"The Catalogue Was Just Nowhere Near Good Enough" - Ori Creator Likens Xbox Game Pass To A "Slop Factory"

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Xbox has this uncanny habit of locating the nearest pot of boiling water and intermittently plopping its butt in and out of it.

With Xbox Boss Asha Sharma chanting "we're so back" in one ear, and in the other, we're listening to reports on Double Fine, Ninja Theory, and multiple other Xbox Games Studios being put out the pasture as part of the "Xbox Reset".

Despite the recent price drop for Xbox Game Pass, the longevity of the subscription service has come under fire too, as Moon Studios CEO and Ori creator Thomas Mahler took aim at Game Pass, claiming it "could've worked" if it didn't "slop out mediocre content like a factory".

Mahler adds:

"The Game Pass strategy could've worked if people would've shown up for it. Problem is: They didn't and the software catalogue was just nowhere near good enough to make people happily pay the subscription every month."

Mahler goes on to make comparisons between streaming services like HBO, stating "I'll happily pay my HBO sub cause HBO has amazing content that I want to watch", suggesting the lacklustre quality of new games, such as Starfield, is to blame for Xbox Game Pass' struggles:

"You need those games your studios are producing to become smash hits, cultural events that everyone wants to play - but what was the big Xbox game in recent years that was just delightfully good? That game doesn't exist.

Almost every single first party studio in recent years has been floundering. You'd want Bethesda to create a 'Skyrim in Space' that ought to be better than Skyrim was cause that was an old game: But we got Starfield instead."

The Moon Studios boss continues by suggesting that the higher-ups at Xbox need to "deeply, fundamentally understand gamers and what they want. They'd need to understand what's a good game and what's a mediocre game... and they'd need to have good deals with devs so developers are actively incentivised to produce massive hits, not just slop out mediocre content like a factory."

Mahler then claims Game Pass "is a little like Communism" in his closing statement, saying Xbox hasn't given its subscribers a "strong incentive to roll up their sleeves" and pay the hefty Game Pass fees.

In a follow up post on Mahler's X account, he claims that he's "clearly not an Xbox Hater" and suggests he's all for healthy competition.

"I've stated plenty of times before that we need a healthy Xbox because competition would lead to better games for us all."

In defence of Xbox Game Pass, the service does support a number of third-party bangers in its catalogue, ranging from Expedition 33, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, and Hollow Knight: Silksong, to name a few.

What's the right play for Microsoft and Xbox Game Pass? Is the answer somewhere in exclusivity? Asha Sharma thinks so, but if it comes at the cost of its studios, is that the right call? I'm not so sure.

Is Xbox Game Pass still a good deal? Or do you think its offering is a bit lacklustre? Let us know in the comments!