Gaming Revenue For Microsoft Up 16 Percent, Exceeds Estimates New Earnings Report States

In the ongoing console generation for the Xbox Series X|S, Microsoft continues to flourish this time around in contrast to the Xbox One era. Previously, it was reported that the hardware revenue faced a decline for the gaming division at the time. However, following the launch of the new platform, revenue grew 40 percent and hardware swelled more than 80 percent. Additionally, revenue continued to grow as time progressed with a record high 232 percent as of April 2021. Of course, service added to the numbers with Xbox Game Pass and demand for hardware with system scarcity still rampant in the market. Later on, Microsoft reported that revenue was still up 172 percent, however, software faced a decline by 4 percent in June for FY21 Q4. Now with October close to ending, the latest financial report is out for Microsoft. In terms of Xbox, the overall division faced a 16 percent increase in revenue. Noted, hardware is also up with 166 percent as well. Notably, Xbox Series X|S in recent weeks continues to illustrate unheard of behavior for the products in the overall market. In that, Install Base reports that the two SKUs in Japan shatter expectations as the pair are to overtake more than 100,000 units sold by the first full year, projections suggest. xCloud is also suggested to be a market leader with the service coming to the region last month as well. But, there are some takeaways as well. From Axios Gaming, Xbox Game Pass continues to lead in impressive numbers, but, it has yet to meet Microsoft’s expectations as of reporting. The service is also ranked in Microsoft’s pay incentive metric from CEO Satya Nadella – the only from the gaming division. You can read the full report by heading here. Do you think Microsoft will keep the momentum going for Xbox in future quarters? Source: Microsoft
While Xbox Game Pass Subscriptions Continue To Grow, Microsoft’s Expectations Are Even Higher New Report Shares

Although Microsoft is evidently in the process of collecting itself following the Xbox One generation as it only sold half the number of hardware that the PlayStation 4 did, the platform as a whole did excel in one aspect: services. In that, Xbox Game Pass was born late into the lifecycle of the hardware then and the monthly video game subscription is carrying over to the new Xbox Series machines. From reports then, we soon learned that Xbox Game Pass users were more than 90 percent more likely to play a game over those not subscribed that they never thought to. More recently in a report elsewhere it was discovered that Xbox Game Pass also improved purchases on the platform with roughly 50 percent of users are more prone to purchase games compared to those not subscribed as well. Despite the success that dawns over the service with more than 23 million users recorded, the number continues to grow, but, Microsoft’s high margins has still yet to be met. In a new report from Axios Gaming, it is said that the Xbox company’s expectations are still towering over the current numbers coming from Xbox Game Pass. More intriguing is that among other service provided by Microsoft, Xbox Game Pass was revealed to be added to the pay incentive metric for the company back in 2019 and remains the only measurement from the video game division. While said to be intended for the Microsoft CEO by Stephen Totilo on Twitter, it is questionable the concern of missing the company’s expectations when also previously celebrating the fruits of xCloud – a separate perk tied to the service. As the cloud streaming platform continues to be paired with Xbox Game Pass, we might witness a continued rise in subscriptions when other collaborations begin to settle in. Previously, Microsoft told that it is working with television manufacturers to incorporate a dedicated xCloud application for several models. You can read the full report by heading here. Are you surprised by the response of Microsoft to Xbox Game Pass currently?
Nintendo & Niantic Launches AR Mobile Game Pikmin Bloom

As we are all familiar, augmented reality mobile experience Pokémon Go this year turns five years-old. And while Niantic is still at large with the extremely popular game in collaboration with Nintendo, the firm is also underway with another endeavor with the Japanese company. Earlier this year, the two announced another partnership is forming for another project, but this time centered around Pikmin. More interesting is that the project, although not officially titled, will receive help directly from an industry veteran. In that, Super Mario & Pikmin creator Shigeru Miyamoto is told to be assisting Niantic in properly delivering a fulfilling Pikmin experience to mobile devices. At the time, the game was framed to be a way to reinvent the joy of walking. This week, the pair of firms returned to unveil and launch Pikmin Bloom. You can watch the announcement trailer for Pikmin Bloom in the video below: “Jointly developed by Niantic and Nintendo, Pikmin Bloom allows you to grow your very own Pikmin squad, which you can then take with you on your daily walks. The app will be available on the App Store and Google Play over the coming days,” the announcement post shares. “The most important thing in Pikmin Bloom is your daily walk. As you walk, you’ll find Pikmin seedlings along your path, so the more you walk, the more your Pikmin squad will grow. You can then pluck Pikmin from seedlings after they grow. Walk more to make more friends with Pikmin! “Walking with your Pikmin will make flowers bloom along your path. When you feed Pikmin nectar from the various fruits you pick up in the game, beautiful flowers bloom atop their heads. Collect the petals to plant them as you walk and flowers will bloom with each and every step you take, leaving a colorful trail behind you. Watch the world come alive as you transform it to create shared trails of flowers!” You can visit the Pikmin Bloom page on both the Google Play Store and The App Store. Are you excited for Pikmin Bloom’s arrival? Pikmin Bloom is out now for Android & iOS. Source: Niantic
Returnal Receives New Update Welcoming Photo Mode & Suspend Cycle Mode

Although the presumed properties for the initial PlayStation 5 launch up were already present with games such as God of War: Ragnarok alongside Horizon Forbidden West and the long due Gran Turismo 7, Sony Interactive Entertainment has once again collaborated with Housemarque for one more project, Returnal. The game pins itself to be a ever changing experience as players enter a dungeon-like planet where death is permanent. Following the game’s release earlier this spring, it was no surprise the next move that Sony Interactive Entertainment took for the team – a full-on acquisition. At the time, Bluepoint Games was told to be welcomed to the PlayStation first-party family too, however, that was later not the case. It was not until this past month that the developer was properly initiated into the network of PlayStation studios. This week, Housemarque went on to feature a new update for Returnal which includes photo mode and a new ‘Suspend Cycle’ mode for players looking to continue their progress. You can watch the update trailer in the video below: “One of the main features of this update is the Suspend Cycle functionality, which will allow you to pause your cycle to be continued later, letting you exit the game and turn off your console without losing your progress in that session,” Harry Krueger, Housemarque Game Director explains in the blog post. “The structure of the game remains unchanged, so this functionality is not a traditional mid-game ‘Save Game’ option: by suspending the cycle, Returnal will simply create a single use suspend point, and once you resume playing the suspend point is deleted and cannot be used again. Your game will continue directly from the moment you left it, and if you want to suspend the cycle again, your progress will be captured from that new point onwards.” For the overall experience, we suggest you read our full review for Returnal. “This intense, pulse pounding action experience on top of all of the other things I have mentioned all add up to making Returnal my favorite Playstation 5 game so far, and one of my favorite action games of the last few years, critic David Rodriguez describes. You can read the full piece by heading here. Do you plan to use the new features added to Returnal? Returnal is out now for PlayStation 5. Source: PlayStation Blog