There's been a ton of news coming out Gamescom this week, with many publishers using this final major press event to show off their upcoming games. There have been some new reveals, like Silent Hills, and some closer looks at known quantities, and overall the show has been well received.
One decision, however, that didn't go over too well with gamers was the announcement that Rise of the Tomb Raider is an Xbox One exclusive. It may not be an exclusive for long — at least that's what Xbox head Phil Spencer implied — but getting the game first gives Microsoft some pull. In other words, they got their money's worth.
Of course, that topic was then broached in an interview between CVG and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) President Jim Ryan, who had something interesting things to say about securing exclusives. Ryan obviously didn't want to disparage his competitors, but he suggests that Sony is in a place where they don't need to buy exclusives.
"So do we feel the need to go out and buy outright exclusivity? Probably not. You saw last night [at Sony's press conference] that before the media briefing we showed updated videos of games that we had revealed at E3. That's because we wanted to keep the show itself full of new, fresh things. We think that gave us a good, strong, convincing portfolio of exclusive stuff and we're happy with that."
Moreover, Ryan stressed the PS4's already-packed slate, which includes plenty of console exclusives like Driveclub and The Order: 1886. In fact, as Ryan points out, Sony's list of exclusives is so packed that they couldn't even include every one of them in their Gamescom press conference broadcast.
While the PS4's early lead has given the company confidence, Ryan suggests that will be enough to woo developers and publishers their way. That may be true for indies, but big games like Rise of the Tomb Raider may not be as easily swayed.
Either way, it's hard to deny that Sony's PS4 is the more intriguing option for developers and publishers. With more than 10 million units sold through, the console is leading the current-gen charge by leaps and bounds, and is showing no sign of letting up.
But of course that's one of the main reasons that Microsoft secured the early exclusivity for Rise of the Tomb Raider. They need to make some big moves in order to catch up, and so far the company has made quite a few, like dropping Kinect for example.
Make no mistake, though, as Sony stressed during their conference that they plan to build upon their great start. So, while they may not need to buy exclusives now, that may change based on the Xbox One's sales.
Do you think Sony and Microsoft should be more aggressive in pursuing console exclusives? How important are console exclusives to you?
-
Source: CVG