Xbox President Sarah Bond has made a bold statement about their hardware after Xbox Series X|S – and Microsoft is standing by it.
As reported by Windows Central, Sarah sent an internal letter about the console they are making after Xbox Series, and Microsoft later confirmed that the letter is real to Windows Central itself. It isn’t common for game companies to confirm leaked materials, but it may be the case that Microsoft has gotten used to leaks after what they went through in the Activision deal.
Here is what Sarah wrote:
“It’s been nearly six months since we came together as an organization. Our collective achievements in that timeframe are tremendous. Everyone should feel incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved and excited about the opportunities ahead.
We are moving full speed ahead on our next generation hardware, focused on delivering the biggest technological leap ever in a generation.”
That official confirmation clearly shows they are pretty confident about that statement. If you think about it, there’s nothing particularly specific that competitors like Sony, Nintendo, or Valve for that matter, can use in development of their next hardware.
But one wonders what inspires Microsoft’s confidence in saying this. Did they outspend Sony in R&D or parts for this next hardware? Are they making custom parts in their hardware that Sony or other competitors wouldn’t know about? Is this a new technology Xbox created on their own, that the world does not know about yet?
Obviously, there’s something that Sarah knows, but we don’t, that inspires this confidence. And, that rallying cry letter suggests that most of Microsoft don’t know about it either, but maybe their hardware teams do.
In any case, Microsoft’s decision to confirm this letter seems to be intended to help rally the troops of Xbox fans as well. While there’s a portion of Xbox gamers who took Phil up on his offer to play their games without an Xbox console, there is still a substantial base of loyal Xbox fans who continued to buy Xbox One, and now, Xbox Series consoles.
It’s something the fandom needed to hear, after all the FUD and speculation going around that Microsoft would give up on hardware. And yes, Phil Spencer and other Microsoft Gaming heads have repeatedly reiterated that they still plan to make consoles, but for whatever reason, some gamers don’t believe them.
Perhaps the fact that this was a leaked letter convinces those gamers that what Microsoft says in public and internally about Xbox consoles is consistent, and true.
If Xbox’s 10th generation is secure, than they should just do something about the current generation to make it worthwhile for their customers as well. But if the recent spate of rumors about Xbox Games Showcase are true, then they have something prepared for that too.
