Upper-brass Phil Spencer and Sarah Bond are both out at Xbox with immediate effect, and new CEO Asha Sharma is in.
This all raises interesting questions about the future of Microsoft’s gaming division under new leadership, as it’s spent the past 18 months or so pivoting to multiplatform publishing.
As things stands, titles like Forza Horizon 5 have sold extraordinarily well on PS5, and we know games like Halo: Campaign Evolved are planned for Sony’s system as well.
So, what is the ex-CoreAI executive’s stance?
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Well, in an address to both staff and the public at large, Sharma walks a tightrope, attempting to ingratiate herself to the Xbox faithful without upsetting her corporate overlords.
She talks about “the return of Xbox” and a “renewed commitment to […] console”, but later reiterates that “gaming now lives beyond devices”.
Part of her statement reads:
“We will recommit to our core Xbox fans and players, those who have invested with us for the past 25 years, and to the developers who build the expansive universes and experiences that are embraced by players across the world.
We will celebrate our roots with a renewed commitment to Xbox starting with console which has shaped who we are. It connects us to the players and fans who invest in Xbox, and to the developers who build ambitious experiences for it
Gaming now lives across devices, not within the limits of any single piece of hardware. As we expand across PC, mobile, and cloud, Xbox should feel seamless, instant, and worthy of the communities we serve. We will break down barriers so developers can build once and reach players everywhere without compromise.”
So, it doesn’t sound like Microsoft will be reneging on its multiformat initiative any time soon. But just in case there was any doubt, here’s what CEO Satya Nadella has to say as well:
“Today we reach over 500 million monthly active users, are a top publisher across all platforms, and continue to innovate across gaming hardware, content, and community, in service of creators and players everywhere.”
One factor of this announcement that’s been generating a lot of attention is Sharma’s background, which is in AI.
She insists, however, that the company “will not chase short-term efficiency or flood our ecosystem with soulless AI slop”. And yes, she really does say “slop” – there’s no editorialising on our part there.
“Games are and always will be art, crafted by humans, and created with the most innovative technology provided by us,” she notes.
Amen to that, we suppose.