Xbox Series X – Microsoft says all business models should exist – News

After having disclosed more specific characteristics and explaining how Smart Delivery will work, an option allowing, after a purchase, to automatically obtain the version adapted to your Xbox One or Xbox Series X platform, Microsoft now decides to communicate on the different models of distribution of games and the impact they have on creativity.

Indeed, during a interview made by Ted Price, the founder of Insomniac Games, for a Game Maker Notebook podcast, PHil Spencer, head of the Xbox industry, says the video game industry should offer all possible business models to reach the most people. Obviously, the latter alludes to the Xbox Game Pass, which allows against less than ten euros per month to access a complete game catalog on PC and Xbox One. This distribution model will of course continue to exist on Xbox Series X, but it is not for this reason that the American firm will abandon other forms of sales.

Our view on Xbox is that there is not just one business model to rule them all. We actually think it’s healthy, not only from an industry perspective, but from a creative perspective if multiple business models work.

According to Phil Spencer, offering different business models can produce different types of games. He notably takes the example ofAlan Wake which used to be an episodic game. But by evaluating the different business models, Microsoft Studios decided to group all the episodes into one. A decision he seems to regret.

When we started with Alan Wake, we wanted to make it an episodic game. And in the end, we were a little afraid that this distribution model would not work. You see how the economic model works. You sell X units for episode 1, then less for episode 2. There are diminishing returns. We all looked at this business model and decided to put it all together for $ 60. Was this the best way to do it? I do not know. But the fact that we are so settled in this world … it has locked us in some creative decisions.

In order to counter this lack of creativity and that the developers feel locked in a system, Phil Spencer specifies that the studios now have the freedom to find the commercial models which correspond to their vision, Xbox Game Pass, episodic format …

I think for us as an industry we have to embrace the dexterity of monetization because it leads us to the greatest creativity.

Finally, Phil Spencer says that thanks to the Xbox Game Pass catalog, more and more people are diversifying their choice of game and playing for hours.

People play more games than they have ever played before.

As a reminder, the Xbox Series X should arrive at the end of 2020 and will be accompanied by many games including Halo Infinite.

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