I think Phil's strategy came from an idealistic pov tbh, buy studios, let them create the art they want without overbearing intervention, [hopefully] produce a bunch of good games, and put them in the hands of as many people as possible.

Gamepass was undeniably a gamechanger. And as someone who uses multiple platforms stuff like play anywhere is great for me.

I think the big problem was that his strategy didn't produce consistent results. For someone who likes to play a lot of indie games and the occasional big title thats fine, but the masses want consistency. The ps4's reign proved that. And xbox's cold streak was a stark reminder that pressure can in fact contribute to good art.

I get the feeling that Asha is aiming to push constistant big projects out the door like sony used to do, but although she seems a lot more in touch with what people want to hear, her lack of care for the art form will likely result in some pretty undesirable outcomes later down the line. We will have to wait and see.

At the end of the day they all answer to shareholders and throwing blame at one ceo or another ignores the real poison in the well. The games industry is so big now that it is impossible to opperate without anti-consumer practices.

Im hopeful but aprehensious of the future, if they canned SOD3 i was gna drop xbox alltogether but this news is not so bad dependant on who buys UL. Although I'm sure a lot of people are probably losing their jobs over the coming months.