Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and CFO Amy Hood discussed the performance of the Xbox business, including the forecast for the current quarter.
Electronic Arts CEO Andrew Wilson stated in a recent EA Earnings Call, that the next Battlefield "it is going to be another tremendous live service.”
Another? ANOTHER?
Is he honestly trying to make out like the last Battlefield was a huge success, not just as a game but as a live service game? I'm sure these guys live in their own echo chambers, they are so far removed from reality or they just like talking out of their arse trying to rewrite history.
Also why say such a tone deaf statement when you know the state of live service games at the minute and how many gamers feel about them. Bigging up the next BF game as live service does not give me any excitement or hype.
"The sudden closure of several video-game studios at Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox division was the result of a widespread cost-cutting initiative that still isn’t finished.
This week, Xbox began offering voluntary severance agreements to producers, quality assurance testers and other staff at ZeniMax, which it purchased in 2020 for $7.5 billion, according to people familiar with the company’s plans. Others across the Xbox organization have been told that more cuts are on the way.
Speaking about the closures more broadly, Booty said that the company’s studios had been spread too thin — like “peanut butter on bread” — and that leaders across the division had felt understaffed. They decided to close these studios to free up resources elsewhere, he said.
Game Pass has not seen the massive growth that Xbox boss Phil Spencer may have been hoping for."
"Speaking about the closures more broadly, Booty said that the company’s studios had been spread too thin — like “peanut butter on bread” — and that leaders across the division had felt understaffed. They decided to close these studios to free up resources elsewhere, he said"
So what you're saying is...you bought all these studios and you guys can't run them.
Jesus.
Reports are suggesting that Game Pass will be getting a price hike soon and that Call of Duty may not be added to the day one offering. I honestly have a hard time believing this but it does beg the question why exactly did GP fail? I think the answer is that it just didn't get the growth that it anticipated. Jim was right but I wish he wasn't because at the end of the day, its gamers, devs and other front-line workers who have to absorb the blow for Spencer and team's miscalculations.
For all the armchair executives who were calling for Sony to release its big-budget AAA games on PS+, the same exact thing would have happened at PlayStation. Game Pass has killed Xbox. Congrats.
Phil Spencer and Microsoft have come under fire following the closure of multiple Bethesda-owned studios including Tango Gameworks.
wow haha.
i dont think he will resign. or will be kicked off.
if hes still here after everything in the past, this wont affect him unfortunately.
“Never Been More Excited" About Games Lineup“
It’s like a broken record. Put up or shut up.
'as well as mobile, where we now, have over 200 million monthly active users alone, inclusive of Activision Blizzard King'
There's your context. They'll probably start including every playstation\switch player playing an activision game next, if they haven't already in that figure.
Lot of emphasis on cloud streaming, didn't see any call outs on the console business.
However he did reiterate that the games covered earlier this year are slated for Xbox and not PlayStation.
Really curious on whether any of the rumors re: physical games, console future, and exclusives are true - if they are he's not signalling too much at this point.
This is how they'll justify their bonuses, I guess. Maybe it's just me, but this flex after layoffs really rubs me the wrong way.
I get that this is a financial earnings call, but it was less than a week ago we were talking about people losng their jobs. Just comes across as distasteful.
Honestly, I'd like to see some product boycotting, but if 2023's Call of Duty can still be profitable despite all of the issues, I don't have much hope.
There will always be a contingent of fans that, regardless of what happens to the workers, will embrace the products as Game Pass Day One perks. Even so, you always want to hope there's a come to Jesus moment.