It was time ! After two speeches and a relatively busy week of announcements and surprises, Xbox has just achieved flawless communication. An extremely well managed time with little or nothing to complain about. And yet the risk was great. Between an E3 conference, the content of which might be worrisome, and an Xbox Games Showcase Extended, the shape of which was unprecedented, Phil Spencer and his teams were far from being on conquered ground. But the result is there, terribly exciting, so that we already have only one wish: that Xbox resets the cover!
Imprint of Phil Spencer
We had all felt a change since Phil Spencer took over Xbox. The iconic boss has indeed instilled some really positive momentum into the X for the brand for several years.
To talk about its consoles, Xbox has been going strong for a number of years. E3 2019 and the formalization of Project Scarlett were a huge success. The presentation of the Xbox Series X at the Game Awards that year? An extraordinary hit. And the provision of this console in the hands of Digital Foundry completed an ideal picture. Microsoft had a powerful console and was trusted enough to test it out eight months before it was released.
However, in order to win in the minds and hearts of the players, games were required. And because of this, Microsoft has stalled for a long time. Despite 15 in-house studios dedicated to delivering powerful experiences for the brand, the Xbox Games Showcase in July 2020 was disappointing. His too many trailers in CGI had cast doubt on the players. Halo infinite had sowed doubts in the players. Granted, we knew the potential was there, but we also knew that Xbox was capable of standing on the carpet and ruining months of work with a bad conference. But that has not been the case for the past few days.
The best Xbox conference in history?
During E3 2021, Xbox just produced one of the best conferences in its history. With a dynamic show without unnecessary talk and false promises, the manufacturer gives gamers what they want more than anything: new announcements, games galore and an indispensable Xbox Game Pass. Within 90 minutes, Phil Spencer and his teams reassured the players and erased the memory of the 2020 showcase.
Better still, by concentrating its most important announcements during a large showcase, Microsoft made sure not to forget the games that were already announced with a different format. The Xbox Games Showcase Extended thus went back in more detail to certain announcements and also made it possible to receive new information on expected titles. Far from Nintendo Direct or Playstation, far from the boredom of the Inside Xbox of yore, Microsoft seems to have found a formula that is perfectly tailored to its needs. An ideal round table for updating titles under development in the company of the developers.
Result? We come from these two conferences with images of games on our minds and a feeling that the best is finally coming our way. Because this time Xbox has not forgotten a large part of the hits that were seen with releases near us. Flight simulation is only a few days away from us. Psychonauts 2, Hades or 12 minutes are only a few weeks away. And Halo infinite or Forza Horizon 5, the two main courses that appear this year will land next November. Relatively short deadlines, reinforced by a year 2022, which promises to be exciting thanks to now Redfall or Star field. Yes, definitely, since Phil Spencer took over Xbox, we’d all felt a change.
Now we can finally say it: things have changed!
