Xbox head Phil Spencer recently stated that Microsoft currently has no plans to develop its own battle royale title. The days are over when the company could rely on the Xbox exclusivity of PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds. The BR mode of Fortnite has overshadowed Microsoft’s PUBG plan.
As Xbox head Phil Spencer explained, Microsoft does not want to jump on the battle royale bandwagon just because other developers are doing it. Instead, they only want to develop their own BR mode if they have their own innovative ideas.
A new, exclusive hit for the masses would, however, also be in Microsoft’s interest, as Fortnite interrupted what seemed to be a guaranteed deal …
PUBG Xbox-exclusive, Fortnite intervenes
What happened so far: At the last E3, Microsoft announced that it intended to bring the battle royale game PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds to Xbox One by the end of 2017. At that time, PUBG was one of the biggest games on the planet.
PUBG was supposed to be available exclusively on Xbox One – not on PlayStation 4.
This is still the case: There is no sign of a PUBG version for PlayStation 4. Whether and when this can be expected is still up in the air.
Apparently, Microsoft negotiated with the PUBG developers: We will help you, but you forego a PS4 version for now with PUBG.
Clear advantage for Microsoft: With this seemingly guaranteed deal, Microsoft wanted to outsmart Sony and make battle royale fans among console owners happy.
This could have worked if the folks at Epic Games hadn’t more or less thwarted the company’s plans.
Fortnite is faster: Before Microsoft could finalize their deal with Bluehole and the PUBG Corporation and release PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds on Xbox One, Epic Games intervened with Fortnite and brought their BR mode to Xbox One and PlayStation 4 earlier.
While PUBG was only released on Xbox One on December 12, 2017, Fortnite BR had been available since September 2017 and had a large player base.
Fortnite is everywhere: Fortnite has now surpassed PUBG in player numbers and can gather more viewers on streaming platforms like Twitch than the competition. This is partly due to the fact that Fortnite is simply available on more gaming platforms.
Unlike PUBG, the battle royale mode of Fortnite is free-to-play and is available not only on PC but also on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Mobile on iOS. An Android version is also forthcoming.
PUBG plan thwarted – what now?
That Fortnite has nullified the advantage of the exclusive deal with PUBG is certainly not something Microsoft is happy about. Although the plan for the more realistic battle royale title is not a total failure, there are fans in both BR camps. However, the majority of fans of the specific shooter genre likely opted for Fortnite BR, especially because the title is free-to-play.
What’s next? Even though the revenue of the Xbox division has increased since Microsoft refocused on gaming, Xbox One remains criticized due to the lack of exclusive titles. This is why the Xbox head’s statement about not wanting to jump on the BR hype train is interesting.
However, the company does not completely rule out creating its own battle royale game. If one of the company’s first-party developers had a convincing original idea for the battle royale genre, Microsoft would definitely be on board.
The US website GameSpot speculated after this statement that an independent BR title for Microsoft is currently not being considered, but this does not mean that such a mode could not appear in a future game of an existing IP.
Is Halo 6: Battle Royale coming?
Players discuss Halo: Battle Royale: Halo is one of Microsoft’s most important exclusive IPs, and it is expected that the company will announce Halo 6 at the upcoming E3 in June. In the relevant forums and social media, Halo players have been discussing the possibility of a battle royale mode for the sci-fi shooter for some time.
This even led to a meme in the Halo subreddit this year, where a post about a supposed free-to-play Halo: BR was altered to look like an official announcement from the developers at 343 Industries.
This joke, however, did not hinder the discussion. Players are still discussing the various possibilities of such a mode. There are advocates as well as opponents.
Some Halo players are even willing to compromise. While a new Halo built around a battle royale mode is generally rejected, it is suggested in the Halo subreddit to allow players the choice of whether or not to participate in the mode.
One user pointed out that battle royale is already possible to a limited extent through Forge, Halo’s map editor. If this were further developed in an upcoming Halo game, interested players could create their own BR matches, as has been done with other games that have editors.
Another player thinks that the developers could introduce battle royale as a new multiplayer playlist. This way, no one would be forced to participate, but the game would benefit from the popularity of the mode.
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