Xbox Head On ‘Street Fighter V’ PlayStation 4 Exclusivity: ‘It’s a Business Decision’
The PlayStation 4 and PC exclusivity of Street Fighter V was one of the surprise announcements to come out of the PlayStation Experience this past weekend. That was, of course, after the announcement was spoiled by a leaked teaser trailer. Microsoft is certainly no stranger to these third-party exclusivity deals, and Xbox Head Phil Spencer responded to fan questions about Street Fighter V on Twitter following the announcement.
Under the deal announced between Sony and Capcom, Sony is helping fund the development of Street Fighter V. This kind of backing is becoming increasingly common, and one that Microsoft is familiar with.
The company stepped in to help fund Capcom’s Dead Rising 3, which led to it being an Xbox One exclusive. When Titanfall developer Respawn Entertainment was up against the budget wall, it was Microsoft’s money that kept it from going under, as reported in The Final Hours of Titanfall. Most recently, Rise of the Tomb Raider from Square Enix became an Xbox One exclusive thanks to Microsoft helping to fund the development.
Capcom’s financial situation certainly points to it needing help, as well. The company’s most recent financial reports indicated a 51 percent drop in year-over-year revenue (via GameSpot). As a result, Spencer’s reaction to fan questions on Twitter was relatively sanguine.
@CapitanoCasella Business deals happen. We won’t do all of them. When we have a 1st party franchise in a genre I’d rather invest in ours.
— Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) December 6, 2014
@BRUSH0GUN I’d love it if XBOX fans could play all the games, but business just makes some deals happen. It’s all part of competition.
— Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) December 6, 2014
Spencer is referring to Killer Instinct as the Xbox One first-party fighting game. It’s a free-to-play title that launched alongside the console and is currently being developed by Iron Galaxy Studios. The game is currently in its second season and has added T.J. Combo, Maya, Kan-Ra, Riptor, and Cinder as new characters so far. It’s also received a significant UI update and a resolution bump to 900p.
@DobrySer Thanks, the response to KI has been great. We appreciate all the people checking out Season 2.
— Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) December 6, 2014
Spencer also took a playful tone when another fan brought up the need to see the return of the Banjo-Kazooie and Conker franchises.
@broggiedoge Love the idea of game franchise bartering, I’ll work on making amends for SF. — Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) December 8, 2014
Spencer previously teased a new Rare title that goes back to that developer’s roots. Banjo Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts was the last classic Rare-like game released by the company with the only titles since being Kinect Sports for the Xbox 360 and Kinect Sports Rivals for the Xbox One. The underwhelming sales of the latter led to a shakeup at the studio with layoffs and a change in focus away from Kinect.
What do you think about the Street Fighter V PS4 exclusivity deal and Spencer’s response? Is Killer Instinct a sound enough fighting alternative? Sound off in the comments below.
[Images via PlayStation Blog]
