Head of Xbox, Phil Spencer, has said in an exchange on Twitter that exclusivity deals for downloadable content “doesn’t feel like growth.” In a conversation with fans, one of whom asked if Microsoft was still interested in new IPs rather than marketing deals, Spencer said:
Paying marketing funds so another consoles base can’t play a piece of content doesn’t feel like growth.
Elsewhere, he said that console gaming needs to grow and it’s important to strike a balance between launching new IPs and continuing to go back to old games and existing markets. “Old keeps core happy, new can grow market,” he explained. “Redoing launch portfolio will keep some happy but we should all want all of gaming to be growing.”
Spencer’s comments on industry growth aren’t surprising. This year, several sequels either didn’t meet expectations or didn’t live up to their predecessors in terms of sales and reception. A balance between new IPs and revisiting old ones is understandably the way forward.
[Source: Phil Spencer (Twitter)]
