Microsoft: more must be done with PC gaming

Microsoft wants to push for more games in the PC market, according to Xbox head Phil Spencer.

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When it comes to gaming, Microsoft couldn't be more focused as far as the Xbox One is concerned, as it plans to announce a number of big projects for the console next week. However, that isn't the only medium that the company is reaching out for, as it intends to do more gaming-oriented content for PC as well.

Phil Spencer, Xbox head of games, explained that the PC market should get just as big a focus as console gaming. When a fan inquired about a re-release of Rise of Nations on Steam, Spencer replied through his Twitter account (via Gamespot). "Steam is a great place to sell Win32 games. We acquired the IP for future work; I'm a big fan of the franchise."

But that's not all. When a user asked if such games would come to Games For Windows (in favor of downloading Steam), Spencer was quick to respond. "I agree that Microsoft needs to up our gaming presence on Windows. Part of my Xbox role is to bring back our Windows gaming focus." However, there's bound to be a different means to bringing them to the service, as Games For Windows Live is rumored to be shutting down next month. (A new way to get games is expected to be announced, perhaps as soon as E3 next week.)

Microsoft will continue to push for new ways to get games, as it's very pleased with the progress of some developers, such as Valve. Spencer has expressed gratitude towards the company in the past, and has promised "more focus" from the PC games division as a result.

Robert Workman was previously a games journalist creating content at Shacknews.

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  • reply
    June 2, 2014 10:30 AM

    Robert Workman posted a new article, Microsoft: more must be done with PC gaming.

    Microsoft wants to push for more games in the PC market, according to Xbox head Phil Spencer.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 10:40 AM

      I'm pretty sure we've heard this before, numerous times. They need to walk the walk and not just talk the talk.

      • reply
        June 2, 2014 10:45 AM

        Yea really, every fucking other year we get some statement like this and nothing to actually back it up.

      • reply
        June 2, 2014 10:58 AM

        Yep., it's almost a yearly thing. Followed shortly after by a bucket full of lip-service.

      • reply
        June 2, 2014 11:46 AM

        Yep, when the big Xbox games start coming to PC too then maybe I'll believe, but I mean its just all talk at this point. Its annoying. Either get on board or get out of the way completely.

      • reply
        June 2, 2014 12:51 PM

        [deleted]

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 10:42 AM

      Should we just update the counter each time MS says this? I swear this was said at the end of 2013. Then the beginning of 2013, etc.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 10:42 AM

      This is really funny coming just a few weeks from GFWL shutting down, breaking many games that people paid real money for not that long ago.

      The last thing we need is for Microsoft to make another half-assed play into the PC market. I hope Steam OS eventually gains enough traction to allow us to leave Windows altogether.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 10:51 AM

      [deleted]

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 10:53 AM

      Move along, there is nothing to see.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 10:57 AM

      I actually believe it this time. If you remember the days back when MS was a game studio, it really did put it's muscle and it's war chest behind PC gaming. That's really where we go DirectX. Say what you will for DX10-11.x, but MS pushing DirectX through 9 really did a number of things for the industry. MS poured money into developers to get them up and running on the standard, put money into marketing, gave us gaming focused hardware that lead to industry leaders like CM (yeah, a some lame products too, but at least they were trying). It's what most of us remember as the golden era of PC gaming.

      So, can they do it? Sure, they did it before. Is Spencer the guy to do it? Well, he could be. He's got some experience and some wins under his belt to draw on. He's got this bad calls too, so it's not an automatic vote for me. But, I think there's enough that lining up to remain hopeful.

      Oh, and let's not forget the added pressure from Apple. This will lead to a gaming unification between Windows desktop, phone, tablet and Xbox. That should be a pretty big win and help keep MS in front of both Apple and Sony. So, they've got a lot riding on being able to pull it off. For us, through, the question will be if it's the same closed ecosystem approach as Apple and thus they try to force Steam to either play in that ecosystem or MS tried to kick them to the curb. That obviously won't play well with any Shacker.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 11:04 AM

      They had really great tools with Visual Studio 2010 and XNA, but then support dropped off. They only recently did an XNA refresh for VS 2012/2013, but it turned a lot of developers off to have such a huge break in support. I'd like to see more tutorials for beginners, and more showcasing of up and coming developers using their platform. Since there's lots of other tools out there, they need to give some incentive for creative people to use their stuff! C'mon Microsoft. Gimmie something!

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 11:04 AM

      [deleted]

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 11:10 AM

      These familiar echoes continue to resonate over the sun baked, desiccated bones of the long dead PC developers that Microsoft once put to this very task.

      "Abandon all hope, ye who enter here"

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 11:14 AM

      Hah okay Microsoft. You paved the road for console exclusives, fuckers.

      • reply
        June 2, 2014 11:20 AM

        Yea this is accurate. Maybe new change of heart?

      • reply
        June 2, 2014 12:01 PM

        What? What did they do to pave the way?

        • reply
          June 2, 2014 12:03 PM

          [deleted]

          • reply
            June 2, 2014 12:20 PM

            What about the [insert basically any game to come out before halo]? Mario Games were console exclusives...

            • reply
              June 2, 2014 12:31 PM

              Halo is unique in that it was intended as a PC game for a significant amount of time right up until Microsoft purcahsed Bungie.

              • reply
                June 2, 2014 12:44 PM

                As usual there is more to the story. Bungie was having financial difficulties and probably wouldn't have got the game out anyway. After the Myth II debacle they were in trouble. Microsoft bankrolled them and we probably ended up with a better game.

              • reply
                June 2, 2014 12:54 PM

                well... a mac game

              • reply
                June 2, 2014 1:21 PM

                [deleted]

      • reply
        June 2, 2014 12:04 PM

        I'm genuinely curious what you mean by this. It's not something I'm well informed on.

      • reply
        June 2, 2014 12:04 PM

        What? How so? Plenty of exclusives before Microsoft entered the fray.

      • reply
        June 2, 2014 1:22 PM

        [deleted]

      • reply
        June 2, 2014 1:28 PM

        [deleted]

      • reply
        June 2, 2014 4:57 PM

        Word. ^^^

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 11:52 AM

      If DX12 offers better low level access and better performance for PC games but is not tied to one graphics card manufacturer that will be enough for Microsoft to do.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 11:57 AM

      I do believe I am going to LOL this post.

      And done.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 11:58 AM

      Forza Horizons 2 now for 360, Xbox One and not PC. Really pushing that market.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 12:13 PM

      Riiiiiight, Microsoft. Nobody believes you.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 12:25 PM

      GAME FOR WINDOWS LIVE 2

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 12:35 PM

      Is Microsoft aware of the fact that they just shut down GFWL? Maybe they should look into that first.

      • reply
        June 2, 2014 12:37 PM

        Shutting down GFWL was probably the best thing Microsoft has done for the PC market in years. ;)

        • reply
          June 2, 2014 12:37 PM

          Except they probably don't see it that way and felt they had no choice considering how few people actually liked it.

          • reply
            June 2, 2014 12:56 PM

            It was a pretty poorly designed and somewhat clunky service. Frankly it needed better support than what they gave it in order to succeed.

            • reply
              June 2, 2014 1:30 PM

              I think they intentionally designed GFWL to burn people playing Windows games so badly that they can't play the game anymore without buying another yearly subscription to XBox gold.

              Either that, or Microsoft has some incompetent people working on GFWL.

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                June 2, 2014 1:38 PM

                I said GFWL was a boycott so many times i lost track of it XD. And still think it was.

                • reply
                  June 2, 2014 1:48 PM

                  GFWL was a boycott.. on Microsoft part? Or is that something you were recommending to shackers?

                  I mean, I could see it being a boycott on Microsoft's part.

                  • reply
                    June 3, 2014 1:06 AM

                    Yea a boycott on microsoft part, to drag people into xbox 360 away from pc.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 12:39 PM

      When Microsoft used phrases like 'focusing more ' or 'doing more' with PC gamed us normal folk interpret it as a return to releasing PC games but it can be argued they are actually talking about destroying PC gaming altogether. This is MS, afterall.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 12:45 PM

      So frustrating. It must really suck for them to see Steam prospering (seeing how it was created by ex-microsoft developers) literally in their back yard.

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      June 2, 2014 12:46 PM

      Wait... by "PC market", do they mean the Windows 8 App Store?

      I sure as hell hope not.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 12:52 PM

      So Age of Empires announcement at E3. On Windows Phone

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 1:07 PM

      If they release Halo games in the pc then i'll start to believe them, but till then this is just bullshit.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 1:10 PM

      Then #$!%ing make a solid port of Halo Wars to the PC, where it belonged in the first place, and make a sequel of it built from the ground up for PC with a port to Xbox because it's so boner-inducing to release Halo on the Xbox.

      As you can see I have a strong opinion on this subject.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 1:28 PM

      http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2014/02/11/microsoft-really-really-is-into-pc-this-time-apparently/
      "So we’re really going after PC."


      http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2013/11/08/microsoft-still-loves-you-will-bring-first-party-games-to-pc/
      “I think it’s fair to say that we’ve lost our way a bit in supporting Windows games,” says Microsoft Studios VP Phil Spencer in an interview with Shacknews. “But we’re back.”

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 1:33 PM

      He added that something should be really done about the Israeli/Palestinian conflict as well.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 2:38 PM

      I have a really hard time believing Microsoft. Outside of the technical side of things such as DirectX, their PC support has been all over the place. They have literally done nothing in years to help promote awareness of the PC being a perfectly viable gaming platform and leaving that to 3rd parties publishers and distributors. Right or wrong but it feels like they intentionally made PC gaming a redhead-stepchild to the Xbox business.

      The times Microsoft did show an interest in PC gaming it was only to serve as a gateway to get people to buy an Xbox (GFWL integration). Killing franchises like Flight Simulator or reviving Age of Empires as a f2p game certainly didn't them any favor with PC gamers.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 3:11 PM

      "Steam is a great place to sell Win32 games." How condescending of Phil Spencer (and inaccurate, since Steam also provides access to OS X and Linux games). I notice a lot of line-drawing from Microsoft employees between "Win32" programs, "Legacy Windows" programs, and "Modern" programs. They seem to be in continued denial of WIndows 8's ultra-slow market adoption, that it's another Vista.

      And unless something's changed, Kevin Unangst, the former Games for Windows Live head honcho, is still the Global XBox Marketing Director for Microsoft Studios. http://www.shacknews.com/article/83759/halo-spartan-assault-fight-onto-steam-on-april-4?id=31686985

      Anything from Microsoft doing PC games at this point is probably going to involve game streaming and/or Azure, and Windows 8. I don't know if Halo: Spartan Assault is anything more than Microsoft testing the waters, but it's sad, because it's the same avenue that "Windows 8 showcase" game Skulls of the Shogun went, http://www.shacknews.com/article/79851/skulls-of-the-shogun-dev-says-microsoft-exclusivity-hurt

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        June 2, 2014 3:35 PM

        I didn't see that as condescending or inaccurate. Maybe when taken totally out of context.

        He was talking about Rise of Nations specifically in a response to a question from someone asking why they were bringing it to Steam. A lot of older Windows and even DOS games are given a good second life on Steam. And since they bought the rights to it, and the game has never been on Steam before, and games like that seem to do okay on Steam it makes a lot of sense. People seem really excited about it, too.

        And the more stuff they get on there and sell, the better chances there are for newer properties (if any exist) to show up on other platforms like Steam as well. If they've learned anything from their past mistakes, that is. Stuff like this shows they are at least trying to branch out, but it's not much of a risk as it's already a highly regarded classic PC game.

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          June 2, 2014 3:36 PM

          Maybe when taken totally out of context.

          Maybe when taken totally out of context.

          Maybe when taken totally out of context.

      • reply
        June 2, 2014 3:37 PM

        [deleted]

        • reply
          June 2, 2014 4:05 PM

          He has an illness that he can't control. I kinda feel the same about certain things, overthinking some stuff.

      • reply
        June 2, 2014 3:38 PM

        dude

      • reply
        June 2, 2014 3:38 PM

        [deleted]

      • reply
        June 2, 2014 4:54 PM

        ACTUALLY, that's NOT inaccurate, because just because it is a place you can purchase OSX and Linux games does not mean it cannot be a place to sell win32 games! What now, Archvile!

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 3:12 PM

      Microsoft: 'Something must be done about the PC games market. Just not by us.'

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 3:39 PM

      ok well you could start by putting Freelancer on Steam and then making Freelancer 2

      please

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 3:46 PM

      Put Halo 2 on Steam with working MP and we'll talk.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 4:47 PM

      but they have said all of this before....I will wait and see if anything actually changes. I hope it does, but that hope is very jaded from previous years.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 4:51 PM

      "Microsoft must be done with PC gaming." Can't believe I didn't think of that title rework earlier.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 5:08 PM

      Yeah we like the PC! Honest! *pats PC gamer's heads*

      *continues throwing money at XBone and buying publishers hookers and coke*

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 5:35 PM

      Problem is everyone knows they don't actually care about this stuff.

    • Zek legacy 10 years legacy 20 years
      reply
      June 2, 2014 8:07 PM

      Microsoft has no incentive whatsoever to do anything for PC gaming ahead of XBox. The best they could accomplish by doing that is to sell more copies of Windows, and it would be a pretty marginal change compared to today. They're not going to do anything unless another OS shows real signs of stealing PC gaming away from them.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 11:19 PM

      I try not to be cynical but seriously, we've heard this all before. Actions speak louder than words, Microsoft.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 11:22 PM

      The best thing MS can do for PC Gaming is stay the fuck away from it outside of DX updates.

    • reply
      June 2, 2014 11:54 PM

      Wasn't there talks about MS building an Windows OS that has a gaming mode which can boot up into a Steam OS / Big Picture mode which runs and looks similar to the 360/xbone interface which includes your microsoft friends list, games list, streaming services, store and digital downloads?

    • reply
      June 3, 2014 12:33 AM

      Honestly they should just partner with valve and get it bundled into windows.

    • reply
      June 3, 2014 12:48 AM

      I'm probably considered on the Microsoft Defense Force around here but I can safely say "lol, Fuck You, Microsoft" on this one.

    • reply
      June 3, 2014 1:15 AM

      [deleted]

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      June 4, 2014 7:24 PM

      Halo 3 or 4 on pc would be a good start!

    • reply
      June 7, 2014 6:15 PM

      they are dead to me until they Ensemble some Studios to make another Age Of Empires.

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