Last week, we saw a video and a couple of images doing the rounds from a Microsoft event where new Xbox boss Asha Sharma was introduced to her new team by Phil Spencer, and now we know a bit more of what was actually said.
This is coming from a transcript over at Windows Central, which highlights how Sharma used the opportunity to reiterate three commitments that were laid out in her initial statement — the first being to deliver great games, the second being to "return to Xbox", and the third being to "build for the future of play".
Again, she mentioned during the "return to Xbox" segment about how console is extremely important, and it'll be used as a "reference experience". Here's specifically what she said:
"I have three commitments that I laid out. We will deliver great games. Everything is downstream of great games, that means empowering studios to do our best work. The second thing is the 'return to Xbox,' we are going to start with console, and make sure that we understand that this is our reference experience. We will meet players where they are, and build experiences that are instant and seamless and accessible. And third, we are living through an unprecedented era of change. We will build for the future of play."
"As we think about the road ahead, it's not going to be me or any one person, we will be team Xbox. We will not be the studios or the platform or marketing or operations. We will be team Xbox, and we'll get through this together."
The new Head of Xbox also used the opportunity to thank Phil Spencer for being a "remarkable leader, and even more remarkable human", praised former Xbox president Sarah Bond as a "key part of Xbox's history" while expressing that "we wouldn't be here without you", and promised that she'll do everything she can do "honour" and "protect" the decades of work that have gone into the Xbox brand.
It's obviously going to take time for Sharma to implement whatever changes she sees fit, but it sounds like she wants to put more focus on console going forward, and that's music to our ears. It helps that a new Xbox console is officially in the works as well, and we could even be seeing it as soon as 2027. Bring it on!