In a recent interview for IGN, Phil Spencer returned to the events of the last few days. The Xbox boss welcomed the decision to exit Hi-Fi Rush in the “Shadow Drop”. He also expressed his appreciation for the game, praising the art, music, and gameplay. However, it is a more global picture of the coming year that he has sketched.
Don’t repeat past mistakes
He also acknowledged that Xbox had a slight release schedule in 2022. A critical point that teams need to improve in 2023 to deliver more memorable games to fans.
[…] Our commitment to our fans is that we need to keep releasing great games for people to play on our platform, and we certainly haven’t done enough of that in 2022. And basically it’s my fault. I’m the head of the company.
Spencer remembered this in particular starfieldBethesda’s next big title will have its own event to continue this positive momentum.
Regarding upcoming releases for several Xbox games, he’s hesitant to talk about releases too far in advance, but stresses the importance of showing gameplay and setting solid release dates for these titles. A point that came up again this Wednesday after the presentation Forza Motorsport which received a platonic “2023”.
I know there have been some questions about the Forza Motorsport date since we just mentioned the year. Everyone should know that the quality Turn 10 brings to motorsport given the history will be present in this game. That’s the most important thing above all, and we’ll give you a date, no doubt, when we get a little closer.
The future of Halo and its studio
Asked about the case Halo infinity, Spencer reiterated the importance of the franchise and 343 Industries to Microsoft. Coming back to recent layoffs at the studio and more generally, Spencer names them ” necessary “ for the long-term stability and success of the studio and franchise.
More broadly, it’s the future of big-budget, so-called AAA productions that Spencer sees as increasingly challenging across the industry.
[…] Every year people come with bigger ideas and plans for the games we make. But it’s about making sure the teams are ready to be successful with the games we’re making across the industry, that we really have the production skills to make sure we can deliver when we do collaborating with our customers on the release date of the games the quality and timing we expect.
Spencer, would he be pointing out games that were announced a couple of years ago that we haven’t seen since? Possibly, just like the postponements of many games in recent months can be.
Activision Blizzard acquisition on track
Regarding the Activision-Blizzard acquisition, Phil Spencer says he’s in a much better position than he was a year ago. He is more comfortable with the necessary procedures and more confident than ever that the two companies can achieve amazing things together. He reaffirms the goal of the mobile market and works with the regulators to approve the operation and gain the experience « educational ».
Lots of time, lots of travel, lots of conversations, but these are conversations where I can talk about our industry and our work and why we do it. I think the better educated regulators know what gaming is, how the industry works, who the players are and what our aspirations are as Team Xbox, that’s a good thing for the industry itself.
