Celebrating 20 Years of Xbox

[Dekafox]

ZOS also got nearly half their staff cut.

https://kotaku.com/elder-scrolls-online-team-seemingly-halved-xbox-layoffs-2000712920

ESO was actually on an upturn, with lots of old fan requests being worked on or delivered, entire class reworks happening to rebalance everything, actual regular dev communicaiton and roadmaps(which was something they'd always had issues with) and a lot of positive player sentiment, and this has basically cratered that good will, right before their next content drop happening tomorrow. Among the people let go was the entire head of the rework project, and also the person who had basically been the PR face of ESO for the past 19 years, and was the one who handled all of the community outreach for things like Twitch drops, promotions, and so on. Sounds like it was mostly their senior staff too, thsoe closest to the codebase, and one of the people left even publicly lamented she doesn't know how much they can even do anymore with what's left of their team before deleting that post.

 

[The Predaking]

A pity that Microsoft couldn't use all those studios to make themselves some good exclusives. Also, how big is Microsoft that they can layoff 12,000 people in a year?

 

[LBD "Nytetrayn"]

Absolutely ginormous.

 

[The Predaking]

I found this online:

Microsoft Employee Count​

As of June 30, 2025, Microsoft employed about 228,000 full-time workers worldwide bing.com+1. This figure was unchanged from the previous year (2024), marking the first two-year plateau in headcount since the 2014–2016 Nokia wind-down sqmagazine.co.uk.

Geographic breakdown​

• United States: ~125,000 employees
• International: ~103,000 employees sqmagazine.co.uk

Departmental composition (FY2025)​

• Operations: 89,000
• Research & Development (R&D): 80,000
• Sales & Marketing: 44,000
• General & Administration (G&A): 15,000 sqmagazine.co.uk

 

[LBD "Nytetrayn"]

Just going to say that seeing this thread I started get bumped like this was kinda embarrassing.

 

[The Predaking]

Just going to say that seeing this thread I started get bumped like this was kinda embarrassing.

Well, it does make a decent Xbox Catch all thread.

 

[The Predaking]

So with the recent PlayStation announcement, do you think that the next Xbox will have a physical media drive? I mean, if I were Microsoft, I would be scrambling right now to make sure I had one. It seems to be an easy win for them to set them up to win the next generation after the failure the Xbox One caused right out of the gate that they never recovered from.

Also, I know the new xbox is coming out soon, but I am really tempted to get this:

 

[Steevy Maximus]

So with the recent PlayStation announcement, do you think that the next Xbox will have a physical media drive? I mean, if I were Microsoft, I would be scrambling right now to make sure I had one. It seems to be an easy win for them to set them up to win the next generation after the failure the Xbox One caused right out of the gate that they never recovered from.

Sentiment doesn't make money. They're making some overtures at the moment to play off a competitor's missteps...but money and costs are the final determining factor. Fewer and fewer devices outside of consoles and dedicated disk readers use disc drives at all, likely raising prices. Like I said in the Playstation thread, even if the AI bubble implodes tomorrow, it will take YEARS for prices to restabilize as customers like Sony and Microsoft and Valve are not going to just eat the cost of the RAM/SSDs they're preordering NOW.

Again, as much as the gaming community is puffing their chests...the hard data doesn't lie. Just from a cursory look at physical retail, Xbox has been losing retail space even before the last couple years. Retailers cut space when the product isn't justifying its presence. This generation, I've seen my local Walmart cut physical game space by more than half. Reported data backs up the broader switch to digital:

https://www.gamespot.com/articles/playstations-disc-based-game-sales-have-dropped-dramatically-in-recent-years/

And according to reports, of the some 30-35 million Xbox Series consoles sold, the number of Series S vs X install base is about even. Meaning a LOT of consumers (especially early on) didn't have much of an issue buying a Series S in exchange for ditching the disc drive and lowered performance in exchange for a lower product cost.

I am VERY doubtful either Xbox or Playstation will have a disc drive. Especially if "handhelds" are a major component to those companies. Microsoft has a LOT more issues right now in the Xbox division, and I don't think including a disc drive in their next device is going to address them.

 

[Pale Rider]

Physical media has basically been living on borrowed time since the PS3/Xbox 360 era. That's when publishers realized they could ship broken games and patch them later.

Just look at Cyberpunk 2077. Would anyone actually recommend playing the version that's on the launch disc? Probably not. The version people remember is the one that came after years of updates.

And I'm not even saying that's entirely a bad thing. I wish the PS2/Xbox generation had supported patches. Maybe Obsidian could have fixed KOTOR II after launch instead of leaving it in the state it shipped.

Like a lot of technological advances, it's a double-edged sword.

I'm also not saying physical media should disappear. I'm saying it isn't worth owning the way it used to be. A disc used to mean you owned the finished game. Now, a lot of the time, it just means you own whatever version happened to ship before months or years of patches turned it into the game people actually remember.

And if you bought it at launch, you probably paid full price for the privilege of beta-testing the version everyone else got after all the major fixes.

 

[LBD "Nytetrayn"]

I've heard that the numbers Sony's been dealing haven't been entirely... shall we say, "honest".

 

[The Predaking]

Sentiment doesn't make money. They're making some overtures at the moment to play off a competitor's missteps...but money and costs are the final determining factor. Fewer and fewer devices outside of consoles and dedicated disk readers use disc drives at all, likely raising prices.

It doesn't have to be a disk drive, it could be a drive like the switch and Switch 2 use. That would take a lot of the cost and size requirements away and still allow them to have physical media. They just won't play Blu-rays or UHD Blu-rays.

Again, as much as the gaming community is puffing their chests...the hard data doesn't lie. Just from a cursory look at physical retail, Xbox has been losing retail space even before the last couple years. Retailers cut space when the product isn't justifying its presence. This generation, I've seen my local Walmart cut physical game space by more than half.

Xbox has been getting its butt kicked every since the TV E3 fiasco where Don Mattrick killed the brand.

They never recovered and tried to push more and more towards digital. Using Game Pass as a trojan horse, they gave up retail space in order to get people to buy. PlayStation itself has followed suit and is now moving to digital only.

And according to reports, of the some 30-35 million Xbox Series consoles sold, the number of Series S vs X install base is about even. Meaning a LOT of consumers (especially early on) didn't have much of an issue buying a Series S in exchange for ditching the disc drive and lowered performance in exchange for a lower product cost.

And a lot of those people were content to just get Xbox Game Pass and never even buy a digital game for their Xbox SADs. Another move by companies that are trying to push you towards not buying physical games.

Microsoft has a LOT more issues right now in the Xbox division, and I don't think including a disc drive in their next device is going to address them.

I disagree. I think that this is a crossroads moment for the brand. They let PlayStation take the first step on the glass panel and found out that it shattered beneath them. They can really start off the next generation with a head start against the PS6 by simply having the physical media drive and having games in stores. Not only will retailers like it over some display of download cards, but gamers will start to get it through their head that Xbox is back. Then gamers will see that Xbox the system to get this generation instead of a glorified steam box, which is already available and has all their PC games on it still.

 

[The Predaking]

Rumors are that the Xbox Helios will have a physical media drive! Not yet confirmed, but I imagine that we will find out soon enough.

 

[The Predaking]

So confirmed good news that just dropped, Original Xbox games are coming to the PC! Reported by IGN, four games are now backwards compatible on the PC and Xbox Handhelds, as well as added to game pass Ultimate or PC game pass. You will also be able to stream games int he program using Xbox Cloud Gaming. Today the program begins with an early preview with just four games, Blinx the Time Sweeper, Conker: Live and Reloaded, Crimson Skies High Road to Revenge, and Fuzion Frenzy. I am guessing that you can put the games into the drive and it will download the games, as there are added features. These added features are 4X resolution scaling, VSync Support, full screen and window display modes, anisotropic filtering, enhanced anti-aliasing, customizable language and audio settings. IN the future the games will have achievements added to them and other games coming out in the program.

 

[The Predaking]

So the 25th Anniversary Xbox Series X has a price of $900.

I guess I will just pick up a regular one, because I can't see dropping that kind of cash on a system that is going to be replaced in a year with the next generation.

 

[Pale Rider]

So the 25th Anniversary Xbox Series X has a price of $900.

Such a deal! Why not buy two?

 

[The Predaking]

I mean, their sales are just abysmal, but they keep raising the price and losing shelf space at all the retailers. You can only get Xbox One S games at Gamestop around here, as Target and Walmart have clearanced what little they had out. I just don't see what they are going for. If they are going to pull a Sega and just make games for Nintendo and Sony, then do it. Otherwise, get competitive!

 

[Fullstrength Motleypuss]

Anybody want to build their own XBOX? Well, a non-functional one anyway because it's made of bricks but...it does open into a play-set of sorts.

Mattel Brick Shop Microsoft XBOX Building Set

The Original XBOX is back – and this time, it's yours to build.

creations.mattel.com

 

[LBD "Nytetrayn"]

Anybody want to build their own XBOX? Well, a non-functional one anyway because it's made of bricks but...it does open into a play-set of sorts.

Mattel Brick Shop Microsoft XBOX Building Set

The Original XBOX is back – and this time, it's yours to build.

creations.mattel.com

I love it, and if I ever strike it rich, I'll be sure to buy one.

 

[The Predaking]

Xbox has added Transformers Devastation and Battlegrounds to their Disk to Digital program.

 

[The Predaking]

Such a deal! Why not buy two?

Apperently they are getting bought up by scalpers and have sold out. Even the separate controllers are going for $160 on eBay now.