Shane Kim Interview May 2008

1-1 with Microsoft Corporate VP and boss of Game Studios Shane Kim, in his most detailed interview this year. Halo Owns Gears, PGR5, buying Square Enix, 360 Slim & more.

Page: 1  2  3  4 

Page 3

Kikizo: In the latter case, what could be 'added'? Given recent developments, do you now see lack of Blu-ray drive and no guaranteed HDD for games as negatives to be addressed?

Kim: We're trying to drive more value at a lower cost; that's what everyone's trying to do. I don't think we're seeing limitations. I do think you're going to see more titles that require multiple discs, but I don't think that the problem is so drastic that everyone will say, it was a huge mistake that we didn't include a Blu-ray drive - I just don't believe that. What we've been able to see with the vast majority of titles on Xbox 360 is really great experiences [that are] not constrained by the lack of hard drive or larger capacity on a disc. I do think we'll see more titles that require multiple discs, and the challenge is then for the developer to create a good experience that doesn't require a whole bunch of disc swapping.

Kikizo: What about jumping on this motion control bandwagon as a way to add functionality?

Kim: I will say, look, we have a lot of research and development going on all over the place, not just in content but also in Live and in hardware, and we've had a ton of success in the accessories business. We're an R&D company at heart, so we're going to continue to look at new ways we can introduce different types of input - third parties are doing that as well obviously with music controllers. So there are opportunities, whether it's motion sensing, or some other technology.

Kikizo: This may or may not come as a surprise or news to you, but back at X06, Chris Lewis did go on record and say that Microsoft is already working on the next system.

Kim: And we just made him head of the Interactive Entertainment business in Europe!

Kikizo: Well, don't go and tell him off because this was a year and a half ago now, and I think the question was phrased as a sort of, how far ahead do you have to think, technology gets old quickly, and this is a rapidly cyclical business. But it was a confirmation nonetheless. So I am thinking, what is the real timeline going to be here?

Kim: It's not predictable right now. I mean, I will tell you that 95% of our efforts are focused on Xbox 360. And there is R&D work going on all over the place in terms of thinking about what the next innovation might be. That doesn't necessarily mean there's going to be a new hardware generation anytime soon. The innovation could take a form that doesn't require the hardware change that we traditionally think about every five years.

Kikizo: There will surely be overlap though, between 360 and the next system? How would Game Studios handle that transition properly?

Kim: We don't have any experience doing that, admittedly, but if Microsoft were going to be launching a new generation you would expect Microsoft Game Studios to take a leadership role in that launch, in the same way we did with Xbox 360, but of course we would have to know what's going on. We said from the beginning that we expect the Xbox 360 to have a long tail; clearly we didn't do that with the original Xbox, that was a strategic decision we made, to launch Xbox 360 in 2005. But we feel very good about the trajectory of Xbox 360 and we expect it to have a very long tail - that is our hope for this generation.

Kikizo: Well the lifespan will surely depend on your ability to broaden your audience; you have won the core gamers but now seriously need to sell - not just market - to the wider 'mainstream' market. I know that this is a big discussion point internally right now. Sony has cleaned up with stuff like SingStar and Buzz - aren't you relying too much on third parties for your equivalents - things that aren't even exclusive on the platform, like Guitar Hero and Rock Band? Shouldn't you be developing your own mainstream stuff seriously and making them as good as what Sony puts out?

Kim: Who says we're not?

Kikizo: Well - are you? Massmarket is so important and these titles seem like the keys to it.

Kim: No, I agree with that, and I understand in Europe in particular that SingStar and Buzz have been a success. And that's a point of strength for them in Europe, which makes it more difficult for us. Scene It alone, certainly in its first execution, wasn't going to be that. We have to keep plugging away, we know that those categories are traditionally both very successful. But at the same time we have to think about taking advantage of the unique capabilities of our platform; if we just try to do what the other guys have done, and only that, then that's not the right approach. Similarly, as I look at it, you have a lot of third parties who are trying to rush to the Wii phenomenon, but when you look at the data, the vast majority of software that has been sold on Wii comes from Nintendo, so that's not really turning out to be a great thirdparty ecosystem. You really need to decide if that's the direction you want to take.

Whatever we do has to be oriented towards taking advantage of our unique capabilities. Sony's is Blu-ray, Nintendo's is motion control, ours is online. And each of those has strengths and weaknesses in different markets of the world. That doesn't mean they're mutually exclusive, but I think our unique perspective is going to be online oriented, for better or worse. How do we create experiences that take advantage of it, so that people think it's worth their extra time and money to subscribe? I think if we can deliver the value, people are more than happy to spend $50 a year. But if we did something that was me-too, people would recognise that's what it is. And meanwhile somebody has to be thinking about what the next Wii thing is, or what the next Guitar Hero is - I'd rather be thinking ahead of the curve.

Page: 1  2  3  4 

NEXT PAGE >>