Defining Duke: An Xbox Podcast

Latest Episodes:

# 193 | The PS5 Pro Is HERE - Did Xbox Dodge A Bullet? Sep 15, 2024

Show notes

Much has been said about Xbox's lack of desire to do a mid-generation refresh. For some, it symbolizes the platform's lack of care for the future of its own hardware and, for others, a sign that the green team has their eyes on the next generation instead. In a surprise move, it is not Xbox who stepped on the rake this week! PlayStation has sneakily experienced a troublesome year much like Xbox between Concord, the rollercoaster ride that is Helldivers 2, and now the pricing of the PlayStation 5 pro. Of all our write-ins this week, 90% were asking one question: Did Xbox dodge a bullet by not going down this hardware rabbit hole? Naturally, the Dukes debate and discuss the ins-and-outs of this initially innocent announcement from PlayStation. In other news, Xbox will be returning to Japan for their own Tokyo Game Show event in 2024 and State Of Decay 2 support is finally over! We also get into the exclusivity situation surrounding Black Myth Wukong, the return of some classic Transformers games, and plenty more!

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#192 | Is Xbox Worth It In 2024?! Sep 08, 2024

Show notes

The Dukes are off to San Diego and that means we had to get a little crafty compared to our usual episodes! Since we’re recording in advance, we forged an episode in the spirit of Defining Duke Ultimate and leaned heavily into one topic: the Series X/S generation thus far. Easily our most asked question is whether or not to dive into a Xbox at this point, so we dedicated an entire episode to the idea! Matty and Cog sift through every first party release and discuss the highs and lows they’ve brought. Furthermore, we analyze every Day 1 Game Pass drop since the service began introducing third party with Outriders. We also happily indulge in another conversation of where Xbox could stand to improve and even what could be green lit to shift some of the optics around the brand. Indeed, this is the all-encompassing conversation on Xbox’s star in 2024 and we hope you do enjoy!

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#191 | It's Time To Talk About The Future Of Xbox Exclusives... Sep 01, 2024

Show notes

As always, we like to source questions, comments, and concerns from our lovely audience each and every week. Many times, that alone defines the theme of the episode and that's certainly the case here. Following the news of Indiana Jones headed to PS5, plenty of Xbox fans have been left flat-footed. What does this mean for the future of the console's exclusives and will any of their competitors follow suit? Phil Spencer has shared his thoughts on the matter and now it's time for the Dukes to chime in!

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#190 | We Played A TON Of Xbox Games Early (And In-Person) Aug 25, 2024

Show notes

For the first time ever, the Dukes are gathering in person to record an episode! What a time for it to happen too as we have plenty to discuss. For starters, we’re got our hands on a plethora of upcoming Xbox titles. Avowed, Ara History Untold, Towerborne, Atomfall, Metaphor Re Fantazio, and plenty more! As we were on site, we even had a chance to speak with a ton of the devs meaning we have added insight beyond the games themselves. Beyond the scoops, we naturally have to discuss the Indy situation as the game has been announced for PlayStation. We knew multi-platform was Xbox’s future, but this was quite an aggressive move. How do the Dukes feel about such a play from the green team? Naturally, we have much to say on top of the announcements at Opening Night Live itself.

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#189 | Xbox Did WHAT?! - Hi Fi Rush & Tango Gameworks Are BACK! Aug 18, 2024

Show notes

In a year chockful of layoffs and studio closures, we needed a W like this. What was originally considered one of the biggest losses amidst these changes was Xbox's closure of Tango Gameworks. Originally known for survival horror titles, Tango stormed out the gate last year with the beloved action rhythm game, Hi Fi Rush, to critical acclaim. Krafton seems to have liked the numbers they saw because they've stepped in to take Tango and the Hi Fi Rush IP off Xbox's hands. While The Evil Within and Ghostwire Tokyo remain in the hands of Xbox, the people's champion lives to fight another day. Naturally, the Dukes have plenty of thoughts. It's still a loss of talent for Xbox at the end of the day, so is there more to a partnership here? What happens to the lingering IP from Tango? We dive into the jaw dropping news and an otherwise slower news week.

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#188 | Avowed Just Got DELAYED... - What's Next? Aug 11, 2024

Show notes

Avowed is getting moved back to February 18, 2025 out of respect for our backlogs. How kind of Xbox to do such a thing! Avowed was a subject of much debate for the Dukes. While the game looked solid coming out of the January Developer Direct, it clearly needed more time. Come June, Avowed looked to be in much better shape and has now found itself a new date away from the noise of the holiday season. This sets up Xbox for a rare top quarter of the year game, a second for them in this generation. The Dukes settle into what this means for the roadmap moving forward and if it spells any trouble for the anticipated fantasy RPG.

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#187 | The Numbers Are IN... - Is Xbox Hardware Dying? Aug 04, 2024

Show notes

The results for Microsoft Gaming's FY24 Q4 is in and it's mighty telling of where the company is at. On one hand, Xbox is making more money than ever before, but it's come at the loss of hardware sales which are down a staggering 42% YOY. Can Xbox afford to keep this trend up in a world not yet ready for digital only? According to Microsoft CFO Amy Hood, this is all well and fine as the company marches toward content and services. The Dukes dive into all the numbers, including Activision's ability to make the entirety of Xbox a boatload of money in spite of the remaining parts of Xbox plateauing. We also dig into the newest Starborn trademark, Bungie's daunting task ahead of them after massive layoffs once more, and plenty of other subjects in yet another busy week!

Please keep in mind that our timestamps are approximate, and will often be slightly off due to dynamic ad placement.

0:00:00 - Intro

0:33:22 - World Of Warcraft team are unionizing

0:38:39 - Stalker 2 delayed to November 20th

0:44:37 - A new Playground Games studio has opened

0:47:44 - Some Game Pass leaks

0:51:31 - Halo Infinite’s Operation Fleetcom details

0:53:06 - Double Fine’s “PsychOdyssey” documentary is getting a blu-ray release

0:56:01 - New Xbox transparent controller revealed

0:57:46 - 500K players for Flintlock: Siege Of Dawn

1:00:06 - What is happening at Bungie?!

1:24:06 - An open world Patrick Star game has leaked

1:27:34 - Legacy Of Kain 1 and 2 remastered spotted at SDCC

1:29:42 - Visions Of Mana demo available now

1:30:37 - Wildermyth comes to consoles on October 22 this year

1:32:18 - Dragon Age Veilguard Steam details

1:35:34 - Mortal Kombat 1 “Khaos Reigns” and Kombat Pack 2 revealed

1:40:56 - What We’re Playing

2:16:09 - Microsoft Gaming FY24 Q4 results

2:38:12 - Starborn Zenimax trademark

2:40:33 - An update on the Xbox-Capcom issues

2:42:53 - Game Pass Pick Of The Week

2:49:15 - Our Xbox 360 Memories

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#186 | The Games Industry Is Deteriorating Jul 28, 2024

Show notes

AI, layoffs, restructuring, and so on. Indeed, we're in the midst of interesting times for our beloved industry, but the clash between creator and executive has never been greater. Jobs are being lost to AI as we expected, but it's happening now. Not later, but now. Every publishing label is claiming that times are tough, but no adjustments on spending has been made. As the industry continues to bleed talent, who will want to join it? This subject matter is the very heartbeat of this episode as the Dukes collectively recognize the missteps being made. So, how do things get better? What can be done to improve an industry controlled by misers? The Dukes have thoughts and hopes such as unionization which is what Bethesda Game Studios has recently done. We also hear from our old friends again at the FTC on how Game Pass Standard is losing its value and what the source of Xbox's faltering marketing initiative is.

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Please keep in mind that our timestamps are approximate, and will often be slightly off due to dynamic ad placement.

0:00:00 - Intro/Patron Write-Ins

0:34:02 - Quiet: Level One kickstarter from Jonah Lobe

0:37:12 - Elder Scrolls VI has a strange leak

0:42:39 - Xbox working on cloud only version of Game Pass?

0:47:15 - MW3 officially on Game Pass

1:07:27 - Dungeons of Hinterberg dev needs your help

1:14:57 - Halo TV Show canceled by Paramount+

1:25:24 - Halo Combat Devolved gameplay

1:27:13 - Tales Of Xillia Remastered leaks

1:32:00 - Heihachi announced for Tekken 8 at EVO

1:41:12 - First Player Games has been acquired by Warner Bros Games

1:49:12 - Multiple games are skipping Xbox

1:56:11 - Shadows Of The Damned: Hella Remastered returns this Halloween

1:57:03 - Humble Games is undergoing restructuring

2:01:57 - What We’re Playing

2:25:40 - The FTC criticizes Game Pass changes

2:36:13 - Xbox's Marketing isn't blessed like Sony... Says Xbox...

2:52:37 - Bethesda Game Studios has unionized

2:58:15 - Game Pass Pick Of The Week

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#185 | The Game Pass Aftermath Jul 21, 2024

Show notes

A rather peaceful July continues on as we dig through the aftermath of Xbox's major changes to Game Pass. For starters, we now have clarity on the wait for Day 1 games in the service at the standard tier and those who remain will be seemingly waiting a long time for their shiny games to arrive. Furthermore, Xbox is potentially pulling out of regions like Europe, Africa, and the Middle East when it comes to their consoles. With all these parts of the business shifting in real time, many are trying to predict where Xbox will be at the end of all these changes. Well, much of it hinges on Call Of Duty which is tying its beta to Game Pass subscribers. Indeed, it's a different Xbox we're looking at in 2024! Does this new Xbox consider Crash 5 important enough to resurrect? How cutthroat shall they be with 343 in their next Halo? There is quite a bit to discuss, so enough briefing and let's get to chatting!

Please keep in mind that our timestamps are approximate, and will often be slightly off due to dynamic ad placement.

0:00:00 - Intro

0:16:10 - Microsoft Rewards not fueling Game Pass?

0:19:23 - Amazon is now selling a Xbox Streaming bundle

0:31:09 - Microsoft releases dynamic Xbox 360 blades background

0:37:26 - Forza Horizon 5 has reached 40 million players

0:44:35 - TMNT: Mutants Unleashed gameplay revealed

1:00:23 - Yakuza developer announcing their next game at Tokyo Game Show

1:07:15 - A sequel to Aliens Fireteam Elite leaks

1:09:36 - Deadpool controller

1:11:09 - What We’re Playing

1:49:51 - Crash Bandicoot 5

1:57:38 - Day 1 Game Pass clarification from Jez Corden

2:04:59 - Call Of Duty Black Ops 6 beta details

2:09:46 - Xbox marketing is possibly exiting some regions

2:16:10 - Xbox GeForce Now integration available now

2:18:24 - What's going on with Halo's future?

2:39:04 - Microsoft is reportedly moving on from their DEI teams

2:52:50 - Leaving Game Pass soon

2:54:22 - Game Pass Pick Of The Week

3:01:34 - What system do we grow our game library on?

3:12:48 - Wrap-up

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#184 | The Xbox Game Pass Squeeze FINALLY Happened... Jul 14, 2024

Show notes

After years of conversation on the topic, Xbox has finally made long anticipated adjustments to its popular subscription service. Day one Game Pass games are gone from its standard tier and all have seen a price hike. The conversation naturally navigates itself to the "why" in this situation. All subscription services go up whether it's Netflix, Disney+, or Spotify. Is it because of Black Ops 6 impending? Is Day One Game Pass hurting Xbox? Is $20 enough to stop any form of bleeding with that in mind? Are they extracting maximum value from the service at its peak? Are they setting a newer, higher standard for the batch of new subscribers that will join with the launch of a new Call Of Duty game? There's many ways for us to assess, so we'll comb through all of them carefully! Furthermore, we have details on Hellblade 2's performance on the market. From sales to engagement, there are question marks about what this game has done for the platform, so the Dukes dissect what information Circana has provided on that matter. Plus more on Banjo Kazooie, LEGO Horizon on Xbox, the questionable Fire Stick TV ad, Bioshock updates, Dragon Age: Veilguard romance options, and plenty more!

Please keep in mind that our timestamps are approximate, and will often be slightly off due to dynamic ad placement.

0:00:00 - Intro

0:31:56 - Banjo Kazooie rumors

0:38:41 - Guerilla Games on Xbox version of LEGO Horizon Adventures

0:42:38 - Atlas Fallen coming to Game Pass?

0:44:48 - Xbox summer sale 2024 is live now

0:46:35 - Cities Skylines 2 will be missing its Xbox console release

0:49:21 - Xbox Amazon Fire Stick TV ad

0:54:20 - Cloud Chamber is heavily recruiting for BioShock

0:56:28 - Dragon Age: Veilguard romance details

1:02:46 - Star Wars: Outlaws planet details

1:04:58 - Piranha Bytes is the latest studio to be shutdown by Embracer