Microsoft Reshuffle Makes Huge Changes To Team Xbox, Matt Booty & Sarah Bond Promoted

Good! I have a lot of time for both of them. They are both very capable people...

If Sarah Bond is now the ‘President’ of Xbox, what does that make Phil Spencer?

@AccessibleDaydream 'CEO of Microsoft Gaming' is Phil's current title! Has been for a little while.

I don’t really care overall I just want xbox studios producing top AAA games in overall quality line with TOTK and GOWR but not those games of course.
Even though the recent three were ok games they need to produce top console and game pass sellers that grab the general publics pure desire for an Xbox game experience.
Just like recently Spider man 2 and Mario Wonder.
But of course not those games.
Basically what Redfall, Starfield and Forza should have been instead of just good to a bit better than good.
They should have been masterpieces.

Matt Booty is a wierd one. If I was to blame anyone for XGS past problems, it would be him, as I feel like his job is more involved in that sort of thing day to day than Spencer.

But everytime I hear him in an interview he comes across really well and a really knowledgeable person in the industry and wins me back over.

Confusing guy

@Kezelpaso What is the difference between “CEO of Microsoft Gaming” and “President of Xbox”?

Sarah Bond is great but Matt Booty absolutely shouldn’t be promoted as his work with Xbox Game Studios has been very lacking, and now adding all of Zenimax studios under his watch is a big mistake.

@AccessibleDaydream Xbox is just about the hardware and Xbox Game Studios, while Microsoft Gaming includes Xbox, Zenimax (Bethesda) and now the whole of Activision, Blizzard and King.

Jobs for the boys innit

@AccessibleDaydream both Matt Booty and Sarah Bond respond to Phil Spencer. Matt Booty will be responsible for managing the content and the studios (Xbox Game Studios, Bethesda, Activision, Blizzard and King). Sarah Bond will be responsible for Xbox hardware and software, which I assume includes Game Pass, Cloud, the Xbox Stores on console, PC and mobile (upcoming).

@AccessibleDaydream The CEO is the boss in charge, the president is second in command.

I think they need more people

I'm just logging in to say congrats to Bond and Booty (lol), and to ask wtf poopoopeepee said (seriously that name tf?)

@AccessibleDaydream So Phil Spencer not only looks after Xbox gaming but non Xbox Windows PC gaming, and Non Xbox mobile gaming such as King's Candy Crush.

Non Xbox gaming in the mobile market is a key area of growth for Microsoft and that is why they spent so much on the ABK deal.

Sarah Bond will now look after the Xbox within the Microsoft gaming divsion on a day to day basis.

A new CEO will come in to look after Activison Blizzard within the Microsoft gaming division in early 2024.

Has Sarah Bond really done anything? Never ever heard her name connected to, "x" project was successful due to contributions from Sarah.

Unless I'm not remembering something?

@GuyinPA75 I couldn't tell you what she's done but I enjoy seeing her present what Xbox has been up to at their annual big showcases. I hope we don't lose that now she's president.

I hope this means more eyes of all studios and they don’t get free rein so we avoid Redfall like issues.

How in the hell did Matt Booty get promoted?

@ChromeMud
No I just want Xbox and their games to reach their full potential and their developers release games to the quality of the xbox360 days.

I think they have it in them, I mean Starfield is a good game and I have put about 30 hours in but it could have so much better and hit the masterpiece heights of gaming history and promoted more general public over to the Xbox eco system.

I work in a very high aerospace industry of quality and perfection and when I see what Starfield could have been and many have said the same on here.
I just think why why why it could have been a masterpiece of gaming pure quality and perfection and talked about like say as an example TOTK of Last of Us or gears of war or Halo combat involved.
The same could said for Redfall and Forza.
They are all good but good just above average and it’s a dam shame for Xbox and it’s potential growth in the industry.
It’s missed opportunity for the Xbox eco system to me and the developers.

@ChromeMud
Well I’m not the only one, hundreds of gaming reviews think the same.
You Xbox lot of which I’m one of miss the point.
Xbox studio games released this year the big three should have been better and could have been better.
The question is why weren’t they better and only Xbox have that answer.
Xbox should and could have launched the Xbox eco system into outer space this year with three masterpieces.
And if you lot keep giving them excuses they will never get better.
In fact you don’t have to worry the general public will speak with there wallets and console and games sales say it all and hopefully Xbox will slowly learn and get back to the xbox360 days and lead the way in innovation and pure quality games like they used to.

Because the bottom line and the reason I’m so passionate about it is I want those Xbox360 days back and want Xbox to succeed. But I’m no dum arse that makes excuses for something I love, Xbox need tough love not a cuddles and kisses.

@ChromeMud
And let’s stop fannying about the Series x overall and its feature set is the best generation console hardware there is.
So let’s start getting the best ever games produced for it.

It makes sense but seeing as I don't like the Forza direction. It was the only Xbox game I cared about this year (may or may not play Hifi Rush, I love hack n slashes I just have a big backlog). The work they do may be fine to oversee, but the ideas in the games/studios haven't been compelling.

When Xbox/PS both platforms haven't made me care for much for first party yeah I'm picky but their directions have changed in ways long running or new IPs I just don't care for.

Dreams/Astrobot it is for PS right now if at all, Xbox still finding something to interest me there besides BC support. Sunset Overdrive & Rare Replay (or owning Forza Motorsport 5-7 just because and they are passable games).

Starfield's tech I was curious about and it's not better than other games like Ratchet Crack in Time or Mass Effect. I didn't expect No Man's Sky levels but at least something. Other than Bethesda charm it's a bit disappointing I find in some areas. Outer Worlds/Journey to the savage planet's humour and worlds were more exciting and JTHSP was fun.

I'm on the look out for some good modern racing game besides Grid Legends/ok state of Project Cars 3, fun of Gravel/OnRush/Xenon Racer the past few years besides Shift 1 & Prostreet (circuit racers not into open worlds) currently.

Both Sony/Xbox have their offerings but eh I'm not missing out really not until they have games in genres I can get behind.

Racing (eh careers, eh mechanics, pretty boring, going retro with more compelling ideas or the odd stuff that's the last few years like I mentioned, cars/bikes only get you so far if the game is too hard or too dull, hard as Ride 4 love the Forza Motorsport 2 region system but pro physics and AI even on easy, and others just being so boring or plain design I can't find fun in or so restrictively boring/bad/awkward to play),

shooters (multiplayer, I'm playing old retro modern shooters singleplayer instead, mechanics/research of what has been done in the genre, Immortals was at least something theme wise),

platformers (Mario/Banjo inspired then others of the era, pass) are looking pretty eh for me right now.

Hack n slash/tactics games are looking good (Bayonetta 3 was ok, Valkyrie Elysium is fun) and 2022 (got around to in 2023) had many by Square Enix I've enjoyed and I don't really play Square games that much.

RPGs of other kinds/open world action adventure games no thanks.

I don't care for first party from either Sony/Xbox right now with some directions so particular third parties, retro games with BC (or older consoles) or certain Nintendo when they aren't so expensive (usually end of the gen or birthday/Christmas).

Then again Pikmin 4 annoyed me with certain changes too.

I just want to see more high quality games out of Microsoft. Inconsistency in that area has really hampered them imo.

And make Japanese exclusives a focal point going forward from team Xbox.

@ChromeMud Just checkout the reviews, public reception and sales, hell check out the user reviews on the games on your Xbox and you will the games aren't getting the same love that Mario, Zelda and Spider-Man 2 are getting. Redfall is ass, Forza is massive disappointment, Hi-Fi Rush while good is largely forgotten leaving Starfield as the only big win for Xbox and even then it doesn't have that 1st party gloss that Sony and Nintendo games have.

@DennisReynolds
Thank you at least someone on here sees and understands this.
Xbox studio games should have that first party gloss as you pointed out. And it’s those first party games with that gloss that sell the brand and momentum behind the brand and general public interest.
What amazes me is how come third party studios can produce better games for multi platforms including Xbox than Xbox own studios can.

With Xbox it is like the third party studios are producing the best games and Xbox own studios are producing the second rate games.
It’s like it’s totally opposite to the normal and a bit of shame on Xbox studios.

@OldGamer999 Look at the marketing, didn't see a single Starfield trailer on TV yet you can't move for Mario and especially Spidey 2 trailers on there to the point even my Mum is aware there's a new Spider-Man game due to the ads being constant. End of the day nothing about Starfield screams Xbox, its a great game imo and up there with my favourites of the year but it is just another Bethesda game while Spidey 2 feels like a Sony game and a game i could only play on Playstation. Sony and Nintendo treat the bigger 1st party games like the biggest thing in gaming while MS seem to treat 1st party games like anything else.

@GunValkyria Why would that change things?

@DennisReynolds
Some very good points there.
I have UK ITV channel on and in each advert break there has been Mario Wonder and Switch adverts.
But it’s not the main point for me about Xbox first party games it’s that they should be better and have that polish and be up there with the best games available, just look what remedy have done with Alan Wake 2 up there with the best of the best.

For me it’s a shame as Xbox first party games should be better after three years of this generation be better quality and there alongside the best of what Sony and Nintendo and third party studios produce.
It doesn’t mean we don’t like Starfield it should have just been better and help Xbox gain momentum with the general public and put the Xbox brand in the spot light.

Will be interesting next year 2024 to see if Xbox new first party games are any better and up there with the best, at this point in time I’m not really sure they will be.

@BrilliantBill and God of War last year got the same level of hype Spidey 2 has to the point PS5's were being sold on GoW's name. The biggest 1st party games of the year should be events and giving the red carpet and not be upstaged by DLC for a 3 year old game. The new Forza just dropped that should be massive yet i felt the new The Crew game got more marketing.

@BrilliantBill The first Horizon game was getting competition ads to win a PS4 on Channel 4 back in 2017. Fact is Sony market their big games hard, you know when a new big Sony is out because you see marketing almost everywhere just like you do Mario, Pokemon, Zelda and such with Nintendo. MS don't do this not even with Halo, their new games aren't events they're just new games like any other.

I've enjoyed the Series X (and PS5) generation thus far but Xbox is clearly getting trounced by the PS5 once again due to better marketing, superior exclusives and more of them. If gamers are not to end up with a choice between Sony, Nintendo and PC gaming with Microsoft going the way of Sega albeit a third party behemoth then I hope this new leadership structure picks up the slack quickly.