Last week, rumors swirled about the possible arrival of exclusive games Xbox (Series Except that in the end, there was clearly nothing to worry about for the future of the gaming division of Microsoftwho would have done better to immediately calm the fire rather than making his community languish. Indeed, we have only learned that four unnamed games will indeed appear on other consoles (PS5 and/or Switch therefore) in the futureand this for “specific reasons”, taking into consideration the long-term health of Xbox. This obvious temperature measurement will however not concern either Indiana Jones and the Ancient Circle neither Starfield. Good, since two of them will be games live service and/or community, it is normal to think of Sea of Thievesbut we will have to wait for confirmation to know if this is the case… The other two will be modest titles that were never really intended to be platform exclusives. This obviously brings to mind Hi-Fi RUSH. On the other hand, you will note that Phil Spencer thinks that in 5 to 10 years, single hardware exclusives will be more and more of a minority. A way to prepare the minds of players for your brand? Regardless, he also finds that this strategy can get more players interested in the brand Xbox by introducing them to licenses.
Concerning Game PassMatt Booty made it clear that it will only be available in the ecosystem Xbox while reiterating that the exclusives will be released in day one on it, as is currently the case. Well, on the other hand, his speech on cross play and the cross-save is a little doubtful given the fact that some publishers offer it between all gaming platforms… it has nothing to do with Xbox especially. And now thatActivision Blizzard is part of the group, which has led to numerous layoffs (mentioned by Phil Spencer, while specifying that others have done the same…), its games will arrive in the Game Passstarting with Diablo IV on March 28. At the same time, everyone who wanted to play it quickly must already have it and it is especially with its microtransactions and its premium path each season that the money must currently be generated while waiting for the extension Vessel of Hatred. Players will no doubt be more excited when the newest ones Call of Duty will land on it.
On the hardware side, Sarah Bond said there are some exciting things coming and will be shared at the end of the year (“holiday”), evoking investment in a roadmap for the next generation, always with a vision ofoffer the greatest technical leap possible. This refers to what may have circulated recently and especially to leaks via the FTC upcoming Xbox Series models and possible plans for the next-gen. Phil Spencer further added that compatibility of games and saves across generations is part of the philosophy of Xbox and will continue to be so.
Below you will find in addition the press release shared on Xbox Wire :
Thanks to the creativity of the Xbox teams, gamers can expect an incredible 2024 with games such as Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II, Indiana Jones and the Ancient Circle, Avowed, Ara: History Untold, Towerborne and many moreas well as regular updates for our flagship franchises such as Call of Duty, Minecraft, Forza, The Elder Scrolls Online and Microsoft Flight Simulator.
We will have even more games to offer, as we committed to: integrate Activision and Blizzard games into Game Pass, whether new releases or classic games from their legendary catalog. We are happy to announce that Diablo IV will be available from March 28 to 34 million Game Pass subscribers on PC and Xbox consoles ! This is just the beginning for Xbox gamers looking to enjoy Activision and Blizzard games in Game Pass – we can’t wait to tell you more soon.
You can already enjoy some of the biggest, critically acclaimed franchises across multiple platforms: Minecraft, Call of Duty, Overwatch, Diablo, The Elder Scrolls Online and more have built communities on consoles, PC and mobile. Likewise, we’ve released dozens of games on Steam the same day as their releases on Xbox consoles. Xbox teams now have deep experience supporting multiple platforms, and we continue to invest heavily in our studios, consoles, and services.
Through Activision, Bethesda, Blizzard, King and Xbox Game Studios games, we now reach hundreds of millions of players on console, PC and mobile, more than we have ever reached.
To ensure the long-term success of Xbox and the industry as a whole, we must continue to evolve. Today we announced that we will be expanding the communities we reach: we are currently working on porting four Xbox games to other platforms. It is titles available to Xbox gamers for at least a yearwhich deserve to be discovered more widely, and service games whose communities will benefit from welcoming a greater number of players. We will give you more details on these titles soon.
By bringing these games to more players, we not only broaden the reach and impact of these titles, but this will allow us to invest in future releases of these or other games in our games portfolio. There is no fundamental change in our approach to exclusivity.
Likewise, our commitment to game preservation remains unchanged. Xbox gamers need to have confidence in the sustainability of their digital library within the Xbox ecosystem. We will continue to reward them with unforgettable experiences, including backwards compatibility, cross-play, cross-save progression, cloud gaming, and much more. Xbox consoles will continue to provide an optimal experience for gamers; This is where you get the best value and gaming comfort, this is where Game Pass provides unprecedented access to an ever-expanding library of games. To be clear: Game Pass will continue to be available only on Xbox platforms.
This is what it means to be part of the Xbox community:
- The biggest games will be on Xbox.
- Our games will be available in Game Pass as soon as they are released.
- A solid and innovative roadmap on the hardware side.
- Compatibility with your library is a priorityincluding cross-play, cross-save and cloud functions.
- Xbox will continue to help game creators reach the widest possible audience.
Whether you’ve been with us since 2001, recently joined Game Pass to enjoy games like Starfield or Palworld, or are looking forward to the next season of Call of Duty, Xbox teams are stronger together – no matter what. where you play. Xbox will be here for decades to come – we hope to see many of you joining us on this journey.
Before finishing, The Verge continues to assert that according to its sources, Hi-Fi RUSH and Pentiment would be the first two games affected, followed by Sea of Thieves and Grounded. Obviously, with all the more or less unfounded rumors that led to this development, it is better to remain cautious. Tom Warren also states that Xbox would have weighed the idea of porting Gears of War, Microsoft Flight Simulator and even the next one DOOM on other platforms, without final decisions being made. It seems that some people like to add fuel to the fire…
In an interviewPhil Spencer did not completely close the door on the arrival ofIndiana Jones and the Ancient Circle, Starfield or any other exclusive, but clearly prefers to remain cautious and wait to see what happens with the four planned titles.
I don’t think we should, as an industry, rule out a game being released on another platform. We focus on these four games and learn from the experience.
But I don’t want to create false expectations. on these other platforms that somehow these are the first four to get through the dam and then the dam is going to open and everything else happens, that’s not the plan today. I also don’t want to mislead customers on these other platforms. We’re launching these four games and we’re excited about them. We’re excited about this announcement and everything else, but we will see what happens to our business.
You can subscribe to PC/Xbox Game Pass Ultimate from €14.99 for one month on Amazon, to the Fnac Or at the house of Cdiscount.
Read also: Xbox UPDATE: February 2024 firmware is available, what’s new?
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