Yeeeaaaah, it's pretty dumb. Sure, skins don't change the gameplay or give you bonuses, but it's still part of the experience. If I started up Dark Souls and found that the character creator's options were hidden behind paywalls or...ugh...randomized in boxes...I'd put that garbage game down instantly. 

I've made a habit of not playing games that require microtransactions. I play a few that have them, but I can avoid them (Red Dead Redemption 2 is a good example)

We have Yakuza 7 that had New Game Plus and something else as paid DLC.

Pretty much this. That with one small addition that he's saying all this in spite of the data trending in the opposite way. that'd be like me brashly and confidently bragging about how much better myspace is doing than facebook...because they recently made some acquisitions and I liked their layout better. Like sure, maybe they'll come back and I'm allowed to like myspace for sure, but to speak such outlandish nonsense without any real proof aside from hope is just...it's bad conversation. It's not conducive to any sort of common area or middle ground. 

He's acting like his chosen brand has already won a war where it's vastly outnumbered and hasn't won a battle in years. It's foolish and frustrating. Everyone's allowed opinions, but there seems to be a distinct unwillingness to accept objective facts and history in lieu of his hopes and dreams for the company. Optimism is fine, but don't bring opinions to a fact fight, or something, you know? 

Xbox right now is in a pretty good spot despite losing to Sony last gen. And again I said we all ready seeing the seeds of it...10 games in 2020 with only one going below 70 on metacritic. 2 games 90 or above. Sure they aren’t all AAA bangers but it’s certainly promising. If you so sure of yourself, then don’t be such a Debbie Downer if you the winner. 

And @Don, if my optimism due to the massive studio acquisitions is mistaken as certainty then so be it. I’m simply excited and can’t wait to show it. By contrast my problem with him is the rude smug superiority complex who almost comically can’t compute how Xbox fans even exist. It’s guys like him that make me who I am here. 

1. A complete experience is to experience something in it's entirety including every part.

2. Changing your multiplayer skin is a part of Gears 5.

3. Therefore in order to get the complete Gears 5 experience you need to have access to all the multiplayer skins.

It's a straightforward deductive argument.

How about you work on trying to refute my last argument having to do with your ridiculous Ellie Edition comparison? I suspect you brought up this new angle of attack, because you know that you can't win that one. ;)

No, accessing every single skin isn’t required for the complete experience. What a nonsensical position to take. You get tons of cosmetics included in Gears 5 and unlock even more. There are extras if you want to unlock them. They aren’t required for the complete experience. If there were characters or abilities or levels locked behind a paywall, ok, you might be missing out on the “complete experience”, but this is nothing but optional extra skins they make. You should have taken a little longer to come up with something better.

Regarding the Ellie Edition argument, I don’t need to refute anything because you’re doing it for me. I understand it’s a weak argument to make, I know that because it’s the same argument you’re making for any game with cosmetic unlocks. So you’re just arguing against your own nonsense :)

1. A complete experience is to experience something in it's entirety including every part.

2. Changing your multiplayer skin is a part of Gears 5.

3. Therefore in order to get the complete Gears 5 experience you need to have access to all the multiplayer skins.

It's a straightforward deductive argument.

How about you work on trying to refute my last argument having to do with your ridiculous Ellie Edition comparison? I suspect you brought up this new angle of attack, because you know that you can't win that one. ;)

Again, literally every one of your arguments boils down to 'there's potential there, so I'm going to go ahead and say they're going to live up to that potential and therefore do very well'. Like I said, Kena has potential, FFXVI has potential, and many other PS5 exclusives or franchises have potential, but until we actually see gameplay and know what we're getting into more with depth and length and details, it's WAY too early to call it and you're eagerly proclaiming quality and improvement with literally nothing more than hope and faith guiding you. Like Don said, your arguments boil down to preemptively determining quality and bragging about it. 

Xbox right now is in a pretty good spot despite losing to Sony last gen. And again I said we all ready seeing the seeds of it...10 games in 2020 with only one going below 70 on metacritic. 2 games 90 or above. Sure they aren’t all AAA bangers but it’s certainly promising. If you so sure of yourself, then don’t be such a Debbie Downer if you the winner. 

And @Don, if my optimism due to the massive studio acquisitions is mistaken as certainty then so be it. I’m simply excited and can’t wait to show it. By contrast my problem with him is the rude smug superiority complex who almost comically can’t compute how Xbox fans even exist. It’s guys like him that make me who I am here.