Don Mattrick
Reporting and statements that mention Don Mattrick.
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Zynga reportedly almost acquired Supercell for $400m in 2012, but deal fell through following failure of OMGPop
Zynga's founder Mark Pincus revealed that the company nearly acquired Supercell for $400 million in 2012, but the deal fell through due to Zynga's board concerns following the failure of its OMGPop acquisition. Pincus expressed regret over not pushing harder for the Supercell deal, which he believes would have been highly profitable.
After ditching discs, PlayStation continues replicating Xbox's very bad 2013 by going all in on TV
Sony has launched a "Live TV on PS5" app, drawing comparisons to Microsoft's initial Xbox One strategy of focusing on entertainment over gaming. The app offers a variety of channels and content, but the move has sparked controversy and negative public opinion, reminiscent of the Xbox One's past missteps with DRM and an all-in-one entertainment focus.
Former Xbox boss Don Mattrick once reportedly suggested Halo 4 should have a real-money auction house like Diablo 3 infamously did
Former Xbox boss Don Mattrick reportedly suggested that Halo 4 should feature a real-money auction house for in-game items, similar to Diablo 3's controversial experiment. This idea was met with internal disbelief by the development team, who recognized the potential negative impact on the game's reputation and completion status. Halo 4 ultimately launched without such a feature, and Mattrick departed Microsoft in 2013.
Ex-Xbox dev slams game execs as ‘money grubbing idiots’ in quote of the year
A former Bungie and 343 Industries developer, Dan Callen, has criticized game executives, calling them 'stupid detached money grubbing idiots.' Callen shared an anecdote about former Xbox executive Don Mattrick suggesting Halo 4 should implement a real money auction house for mech skins, a concept that had previously failed in Diablo 3. This criticism comes amid recent layoffs at Sony and Microsoft, highlighting ongoing issues within the games industry.
The Gaming Industry Is Eating Itself Alive
Xbox is undergoing a massive restructuring, including 3,200 layoffs, impacting numerous studios and divisions like Activision, Bethesda, and Blizzard. While some studios regain independence and first-party projects remain safe for now, the article criticizes Xbox's overall strategy, citing Game Pass's performance and declining hardware revenue. The piece also touches on PlayStation's similar issues with digital ownership and preservation, painting a bleak picture for the future of gaming costs and ownership.
"Game execs remain stupid detached money grubbing idiots": Former Xbox boss wanted Halo 4 to copy Diablo 3's horrible real-money auction house, dev says
A former Xbox executive, Don Mattrick, suggested that Halo 4 should implement a real-money auction house for in-game items, similar to Diablo 3's controversial feature. This suggestion was recalled by a recently laid-off Halo designer, Dan Callan, who criticized the detachment of executives from game development realities and the negative impact of such monetization strategies.
Sony kills game ownership and says it's all your fault
Sony is phasing out physical game discs for new PlayStation titles by 2028, effectively ending the concept of game ownership as players will no longer be able to buy, sell, or preserve physical copies. This move, driven by business decisions and a lack of competition, raises concerns about game preservation, consumer rights, and the loss of tangible connection to games and their creators.
Spore devs say the evolution game's previews were more ambitious than what they were actually making, and they 'built a fantasy in people's minds that was unachievable'
Former developers of Spore admit that the game's ambitious previews, particularly Will Wright's GDC 2005 presentation, created an unrealistic expectation for the final product. They acknowledge that the marketing built a fantasy of a deep simulation that the game, which was always intended as a collection of minigames, could not achieve.
A Year-By-Year Breakdown Of Phil Spencer's Mixed Legacy As Xbox Boss
This analysis breaks down Phil Spencer's tenure as Xbox boss from 2014 to 2026, highlighting both successes like backward compatibility and the launch of Xbox Game Pass, and failures such as studio closures, game cancellations, and price hikes. The article details major events year-by-year, concluding with Spencer's retirement and the challenges facing Xbox under new leadership.
Xbox's new boss could herald the changes the division needs | Opinion
Following Phil Spencer's departure, Microsoft has appointed Asha Sharma, formerly of the CoreAI team, as the new CEO of Xbox. While Sharma lacks direct video game experience, the article suggests this change could signal a necessary strategic pivot for the division, which has struggled despite significant investment and acquisitions. The author expresses cautious optimism that Sharma's background in consumer-facing services and potential focus on hardware could revitalize the Xbox brand.
