Microsoft To Focus More On Core Franchises

Microsoft are going to be placing more emphasis on their exclusive Xbox 360 franchises in the future, senior director Kevin Unangst has revealed. Speaking to Gamustra, the head of PC and mobile gaming noted "There always has to be a balance- you don't want to just [do] sequel, sequel, sequel, you have to be pushing the envelope". What does that means for owners of the home console in years to come? "You're going to see us do more with Forza, with Halo, with Fable; all the franchises, but of course we're also of course looking to bring new things like the integration between Kinect and the phone [Microsoft recently announced the new Windows Phone 7 to be compatible with the Kinect camera]." As if that weren't enough, Unangst then went on to say that "[The current 360 line-up for 2011] is not the sum total. There's games that we've revealed [Gears, mainly!] but not yet talked about coming this year, games like Forza Motorsport 4 and Kinect Star Wars. Those, and some other surprises you'll hear from us at E3 about". If anything, the studio looks to be defending itself now after criticism that Xbox exclusives were lacking in 2011, promising more revelations on announced and unannounced titles at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in June. Frank O'Connor, creative director of the Halo franchise, took things one step further: "The core game mechanic and strength of the Halo universe doesn't need to be changed- Bungie tried to reinvent the series every time- it just needs to be taken deeper. We want to make Halo, not Call of Duty or Ridge Racer because we understand what's special about the saga". For that reason, O'Connor says that the next instalment, reportedly a HD remake of the original title set for release on its tenth anniversary this November, will include "dramatic innovations" but also "slight tweaks". In other words, so long as they start announcing more exclusives, 2011 should become a brilliant year for Microsoft!