Xbox Could Copy PlayStation Studios’ Success Model – But It Won’t
Sony has continually won recent console generations thanks to exclusive games from first-party studios, but Microsoft's head of Xbox , Phil Spencer, isn't taking the proven approach. | Source: Dan Steinberg/Invision for Xbox/AP Images
- Microsoft plans to unveil its slate of first-party Xbox Series X games later this month.
- Xbox boss Phil Spencer says the company won’t be replicating the output from rival Sony.
- The latest insider information points to July 23 as the most likely date for Xbox’s showcase.
Ahead of Microsoft’s first-party Xbox Series X game showcase later this month, Xbox boss Phil Spencer has offered hints about what fans should expect.
Microsoft aims to set itself apart with a slate of unannounced titles that don’t replicate what the competition is doing, namely next-gen rival Sony.
Speaking in a Gamelab Live fireside discussion with journalist Seth Schiesel , Spencer explained Xbox’s goals. The notion of differentiating itself from what other publishers are doing is crucial to the company’s strategy moving forward. Spencer reckons the strategy is also pivotal to ensuring the industry continues to evolve.
Xbox Won’t Replicate Sony
When quizzed about how Microsoft sees Xbox’s first-party studios stacking up to Sony’s portfolio, Spencer said:
We are going to create our first-party around the things that we feel like we need to do in order to stand up for Xbox. Sometimes we get suggestions of, where’s your X game or, where’s your Y game, when people look at the other hardware platforms. But I don’t think our goal is to replicate what other people have done. It doesn’t help the industry to have people that are trying to do exactly the same thing with their platforms, services, or content.
Offering more specifics about how Microsoft first-party output will differ from the competition, Spencer explained:
I’m really proud of the diversity of content that our Xbox Game Studios’ teams are creating. Genres, art styles, platforms, gameplay, single-player, multiplayer, cooperative work that’s coming along. I think that’s going to continue, that will be a mainstay for us. It won’t be about a certain kind of genre or a certain kind of story. The teams are led by their own vision and what they want to build.
Grapevine rumblings suggest Microsoft plans to broadcast its first-party game Inside Xbox showcase on the week starting July 20 . Venture Beat’s increasingly reputable Jeff Grubb pinpoints July 23 as the most likely date .
