Xbox’s Aaron Greenberg has insisted that Tango Gameworks’ Hi-Fi Rush was a “break out hit”, claiming the critically acclaimed musical adventure “simply didn’t make the money it needed to make”. .
Jeff Grubb of Giant Bomb claimed during his latest Game Mess Decides podcast that Hi-Fi Rush had failed to meet Microsoft’s financial expectations.
“Based on what I’ve heard,” Grubb said during a conversation about the game’s release strategy, “it just straight up didn’t make the money it needed to make. I mean make it well.” The reviews were good, the buzz was good, so where do you blame something like that? Is it the price? Was it the shade drop? Could it have sold more? Or is it Game Pass?”.
Grubb’s claim seemed at odds with previous messaging from Microsoft, which called Hi-Fi Rush, with its 2 million+ players, “one of the most successful launches for Bethesda and Xbox in recent years” from Tango. The game’s assignment at the time of Shinji Mikami’s departure.
And now Aaron Greenberg, Xbox’s vice president of games marketing, has denied Grub’s claims in even stronger terms. on Twitter“We couldn’t be happier with what the team at Tango Gameworks delivered with this amazing release”, calling Hi-Fi Rush “a break out hit for us and our players in all important measurements and expectations”.
Hi-Fi Rush also garnered a strong critical reception upon its launch in January. Eurogamer, for example, called it “an irrepressible riot of rhythm action” in their recommended review.