Xbox Game Studios Head Admits Redfall Should Have Been Better Prepared as a First-Party Game

Matt Booty, the head of Xbox Game Studios, recently discussed the troubled launch of Redfall, acknowledging that Microsoft has to improve its ability to set appropriate expectations for acquired studios like Arkane when it comes to developing first-party games.

Speaking to IGN, Booty noted that when a studio joins Xbox, they become part of the first-party lineup, and being a first-party studio means being under increased scrutiny and facing higher expectations. 

"When a studio becomes part of Xbox, like it or not, they become part of first-party," Booty said. "And as part of first-party, they exist in a different spotlight; people look at them through a different lens. And it is my responsibility, our responsibility as the wider Xbox org, to make sure they understand that, and then to make sure that they’re set up and that we set expectations appropriately."

He further reflected on the development of Redfall and acknowledged that there were shortcomings in the onboarding process for Arkane which was responsible for the game.

"If I were to look back, where I feel a little remiss on the Redfall thing, that project was started before we acquired Zenimax, and I think we could have done a better job of onboarding them..." he said.

Booty also admitted that both he and the management team had higher expectations for the game's reception compared to its actual outcome.

"Sometimes, a team can just get a little bit of tunnel vision around their game, and sometimes management can have the opposite problem where maybe they’re zoomed a little too far out," Booty shared.

"And it was a case of us having indicators that the game was going to perform a certain way...we had people play the game, we had reviews, we do mock reviews, we just had indicators that it was going to perform better than it did. And I think the team was so committed to what they were building that they just had a little bit of tunnel vision."

These statements mirror the response of Xbox head Phil Spencer who also expressed surprise at the game's disappointing reception, saying that the underwhelming response was not anticipated by the leadership team.

You can learn more by reading the full interview with Matt Booty here. Also, don't forget to join our 80 Level Talent platform and our Telegram channel, follow us on Instagram and Twitter, where we share breakdowns, the latest news, awesome artworks, and more.