Xbox has turned a corner — the future for Microsoft's gaming platform once again looks incredibly bright

To say that Microsoft's Xbox efforts have been controversial would be an understatement.

Microsoft's Xbox Series X|S console platform has been thoroughly outsold by the PlayStation 5 this gen, as Microsoft's Xbox One misfire surrendered an entire generation of gamers to digital PlayStation lock-in. Questions about Microsoft's ability to deliver quality first-party games in a consistent cadence, its commitment to the future of Xbox hardware, and a strategy that sees iconic exclusives like Forza and Gears of War head to rival platforms has frustrated and confused customers over the past decade. But, the turbulent times seem to be over.

After a mountain of acquisitions, Microsoft is now delivering quality and variety more consistently than any other publisher on the market. Those games are all guaranteed day one in Xbox Game Pass too, and come with a dual Xbox and PC license and cloud saves via Xbox Play Anywhere.

The Xbox Series X remains a powerhouse, while the affordable Xbox Series S is the cheapest way to get the latest games. Xbox Game Pass is having its best sprint of quality additions ever. And finally, Microsoft confirmed that it is committed to future Xbox hardware, revealing a renewed long-term partnership with AMD for next-gen console hardware. Has Xbox finally turned a corner?

Has Xbox turned a corner?

Gaming isn't a simple utilitarian thing, and sometimes I've wondered if Microsoft forgets that at times when shaping Xbox's direction and messaging. Gaming is more than simply buying and using a product — its a hobby, and a community. A very passionate community, where sentiment plays a much larger role than it does for things like Microsoft 365 for Business or Windows Azure.

As Microsoft pulled the trigger on putting games onto PlayStation full in the knowledge that Xbox customers will get nothing in return from Sony, many Xbox fans felt betrayed. The idea that spreadsheets were running the show sucked a lot of the joy out of the room, and excitement for the platform in general.

Xbox itself said that Sony uses money from Xbox games like Minecraft to exclude Xbox customers from third-party titles like Black Myth Wukong, Silent Hill 2, and Final Fantasy 16 — which end up hitting Xbox months or sometimes years after the fact. It's hard not to feel like a second class citizen in that gaming universe.

When the frame of reference for the industry falls on things like Sega's infamous post-Dreamcast exit, and failed Microsoft consumer commitments like Windows Phone — it's not hard to understand why many thought Xbox was gearing up to become just another simple, boring publisher. Over the past few months, Xbox has worked hard to convince us that this won't be the case.

Xbox Game Pass has been on an absolute tear the past few months, landing banger after banger with titles like Blue Prince, Clair Obscur, DOOM: The Dark Ages, and various others. The near-term future looks absurdly stacked too, with Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, The Outer Worlds 2, Keeper, and more slated for later this year.

The Xbox Showcase earlier in the month gave us a glimpse at a truly glorious future for Microsoft's first-party, with studios like InXile and Obsidian hitting new levels of production quality. There's so many other projects on the horizon too, like State of Decay 3, Fable, Gears of War: E-Day, and support from third-party publishers is stronger than ever too. Square Enix and other Japanese publishers have been lining up to join the Xbox party, and seem more eager than ever to share a stage with team green.

I think the real turning point was the recent flurry of hardware commitments, above all.

It's easy to look back through the games industry at other companies that exited hardware and draw comparisons. It's true that Microsoft's Xbox hardware sales figures haven't made for optimistic reading over the past few quarters. But it's really a small piece of the wider ecosystem Microsoft is building here.

We got a full commitment to next-gen Xbox hardware this week, complete with assurances that it will run your current library of Xbox games via backward compatibility. That has reinvigorated confidence in the platform among those who seek to doubt Microsoft's commitment. Microsoft also hinted that its partnership with AMD could yield Xbox devices "in the living room, and in your hands," implying that the holy grail of a native handheld Xbox console gaming experience is still on the cards.

The announcements helped put to bed rumors that future Xbox hardware would be made entirely by third-parties, which emerged after Microsoft unveiled the Xbox Ally PC gaming handheld with ASUS. That doesn't mean Microsoft isn't gunning to bring Xbox and Windows 11 closer than ever. The hints that the next-gen Xbox could also incorporate Steam and other PC stores opens up a universe of possibilities and versatility that has typically excluded console gamers, and even PC gamers when it comes to playing conveniently from the living room, desk and keyboard-free. I've seen positive reactions from mainstream content creators who usually wouldn't give Xbox even a polite second glance.

Across Xbox Cloud Gaming, third-party Xbox-branded PC gaming hardware, first-party Xbox console hardware with backwards compatibility, and Windows 11 itself — Microsoft's vision of a digital gaming ecosystem where your content, save files, and community goes with you is well and truly taking shape.

The road will be long and challenging to navigate, but for the first time in a long time, in my opinion, it feels like the destination is visible on the horizon.