From the Archives: What is an Xbox?
A Brave New World
From the Archives: I am as close to back to normal as I can be after a week of dealing with a cold so bad I question whether it was a flu, but my vaccine makes it feel not as bad. Either way, the hope is to get back to normal next week. Until then, I dug back into the archives and pulled out an article looking at the changing definition of what an Xbox is. Since the November 2024 publishing, there’s been plenty of changes in the Xbox brand, including ungodly priced consoles, but as I like to do with these I did not edit anything and wanted to present it as I wrote it. This does mean there’s some aging in the concepts and ideas brought up, but I think the larger point is still the same.
Microsoft recently revealed a new marketing strategy simply titled “This is an Xbox.” As expected, it led to a variety of feelings among gamers, ranging from supportive to confused to mocking to memes. Considering I have been interested in the trajectory of the industry and Xbox is my main non-Nintendo brand, I wanted to write down my thoughts regarding all of this.
As I’ve been saying for a long time, the golden era of gaming consoles is either transitioning to its end, or we don’t admit it’s over. The video game industry is changing in ways many of us won’t realize by the decade’s end. To this day, whenever I bring this topic up, I will get a chunk of people who refuse to admit that the traditional way we think about the industry is dying. I’m even going to call my shot and say it happens again with this article, and that’s okay because different opinions and views are fine. However, it’s becoming harder to deny that many things associated with the industry are either changing or just going away. Hard-stop generations are being replaced by what I call rolling generations. Game consoles, as the way most start their gaming journeys, have been replaced by mobile, with the hybrid handheld Nintendo Switch being the closest alternative. The industry is simply just not going to look the same when we enter the 2030s.
No one has been more accepting of these new models than Microsoft and the Xbox brand. There are several reasons why Microsoft is moving this fast to embrace these new strategies than Sony or Nintendo. One is that Microsoft’s Xbox One was relatively successful, selling over fifty million units despite such a weak exclusives lineup. It was also the worst generation to “lose” because it was the one most gamers got comfortable with a digital ecosystem and purchases. Another reason is that this is just right up their alley. Microsoft is a software company first. They are not Apple, which makes hardware first and then makes software to complement it. Microsoft’s success comes from creating quality operating systems and software that multiple types of hardware can use. So, for Microsoft, Xbox going beyond consoles is not something they see as a problem. It’s in the company’s DNA.
Many gamers want to keep thinking of console generations and have specific named systems tied to those generations. So the idea that Microsoft is telling them that any device that can stream games or has Xbox Game Studios titles is part of the Xbox ecosystem is a strange new world that many refuse to accept. The problem is, much like many things in life, you don’t have a choice. Sure, the hardcore fan may dislike it and threaten a boycott, but what does the larger consumer base think? Consumers care less about gaming consoles as the only way to play video games. If you look at the tech of the pre-smartphone era, we used to have dedicated devices for everything. However, that’s not the case anymore. My iPhone can do 95% of what I need for specific tasks. The only industry that hasn’t gone that way? Video games. Now, later than it probably should’ve been, that’s on the verge of ending.
Microsoft embraces the fact that their Xbox platform, much like Windows, Disney movies, YouTube, or Android, does not require specific hardware to experience them. Larger marketing and world occurrences are already making it possible. The main one is that gaming graphics are hitting a ceiling. I still think we have ways to go with performance and maybe some touching up in textures, particles, and lighting, but we have essentially, for a good while, reached a limit with fidelity. The old-school days of console hardware being made with custom chips are also ending, as Microsoft and Sony’s machines are essentially customized gaming PCs running on similar architecture. Even when you consider the rise of ARM, developers have said porting between X86 and ARM architecture isn’t the headache it once was.
So, when you ask what an Xbox is? Well, Xbox is no longer a console brand. Xbox is an ecosystem and platform like Windows and Android. Xbox is the Disney+ or Apple TV+ icon on your smart devices. Xbox is the platform that delivers Game Pass, Master Chief, Gears of War, Fable, Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, Minecraft, EA Play, Ubisoft+, Xbox Game Studios titles, and so many games from a variety of publishing partners. This is Xbox, and it’s everywhere.
I feel like Microsoft is trying to pivot with grace and understanding it’s no longer a console market. I think that you’re statement that we’re hitting a threshold is accurate as well in the since that we don’t really know how far we can take the experience but it’s certainly plateauing. I would like to see Microsoft work towards producing more titles versus consoles in the future because the games that they have made have been very fun. But sometimes I feel as though the bang for my buck can be spent elsewhere. I don’t agree with their shady tactics either Xbox gamepass and the price increases, but their thought process is on the right track. While they are losing the “console battle” I think that they can still make an impact if they focus on the ecosystem you’re talking about.
I agree, traditional console generations are all but dead now. Consoles themselves are essentially PCs.
Microsoft is just getting a head start with the "Everything is an Xbox" ecosystem. Streaming games from any device is the future.
I think Sony will have no choice but to pivot, probably after or even during PS6.
Nintendo will always do their own thing, but if at some point, it makes more fiscal sense for them not to make hardware any more, they'll stop.