210°

Microsoft denies "milking" Halo

Eurogamer writes: There used to be breathing space between Halo games (Halo 1 2001, Halo 2 2004, Halo 3 2007), but in recent years Microsoft has been flinging the IP at us: Halo Wars 2009, Halo 3: ODST 2009 and Halo: Reach 2010.

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eurogamer.net
stonecold34719d ago

yep 07 08 09 2010 2011 i agree same with call of duty wwe games need 4 speed asc

Inside_out4719d ago (Edited 4719d ago )

.
Sorry, I want MORE Halo games and not less.

Where's Halo wars??? There is a great big RTS community waiting for the next big game and Halo wars was a great start...where's the sequel. It sold millions and M$ just walked away and closed down the dev...o_O

Why is there no TPS Halo game like Ghost Recon or So-com??? The Halo universe is big enough for a lot of back story. Noble team would of made a great Recon like game.

The haters will hate...who cares what they think. Ignore them and there games...the world does. Just look at how well Halo sells, including the toys. There is a demand for those products and M$ and 343 studios are just being lazy at this point.

E3 2012 will introduce Halo 4 and the " NEW " Microsoft console for Holiday 2012...can't wait.

paintsville4719d ago

They're no more milking Halo than Nintendo is milking Mario or Sony is milking God of War.

user8586214719d ago (Edited 4719d ago )

Ratchet and Clank
Jak and Daxter
Final Fantasy
Dragon Quest
God of War
Mario

first complain about these games being milked brah :)

jaosobno4719d ago

I deny that the wall next to me is white, yet its color remains the same.

Opinions do not change facts.

gamingdroid4719d ago

I don't mind annual releases. I have been buying CoD every year since CoD 4: MW and enjoying every minute of it. I can't wait for CoD: MW3.

Is it milking if I enjoy it and don't mind paying for it?

Why is it that many gamers want less, not more? If you are true fan, you want more... not less!

ginsunuva4719d ago Show
bodybombs4719d ago

except halo has added tons of new features everytime a new game comes out. and usually have different gameplay factors.

telekineticmantis4719d ago

If they atleast announced some new IP's or something.

gamingdroid4719d ago (Edited 4719d ago )

"Then you're a sheep. You're stupid if you don't mind paying for the same, low-quality stuff each year."

Nah, it's just that you are a blind sheep to the idea that "everything has to be some kind innovation" despite the fact that almost no games released in the last decade can be considered new or innovative game play except for the Wii and Kinect!

You and your irk just like to chant the idea of innovation, yet buy the same game mechanic over and over, just with different titles!

damnyouretall4719d ago

halo is still fun for me and thats all that matters. bungie was solid and they polished their games. if halo came out every year then it would lose its charm imo. maybe one day it will lose it, but for now, id still play a new halo.

captain-obvious4719d ago (Edited 4719d ago )

unlike Sony and Nintendo
MS only got ONE console in the market right now
which mean it IS milking

but when you got multiple consoles
you are BOUND to
since you HAVE to pump games into ALL your consoles
so its not really milking when you consider each console on its own

MS is milking halo ONLY on the 360
they got no other choice
its like the only game they got

Jdoki4719d ago

There's a fine line between milking for the sake of making money, and delivering compelling games that expand the source material.

The Halo universe is huge enough that they could easily keep delivering games. And why not... most 360 fans seem to love the series.

For me MS are treading a fine line with Halo and while mostly getting it right, they have occasionally taken the piss out of their fans - ODST for example should never have been a full release.

My only concern about Halo is that it seems like it's MS' fall back solution, like...'Oh noes we've only got Kinect casual stuff for E3, QUICK throw together a Halo 4 trailer, that'll keep the masses happy'.

otherZinc4719d ago

@M$,
Please listen to "Inside_out", he's right!

I want a Halo Wars 2 also!

The Halo Universe is massive & has many stories to tell.

No shooter on a console today can match the features in Halo games.

Bungie made a mistake leaving the Halo Universe, however, I'll buy their new game to give it a chance since they made such great Halo games. SONY fans talked them out of Halo, thats like telling Jordan you cant play Hockey. No, we want Air Jordan playing basketball!

I'm glad there are members from Bungie at 343 to continue the Halo Universe!

pain777pas4719d ago

Here is the problem. GOW has one PS3 game to date. The rest are remastered games. Halo has How many games this generation... Halo3, Halo ODST, Halo Wars, Halo Reach and maybe Halo 4. Halo Anniversary is cool and does not count. Mario has had many games this gen for the Wii already. Galaxy 1 and 2, Mario Kart, Mario party, New Super Mario bros....etc. Halo and Mario have saturated their respective companies systems however, IF the quality is there no one cares.

bodybombs4718d ago

i dont care about saturation, i care about quality, and thus far halo has always been a quality title. me and tons of others have loved every single game that has come out.

+ Show (11) more repliesLast reply 4718d ago
Hisiru4719d ago (Edited 4719d ago )

What is bad about milking a game? I love Mario, Uncharted and Gears of War. I want more games using these franchises because I am a fan. I would pay for 3 mario, uncharted or gears of war games each year if I could.

The only bad thing is when you have a franchise like Guitar hero or COD and you don't know how to really improve it, and then you will have the same game every year with minimal changes.

I can't talk about Halo because I don't like/play it, but, milking is only bad if you don't know how to improve your games.

Ghoul4719d ago

you guys REALLY need to understand the difference between milking and making more games in the same universe.

i cant see any real proof of milking here.

tons of upgrades ?
buyable skills ?
worthless missionpacks ?
unlock all items ?

sorry i cant see a milking method here.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 4718d ago
Convas4719d ago (Edited 4719d ago )

@Stonecold: Don't comment on topics you don't understand. There was no Halo in 2008.

I'm going to have to disagree. All the Halo games that have come out so far have had a minimum of 2 and a half years of dev time, which is more than Treyarch or Infinity Ward can attest to with their 18-22 month dev cycles.

2007 was the last time we saw Master Chief. 2012 will be when he returns, and it's been in development from late 2007/early 2008. But we're on Call of Duty XXX, Final Fantasy XXX, and Resistance, and Uncharted are in their THIRD installments for this generation.

Besides, MS is remaking Halo CE in celebration of Halo's 10th anniversary. Again, I fail to see what the problem is. Don't want it? Don't buy it. Simple.

The key here folk is mindshare. All the companies know that if they've got you talking about their game, you'll talk to your friends, and they will talk to their friends, and so forth. Right now, keeping your prized franchises in the hearts and minds of your customers is the way you garner big sales.

As Excalibur said, they are all businesses, and as long as interest is shown in their products, they will continue to make them. Simple.

ksense4719d ago (Edited 4719d ago )

"There used to be breathing space between Halo games (Halo 1 2001, Halo 2 2004, Halo 3 2007), but in recent years Microsoft has been flinging the IP at us: Halo Wars 2009, Halo 3: ODST 2009 and Halo: Reach 2010.

With the E3 announcements of Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary (Halo 1 remake) coming this year and Halo 4 in autumn 2012" I believe that is milking

uncharted had 2 games so far with 2 year dev cycles and resistance the same 2 year dev cycle with the third one being 3 years!

femshep4719d ago

uncharted had 2 games but now has 4 with the one for the vita god of war has 5 and a another one in the works, socom never dies no matter how bad it gets and assassin's creed has 4 games now with no end to the plot line in sight

thing is aside from assassin's creed these are big exclusive franchises everyone will cry if they stop them and everyone is crying if they make another people just need to shut up and play it or don't halo 4 is the start of a new trilogy with master chief is im interested on where they will take the story

dragonelite4719d ago

@ femshep

You know i dont care if the milk is good i will drink the milk

Hanuman4719d ago

I'm glad someone could make sense out of stonecold's comment.

Tony P4719d ago

@Clizzz: Totally true.

The only reason people see it differently from every other developer/publisher that does it is because of personal bias imo.

ginsunuva4719d ago

It's not how often, it's how MANY.
When there start to be more than 4 games in a series, it becomes worn out and not-special anymore.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 4719d ago
Zir04719d ago ShowReplies(7)
Excalibur4719d ago

M$ is hardly the Lone Ranger.
COD?
Assassin's Creed?

Just to name a few.

M$ and other companies are in business to make $$$ and as long as folks keep coming back for more they will continue making said product.

It's business 101.

dragonelite4719d ago

Wow one good answer how you got the disagree i dont understand.

NYC_Gamer4719d ago

every company is guilty of the milk treatment

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240°

Microsoft's quest for short-term $$$ is doing long-term damage to Windows, Surface, Xbox, and beyond

Microsoft is pushing for no "red line" for what games could come to PlayStation, and it all revolves around Satya Nadella and CFO Amy Hood's plans to increase every department's margins.

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windowscentral.com
Brazz4h ago

"The plan to move Xbox games to other platforms is codenamed "Latitude" internally, and I know there's debate and unease at Microsoft about whether or not this is a good idea. More upcoming Microsoft-owned games slated for PlayStation are already being developed. At least for now, they're potentially obvious games you'd most likely expect. And yes, while it's true Microsoft is a prolific publisher on PlayStation already, it has typically revolved around specific franchises like Minecraft. From what I've heard, Microsoft is pushing for no "red line" for what games could come to PlayStation, and it all revolves around Satya Nadella and CFO Amy Hood's mandate to increase every department's margins. "

Yeah, they are going to kill Xbox hardware.

Xeofate2h ago

"Yeah, they are going to kill Xbox hardware."

It's for the best.

Quit stringing along xbox fans and screwing over PlayStation owners.

gold_drake4h ago

i think it will kill off the xbox brand. windows will be fine.

but there is and would be a chance that xbox might be killed off in the future. if they fail to make the money they put in. imo.

S2Killinit1h ago

They wont kill it, but they will go fully PC while keeping xbox as a brand, and go multiplatform for the most part. They will also work tirelessly to diminish console gaming’s importance.

shadowT3h ago

"Microsoft is pushing for no "red line" for what games could come to PlayStation"

Forza and Starfield next?

Skuletor1h ago

Starfield would be no surprise and there's the rumor that it will come to Playstation after the Shattered Space DLC, Forza (along with Halo and Gears of War) I find less likely but I wouldn't be surprised if they eventually end up on PlayStation too, especially if Xbox give up on hardware and go the Sega route.

shinoff21831h ago

Not to worried about forza. I'd rather see others like what inxile and obsidian are working on. Starfield sounds like it needs more time in the oven so let it cook first imo. If starfield and it's a small if does release on ps it'll be in the fall around the time for dlc or right at the dlc and come packaged with it.

-Foxtrot2h ago

In the words of Phil Spencer when he was talking about Nintendo last year

“It's just taking a long time for Microsoft to see that their future exists off of their own hardware"

S2Killinit1h ago

Yup. MS are a cancer to console gaming.

Aloymetal53m ago

100%!!
I wonder what happened to that dude that was always here posting those court articles with cartoons about MS spending all those billions in studios. He suddenly disappeared, I guess he doesn't like bad news when the green brand is in trouble. No new articles from him as of late...

Obscurity2h ago

More fake doom and gloom about a 3 trillion dollar company

shinoff21831h ago

It's probably true though. What's fake about Ms releasing games on ps. It's not like it didn't just happen. 2 of the 4 they released were in Playstations top seller list.

Obscurity1h ago

Xbox has been leaving gaming and leaving hardware for 20 years according to Sony fanboys 😂😂

Hofstaderman1h ago(Edited 1h ago)

Bet you Blade is coming to the PS5. Disney probably insisted on it thats why they being silent on whether its exclusive. I'm more excited for the Gears and Master Chief collections though.

Obscurity1h ago(Edited 1h ago)

I hope blade does come to PlayStation. Gears and halo should too.

Let PS fans fund Xbox and gamepass. Xbox is dominating the PlayStation store 👏

Good for Ps fans too - PS don’t dev games anymore

0hMyGandhi1h ago

ah yes, the classic "too big to fail" mentality. That served us well in the past.
This article is not all doom and gloom.
I highly suggest you read it before posting a comment here based on the headline alone.

solideagle1h ago(Edited 1h ago)

are you Obscure user's child? or an alt account created today?

it's not doom and gloom for MS, it's for Xbox...Ms will be fine on it's own. when we will look back at the history of Xbox (hardware) from higher level, it will be marked as failure majority of the time.

Obscurity1h ago(Edited 1h ago)

It failed so much they got 69bn dollars to go shopping.

Damn, I wish I could fail so much someone would give me 69bn dollars! 😂😂

-Foxtrot41m ago

They’ve all been him

We must be up to like 20 now

It’s sad…

Skuletor1h ago

A trillion dollar company with a gaming division currently mired with controversy, layoffs, studio closures, an uncertain future, mismanagement and admittance they can't handle all the studios they've acquired among other things. I think the main focus of this news on this site called News 4 Gamers, would be focusing on that gaming division which IS looking kinda gloomy lately.

Obscurity1h ago

Sony are doing all of the above too, despite “record sales”

Obscurity1h ago(Edited 1h ago)

Layoffs and studio closures are whataboutism? Okay 😂😂

Imagine selling that many consoles and having to do layoffs at insomniac, your most successful studio 💀💀

Unhealthy business. I’m concerned for PlayStations future.

Skuletor1h ago

More whaboutism. On the topic of Sony, since you brought them up, remind me of when they spent billions on a publisher they later admitted they weren't equipped to manage, despite Phil Spencer saying acquisitions are good for the industry and resulted in mass layoffs and studio closures, even for a studio with one of their highest rated exclusives in years, which according to Microsoft themselves, met their expectations.

Obscurity1h ago

Making that much money and closing studios and doing layoffs.

PlayStation is doomed 💀

Skuletor1h ago

Sure but what makes you think I care if they are?

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 1h ago
Unknown_Gamer57941h ago

MS as a company will be fine. Xbox isn’t so secure though, as its status is dependent on how profitable its parent company thinks it is. Current trends suggest that MS sees more profit in making Xbox third party, and I’ve heard the box itself is actually losing them money.

If these things are true, the future of Xbox as a console manufacturer is certainly being called into question. Perhaps being a third party publisher instead would be a better strategy for them.

Obscurity1h ago

Sony and MS are both going third party.

Pc and Steam has killed consoles

Skuletor1h ago(Edited 1h ago)

Millions of people are going to choose consoles over a PC due to their simplicity, I don't see consoles disappearing anytime soon.

Aloymetal56m ago

Which makes it more lame and pathetic, a trillion $ company that has the most irrelevant gaming brand on the planet and getting curbed stomp by ''tiny'' Sony's PlayStation;)

Obscurity49m ago

Sony with their 2000937373 console sales and still doing studio closures and layoffs

RIP PlayStation 💀💀

+ Show (4) more repliesLast reply 41m ago
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130°

Microsoft's Absurd Antics Have Me Scared For Dishonored And Arkane Lyon's Future

With Arkane Austin no more and Lyon living for who knows how long, the superb Dishonored is in serious danger; Microsoft cannot be trusted.

Relientk771d 18h ago

I love the Dishonored series so much and really want Dishonored 3. Microsoft better not screw this up.

JEECE1d 15h ago

I mean, I think the fans will probably kill Arkane Lyon by cooking up reasons to hate whatever they do next without playing it. I've never seen a game so artificially disliked as Deathloop.

thesoftware7301d 15h ago

Lol, why don't we just say, we are worried about all studios owned by MS now. They will keep closing studios until they have none left ...🙄

Skuletor1d 12h ago

Just merge them all into a single studio, have it churn out a single Call of Duty every year and call it a day, lol.

Barlos1d 12h ago

Don't be scared, you'll be fine.

Skuletor1d 12h ago

It's exputer, fine is one word I would not associate with them.

Profchaos1d 11h ago

I think it's becoming clear based on matt bootys comments there's no future for any IP that can't sell above 10 million within the launch window. But is also a small game that gives them prestige

/S it's beyond a joke right now

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290°

More Job Losses At Xbox, “There’s More To Come”: Paul Thurrott

Paul Thurrott in a recent episode commented on the on-going Microsoft fiasco hinting at more job losses and that "there's more to come".

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spieltimes.com
Sonic18813d ago (Edited 3d ago )

There won't be no more acquiring game publishers from Microsoft in the future . Xbox has to pay Microsoft back. It might take two decades to do that.

sagapo3d ago (Edited 3d ago )

I don’t understand what you’re saying. Xbox IS microsoft so there’s no “paying back “.
And MS gross profit in 2023 was over 140 billion dollars so forget your 2 decades.

Unless you mean the money MS invested in Xbox (acquisitions included) and the time it will take for xbox as a brand to gain that money back on it’s own, then yeah, that could take a while.

romulus233d ago

The better term to use might be return on investment, xbox is simply a division of Microsoft one that MS can easily do away with if profit margins are not met. So in that regard he's right, if xbox isn't showing the expected return on investment the higher ups are expecting than it's unlikely Microsoft will acquire any other studios any time soon, especially if they are spending billions buying developers just to shut them down in the end.

MrBaskerville3d ago (Edited 3d ago )

Xbox is a division that they discussed shutting down but doubled down on after Gamepass was pitched.

It needs to make money at some point. Big money.

rokos3d ago

According to Statista the net income of Microsoft is about $72.4 billion dollars which is a bit lower than last year profit. That is almost as much as Activision's acquisition but I assume that would be a one off since it costs so much plus I see how their focus has been shifted to AI, thus any major future investments will probably be in that area.

Markusb332d ago

i think you are really missing the point

VariantAEC2d ago

@romulus23
That is not why MS buys studios. They might continue to buy because it's about taking that sweet sweet IP out of the corporate husks of their acquisitions.

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SonyStyled3d ago

“There won't be no more acquiring game publishers from Microsoft in the future”

No bro, there do be is for Microsoft not acquiring for what is now if not what it be is 😂

3d ago Replies(2)
ChasterMies3d ago

Xbox isn’t a separate company from Microsoft. It’s all Microsoft.

Abear212d ago (Edited 2d ago )

Let’s be real, this is the media spinning all the acquisitions and liquidations of said developers and spinning it to make M$ the villain.

This was bound to happen, a bigger slice of pie and cut costs, when the games come they stand to make more and that’s their agenda—it was the writing on the wall when the sales went through and legally all those who approved the sale and mergers knew this would happen.

Snowflakes need to realize business is ugly and you can cry all you want but this is how capitalism works. And it works.

That said, M$ needs to steer the narrative and grab hold of all this, make their plans known, hype the hell out of all those dead IP’s they plan to revive, and be honest about the timeline. This is likely to involve mobile and IP on other consoles, and most people realize that.

The problem is this company is incapable of being transparent and seems to often want to dissuade and confuse is customer base. The lack of E3 has hurt Microsoft and I don’t think they know how to properly or effectively market their brand anymore.

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jwillj2k43d ago

There really needs to be a class action lawsuit here. You buy these companies just to put people out of jobs. And it’s not like something happened to derail their plans this WAS the plan. Microsoft has no business in this space at all.

franwex3d ago (Edited 3d ago )

Microsoft has been doing this for years. They simply want the IPs. Look at Nokia. Look at Skype. This time it simply expanded to games. Gaming is not as important to Microsoft’s executives as it was to the founders too. Bill Gates was willing to sell the og Xbox at a loss. Steve Balmer approved the red ring of death fiasco. This CEO isn’t really a gamer.

-Foxtrot3d ago

Maybe it's time though to put a stop to it and use a big giant like Microsoft as a huge example to the rest of these big companies.

There has to be a line drawn somewhere.

People like the FTC and the like went against Microsoft yet their Actvision deal was still allowed to go through yet look what's happened...it's not even Acitivisions studios aswell, it's Bethesdas.

VariantAEC2d ago

Years?

Try several decades, and in the gaming space 2.3 decades.

Jon615862d ago

You do realize this happens in ALL industries? Or are you just saying this because it is Microsoft? In any case I feel for those that are being let go but the trch industry is suffering right now.

jwillj2k42d ago (Edited 2d ago )

This absolutely does NOT happen all the time. Let me know the last time 1 company with a terrible product track record spent 100 billion onto acquire MULTIPLE successful companies in under a year only to shut them down and stop making their products regardless of how successful they were. Not merge them, completely shut them down.

And you can’t use Microsoft in your example.

Notellin2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

Class action lawsuit? The law is on their side and protects them at all costs. There are no rules to protect the people at the bottom.

jwillj2k42d ago

Not true when it comes to mass layoff do your research.

RNTody3d ago

Ninja Theory, Perfect Dark, Crash Bandicoot, Spyro, Wolfenstein 3, Dishonored, Prey, Doom, Quake... something tells me that bad things are going to happen to these entities under Microsoft.

MrDead3d ago

ID software, the makers of Doom and Wolfenstein that have been with us since 1991 could be gone and MS will keep the IPs.

I hope some of these studios can buy their freedom from MS otherwise this is going to be even more devastating for the industry and gamers.

Yui_Suzumiya3d ago (Edited 3d ago )

That's exactly what I'm worried about. I've been a fan of id since Wolfenstein 3D and I'm honestly afraid.

lodossrage3d ago

Toys for Bob saw the writing on the wall and bought themselves out.

Wouldn't be the first time a company did that under MS either. Bungie and Twisted Pixel did the same. Considering what just happened, I can see some other devs trying to buy themselves out too.

anast3d ago

Good thing the bosses of all those small studios made their money.

glenn19793d ago

they cant do it right now they will get burned

XiNatsuDragnel3d ago

Phil and his team need to be gone

lodossrage3d ago (Edited 3d ago )

Won't make a difference.

The whole structure needs to be overhauled. Anyone that replaces Phil will be no different than him, Mattrick, or anyone else.

Until the company changes how they go about business, nothing will change

glenn19792d ago

I just don't have any idea what they would do , they have done sooo much damage on their xbox brand, they have a show at July or June I think, but will it even matter even they show amazing games, idkn

lodossrage3d ago

True,

But they may as well get it over with. Whether it happens now or later, the burning is going to hit the same.

Reality is the ONE move that can alleviate a lot of this is the one move they can't make. Remove day 1 from gamepass.

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