Xbox’s head of gaming says The Elder Scrolls 6’s exclusivity still hasn’t been decided.
24.08.2023 - 10:27 / gamesindustry.biz / Phil Spencer
Xbox's Phil Spencer has once again said that mobile is the key to growing both Microsoft's games business and the industry overall – and that includes bringing AAA titles like Starfield to smart devices.
Speaking to our sister publication Eurogamer at Gamescom, Spencer reiterated that the proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard will be key to Xbox establishing a foothold in mobile, thanks to the publisher's ownership of Candy Crush creator King.
In the full interview, he discussed how growing on mobile is not just about getting into the already dominant free-to-play space, but finding ways to bring more console-like experiences to smart devices which he says is "one of thing mobile players, in my opinion, are missing today."
"They have an abundance of free-to-play games and there's so many mobile games that launch," Spencer said. "But if a mobile device is the only device you can own as a consumer, how are you going to be able to play the amazing games that are on the Gamescom showfloor today? I don't think the device that you own should be a barrier to the games you get to go play.
"I want to make sure - for the health of those retail games - that they are available on the fastest-growing gaming platform, which happens to be the mobile phone. It's really the only one of the three that's growing. Console is relatively flat in terms of number of players, PC is relatively flat in terms of the number of players. Mobile has been really all of the growth in this industry over the last ten years.
"I think we miss something if amazing story-based games like a God of War or Starfield or Spider-Man or whatever aren't available in [those] places."
Spencer said the solution to bringing games such as Starfield and Spider-Man to mobile is streaming, as Microsoft has done with Xbox Cloud Gaming. He also pointed to the partnerships Xbox has with other cloud gaming services such as GeForce Now, Boosteroid and Ubitus.
The important thing, he said, is to "decouple where the game runs from where it's played."
"Is [my phone] where I'm going to play every time? No. The best gameplay experience is going to be on an amazing console plugged into your TV or an amazing gaming PC. But sometimes I'm okay when I'm away from that experience to be able to play on the device I have access to. And I, as a player, should be able to make a decision on where I want to play my games."
He added that dedicated games hardware will remain important, emphasising that Microsoft will continue to produce its own devices.
"We're investing in future hardware," he said. "You're gonna continue to see hardware coming from Xbox. We think that's important, and we love the console experience. We're not running away from that."
He also
Xbox’s head of gaming says The Elder Scrolls 6’s exclusivity still hasn’t been decided.
Of the big three gaming publishers, Microsoft has always had a problem with exclusives. Sony had many 1st-party exclusives they could rely on and numerous 3rd-party ones, too, as this year has shown. As for Nintendo, they make the bulk of their success off of their massive 1st-party library cultivated over the generations of their consoles. The Xbox has 1st-party franchises, but they aren’t all ones you can keep cranking out titles for. However, in 2023, the Xbox Series X finally seems to be turning a corner, and Xbox head Phil Spencer is very happy with what has been done so far.
Despite recent hiccups, Xbox is sticking with its less powerful next-gen model, the Xbox Series S. This is despite the console reportedly getting in the way of Baldur's Gate 3's Xbox launch, with the port now coming much later than the PC and PS5 versions of the game.
Microsoft's head of gaming Phil Spencer has said there are no plans for an Xbox Series X|S mid-gen refresh, confirming the company is still focused on current hardware.
Starfield is easily one of the biggest and most anticipated video game titles launching this year. Fans have been waiting on this game for what felt like an eternity since this title was first unveiled. However, since that initial announcement, we saw Microsoft come in and scoop up ZeniMax Media. This deal allowed the studio’s next upcoming Bethesda RPG to land exclusively for the Xbox Series X/S console and PC. As a result, a lot of marketing is going into this game for the Xbox team. Even the head of Microsoft’s Xbox, Phil Spencer, spoke about how much time he’s spent so far in the game.
Rumours have strongly suggested that Sony is gearing up to launch a PS5 Pro in late 2024, complete with support for 8K resolution, accelerated ray-tracing, and more. But with the current console generation barely having kicked off in terms of developers taking full advantage of the hardware they’re working with, there are some who have questioned the need for a mid-gen refresh. After all, unlike with the PS4 and Xbox One, it’s not like their successors were underpowered by any means when they launched nearly three years ago.
The handheld space has seen massive growth in recent years. Driven primarily by the success of the Nintendo Switch, it has seen other major players enter the space as well, with the likes of the Steam Deck and the Asus ROG Ally providing well-rounded portable PC gaming experiences. Soon, Sony will be throwing its hat in the ring with the Remote Play device PlayStation Portal– so can we expect Microsoft to eventually join the fray as well?
Whether or not the Xbox Series S is going to hold back this generation of consoles has been a topic of conversation for about three years now, and that conversation has only grown louder in recent weeks in the wake of the news that Baldur’s Gate 3 probably won’t be launching for Xbox Series X/S until next year due to Larian Studios facing difficulties with getting splitscreen co-op properly optimized on the weaker machine, with the studio also being unwilling to release the game without the feature.
«I'm gonna wonder: 'How is that helping creators or players?'»
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For Xbox boss Phil Spencer, the Xbox Series S is important to have out in the market. Talking to Eurogamer, Spencer was asked about that specific system and its place in both the console space currently and the game industry at large.
The hit D&D RPG Baldur's Gate 3 is coming to Xbox Series X and S "this year," as Larian Studios boss Swen Vincke has now confirmed.