Games Thirst – Amazing Life
Microsoft has announced an Xbox One price cut, and from February 28th, all those purchasing the console will get if for £399.99 in the UK. It currently cost £429.99. The deal is only for the U.K., however.
In tandem with the announcement, Microsoft has announced an Xbox One Titanfall bundle, one that’ll cost £399.99, which means Titanfall will be given away free of charge. There’s also a Titanfall Xbox One bundle for North American but the console’s $499 price tag there remains the same.
The price cut comes just three months after the console launched in November of 2013, and has been handily outsold by Sony’s cheaper PS4.
But the price slash, Microsoft says, has nothing to do with lagging Xbox One sales, but rather to coincide with the launch of Respawn Entertainment’s popular new IP, Titanfall.
“The reason for doing this is about giving gamers in the UK the best value we can with Xbox One,” Xbox UK managing director Harvey Eagle told Eurogamer.
“That starts with the announcement we’re making about this new price point of £399 moving forward, and continues with the inclusion of the hottest game of the year in Titanfall.
“In terms of our sales, this has been our most successful UK launch ever. I think we can say at this point already that both platforms are commercially successful, and I think that’s great news for the industry.
“But I will also say we’re only a few months into a generation that’s going to last for many many years. So we take a long-term view. This is very much a marathon for us, not a sprint, and we’re in it for the long haul. We’re very excited about the announcements we’re making today.”
According to Eagle, Xbox One sales were “on track with where we hoped we would be at this point in time”.
“Xbox 360′s been a phenomenal success in the UK. For this to be the most successful launch we’ve ever done has thrilled us to be honest. So we’re happy with where we are. We’re excited about the announcements we’re making today. We’re excited about what’s coming further down the line.
“This is about us offering the best value we can. The release of Titanfall is a great moment to do this. It’s a game that has won more than 80 awards so far. It’s hugely anticipated. The multiplayer beta was played and enjoyed by millions of gamers around the world. And we feel now is the best time to adjust the price and to include Titanfall moving forward as a promotional offer.”
Eagle added that be knew Titanfall would sell Xbox One systems, and that people would buy the console just to play the game.
“What I’m certain of is that people want to play Titanfall. It’s going to be a system seller. People will buy an Xbox One in order to play this game.”
Part of the Titanfall bundle includes 1 free month of Xbox Live Gold, and Eagle added that it was specifically for Titanfall that said “freebie” was thrown in.
“We want to get people onto Xbox Live,” he said. “You need an Xbox Live subscription in order to play Titanfall, so we felt it would be wrong to include the game but not some form of subscription so they can have a chance to play the game. We think they’re going to love it and want to subscribe moving forwards afterwards.”
It seems a sure bet that Microsoft will see an increase in console sales because of the price cut and Titanfall bundle, but early adopters of the console will surely be upset by the move, feeling robbed that Microsoft would cut the price of the newconsole so soon.
“We’re hugely appreciative and I would like to thank all of the customers who have bought an Xbox One and have supported us since launch,” Eagle said when asked about Xbox One owners who might feel betrayed by today’s news.
“What I would also do is remind you that many of those consoles that were purchased at launch and in the run up to Christmas came with the inclusion of a game. You’ll know we did a day one offer with FIFA and also Forza, and this latest offer has been timed to celebrate the launch of Titanfall.”
Titanfall will launch on March 11th on PC and Xbox One. The Xbox 360 version goes on sale two weeks later, on March 28th.
