Hi all!
I understand that I’m new member of Reddit and not a known industry writer but I hope you don't mind if I share an opinion that is not always 100% celebratory of the Xbox brand.
Almost a couple of weeks ago I released a video covering the same ground as the article. I hope it's alright to post the link here? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ge9Hdpg4_8
When previous retrospectives of E3 had been written I felt that too often the authors were extra forgiving of their favourite console manufacturer. This is particularly understandable when the writers need to maintain positive business relationships with the people they personally know and are writing about.
But I wanted to take a look that was not from an Xbox fan’s or PlayStation fan’s perspective, just an all-round gaming fan’s perspective who’s non-connection to the industry affords him the ability to be slightly more critical.
For instance in my video (7m 14s) I state that Microsoft broke their promise that Ori & The Blind Forest would be an Xbox One exclusive that would be released Fall 2014, because the game was released in 2015 and was also released on PC. This certainly wasn’t a crime as the game had an amazing critical response, but the promise made wasn’t kept. However Stephen Totilo in his article seems to have felt my interpretation to be overly harsh of his friends at Microsoft. It’s very probable that he is having a direct dig at me when he says “Slight delay. It came out in March on Xbox One and PC with an Xbox 360 version apparently still in the works. (You get this, dear reader, right? “Only on Platform X” is code for “Not on Our Direct Rival Platform”)”
However this is where his words get a bit murky. Words mean what they obviously mean, and we as readers and viewers shouldn’t have to be told they don’t mean what they mean but that they are actually code for something else! No matter how much we might love the Xbox brand it is not right for the editor of Kotaku to act as cheerleader of the company, particularly in light of the hoopla there from last year.
And in case you think I am being overly harsh, in my PlayStation video I chastised Sony for doing the same thing for stating that Grim Fandango was a PS4/Vita exclusive!
I also said (8m 16s) Microsoft broke their promise that Halo: MCC would come on one disc (because their was an exceptionally large download required to play it fully) which Totilo called ‘nitpicking.’ I also talked about the whole Halo 2 in 1080p issue which Totilo overlooked.
It is in light of this desire to be more critical of the console manufacturers’ E3 promises that I said at the start of each video
*"In the excitement and hype of E3 week the three console manufacturers take to the stage and make a heap of bold claims, declarations and promises. Their hope is to ignite consumer anticipation for their range of consoles and games that can be nurtured into sales.
But with the wisdom that comes from time passing we can assess which claims were honoured, which hit stumbling blocks and which were just hot air. I ask One Year Later, Did Microsoft Keep their E3 2014 promises*
So it is good that Stephen Totilo has taken on board that there is a desire by some gamers to have a more honest look and that’s why this year there is a shift in tone in his introduction and he makes a comment about ‘overreach.' Whilst Kotaku is not held in the same esteem as in the days of Brian Crescente's editorialship, Stephen Totilo is still in a position of influence and I believe this should be used when interviewing the Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo bosses to push them to be more open with us.
Thank you