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[gokurho]

Read Phil Spencer’s full Microsoft memo on the new Xbox leadership changes

The Xbox chief details the key gaming leadership changes at Microsoft.

www.theverge.com

Microsoft announced some big changes to its Xbox and marketing leadership today. Sarah Bond is being promoted to Xbox president, leading all Xbox platform and hardware work. Matt Booty is now the president of game content and studios, including overseeing Bethesda and ZeniMax studios.
Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer sent an internal memo to Xbox employees today, detailing all the key changes. The Verge has obtained Spencer’s memo, and you can read it in full below:

It’s been a whirlwind two weeks since we closed our deal with ABK, an acquisition that will materially impact our current and future success. Since then, I’ve been on tour, visiting the teams. It’s been awesome to see the ambition of the games they’re making, the depth of the talent among the teams, and their excitement to be a part of Microsoft with a creative culture that aligns with their own.

Microsoft Gaming is on a multi-year journey to reach players where they are, on the devices they choose to play, and our strategy is working. We have thirteen $1B+ franchises in our portfolio and we just set new records for engagement in Game Pass. As our business continues to grow, it’s important that we structure ourselves to sustain that momentum with effective clarity and accountability across Gaming. In that spirit, we are making the following organizational changes effective today

Records for engagement

 

[TheDarkPhantom]

"Phil Spencer says_________":

 

[Represent.]

under their shit ass management, half of them will become million dollar franchises

 

[Heisenberg007]

Question: When was the last time Xbox Game Studios made a game that hit $1 billion in revenue?

Was it even under Phil Spencer's leadership?

 

[Little Chicken]

WOW that's incredible! Congrats to Phil, Sarah Bond and team for a tremendous 2023 and an even brighter future

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

Wasn't it 17 franchises? https://www.neogaf.com/threads/xbox...ises-with-1-billion-lifetime-revenue.1662752/

 

[IDKFA]

Yeah, I can see that. Especially since we've had confirmation that the Activision games won't be exclusive, it means they can expand a lot of IPs to all platforms.

For example, putting WoW on all platforms. Xbox, Playstation, Switch 2 and mobile.

Also

Microsoft Gaming is on a multi-year journey to reach players where they are, on the devices they choose to play,

Does this mean more Microsoft IPs will make it to Sony and Nintendo platforms?

 

[Dick Jones]

Is the engagement talk stemming from them always being the bridesmaid, never the bride.

 

[MrTroubleMaker]

 

[Drizzlehell]

Microsoft Gaming is on a multi-year journey to reach players where they are

That sounds vaguely threatening.

"You will play our fucking games or else!"

 

[Krieger]

Pathetic. 8 of these franchises are from AKB. Microsoft really is the kind of "sniffing your own farts"-type of guy who buys the account of a high ranking CoD, CS, LoL, WoW etc. player and then pretends that they worked so hard to make this account high ranking.

 

[Ozzie666]

I can't handle the onslaught of the spin cycle. It's like falling for 'these aren't the droids you are looking for'.

 

[Cyberpunkd]

Question: When was the last time Xbox Game Studios made a game that hit $1 billion in revenue?

Was it even under Phil Spencer's leadership?

Engagement is his oxygen.

 

[JerryinSoCal]

Take any of those games that appear on PlayStation and or Nintendo consoles away and the value drops like a rock. PC only titles like WoW? I don't think those would work on console anyway the way they are designed to be played but a console specific game set in that world would be cool.

 

[64bitmodels]

"Phillip W. Spencer III"

Oh my god i'm done

 

[Mr Reasonable]

Pathetic

This isn't really news, it's just an internal email that's been sent to staff to say "welcome to the family/some things are changing/here's what the current state of affairs is." Totally normal practice.

How pathetic that is I suppose is in the eye of the beholder. But essentially, whatever Phil Spencer says or does seems to get leapt on to be criticised with embarrassing vigour around here.

Still, I guess everyone wants a turn to post "dis gonna be good" stepladder man, "don't Believe his lies" from Memento or perhaps, John Candy saying "sure" 40 times each so we do need to keep making these threads.

 

[LazyParrot]

For example, putting WoW on all platforms. Xbox, Playstation, Switch 2 and mobile.

I really wonder how that would work out, considering how indispensable addons (which are user-created and unverified - a big no-no on consoles) are for high level raiding and PVP. It'd either require a radical redesign of the game, different versions without crossplay, or the removal of addons in their current form from the PC version.

 

[Kenneth Haight]

 

[Mephisto40]

Nobody cares about Candy Crush Phil

 

[Ozriel]

Pathetic. 8 of these franchises are from AKB. Microsoft really is the kind of "sniffing your own farts"-type of guy who buys the account of a high ranking CoD, CS, LoL, WoW etc. player and then pretends that they worked so hard to make this account high ranking.

Nothing in that context “we have major franchises in our portfolio” suggests a claim that this is an achievement done by Phil/Xbox.

This feels like a bandwagon thing at the moment. You people are truly weird.

 

[Tomeru]

Nothing in that context “we have major franchises in our portfolio” suggests a claim that this is an achievement done by Phil/Xbox.

This feels like a bandwagon thing at the moment. You people are truly weird.

 

[Dick Jones]

Nothing in that context “we have major franchises in our portfolio” suggests a claim that this is an achievement done by Phil/Xbox.

This feels like a bandwagon thing at the moment. You people are truly weird.

 

[Negotiator101]

What is so amazing about Spencer is his humility and infectious personality. All those smiles when he visited Activision was something you won't see at other companies when the boss arrives. His vision he put in place many years ago is starting to thrive under his leadership

 

[IDKFA]

I really wonder how that would work out, considering how indispensable addons (which are user-created and unverified - a big no-no on consoles) are for high level raiding and PVP. It'd either require a radical redesign of the game, different versions without crossplay, or the removal of addons in their current form from the PC version.

No idea, but I'm sure Microsoft will work out something if it resulted in serious financial gains.

 

[Unknown Soldier]

Congrats to Phil and Microsoft for spending $100 billion on game company acquisitions!

Nothing like buying all the toys in the store and then declaring yourself the kid with the most toys I guess

 

[Hudo]

What about Age of Mythology: Retold?

 

[YOU PC BRO?!]

I just want to play compelling games Phil!

 

[rofif]

let me repeat.
70bil is 150+ red dead redemptions 2.

 

[Dick Jones]

let me repeat.
70bil is 150+ red dead redemptions 2.

This reads like the UK newspapers who ask how many freddo's could you buy instead of Neymar.

 

[rofif]

This reads like the UK newspapers who ask how many freddo's could you buy instead of Neymar.

But in this case they spent 70bil on 1 freddo instead of 150 neymars

 

[alienator]

i got into an engagement with microsoft a long time ago, but the honeymoon phase is over, and i want a divorce.

 

[T-0800]

I choose to play on Playstation. Halo when?

 

[SJRB]

O my god this guy is such a fucking doofus.

Stop congratulating yourself and start releasing good games. Just because you bought a ton of studios that released good games before you bought them, that doesn't suddenly make Microsoft an amazing publisher, you gonk. Your track record is shit, do something about that.

 

[Skifi28]

It wasn't a month ago that he was crying about how small and insignificant they are. I just can't keep up.

 

[mejin]

I'm useless, but I have money.

 

[BbMajor7th]

What is so amazing about Spencer is his humility and infectious personality. All those smiles when he visited Activision was something you won't see at other companies when the boss arrives. His vision he put in place many years ago is starting to thrive under his leadership

Phil Spencer in 2015: "Over the next ten years I want to aggressively manage the decline of all our most valuable first-party intellectual property - every one of them needs to be less relevant and less popular in 2023 than it was in 2013. I want our competitors to run rings around us on hardware: I want to go all in on the most powerful next-gen console and watch it get spanked raw by a half-teraflop gaming tablet. I want to spend the next six or seven years apologizing for all that failure in the press and promising it will get better the following year only for it to get worse. I want our loyal fanbase to tie themselves in knots trying to explain it all to themselves and others. If we do all that, I promise every one of you a major promotion."

 

[Flutta]

Then: ”Please let us compete”

Now: ”Look at us, we have all the biggest franchises muhahaha”

They sound like children playing in the playground

 

[Lunarorbit]

Hopefully phil will let Sarah bond do some of the talking cause he's really wearing out his welcome. Dial it back phil cause we've heard a little too much out of you

 

[Roxkis_ii]

When you can't produce anything of worth, so you have a parent buy stuff for you.

Then you brag to all your friends.
This is epitome of a participation trophy.

 

[PanzerCute]

But in this case they spent 70bil on 1 freddo instead of 150 neymars

As a PSG fan, let me tell you that Neymar was not worth that many Freddos.

 

[lh032]

is that something to be proud off? i mean they just bought a multiplatform publisher with a big coin bag.

 

[Kilau]

under their shit ass management, half of them will become million dollar franchises

It’s already started!

Wasn't it 17 franchises? https://www.neogaf.com/threads/xbox...ises-with-1-billion-lifetime-revenue.1662752/

 

[Sanepar]

Engagement... they will never stop.

 

[MDSLKTR]

That's what he says in the memo, in the bedroom he's more like:

 

[FeralEcho]

What is so amazing about Spencer is his humility and infectious personality. All those smiles when he visited Activision was something you won't see at other companies when the boss arrives. His vision he put in place many years ago is starting to thrive under his leadership

I would smile too if I would get paychecks and promotions for sitting on my ass all day doing nothing...."cough" Matt Booty

 

[Shake Your Rump]

They spent $68 billion on activision and $7 billion on Bethesda. I’d hope they’d have some sort of value.

I chuckled at game pass “engagement”.

 

[FeralEcho]

Phil right now after daddy bought him his new toys

 

[FrankWza]

What about their reachification prowess?

 

[kaizenkko]

One of the few franchises under MS umbrella that I like is Gears of War, and Coallition are fucking tech masters, one of few MS studios who rivalize with Sony studios in technical ability.

I really don't know why MS don't grow this guys at least a little bit. lol

 

[Edmund]

What does the W in his name stand for? Wanker?