• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

"This Is An Xbox", Microsoft's New Xbox Advert

Do you have an Xbox?

  • Yes

    Votes: 78 20.3%

  • Yes

    Votes: 10 2.6%

  • Yes

    Votes: 8 2.1%

  • Yes

    Votes: 8 2.1%

  • Yes

    Votes: 16 4.2%

  • Yes

    Votes: 13 3.4%

  • Yes

    Votes: 9 2.3%

  • Yes

    Votes: 28 7.3%

  • No

    Votes: 214 55.7%
  • Total voters
    384
  • This poll will close: .
ChorizoPicozo

ChorizoPicozo

Member
3eFsCsW.jpeg
 
P

PatientGamer

Member
They were in such a prime position from 2010. How on earth does one make so many consecutive fuck-ups and still not recognise it 14 years later? When the biggest Xbox fanboys are ashamed of your offering, you know you've got problems.
 
Humdinger

Humdinger

Gold Member
The Stig said:
im confused.

is this streaming like stadia? (shit)

or is it gamepass being on everything?

(im guessing the latter)
Click to expand...

I think it's the Xbox app on every device, although what the app will deliver will vary by device. I believe GP will be on all of them. You'll be able to access your digital library on some of them and streaming (x-cloud) on some as well, with variable quality.
 
TwiztidElf

TwiztidElf

Gold Member
Eh. At least it has that banging Black Sheep song on it. At least that's something positive.
Engine engine number 9, on the New York transit line.

Also, hilarious they pick a song with this line in it: Black Sheep get play like the Sony innovator

33 years ago. Fuck. :(

 
Last edited:
Dorfdad

Dorfdad

Gold Member
It appears that the headquarters is engaged in some mental gymnastics to avoid explicitly stating that they are a third-party developer. Their actions suggest a desire to convince themselves of this fact.
 
Last edited:
Donald mac Ronald

Donald mac Ronald

Member
RoboFu said:
Of course, it's all about the service app . I've been trying to tell you guys for years. Sony will do the same thing eventually. So will Nintendo.
Click to expand...
So this is what coming last feels like. Making excuses for garbage strategies by saying the competition and market leadsrs will follow the loser down the shit hole.
 
bitbydeath

bitbydeath

Member
Topher said:






I mean.....when Jez Corden has tweets like these for Microsoft....

Frustrated World Cup GIF
Click to expand...

He going to revisit this?
www.neogaf.com

News - Drama - Business - [Windows Central]Xbox is closing out 2024 with a ton of momentum, and plenty of cause for optimism:COD, record engagement, and Xbox Game Pass success

Summary by chatGPT The Windows Central article discusses Xbox's strong finish to 2024, highlighting several key developments: 1. Record-Breaking Game Releases: 'Call of Duty: Black Ops 6' achieved unprecedented success, setting records for day-one players and significantly boosting Xbox Game...
www.neogaf.com www.neogaf.com
 
thicc_girls_are_teh_best

thicc_girls_are_teh_best

Member
sainraja said:
Execution might be terrible and I guess, based on this thread, debatable, but the point they are trying to make is clear enough. It doesn't align with what "Xbox" has been, but it is how they want people to start looking at their platform. Will this work or not? I suppose it remains to be seen.
Click to expand...

No, it's actually really bad marketing and I just realized why a few moments ago.

Microsoft supposedly wants to make Xbox a hardware-agnostic brand, but this advert keeps referring to different hardware devices as Xboxes. "Xboxes", as in physical systems that aren't officially branded as Xbox devices, yet are supposed to be a part of the brand.

So, ironically, they're still leaning into a hardware-based identity even in this advert, and it's all due to a single word: an. If they had said "This is Xbox", instead of "This is an Xbox", then they'd at least be communicating that the devices and the features/experiences they bring are part of the brand that is Xbox. It'd be Microsoft specifically referring to Xbox as a brand, rather than once again reminding them of hardware specifically.

They failed to communicate the point they wanted to message, so the advert fails at a fundamental level. All because of a simple two-letter word. No one at the marketing agency thought about this before spending all this money on the ad campaign? No one?

DeepEnigma said:
All kidding aside, rather monopolistic company culture shining through their ad.
Click to expand...

Maybe that's what Mr. Phil (Spencer) meant when he said more acquisitions? 😬

mdkirby said:
its not bad tbh, its quite good at communicating their device agnostic new approach, as they transition to effectively being a publisher...I don't personally like the ad, but I think its effective at getting across their intent.
Click to expand...

No it's not. The ads don't tell me anything about Xbox as a brand or an experience, just as a gaming device. An Xbox doesn't have to be called an Xbox, but it's still "an" Xbox.

Oh so Xbox is still "a" thing. It's a phone, it a laptop, it a TV. Okay, can I play my 360 games on that phone? Can I download my games from the TV? Can I use that 2TB Seagate CF Express card on my laptop? No? Oh so these aren't actually Xboxes then :/.

The advert should've been selling the brand and experience, not devices. Not saying they couldn't have featured other devices in it, but it should've revolved around the experience itself.

Funny part is, MS did this very well...during the 360 era. They didn't sell the hardware so much as the brand and the experience. Nintendo did it masterfully with the Switch. SIE's done it very well with PS5. This advert's just telling me I can take a bunch of other non-Xbox branded devices and use them like an Xbox console, except I can't actually because they don't offer 1:1 same features or even software.

They need a 2.0 version of this ad campaign addressing the shortcomings I just mentioned.
 
Last edited:
M

mayham2199

Member
Topher said:






I mean.....when Jez Corden has tweets like these for Microsoft....

Frustrated World Cup GIF
Click to expand...

To be fair to Jez I've heard him on his podcast and he's made it clear he thinks what they are doing is a mistake and they are to focused on data\numbers.
RoboFu said:
Of course, it's all about the service app . I've been trying to tell you guys for years. Sony will do the same thing eventually. So will Nintendo.
Click to expand...

I could see this being true but Sony wont do it at the cost of their console business that's the difference. Sony also did a subscription service as well but didn't do it at the cost of hurting their software sales. There's a right way and wrong way to do things and telling people they no longer need your hardware to play your games isn't the smart move if you want to continue selling that hardware.

Now with that said the console just doesn't matter to Xbox so yes for them it's all about the service app. For Nintendo and Sony they care about the hardware still and don't want to drive people in the wrong direction.
 
FunkMiller

FunkMiller

Gold Member
thicc_girls_are_teh_best said:
No, it's actually really bad marketing and I just realized why a few moments ago.

Microsoft supposedly wants to make Xbox a hardware-agnostic brand, but this advert keeps referring to different hardware devices as Xboxes. "Xboxes", as in physical systems that aren't officially branded as Xbox devices, yet are supposed to be a part of the brand.

So, ironically, they're still leaning into a hardware-based identity even in this advert, and it's all due to a single word: an. If they had said "This is Xbox", instead of "This is an Xbox", then they'd at least be communicating that the devices and the features/experiences they bring are part of the brand that is Xbox. It'd be Microsoft specifically referring to Xbox as a brand, rather than once again reminding them of hardware specifically.

They failed to communicate the point they wanted to message, so the advert fails at a fundamental level. All because of a simple two-letter word. No one at the marketing agency thought about this before spending all this money on the ad campaign? No one?
Click to expand...

Yep. Terrible.

Also, the plain fact of the matter is that 'Xbox' as a brand name is about a box. A piece of hardware. That's where the name came from: the hardware. the console.

Saddling themselves to that name, when they want to promote their product that is no longer a piece of hardware is dumb as shit. Just goes to show they have no long term plan or strategy. It's all reactive to market forces, and their own stupid mistakes.

GamePass would have been a better brand name to run with. Drop Xbox completely, as it's clear they've completely fucking killed it.
 
Last edited:
Oppoi

Oppoi

Member
Fess said:
Yeah kinda. It’s not a service, yet, unless you go for Gamepass only, but like it or not this is definitely them kickstarting the digital platform future. Xbox is now an app, accessed through all kinds of devices and browsers.
Click to expand...
"Kickstarting the digital platform future." I know you're all giddy with excitement to follow Microsoft on their newest venture to dominate the future of gaming but seriously, they do this out of desperation not aspiration.
 
ZehDon

ZehDon

Member
thicc_girls_are_teh_best said:
No, it's actually really bad marketing and I just realized why a few moments ago.

Microsoft supposedly wants to make Xbox a hardware-agnostic brand, but this advert keeps referring to different hardware devices as Xboxes. "Xboxes", as in physical systems that aren't officially branded as Xbox devices, yet are supposed to be a part of the brand.

So, ironically, they're still leaning into a hardware-based identity even in this advert, and it's all due to a single word: an. If they had said "This is Xbox", instead of "This is an Xbox", then they'd at least be communicating that the devices and the features/experiences they bring are part of the brand that is Xbox. It'd be Microsoft specifically referring to Xbox as a brand, rather than once again reminding them of hardware specifically.

They failed to communicate the point they wanted to message, so the advert fails at a fundamental level. All because of a simple two-letter word. No one at the marketing agency thought about this before spending all this money on the ad campaign? No one?
Click to expand...
This is a very astute point.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Microsoft shakes up Xbox marketing as key exec departs for Roblox
35
3K
Loomy replied
[The Verge] Microsoft may stop marketing of Xbox consoles in EMEA and focus only on Game Pass, Cloud, PC and Xbox Controllers
2 3 4 5
249
26K
RoboFu replied
Xbox Cloud Gaming will let you stream your own games next month
Rumor 2
66
3K
soulbait replied
Xbox cofounder J Allard has joined Amazon to work on ‘new ideas’
News 2
55
3K
A.Romero replied
New Home Experience in the Xbox App on Windows Is Available for Xbox Insiders
17
1K
Ozzy Onya A2Z replied
Top Bottom