„Players are less willing to pay.” Dev released his project on Game and says the service devalues games
The CEO of Raccoon Logic has openly criticized the Xbox Game subscription model, highlighting the devaluation of game value and threats to independent developers. His studio recently made Revenge of the Savage Planet available on Microsoft's service.
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Alex Hutchinson, head of Raccoon Logic studio, openly criticized the Xbox Game subscription model in a conversation with Gamer Social Club. The developer itted that while this service has some benefits, in the long run, it could harm the whole video game industry, especially independent studios.
Hutchinson's statement may be surprising, especially since just a month ago his studio released their game, Revenge of the Savage Planet, on Game . According to the developer, Microsoft's subscription offers immediate benefits, such as a fee for placing a title in the catalog or greater visibility of the game, but it comes with serious drawbacks.
What we've seen is that content has been devalued and that people are less willing to pay for things, which in the long run will likely mean less games being made and a lot more studios going under.
Moreover, Hutchinson expressed disappointment with the sale of additional content for Revenge of the Savage Planet. Despite the huge number of Game subscribers, interest in expansions turned out to be lower than expected (via 3DJuegos).
Potential solution and bitter truth about the industry
So, can we avoid the bad scenario predicted by Hutchinson? The CEO of Raccoon Logic claims that we can. In his opinion, limiting the availability of games in subscription services in the first year after their release could bring positive effects. He compared it to the model used in the film industry, where movies are released on VOD platforms only after they have been in theaters for a while.
Despite criticism of the subscription model, Hutchinson emphasized that Microsoft is an "amazing business partner," and the fee for placing the game in Game was "big enough to make a difference" - although, as he stressed, this happened "years ago."
The developer also addressed the situation in a broader context on X, where he wrote that only Nintendo cares about maintaining the real value of games today.
Everyone except Nintendo is also in a race to value content at zero which will end in tears - we read in Hutchinson's post.
There's currently a heated debate in the industry about the impact of the subscription model on the gaming market. Skeptical voices come not only from independent developers, but also from analysts and former leaders of leading corporations - including Jim Ryan, until recently the CEO of Sony Interactive, who described Xbox Game as a destructive solution.
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