L.A. Batt

@MCFixer Messy, but needed. Time for a few years where the art projects aren't subsidised, and developers start making fun, well written, action packed, heartfelt, and sexy games for gamers with money again.

And so it begins the shut down of studios at Xbox this is about to be very messy!

@klobrille Looking good is the bare minimum, especially if you use any modern engine. It's all about the content, and whether it speaks to the gamers with money. This didn't.

South of Midnight

@Grummz Save: The Coalition inXile MachineGames Shut Down: Arkane Compulsion Games Roundhouse Studios

Pick 3 to save from the Xbox studio closures. Pick 3 more to definitely shut down.

@GamesRadar Sounds good. No more art projects. Clear out all the BS holding developers back from making their titles fun, action packed, and sexy, and focus on games that gamers will literally thrown money at you to buy.

Microsoft CEO says "we have to turn this into a sustainable business" amid changes to Xbox gamesradar.com/games/microsof…

Sounds like a step in the right direction for Xbox. Duncan and O'Connor were terrible at their job of curating games that people wanted to buy. Gut the place, abolish the red tape and forced guidelines that shackle creativity and fun, and get someone in there that's able to cater to the core PC and console gamers who want to buy games.

Xbox Game Studios head Craig Duncan is leaving the company after about 20 months in the role, and Xbox Game Studios chief of staff Louise O’Connor is also departing. Duncan joined Xbox in 2011 and spent almost 14 years leading Rare before becoming head of Xbox Game Studios in late 2024. Duncan will leave this week, with Xbox Chief Content Officer Matt Booty temporarily taking over until a new head of Xbox Game Studios is appointed. In a message to staff, Duncan said: “I am incredibly proud of all that we have achieved together.” “We’ve had many flawless launches, strengthened our culture, and built an amazing foundation for the future.” “Thank you for your passion, creativity, and support.”

For anyone thinking I mean "you mean make them all white men", go read the books. Plenty of natural diversity that isn't forced. I don't want anyone changed from what fans know, love, and expect. No race swaps, no sex swaps, no injecting modern-day ideologic characters, words or motives. Adapt the games and books we love. Bring the action. Respect the service. Honor the source.

@MetaDemonReal @LukeB4tt @iiamcloudman @asha_shar No, he doesn't like men being arbitrarily replaced for woke reasons.

✅️DEVELOPING: RUMOR, Denis Villeneuve is the front runner to direct #XBOX new "HALO" film. According to reports, "@asha_shar wants the best and Denis is the best fit for the film and XBOX."

I honestly don't see a problem here. They were terrible at their job of curating games that people wanted to buy. Gut the place, abolish the red tape and forced guidelines that shackle creativity and fun, and get someone in there that's able to cater to the core PC and console gamers who want to buy games.

Xbox Game Studios boss, Craig Duncan is stepping down after 18 months in the role🚀 ✅Studios will report to Xbox Chief Content Officer Matt Booty until a replacement is found. ✅Xbox Game Studios chief of staff Louise O’Connor will also be leaving the company Source: @thegamebusiness

@epattyalty @thunderxoliver @iiamcloudman @asha_shar They could work as cinematic films, and help share those rounding-out moments with fans while also providing heart pounding action, heart, and giving us the story we love.

@LukeB4tt @thunderxoliver @iiamcloudman @asha_shar This works for the novels which aren’t blockbuster films - the cinematography of the games is like that of a blockbuster film

I don't want the helmet/suit off during missions. I don't mind taking the helmet off during some down-time a few days into the Halo event at a base camp in order to do a check of his gear and what not (like in The Flood), but it shouldn't last long, and I don't NEED that to happen. If it's an adaption of The Fall of Reach, then I expect most of the Spartan-II training to not be in the suit, but during missions, yeah, leave it on 100% - Dread-style.

@LukeB4tt @thunderxoliver @iiamcloudman @asha_shar It's fine in halo extended media even tho it's mostly the books where cheif takes off his helmet and or armor with a recent example being a part in the novel edge of dawn

Nah. If you read the novels, he's out of the suit when not on a mission, so during flashbacks before getting the suit, or when in dress uniform and addressing high command post-mission, all good - IF they do that kind of stuff. If it's literally a 1ish-to-1 adaption of Halo CE, First Strike, 2, 3, then sure, no real need to remove the suit - all comes down to what they're actually doing and adapting.

@LukeB4tt @iiamcloudman @asha_shar He should never be seen. Ever. Just like the games. Anyone who can’t do that doesn’t deserve to make the movie. It’s not hard. It’s just stupid

Winston Peters: “I’ve seen the future this immigration trade deal can bring, I see it on the news in Europe, in Ireland and i’m going for broke around the country to put a stop to it.” 🎶👂🎶👂🎶👂🎶👂🎶👂

I don't mind him having his helmet and armour off where appropriate - between missions, or before it's assigned to him if we see more of a mix of or flashbacks to the Fall of Reach story. But when he's in the mission, nah - that said, in the novel The Flood, he does take parts off at one of the camps between beats, so again, as long as it's during appropriate moments, all good - but for the most part, the actor needs to treat wearing the suit like Karl Urban did wearing Dredd's helmet.

@iiamcloudman @asha_shar Please don't fuck this up. And please don't take off his helmet. It could be a billion dollar movie. Please dn't fuck this up

UFC at the White House is epic.

All we can do is let our voices be heard, then wait and see. This year's games won't really tell us. Fable might be the first sign of what she is capable of - whether she can fix the non-sense that's ingrained in it or not, but honestly, I'll probably wait to judge until we see Blade, Halo 7 and Gears 6.

@LukeB4tt @Grummz I’m not hopeful that she’ll turn things around.

Legendary Chris Avellone (Fallout, PLanescape) says XBOX studios are worried. Up till now, they've been told layoffs would not affect them. That's changed. He says studios are now saying they aren't sure. "Apparently, MS studios who had been told in the past that layoffs wouldn’t affect them are getting a different message now after the recent announcements – formerly “safe” studios now are telling employees they aren't sure how the management changes will impact the studio. Lot of uncertainty, even with studios who have had steady releases under MS." Asha Sharma is rumored to make DEEP cuts in XBOX studio staff very soon.

@Iruka_Uzumaki @Grummz Maybe. She seems to be doing good things so far, but it'll all come down to how the games under her reign playout.

@LukeB4tt @Grummz She’s a DEI hire too. That’s what I’m getting at.

This is America This UFC event is America Its inspirational Its hope Its what we need right now Here's to the next 250

@Iruka_Uzumaki @Grummz If they fired her for that, then they aren't serious about wanting Xbox to make money :)

@LukeB4tt @Grummz If they did that Asha Sharma would be fired immediately

Good. Now take the shackles of ESG and DEI off the developers and let them cook - the gamers with coin are ready and eager to eat, as long as it's made with us in mind as the core audience. We want to give you money @satyanadella, but the meal HAS to be worth the price of entry (unlike most of the last 10 years).

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella suggests the company is done subsidizing Xbox. "No one can accuse Microsoft of not having invested for the last 25 years," he recently said. "And now we have to turn this into a sustainable business that delivers what is fundamentally one of the best sources of entertainment." Still the challenge we have is we're not the been monetizing that entertainment," Nadella continued. "In fact, if anything, we've been subsidizing that entertainment. In fact, there's more monetization of Xbox games happening on YouTube than at Microsoft. And so that doesn't mean we go do things that are unnatural. We want us to do what is really our job, which is to build great games, build great hardware, but we've got to do it in an economically sustainable way." kotaku.com/microsoft-ceo-…

@pubity Hopefully they're trimming the fat and red tape too - streamlining the process so that the best-of-the-best can get to work and pump out games that the majority of gamers can't wait to throw money at.

Xbox CEO Asha Sharma is reportedly funneling more money into big franchises like Halo, Elder Scrolls, and Fallout to get exclusive Xbox games out faster. via The Information