After a hugely successful run with the Xbox 360, Microsoft seems to have stumbled rather spectacularly with the Xbox One. Right out of the gate, Microsoft had gamers and industry figures scratching their heads thanks to a number of frankly surprising decisions decisions which painted us skeptical, and led to Sony effectively running away with the launch phase of this generation. Weve since seen a lot of back-pedalling, complete turn-arounds and revised strategies, and according to statements coming out of Redmond it sounds like its working. But Microsoft still has a lot of work to do to catch up. Right now the strategy seems to be to focus on the positives (ie. the overall entertainment package, as apposed to sheer hardware grunt), while trying to recapture core gamer confidence with an expanding list of exclusive titles. Whats getting people fired up, though, is the tech giants affinity for throwing money at the problem. We saw it with the recent announcement that Tomb Raider will be a (timed) exclusive for the 2015 holiday season - PlayStation acolytes lost their minds. Paid exclusivity is hardly a new concept in the industry, but audiences didn't take too kindly to what was seen as blatant bankrolling to effectively steal a much loved multi-platform title away from the competition. Complain all you like, but right now Microsoft has to do whatever they can to keep their console relevant. If the answer lies in pouring heaps of cash on developers for exclusive content, thats what theyre going to do. Obviously some games or developers are out of reach something like FIFA or Call Of Duty is just too big to ever go single-platform, but there are high profile releases and talented developers which might give in to the allure of gold. With that in mind, lets take a look at a number of possible acquisitions and realistic exclusive opportunities which could give the Xbox One the much needed boost it needs to reclaim the previous glory of the Xbox brand
Game-obsessed since the moment I could twiddle both thumbs independently. Equally enthralled by all the genres of music that your parents warned you about.
