Xbox plans a major restructuring for the future

Bizarre shifts in the business model are sacrificing the brand's best aspects. The subscription ecosystem underwent an odd cut: the price of the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass went down, but there was a steep cost, as future Call of Duty releases were simply removed from the catalog. To try to make up for the loss, they introduced a new plan called Starter Edition, which includes third-party perks like Discord Nitro, a rather timid attempt to disguise the significant reduction in the main service.

The community is not staying silent and has started voicing their concerns on Player Voice, a feedback portal that Microsoft launched to listen to the public. The outcome of this survey couldn't be more evident: fans are pleading for the return of exclusive games to the platform, which has become the most voted requirement by far. Players want the brand's essence back.

According to Guy Richards, director of the ID@Xbox program, plans for the next two years will bring deeper changes than any we've seen throughout the brand's first 25 years. The executive argues that the strategy is not just to celebrate the past, but to truly reposition Xbox for the coming decades, aiming to keep the ecosystem appealing both to players and developers in a rapidly changing market.

This internal shake-up began gaining momentum with the arrival of the new CEO, Asha Sharma. Under her leadership, the company discarded that confusing "This is an Xbox" marketing campaign to try to reclaim hardware value with the manifesto "We are Xbox". Even the logo and branding were revamped, as plans for the next console, dubbed Project Helix, finally made it onto the leadership's official agenda.

The kickoff for this new era takes place on June 8th, during the Xbox Games Showcase. The event will kick off the celebrations of the console's quarter-century, and Guy Richards promises a summer packed with significant announcements that the team is eager to unveil. It's yet to be seen if these reveals will excite or ultimately alienate the traditional fan base.