With the launch of Windows 10, Microsoft has promised they want PC gaming to be better for PC gamers. In some ways they have done this. Although not fully utilized yet, Directx 12 will be a big deal in the years to come. Many games are no longer plagued with problems that tended to occur with jumps from Windows 7 and 8. Microsoft is also trying their hand to bring stuff to the PC via their Windows 10 Store, but here is the thing, it’s all garbage.
Initial issues have already been addressed, but at launch Tomb Raider on the Windows 10 Store was missing key graphic setting features. Gears of War Ultimate edition despite being a 10 year old game runs like a hot mess according to reviews. The same can be said for Quantum Break from the Windows 10 Store. The latest insult to injury was that Microsoft was going to be bringing Halo 5 Forge to the PC. On the surface this seems like great news put upon further investigation it’s really a slap in the face.
No thanks
Microsoft has clarified that Forge—Halo 5: Guardians Edition will not support matchmaking or any other Halo 5 multiplayer features, and so custom maps and games created with it will only be playable online with people in your Friends list. The software will also import maps created with the Xbox One version of Forge, which can then be edited and played in the same way.
“Forge—Halo 5: Guardians Edition on Windows 10 is a free publishing tool designed for map makers and creators to build and play their creations on Windows 10 and also publish these experiences to Xbox One,” a spokesperson said. “As we’ve shared previously, we do not have plans to launch Halo 5: Guardians on Windows 10. We are focused on building Halo Wars 2 for Windows 10 and Xbox One. Releasing Forge for Windows 10 for free will open up endless opportunities to the PC community to build and play Halo 5: Guardians multiplayer content, while also allowing them to share their creations with gamers on Xbox One as well.” (Emphasis ours)
Ok I get it, Halo is special to Xbox despite it being on PC too once upon a time, but this latest move seems like a big slap in the face to the PC community. It’s exciting to see anything Halo ported over, but porting over a Forge that’s nerfed to “friends only” play is ridiculous. This being said, I didn’t even know that Windows 10 had a friends list option so you can imagine how many friends I have on that list. It’s zero in case you didn’t figure it out. The only use I can see for this PC edition is if I was an Xbox player that wanted the ease of use of using a mouse to create content that I would then upload to my Xbox. The whole thing just seems half assed. This isn’t going to fly with the PC community. We are no strangers to companies phoning it in on the PC, see Arkham Knight or any other shotty PC port.
The real kicker for me is Microsoft’s decision to bring Halo Wars 2 to PC. The PC has a vast history of RTS games in their library, I can’t help but feel bringing an RTS to the table designed to be used with a controller (as the case here, Halo Wars 2 was designed to be played on Xbox One) wouldn’t be anything the PC RTS crowd would care about. Again, Microsoft seems to be out of touch with PC community. Its ironic to me because without the PC community Windows would not in the position of power they enjoy today in the first place.
Not the Halo we deserve, but the Halo we’ll get
I want to end this nerd rage with a quote stated almost nine months ago by Microsoft regarding the death of Windows for Games Live, another infamous chapter in PC gaming history, and the advent of the Windows 10 Store.
“We are not intending to compete with Steam, If anything, we want Steam to be even more successful—they’ve done great things for PC gamers in terms of having a single store.Over time do we want more developers to come over to our store and offer it in addition to Steam? Absolutely. Is competition good for people? Absolutely. But our goal right now isn’t to do anything else other than support Steam and help it run great on Windows 10.”
Good Job Microsoft! I’m not buying or using any of the junk you’re selling on Windows 10 Store. Mission accomplished.