The Xbox One blundered onto the next-gen stage last year in somewhat humiliating fashion when compared to its prime competitor, Sony’s PlayStation 4. From the skewed messaging that was simply out of touch with gamer sentiments and a slew of controversial decisions and policies, Microsoft had a tough time last year in what was to be the worst console reveals ever. However, it seems as if the tides are changing and that the Xbox One is finally getting a foothold in the gaming industry and doing what many thought was the impossible, and that’s taking the fight back to Sony. We recently discussed the matter in our recent roundtable below:
Focus on Games
Microsoft committed the most criminal and downright idiotic move last year when revealing the Xbox One games console as anything but a games console. The backlash from the gaming community was tremendous, so much so that Microsoft, quite rightly, dedicated the whole of their E3 show to put these concerns to rest. However, the concern about the Xbox One and its dedication to delivering core games still lingers on, partly because of the lacklustre line-up of exclusives available at the latter part of the Xbox 360 life-cycle. However, it appears that this is all set to change; Microsoft, and in particular Phil Spencer, have been very vocal about the focus on games and have stated that E3 will be all about games, so much so that they are supposedly struggling to fit all the content in the 90 minute presentation. Whilst the skeptics might argue that this is just your standard PR strategy to build up hype, it is important to note that, with the exception of last year#s E3, Microsoft have never gone on record so strongly and confidently with regard to their gaming line-up. We have heard rumours of much-requested classic franchises such as Phantom Dust and Banja Kazooie making a return along with new I.P’s and if Microsoft stay true to their word, gamers should be in for one hell of a treat.
Phil Spencer head of Xbox
Phil Spencer was appointed the head of XBox earlier this week to much fanfare from Xbox fans and the gaming industry in general. One of the biggest issues facing the Xbox One was that of its image and unlike Sony, which has the likes of the very entertaining and down to Earth, Shuehei Yoshida, the Xbox seemed to be lumbered with the faces of corporate figures who seemed to care little about gaming or simply failed to engage with the gaming community. However, Phil Spencer is one of the very few people at Microsoft that gamers can relate to. He appears to understand what gamers really want and what direction gamers want the Xbox One to take. In fact, much of the future confidence in the ‘Xbox brand’ is a direct result of Phil Spencer’s willingness to engage with the gaming community directly and effectively relay the message about the focus on core gamers. In essence, Phil Spencer is the hero Xbox fans deserve and need right now.
Good sales
Be under no doubt, the PlayStation is decisively beating the Xbox One on sales, especially when you consider the fact that it is doing the unthinkable, and beating the Xbox One in its home ground, the United States. However, that does not mean that the Xbox One is so far behind that it would be impossible for it to catch up. Case in point; the Xbox One outsold the PlayStation 4 in the United Kingdom for 4 weeks straight last month. Whilst this was mainly as a result of the price cut and the competitively priced Xbox One Titanfall Bundle, it was proof that nothing is set in stone and that it is possible for the Xbox One to take the fight to Sony. We suspect that there might an announcement of a price cut in the USA at E3, which will no doubt, lead to a more competitive scrap against the two gaming giants.
Regular updates
Microsoft have clearly been listening and have been committed to improving the Xbox One experience by way of rolling out multiple updates to rectify problems of old and add new features. Software has always been one of Microsoft’s key strengths, more so than Sony’s and it already shows, with more regular updates introducing more material changes to the console with Microsoft announcing that more and more updates will be forthcoming to enhance the gaming experience even more with some big features such as external hard-drive promised to be making its way to the Xbox One very soon. Furthermore, with the announcement of support for Direct X 12 rolling out next year, we might see the Xbox One make up for some of the disparity we have seen in multiplatform titles in terms of their resolution and performance. It may not necessarily match that of the PS4, but it can sure as heck ‘reduce the gap’ between the two consoles
Microsoft are not resting on their laurels when it comes to the Xbox One. They are aggressively fighting back and as I stated at the roundtable, E3 will speak volumes of this commitment to win gamers back. If you have already declared one platform the ‘winner’ you might just want to wait till E3. The fight has only begun and the Xbox One is quickly getting back on its feet to deal a few knock out blows of its own.
http://www.gameondaily.com/the-xbox-one-is-fighting-back/
