Laura Fryer, a former Xbox executive and member of the team that created Microsoft's original console (not to mention a Executive Producer on the first two Gears of War titles), has shared her very disappointed opinion of Microsoft's strategy for gaming, highlighting that Xbox hardware may as well be dead from her point of view after the announcement of the handheld made by ASUS.
In a video analysis titled 'The Future of Xbox', she lamented that they are leaving behind everything that made the brand great, adding that there's no real reason to buy the ROG Xbox Ally, given that all the games are going to be available on plenty of other devices anyway, from PC to rival consoles.
It's one year from the 25th anniversary of the Xbox, and it looks like they're abandoning pretty much everything that made the Xbox brand great in the first place. Let's start with the handheld announcement. I've seen mixed reactions and that has me really puzzled because I don't see any reason why anyone would buy this piece of hardware. Just like the original Xbox, it's built on Windows, a slimmed-down version of Windows, but it's still Windows. So, this isn't something new.
[...] Is there going to be a game so compelling that it drives me to adopt this new handheld? Well, here's the problem. 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. I can play it on Xbox or PC. I may even be able to play it on the PS5 or the Switch. So, why would I buy the ROG Ally?
And of course, delivering a killer game in a reasonable time frame isn't something Xbox is particularly good at right now. During the showcase, there were several games still in development that weren't even mentioned, like State of Decay 3, Perfect Dark, and Fable. And many of these games have been in development over 5 years. There is only one reason these games are behind. It's because Xbox has lost their culture of shipping at scale. They don't have the people or the process in place that can ship. And it's a shame because they used to do better than anyone in the business.
There is literally no reason to buy this handheld. Obviously, as one of the founding members of the Xbox team, I'm not pleased with where things are today. I don't love watching all of the value that I helped create slowly get eroded away. I'm sad because, from my perspective, it looks like Xbox has no desire or literally can't ship hardware anymore. So, this partnership is about a slow exit from the hardware business completely. Personally, I think Xbox hardware is dead. The plan appears to be to just drive everybody to Game Pass.
Of course, that has been clearly the strategy for a few years now. Even so, Microsoft just announced a multi-year partnership with AMD to make next-generation devices, including a new console that will succeed the Xbox Series X. So, it may be a little early to say that Xbox hardware is dead, but signs indeed point toward that direction in the long run.
Fryer wasn't the only former Xbox exec to bemoan the state of their former gaming company. Yesterday, ex corporate VP of Xbox Mike Ybarra (who left the position of Activision Blizzard president last year) wrote on X:
Tough to see Xbox confused about who it is and what it should be. Some great people there still. They have to figure out what needs to change …. and fast. I'm a big fan and will always bleed green. Cheering the team on from the sidelines. Pick your lane and stick to it.
When a follower argued that the ecosystem and the console both exist, Ybarra replied:
You're drinking the Kool-Aid. You ask anyone on the street what Xbox is and 99% of the time they say a video game console. That is the identity. Period.
It seems like both former executives would like Microsoft to continue pushing in the console space. However, they've essentially admitted to losing the console wars to Sony (and Nintendo), so they've concocted the new 'Everything is an Xbox' strategy.
Is Xbox losing itself with all these changes, or is it right to pursue this monumental shift? Let us know in the comments and vote in the poll!
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The Xbox identity is being diluted too much 66%, 301 vote301 vote 66%301 vote - 66% of all votes
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The new strategy was the only way to remain profitable 34%, 152 votes152 votes 34%152 votes - 34% of all votes
About the author: With over two decades of experience in gaming journalism, Alessio Palumbo has led the gaming vertical at Wccftech since August 2015. He started working at a young age for Italian websites like Everyeye.it, Gamestar.it, Nextgame.it, and Multiplayer.it before kickstarting the indie English-language publication Worlds Factory as its founder and Editor in Chief. In the last decade, he has coordinated the overall output of Wccftech's gaming section, managed PR relations, assigned reviews, produced daily news coverage, edited gaming content as needed, and delivered game reviews. Arguably, his trademark content is the long series of exclusive developer interviews that have been cited by Wikipedia and by the biggest news media and gaming publications. His passion for technology also makes him knowledgeable when it comes to gaming hardware and tech. His favorite genres include RPGs, MMORPGs, and action/adventure games.
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