With the console market for digital games in apparent stasis, the Finnish studio is considering a change in direction
Square Enix is shifting its strategy to aggressively pursue multiplatform releases and focus on quality over quantity.
Yup, it's official. FFXVI and FFVII Rebirth didn't sell as much as they expected.
Hopefully the next Nintendo system isn't a potato and it can contribute to FF sales in future as well, in addition to PC releases. If this ensures the long term health for SE and franchises than like FF and KH then I'm all for it.
Adding Nintendo and PC customers is the best way to increase sales and long term success. Not going to get that from Xbox.
Hof,
You must not have heard they are launching new hardware and have already committed to a Next-Gen Xbox.
But, for some reason, I think you already knew that and wanted to spin a silly narrative; besides, why wouldn't they release games on the SX/SS? You do know these consoles will still be here, right?
Optics. They have a plan to do so. Thats not commitment. The shareholders and board are calling the shots now. Lets see if they have the appetite for hardware because they are owed 80 Billion Dollars already. Investment in hardware, R and D and marketing is how much again? That cost with the history of their hardware performance....at most maybe a handheld. What I am certain of XBOX is finished, the writing has been on the wall before the studio closures. Its MS Games and they are not hardware. They are software because MS is a software company. Expect them to be folded in the Surface team.
Please tell me the Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake is still coming. I feel like I've been waiting forever for that game.
Another sign that dedicated consoles market is in trouble, while PC seems more and more attractive to big publishers.
Having a good gaming PC and a PS5 myself, given current trend form both Sony and MS I am less and less playing on PS5, waiting for exclusives to release on PC, so I understand the logic behind the new strategy.
Ants,
I get that we don't know exactly without numbers, but come on, man, we can clearly see what's happening.
The console market has not grown much, the highest-selling console in history is still the PS2. You can play the " prove it" game all you want, but Sony's more aggressive PC push, SE completely rebooting their company/business, after being mainly exclusive to one console and showing a sizeable profit loss is telling.
PC is a high seller, and your doubtful PS5 dominant stance does not change the clear writing on the wall, straight from Sony's mouth, that they need to be, and will be more aggressive in the very lucrative PC market.
So, in other words, PC market is indeed looking more and more attractive to Pubs.
Even if Redfall were a good game, the closure of Hi-Fi Rush proves even that doesn't matter in the industry.
Yeah it would have mattered especially since their huge game that year wasn't all that it was cracked up to be remember redfail was almost heavily promoted and hyped not to the level of starfield but still more promoted than the average game.
There was still a decent marketing campaign behind the game I'm sure millions were spent advertising it on websites and I saw a few billboards and bus stop signs in real life
No it wouldn’t matter it wouldn’t bring in enough profit to offset their 100 billion dollar acquisition. It would maybe delay the inevitable by some months.
Pretty much no game in Bethesda stables makes cod numbers instantly even fallout 4 Bethesda's best selling game sold 12 million at launch and over the next 10 years climbed to over 32 which cod would do rapidly
I would f*cking think so. Good games are what draws people to your platform. It’s why I adored the 360 era with Gears of War being one of the highlights for me. You make sh*t games and it just makes your platform that much worse and you start gobbling up studios I like and then killing them off it also makes me hate your platform as well… just sayin’
Unless the game would’ve been War Zone, or Fortnite level. No. Maybe even Hell divers 2 I doubt would’ve been enough.
No it would not have, the ABK deal was great for Microsoft but horrible for Xbox. Over 100 billion dollars in acquisitions. That money has to be made back. That ABK deal essentially destroyed Xbox as we know it.
EA senior staff has been investigated for sexual misconduct involving female coworkers, and these said people have been named publicly.
Aye just call Phil, i mean he somehow made Bobby Kotick's scandal disappear and gave him a few million dollar high five on the way out.
EA about to go down like Activision and then Phil saves the day saying.this is good for the industry and consolidation will help create competition. /s.
What's up with all these horny creeps. You gon be horny, fine. Just not at work take care of that shit before you go in. Rub one out if you have to. Don't be a creep at all. ESPECIALLY at work. But don't be one AT ALL.
You think deviants care where they are? Work sometimes makes it an even better situation for them because they can abuse their power.
"it seems that according to EA, given the events transpired outside of work between two adults, and the fact that once investigation has started that the alleged perpetrators didn’t do it again, the investigation is considered closed. [...] The victim still has to work with the people that harassed her."
Yep, EA is disgusting.
I mean the fact stuff happened outside of work puts EA in quite a difficult position legally. These women don't seem to have reported the matter to the police which kinda ties EA's hands on what they can do. If they don't file reports of the crimes then yeah from EA's perspective it is stuff that happened outside of work. The only exception is the guy that apparently referenced things in the slack channel for work, spending on what he said proving it may be very hard and he may well be able to get away with plausible deniability. I don't like EA and I think these people need to be dismissed but without any legal action being taken, EA can't really do much without risk of being sued themselves for unfair dismissal etc.
Hopefully Nex Machina will prove to be yet another success for Housemarque, and releasing it on PC should gain them more fans.
One of my favorite studios. Hope they stick around for a long while (whatever they end up doing).
The problem for me is visibility, just like steam before it, PS Store is getting flooded with games of wildly differing quality with the result that even if your indie game is great, getting it noticed is getting increasingly difficult. While it would be difficult to sell as consumer or developer friendly, I think Sony should implement some kind of limits on the games being added to the store because, without cultivation, the store is going to be swamped with mediocre games making visibility of the quality titles very difficult.
Housemarque may be in a stronger position than most as it has earned a good reputation and a following amongst gamers, I really enjoy their titles personally so I hope the keep on keeping on.
Good article.
I wish them success.
Wow had no idea there titles were slowing down sales wise on consoles I've already got Resogun and Pre-ordered (digitally) Nex Machina hope whatever plans they have in the future go well for them.