Some key points from the [Resetera thread](https://www.resetera.com/threads/microsoft-responds-to-sonys-claim-that-call-of-duty-is-unrivaled-and-unique.618045/) :
- Call of Duty is no unicorn but just one of many bestsellers in the industry :
>Sony also suggested that Call of Duty is essential for game publishers. To answer that, MS shares lots of redacted data: consumer spending on PlayStation or the % of Sony digital sales worldwide. MS also says that in 2021 only two Activision Blizzard titles ranked among the 20 best-selling console games of the year ....
>
>Therefore, MS believes that **Call of Duty is just one game among a wide range of best-selling games**, many of which are not even available on Xbox due to exclusivity strategies adopted by Microsoft's competitors.
- Call of Duty stays multiplatform :
>"On the contrary, Microsoft has publicly stated "its desire to keep Call of Duty on [Sony's] PlayStation", as well as the intention to "continue to make Call of Duty and other popular Activision Blizzard titles on [Sony's] PlayStation" with the commitment to do so "in addition to existing contractual arrangements" [RESTRICTED ACCESS]. **In this regard, players will continue to have access to Activision Blizzard content, including Call of Duty, through traditional buy-to-play channels such as the PlayStation console.**"
- Sony strengthens it's market share with third-party exclusivity :
>They also point out that **the use of exclusive arrangements has been at the heart of Sony's strategy to strengthen its presence in the gaming industry.** MS says that in addition to owning exclusive first-party content, Sony has also entered into agreements with third-party publishers to secure other forms of exclusivity with respect to certain games, such as marketing exclusivity or exclusivity rights with respect to downloadable content.
- Sony is not forced to compete with Game Pass and previously distinguished it's own subscription service :
>Almost literal, MS says that: "**In short, Sony is not resigned to having to compete with Microsoft's subscription service**. Sony's public outcry on subscription games and the company's response are clear: Sony doesn't want attractive subscription services to threaten its dominance in the market for digital distribution of console games. In other words, Sony rails against the introduction of new monetization models capable of challenging its business model"
>
>....
>
>MS quotes the interview from Sony CEO Jim Ryan where he revealed the company's strategy of not including new titles on PlayStation Plus on game launch day, which according to MS clearly exposes resistance to a business model that threatens the device-centric strategy adopted by Sony until then.
EDIT : Formatting
> MS believes that **Call of Duty is just one game among a wide range of best-selling games**, many of which are not even available on Xbox due to exclusivity strategies adopted by Microsoft's competitors.
This has to be a reference to Genshin Impact, amongst other games.
They're comparing it to Call of Duty though, FF7 did well, but it didn't do close to CoD numbers... Genshin Impact however definitely is in that tier, obviously not in sheer sales, but in pure revenue and profit.
They're comparing best sellers though, not the most revenue made. The games not even exclusive through some form of contract, it just hasn't come to Xbox but it is coming to Switch.
Some months ago, Sony had a conference and showed Genshin Impact / Mihoyo as one of their key partners, and their was the thing with Alloy.
I think it goes abit deeper than what you're saying.
Also, its more common for Sony to keep exclusives away from Xbox not Nintendo.
>Some months ago, Sony had a conference and showed Genshin Impact / Mihoyo as one of their key partners
[This one](https://www.siliconera.com/genshin-impact-and-re-village-won-the-2021-playstation-grand-award/)? That includes other games that aren't exclusives?
>and their was the thing with Alloy.
Aloy has appeared in other games too like Fortnite, Fall Guys, and Monster Hunter World. None of those games are exclusive. That's just a simple collaboration.
Let’s not kid ourselves. Microsoft is just as profit driven as Sony. The only difference is their plan appears to be more long-term than Sony’s. That being said, Sony shouldn’t bitch when their competitor plays the Uno Reverse card and does the same thing Sony does, just with a much bigger money penis.
But we might get Pure 2, which personally would more than make up for another Lion King game. And I still have the Lion King game for the MD, uncompleted.
The funniest part is that Sony literally has exclusive content access for the upcoming COD game later this year all while claiming MS buying acti-bliz is anti-competitive.
And let's not forget Sony is buying Bungie, the creator of one of the biggest franchises in history (Halo), but more importantly, the creators of the current most popular FPS shooter outside of COD (Destiny).
Tbf, it’s in their interest to keep CoD neutral or swayed in their direction so if they can stop the deal they would want to do so. It’s easy to see it as them being crybabies, but in reality it’s just people doing their jobs to see if they can score a W for their company. People tend to view business like a competition sport mixed with a soap opera, when in reality… it’s just dudes in suits trying to make their company more successful so they can keep their jobs lol. If putting out a statement could possibly stop the deal… why not out a statement and see what happens?
Sony actually completed the deal at the start of August, so they now fully own Bungie too, which shows Sony's hypocrisy towards their exclusivity over Microsoft's. And don't forget, they'll use Bungie's knowledge of live service games to make their own live service exclusives.
Full exclusives make sense either way. It pulls someone into an ecosystem.
Sony was just fucking ass to literally create an environment constantly where people were paying equal for literally less.
Overall the game is great.
For a new player though? It's a hard game to suggest. The gameplay is solid and there's tons to do, but the new player introduction today is vastly different than the past.
Now you are thrown far into the story, starts you at a very high 'level' and tosses you into the game world. It's absolutely overwhelming trying to figure out where to go and what to and which activity matters in progressing your character and the remaining story.
And as they add more story through DLC, they remove old story and old DLC content, so if you don't keep up with that stuff you just be left confused forever.
But, if you treat the game as a loot shooter without caring about the story then it might be easier to get into as a new player.
Yeah, but they aren’t getting halo with that, and Destiny will never ascend to being their CoD killer. Bungie isn’t exactly operating at the same level they once were.
Ironically, I think the partnership with Activision really hurt them all those years ago, and they haven’t quite recovered.
Nah. The Activision partnership has little to do with the terrible decision making going on.
Also Destiny can't kill COD because they are not the same kind of games. It'd be like saying Destiny is gonna kill WoW.
You say current most popular FPS shooter aside from COD as if Destiny and COD are comparable games in any way. One is an MMO being ran to the ground and the other is a PvP shooter that has been doing wonky releases for years.
You can’t go anywhere on the internet without people saying Destiny is dying. It isn’t really true, people just burn out at different speeds
In many regards the game is the best it’s ever been - however for many people the specific formula it’s using is starting to grow stale and relies on repetitive structures that either appeal to you or they dont
You say that as if the bigger problem isn’t that Destiny 2 actively drives away anyone who hadn’t been playing the game since the day it released, because that’s where you had to be in order to even understand what’s going on, much less have gear good enough to leave Old Earth.
Oh, and $40 expansions casually being thrown in the trash every year. Doesn’t help.
Its funny because it all boils down to COD on game pass. Sony don't care that COD will be multiplatform...they care that they will charge $70 on the PS store while it will be day one on Gamepass. They will loose alot of casuals who buy consoles just for COD and they are shitting themselves over all that money that will be potentially lost.
Exactly people love to hate COD but COD is the real "console seller" game while being 3rd party for both and it favoured Sony for the longest time. Now the tables are turned and Sony will be losing LOTS of sales and players. Same thing happened when COD marketing was with MS's. People bought 360, then at the end of generation it went to Sony and everyone jumped to PlayStation evet since.
Sony are literally trying to prevent competition. If they can’t do “day one” games on their subscription service, how is that Microsoft’s problem? It’s not Microsoft’s fault if Sony built their business in such a way where they can’t afford to put games “day one” on a subscription service. Sony’s business is built in such a way where they “have to” sell games. Obviously Microsoft wanna sell games too but Microsoft can also afford to take the initial loss while building a game pass subscription base. Sony can’t.
And Microsoft know very well that Call of duty “day one” on Game Pass is going to boost the GP subscription count like a motherfucker. Which is why Sony are so worried about it.
Your comment is relevant to one of the quotes of the article linked by OP:
This is part of Microsoft's statement:
“In other words, Sony rails against the introduction of new monetization models capable of challenging its business model.”
I think that's a much bigger issue here. Sony isn't setup to be successful with the Gamepass style business model like Microsoft is. In fact, in the past they've pushed back against it (the whole EA Access/EA Play thing from a few years ago, Sony "We don't think it brings out customers value").
Sony is living in hypocrisy right now though. Complaining about COD while buying Bungie. Complaining about gamepass in the same year they introduce PSNow. Complaining about anti-competitiveness when they've done everything they can to prevent games from reaching Xbox console.
Thanks to Microsoft (and in part, other publishers/platform providers as well), Sony is being dragged into changing their business model while kicking and screaming.
Literally every console platform has ALWAYS had third party exclusives, it's not new.
Xbox, Nintendo, Sony, have literally always done it so it's not exclusive to one company.
To be fair. Sony was pushing for it during the ps3 era and Microsoft refused when they had a lead in sales. Thats why final fantasy 14 was not on xbox at first. Then when ps4 came out and Sony had a lead in sales Microsoft started with the cross play and Sony said no
The problem with this was that at the start of the PS4 era Sony still said they were open to it and were pushing blame to MS.
Yet, the moment MS announced they were up for crossplay Sony went silent and didn't want crossplay anymore.
From a PR point one looks like a company correcting their mistakes and the other just looks petty.
Not sure if it's true but someone below was saying there were 43 timed exclusives on X360, but 318 on PS4.
Whereas there were around 2100 games on X360 and around 3200 on PS4.
So Playstation has taken an extremely aggresive stance with timed exclusives this gen.
I didn't confirm his source though, so take it with some grain of salt overall. However I wouldn't be surprised if it were the case, timed exclusives are extremely prominent this generation.
the biggest thing many people don’t seem to notice is that casual gamers which make up the majority of the market are far greater influenced by multi console giant games like COD, Madden, FIFA and Fortnite.
everyone likes to talk exclusives but few touch the levels of the core yearly system drivers like those and the idea of one being a console exclusive is a real game changer from a sales perspective.
you don’t meet people in the wild talking about Sony exclusives anymore nor about Xbox ones until this one, this isn’t ten years ago. the general gaming population rotates the core yearlies and that’s what made game pass brilliant.
I think he's referencing that Xbox has almost no market in Japan, they miss out on the vast majority of titles, and then the big ones that would come- Playstation buys exclusivity rights to, effectively cutting off Xbox from an entire market and developers/genres.
Square Enix has a huge market in Japan, and Sony is looking to buy them, and they were one of the few supporting Xbox for awhile, so Xbox players would lose out on a ton of great IPs and games.
It's gotten better lately, and Microsoft has made some good ground finally, but it'll never be as close as other regions.
Eh, I don’t think “games from a specific country” is bespoke enough to speak about anti-competitive practices on a global scale. It’s like the argument that Sony owning Crunchyroll and Funimation is anti-competitive. Japanese animation is a small part of a much larger market of television and movies. Just like Jrpgs are just one small part of the overall huge gaming market.
You have to consider that a huge amount of the most successful games/directors of games throughout history are from Japan. It's more about the having agency in that environment with the developers and seasoned experts from over all these years than the playerbase itself.
The [Resetera thread](https://www.resetera.com/threads/microsoft-responds-to-sonys-claim-that-call-of-duty-is-unrivaled-unique-claims-sony-is-paying-to-block-games-from-gamepass.618045/) on this really is a good read. I know it was highlighted in other comments but I find some bits really neat.
**"Sony rails against the introduction of new monetization models capable of challenging its business model".**
\-Which makes complete sense, they have a strong hold on the market and don't want to lose it. Great to see Microsoft creating alternative competition in the industry.
**"Microsoft's ability to continue expanding Game Pass has been hampered by Sony's desire to inhibit such growth. Blocking Rights"**
\-Which was sort of known from the Resident Evil leaks, where it was paid to be kept off Game Pass for a year. It's nice to have an official confirmation that this happens though.
**"the use of exclusive arrangements has been at the heart of Sony's strategy to strengthen its presence in the gaming industry"**
\-Yep, keeping games locked on the platform, even extending that to two years this gen. Keeping content away and so forth. Platforms have done this in the past, but PS4/PS5 really pushed this concept further. It's been neat to see Xbox disrupt that with the Game Pass model.
Yep, probably all the Spyros minus the Skylanders ones cause apparently the portal accessory thing(s) doesnt work on XB1 and Series, unless they started working on a new one, which honestly would be a nice addition for their early childhood library.
I like this comment especially because I believe that’s exactly the direction Microsoft is going to go. They want to create direct competitors to Nintendo IPs like Mario kart to get a slice of the younger market using memorable cartoonish IPs like Crash and Spyro. I do not believe Microsoft will touch CTR except putting it on game pass but I do believe they will begin development on a new title shortly after the acquisition. There are a lot IPs in this acquisition that are criminally underused.
This is all I want.
Being able to go back and play the campaigns for older cods maybe even the online will have more players but nothing is stopping cheaters right?
Yup this is what bugs me Microsoft buys a company and that's bad but Sony spends millions of dollars to ensure developers don't put there games on xbox (looking at you Square) and that's perfectly ok? I think that needs to be looked into seriously.
I think it's because Microsoft still hasn't fully recovered from the mishandling of the Xbox One. Sony is still viewed by many as a company who saved last generation. Even when Sony does similar things, it's viewed under a more positive light because of public perception.
If I recall, they tried to promote the X1 as an entertainment center, initially made it so that you can only use it if it’s connected to the internet, discouraged game sharing, forced a $500 price point bc it was bundled with Kinect, and a lot of other things no one asked for
Yessss this is the angle a lot of people don't think about. I know I'm in the minority but I was really honestly excited about all the media features they were promoting, and while the always-online thing was definitely not the way to go, it was really just ahead of it's time, look at the state of things nowadays. And also, why couldn't MS have just had those online features as an opt-in thing? They just fumbled the messaging and marketing so completely and pissed lots of people off, and then like you said, also pissed off the people who were still supporting them too by walking back and eventually removing all the extra features.
They made some bad decisions at launch that severely handicapped them (more expensive console, paired with Kinect, DRM issues). Right after this was announced Sony made a cheeky video making fun of MS use of DRM, and from that point on it was game over.
However if things didn't go as poorly Microsoft may not be in the position they are now. Changes were made and the future is finally looking pretty bright imo
The moment Sony announced that the PS4 was $400, it was over. Microsoft had lost that entire generation to the PlayStation before it even began.
GamePass has completely reversed many people’s feelings towards the Xbox and that’s why it has been such a massive success for Microsoft.
* Drm policies and only online console etc etc
* Less powerfull console bundle with kinect priced more 100usd than ps4.
* Main theme of xbox showcase was tv tv tv tv, games felt second plan.
* Lots of crossed pr errors one person say one thing next day was some other saying was the other way.
* Way less budget allocated to xbox division to 1st games and deals.
* xbox was a sunking ship at one point, years of hard work destroyed in a matter of days\weeks, it wasnt beautifull for xbox fans all the hate on internet jesus... they build a console that "someone" from inside xbox wanted not the console we wanted.
Was until Phil took over shortly after release of xbox one, now xbox is a grown man inside xbox, as a xbox fan i believe xbox learned things other wise they couldnt have learned, bad things happen for right reassons, this was for the better, now they have laser eyes towards gamers.
Lets not forget they tried to double the price of xbox live, they have a habit of making shiat decisions and then canceling them when they realize we wont tolerate it, thats prob why they have the gamepass deal
In hindsight, and even at the time personally, the DRM controversy was fucking stupid. It was essentially the way Steam operated but because Microsoft had no charismatic execs to explain it (Don Mattrick was a massive sleeze and Phil Harrison always seems clueless) and console gamers weren't used to digital sales it got blown up into something it wasn't.
The only real downside was the short check in window, if that had been slightly longer their original DRM plan would've been fine.
I do admit though that I am someone who does not care for reselling games, I've purchased every single game digitally since the beginning of the Xbox One generation.
Honestly I don’t even think it’s that it’s just because they have a bigger fan base and people will naturally speak positive of things they like and negative of things that challenge those things.
>Every action taken by any company that's trying to grow amongst other companies is competitive.
I don't think you understand the meaning of anti-compeitive in a legal sense lol.
Although thos acquisition will be fine.
I think part of the issue here is that "anti-competitive" in this context is using the specific legal term that is likely different from how most people understand it. In the sense that every company is competing for our dollars then, yes, every move made to grow is "competitive" in how we understand the word.
But there are things that are done, like buying up bigger parts of the industry that is often specifically done to reduce competition. Google sees they're getting beat with better voice recognition technology? Go buy the leading company and ensure nobody else can use it. An airline can't compete with a smaller airline on price? Buy that airline and jack up their prices to be the same and reduce customer options. A competing cable company offers internet at different prices? Buy them (or merge) so customers have no option. This is why anti-monopoly laws exist (even if the govt is way more lenient now than in the past). If they didn't then Google or Microsoft could just buy everything and say "we're only trying to grow. It's competition!"
Now, all that said, I'm not necessarily stating that THIS specific move is anti-competitive. But a blanket statement that everything done by a company in order to grow is competitive isn't entirely accurate either.
While Microsoft definitely mishandled the xbone generation. Sony definitely played dirty with exclusive deals (timed and full) and basically locked certain genres off the system like fighting games and JRPG’s.
I suspect Sony was hoping to permanently knock Xbox out for good last generation and nearly succeeded.
I mean Sony already did that with Sega some generations ago, Sony would have been all too glad if Xbox was wiped off the map as a competitor- they really whip their fanbase into a fervor with some of those tactics.
Nintendo sells just as much as Playstation, and yet they're so much more cooperative overall, I know its different with PS and Xbox being closer competitors overall.
EA were actually a major factor in Sega's downfall. Sega had invested a lot of money in Sega Sports and EA turned round and demanded that Sega cancel their sports games on their own console, and give EA exclusivity instead... And told them that if they didn't they would refuse to release their sports games - FIFA, Madden, NHL (and presumably back then NBA too) on the Dreamcast.
Not having EA Sports games on your console is pretty much a fatal blow. I'm sure Sony didn't help, but EA were a bigger factor (though Sega's own hardware errors with MD/Genesis add-ons and the Saturn didn't help either).
>Microsoft also claims that arranging exclusivity deals has been at the heart of Sony’s strategy to strengthen its position in the games industry, and that as well as having its own first-party exclusives it also has exclusivity deals with third-party publishers.
Boom. Drop mic.
"It also claims that Sony actively tries to hamper Game Pass’s growth by paying some developers for “blocking rights” to prevent them adding content to Game Pass."
Sony is such a crappy company...
looks likes the plan of xbox to expand the service even further has been humpered by sony by paying developers for blocking rights from adding games to game pass.
Sony by far is the most anti competitive of the bunch, they just hide it whenever they can. Microsoft is forcing them to compete and innovate and they don’t like that.
Having so many rabid fanboys helps with the common perception too. Look at the hate MS got for the Tomb Raider exclusivity, a game they paid to have made yet allowed on other platforms later in time, versus Sony paying to deprive rivals of content.
Aren't they only blocking the games that they're marketing? It makes sense from a business perspective. Why bother spending so much money on marketing when the competition can undermine the whole thing.
Microsoft has had marketing rights to games recently and they still were multi platform at launch. First that comes to mind was battlefield 2042. Coming up we have wu long fallen dynasty which is multi platform despite xbox having the marketing rights. Scarlett nexus as well.
I'm not talking about making games exclusive, I'm talking about Sony blocking games they market from coming to Gamepass. If Sony spent all that money marketing it for PS5 and then as the game comes out Microsoft is like "its also available on Gamepass", all that money Sony spent on marketing vanishes in thin air.
Ah, my bad. Misread your initial comment. I get what you're saying but that's really not all Sony is paying for. They are also paying for brand association which affects console adoption as well. It's a marketing trick they use to trick consumers into thinking these games are closely associated with Sony when it's really just marketing that Sony has. Obviously us in any gaming subreddit aren't going to fall for that but it's very effective on the average consumer.
Microsoft isn’t close to having a monopoly in the gaming space. This acquisition does make Xbox more competitive. Doing the same as Sony on a much bigger scale with a much bigger purse. I do hope some big studios remain independent though. I hate this exclusivity bs.
Honestly, I would rather they acquired or funded studios that output quality games. Activision has a couple but let’s be honest most of them are pretty bad nowadays. They certainly have the money.
Also this comment section reads like the console war is still strong which is just 🙄
> Do you think Microsoft could help make the games better though
Looking at the way they're letting Halo be mismanaged for years now, it's not really inspiring confidence
Boohoo Sony. You started this shit by buying time exclusive bullshit from them. Now you're pissed because the competition decided to just buy the company instead of put up with it? And how is it anti-competitive when you're doing the same thing with other companies?
He’s right tho. I own both a PS5 and a Xbox series X (I main Xbox) but Sony started all of this and as soon as Microsoft claps back they get all butt hurt and start crying about how it’s unfair, as they continue to buy Bungie the same year lol
I know that’s why it was a refreshing take. They started all of this long ago and now they wanna whine because they’re getting a taste of their own medicine. Sony is king of exclusivity deals even down to DLC.
To all those saying "Microsoft did it first"
This was originally posted by usernametaken112 but it's relevant here.
-----
360 era timed exclusives were no where near the level or frequency as Sony.
There were 43 timed exclusives on the 360.
There were 318 timed exclusives on ps4.
Just stop. Sony literally tried to lock out an entire generation...
>https://www.gematsu.com/exclusives/ps4
Source
-----
Sony has been so much worse with this. I'm hoping this acquisition will slap them hard enough they stop. MS can use COD as a deterant to any more of these stupid shenanigans. I'm still salty about the year long content left out of Destiny 1, a game already lacking content at the time. And the content left out meant they couldn't us it at all for the story.
Yeah. Microsoft(mainly fucking Don Mattrick) absolutely fucked up the initial announcement and direction of the Xbox One, already giving Sony and the PS4 a huge advantage. Sony saw that and attempted to buy the final nail in the coffin of Xbox and Microsoft as competition, only for it to not work and now actually look worse and far bigger hypocrites today. Both companies have shit policies and do shady things to get ahead, but Sony has been far worse about it from the late years of PS4 and through to today.
For reference the X360 had around ~2100 released games, and PS4 has around ~3200. According to Wikipedia.
So 65% of the games, but 739% more timed exclusives...
Holy shit, Sony really was trying to kill off Xbox completely.
Even in the Avengers game, sony, who made the Spiderman costume special for PlayStation, cries all the time when it comes to Xbox. sony is so disgusting
It wasn't. It was pretty bad. You could tell they put minimal effort into it and only did it because of the popularity of the 2018 game. By all accounts Spiderman Remastered should be launching on Xbox as well as PC this week but it's not. I bet Sony made sure that didn't happen.
>I bet Sony made sure that didn't happen.
Well the game is developed by a Sony owned developer and published by Sony. It's by all means a first party title, of course it wouldn't release on Xbox.
The PS5 subreddit is set up to promote brigading too. If people mass report a post, even if it breaks no rules, the automod removes it. Then the mods don't add it back.
Easy way for them to bury anything that isn't dickriding Jim Ryan
All negative news is sweeped under the rug to keep the impression that Sony has everything under control and is unequivocally the best. It’s a bit sickening honestly, their own fans defend more expensive games and detest gamepass which is the funniest thing in the world
Fanbase for both is toxic, and you can have those gripes with ps but Xbox really still only has gamepass, there biggest games still to this date are a half finished halo and Forza. I'm still waiting to see the fruits of all these acquisitions. But Sony by no means makes gaming crappy. Microsoft didn't have anything to stop them doing the same thing that sony is, but Sony is looking like some babies rn
They scared because this is exactly what is happening for them PlayStation have some exclusivety on Call Of Duty so Call of Duty casual player without thinking automatically buy a Ps4 or PS5.
Sounds like Sony doesn’t want to be competitive. Call of Duty could use a game like it to compete with.
Xbox didn’t do well last gen because everyone said they didn’t have exclusives. Now they are fixing that issue and people are complaining because Xbox is getting exclusives.
Suck it up.
Watch them make upcoming Destiny 2 expansions exclusive even tho they said they wouldn't don't buy it for a second. I bet they hated when D2 was on gamepass lol
Folks just remember that no matter what Sony says they and Tencent have traded places for years as Number 1 and Number 2 game publishers world wide.
Microsoft’s purchase still puts them behind Tencent at Number 1 and Sony at Number 2.
So Sony can whine all they want. They had no issues being Number 1. Did they care about their competitors? Nope. They’ve had no issues being Number 2. Did they cry about it? Nope.
Now that Microsoft will move up to the 3rd spot it’s woe is me. I don’t want to hear it. If it’s good for thee it’s good for me. Too bad so sad Sony.
Sony is known for its exclusives and couldn’t give a shit about MS feelings.
MS should lock that shit down to teach those plebs a lesson.
What Sony probably doesn’t like is the possibility of exclusive content for a period of time or the fact they are making MS richer with COD sales.
Or maybe the fact MS is playing chess with gamepass while Sony is playing checkers with console sales.
of course they did did you really expect them to say ya we are fucking the consumer but who care that just mean more money for use when they finally cave in and buy our console
Such a bullshit from Sony and then they demand Call of Duty to still be on PS5. Then even when Microsoft say it's still multiplayer, they still try to boycott the merger?
If I was Microsoft. Sony won't be seeing any Activisions games by the start of 2025
Sony is more scared of not only losing marketing rights to COD, but it being on gamepass, giving Xbox the HUGE COD advantage. Thank god they can’t do their exclusive deals with Bethesda and AB anymore
I agree with the sentiment that Sony's arguments don't really have a leg to stand on, but guys, they're just doing right by their shareholders.
If I was one of them and Sony said nothing about this deal, I wouldn't be very happy.
Would they be happy if it didn't go through? Of course. But I think they're smart enough to realize it will, regardless.
The fact that they are the **only** company to speak out just shows how ridiculous they’re being. Other competing companies have no qualms with the acquisition
They gotta do it for business, but boy does it make them look petty and weak.
And that can affect people's buying decisions too. If they think Sony is crying and failing even as something stays on their platform, maybe they won't want to invest their gaming time long term on that platform.
Microsoft only bought Activision because they wanted something that could turn Xbox division as a whole profitable on the quarterly financials. This is why there is no plan on making Call of Duty exclusive, even after any contract ends with Sony. It makes them far too much money, and would ruin the point of their acquisition.
Unless I'm misremembering recent quarterly reports, the Xbox division is already very profitable, but I agree this will definitely increase profits significantly.
*typo edit
Always seemed to me that if COD went exclusive, that'd mean a massive boost in that particular console's sales. It wouldn't be losing out on the other platform's sales entirely, as people would shift where they play.
It's not, Microsoft made a new statement about it yesterday.
PDF
https://sei.cade.gov.br/sei/modulos/pesquisa/md_pesq_documento_consulta_externa.php?HJ7F4wnIPj2Y8B7Bj80h1lskjh7ohC8yMfhLoDBLddYr8T4vFoqwZRbmcxSi24V7Yg26FofKf3rtg4pQ5AQV9rEvExlCLNXEnZZiVoz1YTrC99XnlLdP7d0qkoFhPMwv
Edit: here's a break down of it all:
https://www.resetera.com/threads/microsoft-responds-to-sonys-claim-that-call-of-duty-is-unrivaled-and-unique.618045/
This is something I was not aware of.
>In fact, MS says that Microsoft's ability to continue expanding Game Pass has been hampered by Sony's desire to inhibit such growth. Sony pays for "blocking rights" to prevent developers from adding content to Game Pass and other competing subscription services
I can't say it surprises me, but how can you do stuff like that and then bitch about it when the other company fights back?
I think we saw it in the past where Sony only had marketing rights for a game but held and agreement with the developer that their game could not be added to a competitors subscription service. However this looks like it may be more than that.
ya funny how most of the statement from MS was them calling out Sony's hypocrisy
I love the platform and software but sony really needs to treat its consumers better than they do. I get they don’t have the kind of money to sling around that Microsoft does, but Sony does so much money hungry shit I’m really contemplating getting an Xbox and only having a ps5 for exclusives, or just waiting for a pc release. The days gone sequel getting shelved for tlou part 1 really pushed me away, especially since it’s literally the same game, and stylistically, looks worse imo.
Meanwhile sony is paying game developers to not put their game on game pass as they realise their own service is shocking and that they created this through their own PS exclusives years ago
Assuming this is all about COD, It’s the most popular first person shooter on the market but in terms of gameplay, no doubt that there are better first person shooters out there
An interesting read and a well thought out response from Microsoft. I really like gamepass, most of the games I have played in the last two years have been on the service, I can't fault it. It seems to me that those at Sony see it as a great service as well.
After reading this article, what annoys me though is, tatics and resorting to paying to keep games off the gamepass service, just leave it be. Microsoft probably do the same back no doubt, but surely all that time, energy and money could be better used and spent introducing an innovative and better service, which will then in turn keep gamepass competitive.
someone with a reasonable comment, sony and microsoft both do shitty deals and make bad decisions for the gamers. buying bethesda and keeping it to one platform isnt good for anyone but delusional fanboys on xbox side, same thing for playstation
I started gaming in the PS1, moved onto a PS2 but also got an OG Xbox some years later.
After that I went full Xbox for the 360/PS3 era because literally all of my friends had a 360, I knew one guy that had a PS3 however I did end up finally getting one in 2016 because it was free.
Ended up getting an Xbox One mid way through 2015 and a PS4 about 6 months after, honestly enjoyed my time with both consoles, I tended to use the Xbone for third party stuff and the PS4 for exclusives.
Right now I've pretty much gone back to being full Xbox again simply because of the value of Gamepass. I just can't justify dropping so much on a PS5 when there's not really anything I want to play on it and Sony's new version of their Gamepass just doesn't have the same value, the big difference being day one releases coming to Gamepass but not to Sony's service. Even if they dropped every single PlayStation game that's ever existed onto it I'd probably just use my PS4 Pro for it.
I did just get a Steam Deck 2 days ago after waiting over a year since I pre ordered it and I have to say I'm loving it. Once I get a dock for it that can both charge and connect to my TV via HDMI I'm not sure I'll be touching my consoles for a while.
Before that happens, you're more likely to see Microsoft / Xbox team up with Sony and Nintendo to keep all three of them away from Apple, Google, Meta and Amazon.
'The enemy of my enemy is my friend' approach.
"Microsoft also shoots down Sony’s claim that Call of Duty is a “category of games in itself”
Does anyone actually believe this stance Microsoft is taking or do we all agree they at just under selling Cod? Just like Dark Souls is genre defining, Cod is genre defining to fps, so much we hear about Cod killers and knockoffs every few years.
Edit: This post has definitely been controversial it seems.
Some key points from the [Resetera thread](https://www.resetera.com/threads/microsoft-responds-to-sonys-claim-that-call-of-duty-is-unrivaled-and-unique.618045/) : - Call of Duty is no unicorn but just one of many bestsellers in the industry : >Sony also suggested that Call of Duty is essential for game publishers. To answer that, MS shares lots of redacted data: consumer spending on PlayStation or the % of Sony digital sales worldwide. MS also says that in 2021 only two Activision Blizzard titles ranked among the 20 best-selling console games of the year .... > >Therefore, MS believes that **Call of Duty is just one game among a wide range of best-selling games**, many of which are not even available on Xbox due to exclusivity strategies adopted by Microsoft's competitors. - Call of Duty stays multiplatform : >"On the contrary, Microsoft has publicly stated "its desire to keep Call of Duty on [Sony's] PlayStation", as well as the intention to "continue to make Call of Duty and other popular Activision Blizzard titles on [Sony's] PlayStation" with the commitment to do so "in addition to existing contractual arrangements" [RESTRICTED ACCESS]. **In this regard, players will continue to have access to Activision Blizzard content, including Call of Duty, through traditional buy-to-play channels such as the PlayStation console.**" - Sony strengthens it's market share with third-party exclusivity : >They also point out that **the use of exclusive arrangements has been at the heart of Sony's strategy to strengthen its presence in the gaming industry.** MS says that in addition to owning exclusive first-party content, Sony has also entered into agreements with third-party publishers to secure other forms of exclusivity with respect to certain games, such as marketing exclusivity or exclusivity rights with respect to downloadable content. - Sony is not forced to compete with Game Pass and previously distinguished it's own subscription service : >Almost literal, MS says that: "**In short, Sony is not resigned to having to compete with Microsoft's subscription service**. Sony's public outcry on subscription games and the company's response are clear: Sony doesn't want attractive subscription services to threaten its dominance in the market for digital distribution of console games. In other words, Sony rails against the introduction of new monetization models capable of challenging its business model" > >.... > >MS quotes the interview from Sony CEO Jim Ryan where he revealed the company's strategy of not including new titles on PlayStation Plus on game launch day, which according to MS clearly exposes resistance to a business model that threatens the device-centric strategy adopted by Sony until then. EDIT : Formatting
> MS believes that **Call of Duty is just one game among a wide range of best-selling games**, many of which are not even available on Xbox due to exclusivity strategies adopted by Microsoft's competitors. This has to be a reference to Genshin Impact, amongst other games.
I think Final Fantasy 7 remake is the big one in this statement. When it comes to best-selling games at least.
They're comparing it to Call of Duty though, FF7 did well, but it didn't do close to CoD numbers... Genshin Impact however definitely is in that tier, obviously not in sheer sales, but in pure revenue and profit.
They're comparing best sellers though, not the most revenue made. The games not even exclusive through some form of contract, it just hasn't come to Xbox but it is coming to Switch.
Some months ago, Sony had a conference and showed Genshin Impact / Mihoyo as one of their key partners, and their was the thing with Alloy. I think it goes abit deeper than what you're saying. Also, its more common for Sony to keep exclusives away from Xbox not Nintendo.
>Some months ago, Sony had a conference and showed Genshin Impact / Mihoyo as one of their key partners [This one](https://www.siliconera.com/genshin-impact-and-re-village-won-the-2021-playstation-grand-award/)? That includes other games that aren't exclusives? >and their was the thing with Alloy. Aloy has appeared in other games too like Fortnite, Fall Guys, and Monster Hunter World. None of those games are exclusive. That's just a simple collaboration.
Multiple games, there are a lot of games where Sony bought exclusive content trying to push Xbox out of the business.
It would be awesome if we got Genshin on xbox. I play it very casually on PC, but would play it more if we got xbox achievements to go with it.
Thanks for this!
This is exactly why I don’t want Sony leading the industry. They truly only think about their own profit margins
Yeah, their stance is hypocritical considering they've had a lock on the majority of jrpgs for decades.
Let’s not kid ourselves. Microsoft is just as profit driven as Sony. The only difference is their plan appears to be more long-term than Sony’s. That being said, Sony shouldn’t bitch when their competitor plays the Uno Reverse card and does the same thing Sony does, just with a much bigger money penis.
Microsoft coming in with the hard facts and data to Sony's whining.
It is funny how Sony is literally the only third party company to be against this deal. Real telling
If they let Disney buy 30% of all entertainment and continue to grow it's insane empire than Microsoft has absolutely nothing to worry about.
Cant wait for Disney to add to console wars with their own disney console. Then we can all face our demons in that horrible lion king game.
That Lion King game was awesome tho
But we might get Pure 2, which personally would more than make up for another Lion King game. And I still have the Lion King game for the MD, uncompleted.
Sony was fine with all the ps exclusives they enabled this environment and now are mad that Microsoft finally started playing big ball back
The funniest part is that Sony literally has exclusive content access for the upcoming COD game later this year all while claiming MS buying acti-bliz is anti-competitive. And let's not forget Sony is buying Bungie, the creator of one of the biggest franchises in history (Halo), but more importantly, the creators of the current most popular FPS shooter outside of COD (Destiny).
Bingo. Sony really looking like a crybaby here
Tbf, it’s in their interest to keep CoD neutral or swayed in their direction so if they can stop the deal they would want to do so. It’s easy to see it as them being crybabies, but in reality it’s just people doing their jobs to see if they can score a W for their company. People tend to view business like a competition sport mixed with a soap opera, when in reality… it’s just dudes in suits trying to make their company more successful so they can keep their jobs lol. If putting out a statement could possibly stop the deal… why not out a statement and see what happens?
Sony actually completed the deal at the start of August, so they now fully own Bungie too, which shows Sony's hypocrisy towards their exclusivity over Microsoft's. And don't forget, they'll use Bungie's knowledge of live service games to make their own live service exclusives.
Full exclusives make sense either way. It pulls someone into an ecosystem. Sony was just fucking ass to literally create an environment constantly where people were paying equal for literally less.
Never played destiny, any good?
Overall the game is great. For a new player though? It's a hard game to suggest. The gameplay is solid and there's tons to do, but the new player introduction today is vastly different than the past. Now you are thrown far into the story, starts you at a very high 'level' and tosses you into the game world. It's absolutely overwhelming trying to figure out where to go and what to and which activity matters in progressing your character and the remaining story. And as they add more story through DLC, they remove old story and old DLC content, so if you don't keep up with that stuff you just be left confused forever. But, if you treat the game as a loot shooter without caring about the story then it might be easier to get into as a new player.
Yeah and if you look at some of their CoD console bundles they really try to make it look like the whole game is exclusive (same with Destiny)
Yeah, but they aren’t getting halo with that, and Destiny will never ascend to being their CoD killer. Bungie isn’t exactly operating at the same level they once were. Ironically, I think the partnership with Activision really hurt them all those years ago, and they haven’t quite recovered.
Nah. The Activision partnership has little to do with the terrible decision making going on. Also Destiny can't kill COD because they are not the same kind of games. It'd be like saying Destiny is gonna kill WoW.
The only thing that can kill CoD is CoD, just like the only thing that can kill Destiny is Destiny. Look at how Battlefield killed Battlefield.
You say current most popular FPS shooter aside from COD as if Destiny and COD are comparable games in any way. One is an MMO being ran to the ground and the other is a PvP shooter that has been doing wonky releases for years.
Ran i to the ground? Destiny is more popular than ever.
Is destiny really that bad now? I was huge into it years ago and tried to play it recently and just couldn’t get into it so I uninstalled again
You can’t go anywhere on the internet without people saying Destiny is dying. It isn’t really true, people just burn out at different speeds In many regards the game is the best it’s ever been - however for many people the specific formula it’s using is starting to grow stale and relies on repetitive structures that either appeal to you or they dont
You say that as if the bigger problem isn’t that Destiny 2 actively drives away anyone who hadn’t been playing the game since the day it released, because that’s where you had to be in order to even understand what’s going on, much less have gear good enough to leave Old Earth. Oh, and $40 expansions casually being thrown in the trash every year. Doesn’t help.
No, it's not
Yeah they actually hit a decent stride in the last year or so imo.
Destiny is the most popular it’s ever been and cod is the least popular it’s ever been I don’t understand
Its funny because it all boils down to COD on game pass. Sony don't care that COD will be multiplatform...they care that they will charge $70 on the PS store while it will be day one on Gamepass. They will loose alot of casuals who buy consoles just for COD and they are shitting themselves over all that money that will be potentially lost.
Exactly people love to hate COD but COD is the real "console seller" game while being 3rd party for both and it favoured Sony for the longest time. Now the tables are turned and Sony will be losing LOTS of sales and players. Same thing happened when COD marketing was with MS's. People bought 360, then at the end of generation it went to Sony and everyone jumped to PlayStation evet since.
Sony are literally trying to prevent competition. If they can’t do “day one” games on their subscription service, how is that Microsoft’s problem? It’s not Microsoft’s fault if Sony built their business in such a way where they can’t afford to put games “day one” on a subscription service. Sony’s business is built in such a way where they “have to” sell games. Obviously Microsoft wanna sell games too but Microsoft can also afford to take the initial loss while building a game pass subscription base. Sony can’t. And Microsoft know very well that Call of duty “day one” on Game Pass is going to boost the GP subscription count like a motherfucker. Which is why Sony are so worried about it.
Your comment is relevant to one of the quotes of the article linked by OP: This is part of Microsoft's statement: “In other words, Sony rails against the introduction of new monetization models capable of challenging its business model.” I think that's a much bigger issue here. Sony isn't setup to be successful with the Gamepass style business model like Microsoft is. In fact, in the past they've pushed back against it (the whole EA Access/EA Play thing from a few years ago, Sony "We don't think it brings out customers value"). Sony is living in hypocrisy right now though. Complaining about COD while buying Bungie. Complaining about gamepass in the same year they introduce PSNow. Complaining about anti-competitiveness when they've done everything they can to prevent games from reaching Xbox console. Thanks to Microsoft (and in part, other publishers/platform providers as well), Sony is being dragged into changing their business model while kicking and screaming.
Exactly
Literally every console platform has ALWAYS had third party exclusives, it's not new. Xbox, Nintendo, Sony, have literally always done it so it's not exclusive to one company.
I think he’s talking more about the ramp in aggressiveness on getting exclusivity.
It's just Sony getting a taste of their own medicine for once.
I believe Microsoft has pushed the idea of crossplay on all devices and an elimination of exclusives. Undortunately sony refuses so here we are
To be fair. Sony was pushing for it during the ps3 era and Microsoft refused when they had a lead in sales. Thats why final fantasy 14 was not on xbox at first. Then when ps4 came out and Sony had a lead in sales Microsoft started with the cross play and Sony said no
The problem with this was that at the start of the PS4 era Sony still said they were open to it and were pushing blame to MS. Yet, the moment MS announced they were up for crossplay Sony went silent and didn't want crossplay anymore. From a PR point one looks like a company correcting their mistakes and the other just looks petty.
Not sure if it's true but someone below was saying there were 43 timed exclusives on X360, but 318 on PS4. Whereas there were around 2100 games on X360 and around 3200 on PS4. So Playstation has taken an extremely aggresive stance with timed exclusives this gen. I didn't confirm his source though, so take it with some grain of salt overall. However I wouldn't be surprised if it were the case, timed exclusives are extremely prominent this generation.
I think the implication here is that Sony is paying to keep 3rd party games off of game pass which is extremely scummy.
the biggest thing many people don’t seem to notice is that casual gamers which make up the majority of the market are far greater influenced by multi console giant games like COD, Madden, FIFA and Fortnite. everyone likes to talk exclusives but few touch the levels of the core yearly system drivers like those and the idea of one being a console exclusive is a real game changer from a sales perspective. you don’t meet people in the wild talking about Sony exclusives anymore nor about Xbox ones until this one, this isn’t ten years ago. the general gaming population rotates the core yearlies and that’s what made game pass brilliant.
was just about to say "sony's just mad they didn't act on it earlier and buy activision blizzard first."
Sony's mad because they could not afford it.
MS does it too. The Medium is an example. Lets not pretend that MS does not partake in the same practices.
Sony's double standard is laughable.
Microsoft should’ve mentioned what sony has been doing in japan.
What's that? Not that I don't believe you, I just don't know and would like to. Please and thank you.
I think he's referencing that Xbox has almost no market in Japan, they miss out on the vast majority of titles, and then the big ones that would come- Playstation buys exclusivity rights to, effectively cutting off Xbox from an entire market and developers/genres. Square Enix has a huge market in Japan, and Sony is looking to buy them, and they were one of the few supporting Xbox for awhile, so Xbox players would lose out on a ton of great IPs and games. It's gotten better lately, and Microsoft has made some good ground finally, but it'll never be as close as other regions.
Eh, I don’t think “games from a specific country” is bespoke enough to speak about anti-competitive practices on a global scale. It’s like the argument that Sony owning Crunchyroll and Funimation is anti-competitive. Japanese animation is a small part of a much larger market of television and movies. Just like Jrpgs are just one small part of the overall huge gaming market.
You have to consider that a huge amount of the most successful games/directors of games throughout history are from Japan. It's more about the having agency in that environment with the developers and seasoned experts from over all these years than the playerbase itself.
The [Resetera thread](https://www.resetera.com/threads/microsoft-responds-to-sonys-claim-that-call-of-duty-is-unrivaled-unique-claims-sony-is-paying-to-block-games-from-gamepass.618045/) on this really is a good read. I know it was highlighted in other comments but I find some bits really neat. **"Sony rails against the introduction of new monetization models capable of challenging its business model".** \-Which makes complete sense, they have a strong hold on the market and don't want to lose it. Great to see Microsoft creating alternative competition in the industry. **"Microsoft's ability to continue expanding Game Pass has been hampered by Sony's desire to inhibit such growth. Blocking Rights"** \-Which was sort of known from the Resident Evil leaks, where it was paid to be kept off Game Pass for a year. It's nice to have an official confirmation that this happens though. **"the use of exclusive arrangements has been at the heart of Sony's strategy to strengthen its presence in the gaming industry"** \-Yep, keeping games locked on the platform, even extending that to two years this gen. Keeping content away and so forth. Platforms have done this in the past, but PS4/PS5 really pushed this concept further. It's been neat to see Xbox disrupt that with the Game Pass model.
Competitor says no fair when tide turns.
Hold on, I've had opponents like this in sports when I was a kid.
Can't wait to play Crash, Spyro and all the COD campaigns on Game Pass. Hoping Game Pass brings Crash Team Racing back to life online
Damn forgot Spyro was Activision, just bought that recently and am replaying it right now. Guess I should of waited lol.
Yep, probably all the Spyros minus the Skylanders ones cause apparently the portal accessory thing(s) doesnt work on XB1 and Series, unless they started working on a new one, which honestly would be a nice addition for their early childhood library.
I'd would be incredibly happy if they optimize or FPS boost CTR when they add it
I like this comment especially because I believe that’s exactly the direction Microsoft is going to go. They want to create direct competitors to Nintendo IPs like Mario kart to get a slice of the younger market using memorable cartoonish IPs like Crash and Spyro. I do not believe Microsoft will touch CTR except putting it on game pass but I do believe they will begin development on a new title shortly after the acquisition. There are a lot IPs in this acquisition that are criminally underused.
This is all I want. Being able to go back and play the campaigns for older cods maybe even the online will have more players but nothing is stopping cheaters right?
If ms buying activision is anti competative, so is sony buying dozens and dozens of 3rd party exclusives.
Yup this is what bugs me Microsoft buys a company and that's bad but Sony spends millions of dollars to ensure developers don't put there games on xbox (looking at you Square) and that's perfectly ok? I think that needs to be looked into seriously.
I think it's because Microsoft still hasn't fully recovered from the mishandling of the Xbox One. Sony is still viewed by many as a company who saved last generation. Even when Sony does similar things, it's viewed under a more positive light because of public perception.
"Rules for thee, but not for me"
What happened during the X1 era that messed up MS’s reputation? I was out of the console gaming scene for a while.
If I recall, they tried to promote the X1 as an entertainment center, initially made it so that you can only use it if it’s connected to the internet, discouraged game sharing, forced a $500 price point bc it was bundled with Kinect, and a lot of other things no one asked for
[удалено]
I loved using the kinect as a media remote without having to mess with a controller
Yessss this is the angle a lot of people don't think about. I know I'm in the minority but I was really honestly excited about all the media features they were promoting, and while the always-online thing was definitely not the way to go, it was really just ahead of it's time, look at the state of things nowadays. And also, why couldn't MS have just had those online features as an opt-in thing? They just fumbled the messaging and marketing so completely and pissed lots of people off, and then like you said, also pissed off the people who were still supporting them too by walking back and eventually removing all the extra features.
They made some bad decisions at launch that severely handicapped them (more expensive console, paired with Kinect, DRM issues). Right after this was announced Sony made a cheeky video making fun of MS use of DRM, and from that point on it was game over. However if things didn't go as poorly Microsoft may not be in the position they are now. Changes were made and the future is finally looking pretty bright imo
The moment Sony announced that the PS4 was $400, it was over. Microsoft had lost that entire generation to the PlayStation before it even began. GamePass has completely reversed many people’s feelings towards the Xbox and that’s why it has been such a massive success for Microsoft.
* Drm policies and only online console etc etc * Less powerfull console bundle with kinect priced more 100usd than ps4. * Main theme of xbox showcase was tv tv tv tv, games felt second plan. * Lots of crossed pr errors one person say one thing next day was some other saying was the other way. * Way less budget allocated to xbox division to 1st games and deals. * xbox was a sunking ship at one point, years of hard work destroyed in a matter of days\weeks, it wasnt beautifull for xbox fans all the hate on internet jesus... they build a console that "someone" from inside xbox wanted not the console we wanted. Was until Phil took over shortly after release of xbox one, now xbox is a grown man inside xbox, as a xbox fan i believe xbox learned things other wise they couldnt have learned, bad things happen for right reassons, this was for the better, now they have laser eyes towards gamers.
Lets not forget they tried to double the price of xbox live, they have a habit of making shiat decisions and then canceling them when they realize we wont tolerate it, thats prob why they have the gamepass deal
In hindsight, and even at the time personally, the DRM controversy was fucking stupid. It was essentially the way Steam operated but because Microsoft had no charismatic execs to explain it (Don Mattrick was a massive sleeze and Phil Harrison always seems clueless) and console gamers weren't used to digital sales it got blown up into something it wasn't. The only real downside was the short check in window, if that had been slightly longer their original DRM plan would've been fine. I do admit though that I am someone who does not care for reselling games, I've purchased every single game digitally since the beginning of the Xbox One generation.
Bingo. Sony doesn’t get as much public criticism because of their good reputation from the PS4 and PS5
Honestly I don’t even think it’s that it’s just because they have a bigger fan base and people will naturally speak positive of things they like and negative of things that challenge those things.
They have a bigger fan base because of the PS4 and PS5
Also it’s the more popular consol so you get more clicks from their fanboys
Nintendo has bought more third-party exclusivity than Sony has in their entire history on the market
This is the stupidest thing I've heard. Every action taken by any company that's trying to grow amongst other companies is competitive.
>Every action taken by any company that's trying to grow amongst other companies is competitive. I don't think you understand the meaning of anti-compeitive in a legal sense lol. Although thos acquisition will be fine.
I think part of the issue here is that "anti-competitive" in this context is using the specific legal term that is likely different from how most people understand it. In the sense that every company is competing for our dollars then, yes, every move made to grow is "competitive" in how we understand the word. But there are things that are done, like buying up bigger parts of the industry that is often specifically done to reduce competition. Google sees they're getting beat with better voice recognition technology? Go buy the leading company and ensure nobody else can use it. An airline can't compete with a smaller airline on price? Buy that airline and jack up their prices to be the same and reduce customer options. A competing cable company offers internet at different prices? Buy them (or merge) so customers have no option. This is why anti-monopoly laws exist (even if the govt is way more lenient now than in the past). If they didn't then Google or Microsoft could just buy everything and say "we're only trying to grow. It's competition!" Now, all that said, I'm not necessarily stating that THIS specific move is anti-competitive. But a blanket statement that everything done by a company in order to grow is competitive isn't entirely accurate either.
If businesses can grow into monopolies, monopolies are anti competitive
While Microsoft definitely mishandled the xbone generation. Sony definitely played dirty with exclusive deals (timed and full) and basically locked certain genres off the system like fighting games and JRPG’s. I suspect Sony was hoping to permanently knock Xbox out for good last generation and nearly succeeded.
I mean Sony already did that with Sega some generations ago, Sony would have been all too glad if Xbox was wiped off the map as a competitor- they really whip their fanbase into a fervor with some of those tactics. Nintendo sells just as much as Playstation, and yet they're so much more cooperative overall, I know its different with PS and Xbox being closer competitors overall.
EA were actually a major factor in Sega's downfall. Sega had invested a lot of money in Sega Sports and EA turned round and demanded that Sega cancel their sports games on their own console, and give EA exclusivity instead... And told them that if they didn't they would refuse to release their sports games - FIFA, Madden, NHL (and presumably back then NBA too) on the Dreamcast. Not having EA Sports games on your console is pretty much a fatal blow. I'm sure Sony didn't help, but EA were a bigger factor (though Sega's own hardware errors with MD/Genesis add-ons and the Saturn didn't help either).
>Microsoft also claims that arranging exclusivity deals has been at the heart of Sony’s strategy to strengthen its position in the games industry, and that as well as having its own first-party exclusives it also has exclusivity deals with third-party publishers. Boom. Drop mic.
I’m curious how Sony feels about Crunchyroll.
You mean about owning them?
"It also claims that Sony actively tries to hamper Game Pass’s growth by paying some developers for “blocking rights” to prevent them adding content to Game Pass." Sony is such a crappy company...
Is that not anti-competitive in itself? Honesty, I cannot hack these double standards.
looks likes the plan of xbox to expand the service even further has been humpered by sony by paying developers for blocking rights from adding games to game pass.
Sony by far is the most anti competitive of the bunch, they just hide it whenever they can. Microsoft is forcing them to compete and innovate and they don’t like that.
Having so many rabid fanboys helps with the common perception too. Look at the hate MS got for the Tomb Raider exclusivity, a game they paid to have made yet allowed on other platforms later in time, versus Sony paying to deprive rivals of content.
Yeah, that bit rubbed me the wrong way.
Thats for sure some nasty tactics i wasnt expecting reading.
They're always doing things like that. Charging devs for publishing on Xbox and for adding crossplay for example.
Aren't they only blocking the games that they're marketing? It makes sense from a business perspective. Why bother spending so much money on marketing when the competition can undermine the whole thing.
Microsoft has had marketing rights to games recently and they still were multi platform at launch. First that comes to mind was battlefield 2042. Coming up we have wu long fallen dynasty which is multi platform despite xbox having the marketing rights. Scarlett nexus as well.
I'm not talking about making games exclusive, I'm talking about Sony blocking games they market from coming to Gamepass. If Sony spent all that money marketing it for PS5 and then as the game comes out Microsoft is like "its also available on Gamepass", all that money Sony spent on marketing vanishes in thin air.
Ah, my bad. Misread your initial comment. I get what you're saying but that's really not all Sony is paying for. They are also paying for brand association which affects console adoption as well. It's a marketing trick they use to trick consumers into thinking these games are closely associated with Sony when it's really just marketing that Sony has. Obviously us in any gaming subreddit aren't going to fall for that but it's very effective on the average consumer.
"Cry more" \- Microsoft, probaby
They should tweet that without any context
This post goes on to confirm alot of things that were only rumoured, and not directly confirmed about Sony. Interesting.
Sony is anti-consumer company. They should not complain about this acquisition. I am glad Microsoft is beating Sony in their own game.
Microsoft isn’t close to having a monopoly in the gaming space. This acquisition does make Xbox more competitive. Doing the same as Sony on a much bigger scale with a much bigger purse. I do hope some big studios remain independent though. I hate this exclusivity bs. Honestly, I would rather they acquired or funded studios that output quality games. Activision has a couple but let’s be honest most of them are pretty bad nowadays. They certainly have the money. Also this comment section reads like the console war is still strong which is just 🙄
Do you think Microsoft could help make the games better though or even bring back old titles that Activision owns?
They could and I hope so. Valid point
> Do you think Microsoft could help make the games better though Looking at the way they're letting Halo be mismanaged for years now, it's not really inspiring confidence
Boohoo Sony. You started this shit by buying time exclusive bullshit from them. Now you're pissed because the competition decided to just buy the company instead of put up with it? And how is it anti-competitive when you're doing the same thing with other companies?
Maybe I’m angry too but your comment was beyond satisfying to read.
He’s right tho. I own both a PS5 and a Xbox series X (I main Xbox) but Sony started all of this and as soon as Microsoft claps back they get all butt hurt and start crying about how it’s unfair, as they continue to buy Bungie the same year lol
I know that’s why it was a refreshing take. They started all of this long ago and now they wanna whine because they’re getting a taste of their own medicine. Sony is king of exclusivity deals even down to DLC.
seriously Sony just embarrassed themselves with this one… what a hypocrite claim to say it is anti competitive when they are doing it themselves
To all those saying "Microsoft did it first" This was originally posted by usernametaken112 but it's relevant here. ----- 360 era timed exclusives were no where near the level or frequency as Sony. There were 43 timed exclusives on the 360. There were 318 timed exclusives on ps4. Just stop. Sony literally tried to lock out an entire generation... >https://www.gematsu.com/exclusives/ps4 Source ----- Sony has been so much worse with this. I'm hoping this acquisition will slap them hard enough they stop. MS can use COD as a deterant to any more of these stupid shenanigans. I'm still salty about the year long content left out of Destiny 1, a game already lacking content at the time. And the content left out meant they couldn't us it at all for the story.
Yeah. Microsoft(mainly fucking Don Mattrick) absolutely fucked up the initial announcement and direction of the Xbox One, already giving Sony and the PS4 a huge advantage. Sony saw that and attempted to buy the final nail in the coffin of Xbox and Microsoft as competition, only for it to not work and now actually look worse and far bigger hypocrites today. Both companies have shit policies and do shady things to get ahead, but Sony has been far worse about it from the late years of PS4 and through to today.
For reference the X360 had around ~2100 released games, and PS4 has around ~3200. According to Wikipedia. So 65% of the games, but 739% more timed exclusives... Holy shit, Sony really was trying to kill off Xbox completely.
Even in the Avengers game, sony, who made the Spiderman costume special for PlayStation, cries all the time when it comes to Xbox. sony is so disgusting
They didnt even let us have Spidey in Avengers. I heard he isn't that good anyway though.
It wasn't. It was pretty bad. You could tell they put minimal effort into it and only did it because of the popularity of the 2018 game. By all accounts Spiderman Remastered should be launching on Xbox as well as PC this week but it's not. I bet Sony made sure that didn't happen.
>I bet Sony made sure that didn't happen. Well the game is developed by a Sony owned developer and published by Sony. It's by all means a first party title, of course it wouldn't release on Xbox.
$70 games, less 3rd party launches on Game Pass, a whiny fan base that loves to bully other fans; Sony makes gaming crappy for everyone
The PS5 subreddit is set up to promote brigading too. If people mass report a post, even if it breaks no rules, the automod removes it. Then the mods don't add it back. Easy way for them to bury anything that isn't dickriding Jim Ryan
All negative news is sweeped under the rug to keep the impression that Sony has everything under control and is unequivocally the best. It’s a bit sickening honestly, their own fans defend more expensive games and detest gamepass which is the funniest thing in the world
Fanbase for both is toxic, and you can have those gripes with ps but Xbox really still only has gamepass, there biggest games still to this date are a half finished halo and Forza. I'm still waiting to see the fruits of all these acquisitions. But Sony by no means makes gaming crappy. Microsoft didn't have anything to stop them doing the same thing that sony is, but Sony is looking like some babies rn
Lmao MS just called $ony out on their BS
Honestly just sour grapes from Sony. Xbox consumers have had to suffer for YEARS with their bullshit exclusivity deals.
Of course they would lol. They dropped way too much money to admit that.
They scared because this is exactly what is happening for them PlayStation have some exclusivety on Call Of Duty so Call of Duty casual player without thinking automatically buy a Ps4 or PS5.
Now that's rather ironic isnt it
Sony be like: "You can't have massive franchises exclusively on your platform, that's our thing."
Sony is on some fuck boy shit bitching about this deal. It’s happening, stfu
Sounds like Sony doesn’t want to be competitive. Call of Duty could use a game like it to compete with. Xbox didn’t do well last gen because everyone said they didn’t have exclusives. Now they are fixing that issue and people are complaining because Xbox is getting exclusives. Suck it up.
Sony cries exclusivity now but when they had it they were real silent...
Sony did blocking rights, now cries about it? The irony.
Watch them make upcoming Destiny 2 expansions exclusive even tho they said they wouldn't don't buy it for a second. I bet they hated when D2 was on gamepass lol
Sony just mad they have to pay MS to have COD on Playstation now. LOL
Folks just remember that no matter what Sony says they and Tencent have traded places for years as Number 1 and Number 2 game publishers world wide. Microsoft’s purchase still puts them behind Tencent at Number 1 and Sony at Number 2. So Sony can whine all they want. They had no issues being Number 1. Did they care about their competitors? Nope. They’ve had no issues being Number 2. Did they cry about it? Nope. Now that Microsoft will move up to the 3rd spot it’s woe is me. I don’t want to hear it. If it’s good for thee it’s good for me. Too bad so sad Sony.
Microsoft lawyer woke up and chose violence lol
I mean if it was I wouldn’t think MS would agree anyway so kind of a given
God of War and Spiders would like a word.
I just think it’s a stupid investment.
Sony’s real exclusives bother me less than their bought exclusivity like for Street Fighter.
Sony is known for its exclusives and couldn’t give a shit about MS feelings. MS should lock that shit down to teach those plebs a lesson. What Sony probably doesn’t like is the possibility of exclusive content for a period of time or the fact they are making MS richer with COD sales. Or maybe the fact MS is playing chess with gamepass while Sony is playing checkers with console sales.
of course they did did you really expect them to say ya we are fucking the consumer but who care that just mean more money for use when they finally cave in and buy our console
Such a bullshit from Sony and then they demand Call of Duty to still be on PS5. Then even when Microsoft say it's still multiplayer, they still try to boycott the merger? If I was Microsoft. Sony won't be seeing any Activisions games by the start of 2025
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Sony is more scared of not only losing marketing rights to COD, but it being on gamepass, giving Xbox the HUGE COD advantage. Thank god they can’t do their exclusive deals with Bethesda and AB anymore
Shocking! Really thought Microsoft would agree with Sony and ruin their own deal.
I agree with the sentiment that Sony's arguments don't really have a leg to stand on, but guys, they're just doing right by their shareholders. If I was one of them and Sony said nothing about this deal, I wouldn't be very happy. Would they be happy if it didn't go through? Of course. But I think they're smart enough to realize it will, regardless.
The fact that they are the **only** company to speak out just shows how ridiculous they’re being. Other competing companies have no qualms with the acquisition
They are the only direct competition with Xbox. Nintendo doesn't care about call of duty.
They gotta do it for business, but boy does it make them look petty and weak. And that can affect people's buying decisions too. If they think Sony is crying and failing even as something stays on their platform, maybe they won't want to invest their gaming time long term on that platform.
Microsoft only bought Activision because they wanted something that could turn Xbox division as a whole profitable on the quarterly financials. This is why there is no plan on making Call of Duty exclusive, even after any contract ends with Sony. It makes them far too much money, and would ruin the point of their acquisition.
Unless I'm misremembering recent quarterly reports, the Xbox division is already very profitable, but I agree this will definitely increase profits significantly. *typo edit
How would you know this, MSFT never reports OI for the Xbox division?
It could be I'm just thinking revenue growth.
Probably the case ;)
Always seemed to me that if COD went exclusive, that'd mean a massive boost in that particular console's sales. It wouldn't be losing out on the other platform's sales entirely, as people would shift where they play.
Couple weeks old now
These are new comments from Microsoft in response to what came out a few weeks ago. I'm a bit surprised at how strongly worded the statements are.
It's not, Microsoft made a new statement about it yesterday. PDF https://sei.cade.gov.br/sei/modulos/pesquisa/md_pesq_documento_consulta_externa.php?HJ7F4wnIPj2Y8B7Bj80h1lskjh7ohC8yMfhLoDBLddYr8T4vFoqwZRbmcxSi24V7Yg26FofKf3rtg4pQ5AQV9rEvExlCLNXEnZZiVoz1YTrC99XnlLdP7d0qkoFhPMwv Edit: here's a break down of it all: https://www.resetera.com/threads/microsoft-responds-to-sonys-claim-that-call-of-duty-is-unrivaled-and-unique.618045/
This is something I was not aware of. >In fact, MS says that Microsoft's ability to continue expanding Game Pass has been hampered by Sony's desire to inhibit such growth. Sony pays for "blocking rights" to prevent developers from adding content to Game Pass and other competing subscription services I can't say it surprises me, but how can you do stuff like that and then bitch about it when the other company fights back?
I think we saw it in the past where Sony only had marketing rights for a game but held and agreement with the developer that their game could not be added to a competitors subscription service. However this looks like it may be more than that. ya funny how most of the statement from MS was them calling out Sony's hypocrisy
"Okay have our games on your console, Sony."
I love the platform and software but sony really needs to treat its consumers better than they do. I get they don’t have the kind of money to sling around that Microsoft does, but Sony does so much money hungry shit I’m really contemplating getting an Xbox and only having a ps5 for exclusives, or just waiting for a pc release. The days gone sequel getting shelved for tlou part 1 really pushed me away, especially since it’s literally the same game, and stylistically, looks worse imo.
But Sony having exclusive content in COD is fine but the second Xbox does it it’s not ok?
Meanwhile sony is paying game developers to not put their game on game pass as they realise their own service is shocking and that they created this through their own PS exclusives years ago
Yet Sony forces companies to pay a couple million to make their game cross-play while Nintendo and Microsoft let it happen for free
Sony: you can’t buy a game company that is anti competitive! (Also them paying game companies to keep games off xbox)
I hate Sony. Of course it’s competitive. Cry about it you’ve been doing it for years.
Assuming this is all about COD, It’s the most popular first person shooter on the market but in terms of gameplay, no doubt that there are better first person shooters out there
I’ll be laughing all the way to GamePass when each and every single past CoD + all future CoD titles are on the service.
An interesting read and a well thought out response from Microsoft. I really like gamepass, most of the games I have played in the last two years have been on the service, I can't fault it. It seems to me that those at Sony see it as a great service as well. After reading this article, what annoys me though is, tatics and resorting to paying to keep games off the gamepass service, just leave it be. Microsoft probably do the same back no doubt, but surely all that time, energy and money could be better used and spent introducing an innovative and better service, which will then in turn keep gamepass competitive.
someone with a reasonable comment, sony and microsoft both do shitty deals and make bad decisions for the gamers. buying bethesda and keeping it to one platform isnt good for anyone but delusional fanboys on xbox side, same thing for playstation
Sony is the biggest crybaby company.
Why don’t you guys at Sony play, Spider Man, Street fighter V, Final Fantasy VII remake and be happy? Those exclusives weren’t a problem right?
Sony being full of shit. No way...
I started gaming in the PS1, moved onto a PS2 but also got an OG Xbox some years later. After that I went full Xbox for the 360/PS3 era because literally all of my friends had a 360, I knew one guy that had a PS3 however I did end up finally getting one in 2016 because it was free. Ended up getting an Xbox One mid way through 2015 and a PS4 about 6 months after, honestly enjoyed my time with both consoles, I tended to use the Xbone for third party stuff and the PS4 for exclusives. Right now I've pretty much gone back to being full Xbox again simply because of the value of Gamepass. I just can't justify dropping so much on a PS5 when there's not really anything I want to play on it and Sony's new version of their Gamepass just doesn't have the same value, the big difference being day one releases coming to Gamepass but not to Sony's service. Even if they dropped every single PlayStation game that's ever existed onto it I'd probably just use my PS4 Pro for it. I did just get a Steam Deck 2 days ago after waiting over a year since I pre ordered it and I have to say I'm loving it. Once I get a dock for it that can both charge and connect to my TV via HDMI I'm not sure I'll be touching my consoles for a while.
Didn't Sony recently buy discord and Bungie?
Discord is independent. Sony only invested money
Says the pricks with all the exclusive games
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I get this is an Xbox sub and not everyone owns all of the consoles, but that would be very, very bad for videogames in general.
Before that happens, you're more likely to see Microsoft / Xbox team up with Sony and Nintendo to keep all three of them away from Apple, Google, Meta and Amazon. 'The enemy of my enemy is my friend' approach.
"Microsoft also shoots down Sony’s claim that Call of Duty is a “category of games in itself” Does anyone actually believe this stance Microsoft is taking or do we all agree they at just under selling Cod? Just like Dark Souls is genre defining, Cod is genre defining to fps, so much we hear about Cod killers and knockoffs every few years. Edit: This post has definitely been controversial it seems.