E3 2018: Microsoft pressekonference

This morning during the Xbox E3 2018 Briefing we announced the formation of The Initiative, a new first-party game studio based in Santa Monica, California. I’m thrilled to join the Microsoft Studios family as it is clear to me that the gaming team at Microsoft shares my passion for storytelling, world-building and creative exploration. There are big plans in store for fans and we are already hard at work.

The foundation we have in place for The Initiative is unique in many ways. We’ve been given the freedom to explore, try new things and operate like an independent studio, with the backing from one of the biggest companies in the world to do something bold and different. The industry is headed in an exciting direction, and we see an opportunity to create amazing new game experiences of the future.

Our immediate focus is expanding our team to bring that vision to life, and we are incredibly excited for what the future holds for The Initiative.

Investing in Development of Original Content:

Microsoft announced it is doubling its game development studios by adding five new creative teams to the Microsoft Studios family. New investments include the formation of a brand-new studio, The Initiative, the acquisition of Playground Games, and letters of intent to acquire Ninja Theory, Undead Labs and Compulsion Games.

The Initiative. Based in Santa Monica, Calif., The Initiative is a brand-new Microsoft game development studio headed by industry veteran Darrell Gallagher that is working to create groundbreaking new worlds, characters and game experiences.

Playground Games. Microsoft has acquired U.K.-based Playground Games, a development partner since 2010 that has helped grow the Forza franchise to new heights. In addition to its work on this year’s Forza Horizon 4, Playground Games will have a team dedicated to bringing their open-world expertise to an entirely new project.

Ninja Theory. The relationship between Ninja Theory and Microsoft started in 2000 when Kung Fu Chaos was in development for the original Xbox and culminated in the release of Hellblade on Xbox One earlier this year. Microsoft’s intent to acquire Ninja Theory will help ensure the creative team has the resources and freedom to bring more ambitious games like Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice to fans.

Undead Labs. Seattle-based Undead Labs is the creator of the popular State of Decay franchise, enjoyed by millions of fans worldwide. In the first two weeks since State of Decay 2 launched, more than two million fans joined the fight to survive and took down more than two billion zombies. By entering into a letter of intent to acquire Undead Labs, Microsoft is signaling its commitment to growing the franchise and taking the zombie survival-fantasy genre to new

Compulsion Games. As We Happy Few nears its full, multiplatform release on Aug. 10, Microsoft has entered into a letter of intent to acquire Montreal-based Compulsion Games. By joining the team at Microsoft Studios, Compulsion will have the resources, platform and freedom to take even bigger creative risks and create even more ambitious worlds with its future projects.

spectre>
Har de sagt noget om, om Metro 2033 Exodus bliver liniært som de tidligere spil eller om det bliver open world?

Greaseball>
Oh! Det kunne være fedt.

Nice. Nyt Devil May Cry. DMC5

Bede-x>
Håber skam også de finder en mere original tilgangsvinkel. I det hele taget så jeg gerne grinding og alt det bras design det fører med sig, smidt ud af langt majoriteten af titler det optræder i, men det er noget helt andet. Det jeg mente var, at de er nødt til at finde på et eller andet, for det virker ikke den måde franchisen kører på nu. Derfor er det fint, at de tager tiden til at lave noget nyt, også hvis fantasien ikke rækker længere end til, hvad der er populært pt, men forhåbentlig er ambitionerne større end det.

Det bedste ville selvfølgelig være, hvis de lavede en helt ny franchise, men det har vist ingen chance for at ske..

Gears Tactics (Windows 10 Exclusive – World Premiere)
Finally, Gears Tactics is the true Gears of War PC experience that our fans have been asking for. Developed in partnership with Splash Damage, Gears Tactics evolves turn-based tactics games combining signature fast-paced brutal action and character-driven storytelling with customizable squads, upgradable weapons, and of course, massive boss battles.

Phil Spencer, who ran Xbox’s game development studios for years, was made executive vice-president of gaming within the company in September 2017. This finally put Xbox on equal footing with Windows and Office within Microsoft – and put a gamer in the room with the CEO and CTO of the company. This has meant big changes for the Xbox business, and apparently huge investment in creative video game talent.

Matt Booty, who was previously in charge of Minecraft, has taken Phil’s place as head of Microsoft Studios. “It was a big vote of confidence for Xbox and for gaming to have our gaming work sitting side by side with some of the other big pillars of Microsoft,” he says. “We really see that as a signal for long-term investment, in our existing franchises and in starting new things.”

Phil Spencer is frank about the reasons for this relatively sluggish performance. “We launched a box that was underpowered compared to the Playstation, and more expensive because of the inclusion of [motion-sensing camera] Kinect in every box,” he says. “Underpowered and overpriced was … not the right model for us. We had shipped some of our franchises too frequently, which had made them lose some of the anticipation that’s important in the entertainment industry. Our studios had lost leaders, which meant they were the studio that they had been before in name rather than in function.”

Microsoft’s recent investment in game studios is the start of remedying situation, enabling Xbox to take more creative risks, says Phil.
“The entertainment business is a portfolio business,” he adds. “Most games don’t work. Most movies don’t work; most books don’t work. The worst thing you can do is say, I’m going to create a hit game: if you’re going to create one game, the maths says it’s not gonna work, though of course there are exceptions. When you’re trying to do new things with video games, or another entertainment medium, your hit rate is 20-30%.”