- CEO Asha Sharma and Chief Content Officer Matt Booty outlined the plan for the future of Xbox
- “Microsoft Gaming” is now just “Xbox”
- The goal is to prioritize “everyday active players” and “reevaluate our approach to exclusivity, windowing and AI.”
Xbox CEO Asha Sharma and Xbox Chief Content Officer Matt Booty have shared a detailed plan for the company’s future, which focuses on player engagement and another name change.
In a lengthy open letter on Xbox Wire, the pair began by acknowledging gamers’ frustrations, particularly with new features on console being “less frequent” and how their “presence on PC is not strong enough.”
They also admitted that “prices are getting harder for people to track,” that core experiences like search, discovery, social, and personalization “still seem too fragmented,” and that developers and publishers are demanding better tools and a platform to grow faster.
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“At the same time, a new generation of gamers is coming online with different expectations. Their time is split between games, media, and everything else competing for attention. They expect more content in familiar places, want to shape the worlds they play in, and want to create and socialize together, not just play together. These changes are happening as the industry reshapes itself around us. The console remains big and stable,” the statement said.
“Windows now represents more gamers and more hours and is increasingly where competition is most intense. Gamers have access to more games than ever, even as the cost and time required to create blockbuster titles continues to rise, putting pressure on what is made and how risks are taken.”
Mention is made of big successes of small teams like Robloxand how gamers choose subscriptions and services as their primary way to play, and expect instant access, value over time, and libraries that continually evolve.
“Xbox will be the place where the world plays and creates. We will build a global platform that connects gamers and creators around the world. The console is the foundation, delivering a premium experience, and the cloud brings that experience to any device. You can play wherever you want, and your games, your progress, your friends and your identity will stay with you across console, PC, mobile and cloud.”
The company recently announced a price drop for Game Pass Ultimate, and in the open letter, Xbox executives suggested similar changes were in the works by offering “flexible” pricing for all players.
“Xbox will be designed to be affordable, personal and open. We’ll offer flexible pricing so it’s easy to get started and keep playing,” they said. “The experience will adapt to you, allowing you to personalize the way you play, helping you find what you’ll love, and connecting you with the right people. And we’ll be open to all creators, from individuals to the biggest studios, giving everyone the tools to reach a global audience and grow their games over time.”
That’s where Asha and Booty confirmed that going forward, Xbox’s “new north star” would be “daily active gamers” and that it would execute on that plan by prioritizing “hardware, content, experience, and services.”
The Helix project, the next Xbox console, was mentioned, as well as a strong ecosystem, “creator-centric platforms” like Minecraft, Ancient scrollsAnd Sea of Thievesa way to “strengthen Game Pass with clear differentiation and sustainable economics,” and more.
The CEO and COO also confirmed that they would “reevaluate our approach to exclusivity, windowing and AI”, suggesting that the traditional Xbox exclusivity period could be making a return.
With this plan in mind, Sharma and Booty also announced that “Microsoft Gaming” no longer existed and would now simply be known as “Xbox.”
“To achieve our master plan, the way we work must transform,” they said. “Our best work happens when the whole stack comes together. ‘Microsoft Gaming’ describes our structure but doesn’t describe our ambition. So we’re going back to where we started and changing our team name. We’re Xbox.”
The company then offered a list of what it does best, including:
- Win every player
- Protect our art
- Stay Rebel
- Progress rather than perfection
- Signaling ceremony
- Front core more
- Fix the problem
- Speed is learning
- Creators rather than managers
- Clarity is kindness
Furthermore, Xbox reportedly intends to deploy a new Game Pass tier which will be bundled with a Discord Nitro subscription.
Sharma recently teased a new Discord partnership as part of an effort to “make Game Pass more flexible for our players”, and it is claimed that this new Game Pass “Starter Edition” will be, and will allegedly feature “over 50 games like Valley of Stars, To fall 4And Based“, 10 hours of cloud gaming each month and Xbox Rewards.
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