@Shifty Geezer its like they are listening.
Where Microsofts Game Studios stand and what do they need to do next?
Haven't the last 2 new Halo games been collabs between 343 and other studios? That's probably what's happening with H:I as well making that 200k some a bit lower.
They had a little help from Certain Affinity with some of the 360 games & was mainly multiplayer. Only XB1 work was on MCC. Halo 5 was all 343. You might be thinking of Ensemble Studios & Creative Assembly that worked on Halo Wars 1 & 2 respectively.
Tommy McClain
Yeah, I was mistaken. I was thinking of Gears 5 but got mixed up with halo/343.
A story on how Microsoft's Xbox Game Pass system has enabled studios to branch out and make games they otherwise would not have made. So this brings a certain amount of additional freedom for them to focus on more than only blockbusters. Do read the entire article and not just the snippets here.
https://venturebeat.com/2020/04/24/gears-tactics-xbox-game-pass/
https://venturebeat.com/2020/04/24/gears-tactics-xbox-game-pass/
And in talking to Decker and Crump, they make it clear that this game exists in part because of Xbox Game Pass. That Netflix-like subscription service provides some creative slack and empowers creators to take chances — especially for first-party Microsoft studios. And instead of only thinking about making games that sell units, The Coalition can build something with the purpose of expanding the reach of the Gears universe. That’s why the game is hitting Game Pass for PC as well as Steam on the same day.
“Players should be able to play our games wherever they are,” said Crump. “And we want to reach them on any of the platforms that we’re on.”
“We have certain expectations, and we will measure against those in terms of unit sales,” said Crump. “But Game Pass just frees us up a little bit from having to be solely reliant on those kinds of metrics for success. … But when we’re deciding whether to make a game or not. It’s nice to have all those different metrics for success and not be tied to just one measure of ‘did you sell a certain number of units at a certain price point or not’ because I think it really allows us to take risks and try things that we wouldn’t otherwise.”
So in a gaming world where the top games are doing better than ever but developers are producing fewer smaller and riskier releases, Game Pass could mitigate against that. Decker says that’s the approach Microsoft is taking. And that’s also because subscribers are asking for a variety of experiences.
“Players should be able to play our games wherever they are,” said Crump. “And we want to reach them on any of the platforms that we’re on.”
“We have certain expectations, and we will measure against those in terms of unit sales,” said Crump. “But Game Pass just frees us up a little bit from having to be solely reliant on those kinds of metrics for success. … But when we’re deciding whether to make a game or not. It’s nice to have all those different metrics for success and not be tied to just one measure of ‘did you sell a certain number of units at a certain price point or not’ because I think it really allows us to take risks and try things that we wouldn’t otherwise.”
So in a gaming world where the top games are doing better than ever but developers are producing fewer smaller and riskier releases, Game Pass could mitigate against that. Decker says that’s the approach Microsoft is taking. And that’s also because subscribers are asking for a variety of experiences.
This god of war making of video was interesting. Super surprising to me to see how difficult it was for santa monica studio to make game(s). Also interesting to see how badly it was going for god of war franchise and how difficult the reboot was for them. I believe some microsoft game series/studios might be in similar position. You can only keep doing that same thing for so long. Change and success can be difficult despite having a lot of resources/past success. But when reboot then works, it works and no better time than when new console generation comes out.
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Exactly. You gotta take a risk to alienate your core base. Apple regularly cannabalizes their own products because if they won’t they know someone else will.
This is part of the game industry that needs to mature. The EA model won’t keep working
cheapchips
Veteran
Chasing established trends is a problem too.
Bleeding Edge.
I can see why you said it, but seems unfair? Certainly got the impression it was a passion protected for the Ninja Theory team involved.
I think one of the problems with passion projects that one's wanted to do for years is by the time you get to do it, it's outdated. Personally, in creating a Star Control type game, the people who enjoyed the slower-paced 1 on 1 tactical combat back then might prefer the various other types of games available now; perhaps it was only much loved back then because there wasn't anything better.
You can't know what the market likes until you test it, I guess. I suppose the important thing for publishers is to both stick with tried, tested content, and explore new content as you never know where the next big hit is going to come from. Sooner or later, will will want something new, but then they'll likely sit on it as a preferred style until the next random, arbitrary change. That's how fashion works.
https://wccftech.com/the-initiative-ue4-weapons-camera-perfect-dark/
According to this rumour Microsoft's new studio, the Initiative, is working on Perfect Dark. What's even more interesting to me is they're using UE4. Seems an odd choice, but I'm wondering if Microsoft is doing this so they can submit some of their console optimizations back into UE4, so 3rd parties and indies can take advantage. For example, UE4 has virtual texturing, but it's a beta feature. If Microsoft wants devs to take advantage of what they're calling sampler feedback streaming, providing a working solution back into UE4 is a really good option. UE4 could make it a standard feature when developing with the XDK. It's something I hadn't really considered, but UE4 is the most widely used game engine. Most of Microsoft's studios are now working with UE4, so they can develop and share amongst themselves, but also provide some things back into UE4 to make sure Xbox is widely optimized.
According to this rumour Microsoft's new studio, the Initiative, is working on Perfect Dark. What's even more interesting to me is they're using UE4. Seems an odd choice, but I'm wondering if Microsoft is doing this so they can submit some of their console optimizations back into UE4, so 3rd parties and indies can take advantage. For example, UE4 has virtual texturing, but it's a beta feature. If Microsoft wants devs to take advantage of what they're calling sampler feedback streaming, providing a working solution back into UE4 is a really good option. UE4 could make it a standard feature when developing with the XDK. It's something I hadn't really considered, but UE4 is the most widely used game engine. Most of Microsoft's studios are now working with UE4, so they can develop and share amongst themselves, but also provide some things back into UE4 to make sure Xbox is widely optimized.
Why?
MS studios have used UE4 for many titles over many years. In fact could argue it's their engine of choice?
Only have 2 internal engines, forza tech, and new slipspace one, which may only be good enough for halo at the moment.
Very potent engine, already now.
