shikamaru317 said:
That is just not accurate. PC is not a competitor platform to Xbox, Microsoft has a vested interest in growing their PC gaming ecosystem and getting people onto PC Gamepass and Windows Store. Nintendo and Playstation are competitor platforms, so an Xbox game releasing on Switch or Playstation absolutely devalues Xbox hardware more than an Xbox game releasing on PC does. Look at it this way, what do Xbox fans gain from HiFi Rush going to Switch and/or Playstation? Nothing, the only people who stand to benefit are Switch and PS5 owners and Microsoft themselves, the mega corporation who cares nothing about you as an Xbox owner and only wants your money. They didn't use HiFi Rush as a bargaining chip to get a Switch or PS exclusive to come to Xbox; Xbox fans are still waiting for Sony and Nintendo hats like Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3, Shin Megami Tensei V, Kena: Bridge of Spirits, and FF7 Remake. Xbox fans know that the less Xbox hardware sales, the easier it will be for Nintendo and Sony to hat more games away from Xbox owners in the future, and we know that Xbox losing exclusives like HiFi will only further hurt recent abysmal Xbox hardware sales numbers (Xbox Series sales in 2023 appear to be down over 2022 sales, and Xbox One has now pulled into the lead over Xbox Series in the launch aligned charts, not good for a platform to be in decline only 3 years into a generation). There is simply no benefit to this move for us, the loyal Xbox hardware owners. |
I think it's hard to argue that PC doesn't have some "negative" effect on Xbox console sales and Steam is a competitor to Windows Store, now you could even argue that Steam Deck is a competitor to Xbox console in the same way that Switch is, the only difference is Steamdeck doesn't dock to a TV but is that really a big enough difference to say that Switch is a competitor to Xbox but Steamdeck isn't? How many people exclusively use their Switch in handheld mode? If it's a large number than I would say Steamdeck is also a competitor to Xbox. Only difference is Switch shits over it in sales but sales doesn't judge how much of a competitor something is, Lol.
Since we don't have a clue why this is being ported, all we have is a leaker not giving us all the information, I think it's fair to ask these hypotheticals because at the end of the day we don't have a clue why it's being done but I could see two possibilities as to why and wonder if you'd change your mind on them.
1. If this is being done to guarantee a sequel to Hi-Fi Rush as the financial performance for it on Xbox/PC wasn't good enough, would you then be in favour of it? The chance to keep an IP alive over keeping a title exclusive to Xbox but ultimately killing the IP. Think about all the Xbox One IPs that died as a result of Xbox One exclusivity. Is the IP not more important than the hardware?
2. If this is being done because Tango wants it, because Tango wants a Japanese audience to experience their game which they won't get with Xbox, what do you say to Tango? How do you convince them otherwise? If this leads to a risk in Tango employees leaving, then would you change your mind in allowing it?
It's pretty obvious why they did it for As Dusk Falls. That game bombed everywhere but Int/Nights is a talented studio and it's a good game, it's just unfortunately extremely niche so I don't think losing it has any affect on Xbox and instead is a kindness to give an IP another chance of life and ensures Xbox maintains a strong relationship with a talented developer. Likely the same thinking with Ori too (since Moon asked for it) but it's a flip of the coin if it benefits you later.
Xbox needs happy developers quite frankly, they can't afford to go pissing people off, they aren't in the same position as Sony, Lol. Even so this has happened to 3 titles over 5 years (Ori, As Dusk Falls, Hi-Fi Rush) - Two very niche titles, two titles which were made by external developers, none of the titles being AAA, none of them having particularly noteworthy sales or and years after their release as an exclusive, none of them were pushing console hardware anymore. It represents a case by case still and not a trend.
Last edited by Ryuu96 - on 06 January 2024