8 Disastrous Failures That Killed The Xbox One
2. The Slow Turnover Of First-Party Exclusives...
Halo and Gears of War: Microsoft's two biggest franchises were nowhere to be seen at the dawn of the eighth console generation. It took 343 Industries and The Coalition two and three years respectively to get sequels for both series' in a retail-ready state for Xbox One, not the best result for a console that was, at that point, struggling to provide a reason for its existence.
Good quality, triple-A games take time to make, of course, and we'd all rather wait a little longer if it means a better end product, but why didn't Microsoft have the foresight to get the ball rolling before rushing the One to retail?
Sony similarly struggled to launch the PS4 with any meaningful exclusives (remember Knack?), but its situation has gone from strength to strength ever since.
Since 2017, the only exclusives worth mentioning that have made it to launch are Forza 7, Halo Wars 2, Cuphead and Sea of Thieves and even then, in the latter's case, its final form has left much to be desired...