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Xbox teases a new future for Xbox as multiplatform rumors circulate

By Tomas Franzese February 5, 2024

Phil Spencer at BlizzCon 2023 — Blizzard Entertainment

Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Gaming, announced that Xbox will hold a “business update event” sometime next week in response to a flurry of discourse online about Xbox exclusives going multiplatform.

Leaks and rumors about games that were previously Xbox-exclusives, like Hi-Fi Rush and Sea of Thieves, going multiplatform have been circulating for a couple of weeks, but they hit a fever pitch over the weekend. An XboxEra report claimed that a PlayStation 5 version of Bethesda Game Studios’ Starfield is in the works, and that was followed by other Xbox insiders claiming that they heard everything from Indiana Jones and the Great Circle to Gears of War was going multiplatform. Because Microsoft is one of gaming’s three major console manufacturers that have garnered a loyal fan base through a variety of exclusive games, these rumors proved quite divisive.

Although Xbox doesn’t typically comment on rumors, Spencer broke his silence regarding this discourse on X on Monday afternoon. “We’re listening and we hear you. We’ve been planning a business update event for next week, where we look forward to sharing more details with you about our vision for the future of Xbox. Stay tuned,” his post said.

Microsoft has not gotten any more specific than that, so we don’t know exactly when this “business update event” will take place or in what format it will be presented and delivered to Xbox fans. You can expect us to report on and let you know what Xbox’s future holds after this event takes place sometime next week.

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Tomas Franzese is a Staff Writer at Digital Trends, where he reports on and reviews the latest releases and exciting…

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Our favorite Xbox Series X games of 2023: Starfield, Hi-Fi Rush, and more

A character from Starfield stands in front of text that Best Xbox Games 2023.

This was a year of low lows and high highs for Xbox.

On one hand, Microsoft's Activision Blizzard acquisition faced a whole lot of scrutiny and Bethesda's Redfall was a bust. On the other, Xbox Game Studios finally started to release first-party games more consistently in 2023, some long-awaited games finally released, and the Activision Blizzard deal eventually went through. Microsoft now looks to keep that momentum going into 2024 as it integrates the Call of Duty publisher into its organization and tries to keep up the first-party consistency with games like Senua's Saga: Hellblade II and Avowed.

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Xbox’s 2023 games feel like the Series X launch lineup we never got

EMBARGO 10/4 12:01 AM PT: A camera angle up close to a Forza Motorsport race.

Even though we’re almost three years into the life span of the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, it feels like this console generation is just starting for Microsoft.
It’s no secret that Xbox was slow to start up and then maintain consistency this console generation. For example, 2020 saw the company putting out a weak console launch lineup made up of ports and remasters. While 2021 had a flurry of great games, it was followed by a comparatively barren 2022. And 2023 hasn't been perfect either (due, in large part, to the flop that is Redfall), but outside of that, this year delivered the excellent Hi-Fi Rush, the grandly scaled Starfield, solid ports of two Age of Empires games and Quake II, a new Minecraft title, and a technical showpiece in Forza Motorsport.
Looking at that varied lineup, these games showcase both the potential of the Series X and the power of Xbox as a brand. Prospects for Xbox’s lineup are up heading into 2024 too, so it feels like we’re at the proper start of the Xbox Series X and S console generation ... even if it came a few years too late.
A new beginning
Looking at the 2020 launch lineup for Xbox Series X/S, it wasn’t exactly emblematic of what the console could do. While there were some nice 4K and 60 frames per second (fps) upgrades for Xbox One games, the only new draws were a console port of Gears Tactics, the multiplayer-supporting Tetris Effect: Connected, a temporary next-gen exclusive version of Yakuza: Like a Dragon, and some smaller indies like The Falconeer and Bright Memory 1.0.

Most of those games were on or came to more platforms afterward and, in general, didn’t provide that strong of an argument for why players should stick around this console generation. But looking at many of the games Xbox has released this year, it finally feels like we have a bundle of good Xbox exclusives that show what the platform was always capable of.
In my review of Forza Motorsport, I note that the game feels like a launch title because it’s an impressive technical showpiece. It runs at 4K and 60 fps in performance mode, which is something not many games this generation have done. The closest comparable games are Astro’s Playroom and Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered on PlayStation 5, which effectively demonstrated the power of Sony's console early on.
Forza Motorsport was also built as a platform that developer Turn 10 Studios can expand over time. It plans to periodically slot in new single and multiplayer content, including new cars and tracks. A game like that makes a lot of sense early on in a console’s life span in this live-service era. It’s what Microsoft tried to do with Halo Infinite, even if that didn’t pan out as expected due to a one-year delay, and with Killer Instinct on Xbox One.

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Xbox’s Phil Spencer responds to blockbuster leak: ‘So much has changed’

Xbox Series X on a table.

Head of Xbox Phil Spencer has finally commented on the massive Xbox leak that happened earlier today. In his public statement, he explained that "so much has changed" since many of the documents were created and asked fans to be excited about Xbox's future.
On Tuesday morning, unredacted versions of a lot of documents pertaining to the Xbox vs. FTC trial appeared. These emails and documents, most of which were created or written sometime between 2020 and 2022, revealed a lot of unannounced information. That included things like a mid-gen refresh for the Xbox Series X and S, some unannounced Bethesda games, and even Microsoft's early goals for its next-generation console. Hours later, Spencer commented on the leak.
"We've seen the conversation around old emails and documents," Spencer explained on X (formerly known as Twitter). "It is hard to see our team's work shared in this way because so much has changed and there's so much to be excited about right now, and in the future. We will share the real plans when we are ready."
https://twitter.com/XboxP3/status/1704233222752571842
At first, people didn't know where the leak came from, with the FTC quickly denying that it leaked these things. Ultimately, United States District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley revealed that Microsoft had done it to itself while trying to provide the court with a secure cloud link to relevant exhibits for the trial. The Verge went on to report that Phil Spencer also sent out a memo internally about the leaks today, echoing the statements in his tweet.
"Today, several documents submitted in the court proceedings related to our proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard were unintentionally disclosed. I know this is disappointing, even if many of the documents are well over a year old and our plans have evolved," Spencer's memo reads. "I also know we all take the confidentiality of our plans and our partners’ information very seriously. This leak obviously is not us living up to that expectation. We will learn from what happened and be better going forward. We all put incredible amounts of passion and energy into our work, and this is never how we want that hard work to be shared with the community. That said, there’s so much more to be excited about, and when we’re ready, we’ll share the real plans with our players. In closing, I appreciate all of the work that you pour into Team Xbox to surprise and delight our players."
The fact that Microsoft did this to itself is an embarrassing accident, especially when some of the information contained within the documents and emails is no longer accurate. For now, all we can do is wait and see if Microsoft will actually release new versions of its Xbox Series X and S consoles next year and if games like Doom Year Zero, a sequel to Ghostwire: Tokyo, and Dishonored 3 get announced.