@wolfpup7: Turns out consoles are hard lol. Gamers are fickle and constantly irritated. Honestly, it feels pretty good to have 3 really viable console platforms on the market now, each of which feels poised to do really well next gen too.
@ZombieVirolina: That's no longer true. Every PS4 and Xbox One and Switch was sold at a profit (maybe not all of the sales, but that's hard to know). BUT, that doesn't mean the profit margin is very good. These companies don't actually care that much about how many consoles are sold when they are looking for profits. They care because these are platforms that can buy their software (plus it helps marketing). That's why even in a down year when "Xbox had no games" (pfft), it still made a TON of money - from Fortnite (and other subscriptions).
This is precisely why Xbox is experimenting with different platforms. Why cling to the box when it has never made you much money? Why not get more people buying your games everywhere? Now, there's no guarantee that game streaming will take off nor that people have any interest in playing console games on a phone (PSP and Vita certainly didn't hit sales expectations despite being capable devices). But, boy.. it's an exciting time for tech nerds.
@ecurl143: Right, they're talking about building a platform - without any experience running a platform. It's not just hardware, or they could just be customizing a PC, slapping a sticker on it, and calling it good.. (Oh wait..). On that note, I'm actually curious if that part of it will trip up Google and Amazon (won't even including Apple on the list of companies serious about gaming). They both have massive platforms, but they are run very differently from how consoles are operated today. Will gamers embrace the Play Store model heavy on free games with microtransactions and little to no discoverability, or will the big new entrants learn moderation, curation, and certification?
"He also says the system "will talk to other Mad Boxes without cables," although he didn't elaborate any further on that." He doesn't need to. It's called the "internet" and it's not a feature. It's a requirement. Eek, this seems WAY too early to be announcing anything. Without any real backers, this doesn't amount to anything more than a couple friends pitching an idea on a napkin in the back of a bar.
Or maybe he's trolling us all, and what he really means to say is "we're customizing our own PC and you can get one from us too in 3 years!". Cuz.. that's what he's saying isn't it?
@berrlett: I said former as in they were hyped PS4 "exclusives" that eventually came to the Xbox/PC when their hidden timed exclusivity deals ran out. Games like Witness, Firewatch, Abzu, etc. that had limited or no physical releases either. (Also.. no one has a problem with timed exclusives unless it's Xbox. For the record, I have a problem with them all. And exclusives in general, though I understand when the platform holder funds dev, like Halo or Horizon).
Anyway, I misunderstood your English. My bad. Your disparate take on things really belies how much attention was given to these games. I can't pretend to understand why certain games are not released worldwide, especially as each of these games were released simultaneously worldwide. I don't know which country you live in, but no, neither game was delayed in general from release in any major region of the world.
It wouldn't even matter if it WERE "delayed" in that way. Are 2/3 of PS4 exclusives (including some of my favorites) hyped up as "desperate measures" because they release first in Japan? Yakuza? You can say you don't like those games. But don't diminish games that people enjoy. Limbo, Inside, and Journey are 3 of the most beloved games and they could easily be reduced as "small" games - "side scrollers" even. But that doesn't fully describe these amazing games.
@berrlett: Really? On revenues of over 10 billion this last fiscal year (not even with the full benefit of Fortnite)? With increasing revenues and profits from very well-received subscription services? People were saying that Xbox should be dropped for years. Instead, MS elevated gaming to senior executive level. Seriously. Think about what you're saying. Thinking about Game Pass and cross play as "last desperate measures" is misunderstanding where MS is going as a whole. I pray that Sony does not get caught unaware. They cannot afford to miss the next boat.
@berrlett: I mean, I don't condone the fanboying in general here.. But.. You're trying to use the fact that a small indie game didn't get a physical release as some sort of proof that it wasn't a good game? The hell? You realize a fair number of (former) well-regarded PS4 exclusives never got a physical release (or just a very limited run). I don't think physical is a good barometer of anything anymore.
@berrlett: A lot. People think Xbox lost and is on the verge of collapse sometimes in these comments. But no, Xbox has done very well, and they've done especially well in clawing back those dev relationships that had been burned in the One launch, and are now being abandoned by Sony in their 1st party push. 1st party exclusives matter a lot for the halo effect (no pun intended), but it seems Microsoft is less concerned now with pushing their one plastic box and much more interested in bringing games everywhere. Honestly.. they can both be right, it just comes down to how they play their cards.
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