In the present day, at some point after Microsoft introduced that it could shut down 4 of its video games studios, Matt Booty, head of Xbox Recreation Studios, held a city corridor to debate the division’s future objectives. “We want smaller video games that give us status and awards,” Booty advised staff, in keeping with inside remarks shared with The Verge.
For some listeners on the decision, it was a stunning aim: Microsoft had simply shut down the Japanese developer Tango Gameworks, which was coming off the small, prestigious hit title Hello-Fi Rush.
Hello-Fi Rush, which was a shock launch final yr, was praised for its innovation and appeal. The rhythm motion recreation featured music by The Black Keys and 9 Inch Nails, with an artwork fashion that evoked the hyper-stylized video games of the PS2 period. Simply 4 months after its launch, Hello-Fi Rush hit 3 million gamers. Through the 2023–2024 awards season, the sport went on to win a Recreation Award, a Recreation Builders Selection award, and a BAFTA.
Whereas Microsoft hasn’t shared gross sales knowledge, it was apparently pleased with the sport. When rumors swirled that it wasn’t doing properly commercially, Aaron Greenberg, vice chairman of Xbox video games advertising, wrote on X that Hello-Fi Rush “was a get away hit for us and our gamers in all key measurements and expectations.”
By all accounts, together with Microsoft’s personal, Tango Gameworks made successful and one thing wholly not like something it’s made earlier than. Earlier than Hello-Fi Rush, Tango Gameworks was identified completely for its survival horror video games, together with The Evil Inside sequence and Ghostwire: Tokyo. In an interview with Kinda Humorous Video games, Xbox head Phil Spencer spoke about how vital it was for Xbox to permit studios to make video games outdoors their consolation zones.
“I wish to give the groups the inventive platform to go and push their capacity, push their aspirations,” Spencer stated.
Hello-Fi Rush additionally represented Microsoft’s dedication to bringing Japanese exclusives to the console. In an interview with Recreation Watch, a Japanese online game media outlet, Spencer praised Hello-Fi Rush for its “prime quality” and stated that gamers may “anticipate” to see extra AAA titles from Japan, evoking the times when Misplaced Odyssey and Blue Dragon had been each exclusives on the Xbox 360. “Whereas there are titles we are able to’t announce but,” Spencer stated within the September 2023 interview, translated by VGC, “we’re at the moment growing new video games in collaboration with Japanese firms.” It’s value questioning if that’s nonetheless the plan now that Tango is shut down.
Proper now, small single-player video games like Hello-Fi Rush are having an enormous second. Balatro, a poker roguelike made by a single developer, bought over 1 million copies in its first month. Manor Lords, one other solo-dev mission in early entry on Steam, has additionally bought over 1 million copies. Hades 2 simply launched in early entry and doubled its predecessor’s all-time peak participant rely on Steam in a single day. Even the unique Hades is climbing again up the Steam charts, breaking its all-time peak participant rely file simply in the present day nearly 4 years after its preliminary launch.
Whereas we don’t know precisely what gross sales objectives Microsoft had for Hello-Fi Rush, clearly there’s a demonstrated urge for food for this type of recreation, with Tango Gameworks positioned completely to ship it. Actually, in keeping with a report from Bloomberg, Tango Gameworks was within the means of pitching a sequel to Hello-Fi Rush earlier than it bought shut down.
With Hello-Fi Rush, Tango Gameworks gave Microsoft simply what Booty says he needs: a small, creatively distinctive, extremely praised, award-winning recreation. Booty’s feedback, then, recommend that Xbox’s leaders couldn’t acknowledge what that they had on their fingers — or just didn’t know the way to benefit from the success they had been searching for out.
We reached out to Microsoft for remark.