Author: Kim Berard
If you're of a certain age — mine, that is, baby boomers — you might have overlooked last week's announcement that Microsoft would be releasing a new version of Halo on Sony's PlayStation console. So what, you might say? On the other hand, if you're one of the three-quarters of Americans who play video games, you might understand its significance more immediately.
The gaming industry, like the porn industry, is often on the cutting edge of technology. Since I don't follow the porn industry, I try to look at the gaming industry to see what its trends might suggest about the future of other industries, especially healthcare.
If you didn't know, Halo is a Microsoft game and has historically been played on Microsoft's Xbox console. Sony's PlayStation is Microsoft's biggest rival and has been winning the war handily. Therefore, launching Halo on PlayStation is a somewhat surprising move. As Zachary Small writes in ” new york times: “It’s the Disney equivalent of letting Mickey Mouse roam Universal Studios.”
Or, as Grant St. Clair marvels BOBOBOBO:
I can't stress how important this is, but you probably already know this about yourself. faint It's the biggest IP Xbox owns and one of the biggest draws to the console in history. It's like Nintendo suddenly put super mario galaxy on steam. This is a tacit admission that Xbox has lost the hardware war – that's ominous, granted, but this italics italics and emphasizes the point.
One gamer told BBC Newsbeat the announcement was “huge” and “caused a bit of a stir on the internet”. She was delighted with the news, adding: “I know there was some controversy about it coming to PlayStation, but I have absolutely no idea why it should be that way. I just think it's a win for all gamers.”
So, whether you realize it or not, this is a big deal.
Microsoft has been desperately trying to maintain its presence in the gaming space. A few years ago, Microsoft spent $70 billion to acquire Activision Blizzard, and a few years ago it spent $750 million to acquire ZeniMax Media. Still, as Joost van Dreunen, a market analyst and professor at New York University, told Mr. Small: “Xbox has been the bridesmaid, not the bride, when it comes to consoles. They just can't beat PlayStation and Nintendo.”
It may have found a way. Earlier this year, Microsoft launched Gears of War and Forza Horizon 5 on PlayStation, and Microsoft Flight Simulator will join them later this year. In fact, Mr. Small noted: “From April to July, six of the 10 best-selling games on Sony's consoles were Microsoft products.”
That said, if you can't beat them, join them.
“We're all looking to meet people in person,” Matt Booty, president of Xbox gaming content and studios, told Mr. Small. More interestingly, he further explained: “Our biggest competition is not another console. We're competing more and more with everything from TikTok to movies.”
Lesson #1: Your competitors are not necessarily who you think they are.
The new version – Halo: Campaign Evolved – is a remaster of the original Halo game, originally released in 2001. “We wanted to start with the original campaign that defined Halo,” explains executive producer Damon Conn. It's been remade using Unreal Engine 5 instead of the proprietary Halo game engine the game has been built on, marking another shift outside of the Microsoft ecosystem.
written in PlayStation BlogHalo Studios Community Director Brian “ske7ch” Jarrard explains:
What's special about Halo isn't just the gameplay, it's the people you play with. Bringing Halo to PlayStation means more players can share the experience. In Halo: Campaign Evolved, you can join up with friends in four-player online co-op, or experience old-school two-player couch co-op on PlayStation – now with cross-play and cross-progression available across consoles and PC.
“We're extremely excited to bring Halo to people who may not have had the opportunity to play it in the past,” said executive producer Damon Conn. “Halo is all about connection, and we're excited to meet a new generation of players on their platform of choice who will fall in love with Halo as much as we did. We're not trying to rewrite the legacy of Halo, but immerse you in it like never before.”
“It's a halo for everyone.”
When asked whether a version of Halo (or other games) for Nintendo Switch would be coming next, Mr. Conn simply repeated coyly: “We're excited to launch the game in 2026 on Xbox, PC on Xbox, Steam, and PlayStation.” But don't be surprised.
Interestingly, there's some controversy over whether the Halo team used generative AI to help develop the reimagined game. The team denied this, but game director Greg Hermann admitted it to Alyssa Mercante. rolling stones: “It's a tool in the toolbox. I might be getting a little off topic here, but when we see how artificial intelligence is integrated into our tools, some of it becomes very challenging. We use Photoshop. For example, there are generative fills. The boundary lines can get a little blurry.”
This reminds me that Microsoft is pursuing a dual strategy not only in gaming platforms but also in artificial intelligence, having its own artificial intelligence team and products, and being a major investor in OpenAI and its products.
Lesson 2: Hedge your bets.
Here are my two thoughts on the above mentioned healthcare:
- If your business model relies on a proprietary platform, you may want to consider whether this actually gives you an advantage, or if it simply cuts you off from a large number of potential new customers. If you're an insurance company, think about your provider network; if you're a health system, maybe think about your medical records.
- If you think about your competitors in traditional terms (such as other health systems or other health insurance companies), you should realize that you're missing the bigger picture. We live in an age filled with misinformation peddled by people/companies outside of “mainstream medicine” and more and more people are listening. If you don't compete with them, you will lose customers.
I'm no more likely to play Halo on a PlayStation than an Xbox – which is to say, not at all – but that doesn't mean I can't learn from it. Hopefully the same goes for health care.
Kim is a former electronics marketing executive for a large blues program and editor of The Late and Regretful tincture.ionow a regular THCB contributor
