Phil Spencer

Microsoft has announced that, following its acquisition of Activision Blizzard, games developed and published by the latter will finally be coming to PC and Xbox Game Pass. Kicking things off will be Diablo 4, which will come to the service on March 28. The announcement was made in the latest episode of the official Xbox podcast where the company wanted to talk about the future of Xbox.

Microsoft has announced that it’s bringing four of its first-party Xbox titles to rival platforms, and though the company hasn’t named those four games yet, it’s said that two of them are smaller releases that are at least a year old, while the other two are live service games that will benefit from an expanded pool of players by going multiplatform. At the same time, it’s been confirmed that bigger, flagship first-party releases like Starfield and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle will remain Xbox exclusives. So what exactly does this mean for Xbox’s first-party strategy as whole?

After weeks of speculation, and in some cases panic, by Xbox faithful, Microsoft officially addressed the myriad leaks that Xbox would be bringing some first-party titles to rival platforms. And, it looks like those leaks were indeed true.

It was a hectic last week when news broke online that Microsoft was planning to bring the Xbox exclusives to other rival platforms. That flooded the web quickly, making Xbox fans hesitant on a bright outlook for the community. Fortunately, Phil Spencer, the head of Xbox, took to the internet and confirmed that a presentation would be coming this week to clear the air. 

Xbox revealed its "vision for the future" today in a podcast featuring executives Phil Spencer, Sarah Bond, and Matt Booty, who did their best to articulate the path forward for the platform amid reports of plans to embrace a third-party publishing strategy.

After a lot of rumors, Xbox released a roughly 23-minute podcast in which its heads came together to address the rumors and talk a bit about the future of Xbox. The big takeaway is that four specific, unnamed titles will be coming to other consoles in the future, but Xbox’s stance on exclusivity isn’t changing otherwise. Oh, and Starfield and Indiana Jones are not one of those four games.

After finally securing its acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Microsoft is now bringing the company’s games under the Game Pass umbrella. Activision Blizzard titles will be heading to the Xbox Game Pass service, starting with Diablo IV this March.

The short-term future of Xbox means that at least four Xbox exclusives are coming to PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch, Microsoft announced Thursday on its Official Xbox Podcast.

Four Xbox games will be coming to PlayStation and Switch, it has been announced.

It's been an odd couple of weeks if you're an Xbox fan, with rumors flying that certain exclusives will be making their way to other consoles such as PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch. Pretty much every Xbox exclusive you can think was rumored to be jumping over at some point, with Hi-Fi Rush, Pentiment, and Sea of Thieves being the three games fueling most of the rumors.

Xbox has confirmed that it's bringing four previously exclusive games to other consoles in the near future, although we still don't officially know what those games are.

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of today's Xbox business update, where we expect Microsoft to lay out some form of plan for launching first-party Xbox games on Nintendo and PlayStation platforms.

Microsoft's top brass revealed the release window for 2024's Call of Duty game at a recent meeting, according to a report. Previous rumors have already provided the supposed setting for the series' next game, which is expected to be developed by veteran studio Treyarch.

Xbox has rolled out a new update for February, adding touch controls in remote play and more.

Xbox president Sarah Bond reportedly told staff that «every screen is an Xbox». These words come ahead of Microsoft's business update later today, in which the company is expected to lay out its plans to publish some Xbox games on PlayStation and Nintendo platforms.

More details about an internal Microsoft meeting, held in the run-up to its upcoming Xbox multi-platform event, have leaked online. The newly emerged report even includes a description of a peculiar Palworld presentation that the company is said to have held for its employees, which may or may not make it to the public Xbox event scheduled for February 15.

During last week's rumored Xbox town hall meeting, Xbox President Sarah Bond reportedly told employees that every screen is an Xbox.

Rare have attempted a Valentines poem which included  rather blatant hint that Sea of Thieves would be heading to PlayStation and Switch. “Rowboats are red, And sometimes they’re blue, Other times they’re green, Occasionally they can be white…” they tweeted.

Microsoft confirmed that Call of Duty is coming this year as early as October.

Ahead of today’s special edition of the Official Xbox Podcast, where Microsoft will discuss its vision for Xbox’s future, a virtual town hall meeting was reportedly held for employees on February 6th. According to sources speaking to Inverse, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer and Xbox President Sarah Bond attended, with the former saying it’s safe to assume another Call of Duty would launch in October.

Xbox President Sarah Bond has an interesting new message to employees, that we might be hearing in public very soon.

Microsoft reportedly told employees that it views “every screen [as] an Xbox” ahead of a much-anticipated business update.

An internal Xbox meeting is continuing to generate headlines, as a new report on the event suggests that Microsoft's gaming division aims to make "every screen" an Xbox.

Update:

Rumors of Xbox going multi-platform have dominated discussion of gaming consoles recently, and as the time draws close for Microsoft to make an official announcement on the subject, there's already enough information out there to make a reasonably reliable prediction about what games Sony fans can expect to make the PlayStation 5 transition. Initial rumors of Xbox's transition away from exclusivity came as something of a surprise, especially considering Microsoft's recent focus on acquiring studios to push strong exclusives. At this point, however, it's hard to deny that there's a shift happening, whether Xbox fans like it or not.

Microsoft has detailed Xbox’s February system update.

A number of Sea of Thieves fans believe the latest tweet from the game’s official X account is hinting at upcoming PlayStation and Switch ports.

Xbox head Phil Spencer is set to make an announcement regarding the future of platform exclusives tomorrow, and a new Xbox Game Pass perk handily offers three months of Calm Premium.

The last few years have seen Microsoft Gaming shift focus from Xbox consoles to prioritize the subscription-based Game Pass service. However, CEO Phil Spencer recently confirmed that Xbox isn’t getting out of the console business.

According to Sony Group president Hiroki Totoki, there are no plans "to release any new major existing franchise titles next fiscal year." I.e., between April 1, 2024 and March 31, 2025.

Sony is still aiming to ship an impressive 25 million PS5 consoles this fiscal year, and it’s got a little over a month to achieve the milestone. Right across Europe, it’s currently discounting the price of the remodelled PS5 Slim, where in Italy you can get savings of up to €75 through 25th February. That makes the system €474.99 as opposed to its usual €549.99.

As odd as it might seem, we’ll learn about the future of Xbox through a podcast on Thursday evening. That’s how these things are done now.

A trio of Xbox exclusives are reportedly on their way to other platforms, including PS5, as part of a change in Microsoft's business strategy which will be announced later this week.

Some recent social media activity from Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer has stoked the ongoing rumors that an Xbox handheld console is in the works. The existence of the device has been alleged by several sources throughout February, at the height of the drama surrounding the possibility of some first-party Xbox games going multi-platform.

Microsoft's Xbox and PC exclusive Pentiment will make its way to PS5 and Nintendo Switch, alongside the previously-leaked Hi-Fi Rush.

Hi-Fi Rush and Pentiment are the first two Xbox games to launch on rival consoles, according to The Verge.

Microsoft will share an update on the Xbox business later this week, the company confirmed Monday after weeks of reports and rumours of its first-party games coming to rival consoles. The Xbox parent will reveal its plans for the platform in a special edition of the Official Xbox Podcast on February 15 at 12pm PT (February 16, 1.30am IST in India), where Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer, Xbox president Sarah Bond and Xbox Game Studios head Matt Booty will share details about the future Xbox roadmap. The confirmation comes after Spencer had promised last Tuesday that Microsoft would share its vision for the “future of Xbox” next week.

The official Xbox Twitter account has announced that a 'special edition' of the Official Xbox Podcast will be happening soon.

Over the past week, Xbox fans have been thrown into turmoil by rumors that indicated everything from Starfield, to Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, to the Gears of War franchise may jump to PlayStation and other platforms. Some leakers have since walked those rumors back, saying Starfield making the jump is unlikely, but the horse is already out of the barn and speculation about the future of Xbox is running wild. Microsoft itself hasn’t exactly doused those flames, as they haven’t stepped into deny anything, but instead promised a “business update event” for this week.

New details about Xbox’s plans to bring more first-party games to rival console platforms have seemingly emerged.

Ahead of a “business update” from Xbox this week, Xbox boss Phil Spencer has privately been reassuring employees that Microsoft is not planning to exit the console manufacturing business, while some of the original leakers that suggested that Starfield and other exclusives will be coming to PlayStation 5 have walked back their rumourmongering.

Microsoft has announced a special edition of the Official Xbox Podcast for February 15th, noon PT. Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer, president Sarah Bond and Xbox Game Studios head Matt Booty will be present and provide “updates on the Xbox business.” Last week, Spencer said this would be a business update event to discuss the company’s “vision for Xbox’s future.”

With Microsoft confirming plans to discuss the future of Xbox on February 15th with the Official Xbox Podcast, everyone is wondering which first-party titles could arrive on other platforms. Sources familiar with the company’s plans revealed to The Verge that Tango Gameworks’ Hi-Fi Rush and Obsidian’s Pentiment are the initial two titles launching on PS5 and Nintendo Switch.

Microsoft has confirmed that it will «share updates on the Xbox business» this Thursday, the 15th February, at 12PM PT / 3PM ET / 8PM GMT / 9PM CET. In other words, this is when the beans will finally be spilled on Xbox's all-but-official multiplatform plans. The news will be delivered through the Official Xbox Podcast — which immediately raises questions about the potential scope of these «updates».

While we use the word 'rumours' in the headline of this article, the reality of the situation is that it really does look like Xbox is making significant changes to its business strategy. Speculation is absolutely rampant at the time of writing, with numerous reports all coming to the same conclusion: Microsoft wants to start putting its biggest Xbox games on PlayStation platforms. That includes the recent releases like Starfield and Hi-Fi Rush, and may well extend to properties that put Xbox on the map, such as Halo and Gears of War.

No one really expects Microsoft to suddenly step out of the hardware race, but it’s been a hellish week for the Redmond firm, where rumours have swirled with reckless abandon. All the way back on Monday – which feels like an eternity ago now – boss Phil Spencer announced it’d share news about its console strategy the following week, without confirming or denying any of the speculation.

Xbox boss Phil Spencer has announced Microsoft plans to share its «vision for the future of Xbox» in a business update event next week. While neither confirming nor denying rampant reports that multiple Xbox exclusives shall be ported to PS5 and PS4, you'd assume the speculation would be denied if it wasn't happening. All eyes turn to next week, then, to see exactly what Xbox has planned for its multi-platform future.

Xbox has announced that a special edition of the Official Xbox Podcast will air on Thursday, February 15 at 3 PM Eastern Time. During the podcast, Xbox will address recent rumors that many of its exclusive titles will be going cross-platform in the future.

February 15 should be a big day for Xbox fans, but whether it's an exciting event might come down to more of a person-to-person basis. Xbox has recently been the center of swirling rumors and reported leaks, all centering around a purported big shift in Microsoft's approach to the gaming industry. For anyone invested in the ecosystem, the kind of uncertainty generated by widespread speculation and unconfirmed news can be a bit nerve-wracking, which is why the clarification that an official Microsoft response could be particularly welcome.

Microsoft has confirmed that the anticipated Xbox Business update will be coming on Thursday, and will be presented through the Official Xbox Podcast. Phil Spencer, Sarah Bond, and Matt Booty will be letting everyone know what the future of the Xbox brand is. The podcast will be available to listen to at 12PM PT/ 3PM ET/ 8PM GMT.

Microsoft's gaming top brass are expected to lay out their plans to publish some Xbox games on PlayStation and Nintendo platforms via a business update released this week as a podcast.

Microsoft has confirmed plans to deliver its eagerly awaited Xbox business update on February 15.

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The Official Xbox Podcast episode dropping later this week is going to be a big one. Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer, President of Game Content and Studios Matt Booty, and Xbox President Sarah Bond will finally address rumors that have been tearing the Xbox community apart for the past week. After leaks and rumors indicating that titles like Hi-Fi Rush, Sea of Thieves, Starfield, and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle would come to Nintendo Switch or PlayStation 5 began to circulate, people got very confused about what this all means for Xbox as a platform going forward.

Microsoft’s highly anticipated update on the state of the Xbox business — and whether Xbox exclusives are going multiplatform — will be revealed on Thursday, Feb. 15. Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer, Xbox president Sarah Bond, and head of Xbox Game Studios Matt Booty promise to share updates on the Xbox business in the form of a podcast, according to a post on X from the official Xbox account.

After promising an update on "the future of Xbox" in the wake of multiplatform rumors about games like Starfield and Indiana Jones, Microsoft has confirmed that a podcast with several top gaming executives is set to land this Thursday.

Xbox will reveal its vision for the future in a special edition of the Official Xbox Podcast set to release on Thursday, February 15 at 12pm PT.

A week later, Xbox is ready to share its new business plans with everyone this Wednesday, February 15. Head of Xbox Phil Spencer, President of Xbox Sarah Bond, and Head of Xbox Gaming Matt Booty are coming together on the official Xbox Podcast at 3 p.m. EST on February 15 to share updates on the Xbox business.

Microsoft Gaming will host a special edition of the Official Xbox Podcast on February 15 at 12:00 p.m. PT / 3:00 p.m. ET / 8:00 p.m. GMT, where it will share “updates on the Xbox business” with company CEO Phil Spencer, president Sarah Bond, and head of studios Matt Booty, the company announced. You will be able to watch it on YouTube.

Reports are suggesting that the next-generation console may be made by the same team that developed the Microsoft Surface tablet. Jason Ronald, the person responsible for leading the development of the Xbox Series X|S and the Xbox One, is also reportedly not in charge of the team creating the upcoming console.

Xbox head Phil Spencer has reportedly told colleagues that the company has no plans to stop making Xbox consoles, and that the company's strategy will continue to involve multiple devices. 

Ahead of a “business update” from Xbox this week, Xbox boss Phil Spencer has privately been reassuring employees that Microsoft is not planning to exit the console manufacturing business, while some of the original leakers that suggested that Starfield and other exclusives will be coming to PlayStation 5 have walked back their rumourmongering.

Things have kicked into gear as we move into February, and all eyes are on Microsoft ahead of their upcoming announcement on the future of Xbox. Whilst there’s plenty of rumours swirling about, we’ll just have to wait and see what Phil Spencer’s announcement holds next week.

Xbox head Phil Spencer reportedly told employees that Microsoft isn't planning to stop making consoles.

It's the middle of February, and the games are afoot. This week brings at least one major news event in the shape of a "business update" from Microsoft about "our vision for the future of Xbox", which is widely rumoured to be the announcement that first-party Xbox titles will come to rival consoles. Why is this of interest to us, a PC gaming site? Well, because console gaming can't help but shape the weather for PC gaming; more specifically, Microsoft's alleged multiplatform ambitions seem to reflect the plateauing of Game Pass subscription growth, which has become the cornerstone of the Xbox biz.

One week ago, we reported on a bombshell rumor that Microsoft might be bringing Starfield to PlayStation 5. Well, now it seems the rumor has been completely debunked, by one of its sources no less.

It’s been fascinating to watch the fallout from the Xbox third party rumours this week. But what’s been more fascinating is Microsoft’s complete lack of response to them.

Xbox is still committed to making consoles, says boss Phil Spencer

A recent Take-Two Interactive earnings report has claimed that Sony's PS5 has outsold Microsoft's Xbox Series consoles by an almost two-to-one margin going into 2024. The PS5's success has been no secret after it recently hit a major sales milestone.

Microsoft has reportedly held an internal townhall meeting with employees that saw the company pledge it will keep making Xbox consoles. The purported event is said to have been held mere days after the emergence of reports that the company is planning to sacrifice some Xbox console exclusives in order to embrace multi-platform publishing.

Microsoft’s gaming division reportedly held an internal townhall meeting this week, to address reports it could be bringing some of its first-party games to other console platforms.

The future of Xbox is incredibly uncertain right now. What started as rumours that Hi-Fi Rush is coming to PlayStation and Switch has exploded into reports that the company is near-enough dropping exclusives entirely, making many of its games multiplatform. Starfield was said to be one of these games, with the Bethesda RPG reportedly set to come to PS5.

Xbox will continue making consoles going forward, Xbox boss Phil Spencer has allegedly told Microsoft employees.

It's been an absolute rollercoaster of a week for Xbox fans, as rumors are flying regarding potential plans that will take several of the platform's exclusive titles to other systems such as PlayStation. Originally, Hi-Fi Rush and Sea of Thieves were the only two titles supposedly considered for release on other systems, but further rumors of titles like Starfield and Indiana Jones heading to PlayStation have thrown the future of Xbox into question.

It’s been fascinating to watch the fallout from the Xbox third party rumours this week. But what’s been more fascinating is Microsoft’s complete lack of response to them.

Last week the gaming world was thrown into a grade-A tizzy, when XboxEra reported the rumor that Starfield would be going to PlayStation and other platforms. In short order, rumors that Indiana Jones and the Great Circle and even Gears of War were being considered for multiplatform releases began to make the rounds, raising the specter of Microsoft going fully third party.

Hideo Kojima has revealed a fascinating tidbit about the development of his new Xbox horror game OD: He brought Xbox boss Phil Spencer and other members of the Microsoft gaming team to a traditional Japanese purification ceremony.

The video game console market is about to see its biggest shakeup since Sega stopped producing hardware. Xbox’s Phil Spencer says that the company will share a “business update” with players next week outlining a new vision for the brand. That news comes after a month of rumors that claimed that some of Xbox’s biggest exclusives would be coming to other platforms, including PS5 and Nintendo Switch. The unconfirmed reports sent Xbox loyalists into a panic as fans brace for a possible future where Xbox just produces software instead of physical consoles.

When Microsoft entered the gaming console wars in the early 2000s, many people questioned whether the American-born company could draw in players to its system: the Xbox. After all, Sony and Nintendo had experience under their belts, and Sony was busting out the PS2, which would eventually become the best-selling video game system ever. Nintendo was still cranking out incredible 1st and 3rd party titles, which wouldn’t end by any stretch. So, could Microsoft stand on its own two feet and make an impact? The answer was “yes,” but not in the overarching way. After all, they’ve had plenty of bumps along the road.

The new game is a major horror venture from Hideo Kojima and genre expert Jordan Peele, and it sounds like there might be some real-world haunting to cast the right sort of specter over development. Revealed at the Game Awards 2023, marks Kojima's return to horror after the canceled game that he was working on with Guillermo del Toro in the early 2010s. This time, is in the hands of the independent studio Kojima Productions rather than Konami, so shouldn't run the same risk of meeting its doom too early.