The Games Awards wrapped up last night (or early in the morning if you’re British, like moi), and at home, Microsoft and Xbox put on an impressive showing throughout. Microsoft has announced OD, from Hideo Kojima, alongside Marvel’s Blade, designed by Arkane Lyon of Dishonored fame. Baldur’s Gate 3 also dropped on Xbox during the showcase, after a long period of optimization for the Xbox Series S.
However, controversy rages on.
Our top gaming recommendations
When we wrote our Blade announcement article, we did so based on prior knowledge of the event. While our sources have been 100% correct about it being Blade, we have yet to get 100% confirmation that it will be an Xbox exclusive, although it has been suggested to us. Xbox builds it, right? This appears to address criticism of Microsoft’s lack of an answer for PlayStation’s Spider-Man, which remains one of the most compelling reasons to get a PS5 in general. However, as you can see based on the trailer above, there is no mention of platforms at all. There’s also no mention of platforming on Blade’s website, which describes the game as follows:
“In Marvel’s Blade, Eric Brooks is the legendary Daywalker, a half-man, half-vampire torn between a warm society of the living and the onrushing force of the undead. From Bethesda and Arkane Lyon, Marvel’s Blade is a mature single-player, third-person shooter set in the heart of Paris, which… Now in development in collaboration with Marvel Games.
The lack of information is puzzling. If blade He is Xbox exclusive, wouldn’t Microsoft scream from the rafters? If blade not like that Exclusive to Xbox, isn’t this just cheating and sowing confusion by not telling people in advance? Either way, we asked Microsoft for comment and clarification, but here are some possible scenarios.
- Microsoft and Disney are still in negotiations. Microsoft and Disney may still be negotiating how much profit each will make from the project, and how much of a premium Microsoft may or may not have to pay for the exclusivity badge.
- Previous court discussions indicate that Machine Games and Disney’s Indiana Jones will be Xbox exclusives, but there has been no official marketing-oriented confirmation yet on that either.
- Perhaps Microsoft believes that speculation about the platforms will help stimulate discussion and thus viral marketing. I’m somewhat skeptical about this, because right now it’s only creating frustration and negative feelings – people don’t know what to expect from the Xbox platform.
- This game may actually be coming to PlayStation as well, and while it would be great if as many people as possible could play the game, it would also erode the credibility and competitiveness of the Xbox platform.
- Xbox has previously used arguments in Activision court cases that its games are more accessible than ever, with the more affordable Xbox Series S, with Xbox Cloud Gaming on phones and TVs, and Xbox Game Pass, and the daily and historical editions for PC.
- This could also be: Microsoft Still FTC fight over Activision-Blizzard deal in US. The FTC’s arguments rely on the idea that Microsoft can “withhold” games from PlayStation, such as Call of Duty. Microsoft is probably acting with great care not to add fuel to the FTC’s bogus arguments, given the fact that exclusive games are how companies compete in the console space.
- Also worth noting is PlayStation chirp (X’d?) for every game from The Game Awards, except Hideo Kojima’s OD and Arkane’s Blade.
However, the confusion threatens to overshadow the trailer itself. Often times, Microsoft and Xbox ads seem to come with some sort of confusion or warning, while Xbox’s competitors are largely more consistent with messaging and delivery.
Microsoft and Xbox are constantly inconsistent
Just last week, Microsoft created a wave of confusion when Xbox CFO Tim Stewart claimed to Wells Fargo investors that Microsoft would essentially create Sega and go third-party, with first-party games coming to PlayStation alongside Xbox. Game arcade. Then, in an exclusive interview with us, Xbox head Phil Spencer suggested that won’t happen. But now we are back to square one again.
Xbox detractors decry the idea of Microsoft pulling out of the console race, and bringing their games to PlayStation (often while also simultaneously claiming that Xbox games are bad and they don’t want them, haha). Xbox fans are similarly nervous that Microsoft will eventually seek to go third-party and stop the hardware race, betraying decades of digital investment in Microsoft’s platforms. Microsoft, of course, is no stranger to pulling the rug out from under people (Cough, Windows Phone, coughMicrosoft’s large size and diverse portfolio make it less dependent on any one division. If PlayStation closes its console gaming division, it will cause irreparable harm to Sony. If Microsoft shuts down its console gaming division, it won’t just be a blip on investors’ radars.
Xbox not confirming that Blade is a platform exclusive is strange. There is no Xbox logo on the trailer. No sharing on Xbox YouTube channel. It’s weird.December 8, 2023
Of course, these are broad extrapolations from a single first-party game that will likely go cross-platform. Microsoft is, of course, more cross-platform than ever before. With the Activision-Blizzard acquisition now under way, Microsoft has become one of PlayStation’s biggest customers, with Diablo, Overwatch and Call of Duty. All of this could also be a result of ongoing Federal Trade Commission (FTC) litigation, as Microsoft is careful not to show its desire to create Xbox-exclusive games through its acquisitions – though PlayStation and Nintendo are of course doing exactly the same thing. Microsoft also hasn’t confirmed if Hideo Kojima’s “OD” is an Xbox console exclusive as well, so that’s a second-party type of deal. Microsoft could easily point to Death Stranding as an example of Sony signing these types of deals as well.
Right now, if I had to guess, it would be that Blade is already an Xbox exclusive, and it could be ongoing negotiations, or FTC shenanigans withholding messaging. Whatever the truth, it’s unfair for Xbox fans to live in this world of uncertainty, something Microsoft must work to mitigate.
what do you think? Hit the comments.