Subscription services such as the Xbox Game Pass are bad for business, says ex-Playstation boss Shawn Layden.
As a former boss of PlayStation, Shawn Layden has many years of insight into the game business. Even after his departure, he talks regularly about the topic and shares his views about it.
In a recent interview, he spoke again about subscription services, including the Xbox Game Pass. He questioned whether such models for video game developers are healthy or not. According to Layden, there would be many discussions. Also about bringing games directly into the game passport during your launch and whether you can be profitable at all.
“You can use all kinds of financial tricks to make any kind of company service appear profitable if you want. You simply stroke enough costs from the balance sheet and say that they are no longer included, and the company is already profitable. The actual question that comes to me like Game Pass is: ‘Is that healthy for the developer?’
He continued that the Game Pass would reduce the value of games and this system was less inspiring for developers.
“They do not create added value, bring it onto the market, hope for a boom, profit sharing, surpluses and all these beautiful things. It is just: ‘You pay me x dollar an hour, I’ll develop a game, here, put it on your server.’
“I don’t think that’s really inspiring for game developers.”
In his view of bringing games into the game pass, he referred to Grand Theft Auto VI, which would never start in a subscription service.
“None other than Strauss Zelnik himself said that GTA will never be offered in a subscription service from the first day”,
For developers of indie games, the model may be profitable. This could secure a large audience from day one. Despite everything, it is “bad for business in the long term.”
Layden has repeatedly commented on subscription services in the past, always criticizing the Xbox Game Pass from Microsoft.
He also sees parallels in the music industry. There, artists deserve less and less due to the sale of their music because of the streaming services. However, by selling concert tickets, you have another source of income.
Compared to music concerts, Layden said: “The problem with gaming is that we only have the launch. This is all. Nobody wants to pay for money to get to the studio and watch people program.”
