“Our strategy is to make our games accessible to everyone.“ The recent words of Xbox boss Phil Spencer, to independent journalist Destin Legarie have quickly made the rounds of the industry. Should we worry about a future where the legendary manufacturer meets the same fate as SEGA, forced to abandon console production? The new direction that the Redmond firm has taken in recent years has not failed to worry gamers. The video game industry has almost always been fueled by the race for exclusives and Xbox is the first major player to try to get rid of it.
Sony is starting to extend its productions to the PC ecosystem but its rival is pushing the experience even further. Indiana Jones and the Ancient Circle, the latest video game blockbuster from a Microsoft studio, will soon be coming to PlayStation 5: a port that would seem impossible in the other direction. Even productions like Starfield will be able to be exported to other platforms. Questioned on this subject by Destin Legarie, Phil Spencer was categorical: “There’s no reason for me to put a barrier around a game and say that this game won’t go to a platform where it would find players, where it would meet with commercial success for us,” he explains before adding “Putting games away from other platforms? That’s not a path we want to follow. It wouldn’t work for us.“
This drastic change in approach is something that Phil Spencer says “the industry needs.” But longtime gamers are concerned about the potential erasure of Xbox’s identity, something the CEO is also trying to address.
Redefining Xbox and gaming
What if ending exclusivity is the key to a more sustainable industry? The Xbox boss seems convinced by his theory and intends to apply it to stand out: “When you think about where the industry is right now and you see the challenges that many companies are facing, I think making games more accessible to more people has to be a priority for us as an industry so that we can continue to see the great games that we’ve seen over the years.”
“We believe this strategy allows us to build the best platform for the best games in the world. It makes us unique. Most other platforms out there focus on a single device, whether it’s a PC, a smartphone, or a console. But we want Xbox to be a platform that lets games shine on any screen,” he says.
As for concerns about Xbox’s identity, Spencer says they mostly reflect a fear of losing access to the console and the games you’ve bought over the years: “I’m very active in the community. I listen. I think our identity will continue to evolve, as it always has. But when I hear concerns, they’re mostly about the security of the game libraries. ‘Am I going to be able to continue playing these games?’ And I think about the commitment we’ve shown over the years to honoring purchases on our platform through backwards compatibility, cross-generational titles, Xbox Play Anywhere, crossplay…”
Once known as a competitive manufacturer, Xbox is hoping to redefine itself as an industry player that transcends platform boundaries. Only time will tell if this novel approach can reinvigorate the company after a loss of momentum in recent years.
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