Say One Thing, But Do Another–The Microsoft Way

Image Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcZD__XquCk

I apologize for not getting back to blogging now that school is out, but I’m furiously working on my dissertation (among other things) and the blog has taken a backseat to my other writing. Also, I find that I’m really not motivated to write blogs as much as I used to be as companies like Digital Trends (see my previous blog), YouTube, and Microsoft are pretty much killing my desire to really engage with technology, videos, and video games in the same way that I used to. When a company tells me that I’m the problem as to why we can’t get good movies in a franchise, or when they throw up ad after ad in a futile bid to force me to their premium (non-ad supported tier) or when a company, like Microsoft is like a cancer to the game community, it really takes all the enjoyment out of covering those areas. I find that I spend all my time being aggrieved at the corporate practices of certain companies, making it hard to enjoy the “spell” that the entertainment is supposed to weave.

Microsoft Takes the Cake (and EVERYTHING ELSE If They Can Get Away With It)

According to PushSquare, “It isn’t Microsoft’s Intent to take Games Away from the PlayStation Community” with it’s acquisition strategy. You can click the link above to read the full article or you can click here: https://www.pushsquare.com/news/2022/06/xbox-on-acquisitions-the-last-thing-we-want-to-do-is-take-games-away-from-ps5-ps4.

And yet . . .

That is EXACTLY their strategy with games like Starfield, Elder Scrolls 6, and the majority of the Bethesda game line-up appearing on Microsoft ONLY platforms. As many of the commenters on the news story rightly point out, you can’t say this and then turn around and do the opposite. However, that’s what Microsoft is often known for–using their marketing department to cajole people into buying their products/buying into their ecosystem at the cost of consumer choice. And unfortunately, people are all to often swayed Microsoft’s promises rather than compelling content. This bit people rather badly in the X-Box One era with Microsoft’s initial “Draconian policies,” but it’s been enough time that people have forgotten what Microsoft tried to get away with in terms of gaming.

Pulling the Wool Over the Eyes of Consumers

Here we go again . . .

And yet, for all of Microsoft’s protestations that they don’t want to fragment the gaming market, nor do they want to “take anything away” from gamers (particularly Sony gamers), here is this little nugget also picked up by PushSquare, but published on other video game news sites: Xbox Appeared to Embargo PS5, PS4 Versions of Some Showcase Games (https://www.pushsquare.com/news/2022/06/xbox-appeared-to-embargo-ps5-ps4-versions-of-some-showcase-games).

Essentially, standard practice is to allow 3rd party developers, those developing the games independently of the platform, to clarify what a game is coming out for immediately after release of trailer/marketing materials. Yes, Street Fighter 6 appeared during Sony State of Play, but savvy gamers know that unless it says, “exclusive” or “console exclusive,” it’s more that likely coming out for other platforms (including Microsoft’s) either the same date as Playstation’s version (called “day and date release”) or sometime thereafter with some sort of “window” of exclusivity.

However, according to the news story published on several sites, Microsoft, “embargoed” certain companies from issuing clarifying press releases until 48 hours after their showcase had aired. Why would a company want/need to do this? Oh, I don’t know, but perhaps to drive FOMO and FUD into the minds of consumers might be a reasonable explanation. FOMO (or Fear of Missing Out) means that if someone doesn’t see that a game they are interested is coming to a competing platform, then they may want to buy the platform it was announced on so they don’t miss out on the game. FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt) works much the same way in that if you muddy/cloud the waters then the consumer will just go with the platform they saw it announced for rather that take the time to discover if it is coming to multiple venues.

In Closing–The Same Old Microsoft

This is why I’m so unmotivated to write blogs. Microsoft hasn’t changed. This is the SAME STUFF that I was writing about years ago.

Microsoft want to be #1. And they will use pretty much ANY strategy (even underhanded ones like this one) to accomplish their goals. And they don’t want to be #1 for the benefit of the gamer–no, they want to be #1 so that they can have the power of the dominant position.) Many think that Microsoft has lost its desire to have an Xbox One like structure where your games are “locked down” and you need to “phone home” to validate them.

I wouldn’t count on that.

Microsoft’s own strategy of saying one thing (we want games to exist on both platforms even though we are acquiring studios), but doing another (locking down the games they think are premier/premium experiences AND instituting non-standard embargoes as to clarifying what games are appearing where) really cast doubt as to whether this company will ever be able to be trusted by gamers.

It’s so discouraging to see gamers, consumers, and the press get dazzled by the low prices of “loss leaders” like Gamepass and the sheer hubris of a company that is FAR MORE ANTI-CONSUMER than Sony ever will be (even though Sony can’t shake that impression no matter how much it tries) because it acquires studios and then shunts the premium games off to its own platform, leaving the “crumbs” for other platforms to satisfy Anti-Trust concerns.

While both Sony and Microsoft are multi-million dollar corporations, only Microsoft is willing to consistently use its power in ways that I find, at best distasteful, and at worst, downright manipulative.

So, as I close this particular blog post (& internally vow to try turn my attention to the games that Sony has announced–even if they will also appear on the Xbox–something Microsoft, with all its millions, seemed unwilling to do for 48 hours), I note this little reminder/warning:

Don’t be too surprised if, one day in the future, maybe sooner, maybe later, on your shiny new Microsoft Xbox platform that you see all the features listed below make a (revamped) return and please remember that at least one person said, “I told you so”:

Sidney

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