The creative minds behind the sci-fi game Everspace 2 have spoken highly of Microsoft’s gaming subscription, even in the face of competition from Sony.
In the wake of the court case between Microsoft and the US antitrust regulator FTC, Sony CEO Jim Ryan made his views clear: No single publisher can stand Game Pass.
Wumms! That hit home! But is the PlayStation boss right about that? That may be doubted. Because at least Michael Schade, CEO and founder of the German developer studio Rockfish Games, sees things differently. According to him, PlayStation would also benefit from Xbox Game Pass.
Better gaming thanks to Xbox deal
A statement that begs for additional context, so we won’t leave you on pins and needles any longer. Michael Schade explains his opinion as follows: Speaking to the Xbox Expansion Pass YouTube channel, he states that his studio had nine to twelve months more production time for the console port of Everspace 2 thanks to the Xbox deal.
We remember: Everspace 2 was released in 2021 on Steam in Early Access and then in April 2023 as a final PC release. At the same time, a console version was also being worked on, which benefited from the Game Pass deal. In the course of the interview, Michael Schade summarised his comments as follows:
We could have done it [Everspace 2 without the deal with Xbox Game Pass], but it would have been a smaller game. […] It’s maximum flexibility, extra funding, you just make a better game, and everybody’s happy, even the PlayStation fans are getting a better game on PS5 because of the deal with Game Pass.
He goes on to call the Game Pass deal one of the best, if not the best
deal in the entire gaming industry This has allowed Rockfish to remain independent and at the same time become more visible in the industry
So much for Rockfish Games’ opinion on the Xbox Game Pass. But how do you see the matter? Similar or completely different? Are you enthusiastic supporters of Microsoft’s game subscription or are you critical of the service and would prefer to do away with it? Do you sit somewhere between these two fronts? Either way, feel free to drop us a line in the comments!
