Microsoft’s head of gaming has said Xbox will strive to meet the expectations of fans disappointed by the company’s first-party product release strategy.
On Thursday it was announced thatStarfield and Redfall had been delayedfrom this year to the first half of 2023, leaving some big holes inXbox’s line-up for the remainder of 2022.
Following up on the news, Xbox bossPhil Spenceracknowledged that fans are eager for more first-party games, while reiterating the importance ofgiving studios the time they need to create quality products.
“These decisions are hard on teams making the games and our fans,” hesaid. “While I fully support giving teams time to release these great games when they are ready, we hear the feedback.
“Delivering quality and consistency is expected, we will continue to work to better meet those expectations.”
It’s unclear how recently the decision to delay the games was made, but Spencer had earlier this week visited the teams at Bethesda.
Really great to be@bethesdaseeing games and talking with the talented teams here. So good to be back in studios again.pic.twitter.com/A3XgRM3qQe
Over the past few years Xbox has invested heavily in its portfolio of first-party studios. As well as setting upThe Initiative(Perfect Dark) and a new Age of Empires studio, it has acquiredNinja Theory(Hellblade),Playground Games(Forza Horizon),Obsidian(Fallout: New Vegas),InXile(Wasteland 3),Double Fine(Psychonauts), and most recently Bethesda for $7.5 billion.
It was also announced in January thatMicrosoftintends topurchase Activision Blizzard in a $68.7 billion deal—the game industry’sbiggest ever by some distance—that would give the Xbox maker exclusive ownership of franchisesincluding Call of Duty, Warcraft, Overwatch, Crash Bandicoot and Guitar Hero.
Upcoming first-party games includeStarfield(Bethesda), Redfall (Arkane),Avowed(Obsidian),Everwild(Rare), Fable (Playground Games),Forza Motorsport8 (Playground), Perfect Dark (The Initiative), Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II (Ninja Theory),State of Decay 3(Undead Labs) andThe Outer Worlds2 (Obsidian).
However, none of these games currently have confirmed release dates. That could change when Microsoft holds its E3-styleXbox and Bethesda Games Showcase event on June 12.
Related
Discussing Microsoft’s software release strategy last June following the completion of the Bethesda acquisition, Xbox Game Studios headMatt Bootysaid the platform holderwanted to “get to a point of releasing a new game every quarter”.
He added: “Games take up to four or five years to make, and the reality is that not every project we start will make it to launch. But if you add all that up, that’s how we’ve gotten to our state today, with two dozen studios making games across a variety of genres.
“And we know that a thriving entertainment service needs a consistent and exciting flow of new content. So our portfolio will continue to grow as our [Xbox Game Pass] service grows.”
