Microsoft is pushing its next-gen strategy for its gaming division to the limits. While planning to release two consoles soon, they are also widening their scope further.
The company is trying to catch potentially billions of players through its xCloud streaming service. Together with their console and PC support, Microsoft is going all-in. They’re looking to capture as much of the market as possible.
Xbox, Playstation going opposite direction for market supremacy
In the upcoming generation, Xbox and Playstation are going through two separate mantras. These two rival companies are going in the opposite direction to win the next console wars.
On one side, Sony and Playstation are cashing in on their exclusivity deals across the board. They’re hoping that enough first-party titles, console exclusives, and great games will catch gamers. This will likely work, with a lineup of Final Fantasy XVI and Spider-Man: Miles Morales in the works.
Xbox is going to the other end of the spectrum, going all-in on their open ecosystem. Xbox head honcho Phil Spencer believes that a more open platform will win the players’ hearts. It’s working so far.
As part of the mantra, he started to try and make the Xbox a part of players’ lives. He detailed how he wanted for it to never be the center of attention. By doing so, they’re making it ubiquitous to a customer, as if it’s part of their home.
“We think about our console as part of the environment you live in as our customer,” said Spencer in an interview. “While there’s an opening of the box and you want that to be fantastic, once you put that console wherever you put it, we hope you never have to touch it again, hope you never have to hear from it again, and it just plays great games… It’s not the center of attention.”
Spencer wants to tap 2 billion players worldwide
Spencer noted before that he wants to tap a snoozing 2 billion player market worldwide. He knows that such a market is not possible to catch through console alone.
“Microsoft is in the gaming business for the long run, we want to be a platform where hundreds of millions or billions of players can find somewhere to play,” Spencer said further. “Building walls around Xbox, so the only way you can continue the experience you love is to buy a new console this fall – for us, it doesn’t seem in line with the values we have as a team.”
Spencer is hoping to catch as many eyes as possible with xCloud. It only launched this week, so it will take a while to see if it’s working. Even then, capturing many untapped markets would be fascinating for Microsoft.
xCloud works with mobile phones and tablets. Cloud gaming doesn’t need super-fancy gaming devices, which makes it perfect for a potential Asian market in the future. With the Xbox Game Pass on PC, Microsoft is coming in from all directions.
Featured image courtesy of Xbox/Youtube Screenshot