Xbox's Big Turnaround Hedges Everything on Gamers' Nostalgia

All products featured here are independently selected by our editors and writers. If you buy something through links on our site, Gizmodo may earn an affiliate commission. Xbox wants players to feel like “Xbox gamers” again. To do that, the company behind the big green “X” needs to regain all the gamers it lost in its mindless quest for game subscriptions. Knowing today’s players and their longing for a simpler—and less anti-consumer—era of gaming, it may be Xbox’s best and only bet. On Thursday, Xbox’s new CEO, Asha Sharma, and chief content officer, Matt Booty, published an internal memo that they had sent to Xbox staff. The letter revealed the “Microsoft Gaming” brand was now—simply—”Xbox” again. Separating itself from Microsoft is a smart play. It’s the tech monolith’s last fully consumer-facing brand. The broader Microsoft portfolio looks like a Charlie Kelly conspiracy board of government (and military), B2B, and AI contracts. Xbox’s previous leadership under Phil Spencer spent the last few years letting the Xbox Series S and Series X slip away into obscurity. In 2026, Xbox’s new goal is putting players’ butts in seats, and that means returning to the “Gen 9” consoles. In an