicted Xbox One/PS4 when Xbox360/PS3.
This is probably an interesting topic considering that Sony has a huge media branch (but not ecosystem). I wonder if they will be able to implement such platform. It has a huge potential, but requires immense investment that Sony probably won't be able to afford.
After all neither TV, nor music they won't be able to lock from other media services, but they might get some benefits by providing them as some Sony+ service.
There will be a stick. I've been telling you guys that for a long time. But don't worry they have plans and are actively designing another high end console and mid range console.
ChuckeRearmed
Regular
I personally don't care if there will or won't be a consoles because I am switching purely to cloud streaming in the nearest future anyway. Streaming on my phone & laptop will be probably enough for me. Though I will probably buy high end PC just for fun, but I believe in streaming.
Thats intresting. For what kind of release window if you can tell? Ive always felt that the seven year crap is kinda stupid these days. MS could release a new box every year or two. Its the rolling generations type of thing. From low to high end. Basically PC's. Which is great.
ChuckeRearmed
Regular
If they introduce some subscription that would include free updates of console it would be nuts. Though it is probably would be available for US only or something.
Its what i was thinking before, the seven year the same box strategy isnt the future i think so they have to come with something. Scaling does wonders these days so i dont see a problem there either.
ChuckeRearmed
Regular
We might have the similar situation as with mobile phones these days where you can trade them in and get the newer one with additional pay. But in this case if you have the subscription you can do that for free. I would subscribe just for lulz
It will turn console releases into IPhone events basically. MS with the compatibility approach can probably afford similar stuff, and consoles went to backwards compatibility this generation anyway. I do wonder though if consoles switch to ARM in the future, how the compatibility is gonna work. MS is investing in their own custom chip and in general with their compatibility approach they are probably preparing to something like this.
Anecdotally we already have similar stuff on PC market where sometimes people upgrade their PCs every year basically. Out of all devices, only consoles did not do that.
But still it is amazing how forward thinking was Apple with their approach from the very beginning. Custom tailored Apple devices - whether they are laptops, PCs, tablets or phones are released every and can be traded in. And all of them are in the single ecosystem. And soon on the in-house chip.
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Yes Apple is really going forward and nothing can stop them now. Ive never used apple products before the iphone 11. Got an 11 pro max and really like it. It still isnt what i want it to be like androids easier to use file system, and the 120fps screens, and more modern design of some android phones. But in tablets, pc's and wearables there is no match to Apples stuff.
Samsung still has a larger market capture in the mobile area, do you think Apple will take over everything in the end? It seems they will.
Yeah even Brad Sams talked about some TV stick stuff a couple months ago. Phil even mentioned something like it in an interview. I just kinda hope it's USB 4.0.
IIRC weren't iPhone sales starting to stagnate? Apple obviously make a crapton of revenue and profit, but their actual marketshare hasn't really grown in a while. At least they are satisfying their base plenty though (and finding new ways to squeeze money out of them).
Until Apple start prioritizing outside of the high-end I think marketshare-wise (when it comes to how many people they reach), we might be okay for a while yet. They aren't touching Samsung, Google etc. in that capacity.
Streaming definitely has a future but I'm curious which of the three mainstream models (gaming-wise) stick: Microsoft's, Google's or Amazon's. Personally I think Google's is a dead end insofar as how to do it, so it's between Microsoft and Amazon.
The Luna model seems very interesting in terms of treating publisher content like cable channels in terms of subscription packages. It at least sounds quite sustainable if somewhat less consumer-friendly than Microsoft's. But I also can see it being attractive to major 3P releases in a way Microsoft's approach might not be (at least as it currently stands).
The future Xbox will be a TV stick
I wonder if people predicted PS5 and XSX when Xbox One / PS4 were just released. Or if people predicted Xbox One/PS4 when Xbox360/PS3.
This is probably an interesting topic considering that Sony has a huge media branch (but not ecosystem). I wonder if they will be able to implement such platform. It has a huge potential, but requires immense investment that Sony probably won't be able to afford.
After all neither TV, nor music they won't be able to lock from other media services, but they might get some benefits by providing them as some Sony+ service.
If they do it will turn a lot of heads, because who else can really do that right now? Or in the near future, even? Microsoft doesn't have non-gaming media entertainment like Sony does. Amazon kind of has some, but their in-house gaming content isn't there and they (arguably) don't produce television or movie content at the level of Sony's. There's Apple maybe, but again, they don't have film properties on the level of Spiderman or Venom, Jumanji, Ghostbusters (well, if the new one can be good), etc.
It puts Sony in pretty strong position if they prioritize more of their 1P content to PS Now and find a pricing model that's both appealing and sustainable for them. I would actually suggest Microsoft prioritize some kind of strategic media partnership with Netflix or HBO Max, it's not like Sony hasn't worked with a competitor in the past and then leverage learned things against them, just ask Sega. Or maybe Microsoft and Sony can actually come to a partnership for a game & media streaming platform shared between both of their device ecosystems. That'd be not only massive but probably also shut down all other would-be competitors in Amazon, Google...even Tencent and Apple tbh.
And tbh I'd kinda prefer a future with just MS, Sony and Nintendo for a few reasons, unless Sega decided to come back. Or this new SNK system takes off (it's probably not a major console but I still wanna see what it's about).
ChuckeRearmed
Regular
My personal issues with Luna and Stadia is that I want to have the ability to play the same games outside the service itself. I don't want to buy it twice - albeit cheaper - but I still want to be able to play anywhere. Of course technically with the wide accessibility of the Internet it is not that a big deal, I both Luna and Stadia lack ecosystem that would support non-streaming moments.
In that sense I believe MS will purchase Valve in the future to lock the gaming ecosystem on PC. For now MS accumulates the good will among the gaming community, so in the future such move will even make some people happy (because for example MS can drop 30% share and make it similar to 10% like EGS for Steam). As Valve lacks apps in its store - something that EGS is trying to bring - while Windows Store has apps but lacks gaming core that Steam has, their union can be beneficial for both. Buy the game on Steam, play it on XCloud or Xbox.
Also MS these days is going after MMO and online gaming community - Ark, PSO2, Minecraft and probably some others - are also big, with the MS ecosystem and the ability to play anywhere and crossplay it can also be huge.
Well, Sony Pictures does not produce anything of value either
They have some interesting IPs (though I don't know which, after all they are not Disney) and with enough studios they can probably produce some gaming content too. But they have almost anime monopoly these days (movie output is just not there) and they are one of the biggest music publishers in the world (I think?) so if they create Sony+ or something, with the subscription that includes- access to anime streaming service
- access to music streaming service
- access to sony first-party games (with of course third-party deals) and games based on Sony Pictures IPs
Or I believe, there will be a movie streaming partnership with some company. 100%
It would be nice, but in the nearest future it won't happen for sure.
The best 4D chess move Microsoft could make is to partner with Disney+ and convince Disney to let Microsoft revive and fund lucasArt games (I'll just call it lucasgames) with an exclusive star wars license. Then third parties would come to lucasgames to get approval/lore stuff/ story guidance etc. So EA could continue doing the StarWars stuff they are doing. You wouldn't even need for the stuff to be exclusive to Microsoft platforms, let the third party produced stuff go wherever, as long as it turns up on a Microsoft platform. Then the other part of this is that Microsoft would have to buy ubisoft, and start cranking out StarWars games, maybe the assassins creeds of the world only come out half as often, replacing it with star wars content. The star wars universe offers so many possibilities for reusing assets that would make this whole endeavour much more efficient, you only need to make the 'endor pipeline' once, and then you can iterate on a game-specific map by making tweaks to it for that particular experience. All the vehicles would be common, base designs too, the only thing that would be truly new between each game is the actual terrain, and maybe gameplay mechanics.
My personal issues with Luna and Stadia is that I want to have the ability to play the same games outside the service itself. I don't want to buy it twice - albeit cheaper - but I still want to be able to play anywhere. Of course technically with the wide accessibility of the Internet it is not that a big deal, I both Luna and Stadia lack ecosystem that would support non-streaming moments.
In that sense I believe MS will purchase Valve in the future to lock the gaming ecosystem on PC. For now MS accumulates the good will among the gaming community, so in the future such move will even make some people happy (because for example MS can drop 30% share and make it similar to 10% like EGS for Steam). As Valve lacks apps in its store - something that EGS is trying to bring - while Windows Store has apps but lacks gaming core that Steam has, their union can be beneficial for both. Buy the game on Steam, play it on XCloud or Xbox.
Also MS these days is going after MMO and online gaming community - Ark, PSO2, Minecraft and probably some others - are also big, with the MS ecosystem and the ability to play anywhere and crossplay it can also be huge.
Well, Sony Pictures does not produce anything of value either
then it can be huge. But it is not only a sizeable investment and it can also become a huge money drain.
- access to anime streaming service
- access to music streaming service
- access to sony first-party games (with of course third-party deals) and games based on Sony Pictures IPs
Or I believe, there will be a movie streaming partnership with some company. 100%
It would be nice, but in the nearest future it won't happen for sure.
Agreed; a bit miffed right now as I had a lot more typed and came back and the page refreshed but the draft was gone. I'll just say that there's an opportunity for Sony and Microsoft to team up on a joint streaming platform, sort out royalty backends, maybe get Nintendo onboard and that basically is endgame while also making things next to impossible for Amazon, Tencent, Google and Apple. They simply don't have the mixture of games & media cache, or game industry connections/relationships, experience etc.
KOTOR III would be massive for Microsoft but yep, they'd need to partner with Disney in some way.
I don't think MS actually need Ubisoft in this, though. They have more than enough 1P dev teams as of this time, I'm sure some of them like Bethesda and/or Obsidian would love to do a Star Wars WRPG epic.
I know this is entirely hearsay but there was a guy on resetera that said that xcloud is, in reality, a white label service that Microsoft has been talking to publishers about for a while, apparently starting in early 2018, they said, and I want to stress this is hearsay that they got strong interest from the Japanese publishers to use xlcoud as a white label service. So for instance capcom would have a streaming app on the switch that was powered by xcloud. They claimed that Microsoft was going to install a similar number of xcloud server blades in japan as they were in the entirety of europe to fulfil the number of customers that they anticipate they will be serving through this white label service. They also said that xcloud wasn't limited to just xbox server blades, and that there were going to be other hardware configurations available. (maybe PlayStation server blades? but they did explicitly say it was like speccing a VM)
One thing that kinda barely hints that this might be the case is that Sarah Bond did an interview with a youtube channel and she said that she oversees several teams that work to support developers with tools and information among other things, and she specifically mentioned that she has a team in Japan to support the region. With the number of Japanese devs that support xbox I would be surprised if they need a full support team specifically in Japan, maybe they are getting other publishers up to speed on xbox development so they can use xcloud blades?
I think the Nintendo partnership is already ongoing, the company that provides those streaming versions of console games to switch users, with things like assassins creed and control already uses Azure. Plus Nintendo and Microsoft seem buddy buddy, I know Phil said that he doesn't see putting some games on switch as sustainable going forward but I think he didn't really mean that, and was just using that statement as a proxy for making a clear statement on Bethesda exclusivity as right now he can't say anything definitive until the deal goes through, especially as when he did the interview where he talked about the switch it was after some comments where made by some exec that a lot of people interpreted as saying that the games won't be exclusive.
Sony and Microsoft are collaborating on game streaming and improving content creation together, (link below) I think that there is likely an understanding between the big three that right now the game industry is a known quantity, and if they don't start collaborating on things amazon, google, apple, etc are more than happy to upturn the apple cart so to speak, this is especially a concern for Microsoft and sony IMO, as Nintendo is in a league of its own, they could legitimately get away with no third party support if they absolutely had to, Microsoft and sony couldn't. Interestingly the collaboration between Microsoft and sony also says that they will investigate building "better development platforms for the content creator community", so I wonder if they might develop a shared game engine or something? Thinking about it, it could be talking about PlayStation running directX, now wouldn't that be a coo!
https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/...-for-gaming-experiences-and-content-streaming
Yes I agree it would be monumental!
The reason that they would need more devs than they currently have is because if you put obsidian and a few other studios on star wars stuff you limit what your putting out, a ton of people love star wars, but there are also a ton of people who would prefer whatever the studios would be putting out instead of that. The reason I mentioned ubisoft specifically is that they are experts in building detailed rich worlds on a short time frame, if Microsoft got the star wars license they are going to want to capitalise on that to a large degree, I wouldn't put the entirety of the assassins creed team on one star wars game, the idea would be to have a Mandalorian game, a Jedi game, a horror game set in the star wars universe (maybe you play as a storm trooper as luke skywalker searches the ship for you, picking your comrades off one by one - would be a fun thing to explore), an rpg, hell a podracing game. If you look at what EA has put out with the star wars license they have underexploited it to a large degree, the best strategy would be to cast the net far and wide with a ton of smaller games in the star wars universe, whichever get the most attention gets a bigger sequel, for that you need a ton of devs. Thankfully ubisoft has nearly twenty thousand of them.
Do you have any actual data on what Apple and Spotify pays right holders?
ChuckeRearmed
Regular
I can partially believe in that - while Amazon was able to position itself like the best service for video streaming - it seems MS is trying to make Azure into the best service for game streaming and games in general. MMO (like PSO2) games running Azure, various online games like PUGB coming to Azure, Ark, Minecraft - all are running using Azure. Not to mention GameStack.
It certainly helps that MS have huge online experience in gaming - after all they have been running Xbox Live for ages.
That Stormtrooper idea sounds great; one of the more frustrating parts of the Disney trilogy is that they had great potential in Finn's character, but ruined that in TLJ, and he just got annoying (IMO) in RoS. That and, as an ex-Stormtrooper they definitely could've explored the ways of the Empire and how they indoctrinate people into becoming Stormtroopers (or force them or whatever). Instead they just continue to blast away at every Stormtrooper that comes their way with no second thoughts, so why make the exception for Finn? Yeah they kind of remedy that in RoS but it felt like a rushed fix and didn't build on that concept the way a proper trilogy should've.
So having a game actually build on that concept instead (thought maybe replacing Luke with a different character; I don't know if they want to imply further things with his character that the Disney trilogy already did and upset some diehards even further, or at very most have Luke there enabling such a hunt but clearly having some change of heart throughout the game) could do it justice where the movies failed to. And I can see why you suggest them getting other studios in that context; if they want to make Gamepass sustainable as an attractive subscription service they need a constant flow of big content. So they can do that with for example, having a ton of 1P devs on natural rotation for game output. I'm just worried about the costs for purchasing them AND keeping that talent on the payroll, to stave off downsizing which could affect workplace culture negatively.
It's a reason I suggested that MS could consider also leveraging media content to pair with the gaming content; diversifying the streaming platform with not just a regular flow of major gaming releases, but big films (in this case, possibly day-and-date releases of Star Wars television and film content, but this'd require basically merging Gamepass with Disney+ in some kind of way), television series, etc. That makes it a well-rounded streaming platform in general and can guarantee similar (if not greater) retention of subscribers as having a massive stable of rotating big game content, likely at a lower cost for production to boot.
Plus there's the cross-media angle too; if I can play a digital version of Katie Sackoff, Gina Cirano or Rosario Dawson in a Star Wars game then I'd be set
The Xcloud stuff is interesting because this is my first time hearing about it in context as a white label service. My scope on Xcloud might be too limited, as I've just been seeing it as a complementary to Gamepass. But pushing it as a cloud streaming service/package to provide as, essentially, software & hardware-based middleware to other studios and companies who can run their own services on top of it, that's a much more appealing way to leverage the tech. Now that they have iD's Orion streaming tech as well, which I've heard is really top-class (have heard it's better than MS/Google/Nvidia's streaming tech in fact), they can work that into Xcloud and that sweetens the pot for its value proposition to other companies.
Banjo, meanwhile, apparently there's a new one in the works. You don't put that character in Smash without a reason or hint, similar to Master Chief and Kratos in Fortnite because they both have new games coming next year. I can actually see the next Banjo game going on Xbox, PC, and Switch, but I'm interested in how the Switch version would be handled. Phil definitely made some statements on future Xbox games to Nintendo platforms. I honestly do think they might scale back on native ports to the system but...what about Xcloud? You say that some companies already leverage it and Azure for Switch ports of certain games, so that kind of partnership is already happening. It might not be too far-fetched if Microsoft and Nintendo come to some agreement for Xcloud on Switch by end of 2021 to be perfectly honest, and that's be massive. That would basically allow Nintendo gamers to access Gamepass content via Xcloud but as you already know, Xcloud is bundled with Gamepass so...could that also mean Gamepass comes to Nintendo platforms in the near future?
If it does, it might probably only be for Microsoft 1P content, but that'd be massive. For a while I've always asked what does Microsoft get out of that if they don't get Nintendo games on Xbox platforms but nowadays, I'm starting to see that they actually get a great deal aside from that. A corporate partner, revenue and profits from providing Xcloud and Azure as services to partners, spread of Xcloud and Gamepass to other platforms. Sony already kind of provides a lot of 1P on PC between the smaller number of native ports (Horizon, Bloodborne in the near future, Detroit etc.) and large number of games to stream via PS Now. If this can all open a way for PC to get support for streaming of Nintendo games via Gamepass, that'd probably break the internet for a week.
