[Megathread] XBOX Series X (and S)

[Zenfoldor]

Yikes....I follow this guy for Destiny 2 and also saw it posted in gaming leaks and rumors....

https://twitter.com/paultassi/status...SX-2ouTiVm3A_Q

Not looking promising for Redfall.

[Edge-]

Yikes....I follow this guy for Destiny 2 and also saw it posted in gaming leaks and rumors....

https://twitter.com/paultassi/status...SX-2ouTiVm3A_Q

Not looking promising for Redfall.

Man, having such a late/uncommon embargo timing is causing all kinds of fuckups. Shoulda made sure to send out reminders about the embargo time the day before rofl. Though such a late embargo time (basically at launch) definitely isn't usually a sign of confidence in the product.

Not off to a good start from the handful of leaks. Tassi is kinda a drama-llama shitlord though, zero cares about whatever his opinion is on just about anything since it's probably just a slightly polished up reframing of "Current Popular Narrative".

Tomorrow will be interesting.

- - - Updated - - -

https://twitter.com/PMS_Jordan/statu...02991085993984

And Microsoft with some friendly fire as they rush to DMCA Redfall-related content just ahead of launch. Really, it doesn't seem like this will be a very good launch, unfortunately. I just hope if it is a miss that it's a fixable miss, been getting lots of good games having dogshit launches lately : /

[Zenfoldor]

Following Twitter, I'm afraid Redfall is gonna get hammered. What the heck happened at Arkane. They were literally the chosen one with an extra year of high ground. I feel like this game needs a behind the scenes documentary, badly.

https://twitter.com/_Tom_Henderson_/...9YIOBqtlA&s=19

I'd honestly love to be reading these tea leaves incorrectly, I actually expected it to flop with gamers but be a hit with reviewers, if the games scores sub 70 average like some are predicting, I'm gonna be shook...I'm already shook, wtf arkane?

[everydaygamer]

Following Twitter, I'm afraid Redfall is gonna get hammered. What the heck happened at Arkane. They were literally the chosen one with an extra year of high ground. I feel like this game needs a behind the scenes documentary, badly.

https://twitter.com/_Tom_Henderson_/...9YIOBqtlA&s=19

I'd honestly love to be reading these tea leaves incorrectly, I actually expected it to flop with gamers but be a hit with reviewers, if the games scores sub 70 average like some are predicting, I'm gonna be shook...I'm already shook, wtf arkane?

It's the risk of doing something different from your usual work. Arkane tends to swing big and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.

[Zenfoldor]

It's the risk of doing something different from your usual work. Arkane tends to swing big and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.

It could also end up not that bad. Of the 3 reviews I have seen leaked, one is a 4 but seems clickbaity, one is an unscored youtube vid, and one is in the 7s. It is not impossible this game could still average in the upper 7s and not be as bad as I first thought, so I should have just waiting. I blame myself, but also the crazy embargo time screwed everyone all up....

[Tech614]

It's the risk of doing something different from your usual work. Arkane tends to swing big and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.

If we're going off financial success it almost never works, they have been releasing bomba after bomba. The thing is tho most who played them still considered them good games and they where also critically successful.

If they start releasing bad games that are also not commercial successes well, I'm not sure how much funding MS is going to keep throwing their way but it's also not a good look for MS that their first game under their watch is the one that's bad lol.

[everydaygamer]

Not sure why Microsoft is getting all the blame. Doesn't Bethesda still mostly manage itself?

[Tech614]

Not sure why Microsoft is getting all the blame. Doesn't Bethesda still mostly manage itself?

https://www.gamesradar.com/redfall-p...e-xbox-buyout/

Yep for sure they manage their self and have no decisions that come from the top. /s

There is also good parts of this so I don't mean to be fully negative about it. Without MS I doubt bethesda would of green lit Hi-Fi Rush past pre production for example. End of the day MS is the one cutting the checks and ultimately deciding what games get made and what their deadlines are.

[Edge-]

It could also end up not that bad. Of the 3 reviews I have seen leaked, one is a 4 but seems clickbaity, one is an unscored youtube vid, and one is in the 7s. It is not impossible this game could still average in the upper 7s and not be as bad as I first thought, so I should have just waiting. I blame myself, but also the crazy embargo time screwed everyone all up....

https://www.reddit.com/r/XboxSeriesX...fall_that_was/

This clip from ACG's video is about as bad as the 4/10 review, though I'm inclined to believe that's a baity low-ball review as well. At least I hope it is.

I'm just gobsmacked that Microsoft would green light a release like this unless it was so overbudget they just wanted to ship something to stop the bleeding and recoup some costs. What the fuck is Phil Spencer even doing beyond trying to spend more of Daddy Nadella's money?

Edit: Reviews are out now: https://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/redfall

Low 6's on both PC and Xbox on MC

https://opencritic.com/game/14768/redfall

Similar results on Opencritic

https://www.engadget.com/redfall-on-...160357847.html

'Redfall' review: Good enough for Game Pass
This isn't early access, but it sure feels like it.

Big ooph on the headline/subhead.

I'm gonna start reading a few now, but yeah, that 4 isn't as much of an outlier anymore : /

Edit:

Redfall doesn’t save progression for any player but the host in co-op games

From the IGN review. Baffling that developers still greenlight narrative-based co-op games without a solution for this problem. Nobody wants to sit down and play through the story 4 times to get all the lads to the same point.

[everydaygamer]

Played the first mission and while not awful it definitely wasn't anything special. I'm sure there is fun to be had but I don't see this drawing my attention away from the many other games distracting me right now.

Performance on my RTX 3080 was fine running at 1440p. Fps was between 70-90fps with the occasional stutter on default settings. Not bad but could be improved to make it smoother.

[Jastall]

Watched clips on Youtube and I just don't understand why this is a co-op looter shooter.

It feels like a couple guys came up with a fairly cool setting, and the rest of the studio was then busy cramming in as many uninspired ideas as possible and downplaying the one thing it has going for it, the setting and its potential mystery and horror aspects. It's like taking The Shining except you give everyone a gun and they mow down waves of ghosts while spouting one-liners. Maybe they fight Godzilla at the end too, wouldn't that be cool?

And why have Arkane do this of all studios? Atmosphere and level design are their biggest strengths. So let's have them make a co-op game where players largely ignore the atmosphere in search of mission markers and loot. At least the level design looks pretty good all things considered but man even before knowing the game's a buggy mess I see pretty much nothing that makes me want to play it.

[Zenfoldor]

Some reviews are up, Gamespot review is bad af

https://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox...critic-reviews

[Poppincaps]

Microsoft needs to get their shit together. Their first party games are so far behind Sony and Nintendo at this point it's not even funny. I bought a Series X because I had hope that their acquisitions would allow them to turn things around, but now I wonder if they're just bad at managing their first party studios.

[Aliven]

Following Twitter, I'm afraid Redfall is gonna get hammered. What the heck happened at Arkane. They were literally the chosen one with an extra year of high ground. I feel like this game needs a behind the scenes documentary, badly.

https://twitter.com/_Tom_Henderson_/...9YIOBqtlA&s=19

I'd honestly love to be reading these tea leaves incorrectly, I actually expected it to flop with gamers but be a hit with reviewers, if the games scores sub 70 average like some are predicting, I'm gonna be shook...I'm already shook, wtf arkane?

It looked like shit from the firt trailer. Vampire online shooter with fortnite graphic.

- - - Updated - - -

Watched clips on Youtube and I just don't understand why this is a co-op looter shooter.

It feels like a couple guys came up with a fairly cool setting, and the rest of the studio was then busy cramming in as many uninspired ideas as possible and downplaying the one thing it has going for it, the setting and its potential mystery and horror aspects. It's like taking The Shining except you give everyone a gun and they mow down waves of ghosts while spouting one-liners. Maybe they fight Godzilla at the end too, wouldn't that be cool?

And why have Arkane do this of all studios? Atmosphere and level design are their biggest strengths. So let's have them make a co-op game where players largely ignore the atmosphere in search of mission markers and loot. At least the level design looks pretty good all things considered but man even before knowing the game's a buggy mess I see pretty much nothing that makes me want to play it.

"How do you doo fellow kids, still playing fortnite online i see"

[everydaygamer]

It looked like shit from the firt trailer. Vampire online shooter with fortnite graphic.

- - - Updated - - -



"How do you doo fellow kids, still playing fortnite online i see"

It's Arkane's typical style. Alot of their games look like this or are at least stylized in some way. They don't usually aim for photo realism.

[Edge-]

A chimney in Redfall - https://preview.redd.it/gb7cutlkbexa...abled&cbee573c



Not exactly the worst thing ever, but kinda a good example of the game sure feeling incomplete as hell.

https://www.reddit.com/r/gaming/comm...about_redfall/

And more in-action video of some of the absolute worst AI I've seen (theory seems to be the always-online nature and high ping is causing this), but my favorite is the bit at the start with the foot stomp animation and the fact that apparently vampire hunters have two knees on each leg?

I'm enjoying the shadenfreude and all but I'm genuinely looking for redeeming qualities in the game and it seems the only consistent point of praise is that the town is very well designed overall.

[Zenfoldor]

IGN finally deigned to submit their review, after they surveyed the field, and came up with one of the least lenient scores I've seen from that outlet, 4/10 ign and 4/10 gamespot are pretty damning review scores from the most mainstream outlets we really have(besides youtube).

Steam reviews I hear are bad as well. Turns out this game bombed critically. I know everyone will say they predicted it, but I really did not. I expected all the 30fps complaints to get pushback from reviewers, but I obviously over-estimated the quality of the game after the delay...

https://www.ign.com/articles/redfall-review

[Edge-]

Kinda Funny interview with Phil Spencer for anyone interested. Does touch upon Redfall, but it's much more broad.

Haven't watched but the summary on the XSX subreddit seems pretty expected in terms of responses/content. Most potentially exciting hint is Hellblade 2 might finally drop this year after years of silence.

[everydaygamer]

Twitter is freaking out because Phil said great games alone aren't enough to beat Sony and Nintendo. Which is true but people are taking it to mean Xbox doesn't care about great games at all which makes me laugh.

[Edge-]

Twitter is freaking out because Phil said great games alone aren't enough to beat Sony and Nintendo. Which is true but people are taking it to mean Xbox doesn't care about great games at all which makes me laugh.

I mean, his phrasing of that was dumb as hell. No, people aren't going to sell their PS5 to go play Starfield if it's 11/10. But yes, great games will make people buy a console.

But you know what they might do? Buy an XSX to sit alongside their PS5 to play Starfield, especially if there's other great first party software. Ship enough of it and maybe their friends do it as well, and suddenly you have more users in your ecosystem spending money, or at least using the Xbox for Game Pass. The way he talks, it almost sounds like Microsoft wants out of the hardware business altogether.

And shipping a major/AAA game a quarter? Ain't nobody does that, that's absurd and the spend to support that level and quality of software releases, especially with marketing campaigns, is absolutely unrealistic. If he means "major" a la Hi-Fi Rush then sure, smaller scale games like that make sense, especially financially. But AAA games? Absolutely no way.

Caught some of the discussion/summary stuff elsewhere but am slowly listening through the whole thing.