All Microsoft-Published titles will have Xbox Anywhere capability from now on - Polidicks

Microsoft isn't pulling out of the console market. Especially considering they're launching the XB1S next month and have a new console coming out next year.

[QUOTE=VinLAURiA;50650102]I always said that Microsoft would be the first of the three to pull out of the console race and integrate their stuff into Windows. Back to Nintendo vs. Sony, then.[/QUOTE] Nintendo basically pulled out by apparently not wanting to actually sell any consoles this generation. Dumb jabs aside, what makes you think that Microsoft is pulling out just because they decide to release their games on PC as well? Not all PC gamers have a console (I don't), and my guess is that [I]many[/I] console gamers do not have a capable gaming PC. The overlap probably isn't [I]huge[/I].

I would say they are, even considering the upcoming Xbone S and Scorpio releases. Remember, Microsoft's entire hardware strategy these days is "unification" under Windows 10. Even phones running Win10 Mobile can act as full Windows desktops when paired with a monitor and KB/M, and the Xbone firmware has recently been updated to its own variant of Win10. Granted, it doesn't have a desktop component yet, but considering the firmware change and also how much they've been pushing the Xbone's multimedia features even since its reveal has me believing that they're going to eventually position the Xbone platform as an outright living-room PC rather than just a modern-day game console. Whether or not it still qualifies as a "console" at that point is up for debate, but I believe we're at the beginning of that transition. And you gotta realize, the thing's already an x86 with a desktop-grade graphics card anyways. Internally, both the Xbone and PS4 are just embedded-chip PCs with locked-down operating systems; Nintendo's the only one whose system actually still is "just a game console" at this point. Once Xbone's Win10 reaches parity with the main version, it'll essentially be what Valve wanted the Steambox to be: a full PC in a console form-factor. And Microsoft's in a far more favorable position to actually pull that off.

They won't be exiting the console market any time soon. They're going after both the living room and PC crowds. Dropping out of the console market would be suicide for them.

[QUOTE=Makol;50650386]Dropping out of the console market would be suicide for them.[/QUOTE] Apparently you don't know just how big Microsoft is. Xbox is just a drop in the ocean for them.

[QUOTE=AntonioR;50650408]Apparently you don't know just how big Microsoft is. Xbox is just a drop in the ocean for them.[/QUOTE] I do. I worked for them. I meant the Xbox brand, you know that one major brand they have in a good amount of living rooms with a dedicated fan base? They have no reason to kill off that brand in favor of the PC gaming market. Being in both markets makes more sense than just focusing on one. [editline]5th July 2016[/editline] Dropping out of the console market now, or any time soon, would be more trouble than it's worth for them.

[QUOTE=redBadger;50649672]Origin isn't bad and many people use it for battlefield[/QUOTE] but is it as successful as steam is? not to mention its basically EA games only and has a way smaller catalog. it really cant hope to actually compete with steam when its like that

[QUOTE=Furnost;50650538]but is it as successful as steam is? not to mention its basically EA games only and has a way smaller catalog. it really cant hope to actually compete with steam when its like that[/QUOTE] It doesn't need to be, this way EA simply doesn't need to give Valve 30%, or what ever the figure is, of their sales money from their games. That is probably good enough for them.

[QUOTE=Makol;50650428]I do. I worked for them. I meant the Xbox brand, you know that one major brand they have in a good amount of living rooms with a dedicated fan base? They have no reason to kill off that brand in favor of the PC gaming market. Being in both markets makes more sense than just focusing on one. [editline]5th July 2016[/editline] Dropping out of the console market now, or any time soon, would be more trouble than it's worth for them.[/QUOTE] I didn't say they'd be [i]killing off[/i] the Xbox brand, but I do expect that their Xbox machines going forward won't be truly [i]consoles[/i] anymore.

Except the Xbox brand is the console brand.

Yeah, and Netflix [i]was[/i] a DVD rental service. As the Xbox "consoles" continue, I think that definition is going to change. Truth be told, I think the console race is going to sort of "dissolve" rather than end with a bang or clear victor. I expect Microsoft to integrate Xbox into the rest of their ecosystem as another device in this "desktop-like" category they've created, Nintendo will likely merge their console and handheld lines into a singular dedicated gaming device, and Sony may keep PlayStation hardware going for a whole - at least for the sake of dedicated low-latency VR machines - but I think they may also start turning it into a more general set-top box like they did near the end of the PS3's life, while for their non-VR games they move things over to cloud gaming where they can render things on their own, vastly more powerful servers.

the Netflix transition is hardly comparable to a possible Xbox transition. Two completely different markets with two completely different types of products.

My point still stands: brands mutate. Dedicated TV-output gaming consoles are likely going to go away within the next decade, with perhaps the only true "gaming-only device" remnant being Nintendo and even they're looking to consolidate down into a single "semi-portable" system. Microsoft's likely to merge Xbox into general computing while Sony will move towards cloud services and more specialized VR hardware.

They're already pushing PSVR pretty hard with the PS4. They [i]are[/i] looking the most likely to be the budget VR solution, next to Rift and Vive. There's already 40 million PS4 owners and PSVR is $400. Not chump change, but cheaper than either of the other two and every PS4 is guaranteed to run it (granted, PS4N will be better at it.) For the others, it's - like - $600-800 on top of a fairly high-end PC.

The current end goal for Microsoft is to control both the living room and have a good position in the PC market. Dissolving the Xbox brand in the way you're describing won't allow them to do that. If anything the Scorpio and future consoles will act like how the Steam Machines were meant to. Only difference if that Xbox has already made a name for itself in the living room. Allowing gamers to access their games on both a dedicated box in their living room and their gaming PC is the future for the Xbox. Consoles aren't going anywhere any time soon.

[QUOTE=VinLAURiA;50650815]My point still stands: brands mutate. Dedicated TV-output gaming consoles are likely going to go away within the next decade, with perhaps the only true "gaming-only device" remnant being Nintendo and even they're looking to consolidate down into a single "semi-portable" system. Microsoft's likely to merge Xbox into general computing while Sony will move towards cloud services and more specialized VR hardware.[/QUOTE] The PS4 has been the best selling [i]ever[/i] console so far. Whether that trend will keep up and allow it to surpass the PS2 is up in the air, but to posit that consoles are going to go away any time in the near future is just delusional. Demand for console gaming isn't going away, if anything it's become more accepted and in demand. Also, cloud based gaming services will NEVER become the main method of playing games. It's just not physically possible to create an experience that's as good as having a box in your house. Cloud based services will exist as a supplementary service, and they will remain unpopular due to their limitations.

This is better for Microsoft overall and I'm really, really excited to see Microsoft support their own Desktop platforms with their exclusive games again. This has been a smooth move that they should've pursued earlier as the war against Sony will continue at a loss for the foreseeable future. Can't wait for Forza Horizon 3, it's hype!

[QUOTE=Makol;50650946]The current end goal for Microsoft is to control both the living room and have a good position in the PC market. Dissolving the Xbox brand in the way you're describing won't allow them to do that. If anything the Scorpio and future consoles will act like how the Steam Machines were meant to. Only difference if that Xbox has already made a name for itself in the living room. By allowing gamers to access their games on both a dedicated box in their living room and their gaming PC is the future for the Xbox. Consoles aren't going anywhere any time soon.[/QUOTE] That's exactly what I'm saying. I just think at that point they're not really "consoles" anymore. What I'm trying to say is that I expect all three players in the console race to diverge their hardware more sharply for the upcoming Gen9 and fulfill different niches. If there's anything Gens6-8 have proved, it's that there's no room for three basic TV-out consoles. One of them will necessarily dominate as it becomes the de facto standard for the generation unless you have something truly unique like the Wii. The [i]form[/i] of console hardware is going to have to change big time for the next generation, and I'm expecting all three to go in different directions. At that point, it won't be a "race" anymore and they won't truly be consoles as we know them today; they'll all be in different markets.

[QUOTE=FezianEmperor;50650979]This is better for Microsoft overall and I'm really, really excited to see Microsoft support their own Desktop platforms with their exclusive games again. [B]This has been a smooth move that they should've pursued earlier[/B] as the war against Sony will continue at a loss for the foreseeable future. Can't wait for Forza Horizon 3, it's hype![/QUOTE] They didn't do this earlier because the former head of Xbox, Don Mattrick, was all about selling Xboxes and controlling the couch experience. Phil Spencer has been talking about being more open with how they handle things for quite a while.

[QUOTE=VinLAURiA;50651013]That's exactly what I'm saying. I just think at that point they're not really "consoles" anymore. What I'm trying to say is that I expect all three players in the console race to diverge their hardware more sharply for the upcoming Gen9 and fulfill different niches. If there's anything Gens6-8 have proved, it's that there's no room for three basic TV-out consoles. One of them will necessarily dominate as it becomes the de facto standard for the generation unless you have something truly unique like the Wii. The [i]form[/i] of console hardware is going to have to change big time for the next generation, and I'm expecting all three to go in different directions. At that point, it won't be a "race" anymore and they won't truly be consoles as we know them today; they'll all be in different markets.[/QUOTE] What you're saying sounds like they're going away all together.

No, no, that's not what I meant to imply at all. What I'm saying is that what we've come to expect with each passing console generation of three competing dedicated gaming set-tops is likely going to change drastically for Gen9 because that form factor is becoming obsolete with how fluid electronics form factors are becoming. PS4 may be the [i]fastest[/i]-selling console ever, but Gen8 as a whole has sold [i]far[/i] less than Gen7 has at this point in the generation. Everything's starting to blend together and when even things like smart TVs and devices like Roku, Apple TV, and Chromecast are able to play gaming apps now, there's going to have to be [i]something else[/i] dedicated game consoles are able to do if they want to expect any sales. Each will be more specialized and do different things, because it'll be easier to co-exist that way. Both with each other and all the other devices out there. For Microsoft, that's making Xboxes into living-room PCs. Nintendo, a semi-portable toy (and "toy" is not a knock). And Sony will have something more in line with the rest of their "general electronics" lineup. That's what I meant when I said the console race is going to "dissolve", because there won't be a bunch of devices in the same exact category competing for sales anymore. They'll all do different things.

[QUOTE=LegndNikko;50647626]I mean I personally have gain in that my entire library is already on Steam so I'd like to keep it that way but Objectively, I'd rather not keep feeding what's essentially a monopoly on PC gaming[/QUOTE] Competing platforms that don't have the same games on them aren't really breaking the monopoly. Like you're still being forced into a platform depending on which game you want to play, you don't have a choice. I get that Microsoft wants exclusives to popularise their platform but until we see a lot of multi-store releases (still hasn't happened with Origin) this doesn't mean anything for the consumer.

[QUOTE=gk99;50649328][url=https://www.amazon.com/Halo-2-PC/dp/B000NV8F58]So buy it.[/url] There's nothing stopping you from playing it assuming you're on Vista or above. There's even a mod to reinstate multiplayer. The problem is that nobody plays it minus a server or two.[/QUOTE] it's just that it's one of the worst PC ports of all time and needs to be re-done from scratch

MS realllllly want people to update to win10 as im 99% sure all the games will be on the windows store only or use dx12. (Although didnt Phil Spencer say they wanted to use steam again?)

I believe they plan on using Steam for smaller games. Best example of that would be Ori and Blind Forest.

[QUOTE=Jelman;50651288]MS realllllly want people to update to win10 as im 99% sure all the games will be on the windows store only or use dx12. (Although didnt Phil Spencer say they wanted to use steam again?)[/QUOTE] He said they aren't opposed to putting games on steam, and they'll probably do it in the future, but for now they want to focus on making the windows store worth using. He also said they wouldn't prevent third parties from selling on steam if they're selling on the windows store, so a Xbox and PC exclusive could easily be on steam just not one published my Microsoft for the near future.

[QUOTE=Grenadiac;50651199]it's just that it's one of the worst PC ports of all time and needs to be re-done from scratch[/QUOTE] There's nothing really major wrong with the port. Why re-do the port, when it would take a lot less effort to fix it? All evidence suggest everything was going fine until the last few months in development. The editing kit was outsourced to an external studio and the development team was disbanded shortly after release.

you know what would be cool? if you have a blu ray drive in your pc, you could just pop in the xbone disc and play it on your pc. i wonder if its possible tho :v:

[QUOTE=oskramorir;50652572]you know what would be cool? if you have a blu ray drive in your pc, you could just pop in the xbone disc and play it on your pc. i wonder if its possible tho :v:[/QUOTE] Doesn't work. Some computer wizard might eventually figure it out, but I doubt it.

I wish this was the case [i]before[/i] Gears of War Ultimate Edition came out for PC. Without mod support like the original, this game desperately needs crossplay.