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Re: Wow.
Posted By: BeckxDate: 7/12/11 9:36 a.m.

In Response To: Wow. (Louis Wu)

: He's Phil Spencer. He's the VP of Microsoft Game Studios - for him, the
: success of the game at the cash register is more important than the score
: that game gets on MetaCritic. Reach sold well - but it didn't continue the
: nearly exponential growth the 3 main trilogy titles showed before it. (In
: fact, even though Reach came out 3 years after Halo 3, with an installed
: base of Xbox360s that more than TRIPLED in that timeframe... Reach's sales
: were roughly on par, month over month, with Halo 3's. I can understand how
: a bean counter might see that as a failure of the franchise.)

: He's drumming up support for a title that they are now 100% invested in - and
: yes, he's saying, in a way, "we're going to do it differently than
: it's been done recently". He's saying that because the way it's been
: done recently has not brought in huge numbers of new people. That's his
: fucking JOB. Don't look at those words as a slap in Bungie's face - look
: at them as a plea for the masses to come back to the game that MADE the
: Xbox. (Remember when Halo had a nearly 50% attach rate? Yeah, Phil does
: too.)

Which is, ultimately, what happens when games become Big Public Company Business. The actions of the corporate employees are understandable, but it's not necessarily good for games or gamers.

Mark Cerny was interviewed recently and pointed out how a game like Flower couldn't get made at a big studio. I can't recall the exact quote, but it was something to the effect that a big studio, Jenova Chen couldn't afford to have people stop work or waste work on what might turn out to be a hair brained idea. At a small private company, he can do that (within reason). The company's private owners set their expectations for what is an appropriate return. At a place like MS, outside forces set the expectation and Spencer (and others) have to answer for it. (Of course, this is somewhat oversimplified, at places like Bethesda, where the private owners include outside private equity, you still can see some of the same pressures and effects - though private equity at least tends to think longer term rather than quarter to quarter.)

What surprises me about articles like this is that most people never connect the dots. They tend to think that some public companies (but not others!) are "Evil" in a comic book sense, without consideration of the environment they operate in - the environment we have created in the last 30-40 years.

Of Herbs and Stewed Rabbit


Message Index



Replies:

One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.padraig08 7/11/11 7:05 p.m.
     Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.SonofMacPhisto 7/11/11 7:12 p.m.
           Phil Spencer is wrong about ODST.Captain Spark 7/11/11 7:45 p.m.
     Re: Where's the step forward? *NM*pete_the_duck 7/11/11 7:13 p.m.
           The foot in his mouth. *NM*rhubarb 7/11/11 7:16 p.m.
           Re: Where's the step forward?padraig08 7/11/11 7:27 p.m.
                 Re: Where's the step forward?SonofMacPhisto 7/11/11 7:33 p.m.
     Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.squidnh3 7/11/11 7:22 p.m.
           Well when going up against Bungie.....PsychoRaven 7/11/11 11:44 p.m.
                 Re: Well when going up against Bungie.....Kalamari 7/12/11 10:24 a.m.
     Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.Kalamari 7/11/11 7:25 p.m.
           That's what I'm afraid of. *NM*padraig08 7/11/11 7:27 p.m.
     Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.Dagoonite 7/11/11 7:37 p.m.
     Two More Steps into Pseudo Journalistic Crap.DEEP NNN 7/11/11 7:43 p.m.
           Re: Two More Steps into Pseudo Journalistic Crap.General Vagueness 7/11/11 8:05 p.m.
                 Re: Two More Steps into Pseudo Journalistic Crap.Cody Miller 7/11/11 8:20 p.m.
     Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.Azo 'Galvat 7/11/11 8:11 p.m.
     Things that make you go "Hmm."AngelicLionheart 7/11/11 8:45 p.m.
     I believe one of the reasons people want MC now...Leviathan 7/11/11 9:13 p.m.
     Am I the only one...Phoenix_9286 7/11/11 9:35 p.m.
     Welp, looks like Microsoft has no idea about HaloAvateur 7/11/11 9:44 p.m.
           Beautiful.Hyokin 7/11/11 10:01 p.m.
           Re: Welp, looks like Microsoft has no idea about HSIX min WHISTLE 7/11/11 10:44 p.m.
                 Re: Welp, looks like Microsoft has no idea about HAzo 'Galvat 7/11/11 11:54 p.m.
           I disagreeghost faction 7/12/11 1:45 p.m.
           Re: Welp, looks like Microsoft has no idea about HGeneral Vagueness 7/12/11 1:56 p.m.
     Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.Ragashingo 7/11/11 9:46 p.m.
     Joystiqs take on itSqorck 7/11/11 10:28 p.m.
           Re: Joystiqs take on itAvateur 7/11/11 10:33 p.m.
                 Re: Joystiqs take on itZackDark 7/11/11 10:37 p.m.
                       Re: Joystiqs take on itDEEP NNN 7/11/11 10:49 p.m.
                             Re: Joystiqs take on itAvateur 7/11/11 11:14 p.m.
                                   Re: Joystiqs take on itAvateur 7/11/11 11:18 p.m.
                                   Re: Joystiqs take on itPhoenix_9286 7/12/11 12:27 a.m.
                                         Re: Joystiqs take on itRagashingo 7/12/11 1:00 a.m.
                                   Re: Joystiqs take on itDEEP NNN 7/12/11 6:36 a.m.
                                         Re: Joystiqs take on itAvateur 7/12/11 5:18 p.m.
                                               Re: Joystiqs take on itQuirel 7/12/11 5:35 p.m.
                                                     Re: Joystiqs take on itAvateur 7/12/11 6:42 p.m.
                                               Re: Joystiqs take on itDEEP NNN 7/12/11 6:18 p.m.
                                                     Re: Joystiqs take on itAvateur 7/12/11 6:45 p.m.
                             Re: Joystiqs take on itStephen L. (SoundEffect) 7/12/11 6:17 a.m.
                                   Re: Joystiqs take on itDEEP NNN 7/12/11 6:28 a.m.
                                         Re: Joystiqs take on itStephen L. (SoundEffect) 7/12/11 6:50 a.m.
                             Re: Joystiqs take on itNarcogen 7/13/11 8:23 a.m.
     Git the Hell off mah lawn!Quirel 7/11/11 10:52 p.m.
           Re: Git the Hell off mah lawn!Asian Inferno 7/12/11 11:47 a.m.
     That's annoyingJoony Joon 7/12/11 6:53 a.m.
     Wow.Louis Wu 7/12/11 9:05 a.m.
           Re: Wow.Beckx 7/12/11 9:36 a.m.
           Re: Wow.Leviathan 7/12/11 9:57 a.m.
                 Re: Wow.Hedgemony 7/12/11 10:06 a.m.
                       Re: Wow.Revenant1988 7/12/11 10:27 a.m.
                             Re: Wow.ZackDark 7/12/11 11:37 a.m.
                       Re: Wow.Kermit 7/12/11 2:46 p.m.
                             Re: Wow.Hedgemony 7/12/11 5:19 p.m.
                                   Re: Wow.Avateur 7/12/11 7:01 p.m.
           Re: Wow.DEEP NNN 7/12/11 2:28 p.m.
                 Re: Wow.Louis Wu 7/12/11 2:41 p.m.
                 Re: Wow.SIX min WHISTLE 7/12/11 5:41 p.m.
                       Re: Wow.DEEP NNN 7/12/11 6:32 p.m.
           Re: Wow.Narcogen 7/13/11 8:18 a.m.
     Screw their H4, I want my Halo Wars 2 dammit! *NM*kornman00 7/12/11 10:53 a.m.
           Re: Screw their H4, I want my Halo Wars 2 dammit!Asian Inferno 7/12/11 11:48 a.m.
                 Halo 4 and Halo Wars 2 *Major SP*NsU Soldier 7/13/11 5:04 a.m.
                       Re: Halo 4 and Halo Wars 2 *Major SP*Avateur 7/13/11 5:24 a.m.
                             Re: Halo 4 and Halo Wars 2 *Major SP*NsU Soldier 7/13/11 7:51 a.m.
                                   Also....NsU Soldier 7/13/11 9:58 a.m.
                                         Re: Also....Avateur 7/13/11 10:48 a.m.
     Yeah, he doesn't get it. *NM*BlueNinja 7/12/11 3:29 p.m.
     Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.Time Glitch 7/12/11 5:01 p.m.
           Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.DEEP NNN 7/12/11 6:35 p.m.
                 Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.Avateur 7/12/11 7:07 p.m.
                       Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.DEEP NNN 7/12/11 7:28 p.m.
                             Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.Louis Wu 7/12/11 8:13 p.m.
                                   Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.Avateur 7/13/11 3:51 a.m.
                                   Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.DEEP NNN 7/13/11 7:01 a.m.
                                   Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.Narcogen 7/13/11 8:30 a.m.
                                         Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.Louis Wu 7/13/11 8:53 a.m.
                                         Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.Cody Miller 7/13/11 11:41 a.m.
                                               Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.Louis Wu 7/13/11 12:44 p.m.
                                                     Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.Cody Miller 7/13/11 8:12 p.m.
                                               Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.General Vagueness 7/13/11 1:24 p.m.
                                   Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.RC Master 7/13/11 9:10 a.m.
                                         Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.Louis Wu 7/13/11 9:34 a.m.
                                               Re: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back.RC Master 7/13/11 5:11 p.m.
     Halo 1, ODST, and Reach...SPARTAN-034 7/12/11 9:30 p.m.
           Re: Halo 1, ODST, and Reach...Quirel 7/12/11 11:47 p.m.
           Re: Halo 1, ODST, and Reach...MacGyver10 7/13/11 4:33 p.m.



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