On Monday, Microsoft announced a new initiative that gives Xbox users a direct outlet for voicing concerns and feedback. Through this pipeline, players can see when their feedback has been reviewed and track how Xbox addresses the concern. Microsoft doesn’t outright promise it will make every fan’s dream come true, but Xbox Player Voice still sounds like a surprisingly transparent system. It’s also the latest in a long string of advancements begun after CEO Asha Sharma took over the gaming division.
Sharma’s vision for Xbox has been loud and clear since she took over from Phil Spencer. In April, the newly appointed executive expressed a “renewed commitment” to consoles. Shortly thereafter, an internal memo by Sharma expressing that Xbox Game Pass might be too expensive conveniently leaked to the press. The response was positive — who wants to pay more money than they need to? After drumming up hope, Xbox officially announced a price cut for Xbox Game Pass the next week. There was a major caveat to the announcement, which formally dropped a major perk for the subscription. The downside was ultimately overshadowed by Xbox’s positive framing of the news.
“This change responds to a lot of feedback we’ve gotten so far,” Sharma wrote in the announcement. “We’ll continue to listen and learn.”
This PR-based approach appears to be the new playbook for Xbox. The company seemingly has something to announce nearly every week. The magnitude of the announcement varies wildly. In May, the publisher revamped its Series X UI so that every element, from the boot up to the achievement badges, screamed Xbox in its branding. Two days later, Microsoft updated its internal branding from Xbox to XBOX.
What is the point? Holding your attention by any means necessary. With weak sales compared to competitors like Nintendo and Sony, Xbox is arguably losing the so-called console war. The communications team at the company, however, are determined to ensure that Xbox does not lose the marketing war. The pitch is dressed up to seem like Xbox is taking a more grassroots, fan-based approach. But if the cadence of Xbox’s PR blasts is anything to go by, the real aim is taking up as much airspace as possible.
Leadership changes are a good opportunity for company-wide pivots, but when you get down to it, Xbox isn’t changing much so far. What’s different is how the company presents itself to the public. Then again, when you look at what Xbox has actually been doing, the approach makes sense.
Regardless of sales, Xbox does get a lot of wins. Subnautica 2 is blowing up right now, and Xbox is the only console-maker supporting its early access. Double Fine keeps pumping out some of the most creative games in the biz. Forza Horizon 6 is a sensation. There’s always room for improvement, but Xbox doesn’t necessarily need to majorly change course: it just needs to make more people aware of what it’s doing.
It could be years before Project Helix is here. By then, the public’s already anemic appetite for hardware upgrades might be all but spoiled.
As the industry struggles to keep costs down, Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft are all facing an uphill battle when it comes to selling new devices.
The new era of Xbox, then, isn’t tied to a new console. I mean, why wait? As Sharma said back in April, everything is competing for the player’s attention. Making users feel like Xbox truly cares about what players want is a great way to stand out.
“We want to be clear: this doesn’t mean every piece of feedback will turn into a feature or result in a change,” reads the wire announcement for Xbox Player Voice. “Building across a large, global platform means weighing a lot of inputs. But better visibility helps close the gap between what you tell us and what you see happen next on XBOX.”
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