S.T.A.G.E. said:
The reason I am not responding as well to what you're saying (and its not your fault, trust me) is because Microsoft has had various attempts at using their studios to make projects and failed. They have more studios than Sony but Sony is still pumping out more and expanding the landscape for the way we play games by actually endorsing and publishing with indy companies that have vision. XBLA is cool but its a coverup for a lack of retail games and MS knows it. The profit is huge coming from the community Microsoft has built and they've grown complacent with it. As a creative entity they are complacent, but as a business they a bloody brilliant (which scares me for the "sanctity" of gaming in the eyes of gamers). As many games as XBLA has had none are varied in experience of the top games on it can match the experience many have had with Flower, Journey, Dead Nation (which had far more depth an things to do than Deadlight) and I am sure Unfinished Swan will be next in line. Most of the games are multiplat anyway, so I think Microsoft should pay attention to what really matters to gamers. Again, lets hope next gen they fix this issue because new IP's or not they all die and all we're ever left with is Halo, one other game and a racing title. Last gen is was PGR, this time its forza. Fable you have to admit, sales aside, that company was creatively bankrupt and the destruction of the team from within in the failure to turn Fable into the game they bragged about hurts them but the consumers wallets. |
First Underline: So MS tried the Sony approach of blindly pumping out different games, realizing that was a money pit, and now adopts the big name exclusive approach, 3rd party buyouts for multiplat edge, and XBLA becomes the basis for creativity and variety in the 360 library. Sounds good to me.
2nd: Sounds like bad PR. "Expanding the landscape"? lol cmon. Sony has been no better then MS this gen in that regard. If anything they are worse because Move failed to capture any interest from core or casual gamers. MS partners with indie guys with vision, much more so.
3rd: Now I take serious issue with this. XBLA is MS biggest asset next to Halo. Just because 360 fans dont hype up to the heavens their amazing XBLA titles and PS3 fans hype the few great PSN games to the heavens, doesnt excuse this comment. Nevermind two of those games were made by a dev that recently went multiplat. Dead nation isnt even in the 80's on metacritic. Trials Evolution, Mark of The Ninja, Super Meat Boy, Geometry Wars 2.....all 90 meta games. High 80s you got Rez HD, Fez, Shadow Complex, Ikaruga.....I could go on and on and on. Lets not forget Minecraft, sold 4 million and counting, one of the most creative and influential indie games of our generation. Multiplat...yes. Not on PS3.....damn right it isnt. I aint buying the artsy approach your selling me about PSN.
You are well aware MS has opened new studios and continues to sign deals with indie devs for the next big XBLA titles. They also tend to get one big IP every gen. Xbox 1 had Halo, Xbox 360 got Gears, who knows what mega hit they will get this next gen? Either way, MS has done brialliant business and they are in a far better game maker position then they ever were. By comparison, Sony is the one learning the hard way, doing various cutbacks of dead weight developers they own.