Former Steam boss Jason Holtman working for Microsoft

[Red Hawk]

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2013-08-14-former-steam-boss-lands-at-microsoft

Apparently this guy was instrumental in making Steam the huge success that it is, and he worked on it for 8 years, having left Valve only back in February. He's looking to bring his talents to Windows. I say good luck to him sincerely; it would be great to see Microsoft's online store become a relevant, competitive alternative to Steam, and if anyone can right the course that Microsoft has so thoroughly wrecked before (GFWL, anyone?) it's him.

 

[lamedude]

While the MS restructuring is suppose to get rid of the division infighting I still think Xbox will prevent him from making GFWL 2.0 good.

 

[styrafoam]

While the MS restructuring is suppose to get rid of the division infighting I still think Xbox will prevent him from making GFWL 2.0 good.

Yeah pretty much. Microsoft is flushing themselves down the toilet in so many different ways right now, the new guy isn't going to force a 180 on how the company handles things. He probably sat out a 6 month no compete period and the biggest thing he's going to get to do is announce that Halo 4 is coming to GFWL as a windows 8 exclusive.

 

[irishScott]

Microsoft is a big company, and gears turn slow. However little good he may be able to do in the short-term, this is definitely a good thing overall. Microsoft needs talented people who are less out-of-touch with their customers. I would think Holtman fits that bill nicely.

 

[BrightCandle]

Windows is realistically the best place to start solving a lot of the problems with software updating. The fact that this primary function of steam lives in a separate application and almost every piece of software has its own is kind of ridiculous today. I hope he does manage to make an impact, start producing something useful for the PC that benefits us all on the platform.

 

[lupi]

Unless steam starts jacking up prices, I don't really care to see more digital stores.

Until MS stops gimping the pc world with connections to xcrap, I don't foresee any real success coming in this area.

 

[Aikouka]

A job like this must be a cakewalk for this guy. I mean... Microsoft has done such a terrible job at leveraging their stranglehold over the PC gaming market (thanks to the heavy use of DirectX) to create a cohesive ecosystem. They've tried in the past with the Games section in Windows 7 and Games for Windows Live!, which I think the latter is a great idea on paper, but the original result was just sub par. It's been a buggy mess for far too many people, which just turns them off. It's actually built into Windows 8, but I've found that it works far, far better than it did in previous operating systems. Although, you still have to log in even if you've already logged into your Gamertag via the XBOX app, which is counter-intuitive, but it saves your login info, so it isn't an arduous process.

 

[Texashiker]

Microsoft is a big company, and gears turn slow.

More like gears do not turn at all.

Microsoft has an operating system for gamers, but they focus on the xbox.

What has microsoft developed in the past decade that has been revolutionary?

Windows 8 - nope
Windows 7 - nope
Vista - lol, no
Windows xp - yes.

For the past decade all microsoft has done is release refined products of something the developed over a decade ago.

The gears at microsoft have ground to a halt. If they are moving its like syrup.

If microsoft can not even develop a successful tablet, how are they supposed to tap into the PC gaming market?

 

[BlitzPuppet]

What has microsoft developed in the past decade that has been revolutionary?

Windows 8 - nope
Windows 7 - nope
Vista - lol, no
Windows xp - yes.

lol

 

[Texashiker]

lol

It has been common knowledge for 20 years (mainly since 1995) that there is a demand for PC games, and a platform for PC gaming.

Microsoft has done almost nothing to capitalize on the PC gamer market. If anything, microsoft has ignored PC gamers.

Several years ago there was talk of microsoft releasing a streamed down operating system which would target gamers. But alas, no such OS was ever released.

While steam was cornering the market in the mid-2000s, microsoft did nothing.

While gamers were scratching their heads and asking why games are still using dx9 when we have dx11, microsoft did nothing.

I seriously doubt microsoft is going to do anything in the next decade that is going to affect steam.

Just as the tablet market is marching forward and leaving microsoft in the dust, so will the pc gaming market continue forward without microsoft.

 

[PowerYoga]

competition is generally good, but GFWL is really really shitty and it'll be years before they even bring it up to speed. Nevermind the fact that I don't really want to install 7 different launchers just to play games, I have a tolerance for 2 or 3 tops, and right now those spots are filled with steam, uplay (which gets uninstalled immediately after I finish the ubisoft game) and origin (which also gets uninstalled immediately after I finish a game).

 

[Red Storm]

While the MS restructuring is suppose to get rid of the division infighting I still think Xbox will prevent him from making GFWL 2.0 good.

No one could make GFWL good.

 

[KaOTiK]

I'm normally all for competition as it is good to have, but....I don't even want MS near gaming. They have shown they don't care and it will take A LOT to gain trust again. This is one "competitor" I would rather see disappear from the scene.

 

[Red Storm]

I'm normally all for competition as it is good to have, but....I don't even want MS near gaming. They have shown they don't care and it will take A LOT to gain trust again. This is one "competitor" I would rather see disappear from the scene.

This. If MS had their way PC gaming would become as locked down as console gaming.

 

[PowerYoga]

This. If MS had their way PC gaming would become as locked down as console gaming.

I don't think I'll ever get over the forced login and intrusive GUI integration for GFWL games.

 

[darkewaffle]

If GFWL actually worked I don't think it would be that bad. I mean, aside from seemingly breaking my Bioshock2 install it seemed to look ok at least lol. I actually kind of liked that it was simply integrated into a game rather than requiring a standalone program to run.

 

[blackened23]

I can't fathom why any of you think this has ANYTHING to do with the PC.

If anything, this is purely for the online experience of XB1 since it will offer more in terms of DD. Nothing more, nothing less....GFWL 2.0? Please. MS hasn't shown any interest in GFWL and they really don't need to - most developers have abandoned GFWL since everyone more or less hates it. The last publisher to still use it was warner, and they abandoned it as of last year. Batman: Arkham Origins will be a steamworks game (prior games were GFWL).

Windows games aren't MS' focus either. XB1 is. Again, why does anyone think this has anything to do with the PC or GFWL 2.0? Come on. Xbox one. That will be his mission. Not GFWL 2.0. One will bring money in with consoles sales, GFWL will never earn MS money.

 

[BladeVenom]

Microsoft has been stabbing Windows gamers in the back since the Xbox came out.

Microsoft converted all their Windows gaming studios into Xbox only studios, or shut them down. They pay other studios to cancel or delay their Windows games so they can have more Xbox exclusives.

Microsoft is a Windows gamer's worst enemy. I doubt one guy can change their entire corporate strategy of trying to push Windows gamers to the Xbox, except Ballmer, and it's doubtful that will ever happen.

 

[KaOTiK]

I can't fathom why any of you think this has ANYTHING to do with the PC.

If anything, this is purely for the online experience of XB1 since it will offer more in terms of DD. Nothing more, nothing less....GFWL 2.0? Please. MS hasn't shown any interest in GFWL and they really don't need to - most developers have abandoned GFWL since everyone more or less hates it. The last publisher to still use it was warner, and they abandoned it as of last year. Batman: Arkham Origins will be a steamworks game (prior games were GFWL).

Windows games aren't MS' focus either. XB1 is. Again, why does anyone think this has anything to do with the PC or GFWL 2.0? Come on. Xbox one. That will be his mission. Not GFWL 2.0. One will bring money in with consoles sales, GFWL will never earn MS money.

Why does everyone think this might have something to do with the PC? I dunno, maybe because every few years MS tries some really half ass attempt to get into it and fails miserably? MS really wants to get people into their ecosystem and have failed in all ways on the PC so far.

No one is saying that it wont be for the Xbox side of things either.

 

[Aikouka]

I can't fathom why any of you think this has ANYTHING to do with the PC.

Probably because he said (emphasis added by me):

"Yes, I have joined Microsoft where I will be focusing on making Windows a great platform for gaming and interactive entertainment."

:whiste:

 

[Red Storm]

Probably because he said (emphasis added by me):

"Yes, I have joined Microsoft where I will be focusing on making Windows a great platform for gaming and interactive entertainment."

:whiste:

What he said.

 

[Bateluer]

More like gears do not turn at all.

Microsoft has an operating system for gamers, but they focus on the xbox.

What has microsoft developed in the past decade that has been revolutionary?

Windows 8 - nope
Windows 7 - nope
Vista - lol, no
Windows xp - yes.

For the past decade all microsoft has done is release refined products of something the developed over a decade ago.

The gears at microsoft have ground to a halt. If they are moving its like syrup.

If microsoft can not even develop a successful tablet, how are they supposed to tap into the PC gaming market?

When XP was still known as Whistler and the first 'fisher-price' screen shots of it leaked with the Luna UI, I never would have predicted that someone would call it revolutionary. :/

Revoluntary =/= good. Vista was revolutionary, in that it made drastic changes to how the OS driver levels worked and overhauled the UI. Windows NT was revolutionary because it ditched the legacy 16-bit code. Windows 8 is revolutionary for hiding important settings and controls, breaking the UI, forcing unusable Metro apps on users, and using less features as a bullet point in the OS.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Unless steam starts jacking up prices, I don't really care to see more digital stores.

Until MS stops gimping the pc world with connections to xcrap, I don't foresee any real success coming in this area.

uh...yeah...what?

Probably because he said (emphasis added by me):

"Yes, I have joined Microsoft where I will be focusing on making Windows a great platform for gaming and interactive entertainment."

:whiste:

The Xbox One runs Windows 8...so there you have it.

When XP was still known as Whistler and the first 'fisher-price' screen shots of it leaked with the Luna UI, I never would have predicted that someone would call it revolutionary. :/

Revoluntary =/= good. Vista was revolutionary, in that it made drastic changes to how the OS driver levels worked and overhauled the UI. Windows NT was revolutionary because it ditched the legacy 16-bit code. Windows 8 is revolutionary for hiding important settings and controls, breaking the UI, forcing unusable Metro apps on users, and using less features as a bullet point in the OS.

Windows 8 does everything Windows 7 does.

God forbid people actually remember that Microsoft gave us DirectX, and without that where would all our games be? Even Carmack admits that OpenGL is behind these days.


Edit: just read that games for windows live marketplace is shutting down but the content will still remain active. They are going to roll out Microsoft live which I assume is a unified service.
http://m.ign.com/articles/2013/08/15/microsoft-closing-games-for-windows-live-marketplace

 

[mmntech]

Windows 8 does everything Windows 7 does.

Yes it does. It's just that the new GUI is clunky and unrefined. Metro is the 21st century version of Microsoft Bob.

Metro works well on phones and tablets, just not on desktops and laptops. It wouldn't be so bad if Microsoft hadn't gutted the classic Desktop by removing the Start Menu and forcing you to switch back and forth between Metro to launch apps.

I get that MS wants to integrate the best of mobile on their desktop OS. However, there's a right way and a wrong way to do it. I think OS X is the only operating system that's really pulled it off. One GUI, the familiar Finder, with iOS features (like notifications) integrated seamlessly. Unity on Ubuntu does a good job as well though I have other problems with Ubuntu beyond it's GUI.

Anyway, that's my mini Windows 8 rant.

As for GFWL, I think it started with good intentions but bogged down through neglect. I'm not shedding a tear to hear that MS is no longer selling PC games through Xbox.com. Microsoft has really bungled the PC gaming front even though it's a major gaming platform.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Yeah well, install a quick app that brings everything back and more. I nnow don't even miss the windows 7 start menu, I use a modified windows 8 menu that drfaults to app view. A right click brings up the control-x menu for me room every thing I need a start menu for is right there.

OH well