Jez Corden (apologies) article about potential backup plans if the deal is abandoned. Most of these seem like dumb revenge fiction to me, which is par for the course for a biased source like Jez, but I wanted to get some other opinions. The investments option seems like the least harmful / most realistic of what he spitballs here.
Looking ahead, and moving on.
www.windowscentral.com
I'm sorry, but Jez is a brainlet. "Playstation-like exclusivity deals"? You mean like what Microsoft
already does? Nothing stopped Microsoft from outbidding Sony in the past for big games, it's just that Microsoft lacked common sense and did not care about gaming enough to do so. Also people like Jez don't realize, that just having more money doesn't mean you get the deal. 3P devs and pubs, especially for AAA games, actually WANT their games to achieve critical and commercial success. They want a platform holder as a partner, who can help their games gain a sense of prestige through brand association, and achieve stronger sales potential and revenue than they maybe would've gotten without that marketing deal.
Microsoft can't provide these because they let the Xbox brand wither away over the pas 5-7 years. The only way they can build some sense of prestige and strength back to the brand is to rely on their 1P output, something they still seem to be struggling with. Without that their brand will never be attractive enough to attract the types of 3P AAA deals that PlayStation or even Nintendo (when Nintendo wants to go for them) are able to attract. And, Sony & Nintendo have that allure and prestige with their brands because they've managed them well over multiple generations, and have had multiple 1P games that have set standards in some way creatively & commercially over those generations, consistently. They earned that prestige, they didn't just go out to try buying it when 1P wasn't up to snuff.
But never once do people like Jez Corden think about that, because they are too narrow-minded. Not a single one of his suggestions focused on what should actually matter: strengthening their current 1P output. Ensuring the output from the studios they already own is high-quality, varied, and has mass-market mainstream appeal. Focused on pushing their games, not services as if the service were the game itself. But Microsoft keep people like Jez Corden around to steer the flock, and because (most likely) upper management at Xbox itself don't seem to realize that their problems can be easily fixed with what they already have. They're just too lazy of focus, persistence & dedication (and lack the patience) to cultivate those outcomes organically.
They think you can buy those results, but you simply can't.
If they're talking back up plans, then the deal is dead.
Considering Jez is so tied to the hip with Microsoft, if he's publicly writing this article, he might already know something to the effect of what you're saying, through the MS grapevine.
I guess we'll find out sooner or later.
