Microsoft is not sure it wants to release Bethesda games on...

Phil Spencer gave the site a long interview Kotaku in which he discusses the news of Microsoft. The head of the Xbox branch returns in particular to the acquisition of Besthesda.

Microsoft will soon launch a new generation of consoles and Phil Spencer gave a long interview (48 minutes) to the site Kotaku to scan all Xbox news. The head of the Xbox branch evokes the arrival of the Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X, two consoles that want to take advantage of the ecosystem built by Microsoft in recent years. The Redmond firm has multiplied the announcements in recent months with the launch of xCloud and initiatives around the Game Pass. In addition to welcoming EA Play soon, the Microsoft service will be able to enjoy Bethesda games (Dishonored, Fallout, Doom, Skyrim…). At the end of September, Phil Spencer indeed created a surprise by announcing the takeover of the ZeniMax Media group for 7.5 billion dollars. Heavy reinforcements that could allow Xbox to stand out by becoming the “Netflix of video games”.

When announcing the takeover, Microsoft also confirmed that this did not call into question the releases of certain titles on PlayStation 5. However, we were wondering about the strategy of the American giant which can deprive its Japanese competitor of the next Bethesda games. . Phil Spencer returned to this important acquisition and ensures that “This agreement was not made to remove games from another player base”.

He adds : “Nowhere in the contract does it say ‘How do you prevent other players from playing these games? We want more people to be able to play, not fewer players. But I would also say that in the template – I’m just answering your question directly [Est-il possible de récupérer un investissement de 7,5 milliards de dollars si vous ne vendez pas Elder Scrolls VI sur la PlayStation ?, ndlr] – when I think about where people are going to play and how many devices we have, and we have xCloud, the PC, Game Pass and our console base, I don’t need to run these games on a different platform than the ones we support to make the agreement work for us. Whatever that means “.

With this release, Phil Spencer confirms that his firm does not necessarily need to offer Bethesda productions on Sony’s next-gen consoles. An unsurprising decision at the dawn of a new episode in the console war and even as the Xbox brand is expanding to many devices, thanks in particular to the xCloud and Game Pass services.

Xbox Series S: Microsoft’s ambitious bet

During the interview, the head of the Xbox branch also discusses the decision to launch two machines with different ambitions. He reckons that the Xbox Series X, his most powerful console and starts at 499 euros, should have a good start. However, Phil Spencer expects the S Series to reverse the trend and sell better than the X Series after a few months. This is obviously due to the more attractive selling price, the S Series being the most affordable next-gen console. “I think over the generation we would expect the price to really matter and the S Series to sell more”.

© Microsoft

Phil Spencer also believes that this more affordable console could appeal to Xbox 360 players who have zapped the Xbox One or have switched to PlayStation. Another interesting argument, he believes that the Series S could convince PS5 players. “Maybe buying two $ 500 consoles will be difficult, so we were like, ‘Hey let’s make sure we have something to attract an owner. [d’une seconde console] ». An interesting bet for Microsoft which will launch its two new consoles on November 10.