Xbox head admits Redfall fell well below expectations

We're just two days on from Redfall's launch and already, Xbox head, Phil Spencer, is doing the rounds with media interviews. In an interview with KindaFunny this week, Spencer admitted that internally, Microsoft's mock reviews projected that the game would score much higher than it did. 

Redfall had a poor run-up to launch with multiple moments of bad news. At first, people took issue with the game's always-online requirement, which is something Arkane has said it is working to remove. Then, Arkane confirmed that the game would not ship with a 60FPS mode on Xbox Series X/S consoles. Given that 60FPS has become the gold standard this generation, and has been the standard for first-person shooters for decades, this news was swiftly met with disappointment. This all led up to launch-day reviews this week, with the game averaging a low 62 overall score on Metacritic.

In a lengthy interview with KindaFunny published today, Spencer talks a little bit about the circumstances around Redfall's launch. Many fans have questioned why Microsoft bothered to ship it at all, but it turns out, Microsoft just straight up thought the game was better than it is. During the interview, Spencer explains that Microsoft did internal mock reviews, which pegged the game as scoring double-digits higher than it did. It would seem Microsoft thought it had a 7/10 game at the very least, perhaps burgeoning on an 8/10. Ultimately, the public consensus was much harsher.

Elsewhere in the interview, Spencer also had some head-scratching statements about console sales, claiming that Xbox can't catch up to Nintendo and Sony with good games alone. While it might be true that a few 10/10 Xbox games wouldn't have PS5 owners rapidly jumping ship, there's no denying that blockbuster first-party games do go a long way towards helping consumers decide which console to buy and in the long run, if there are enough good exclusives, some will buy a second (or third) system to play those games on.

Hopefully, the Xbox team can reignite fan positivity later this summer. Next month, the Xbox Games Showcase will go live and immediately after, Bethesda will go live with Starfield Direct, giving us one last deep-dive into the game before its September launch.

KitGuru Says: I must admit even I'm a bit surprised by how poorly Redfall has been received but if Microsoft's internal mock review process was so far off, then adjustments clearly need to be made. 

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