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goopy20 on 29 February 2020
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sales2099 said:
goopy20 said:

Next gen, their main focus is obviously on building the foundation for what they envision the future of gaming to be like and them becoming the Netflix of gaming with Xcloud and GP. Phil Spencer said that in about 10 years there will be no need for dedicated hardware anymore and we'll all be gaming in the cloud on a ton of different devices.  

It doesn't sound like such a bad idea in theory, but I think there are a ton of things they're just not thinking through when they're comparing it to streaming music and movies. First of all, everybody listens to music and watches movies, but not everybody plays games, at least not the kind of games we see on consoles or pc. Games are interactive and are people really going to carry around their Xbox controller wherever they go? Also, If you get a bad signal while you're in middle of doing a perfect head shot in COD, people would get a lot more frustrated than if a video they're watching stops for a second while it's buffering. Core gaming is also about immersion so will people then really buy the latest AAA game and play it on a phone? The only use for cloud gaming I see is at home where you can stream to a second tv. But do we really need the Cloud for that, when a wireless hdmi dongle would do the same trick?

Last but not least, if cloud gaming actually does replace traditional gaming consoles and pc. How are they then so convinced they will become the Netflix of gaming? Would it really be impossible for behemoth companies like Nintendo and Sony to do the same thing just because they don't have their own cloud servers? I'm sure they will figure it out and in the end it'll still be about the games where we'll have Halo, Gears and Forza on MS's streaming platform vs Mario, Zelda on Nintendo's service and Sony's ip's on another. As things are now, I just don't see MS coming out of that a winner at all.

MS keeps talking like max 200m gamers on consoles is too small a market for them and how they're looking for ways to expand that. But shouldn't they first focus on actually winning over those 200m gamers and get people excited for their next gen exclusives? 

Phil also said steaming will never be as responsive as console gaming and is a convenience. Forgot that quote huh? 

Well you seem to not understand the appeal of Xcloud or how it could be used. Kids can use it in the car for short to long rides. Adults can play in the bedroom when winding down for the day. Or kids when sent to bed and very commonly...are not willing to sleep right away. Waiting in the doctors office...a small backpack is all you need to carry the controller and holder. Obviously if there is a AAA immersive game people can choose to play that at home only. 

MS invested tens of billions for their cloud infrastructure. No way Nintendo will follow and they always do dedicated hardware anyway. Sony literally will be coming to MS as a customer in the next gen...do you not keep up with the news? Even if Sony wins when they follow MS....MS wins even more because they getting paid $$$$$$ by Sony to use their cloud. See MS actually had the foresight to plan for the future where as Sony’s current streaming ambitions can’t keep up with the times. 

MS focusing on consoles too. In case you aren’t aware they been pushing the Series X in PR lately. Lockhart isn’t even officially announced....ya I think they value consoles too. 

“get people excited for their next gen exclusives?” I have never seen a Halo title receive anything less then stellar marketing with maximum penetration to the masses. Especially as a launch title. Especially as Halo and Xbox each represent a fresh start for the Xbox brand and fans. 

He didn't say never. He said in about 10 years there will be no need for dedicated hardware anymore. That's why selling next gen consoles isn't important for MS because they're already looking past next gen. 

The head of Xbox just unveiled a new console, but Phil Spencer isn’t too worried about selling you one. “I don’t need to sell any specific version of the console in order for us to reach our business goals,” he told me in an interview yesterday, the day after Microsoft held its annual E3 keynote.

https://www.theverge.com/2019/6/11/18661247/phil-spencer-interview-xbox-project-scarlett-xcloud-e3-2019

And who cares if Sony pays MS $$$$$$ to use their Cloud? I'm not a MS shareholder, I just like to play games. In the end gaming is entertainment and even if Cloud gaming is the future like we're seeing now with streaming movies/music, content will still be king.