Crackdown 3 will show what the tech can deliver

Dec 20, 2015 22:41 GMT  ·  By

Microsoft has failed to give sales of the Xbox One a major boost during the penultimate month of 2015, once again losing the sales battle in the United States for November to the PlayStation 4, but the company continues to have big plans for the coming year, and the Azure tech plays a major part.

According to a new Twitter message from Phil Spencer, the leader of the gaming division, plans are in place to allow all developers who are bringing titles to the platform to use the cloud technology to improve the experience that gamers can access.

The executive also used the conversations he has been having with gamers to explain that Microsoft does not have plans to offer extra information about third-party titles, including the long-awaited Titanfall 2, before the publishers that own the franchises are willing to talk about them.

The original title in the shooter series created by Respawn Entertainment was only offered on the Xbox One, the Xbox 360 and the PC, but the sequel will also arrive on the PlayStation 4 at some point next year.

If the Azure cloud gaming technology is successful, then it will allow studios to deliver improved performance on Microsoft devices, which will, in turn, draw more gamers to them in the long-term.

The biggest showcase for the entire concept coming in 2016 will be Crackdown 3, a title that aims to make the entire world destructible in a variety of ways, something that is impossible to do by relying only on the local processing power of the Xbox One.

Exclusives and backwards compatible titles are also important next year

Microsoft is planning to anchor its fall launch schedule around Gears of War 4, which is designed to be the first title in the third-person cover-based shooter series designed from the ground up for the Xbox One.

The spring launch slate is anchored by Quantum Break, a very ambitious title that aims to mix traditional gameplay with a television series that will explain the point of view of the villain and his motivations.

Microsoft is also saying that it wants to bring as many titles from the Xbox 360 to the backwards compatibility feature and that it will have more announcements to make about that early in 2016.

Some gamers have also interpreted comments from the company's leadership as a sign that a revision of the Xbox One is planned, which might come with a permanent price drop attached.

A range of bundles that feature the home console are offered for the 349.99 dollars (299.99 Euro) price for the holiday period in select stores and in limited quantities.

It will be interesting to see whether the Xbox One can use exclusive titles, Azure and the much talked about Windows 10 integration to close the sales gap to its Sony rival.

The PlayStation 4 has managed to move more than 30.2 million units to gamers all over the world since launch and Sony insists that no price cut is planned because the console offers excellent value.