In a recent article on Microsoft’s Game Pass price-hikes, I discussed how they’ve struggled to take charge in the ninth console generation, particularly with a lack of heavy-hitting and consistent console exclusives. One attempt was made with Halo Infinite: a game which soared on launch, even after numerous delays, but fell flat in the long run with lacking care and uneven, underwhelming content updates.
With Halo being Xbox’s first and biggest franchise, the long-term failure of Halo Infinite might’ve put Microsoft on the backfoot. While Sony and Nintendo continue to thrive with the latest and greatest exclusive hits, Xbox’s forerunner franchise ultimately floundered when they needed it most.
As such, it’s time for the landscape to change, and Xbox knows that. The 24th of October saw the announcement of Halo: Campaign Evolved – an expansive remake of the title that started it all, coming to the PlayStation 5.
Middling personal thoughts on this remake aside, the news has understandably headlined industry talk for the past few days. Has Xbox forefeited themselves from the console war? Is the newest Halo a sigil of shifting tides, or simply a test? Do the console wars even exist now? Many such questions – and eyebrows – have been raised surrounding the console’s future, and Xbox president Sarah Bond has thoughts.
The idea of games being landlocked to one storefront has become “antiquated for most people,” she says. This projection reads as a little ironic given her competition – particularly the stern and professionally hardline Nintendo who’ve scarcely ever shaken from their exclusivity policy, and as Sony continues to dominate the console market with blockbuster releases. If Sony didn’t have any quality first-person shooters in their exclusive arsenal, Halo Studios has just handed them its crown jewel, no longer bound to Microsoft domain, and is even including full crossplay support.
It’s unclear right now if this marks a dynamic shift in trajectory for Microsoft or if this action is merely water-testing. The recently released Gears of War: Reloaded also headed down to Sony’s storefronts, marking a new history of Microsoft feeding the conveyer belt for PlayStation’s shooter market. The upcoming Forza Horizon 6 is also setting off for Sony City – ironic given its Japan setting this time around.
What’s most confuddling about this whole thing is the motive. Sure, Xbox – and, let’s face it, Halo as a whole – have fallen behind in recent memory, but does this mark a forfeit of sorts, or an acceptance of defeat? Going all in on Game Pass with price hikes and bundling it with more benefits might signal Xbox switching focus from consoles to a service, acknowledging the subscription as the paragon it’s been all along.
There’s no expectation for the blue team to hand over any of their titles, either, and the chance of this is severely unlikely. Sure, some lesser PS5 titles like the original Death Stranding or AA hit Helldivers 2 have found a second home on Xbox, but none of Sony’s real weapons will take a visit there anytime soon, instead rerouting to PC platforms.
Everything about this seems like a casual admittance of complete defeat from Team Green, and a shift to new financial prospects. The recently released ROG Xbox Ally handheld console has shown Microsoft’s priorities in expanding out their consumers’ options, with this device essentially functioning as a mini PC with access to Windows and Steam. They also mentioned a future console for the presumed tenth generation, though this sounds like it won’t be a direct competitor to PlayStation, instead acting as a high-end alternative.
All in all, Halo is back in the spotlight – not necessarily for anticipation of a ‘new’ entry, but with it instead serving as the catalyst for some major industry rewiring. At least Master Chief is back in the public eye.
