During an interview, Phil Spencer, the boss of Xbox returned to the war between PlayStation and Xbox, but not only. He also mentioned Starfield, .
Xbox Game Studios boss and head of Xbox’s product arm, Phil Spencer appeared during a lengthy interview that aired on the Kinda Funny Games YouTube channel. In small form, the man mentioned the failure of the Xbox One against the PS4, but also that of Redfall. On top of that, he doesn’t seem the most optimistic about the future, even with the upcoming release of Starfield.
Xbox lost the war against PlayStation
Some players will criticize Phil Spencer for his lack of combativeness. Others will praise his lucidity. In either case, the boss of Xbox wants cash: PlayStation has won the console war on the eighth generation (PS4 and Xbox One). “Microsoft has lost a battle but not the war”, one would be tempted to think. It is not however the opinion of Phil Spencer who affirms that it was about “the worst generation” on which to get ahead. He explains this by the democratization of digital. Today, games are sold mainly in dematerialized versions. However, players already connected to an ecosystem and having a large library of games on it are unlikely to look elsewhere. In fact, Xbox may never be able to catch up, he says.
We’re not here to outdo Sony or Nintendo. There really is no silver bullet or victory for us. I know this will upset a ton of people. But the truth is, when you’re in third place in the console market and the top two players are as strong as they are (…) it’s tough for Xbox. Our goal is for everyone to have a great experience.
Phil Spencer, via Kinda Funny Games
The absence of a miracle with Starfield
With the acquisition of Bethesda, Xbox should still be able to rely on large exclusives in the coming years. The next is none other than Starfield, scheduled for September. And if we are promised mountains and wonders and in particular an irreproachable technique far from what Redfall, the boss of Xbox Game Studios believes that the title will not work miracles. In other words, it will not allow the manufacturer to compete with Sony and PlayStation.
I see a lot of pundits who (talk about when) every new generation was a revival and you could drastically change console market shares drastically. But that is not the world we live in today. There is no world where Starfield gets an 11/10 and where people would start reselling their PS5s. It will not arrive.
Be careful, this obviously does not mean that Starfield will be bad. Only, even a very good game would not overturn the PS5, according to Phil Spencer. let’s remember that Starfield will be released on September 6, 2023 on PC and console exclusively on Xbox Series.
