- A former Microsoft Game Studios executive producer has released a video discussing the future of Xbox
- She discussed the reveal of the Asus ROG Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X, and recent focus on the Xbox Play Anywhere initiative
- She suggested that “Xbox has no desire or literally can’t ship hardware anymore”
Former Microsoft Game Studios executive producer Laura Fryer has discussed the future of the Xbox brand on her YouTube channel and argued that Xbox hardware is effectively “dead”.
She described the recent reveal of the Asus ROG Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X as unsurprising, saying that it’s “much easier to slap an Xbox sticker on an existing piece of hardware and call it a day.”
Fryer predicted that the upcoming handheld will be hampered by some of the wider issues currently facing the Xbox brand, including a lack of compelling exclusive experiences: “Xbox doesn’t do exclusives anymore. Even if Xbox delivers a crazy great game ‘Xbox Anywhere’ means that I can play that game on any platform.”
Many Xbox first-party titles also seem to suffer from protracted development cycles. There were several notable absences from the recent Xbox Games Showcase, such as State of Decay 3, which was originally announced five years ago, Fable, and the Perfect Dark remake.
In her eyes, the lack of exclusive experiences and years between major releases leaves consumers without a compelling reason to consider the Asus ROG Xbox Ally or Xbox Ally X over alternatives like the Steam Deck OLED or building your own PC.
She went on to suggest that the handheld and current focus on the ‘Xbox Play Anywhere’ initiative is part of “a slow exit from the hardware business completely” and that the end goal appears to be driving players towards Xbox Game Pass.
“As one of the founding members of the Xbox team, I’m not pleased with where things are today,” she concluded. “From my perspective, it looks like Xbox has no desire or literally can’t ship hardware anymore.”
Looking at the current trajectory of Xbox, it’s hard not to disagree. Sales of the Xbox Series X and Series S have been trailing behind the Xbox One for some time, so it’s clear that Microsoft will need to drastically shift its strategy in order to continue growing its gaming division.
In my eyes, the acquisition of Activision Blizzard suggests a shift towards generating revenue through multi-platform software sales rather than truly competing in the console space. This lines up with Xbox boss Phil Spencer’s professed desire to release more Xbox games on other platforms.
This will likely mean less of a focus on dedicated hardware from Microsoft itself, with third-party manufacturers like Asus (and recently Meta with the Limited Edition Meta Quest 3S Xbox Edition) catering to the remaining demand for Xbox products with licensed hardware instead.