Xbox Game Pass Not ‘Value Destructive’ Like PlayStation Claims, Football Manager Boss Says
The head of the studio at Sports Interactive, which develops Football Manager, said PlayStation’s claims that Xbox Game Pass “destroys value” are not true.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission fought Microsoft in court last week over Xbox’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard, in which PlayStation president Jim Ryan said the publisher didn’t like Game Pass.
Sports Interactive head Miles Jacobson disputed this. euro gamerHowever, he said Game Pass has been a positive experience for Football Manager.
“Each studio will have different opinions on this,” Jacobson said. “Different studios have different data because different games work better in different situations. For us, this is nothing but a plus for him on all three platforms.
“The simple fact is that Game Pass and Apple Arcade are bringing new people into the franchise who have never played before. We believe that even with a platform like this, we can reach those consumers over the long term.” It makes financial sense, and it makes creative sense. ”
“I’ve spoken to all the publishers and they all unanimously don’t like Game Pass because it destroys value,” Ryan said, claiming that Game Pass is costing Xbox a lot of money.
Meanwhile, Xbox CEO Phil Spencer has been transparent about Game Pass’s profitability and sustainability. In an interview with Axios last year, Spencer explained how the service consumes no cash, calling it a “very sustainable service.”
But at the same time, in a preliminary report from the UK Competition and Markets Authority, Microsoft admitted that its video game subscription service had led to a notable drop in base sales.
Microsoft and Sony have different strategies when it comes to video game subscription services. While Microsoft releases its own games on Xbox Game Pass daily, Sony has opted not to release first-party games on competing service PS Plus at launch, and a year later, Horizon: Forbidden West” will be released. Earlier in June, Sony’s vice president and global head of subscriptions Nick Maguire said that the current strategy “has worked” and that despite the $70 game’s price hike, Sony will continue to sell Game Pass. He suggested that he would not copy the approach to a monopoly game.
Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick is one video game exec who’s still unconvinced by Game Pass. “I still don’t think it makes sense,” Zelnick said during the company’s earnings call in November about releasing big games during the day on Microsoft’s subscription service. I believe things are becoming clearer,” he said. I agree. It’s just a lost opportunity for publishers. So I’m not going to speak for my friend Phil. [Spencer]However, our view remains the same. ”
And Jim Ryan has an unlikely ally who shares his views on Game Pass. Bobby Kotick, the boss of Activision Blizzard. If Microsoft buys the company, like it or not, Kotick admits he’ll be sticking with his Game Pass. “While we disagree with the idea of offering a multi-game subscription service as a future business proposition, we [Activision and Microsoft] You can agree to disagree,” he said during the trial.
Sports Interactive is owned by Sega, which also stepped forward in the FTC lawsuit when Microsoft revealed it was once interested in buying the company. Sonic’s publisher is happy to have a “very close” relationship with Microsoft, but has revealed it’s not for sale.
Ryan Dinsdale is a freelance reporter for IGN. He will talk about witchers all day long.
