Microsoft’s Phil Spencer revealed further details of Xbox’s changing brand identity, intending to make its first-party titles available across multiple platforms.
In an interview with independent games journalist Destin Legarie (via Eurogamer), Spencer said that Xbox is moving away from first-party titles like Starfield and Indiana Jones having an “exclusivity window”.
“There’s no reason for me to put a ring fence around any game and say this game will not go to a place where it would find players, where it would have business success for us,” Spencer said. “Our strategy is to allow our games to be available.”
“Game Pass is an important component of playing the games on our platform, but to keep games off other platforms? That’s not a path for us; that doesn’t work for us.”
He explained that Microsoft wants Xbox to be the platform that enables “the world’s biggest games” to be available in “multiple places.”
“We think that’s what makes us unique,” he said. “Most of the other platforms out there are single platforms on a single device, whether that’s on PC, mobile, or console. And we want Xbox to be a platform that enables creators across any screen that people want to play on.”
When asked whether this would cause Xbox’s brand identity to evolve, Spencer said it is forever changing and adapting to the industry.
“This is all about making sure that your library of games that you own on Xbox are playable in multiple places, so I’d say it’s an evolution of our identity. But I believe it’s an identity that the industry needs.
“When you think about where this industry is now and you see the challenges, the business challenges that are out there for many companies, I think making games more accessible to more people has got to be front and centre for us as an industry.”
In another interview with Gamertag Radio, Spencer also confirmed Microsoft is planning to support the Nintendo Switch 2 with ports of Xbox games.
“I’m really looking forward to supporting [Nintendo] with games that we have,” he said. “They’re a really important part of this industry.”
Last February, Microsoft announced it would be bringing four games to other consoles as a step in its multiplatform strategy.
“We don’t damage Xbox and we can grow our business using what other platforms have to help us with that,” Spencer said. “Looking forward, I think there is an interesting story for us introducing Xbox franchises to players on other platforms to get them more interested in Xbox. We think there’s a good brand value for Xbox there.”
