We cannot have ”game and marketing budgets this high” whilst also catering to ”used and rental games” as we do. Anger should be at ISPs, not Microsoft over 24-hour Xbox One check-in.
The expectation of higher visual fidelity and dynamic worlds means huge development teams, which lead to very high studio costs. Used games don’t reward their creators.
”You cannot have game and marketing budgets this high while also having used and rental games existing. The numbers do NOT work people,” tweeted Bleszinski. ”The visual fidelity and feature sets we expect from games now come with sky high costs. Assassin’s Creed games are made by thousands of devs.”
”Those of you telling me ‘then just lower game budgets’ do understand how silly you sound, right?”
Many publishers have tried ways to work around the issue of used games, such as EA introducing the Online Pass which led others to developing similar schemes. Retailers have been averse to letting publishers profit of their second-hand game sales, arguing it’s the only way they can stay competitive as it is.
Microsoft is introducing what they feel is a solution to the problem. They also have mandatory 24-hour check-ins that must be met by Xbox One users or have their games rendered inoperable. Many have taken issue with this draconian measure, with a notable executive saying ’buy an Xbox 360 instead’ if you can’t meet the demand.
”If you can afford high speed internet and you can’t get it where you live direct your rage at who is responsible for pipe blocking you,” continued Bleszinski. The former Epic boss also says that any notion Sony has ‘won’ this generation already is completely inaccurate to call at this stage.
”If you’re saying the next round of the console war is over before it even started then you’re a f*****g idiot. This is a multi year fight.” Xbox One launches this November for £429, but PS4 launches this holiday at a lower £349.
With rising development budgets and gamers unwilling to let their used games market go, some middle ground has to be met but what form it will take remains undecided. Sony prefers to leave any ‘gating methods’ up to third-parties, and leaves out online check-ins, whilst Microsoft is taking a more hands-on, mandated approach.
In any case, Cliff Bleszinski has just ticked off more people - whether he deserved to or not.
