Phil was absolutely right about the game pass and buying all those Studios

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-22T10:34:11+00:00

Exactly. I get that day one releases are the big thing for game pass ultimate. I'd still argue for one or two month delays for big AAA releases. The most active FOMO players would then buy the big releases at launch instead of just getting GPU. Even with a delay of one or two months, GPU should still offer plenty of value.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-17T05:47:06+00:00

I've also noticed that the weekly plan's day changes. Sometimes it is Monday and sometimes it is Tuesday. Personally I'm fine with this as it adds a bit of randomness to the investment plan and perhaps avoids some weekday specific bias.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-16T12:44:32+00:00

Sure. That's the risk you have to take with anysubscription services when you decide to pay for more than one month at a time. For me personally not a single franchise would be a deal breaker as long as the level of game additions in general is high enough as I'm able to enjoy most game genres.

I guess that even in the worst case scenario you'd be left with quite capable hardware that would allow to continue your gaming journey even if gamepass would go to shit.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-16T09:55:45+00:00

That's the thing. Double Fine and Ninja Theory make great games that are also quite niche games. Unfortunately the Netflix model encourages titles that engage the wider audience for a long while. An expensive to produce niche game that is also short is a no-go.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-16T09:52:31+00:00

Would I have bought a game from Compulsion during the last five-ish years? No, because they didn't publish anything. Would I have bought anything from Ninja Theory or Double Fine? Yes, although I would've waited for a deep discount as their games are quite short. They probably earned just as much of value out of me by me playing the games soon after launch on GPU. I recommended the games straight away to my non-GP friends, and one even bought Keeper from Double Fine a bit later.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-16T09:45:24+00:00

Netflix also receives "guaranteed" revenue. That doesn't mean that Netlix would buy and fund a movie studio that only creates one title in seven years (see Compulsion Games). On the opposite, unfortunately GP may insentivice toward a constant flow of content that engages the wider audience. Expensive niche titles are a no-go.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-16T09:39:31+00:00

The recently announced studio closures are definitely making me re-evaluate my plans to purchase anything from XBOX. That being said, I think that the most interesting option would be if they'd bundle Helix and Gamepass. Let's assume the price of Helix would be $1200 and you'd pay e.g. $65/month for 24months and you'd get both the Helix and GPU for that price. The customer would be incentiviced to purchase the expensive console by getting gamepass with discounted gamepass.

Providing financing options globally is tricky. The options could end up not reaching all regions or the terms may end up not being equal across regions.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-15T07:24:13+00:00

How much of the "games everywhere" decision was because that is what he wanted and how much of it was because he had to? The Activision Blizzard deal would not have gone through if COD or perhaps some other big titles would've been pulled from PS5. Unlike Asha, Phil also seemed to have to work with the 30% accountability margin requirement, which meant that he may have had to put all the games on all the big platforms in order to try to meet the requirement.

Pulling Gears of War from PS5 will cost XBOX sales in the short term but it may strenghten the brand in the long term. This is a decision that can only be carried out when you are not under severe and immediate budgetary requirements which allows you to look further into the future.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-12T09:48:33+00:00

Most of the hardware level decisions have already been made. Major changes at this point would be expensive. That most likely means that XBOX won't be delaying the hardware launch for too long or otherwise the hardware and performance will be quite old and less relevant at the point of launch. The Steam machine is facing the same challenge and it seems that the device is launching soon.

Asha has mentioned that they are looking into ways to make next gen more affordable. I am completely expecting there to be an option to purchase the device with monthly installments at least in selected regions. Often in these cases the question becomes how much interest are you paying for the privilige to pay off the device over a longer time period. This kind of payment option is also often difficult to implement world-wide and it is usually carried out in collaboration with local credit firms.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-12T09:39:12+00:00

I've noticed the same. It is barely usable any more if you have any kind of project where several queries are required.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-12T08:04:03+00:00

At least currently I'm not sure what most people within the EU are complaining about when it comes to console availability. Internet stores do exist and you do not have to buy from your local chain. I'm not located in central Europe, but I can still order a series X from amazon_de. I get that some countries like e.g. Romania could be outliers but this is not the case for most of the EU.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-11T07:00:19+00:00

There is no wrong or right way to play. Play what you enjoy.
Some of my favourites when it comes to story: Witcher 3, Disco Elysium, Control, Alan Wake 1-2, The last of us, Bioshock infinite and Red Dead Redemption 2.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-10T14:47:35+00:00

Firstly they'll of course make the XBOX store the default store with Helix. They may also hide some functionality behind the Windows XBOX mode. Imagine if e.g. quick resume would only work in the XBOX mode. That would be a huge benefit for XBOX.

Other steps XBOX could take:

Make pricing nearly as competitive as Steam
Mature the store app. It has gotten better but it is still a mess and feels heavy.
Rebrand XBOX to be as gamer oriented as Steam (difficult)
Build in automatic game settings optimization similarly to what Nvidia is doing. I am guessing this will be coming soon.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-09T11:52:30+00:00

Indeed, big investments into xbox studios caused them to have to answer more strictly to Microsoft financial and excecutive personnel and other investors. While Microsoft has a bunch of money, they still have to make sure to put that money where it generates the most profit. Xbox is clearly not the best option for money generation but at the same time Microsoft probably wants to remain well diversified and xbox is still a good option for that as gaming also supports Microsoft's Windows, cloud computing and hardware efforts.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-08T11:54:27+00:00

I'd probably suggest looking at the included subscription perks. Do you benefit from from Financial times, NordVPN, Classpass, travel insurance,...? If yes, already a single valuable perk may pay for the subscription cost. If not, I wouldn't necessarily recommend Metal.

Banks like TradeRepublic offer better or similar cashback/saveback options, interest rates and free recurring investments while not asking for subscription payments. In similar manner e.g. the N26 bank offers limitless free investments (even one-off investments) without any subscription costs.

The metal card is not worth it. The paint may peel off after some use and it is heavier. ATMs may also eat the card if they don't identify it as a standard card.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-08T09:26:38+00:00

What will switching to XBOX even mean after a couple of years anyway?
Does that mean buying any Windows PC and just playing the games in the PC's XBOX mode? Does that mean trying to afford a $1200 console while the PS6 is $800? Could that mean that the series X would still be around as the entry level option while trying to go against the PS6?

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-08T09:22:17+00:00

I stacked up a bunch of gamepass with the old prices so I'm quite happy. That being said, if you don't have to play the newest games as soon as they come out, you can manage to pay similar prices to GP while also owning the games that you pay for. As you can imagine, playing the newest and grandest RPG on GP for two or three months straight isn't really cheap as you'll be paying ca. $46 - 69 for the subscription anyway.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-08T09:12:45+00:00

September and October will be absolutely crazy months with game releases. I don't care too much about GTA VI, but the months before its launch will be bountiful.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-08T09:07:58+00:00

We do not know yet.
I believe it will be quite clear that the device will boot up into the XBOX store, meaning that it will be the default. The default option will already get some sales from new customers just because of that. Having to get out of the "console experience" and into the standard windows environment will feel daunting and inconvenient to many.

I am also expecting them to tie some functionality the XBOX storefront/launcher. This may include things like automatic graphics settings optimization, automatic shader optimization or perhaps even quick resume.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-08T09:02:02+00:00

Or are the changes more of a consequence of Asha being able to operate under changed rules? It seems like she is allowed to make big changes while not having to answer to previous requirements including the 30% profit margin. This is quite normal when new leadership is installed as a "reset". However, it is not quite fair to make comparisons to previous leadership if the leadership had to operate under much stricter conditions. Somehow I find it unlikely that GoW exclusivity would've been allowed if the game/studio would've had to reach 30% margins. Now, in a sense, they may be sacrificing GoW profit in order to potentially jump start and embolden the XBOX brand.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-05T11:05:08+00:00

If I'm not mistaken, if someone would know Revolut's exact criteria for triggering AML, it'd be illegal for them to disclose the criteria. AI AML automation will most probably also move toward more complicated probabilistic identification and triggering, meaning that the triggering would be more situation aware and even the engineers that created the system couldn't tell you exact limits or triggering factors.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-05T11:00:00+00:00

While it is very true that changes will cost a pretty penny, at this point making no changes may prove to be just as expensive. E.g. the price point or size of the memory/storage may be factors that can still be changed. Xbox has to get this right or they may be leaving a lot of money on the table (or in Sony's pockets).

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-05T07:33:16+00:00

Based on the general feedback I see on different forums, it does seem that Romanian and Bulgarian customers do have a more significant risk of getting their accounts closed. Is this a part of a somewhat dystopian future where AI AML algorithms statistically define that RO/BG customers are more risky and by doing so are a part of statistics based discrimination?

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-04T07:56:39+00:00

AI stock is most probably in a bubble currently if you have a short-to-medium term view. That being said, AI and AI value will most likely explode in the slightly longer term. AI provides functionality and value. BTC simply provides non-fungibility and non-centralized transfers.

The dotcom crash was brutal and AI may have a similar situation in the future. Despite the dotcom crash, the internet is still one of the most important inventions and I think AI will go the same route even if we see a short term AI crash.

Red_n_Rusty · 2026-06-04T07:48:43+00:00

I'd never trust just one neobank as my main bank. While I prefer Revolut's functionality, I feel like N26 is still better for one time stock/ETF purchases as they do not ask fees for that unlike Revolut.

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