Marathon definitely isn’t Concord 2 (or 3 if you include Highguard), but not exactly lighting the world on fire. I think Arc ruined that chance whether it’s due to the game being attractive to many gamers or wear out the coolness of extraction shooter.
Whilst that was a grand one, it’s not quite on the level of the Xbox One reveal.
Does “Xbox” not just become a chip feature in the future so you can build a pc with or without it? Backwards compat via chipset that eventually dies out when PC’s take over thanks to play anywhere and everyones library not dependent on an Xbox alone - assuming AI stops consuming all PC components?
Seems the most logical way forward. Helix hardware in 2036 assuming consoles and PC’s still a thing and the cloud has not taken over is a premium device that Microsoft produce as a result of developing hardware for the cloud?
Random thoughts but who knows what’s next. Lets just hope whatever it is we still get great single player games………
Not sure it even needs hardware - Xbox OS for One onwards has been a cut down Windows anyway so likely has everything it needs, and I’m guessing the backwards compatibility further back can be brute forced in software emulation - for example I’m sure I’ve read that backwards compatible 360 / OG games play in a container on the newer consoles anyway, which Windows is perfectly capable of.
I know some have mentioned hardware parts being added for the emulation but I’m struggling to see what it would be needed for - the security element would likely be catered for by the use of TPM2 and Secure Boot, which Helix and new PCs all have anyway
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Yeah good point on emulation. Maybe a security issue for them but would be easier than on chip. Just wish we knew what’s next.
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Can’t know the future, but we do know the past. Xbox One consoles have lasted going on 13 years now. There’s a long time between know and when Helix is phased out, so even if it’s the last console/first party hardware (I don’t think it is); I don’t even know where I’d be in life by the time I care about that.
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I do believe they have some stuff added to the silicon to make it easier and more reliably play backwards compatible titles on newer consoles. They probably could do it all through emulation, but hardware will obviously always be better.
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I don’t really know how true it is, but I glad they both at least say they have had positive experiences at Microsoft/Xbox (truly positive). Hopefully they can carry that forward.
Yeah it really seems like Microsoft is pulling back on the “AI Push”. It’s like some knob was turnt behind the scenes. Even all the AI chatter surrounding windows and Microsoft itself has quieted a lot. They’ve been pulling back on some features with more rumored plans to decouple AI from other Microsoft experiences.
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It wouldn’t surprise me that despite being in for AI, they are pulling back slowly but surely. Meta did announce that “big” platform is shutting down, wasted so much money. At least the AI got some ball rolling, but now it’s slowing down and/or burst, Microsoft wants to back away slowly before it blows.
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Think it’s possible they’re focusing AI less on consumers where it makes sod all money (all they’re good for is to feed data to it) and concentrate more on Copilot for the corporate world.
The locked-down enterprise version is being used by many offices to try and aid productivity - for most it’s a “let’s see if it helps” and a keeping up with trends thing, but MS actually get paid for it and for the firms it has some useful features like transcribing meetings and summarising content or data (it mostly does OK).
I suspect when the AI bubble bursts, the corporate usage will remain as the primary revenue driver as they’re the few customers able to pay anywhere near the actual running costs - plus maybe simple consumer features with a focus on additional services for those paying a subscription…
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Hello gang, one is new here, please hear me out.
Don’t want to step on anyone’s parade or wind users up. While one is sorry that Phil didn’t end his note at the 25th anniversary party 
one is glad to see Sarah Bond leave because the Xbox profile was getting too run into the ground & too negative.
In the short space of time that Asha Sharma has been in post, Asha Sharma has done more to raise the profile of Xbox and engage with the community on social media than Sarah Bond has over the last 2 years. At last, one can see taking up the brand… ‘Return To Xbox’, ‘Xbox starts with Console’. That’s the talk OG Xbox users like me want to see, read & hear, it’s wonderful 
.
One is full of hope & excitement for Xbox & its next monster console
It appears Windows team is also getting a refresh and got their priorities straight by satisfying us instead of investors. Maybe Satya hit his head on a rock or something.
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it really feels there has been a shift at MS but we dont know.
that would be a perfect time for some real journalist to dig into and give us the story. but that field of work is almost dead. its sad
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To me it’s as simple as Phil and Sarah’s expertise having been building up Xbox as a platform and ecosystem. That’s what Game Pass and Xbox Everywhere was. Sarah and Phil also did a fantastic job building bridges with developers and publishers. Sarah is credited I think more than Phil for all the Japanese third party support brought to Xbox. Sarah was also credited with having gotten ABK past the finish line. At the end of the day over both their time at Xbox they really, REALLY built Xbox up from the literal dumpster fire Don Mattick left. Xbox is factually stronger than it’s even been as a platform, ecosystem, and business: there’s more first and third party support than ever, incredible features like play anywhere and cloud gaming, and the business is financially stronger than it’s ever been to the point that it’s actually become a pillar at Microsoft. However, neither Phil nor Sarah excelled at the consumer marketing side of things, and that’s where Sharma comes in. Phil had the “I’m a gamer like you.” to put some energy into the brand and Sarah was a genuine wonderful dreamer with the vision to really grow Xbox, but especially Sarah just wasn’t equipped to handle console gamers. Console gamers are a delicate and very traditional lot. By the end I’d say Phil was getting more hate than Sarah, and Phil especially was getting caught in “gotcha comments”. In a lot of ways he was too “friendly” as the Xbox boss with Xbox gamers, and he was too vocal and candid with them. The business is constantly shifting, but it’s really bad when Phil was constantly coming out saying this and then that. Sony very purposefully didn’t make a big deal out of vocally publicly explaining through their Playstation boss that PS would start porting to PC and then explaining the Xbox ports of MLB the Show and more recently Helldivers or now their supposed pulling back. All that is stuff people had to dig for. We know what’s most successful with them is sticking to what worked 20 years ago in their heads, and even then Xbox has to deal with the fact that they’ve always been the new kids on the block that everyone kinda hates for existing. It’s a lot to navigate and makes it very difficult to be a “dreamer” or even a “gamer bro”. Phil and Sarah built a strong foundation of Xbox, and it was probably keenly seen that Sarah wasn’t going to please Xbox console gamers. It doesn’t seem like the actual plan and vision is changed, and I don’t think we’ll get foundational changes, but Sharma’s background is in marketing and building consumer platforms. So I think that’s what she’ll do: execute Xbox’s strategy in a way that neither Phil nor Sarah could.
Regardless, neither Phil or Sarah are gone yet. Also neither of them get my sympathies, and I actually really like Sarah and greatly respect her (as a Black man who recognizes the lack of representation in the industry). It doesn’t really have to be sad or happy; it’s business. I think people outside of gaming would look at us with crazy eyes for how much we care about the specific CEO in charge. Anyway, Both are sticking around in advisory roles and I wouldn’t be surprised if they were publicly at the 25th anniversary celebrations. Phil was already at GDC seemingly having the time of his life. If anything I think he’s glad to be out of firing range. The Xbox boss gets a lot of monkey poo slung at them (and it has to be a stressful job being leader of such a big gaming business (and by the end Phil was in charge of everything gaming under Microsoft including Xbox, Bethesda, and ABK)). So I wouldn’t be sad at all for either of them. I mean they’re adult who aren’t exactly poor and weren’t exactly laid off and are now desperate for work and surviving day by day. If anything Sarah can do better than gaming. She’s good at building up ecosystems & platforms. She can go do that somewhere she won’t be chastised for it.
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I’m still not ruling out that Satya got replaced by aliens or something, and now they’re trying to butter us up before taking the planet over. This is a huge 180 from starting the year with a crashout over “AI slop”. He was pushing AI HARD once Open AI started getting popular.
Maybe that fireside chat (or whatever) with Xbox was meaningful and he was being honest about wanting to learn from Xbox as a consumer business. Microsoft does greatly struggle in that area. Maybe something happened where they decided to try and work on that weakness while also having their business facing business to be the data driven AI gungho company? Sure. Leave it all behind the scenes and with business partners that actually want that mess.
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I think Satya is still Satya. To me I think A.I is winding down, it has certainly not been the hope they expected instead it’s been a money sink and it’s looking like those in it are desperate to make something out of it. I’d imagine there is a sense of something new coming, and they are trying to be in a good place for it. I get the sense they are looking at the likes of Steam and others repeating what Apple and Netflix did in both the Mobile phone and movie rentals industry.
Jez on the Xbox 2 talked about Amazon making a new phone and about Microsoft’s competitors now moving more into their markets. The last time this happened Microsoft bungled it with Windows Phone and ended up being ejected from that market, this time around they are trying to get ahead by putting Asha as Xbox CEO.
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In all fairness, Satya did turn around Microsoft big time when he started. I think AI got into his head too deep. If he is coming back to his senses, then I think we are in luck.
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We can only hope that this isn’t some long term convert everyone into AI apologist plan./j