Since Microsoft acquired Activision-Blizzard along with its vast collection of development studios, it has claimed the title of the largest third-party game publisher to date. This is why recent remarks made by Xbox head Phil Spencer during an interview with Gamertag Radio have stirred quite a bit of buzz; he hinted that upcoming Xbox games might be available on other platforms like Nintendo and PlayStation. While this caused waves, the strategy behind it is quite logical.
Spencer’s statements, such as, “I want people to be able to experience the games that we build, the services that we offer, on as many devices as we can,” and, “We obviously love the native experience that we have on our own platform and our own hardware, and that’s something that will continue for us,” were shared in Danny Peña’s Podcast Interviews on YouTube. Here, Spencer discussed the future of Xbox with Gamertag Radio’s Danny and Parris in a packed, 26-minute interview that not only delved into industry insights but also reminisced about Xbox’s past, including the iconic Xbox and Xbox 360 days.
For those not caught up on console history, a quick refresher might be helpful to understand why these statements raised eyebrows. Remember Sonic The Hedgehog, the speedy blue character now a movie star? Originally, he was the face of Sega’s gaming lineup, which included both hits and misses. Sonic games and similar titles were exclusive to Sega consoles until Sonic Adventure 2 was ported to the GameCube. Sega’s console journey effectively ended with the Dreamcast, which was quickly overshadowed by Sony’s powerful PlayStation 2, pushing Sega into a third-party role—a market position that Microsoft’s Xbox soon filled.
In the early days, the “DirectX Box,” which would evolve into the Xbox, was initially designed to be compatible with Sega Dreamcast games, a feature aided by Dreamcast’s compatibility with Windows CE. Though this didn’t make it to the final release, sequels from the Dreamcast era, like Jet Set Radio Future, became Xbox exclusives.
At first glance, Spencer’s comments might seem like something you’d expect from a struggling console manufacturer, but Microsoft is far from that. With Xbox reigning as the largest third-party game publisher, the strategy is more about selling as many games as possible across various platforms than it is about driving players solely to the Xbox console.
Phil Spencer put it aptly, saying, “We want everybody to be able to play on Xbox, and it does mean more of our games shipping on more platforms, not just PlayStation. We love the work that we do with Nintendo, we love what we do with Valve on Steam, and that’s going to continue.”
So, is Xbox heading down the same path as Sega? Definitely not! Microsoft’s financial muscle has ensured a different trajectory. However, the next wave of Xbox consoles will need to offer something substantial to lure users on the strength of its hardware, especially as the gaming world looks forward to what’s likely a hybrid portable “Switch 3” and the inevitably more powerful PlayStation 6, both of which will bank on their exclusive games as a selling point, a traditional approach in the console market.
Still, Microsoft has to tread carefully. If the perception grows that Xbox is merely a suite of games and services, rather than a hardware platform, then, as the saying goes, “When everybody’s on Xbox, no one will be.”
