Xbox talks Starfield's "comet launch"

gamesindustry.biz:

Xbox attended Gamescom all guns blazing last week. The intent felt clear from the start: Microsoft wanted to make a statement.

Following a strong showing at Gamecom Opening Night Live, the platform holder had its biggest booth ever at the event, 50,000 square feet built by 500 people over two weeks, with 30 playable games. And it was showcasing the much anticipated Starfield on the very first day, in a theatre seating 300 people, with the unexpected company of Xbox boss Phil Spencer and Bethesda director Todd Howard.

This feels like a pivotal moment for Microsoft, with Starfield in a unique position (and a lot of pressure) to deliver as an Xbox exclusive. A few days from the game's launch, there's a trepidation that can be felt across the industry.

"Starfield, as I'm looking at it, is sort of like a comet game launch," Xbox chief marketing officer Jerret West tells GamesIndustry.biz. "By that, I mean games like Starfield only come along every couple of years, where it catches the attention of not just the gaming industry but it starts to expand into broader consumers and consumer conversations.

"We've been really planful about the beats coming up to this, so we knew that [June's Xbox] Showcase was a huge moment, and driving 92 million viewers to the Starfield Direct, and all of those pieces, were huge for us. And now, you're going to start to see us really explode it much more broadly."

West says this isn't just an important moment for Xbox but one that also "emotionally captures and draws gamers into the community."

One of the ways Xbox is hoping to draw more people into the community is by launching Bethesda's long awaited space opera day-and-date on Game Pass. West is expecting a "good mix" of players across