If MS fixes their lack of exclusives they would be in a really nice position

[Jedidiah-Rose]

RolStoppable said:

smroadkill15 said:

I believe you said in previous threads you want MS to leave the console business so it's hard for me to take anything you say seriously. 

Sounds like a request for a brief analysis.

This generation

Microsoft dug themselves a huge hole with their original vision for the Xbox One. Today they are only borderline competitive in their strongest markets, namely the USA and the UK. Xbox One is a non-factor in Japan and treading water in mainland Europe. An increase in the output of exclusive games would be largely to completely irrelevant to their sales performance in Japan and mainland Europe while the best case scenario in the USA and the UK is that they'll get beat by the PS4 by a lower margin than today. That's not a really nice position by any stretch of the imagination.

Next generation

When we are looking at a console that gets as comfortably beaten as the Xbox One, then an increase in the output of exclusive games isn't going to be enough to change the fortunes. Microsoft faces the challenge to convince consumers to switch brands, but consumers tend to stick with the brand they last owned, unless said brand starts to seriously piss them off. That's how Microsoft wasted the advantage the Xbox 360 had in the USA and the UK; had they not messed up so badly with the Xbox One, then Xbox would still be ahead of PlayStation this generation. This means that if Microsoft only offered more exclusive games, they would still need to cross their fingers that Sony seriously messes up with the PS5. A strategy that is reliant on the shortcomings of another company is not a really nice position either, because the most important factor for success is not in Microsoft's hands.

From here we could dive deeper and talk about other big issues the Xbox brand has, but I am not going to make an effort that is still uncertain to be appreciated. An entirely different factor, but a very important one, is if Microsoft still has business motivations to continue in the console market. The end of Xbox-exclusive games and talks about declaring the end of generations - when Microsoft is actually in a position that demands a generational reset to create a new and improved image - do not point towards Xbox 4 being a safe thing to happen.

Wonderfully put, completely agree in fact. I've often questioned the relevance of the Xbox brand on the worldwide stage, and it's easy to undertdsand why Microsoft as a whole would have motivation issues in this industry, they have poured so much money into Xbox and the videogame industry and don't have a great deal to show for it three generations in, when you compare them to what Nintendo and Sony had three generations in for example.