In a recent interview with Mashable’s Tech Editor, Timothy Beck Werth, Sarah Bond answered a bunch of questions relating to the release of the ASUS Xbox ROG Ally and Ally X handheld gaming PCs, a nomenclature that is too long for it’s own good. In this, two main talking points took the internet by storm, creating a ton of press and therefore, opinions. The problem is how many people viewed these talking points as mutually exclusive points:
1 – Xbox is developing a premium console with a curated experience
2 – Console exclusive games are antiquated
If we pair this with the recent Bloomberg story where Jason Schreier pointed out that Xbox needed to make at least a 30% “profit” and how that aligned with Microsoft’s purchase of Activision-Blizzard along with other studios, it is a lot to consider. It is borderline insurmountable and requires a ton of critical thinking to navigate. We think that by separating these aspects into solitary elements, that we can make sense of it all. But it doesn’t work that way. These may be strands but there are many that make the rope.
In my personal experience, when it comes to corporate oversight, demanding blood from a stone seems to be the Achilles heel to the affected party. In this case, Xbox is facing an uphill battle brought on by their very own. A 30% profit margin feels unobtainable when you are constantly shuttering your studios and releasing hardware at higher price points. It might feel like a challenge or a catalyst to cut off the limb. An excuse to shutter a program just because it doesn’t seem to work out all too well.
I can’t say for sure why this is happening as any reasoning from me would just be built on suspicion. I can’t ask questions because those who know the answers will never divulge that information. When it comes to Microsoft, they are an enigma, at least in this modern day. Xbox on the other hand, feels more purposeful. There are clear goals, lines in the sand that are being drawn. Absolute distinction. They might be one in the same to many people, but it is clear that one hand is dominant.
The Numbers, Mason…
In 2022, Microsoft purchased Activision-Blizzard to the sum of $69 billion dollars. This came out of discussions between Kotick, Spencer, and Nadella back in 2021. As the sources state, this purchase came due to the sudden land grab by companies like Tencent, NetEase, Google, Apple, and others. The only reason why the sum was so large was due to the stock costing approximately $95 per share. In 2021, Activision-Blizzard’s net income ranged around the $2.6 billion dollar range, making the deal seem quite strange. But it wasn’t about the money, it was about remaining within the game of business and not being purchased by another company that could have made more detrimental cuts. Cuts were inevitability, but the length and depth of each slice is what truly mattered here.
Fast-forward to 2025 where we are currently seeing Microsoft spend an upwards of $30 billion into AI. This comes before a July 30th report stating that they saw a revenue of $76.4 billion with a net income of $27 billion. This is mostly driven by Microsoft 365 Commercial products which saw a 16% increase. The average increase, year-over-year has been around 15%.
Xbox’s revenue sits at a tune of $23 billion with a hardware drop of 25%. It is still a large number but not enough to make up for the bill of owning Activision-Blizzard. A 30% increase means that the brand must recover that 25% hardware loss and then some. Which is why we have seen a mix of layoffs and price increases to services like Xbox Game Pass.
When we take a step back and take in all this information, it is clear to see that perhaps team Xbox deserves a bit of the benefit of the doubt. I’m not saying they are free from blame as livelihoods are at stake. Microsoft has its own issues such as hiring only contract workers 6 to 12 months at a time and letting big name studios crumble at the mercy of mismanagement. Unfortunately, it is rare to see the powers that be become thrown to the same wind as those who have been working tirelessly in the games industry. The unfortunate truth is, we can’t necessarily let Xbox fade away without someone else taking their place, and we are at the point where a new console leader will never truly emerge.
There is no console war, only console survival.
Bespoke Delivery
Looking back at Sarah Bond’s statements, Xbox is looking for other avenues to success. In a way, exclusive games do feel a bit antiquated. Famed titles like Gears of War, Forza, and now Halo have made their ways to Sony’s PlayStation 5 family of consoles. Past titles like Minecraft had its blocky tendrils all over other platforms as well. Of course, this is not exclusive to Xbox or Microsoft. Sony’s MLB The Show has seen its titles come to the Xbox family of consoles, and even titles like God of War and Ghost of Tsushima have made their way to PC via Steam. Whilst not necessarily an Xbox product, Windows is a Microsoft one.
Ubiquity is a mindset, and the lines are beginning to blur on what makes sense. We have been seeing the tradition of specific games released on specific consoles, but because game development has risen over the years in both quality and cost, it feels as if we are getting less and less games. Sony, a company not known for purchasing studios as quickly as others, heavily invested in third-party exclusive deals, obtaining downloadable content or entire games to help drive users to their platform. I still wonder the level into which this may or may not have worked.
Of course, I can’t forget about how Xbox worked with ASUS and AMD to deliver the ROG Xbox Ally and Ally X. As we know, the software present does give the handheld a unique, close-to-console experience while still providing the benefits of being a PC handheld. I stated how it felt like an illusion during my time. While the price of the Ally X felt a bit extreme, it managed to sell out. On top of that, it wasn’t necessarily the device as a whole that sold people, it was the concept of having a device that managed to integrate multiple platforms into one.
Bridging the gap between Xbox Game Pass, Steam, Epic Games Store, and many others feels akin to Cyrus bringing together all the New York gangs in the famous cult classic, The Warriors. Xbox wants to make exclusives antiquated because it feels better to have everything everywhere. They want to deliver a premium and curated experience because we have seen many games release on PC that do not live up to the quality and demands many gamers want these days. Does that equal “expensive” in any case? Who is to say? We won’t know until Xbox shows their cards and it may be a while before this reveal. When it does happen, Xbox leadership will ask you one question: Can you dig it?
