After this morning’s Xbox Games Showcase at the David Geffen Theater in Los Angeles, Xbox Head Phil Spencer stopped by IGN Live to talk about the showcase, recent headlines, and what’s next for Xbox. Here’s a recap of all the big headlines from the interview:
- Spencer explained the reasoning for the next Gears of War game not being Gears of War 6: “We’ve had some changes in leadership at the studio… So I actually thought it was a nice opportunity for that team to establish their Gears.” He further elaborated that since a new team was working on the series, they should get a chance to make it their own and show their unique take on the game’s world, this time being the prequel Gears of War: E-Day.
- Spencer also elaborated on the thought process behind releasing the new game Doom: The Dark Ages on PlayStation 5, saying “It’s definitely one of those franchises that has a history on so many devices. I think they have like Doom running on a lawn mower somewhere. It’s a franchise that I think everybody deserves to play.”
- Following up the comment on Doom’s multi platform release, Spencer confirmed that “if you buy the game on our console, you get to play it on PC”. Phil claims that cross-platform releases strengthen their franchises and make the industry better.
- Spencer commented for the first time on the recent closures of Microsoft-owned studios like Tango Gameworks and Arkane Austin: “I have to run a sustainable business inside the company and grow, and that means sometimes I have to make hard decisions that frankly are not decisions I love”. He also emphasizes Xbox’s commitment to supporting the teams facing layoffs, whether it be in the form of severances or other methods.
- Rumors of a handheld Xbox console were brought up during the interview, to which Spencer responded “The future for us in hardware is pretty awesome. The work that the team is doing around different form factors, different ways to play, I’m incredibly excited about.” He continued, saying “Today was about the games… but we will have a time to come out and talk more about platform, and we can’t wait to bring it to you” When asked if a theoretical Xbox handheld would be a streaming-based device or an independent piece of hardware, Spencer said “I think being able to play games locally is really important.”
The full interview from IGN Live with Phil Spencer can be watched here on the IGN YouTube channel.