Xbox has had a really tough week. Not only has Halo: Campaign Evolved been announced for PS5, eliminating one of the platform's last exclusive behemoths, but Microsoft has also talked about the future of the platform. There doesn't seem to be much interest in competing with other console manufacturers anymore. Instead, its biggest competitors are now social platforms like TikTok and Instagram.
In an interview with TBPN, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella reiterated Xbox executives' comments about competition and priorities when it comes to the video game landscape and where exactly the company fits in. As many consumers already know, it hasn't been a competitive competitor to PlayStation or Nintendo for a long time.
Like the recently released ROG Xbox Ally, Microsoft's next console is expected to be closer to PC leveraging access to multiple digital libraries and a new interface that isn't aimed at competing so much as coexisting in the same space with the games we already own. It feels like Microsoft is positioning itself as a third-party publisher and content provider instead of the console giants of the past, but it's certainly positioning itself. There is no point in trying to compete when you lost the battle 10 years ago.
Xbox doesn't need to compete in the console wars, they've already lost.
One of the notable things about this interview with Nadella is that the word 'Xbox' is not mentioned at all. This feels like a deliberate attempt by Microsoft to gradually distance itself from the brand in case its next hardware doesn't bear the Xbox name at all.
Otherwise, it will play a secondary role. It's also unusual for Xbox head Phil Spencer not to communicate this important new phase in the brand's life.
“Remember, our biggest gaming business is our Windows business,” Nadella said. “For us, Windows games, as well as Steam, have built a huge marketplace on top of that and have done a very successful job, so the way we think about games is, first and foremost, we are now the largest publisher.
“So we want to be a fantastic publisher that takes a similar approach to what we did with Office. We'll be everywhere, on all platforms. So we want to make sure gamers everywhere can enjoy their games, whether it's console, PC, mobile, cloud gaming or TV.”
Nadella's words echo the 'everything is Xbox' marketing slogan that Microsoft has been pushing in recent months. Whatever Xbox is, its future is no longer about providing a platform to compete with its competitors, but about broadening its horizons to make games available to as many verticals as possible. As they continue to push their own custom hardware as an option for both casual and hardcore fans, they need to diversify their revenue streams to stay relevant.
But without competition, what will Xbox do next?
The idea of competing with short-form video platforms like TikTok seems to be targeting where potential consumers spend their time, the games they invest in and the hardware they invest in.
Hardcore gamers will continue to buy consoles, continue to play on PC, and continue to stick with triple-A and indie titles. The real money is in regular people who spend their time scrolling TikTok instead of playing video games. But what if there was a way to convert that audience into gamers on every single device they own?
When it was confirmed that all future Halo titles would be coming to both PlayStation and Xbox, I knew Microsoft had thrown in the console towel for good.
It's a seemingly impossible goal, but Microsoft is more interested in pursuing a never-ending revenue stream, with ambitions of consistently reaching third place with PlayStation and Nintendo ahead. It makes sense to port your library to those platforms to sell millions of additional copies while also diversifying your approach to your own hardware and streaming capabilities.
Do you think this will work? no way. But does this make sense in the context of Microsoft's overall plans? maybe. Essentially, the next console will be a fantastic, less restrictive PC with support for Xbox, Steam, Epic, and more, if numerous reports prove accurate.
Part of me is already mourning Xbox's departure from the console space as it struggles to find a new purpose. It's already following in Sega's footsteps by growing into a third-party publisher and content provider, but Microsoft wants to stay relevant in the hardware world as well, with a system that bridges the gap between regular consoles and PCs.
Although we have the capital to pursue this experiment, I can't help but feel like we'll end up in the same position. You can't compete with PlayStation, you can't compete with Valve, and you certainly can't compete with TikTok. So if this new hardware, in whatever form it takes, falls behind the competition once again, Microsoft will remain one of the best third-party publishers on the planet, and Xbox will become a name forgotten by time.
- brand
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microsoft
- original release date
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November 10, 2020
- Original MSRP (USD)
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$499
- operating system
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Proprietary (Windows-based)
